Why would you build an uphill drag strip—wouldn’t the times recorded there be impossible to compare to those from the usual flat strips? Well, when you’re racing semi trucks in a straight line, you don’t need much else than the local shenanigans. And this is precisely what goes on at the Onaway Speedway in Michigan. Created specifically for these semis, this is the only facility of its kind in America. And it recently hosted the Great Lakes Big Rig Challenge, which brought tons of action (pun very much intended).
In recent years, America has started to develop a taste for semi truck drag racing (there’s also the “parade” factor, which reminds us of this 1987 Kenworth K100 that got restored after 25 years) , which happens to be a decades-old tradition over in Canada. In fact, many of the drivers were Canadian, which is explains the language of the announcements. And this ranges from the kind of trucks you usually see on the street to highly modded monsters—they were all present at the said velocity gathering, which took place at the end of May.
The engines and drag racing classes for these semis
These behemoths weigh around 20,000 lbs (9,000+ kg), with the wood-loaded trailers they were pulling for many of the races bringing an additional 120,000 lbs (55,000 kg). And the event involved three main classes. It all starts with C Class rigs, which feature stock turbos and are generally the kind of work trucks you pass on the highway. And while the B Class takes things higher, machines that compete in the C Class have no restrictions.
For the record, the C Class bad boys normally range between 2,000 and 3,000 hp. Torque? Enough to twist the hell out of the chassis and see them lifting a front wheel at the starts—occasionally it’s both front wheels!
Inline-sixes with one or more turbos are the norm here, with Detroit Diesel and Cat motors dominating the scene. For the record, a top-tier engine of the sort costs about $50,000 in stock form, while fully modding it can easily double the sum (or more). And yes, there’s plenty of fierce gear shifting involved.
There types of races at the event
For the start, a dedicated person signals both drivers that they’ve staged as required and only them starts the tree. The latter seems to be the Sportsman rather than the Pro type (i.e., three amber lights flashing consecutively before the green one comes on). And since the procedure is more difficult given the size and weight of the contraptions, it appears drivers can get away with red-lighting once, which should only trigger a restart rather than having one disqualified.
Now, when these semis race without trailers, they use a 500-foot (152 m) course—these beasts are not built for top speed, so you don’t want to carry too much of it over the crest at the finish line. However, when in full 140,000 lbs (63.500 kg) form, the trailer-hauling monsters battle using the full 700-foot (213 m) length, which is just above a 1/8-mile run (660 feet or 201 m).
Those otherworldly scale footprint figures mean there’s no need to concern oneself with weight reduction. So, even some of the C-Class trucks are still street-legal, featuring full amenities. And when you have a whole group of friends cheering in the cabin (during an elimination round!), racing hits differently.
You’ll find just that at the 28:20 point of the YouTube clip below. However, the whole clip is one big adventure, so whether you’re betting on COE (this cab-over engine) or conventional trucks (like this Kenworth W900 that got rescued after 21 years), it’s all there in the coal-rolling arena.
