When I am scouring the internet in search of our weekly Truckin Fast Wednesdays feature video, I generally search for “drag race” and whatever type of Dodge or Ram truck I am have chosen for that particular week. This little gem below came up with “spectator drag finals” and while I wasn’t sure what to expect – I certainly wasn’t expecting to see a Dakota and a Silverado “drag racing” around a small oval track.
In my years of racing, I’ve never seen a “drag race” that took place around the entirety of an oval race track but this video of a Dodge Dakota (looks like an R/T) against a Chevy Silverado shows just that. As soon as the video begins, it is obvious that this is not your average drag race as the two trucks pull out of the small infield area by drifting out onto the track. At that point, I expected that this was some sort of temporary drag strip setup in the straightaway of an oval course but as the trucks quickly hit the first turn it is clear that this is some sort of drag race/NASCAR hybrid – with street trucks.
While you might expect that the lighter Dodge Dakota R/T would have an advantage in the turns, the larger Chevy Silverado actually appears to handle the corners a bit better. However, the Dakota is nasty fast in the straights once the two trucks are out and moving. In race one, the Dakota falls behind through the first turn as the Silverado has the shorter run in the inside lane only to catch up on the back straight, falling back a bit through turns three and four only to blast away as the two hit the final run to the finish line. In the second race, the Dakota starts on the inside and hands out a serious beating to the half ton Chevy – giving the Dakota the win in the best of three shootout.
"Before I was old enough to walk, my dad was taking me to various types of racing events, from local drag racing to the Daytona 500," says Patrick Rall, a lifetime automotive expert, diehard Dodge fan, and respected auto journalist for over 10 years. "He owned a repair shop and had a variety of performance cars when I was young, but by the time I was 16, he was ready to build me my first drag car – a 1983 Dodge Mirada that ran low 12s. I spent 10 years traveling around the country, racing with my dad by my side. While we live in different areas of the country, my dad still drag races at 80 years old in the car that he built when I was 16 while I race other vehicles, including my 2017 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat and my 1972 Dodge Demon 340.
"Although I went to college for accounting, my time in my dad’s shop growing up allowed me the knowledge to spend time working as a mechanic before getting my accounting degree, at which point I worked in the office of a dealership group. While I was working in the accounting world, I continued racing and taking pictures of cars at the track. Over time, I began showing off those pictures online and that led to my writing.
"Ten years ago, I left the accounting world to become a full-time automotive writer and I am living proof that if you love what you do, you will never “work” a day in your life," adds Rall, who has clocked in time as an auto mechanic, longtime drag racer and now automotive journalist who contributes to nearly a dozen popular auto websites dedicated to fellow enthusiasts.
"I love covering the automotive industry and everything involved with the job. I was fortunate to turn my love of the automotive world into a hobby that led to an exciting career, with my past of working as a mechanic and as an accountant in the automotive world provides me with a unique perspective of the industry.
"My experience drag racing for more than 20 years coupled with a newfound interest in road racing over the past decade allows me to push performance cars to their limit, while my role as a horse stable manager gives me vast experience towing and hauling with all of the newest trucks on the market today.
