At truck shows over the last several years, participants whose trucks are either on air suspension or body-dropped (which ones aren't these days) have felt the need to cruise their rides around the fairgrounds with their frames and rocker panels grinding roughly on the asphalt below. The sweet sound of metal scraping on the ground spreads through the summer air, as spectators and participants turn when such an unmistakable dragging sound draws near. Showering sparks fly when the switches in a rail- or body-dragging ride are tapped down at speed, and it definitely draws a crowd. There are certain enthusiasts within the scene who have developed a reputation for dragging their trucks every chance they get and will never hesitate to prove how low their ride can go by putting on a show. Every year, we attend the annual Showfest Truck Show in Greenville, Mississippi, put on by a well-known club, Assorted Miniatures. The nightlife that exists at this show is enough to keep anyone's senses on overload. The party goes on until the wee hours of the morning on the main strip that stretches through the center of town, as show participants cruise their rides up and down the strip punishing framerails and rocker panels to please the crowd. This year's smash-hit event was held from May 14-16 and featured the most intense example of a mini-truck party we have seen to date. Participants cruised extensively on both Friday and Saturday night, wrinkling rocker panels, folding up roll pans, and wearing out rear tires doing smoky burnouts. Sure, participants were getting the crowd revved up, like custom truck heroes, but think about what they were doing to their trucks. I guess that brings me to my point this month. Why do people drag the daylights out of their rides?
Having owned a few previous custom pickups in my past, I understand the degree of hard work, time, money, and passion that is poured into a quality-built show truck, which makes me wonder why someone would want to trash their ride just to get a few folks on the sidelines to cheer. Don't get me wrong, I think dragging is a big part of our scene, and I'm not saying people should stop doing it - besides, it's great for photos - but I just don't understand how someone could put all that hard work into building a nice truck and then take it out and tear it up like that. In fact, I tend to have more respect for the guy who can lay his truck out at a show and let people appreciate it for what it is without having to drag it on the ground to prove a point. While dragging puts a hurting on the truck, we can only imagine what it does to the owner's wallet. Constantly repairing rocker panels and making other repairs caused by grinding a truck's underbody on the ground cannot be cheap, not to mention the inconvenience of putting the truck down and missing shows while this work is being performed, only to get it back and go out and do it again.
We can't tell you how many times we have been at a truck show and agreed to shoot a participant's truck the following day only to discover the next day the truck was damaged the night before from dragging. The truck's battle scars are usually too severe for us to shoot around. This is when custom truck owners have to ask themselves what is more important - dragging their ride or seeing it featured in the pages of the most prestigious custom truck publication on the newsstand?
For those of you who don't mind fixing your truck every time you trash it from dragging, by all means, keep doing it. However, for those enthusiasts out there who have any doubts about laying their truck down while cruising, trust us, it is only a matter of time before your truck starts to show tragic signs of damage caused by dragging. Until next month, keep hitting those switches, cranking good tunes (such as The Thompson Twins and The Bangles), and cruising until your heart's content.