Horsepower Festival Review 2022

 As outdoor events go this was the nicest weather we have had for quite some time! Sunny in the 80s with low humidity all day long made for a perfect day for enthusiasts to get out and see some unbelievable cars, rods and trucks in our Show-N-Shine where we had over 65 entries competing for 2 best of shows - one for car category and one for trucks. Then 8 categories in cars and 8 categories for the trucks, we still did not have enough trophies for the top quality vehicles we had there! It has gotten better every year.

We started this venue 3 years ago during Covid and it was originally a truck show but then car clubs started to call because no one would let them gather in the cities. The US 36 Dragway sits on large carriage in the country so it is not an issue for large crowds, plenty of room to spread out. I told them to bring them out since our guys love all motorsports so thus the combination makes for a great gathering.

Add in the dyno, swap meet, vendors and the food trucks it is a nice way to spend a morning and afternoon! Once we made the presentations of the Show-n-Shine winners is about time the drag racers start showing up on the other side of the track. The drag racing had over 142 entries going down the track from 6pm to midnight! A wide variety of vehicles from trucks, rods, muscle cars, newer dragsters, junior drags and even a couple of brand new Yenko Camaros! 

The crowd of enthusiasts saw a great show of drag racing all night long! We started out paying tribute to the president of a local Diesels of Kansas City who passed over a week ago from a cycle accident - Joey Hull! We asked the crowd for a 30 second silence while he ran the lights one last time. Joey has supported and attended the event since it started! Anything motorsports he always supported!

Again the US 36 Dragway made for a perfect venue for our event with a great crew manning the track and racing. DIESEL Motorsports/All Speed Expo crew managed the rest of the show, we had fun doing it with such a great crowd of enthusiasts.

The winners are listed below along with photo link of the event!

Photo link:

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.5875017699199079&type=3

Winners:

Diesel Motorsports/All Speed Motorsports want to thank everyone who made this weekend's show a great success and the beautiful weather helped tremendously! There was so many great Car/Truck Show entries we had a hard time deciding since many deserved trophies, we are going to include more categories/trophies for next year! High quality vehicles for this show and they get better every year! Also very high quality race vehicles who entertained the crowd all night long, we thank them for a great show! Of course we thank our sponsors, crew and workers at the US 36 Dragway, DM crew and attending vendors and sponsors! What a GREAT day for motorsports in the middle of the country! Winners are listed below!

Horsepower Festival Winners 2022

Car Truck Show Winners

Best of Show – Truck

Travis Baldwin 2016 Chevy/Silverado

Best Ford

Carl Hufford 1950 Ford F100

Best GM/Chevy

David Walker 1967 Chevy C10

Best Dodge

Nick Hotzler 2011 Dodge Ram 2500

Best Vintage

Derrick Parrott 1991 Dodge W250

Best SUV

Brett Burnett NSK Cadillac Escalade

Best Rat Rod

Paul Hamby 1953 GMC 150 – Johnny Cash Truck

Best Semi

Bryan Chellew 1986 Peterbilt 359

Best Race Truck

Al Roscoe 1980 Dodge D1500

Best of Show - Cars

The Drechelers 1969 Chevy Impala

Best Ford

Scott Hendrix 1955 Customline

Best GM

Brice Haman 1964 Pontiac GTO

Best Hotrod

Jerry Kins 1940 Chevy Coupe

Best Late Model Car

2022 Chevy Corvette

Best Dodge

Darek Schisser 1970 Dodge Challenger

Best Vintage Drag

Tim Owen 1931 Coupe

Jr Dragster

Waylan James 2005 Jr Dragster

Drag Racing Winners

Pro

1- Jimmy Lynn

2- David Williamson

Semi- Robin Hughes

Qtr- Stacy Behrman

Qtr- Jody Watson

Qtr- Jim Lynn

Super Pro

1- Jacob Mike Short

2- Scott Grubb

Semi- Chuck Berve

Qtr- Stacy Behrman

Qtr- Ryan Skaggs

Sportsman

1- Wyatt Wagner

2- Josh Reynolds

Trophy

1- Jessica Lynn

2- Ryan Williams

Jr Dragster

1- Mac Gear

2- Jackson Spilman

Diesel ET

1- Jacob Cole

2- Vince Neiderhauser

Diesel Heads Up

1- Vince Neiderhauser

2- Tyler Williams

Dyno Highest HP

Tyler Williams – 736 hp

Making your diesel fuel last the week! DIESEL Motorsports

 Yes there are some basics to stretch that fuel a little more before fill ups!

