We’re one week away from the start of our first ‘one-off’ drag and drive event of 2025, Sick Michigan Miles Presented By Driven Racing Oil.

Sick The Magazine is based in Michigan, and it’s been a goal to showcase the state with an event entirely in Michigan.

In the first of five stories about Michigan, we will be highlighting the track we’re visiting, and showcasing the official shirt for each track that incorporates the track, as well as a Michigan business.

As part of a group of street car enthusiasts for Indiana called Team 260, Adam Hodson has participated in several events, usually with a large crew. From drag and drive events, to no prep-style races, Adam did a lot of events in an 8-second Chevrolet Camaro, usually alongside his Indiana friends.

That crew came into play during the 2020 season of Horsepower Wars, which resulted in the acquisition of the Chevrolet S-10 pick-up. Adam recently guided that truck to the win in Small Tire at the Back To The Streets drag and drive, and now is preparing for back-to-back events in Michigan, including Roadkill Nights and Sick Michigan Miles.  

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.

One year ago, at M1 Concourse in Michigan, Morgan Evans rolled into Roadkill Nights the one that most didn’t expect to win. After all, the Florida driver came in with one of the heavier entries, an ’87 Dodge D150 pick-up, and just a handful of runs from a mid-week test session.

But Morgan defied the odds, and took her Hurricane-swapped pick-up truck to the final round victory. It kicked the door open of Morgan wanting to race more, and now, Morgan and fiancé Jason Kastner prepare for a return to Roadkill Nights, as well as spending a week in Michigan on Sick Michigan Miles Presented by Driven Racing Oil.

Although some tracks are in full swing when summer comes around, Florida can slow down a bit during the summer months due to the heat and rain showers that are commonplace during the season.

This proved to be right time for Bradenton Motorsports Park and their next-door neighbor, the Freedom Factory, to make some upgrades around the facility. Co-owner Victor Alvarez recently updated what’s going on, as well as some new updates they didn’t mention initially.

At Sick The Magazine, we’ve given away some pretty epic rides! Eight different cars and trucks have gone to new homes, and we’ve even seen them at our events with the new owners enjoying them! But our ninth giveaway car could be the most epic – this drag and drive ready ’65 Pontiac GTO - and it has a brand-new owner!

After taking possession of the GTO, Tom Bailey of Sick The Mag said his mission was to give it away as a drag and drive proven 10-second ride. “When I saw this GTO online, it spoke to me,” said Tom. “And we are going to iron it out, so the winner will get a cool ride, ready for street driving and drag strip action.”

As one of South Carolina’s premier drag strips, Darlington Dragway has not only hosted big name events for multiple sanctioning bodies, but also been the site of record runs and nearly fifty years of history.

The track got a lot of attention in March of 2025, as one of several race tracks targeted for potential purchase by the IHRA (International Hot Rod Association).

Although the track would not be purchased by the IHRA, just four months later, it has been sold to a new owner!

After watching the convertible top shred to pieces on his well-known ’93 Ford Mustang convertible at Sick The Magazine’s recent Sick Summer Presented by Motion Raceworks, Devin Vanderhoof returned to South Carolina with the car, and stripped of its convertible frame and gear, and being prepped for a hard top conversion.

Less than two weeks later, Devin had the multi-time drag and drive winning Mustang up for sale, fueling speculation of what might be next for Devin and driver Josh Davis. We twisted Devin’s arm to get the details about his new ride, and the plans for it.

Devin’s new ride is a Mustang, but a lighter and sleeker 2017 Shelby GT-350 model. Yes, this car is a legit Shelby GT-350 model, the first of twenty S550 chassis design Mustangs being built by J&E Chassisworks in Michigan, and Devin will start prepping it with goals of 5-second runs in 2026.

Literally born into the drag racing lifestyle, Brittany Force has already made quite a name for herself with a pair of world championships in the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) Top Fuel class.

But just like her father, drag racing legend John Force, Brittany gives the drag racing community more than just championships and victories to talk about, and she did it again with a new NHRA speed record last night in Sonoma, California.

Although it’s easy to focus on the elapsed times and who wins classes at events, the big speeds are also an indication of how far racing, and power levels, have come in the last couple decades.

And although it took until the fifth annual Hot Rod Drag Week in 2009 before someone broke the mark, the next five years witnessed four more competitors join the 200 MPH club.

In ten years of Hot Rod Drag Week competition, five different competitors exceeded the 200 MPH mark. We’ll follow up with part two of the 200 MPH club shortly, and see how many more rides can hit the magic speed mark.

The International Hot Rod Association (IHRA) has been the subject of multiple news stories in 2025, as the series has come back with national events that include professional classes, as well as a return to their sportsman classes too.

The IHRA also got a lot of attention for the purchasing of several race tracks, including Milan Dragway, which hosts the second of five IHRA Outlaw Nitro Series events for 2025 this weekend under its new name, Darana Dragway.

