It’s easy to get used to full-size, 7,500-pound diesels running 13, 12, and 11-second quarter-mile times…

But this weekend I snapped out of that bubble I’d been living in lately. At an eighth-mile track south of here, I met up with the owner of a ’99 Power Stroke with a few goodies making just under 500 horsepower, for some impromptu photos. At the track, it was actually a mini-rod racing event, so he was only allowed to make a few passes on their lunch break.

After the truck’s first pass down the strip, the guy running the lights exploded in amazement. “Damn, I can’t believe that big *** truck runs that fast!”

The truck ran consistent low 8’s in the eighth-mile, so it was able to back up its numbers on subsequent passes. It was definitely worth it to see someone outside of the diesel enthusiast atmosphere get a glimpse of what they’re capable of. His ecstatic reaction was priceless, and made me realize I’d been taking for granted all the trucks I’ve seen recently that are capable of even faster times (like 5.90s in the eighth—Wow, oil burners have come a long way).