On almost every drag and drive event we cover, there’s at least one vehicle with interesting stats, a cool back story, or some cool modifications that draws you in.

It stands as a good reminder that being interested in the car hobby is a blast, and that’s before we get to the racing and cruising together part!

The Ford Lightning pick-up truck that is the subject of this article, owned by Jason Long, has served numerous purposes over a two-plus decade ownership, and will serve as the key to his first drag and drive event appearance at the Edelbrock Sick Smokies next month.

After a period where cars were more about the styling and add-ons versus performance, the tables slowly started to turn in the 1980s, where multiple vehicles started to emerge from their smog handcuffed shackles. Trucks also started to get a boost in these times, including the 1990s Chevrolet SS and Ford Lightning pick-ups, and for David Cedoz, the Chevy truck would become a part of his life for 34 years.

David got his first taste of the OBS Chevy pick-up when his father picked up a brand new 1990 SS model, and after his father enjoyed it for ten years, David purchased it to tow his Bass boat for tournament fishing. It would see daily driver orders, and eventually a bump in power for more fun on the street and 8-second runs on the track.

David lost that truck to a fire in 2023, but managed to put a new one together in under 8 months! Can it back-up the glory runs the first jet black pick-up produced in 2023 at Sick Week?

At the inaugural Sick Summer Presented by TBM Brakes, a healthy field of Stick Shift entries turned out. Aaron Gierke was one of 16 that completed the week, and the experience made him plan a comback for more fun, and single-digit runs, in 2024!

“We can’t wait to be hanging with and meeting new people and friends again at our next drag-and-drive. Car and hot rod people, I think there’s no better crowd.”

Wanting to get some more time on Dentley to find some better performance from the twin-turbo 426 cubic inch Gen 3 HEMI-powered ride, the event organizer told Clay Millican to bring the truck out.

“In the meantime, my dad had so much fun at Drag Week in 2019, that we started building a gasser for him afterwards. “

We know Jessie Harris isn’t afraid to exercise his 6.7-liter Cummins diesel-powered 1975 Chevrolet 1/2-ton pick-up on the street and the track during numerous drag-and-drive events. But what does it make for power?

Nearly 26 years after making his first laps in a Top Fuel dragster, NHRA Top Fuel driver Clay Millican still smiles just as big every time he suits up for a 300-plus mile per hour pass. But recently, Clay suited up for a different kind of drag strip run, and this one brought a lot of emotion with it as well.

Since obtaining his drive license at age 16 in 2019, Tom Kuepper has enjoyed drag racing whenever he can, and this 1994 Ford F-150 pick-up has been part of that passion.

For his third-straight Sick Week appearance in 2024, Derek Bieri will bring a new pair of rides to the drag-and-drive party, both sporting big-block Chevy power in cool blue hues.

“Without my dad, I would probably not be in the hobby. It’s the best father-son time you can have.”