1. Keep your lead foot out of the pedal - lol! I do it all of the time, I got to test the power and enjoy it, yes it eats up fuel! Spool back and take it easy on take off and driving, it will make a difference.

2. Inflate your tires! Basic but it works, make sure you have them full especially if you are hauling.

3. Plan your trips or spend more time at home: Of course, easier said than done if you have children but plan the trips out and don't go out just for something to do! Every time you go out it costs you so make it count. 

4. Find the lowest price for fuel in your area along with discount programs. There is even apps for your phone to find the best prices.

5. Make sure your diesel truck is serviced regularly since clogged systems and filters will effect your fuel mileage. Find a local reliable shop or do the work yourself but make sure your truck is working properly.

6. Use some form of diesel fuel additive at least every other tank since the quality of fuel from stations have degraded over the years. This will help in keeping your system clean and efficient. I know about once a month I put an additive in a full tank and find a remote entrance ramp where I floor it to at least 80 mph to get out on the highway for at least 3 times. This helps clean out the stem and it feels like I had a tuneup.

7. If you feel you have sticking injectors or running rough there is a couple of products on the market that will do a clean out of all components using my method mentioned above, I have used CRC Diesel engine clean, Opti-Lube, Gold Eagle and Howes! But there are many out there that will do the same, they are not cheap but can be had for less than $30! Pretty cheap tuneup!

8. If you have older tuner diesels you can dial them back to use less fuel and on newer models there are boxes that are legal in 50 states that can make a difference if used properly.

Just a few thoughts I'm sure many of you have thought of but now is the time to use them since fuel it seems for the time will remain expensive.

How does the price of diesel effect our diesel crowd - DIESEL Motorsports!

 EVERYONE wants to know about the price of diesel fuel across the country and how does it effect us? 

Just like the rest of inflation it passes it on to other products, services and entertainment dollars. It shorts all of us in one way or another because generally the price of our wages have not risen that sharply in order to keep up with rising prices.

Everyone feels it in their pocketbooks from the lowest to the highest wage earners, so where do we feel it first?

At the fuel pumps every time we stop to fill back up whether it's your diesel pickup or your car. We stand there watching the numbers click by and are in shock when they stop for a full tank. From two years ago I know my old 12v Dodge went from $60 to now $160 for a 35 gallon tank. More than double from two years ago so I know my wages have not doubled.

So like everyone else, I look where to cut elsewhere on the budget! Do I not go out to eat as much, travel as much, and/or spend less at the stores! I try an anticipate what is coming next in order to plan for it. Some store items have more than doubled while others have risen 3-5% so where do they get the 8% inflation rate? I know they think we are dumb, but we are not and most have had simple math.

Our poor trucking companies are getting squeezed on driving and delivery of products. What they priced last week may have gone up this week. Normally it ALL gets passed on to consumers through price increases. Like everyone else then the stores and /or services have to raise their prices.

Does it effect our events, yes it does, but we went through this in 2008. We rely on local shops and businesses to send their customer's trucks to our events. We do more localized events so people don't have to travel as far and use so much fuel to come to the events.

Travel to and from work makes it tougher for all segments of work, farming, construction, shipping and automotive repairs. Again, it cuts into our discretionary income for when we want to relax and forget about the work week. After being closed up for 2-3 years because of Covid it makes it even more unbearable for the working class.

So what do we do? For many young people who have not been through tough times it is a first. For those of us who are older we can give some insight on how to handle the situation a bit better. But make no mistake it is not easy and yes, it does get better.

Series one - I will continue as to how to adjust some posts may be little some may be long. Some of the suggestions may seem simple to many of you but if you have never experienced the current atmosphere it may be new so take what you can and leave what don't agree.

EAST Coast Diesel Motorsports 2022 Review!

