DIESELS ON THE MOUNTAIN

06/11/2015
10 min read

DIESELS ON THE MOUNTAIN

06/11/2015
10 min read

Bandimere Speedway in Denver, Colorado, is the home of one of the largest diesel events in the United States, Diesels on the Mountain. Sponsored by the National Hot Rod Diesel Association, or the NHRDA, Diesels on the Mountain attracts diesel competitors and enthusiasts from all over the nation to compete in both the drag races and dyno events.


Starting at noon, the Northwest Dyno Circuit crew was set up and ready to dyno trucks. Located in the upper staging area above the drag races, the NWDC pulled in a large crowd of spectators and participants. With the dyno running all day through the event, numerous participants of the drag races and curious diesel truck owners had the opportunity to test their trucks and builds.


Starting at 3:00 PM, Dmitri Millard queued up his truck to attempt another run at breaking 2000 horsepower. Millard has been chasing the 2000hp dream for months, coming close at several other NWDC events earlier in the season, but still not able to break the 2k threshold. The week before Diesels on the Mountain had Millard at RKL Diesel Performance in Springville, Utah, where he set a new personal record in the circuit of 1940hp. With only 60 more ponies to drum up to break the record, Millard started his first run as part of the Open Class—with nitrous—and had the best run of the day, hitting an impressive, and heartbreaking, 1975hp! With only 25 horsepower left to tackle until hitting the jackpot, Millard backed down to try again in the evening, after the ambient temperature of the day had passed.


Before Millard rolled his truck onto the dyno, the big hitter for the day was Robert Broadstreet, who set the bar at 929hp in the Twin/Compound Class. For the Single Modified Class, Dusty Smith’s impressive 2002 Cummins hit 731 running on his homemade biodiesel fuel.


Top performers of the day include Stock Diesel winner Mac Grant in his 2015 GMC Denali HD with 546hp; Modified Single winner Dusty Smith in his 2002 Ram with 731hp; Compound Turbos winner Dmitri Millard in his 2003 GMC Sierra with 1389hp; Unlimited winner Dmitri Millard with his 2003 GMC 2500 with 1975hp; and a special exhibition run by Lance Newcomb in his ’82 Mercedes with 137hp.


In Denver, there were a lot of new faces and people competing in the NWDC, including fan favorite and returning drivers such as Verlon Southwick and Hadley Russell. The dyno circuit is just heating up, with more events planned throughout the summer, and with the 2000hp challenge still left unclaimed, any event might be the record-shattering event of the season!

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