Beaters, Burnouts, and Boost add up to Having a Blast at the 2025 Duct Tape Drags
Don’t get it right, just get it running.
That mantra is evident after strolling through the pits at Tucson Dragway for the annual Duct Tape Drags put on by David Freiburger and Derek Bieri. One recognizes right away that this is no national drag racing event or even a sportsman points weekend – this is absolutely run what ya brung, low buck, horsepower first appearance dead last, type racing. And it was packed. Sold out in fact.
The two-day event features grudge match racing both days, a big burn-out pit, a tri-five shootout, and even a show for those that don’t care to race, or their car couldn’t make it through tech. Saturday afternoon culminates with a Battle of the Beaters for cars with a value less than $5,000 featuring three classes: Naturally Aspirated, Power Adder, and a Bogus class for vehicles deemed higher value than $5K, but so entertaining that we want to see them race anyway.
The racing is clearly for fun and even the official rules warn to check your ego at the gate because, “you might get hurt when the judges ridicule your car and joust with the crowd to decide if your car will be allowed to race.” In short, everyone is there to have fun with cars, regardless of chrome, perfect paint or even style.
The cool thing is that there are hardly any rules other than the vehicle’s perceived value and will be deemed worthy to race by crowd applause and the “judges”. Of course, the cars must pass NHRA tech inspection to run, but if you want to see some innovative engine applications and determination to make what you have run, the Duct Tape Drags delivers.
The weekend is as laid back as a road trip with Derek in one of his Roadworthy Rescues or Freiburger’s former Roadkill adventures. There’s a huge bonfire both evenings, lots of camping, and just plenty of hanging out with other home-built hot rod enthusiasts. This year saw stellar weather (compared to last year’s scorching heat), and a complete sell-out for the racing, burnout pit, car show, and even the campsites!
Our Arizona based photographer and S10 superfan, Terry Lysak, made the trek over to the DTDs and shared a few pics from the weekend fun and we’re sure DF and Derek will have event coverage on their YT channels soon. We’re sure it’ll all happen again next year, so you might want to start in on that project car sitting under a tarp in the yard cause you shouldn’t worry about making it right – just get it running!
Photos: Terry Lysak