The Numidia Dragway after 13 years changed our date to a month earlier because of higher paid track rental! So after changing dates I knew we had an uphill battle in front us including the Covid period where many people stayed home! Throw in the hurting economy with high inflation, double fuel prices ($6-7 a gall East Coast) and date change we accepted the challenge this year.

We came out just fine most likely because we have held this event so long over the years and we tripled the advertising budget for more local participates! Beautiful weather of course helps which being a month earlier did help a few degrees but for local they said it was warm than usual 87º which is fine for me coming from 100º! Cool breeze all day along with low humidity it was a sunny great day for a fun event.

DIESEL Motorsports included new classes for 1/8th mile racing for diesel and gas trucks. Over 8 classes for racing along with new classes for the Show-N-Shine which had over 50 trucks of SEMA quality! We moved the gates open time to noon instead of early morning so people could have time to drive to event on Saturday. All afternoon activities included vendors, dyno competition, show-n-shine, Grudge racing, and race classes till 5pm.

DIESEL Motorsports started the pulling around 5:30 pm with 8 classes of pulling which included diesel trucks, tractors and modified multiple engine rails. Pullers with up to 3000 hp trucks and tractors went down the 300 ft track and produced a great show for the crowd.

Since the locals considered it warm many every year line both sides of the tracks with trucks, popups and coolers (tailgating) to watch the activities. The crowd stayed pretty much through the entire day because there is always plenty to see and show the kids with so many activities going on throughout the day.

I noticed from years past a lot of competitors not coming from out of state with fuel prices so high but did notice an uptake of a lot of PA entries. I don't blame them with high fuel prices and towing a vehicle you only get 8-10 miles per gallon hauling. We still had a lot of great trucks and tough competition with many local shops sponsoring the event.

Numidia Dragway is only 2 hours from Philly, Newark, NYC, Baltimore and located in the Eastern part of Pennsylvania! It makes for a great place for truck event on top of the Poconos mountains! We met a lot of new young people and saw many older faces from when the event started! Always a pleasure working this show even though trying to get there flying was an issue this year!

DIESEL Motorsports/Truck Motorsports wants to thank ALL of the fine people/fans/competitors who came this last Saturday to the show! With a change of dates we decided to change a few things up such as classes, trucks, diesel & gas and pulling classes/times! Still the same great gathering of trucks, vendors, dyno competitors and race/pull competitors - it was a fun day!

