Up next Diesel News 5.18.20 Published on May 17, 2020 Author Mike McGlothlin Tags 4x4 diesel trucks, Automobile Magazine, chevy 4x4 trucks, Cummins, Diesel, diesel performance, diesel pickup trucks, diesel trucks, dmax, Dodge, Duramax, ford, ford 4x4 trucks, power stroke, powerstroke, Ram, Share article Facebook 0 Twitter 0 Mail 0 Scheid Diesel Extravaganza XXIII The Late-Summer Classic Impresses Yet Again The year was 1997, the place was Effingham, Illinois, and a 500hp truck was a big deal. That was how the Scheid Diesel Extravaganza—originally hosted as a Cummins-only TDR Rally—first took root. Twenty-two years later, 3,000hp Super Stocks, 1,100hp street trucks, and 4-second drag races are commonplace. Yes, things have progressed a bit. But thankfully the folks at Scheid Diesel Service know how to plan ahead. Back in 2000, and foreseeing the potential evolvement of an emerging industry, owner Dan Scheid moved the show to the Wabash Valley Fairgrounds in Terre Haute, Indiana, and opened up the event to all makes of diesel trucks. The ensuing explosion in diesel performance led to exponential growth of the once small gathering, and by 2012, more than 15,000 attendees passed through the gates. Today, Mr. Scheid’s life is made much easier thanks to having the Lucas Oil Pro Pulling League handle the logistics of the truck and tractor pull, which draws the highest-caliber pullers in the country. Over at the drag strip, the masterminds behind the Outlaw Diesel Super Series team up with the staff at Crossroads Dragway to coordinate all the eighth-mile action. Scheid’s small army of employees take care of the rest. For 2019, mainstays such as the Show ‘n’ Shine, dyno competition, and kiddie tractor pull were all part of the show, and the action was so unremitting that no one seemed to notice the event had been condensed into a two-day affair rather than three. We certainly didn’t. From the time we entered the grounds in the morning to the time we left at midnight, we were entertained—and we expected nothing less from the timeless, late-summer classic that is the Scheid Diesel Extravaganza.Subscribe Our Weekly Newsletter The year was 1997, the place was Effingham, Illinois, and a 500hp truck was a big deal. That was how the Scheid Diesel Extravaganza—originally hosted as a Cummins-only TDR Rally—first took root. On Saturday night, the top three Super Stock trucks finished within a foot of each other, and Van Haisley came out on top. His triple-turbo’d Rock Hard Ram is a pillar in diesel truck pulling and is also rumored to be the most-powerful Super Stock in the country. It’s worth noting that the top nine finishers were all within five feet of Van’s winning distance. Saying this category of trucks is highly competitive would be an understatement. Friday night would see Scheid Diesel’s own Brad Ingram claim Second Place in the Pro Stock class. And while he and his cut-tire Dodge finished eleventh the following night, Ingram managed to lock in the Lucas Oil Pro Pulling League Pro Stock title for 2019. With competition being so fierce at the Extravaganza, it’s a feat just to quality for the night time show if you’re a Limited Pro Stock or Pro Street driver. Luckily for Nathan Hood, his hard-charging Dodge coined “Hood Rat” got him into the big show on both occasions, and a distance of 317.15 feet earned him the No. 4 spot during Friday night’s Limited Pro Stock action. Amid a sea of Pro Stock trucks, Brent Meyer would put three feet on the rest of the field Friday night behind the wheel of the Lincoln Diesel Specialties Cummins-powered Chevy. Some 29 of the nation’s strongest-running 3.6-inch smooth bore trucks (i.e. Pro Stock) would descend upon Terre Haute for the weekend. In a head-to-head matchup between the fastest diesel rails in existence, Jared Jones and the Scheid crew took the win over John Robinson and the Power Service team. Even though Robinson had the quicker qualifying time (4.27 seconds), unfortunate transmission issues took him out of contention in the final race of the day. During Friday night’s truck pull, many in the Pro Stock field would see their chassis’ uncharacteristically become unsettled—even midway down the track. Such was the case for Matt Penn and the Penn Farms Dodge, a truck that typically ends up in the Top 5 no matter where it hooks. After the rough ride shown here (notice the truck’s rear tires going air born), Penn bounced back for a Second Place hook the very next night. After having to tear down the Lenco in the Pro Mod Dodge Dakota (a.k.a. Climate Change) twice in one day, Steve Royalty and crew were greeted with a fairly intense shut down after a 150-mph pass in the third round of qualifying on Saturday. Despite hard luck and fighting some issues at Scheid’s, Royalty and the rest of the Warren County Diesel crew will be looking for their second win of the season as the ODSS series heads to Florida. After grabbing the No. 1 qualifier in 7.70 Index with a 7.702, the drive shaft in Matt Maier’s ’97 F-250 decided to cut loose at the end of the track. On its way out, the drive shaft cracked the transfer case and took out one of his drive shaft loops—a tough break for what