Day Two of Sick Summer Presented By Motion Raceworks would prove to be just as hot as the first, in both temperature in the air and action on the race track.

The crowds have always been massive at Great Lakes Dragaway, and the drag and drive faithful would once again flock to Wisconsin for all the action on track, along the drive, and at the checkpoints.

Following a busy day of tech and testing, 342 rides returned to the staging lanes for Day One activities at Sick Summer Presented By Motion Raceworks.

The crowd was once again massive for a summer Monday, and they were treated to some stellar runs and close competition, as the classes got assembled on standings for the first time this week.

With lanes full of street and strip ready rides, Byron Dragway got Day Zero underway early on Father’s Day, Sunday, June 15th for the third annual Sick Summer Presented by Motion Raceworks.

Tech inspection was followed by a test and tune in the afternoon, and the crowds came to see how well cars and drivers were sorted for the week of driving and racing through Illinois, Wisconsin and Iowa over the next five days.

Bryant Goldstone, Steve Morris, David Diehl, Nick Cryer, Josh Davis, and the return of the ‘Cheap Car Challenge’ were among the big talking points of the day.

Noted chassis builder and fellow enthusiast Cameron Johnson was tapped to build a unique hatchback as a birthday surprise for Cleetus McFarland. We spoke with Cameron about how the build originated and some of the finer details.

As a project he built from the ground up starting in 2012, Mike Finnegan might not have foreshadowed his 1955 Chevrolet could be a race car, let alone a drag and drive ride.

The car that employs an old-school HEMI powerplant, thus the name ‘Blasphemi’ from the engine swap, got its first use to do a 2,600-mile road trip from California to North Carolina for the start of Hot Rod Power Tour.

But just a few years later, Finnegan made the choice to jump from pit reporter and drag and drive enthusiast to competitor, and for his 2025 Sick Week adventure, he brings us along for a 5-part breakdown on YouTube.

The announcement of Cleetus McFarland purchasing half ownership in Bradenton Motorsports Park recently didn’t come as a shock to many, as Cleetus currently owns the Freedom Factory circle track right next door in southwest Florida.

Cleetus is known for some radical ideas, but when he got together to discuss ideas with track co-owner and friend Victor Alvarez, they came up with a simple concept involving street cars and a top ten list.

“We’re doing this top ten list because I realized our cars are getting really fast,” said Cleetus. “Although it is fun to make a killer fast pass, it’s one of the most stressful forms of racing you can do. Everything has to go right.”

So, a plan was put together to get back to basics: using a test and tune night at Bradenton Motorsports Park instead of a big race, real street cars that needed to be driven in the gate, and creating a top ten list.

“I wanted to do something to make test and tunes more fun again for myself and my buddies,” Cleetus said. The initial race would be a 16-vehicle roster, and races would be paired by random chip draw each round, and a four-tenths pro tree start would be used, with no transbrakes allowed. A floating break out to keep a reasonable gauge on attainable performance would be used (meaning cars can’t run quicker than the accepted limit).

Although not the first time drag racing has seen a ‘cost-limited’ or ‘budget-build’ style of car / class, Cleetus McFarland brought the latest round of his popular ‘Cheap Car Challenge’ to the 2025 edition of Sick Week Presented by Gear Vendors Overdrive.

Although we’ve seen Cleetus, James Taal and Tye Braun compete in quicker and nicer rides in drag and drive events, this idea was met with enthusiasm from not only Cleetus and crew, but also the fans and FRDM+ stream viewers.

By the final day of Sick Week, all four cars survived the week, and Cleetus started that the cars will be back for our Sick Summer Presented by Motion Raceworks event, held June 15th through June 20th, 2025.

The question is: could this style of build / class be the next big thing for a drag and drive event, or in general for drag racing?

In everything he does, from piloting helicopters to 5-second race cars, hosting events to rebuilding a race track, Cleetus McFarland continues to elevate not only his impact on the sports and hobbies he enjoys, but brings along millions of viewers to watch the adventures on his popular YouTube channel.

It was about five years ago that Cleetus (the adrenaline-fueled alter face of Garrett Mitchell) purchased DeSoto Memorial Speedway, an oval track adjacent to Bradenton Motorsports Park that had sat abandoned for nearly two years.

And after a lot of work and success from that track, Cleetus didn’t have to look far for his next opportunity, as he announced today he is partnering with good friend and current owner Victor Alvarez, as 50 percent owner in Bradenton Motorsports Park.