East Coast Diesel National Winners: 2022

Racing

ET Bracket – Diesel – ¼ M

1. Dennis Harnish – Quarryville PA – 06 GMC/R-.062/DI-11.75/ET-11.790/MPH-110.72

2. Doug Brarens – Stroudsburg PA – COECummins/R.091/DI-19.40/ET-19.571/MPH-68.73

ET Bracket – Gas – ¼ M

1. Joey Lamond-Effort PA-03 Chevy/R.169/DI-12.60/ET-12.653/MPH-106.54

2. Jason Hoover-New Holland PA/R.104/DI-13.50/ET-13.716/MPH-93.41

6.70 Index – Diesel 1/8 M

1. Eric Snow-Newark CT-01 Chevy/R-.171/DI-6.70/ET-6.702/MPH -103.78

2. Susan Soga -Kutztown PA – 1934 ChevyRod/R.144/DI-6.70/ET-6.799/MPH-100.08

7.70 Index – Diesel 1/8 M

1. Dennis Harnish – Quarryville PA – 06 GMC/R-.254/DI-7.70/ET-7.794/MPH-36.30

2. Brandon Aungst – Pine Grove PA – 12 Dodge/R-.362/DI-7.70/ET-8.006/MPH-87.70

Quick Truck – Diesel 1/8 M

1. Pat Trichilo – Carbeich PA – 05 Dodge/R-.394/ET-6.448/MPH 21.64

2. Susan Soga -Kutztown PA – 1934 ChevyRod/R.106 ET-6.752/MPH-103.17

Runwhatubrung – Diesel – 1/8 M

1. Pat Trichilo – Carbeich PA – 05 Dodge/R-.243/ET-6.524/MPH 20.88

2. Dalton Ness – Shade Gap PA – 94 Dodge/R-.529/ET-6.341/MPH-112.60

Sled Pulling

WorkStock

1. Tommy Hassler – Bethel PA – 08 Ford – 326.33 FT

2. Ben Gelsinger – Robesonia PA – 05 GMC – 319.64 FT

3. Jake Stewart – Robesonia PA – 06 Chevy – 319.45 FT

HOT WorkStock

1. Tommy Hassler – Bethel PA – 08 Ford – 357.97 FT

2. Seth Ulmer – Lock Haven PA – Chevy – 331.99 FT

3. Ross Harter – Avis PA – 06 Chevy – 328.34

2.6SB

1. Riley Andrews – Pifford NY – 90 Dodge – 261.71 FT

3.0 SB

1. Jared Brown – Wmspt PA – 98 Dodge – 296.22 FT

2. Griffin Sullivan – Moodus, CT 01 dodge – 274.61 FT

Super Stock

1. Tommy Hassler – Bethel PA – 08 Ford – 316.76 FT

2. Calvin Miller – Guys Mills PA – 02 Dodge – 300.26 FT

2WD 6200lb Trucks

1. Ian Erricker – Poolesville PA – 314.51 FT

2. Eddie Ocher – 8-up – 305.09 FT

3. Dale Forrester – Scotland PA – 23 Ford – 296.19 FT

8500 lb Modified Turbo

1. Justin Latour – Brooklyn CT – Addicted – 342.21 FT

2. Jason Forrester – OOZ – 335.14 FTT

3. Cole Forrester – Papa Smurf – 318.49 FT

7800 lb Modified Tractor

1. Andy Forrester -Boss 9 – 341.47 FT

2. Kevin Stouffer – Ruff N Ready – 325.83 FT

3. Ian Erricker – Unstable – 325.11 FT

Mothers Show-N-Shine

Best of Show – Erik Pariseau – Budd Lake NJ – 2012 Dodge Ram 2500

Best Dodge – Sheldon Horning – Denyr PA – 1993 Dodge W350

Best Ford – Hugh Kapalkq - Wyoming PA – 2003 Ford F350

Best GMC – Jeremiah Zimmerman – Selinsgrove PA – 2008 Chevy 2500

Best Rat Rod – BJ Keiffer – Watsontown PA – 1930 Ford

Best Import – Steve Berry – Northid PA – 2016 Nissan Titan XD

Best Vintage – Dayton Cote – Sanya PA – 1991 Dodge W250

Best Semi – William Stewart – Weatherly PA – 1995 Peterbilt

Best Dump Truck – John Robinson – Pennsburg PA – Orange Tri-Axle Dump

Best Work Truck – Chris Coleman – Pennsburg PA – Crazy Train Dump Truck

Ken's Auto Dyno – Highest HP – Justin Burke – 2006 Dodge 2500 – 1413.03 HP

Ford HP - Ben Brenner - 822.60

Chevy HP - Troy Hall - 603.30

Photo of event:

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.5611216345579217&type=3

Automotive Aftermarket - What is going on?

 Having been in the business for over 35 years it is amazing how much has changed and most of it I predicted years ago but no one listened. I was even call a conspirency person by some industry leaders who have now left the business with thousands in their pockets.

I have always had the ability to forecast business trends and that is why I change our company's direction every few years. You have to change with what the market is calling for in purchases.

You learn that from being on the front line of your business, not by asking or surveying past participates. The people who are living and working the shops knows what people are wanting and buying.

We are dealing with a current world of hard to get supplies/parts, wholesale pricing and faster deliverability! 

So what is so difficult about this scenario? 

It produces a topsy turvey environment to do business and survival only comes from the strongest and most persistent. It is time to strike out and take a chance on new markets if they are calling! If you don't someone else will and bypass you.

Is this harder to do now? More than ever but the rewards are much higher now than the past. You get to keep going for another year and then some.

If you are an automotive aftermarket manufacturer, now is the time to look around and see what is happening on the front lines. If you keep listening to your beancounter you may be in a downward trend.

I know a lot of young energetic automotive aftermarket guys who are tearing up the market with their localized products.

Our business may be coming back to US soil in a underground sort of way!