would’ve been a tight-yet-fun day of 7.70 Index racing. Just as the V-8 Perkins in Travis Kuhns’ Pro Stock Massey Ferguson was coming under load, the turbocharger let loose. The ensuing fireball got a huge reaction out of the crowd. Kuhns’ V-8 Pro Stock is fittingly named Trailblazer, as it competes (and keeps up) against the baddest inline-six John Deere’s in North America. This type of failure is proof that these 3,000-plus horsepower machines are likely on the ragged edge every time they pull onto the track. In a field of 40 Limited Pro Stock trucks (also known as 3.0 smooth bore), Derick Amos of Amos Diesel Performance and Auto Repair qualified both days of the Extravaganza with his Haisley Machine-powered second-gen. The highlight of Amos’ weekend came on Friday night, when he placed second with a 318-foot hook. During Saturday’s Limited Pro Stock qualifying, Rob Wright’s second-gen Dodge suffered a hitch failure. However, despite the slingshot effect that inevitably happens when a 1,400hp truck goes from 100-percent load to zero, Wright’s quick reaction allowed him to drive out of it without hitting anything or anyone. From back-to-back Pro Street titles to 5.90 Index dominance, the Old Hustle, New Flow F-150 is still the truck to beat in diesel drag racing. After starting the day by qualifying a little too quick (5.85), driver Mindy Jackson was able to put together a top-qualifying pass of 5.91, pull off the win against Paul Cato’s formidable common-rail second-gen, and beat out Brett Marcum with a 5.90 at 113 mph in the finals. The Extravaganza would mark her second win in a row. In addition to the always-entertaining Pro Stock tractor field, the Super Farm tractors also competed on Friday night. Here, Jeremy Roberts eases his Wicked Whitetail John Deere out of the hole. He would end up going 309 feet and change, which was good enough for a mid-pack finish. If you thought the infamous Super Stock truck known as Cummins Killer 2 was still breathing through a big single turbo, guess again. For 2019, and in an effort to make the Wisconsin-based, Duramax-powered GMC more consistent, a compound arrangement is being campaigned. The old 5.25-inch Columbus Pro Stock tractor charger is now being used as the atmosphere unit, while a 4.4-inch snail (also from Columbus Diesel Supply) serves as the high-pressure charger. With five stroker CP3’s, massive S&S MCRS injectors, an estimated 3,000 hp and north of 100-psi of boost on tap, things don’t always go as planned. After toasting a piston and damaging a second during Friday night’s twelfth place hook, Cummins Killer 2 driver and mechanic Craig Dickey pulled the pistons, punched out the sleeves, and started with two fresh cylinders before the pulls kicked off on Saturday evening. It was a rough weekend for the guys at Gray’s Diesel. After finding bearing material in the 7.3L Power Stroke that propels their 4-second Pro Mod OBS Ford, Brian Gray and his crew had to shut things down early. In the past, their cutting-edge, HEUI-fueled Pro Mod has split a block and bent four Hypermax connecting rods, but it’s sometimes par for the course with a nitrous-huffing 1,600-plus horsepower in the mix. As is always the case, the Pro Stock tractors put on a heck of a show for the crowd. These wheels-up, 10,000-pound monsters are said to be capable of making more than 3,500 hp at the present time. Here, Jack Wischmeier takes his “Barely Gettin’ By” John Deere for a fifth place, 319.99-foot ride. The Pro Stock class consisted of a 20 tractor field on both Friday and Saturday. Joshua Chapman of CFT Performance drove his groundbreaking ‘Nissan Titan XD to Terre Haute, and we found it sitting front and center in the Show ‘n’ Shine. The 5.0L Cummins under the hood has been treated to compound Stainless Diesel turbos, S&S fueling, CTT Tuning, and made 805-rwhp while seeing over 100 psi of boost. In addition to pushing the limits of the 5.0L Cummins platform, Chapman has also proven the A466ND Aisin automatic can handle a lot of abuse, too. It may not be a show queen (yet), but Matt Claycamp’s ’77 Ford is definitely unique. We found it sitting in the Show ‘n’ Shine, complete with a 2011 6.7L Power Stroke squeezed in place up against the firewall. As you might’ve guessed, it rides on an ’11 chassis, too. Jeremy Schmidt gave his grandfather’s old Chevrolet flat bed new life when he decided to pull it out of the barn and drop a 12-valve Cummins into it. Trust us, this truck got a lot of looks while parked under the Show ‘n’ Shine pavilion. S&S Diesel Motorsport was on hand showcasing its 50-state-legal CP3 for converting the LML Duramax to a more reliable injection pump. Complete with a conversion kit, S&S’s CARB-exempt LML CP3 package requires no tuning changes to be installed and works in perfect harmony with the factory emissions equipment. On top of coming across a 7.3L-powered Bronco, several Power Stroke-swapped, older body style Fords were present at this year’s show. This ’78 F-250 was graced with a ’97 7.3L along with the complete running gear out of the donor truck. Total 0 Shares Share 0 Tweet 0 Pin it 0 Share 0
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