Diesel Enthusiasts Assemble: Inside Diesel World

Show season each year is an exciting and extremely busy time for diesel enthusiasts. Just about every weekend, for 3-4 months straight, I’m on the road. Heck, I’m writing this from 38,000 feet aboard a Boeing 737 on my way home from the wildest event of the year: Scheid’s Diesel Extravaganza (complete coverage from that event will be in our next issue, or you can check it out on DieselWorldMag.com right now). If you’ve never been, you need to go. There was an estimated 15,000 trucks that rolled through the gates to watch and compete in sled pulls, drag racing, dyno competitions, and massive show and shines at the Wabash Valley Fairgrounds in Terre Haute, Indiana. It’s a bucket list event for any diesel enthusiast; that’s for sure.

Oddly enough, however, shortly after I step off the plane and return to Diesel World’s headquarters in sunny California, I’ll be packing my bags again for Alligator Performance’s “Hunting For Horsepower” event in Spokane WA, after that the NHRDA finals in Ennis TX, and then heading to the most massive automotive aftermarket event in the world: the SEMA Show. Luring around 120,000 attendees from around the globe to the 3.2 million square foot convention center in Las Vegas, it’s another spectacle you’ll have to witness at least once in your life. Unfortunately, SEMA’s an industry-only event, which means it’s closed to the public. So, unless you’re harboring plans to break into the diesel industry anytime soon (a dream we completely back) the goodies inside SEMA will be off-limits to you. But, don’t worry. We’ll be there, and by the time you pick up this issue, we’ll have covered the show inside and out: All of the baddest diesel trucks, cars, industry news and hot new parts will be laid out bare on DieselWorldMag.com. If you only care for swiping through photos, we’ll have the sickest shots on Instagram @DieselWorldMag. In other words, you’ll have SEMA at your fingertips. Yeah, we got you.

Because attending shows/races/events is the best way to become part of the diesel scene. It doesn’t matter if you’re not a big racer, if all you want is more MPG, that knowledge can be found at events; if all you need is a bit more power for towing, tips can be picked up at events; if you just want a great looking diesel truck, inspiration can be found at events. While we all have slightly different preferences, at the end of the day, we’re all just a bunch of diesel die-hards, and we can learn from each other. The amount of bench racing done at these events is massive. Take advantage of that and go to as many as you can.

If you can’t make it, again, don’t worry. The way we see it… is that Diesel World is your ticket to anywhere in the country, anywhere anything badass is happening. ‘Cause everywhere we go: you go. It’s as simple as that. And as much as I’m looking forward to getting a break in the winter months from this hectic show season (and catching up on my own diesel projects) it’s been worth the madness knowing I ain’t the only one who lives for this. DW

-Adam Blattenberg