This week’s Truckin Fast Wednesday feature takes a slightly different approach than usual, trading a dry drag strip or a muddy Tuff Truck course for a big, snow covered parking lot where a 2g Dodge Dakota R/T is stretching its legs and having fun doing so. This Dakota starts by drifting from around the building into the foreground followed by a nice snowy donut and a bunch more drifting in the deep snow. Finally, this high performance midsized Dodge truck disappears into the distance – fishtailing back and forth all of the way.
Sure, the Dodge Dakota R/T is likely far more comfortable on a drag strip, a road course or even while participating in a drift event, but being a truck owner I know how much fun it is to raise a little hell in a big, empty parking lot that is blanketed in a foot of snow. While this truck could certainly do a whole lot faster on a sunny day in mid June, there is no question that watching this modded Dakota play in the snow brings back the positive thoughts of this past snowy winter.
"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.
