The pickup is growing increasingly popular with the new vehicle
buying public. This growing popularity has also found its way to the
drag strip with the advent of the Pro Stock Truck Class and the truck
classes in both Super Stock and Stock eliminator. But like with cars,
the quickest pickups won't be found at NHRA races but at IHRA, NSRA,
NMRA, and other races across the world. The cars are blown,
turbocharged, or nitrous injected. Not one naturally aspirated pickup
makes the top ten list.
On top of the quickest pickup list is Glenn May from the Canadian
province of British Columbia. Glen May debuted his Cranberry Connection
1999 Ford Ranger late last year. This beautiful work of art is not only
the quickest pickup but also the quickest Ford at an amazing 6.395 @
214.38. This puts him almost two tenths quicker than the next racer.
The second quickest is a sleeper to say the least. Freddie Fagerstrom
halls from Sweden no less and races a killer ‘65 Chevrolet pickup. The
truck has a blown 570 cubic inch Chevrolet for power and in match race
trim -- less weight and more boost -- has gone 6.575 @ 210.50.
The number three and four pickup trucks come from the same team. The
Arizona-based Bowtie Bullet team of the Lee family races two matching
downsized 7/8 scale Stepside Chevy pickups. The trucks both have
526-inch Pontiacs for power. Father Butch comes in at number three with
a 6.607 @ 209.69, while son Dale has gone 6.648 @ 210.21.
The first nitrous pickup comes in at number five and that is Glen
Kerunsky from Alberta, Canada. The Breckridge Construction team, like
fellow Canadian May, debuted a new pickup last year, but Kerunsky's was
a Chevy S-10. The new S-10 replaces a full size Chevy that was no slouch
itself, having run a 6.69. The new S-10 has gone 6.655 @ 209.50 racing
in the Canadian Pro Mod class.
Jerry Mungle from Texas has had his pickup for almost twenty years
and has updated it several times since then. He usually races on the
Texas Quick 8 Association but ran his best time at a Super Chevy race.
The silver and white full size truck went 6.705 @ 200.50 and comes in at
number six.
1999 NMCA Pro Street champion Bob Rieger is the pickup found at
number seven. The trick pickup was built in 1999 with a naturally
aspirated 814 cubic inch Sonny Leonard Pro Stock engine, but that engine
was replaced by a twin turbocharged Ken Duttweiller motor. The flamed
black beauty -- despite racing politics -- has gone 6.706 @ 208.46 in
Pro Street trim.
The number eight pickup was unopposed as the quickest and fastest for
years. The pickup of Canadian Joe Delehay was built in 1992 and has a
gone 6.830 @ 205.50. Delehay was the first six-second pickup along with
being the first 200-mile per hour pickup. Delehay races in the West
Coast Pro Mod Association and match races these days.
Chuck Samuel comes in at number nine with his twin turbocharged 1999
S-10 pickup. The car has a 445 cubic inch big block for power. The
Michigan racer is banging on the door to the sixes with an ever so close
7.000 @ 199.15, run this year in NMCA Pro Street.
The final racer on the list is the only one on grooved tires. Long
time sportsman racer Corky Markwart debuted his trick Richard
Earle-built 1999 Dodge Dakota pickup late last year. He races the car
with a 648-inch Chevrolet with a shot of nitrous in the Outlaw Pro
Street class. He has a best run of 7.022 @ 205.29; a six-second pass is
in the future.
Other racers who came close but did not make the top ten were Bob
Dixon at 7.105 @ 195.30 in his 1955 Chevy Cameo pickup, Justin Morgan at
7.105 @ 190 in his full size, 140-inch wheelbase ‘95 Chevrolet pickup,
and Mark Thomas from New Zealand, who has gone 7.162 @ 191.15 in his
blown KB Holden Ute.
THE DRAG RACING LIST'S TOP TEN PICKUP LIST
1 6.395 @ 214.38 Glen May '99 Ranger/526" Ford
2 6.575 @ 210.50 Freddie Fagerstrom '65 Chevy/570" Chevy
3 6.607 @ 209.69 Butch Lee '97 Chevy/526" Pontiac
4 6.648 @ 210.21 Dale Lee '90 Chevy/526" Pontiac
5 6.655 @ 209.50 Glen Kerunsky '99 S-10/706" Pontiac
6 6.705 @ 209.50 Bob Mungle '90 Chevy/526" Pontiac
7 6.706 @ 208.46 Bob Rieger '99 S-10/388" Chevy
8 6.830 @ 205.50 Joe Delehay '72 Chevy/632" Chevy
9 7.000 @ 199.15 Chuck Samuel '99 S-10/445" Chevy
10 7.022 @ 205.29 Corky Markwart '99 Dakota/648" Pontiac
Danny White