Roadkill Nights 2019 by Dodge Is the Biggest, Best to Date

Dodge performance was showcased perfectly with great racing, great weather and a huge crowd.

The fifth annual Roadkill Nights by Dodge event was held in the M1 Concourse in Pontiac, Michigan on August 10 and having been there every year, I can safely say that 2019 was the biggest and best so far. For the first time, Roadkill Nights was held over two days rather than just one, leading to the biggest crowd to yet, numbering more than 47,000 strong.

Best of all, after rain has ruined the racing program each of the past two years, skies were clear and the temperatures weren’t too hot, leading to a great two-day festival of horsepower. For those who couldn’t make it, here is a look at the highlights from the event, from the show-n-shine to the racing program and everything in between. Also, we wanted to point out that while the event is sponsored by Dodge and there are unique prizes for Dodge vehicles, the event is open to all makes and models both in the race and show programs.

“When we first introduced ‘Roadkill Nights Powered by Dodge’ five years ago as a pop-up car show and drag race, we never imagined it would grow to nearly 50,000 performance enthusiasts over two days,” said Tim Kuniskis, Global Head of Alfa Romeo and Head of Passenger Cars – Dodge, SRT, Chrysler and FIAT, FCA – North America. “The positive reaction from our fans and continued growth of this one-of-a-kind event fuels our passion to keep delivering products and marketing for performance enthusiasts.”

What is Roadkill Nights by Dodge

There are two key components to the Roadkill Nights by Dodge event at the M1 Concourse in Pontiac, Michigan. One of the festival that takes place inside of the venue and the second is the legal street racing program that is held on Woodward Avenue. When the event was first held five years ago, the racing and show-n-shine took place in the parking lot of the old Pontiac Silverdome, but when the M1 Concourse was opened the following year, the event moved across town to the new road racing facility.

That move to M1 introduced the legal street racing program on Woodward Avenue, making this the most unique automotive festival in the United States. Each year, the event has gotten bigger and more elaborate, but rain hampered the fun in both 2017 and 2018, but 2019 was nearly perfect. Skies were clear and temperatures were in the 80s, setting up solid racing conditions and a fun pair of days for spectators.

Dodge Dominates the Grounds

The majority of the Roadkill Nights by Dodge event is held inside of the M1 Concourse, including the food truck area, the manufacturer’s midway, the children’s area, the thrill rides and a variety of merchandise tents from Dodge and Roadkill. Spread throughout the many different attractions are the hundreds of show-n-shine vehicles, many of which are Dodge products.

Among the hundreds of cars on display along the curves of the M1 road course track were a spread of cars from the Roadkill show as well as a collection of new models from Dodge. Throughout the grounds, just about every form of the modern Charger, Challenger and Durango were represented, including police vehicles, giving spectators a chance to meet the high performance Dodge lineup up-close and personal.

In addition to the new Dodge vehicles, the automaker had a handful of display tents, some of which have items for sale, some of which have games that you can play to win free stuff and one which houses the Demon drag racing simulator. There are even free airbrush tattoos, along with the other branded swag.

As was the case last year, Roadkill Nights 2019 had two different thrill ride areas, one which took place on a big skid pad where the pro drivers show off their skills with spectators riding along and a second that takes place on a portion of the M1 road course. During the course of the two-day event, the thrill ride drivers took more than 6.800 people rides in the supercharged muscle machines.

Finally, in taking a break from the automotive-themed areas, Roadkill Nights by Dodge has an area of food trucks with all sorts of goodies for purchase, along with a huge children’s area with a variety of bounce houses and a mechanical bull.

Roadkill Nights by Dodge is the Biggest, Best to Date continued…

Patrick Rall

"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.

"Being based on Detroit," says Rall, "I never miss the North American International Auto Show, the Woodward Dream Cruise and Roadkill Nights, along with spending plenty of time raising hell on Detroit's Woodward Avenue with the best muscle car crowd in the world.

Rall can be contacted at QuickMirada@Yahoo.com

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