BIG TEXAS Truck Show 2022 Review

 Most of us forget or don't know how BIG Texas can be when traveling by truck. Some of the people who came to our event in Amarillo Dragway drove further than I did coming from Kansas City (8 hr drive) and they lived in Texas. Montana/Idaho my be the big sky country but Texas is the BIG horizons country. It seems like you can see forever across the landscape.

Many of the trucks who came to the event whether diesel or gas was high-end performance trucks that were nice looking machines. Many have been displayed at the SEMA show the year before and some on TV shows.

Being a first year show in the middle of nowhere was not a big show but something to build on for the future. This area and longtime track has good vibes since it was built in 1959 and have held many drag races in the past.

It needs some updating but the young staff is doing their best to bring it up to modern standards with a new timing system installed before we got there. We raced both days with lots of fast times and a best reaction time of .0072. 

The town has a lot to offer as a visitor such as the Cadillac Ranch (Cadillacs buried up-rite in the ground) and the Big Texan Steakhouse and hotel.

DIESEL Motorsports met a lot of young enthusiasts who own their own shops that build some very interesting trucks for show and performance!

We look forward to coming back to this location and build for future events.

Winners are listed below along with photo links:

Photos:

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.5484940481540138&type=3

Winners:

Quick Diesel

Winner - Russell Longo

R/U - Vince Neiderhauser

Quick Gas

Winner - Gary Quals

R/U - Genaro Chavez

7.70 Index

Winner - Lane Wright

R/U - Larry Knapp

ET Bracket

Winner - Bobby Banks

R/U - Fred Miner

Friday Best Reaction Time

Bryan Tucker - .0072

Dyno Competition

Highest Horsepower

Russell Longo – 1138 HP 1926 Tq

2006 Ram 2500

Best Dodge – Dakota Sargent – 1096

Best Ford – Isaih C – 533

Best GMC – Vince Neiderhauser – 696

Mothers Polishes Show-N-Shine

Best of Show – Carlos Molina – 2021 Ford F-150

Best Dodge – Chris Blair – 2000 Ram 1500 12V

Best GMC/Chevy – Cordale Ussery – 2013 2500 GMC

Best Import – Luis Lopez – 2014 Toyota Tundra

Best Performance Truck – Dakota Sargent – 1998 Ram 2500

Best Vintage Truck – Trevor Tedrick – 1983 Chevy C10

Best Work Truck – Bobby Banks – 2022 Chevy

We the People . . . want racing!

 "We the People" has a nice ring to it doesn't it? As we are struggling to deal with the new direction of automotive aftermarket which includes racing I see two divisions! 

The cities want EV clean driving vehicles and the rural areas want fun loving fossil fuel vehicles they can enjoy. As many of you know I travel frequently in all areas of the country and I see many large cities along with hours of rural America.

The cities have way too many people traveling to work or to do business and need EV vehicles to cut pollution . . . but they won't use public transportation. I have asked many big city leaders and politicians and the answer is always the same . . . the people won't use public transportation. They want the freedom of driving!

The rural people have to travel long distances to do business and need vehicles that can endure harsh conditions which why fossil fuel is the choice of many. They will continue to use fossil fuels because of the ease of use and the reliability for everyday work. When fuel prices go up many of the products people use in the cities prices will go up as many of us have seen in materials, products and groceries. 

The "needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few" is being put into play without the resources to do so in our country. I'm being told by industry leaders who are trying to supply the new EV push is that the technology will provide the answer and shortcomings for the industry. 

In the meanwhile how many businesses, corporate and small, with this hurt or destroy? I have said for years the automotive aftermarket is rural America not the cities as past marketing experts have followed.

This past weekend I followed some of my rural racing facilities (weather permitting) and they were packed with people and competitors who are traveling great distances to enjoy a weekend of racing!

Even with high fuel prices they are coming to what they want to enjoy and that is either watching or competing in racing. 

We the people want racing to continue on all fronts, circle, drag, pulling, offload, and road-course racing. Billions of dollars support the race industry with jobs, distribution and income for many families! 

Don't be fooled by the appearance of what is being presented but by reality of going to a local track and see for yourself!