A drag and drive isn’t your typical event, it’s organic, and it constantly changes and evolves each day racers hit the track. Hot Rod Drag Week started the drag and drive craze 20 years ago, and it still produces exciting outcomes year after year. We followed the traveling circus that is Drag Week this year. The epic battles we were treated to as racers fought to survive and bring home a class victory was totally worth it.
The Unlimited Class is where you typically find the most radical rides of Drag Week. Six-second passes and averages are the norm here, but there’s also a high volume of mechanical failures. In 2024, the failures happened early and often to the top contenders, and that turned the class upside down.
David Schroeder and his nitrous-fed Corvette fell victim to mechanical gremlins first. The big-block Chevy that powers Schroeder’s Corvette devoured its street-trim rocker arms, thus ending his week before the second day of racing began.
Ned Dunphy’s radical 2013 Dodge Viper looked like it was poised to snatch the Unlimited class and Overall quickest Drag Week crown when racing began on Day One. The Viper ripped off a 6.19 pass at National Trail Raceway and made it look easy. Day Two started rough for Dunphy when metal was found in the engine’s oil, and some valvetrain parts needed to be replaced. Dunphy and his co-pilot got the car fixed and ripped off a 6.20 pass at Indy. When Day Three rolled around, Dunphy was nowhere to be found at US 131 Motorsports Park. During the drive to the track, Dunphy’s engine experienced catastrophic failure, ending his Drag Week.
Les Smith’s 2011 Camaro was making its first appearance on the road at Drag Week 2024 in the Unlimited Class. The car was definitely green and gave Smith some fits, but he was able to record a pair of six-second passes. Smith fought his way through the week and finished, this earned him the Unlimited Class title.
An Ultimate Battle In Ultimate Iron
The chaos in the Unlimited Class opened the door for the racers in the Ultimate Iron class to have a shot at the quickest overall title of Drag Week. Bryant Goldstone, Alex Taylor, and Steven Spiess broke away from the pack in Unlimited Iron and had a dandy of a Drag Week fight. In the end, Goldstone won the Ultimate Iron class and was the quickest overall competitor in drag week with his 6.671 average, followed by Taylor with a 6.845 average, and Spiess with a 6.940 average.
The Drag Week double-up wasn’t a walk in the park for Goldstone and his co-pilot Brian Robbins. Things went sideways bigtime starting at US 131 Motorsports Park when the Javelin’s engine had some major issues.
“We got lucky when the engine started to have problems at the track closest to our hometown. My co-pilot has a machine shop at his house, so after we pulled the engine, he was able to take the damaged cylinder head home to fix it. He had to weld a quarter-sized hole up in the size of the head, and fix the combustion chamber too. Oh, the head was also warped, so he had to deck it, and then put the fire hoops back in. It was a lot of work to do in a short amount of time,” Goldstone explains.
Working through the night wasn’t an easy task for the duo. Robbins actually fell asleep standing up as they worked on the car. They also had issues getting the cam to sync up properly and nearly gave up. However, they kept working and got on the road at 7:30 am to make the trip to Milan Dragway, but it wasn’t a smooth drive. After getting on the road, the alternator died and needed to be replaced. Finally, Goldstone made it to Milan and recorded a 6.54 pass.
The final day of Drag Week ended up being the biggest test for Goldstone. During the first pass at National Trail Raceway, the front U-joint failed on the Javelin’s driveshaft, something that had never broken before. This forced Goldstone to remove the Gear Vendors Overdrive unit off the rear of his transmission, so his spare driveshaft could be used. What Goldstone didn’t realize until he got to the starting line for another attempt was he had no reverse or transbrake. So, the Javelin went back to the pits to get a new transmission and torque converter. With time winding down for the day, Goldstone made a 6.59 pass, securing his Drag Week victory.
Stefanski Fights Adversity To Win Modified Power Adder
Drag Week will test man and machine equally. Chuck Stefanski is no stranger to drag and drive event challenges, but Drag Week 2024 really pushed him. The wild 1981 Pontiac Grand Lemans wagon that Stefanski drives threw several curve balls at him each day.
On the drive from Hebron, Ohio to Indianapolis, Indiana, the wagon lost all steering as Stefanski exited the highway right before he reached his hotel. Stefanski and his crew were able to get the car repaired just enough to make a seven-second pass and keep the week alive. The wagon was also experiencing some type of ignition issue that Stefanski had trouble diagnosing. Stefanski changed out a few parts and was able to solve the problem so he could lay down a stout 7.16 pass at Milan.
On the final day, Stefanski just needed one more solid run to lock up the title. Well, he got that pass with a 7.24 rip, but it came at a heavy cost. During the pass, the driver’s side cylinder head on the wagon’s big-block Chevy cracked. Thankfully, it lived just long enough for Stefanski to finish the run and seal the deal.
The Pro Street Power Adder Show
Two of the most exciting vehicles to watch at Drag Week put on a show each day. Glen Hunter’s 1956 Chevy Belair, and John Faraone’s 1972 Chrysler Charger are both stunning to look at and are fun to watch make passes. The Belair tried to climb the ring gear a few times with monstrous wheel stands, while the Charger looked like a bucking bronco on the track. In the end, Hunter brought home the win with a solid 7.61 average.
Special Awards That Were Earned
The 200 MPH Club isn’t easy to gain access to at Drag Week. You can’t just rip off a 200+ mph run on the first day and get in, you need to run over 200 mph once on one of the other days. This year, five racers made it into the Hot Rod Drag Week 200 MPH Club:
Steven Spiess 206.35
John Faraone 201.82
Les Smith 207.18
Glenn Hunter 200.98
David Diehl 201.64
Another prestigious award a Drag Week competitor can win is the Spirit Of Drag Week award. This award is given to the Drag Week participant who really embodies what Drag Week is all about. The racers of Drag Week nominate someone for the Spirit Of Drag Week award, so that makes it even more special to win. This year, David Diehl was the winner of the Spirt Of Drag Week award. Diehl not only won the Super Street Small Block Power Adder class, he was front and center helping other Drag Week competitors any chance he got.
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