Darana Dragway will also be the host track for next month's Sick Michigan Miles Presented by Driven Racing Oil, August 10-17th!

Since the first Sick Week Presented by Gear Vendors Overdrive in 2022, Tom Bailey and Luke Nieuwhof have made a point to highlight all points of a drag and drive event. The tracks are important, but the drives and checkpoints are also a big deal.

For next month’s Sick Michigan Miles Presented by Driven Racing Oil, we will feature a checkpoint from a husband and wife that were Sick Ward participants at this year’s Sick Week.

“Michigan Miles is a great idea,” said Melissa VanTielen. “Our state has so many amazing nooks and crannies. I feel like having a checkpoint at our location would be my opportunity to give the sport a huge shout out and exposure.”

If you’ve attended a National Muscle Car Association or LS-Fest event in the past, this 2002 Corvette ZO6 might seem a familiar sight.

Terry Faust bought the car brand new, and after enjoying it for over two decades, as well as racking up numerous wins, Terry has passed ownership to someone very familiar with it, Jeff Heintz, for its next chapter.

Although Terry would drive and race the car for several years before Jeff was be introduced to it in 2010, the Corvette would get a good bit quicker under Jeff’s advisement. “One of the first events I drove the car in was in Bradenton in 2013 when Terry wasn't feeling good,” said Jeff. “This is special car to me because it's been a shop car since the beginning in 2010 and there are so many memories.”

After news of at least three race tracks closing for various reasons in 2025, including two in the last month, it’s refreshing to hear of a track announcing plans for re-opening for the remainder of the 2025 calendar year, as well as future plans.

That’s the case for Pine Valley Raceway in Texas, which announced their future plans on both their website and social media yesterday.

In the classic movie ‘The Wizard of Oz’ Dorothy said the words “here’s no place like home.” For some, it can be the calming sense of familiar places that makes the difference, and TJ Linebaugh hopes the state of Michigan, along with his drag and drive experience, will play into his results at next month’s Sick Michigan Miles Presented By Driven Racing Oil.

The blue ’78 Fairmont station wagon has been a staple in the drag and drive community for a while. “My first drag and drive was the West Michigan True Street Drag Weekend in 2018,” said Linebaugh.

Since then, the station wagon has laid down a ton of 8-second quarter-mile passes at numerous events, including Hot Rod Drag Week, Sick Week Presented by Gear Vendors Overdrive, and Heads Up Hustle to name a few.

Getting its start in 1992, Thunder Valley Raceway Park in Noble, Oklahoma has gotten a lot of attention in its 34 years of operation.

But the track may not see the 35th year, as its future is now in question after a rumored closing hit social media today.

After years of watching and enjoying the racing and car scene, Colt Beck was ready to build a new ride. But he had to overcome a lot of obstacles, including the car being stolen, but with a lot of drive and some help from friends and sponsors, Colt got it all done in time for the 2024 edition of the PRI show.

“We’ve taken it to some incredible places,” said Colt. “The car has proven to be more than just a race car. It’s a reminder of the hard work, the setbacks, and the triumphs — and it’s now ready for whatever the road brings next.”

“Driving the car isn’t just about the thrill of the road; it’s about connecting with others who share the same passion and helping inspire them to chase their own dreams too.”

Sometimes, a good build gets a bit quicker than expected, and rather than continue on, an enthusiast may choose to take a step back to plot out the future use, and the changes necessary.

That was the case for Tom Kuepper, and although it caused his first Sick Summer event absence in three years, he’s honing in on quick times at the upcoming Sick Michigan Miles.

Former 6-time UFC and MMA fighter and commentator Randy Couture was involved in a testing crash at Flying H Drag Strip in Missouri Tuesday, July 8th.

Reports are that Couture was airlifted to a burn center in Kansas City with injuries.

According to TMZ and ESPN sources, Couture suffered first and second-degree burns, smoke inhalation, and trauma injuries in the crash.

Couture, a motorcycle enthusiast and former US Army Sergeant, was announced as part of the SCAG Racing expansion with the NHRA (National Hot Rod Association) to race the popular Pro Mod class.

The Cryer family’s unique 1963 Divco Milk Truck has become a cool staple at several events, including Sick Week Presented by Gear Vendors Overdrive, and Sick Summer Presented by Motion Raceworks.

Nick Cryer has wheeled the Divco plenty of times, including Sick Summer in 2024. But one year later, Nick traded the Divco for a different ride for his Sick Summer appearance, and nearly grabbed a Sick The Mag orange helmet in the car’s debut.

We first broke news on this 1933 Ford build a few years ago (reported as a ’34 model, but Nick discovered since that time it is a ’33). JT Race Cars handled the initial construction, and after a little bit of motivation from a friendly wager with fellow Sick Summer competitor Mike Turner, Nick and John Tehaar got the ’33 Ford finished up this year in time to test before Sick Summer.