Getting a chance to drive a car that has set class records for several drivers, at seven different locations, can hit a prospective driver with high levels of excitement.

But it can also come with pressure, wanting to deliver a solid performance on the given opportunity.

Two drivers that have participated in numerous drag and drive events for over a decade got the chance to trade the streets and the quarter-mile drag strip for Utah and the Bonneville Salt Flats this year.

Could Tom Bailey and Dave Schroeder make the most of the opportunity, with both drivers possibly earning a class record, as well as joining the 200 MPH club?

Tom Bailey and David Schroeder have been over 200 miles per hour multiple times in drag and drive competition. Yesterday, Tom joined the 200 MPH club during a record run in Keith and Tonya Turk’s 1980 Chevrolet Camaro at Bonneville Speedweek.

After making his license runs, and an engine swap, David Schroeder of Schroeder-Ens Racing will make his first record attempt in the Turk’s Camaro today

Ask most automotive enthusiasts, and they’ll have an event, place or some kind of performance goal they’d like to hit. One of the locations that is on a lot of bucket lists is the Bonneville Salt Flats, a 12-miles long and 5-miles wide salt pan in Northwestern Utah.

Racing has taken place for well over a century at the Bonneville Salt Flats, and since 1948, the Speedweek event gathers together hundreds of enthusiasts to see who can navigate the salt to set class records, and possibly join the 200 MPH club. In 2025, a pair of drag and drive competitors that have eclipsed 200 mph on a drag strip, will look to add the Bonneville Salt Flats to their resume.

Although not the first time drag racing has seen a ‘cost-limited’ or ‘budget-build’ style of car / class, Cleetus McFarland brought the latest round of his popular ‘Cheap Car Challenge’ to the 2025 edition of Sick Week Presented by Gear Vendors Overdrive.

Although we’ve seen Cleetus, James Taal and Tye Braun compete in quicker and nicer rides in drag and drive events, this idea was met with enthusiasm from not only Cleetus and crew, but also the fans and FRDM+ stream viewers.

By the final day of Sick Week, all four cars survived the week, and Cleetus started that the cars will be back for our Sick Summer Presented by Motion Raceworks event, held June 15th through June 20th, 2025.

The question is: could this style of build / class be the next big thing for a drag and drive event, or in general for drag racing?

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?

With a history of running competitive heads-up radial racing, Lamar Swindoll Jr. is used to the pressure that can come with producing repeatable performance and getting to the finish line on time. After producing mid 8-second elapsed times on both Sick Week and Sick Summer, Lamar decided it was time to turn up the wick for next month’s Edelbrock Sick 66.

For Rick and Jacki Steinke, they’ve been around the drag-and-drive scene for quite a while, and although both have done well behind the wheel, Rick’s 1967 Chevrolet Chevelle 4-door is the more well-known ride.

The Chevelle has been absent from the drag-and-drive scene in 2024, but the classic Chevy known as ‘Honk If Parts Fall Off’ will be hunting for a top spot on the upcoming Edelbrock Sick 66 event next month.

Tom Kuepper's version of the popular Ford half-ton platform served as a farm truck in its past life, but Tom wasn’t focused on field work when he picked up the truck. Sporting a 438 cubic inch Windsor-based engine with a pair of 78/75-millimeter turbochargers, Tom recently went hunting for a 8-second time slip!

Last summer, Chris VanWerden’s Nova garnered a lot of attention, but unfortunately for Chris, it was for the wrong reasons. But one year later, he’s burning the midnight oil to get it back in the game.

This ‘78 Camaro model might only have 41,000 original miles, but a few drag-and-drive events has spurred the owner to make changes for an upcoming appearance at Edelbrock Sick 66.

This 1972 Chevy Nova, sporting a nitrous-fed 355 cubic inch small block and manual transmission, provided the ticket to a father and son duo’s fun week in the Stick Shift class at Sick Week.

Jerry’s 1964 Ford Falcon Sedan delivery is a unique ride to begin with, and he combined old school vibes with a modern boost in power.

“Sick Summer 2023 was our first and only Drag-and-Drive, and was the best time I've had with the car in the 32 years i have had the car.”

Although there are hundreds of reputable engine builders, unless you are aiming for a restricted racing class or have specific needs, crate engines are a great choice for a street or strip build.