Death Row Diesel from Spicewood, Texas, was in attendance. Let's just hope the company isn't using its powerful diesels to break out inmates.
Whether it was Dave Dillon smoking his tires or Chris Boerm smoking up the shop, it was all in fun at the third annual Dyno Day put on by the Central Texas Diesel chapter of the Turbo Diesel Register. Upon arrival at the American Racing Technology facility in Buda, Texas, the lines to get in were long, and the lines for registration were even longer. But nothing was going to get the competitors down as they waited and strategized about how to become this year's top truck.
On the Dyno
By 9 p.m., 75 trucks had been dyno'd with quite a few producing more than 600 hp at the wheels. Topping them all was this year's winner, Brian Carter in his red '03 Dodge Quad Cab longbed dualie. With the top end of the engine recently rebuilt and with the help of his little friend (nitrous), he laid down a smokin' 843 hp and 1,484 lb-ft of torque.
While Brian may have been the big winner, the rest of the top five produced impressive numbers. Check them out.
This black Dodge smoked up the joint with its dual stacks pointing straight to the sky. Maybe it was just trying to make everyone else blend in by adding a nice layer of black soot to everything. | 
Don't count the 6.0L Power Stroke out yet. This engine displayed Garrett's 72mm setup with custom turbo piping, including the hand-fabricated air inlet. | 
Dave Dillon certainly left plenty of rubber on the road. The question is, did he have enough left on his tires to drive home? |
This super-clean Dodge Ram 3500 entered the show-'n'-shine contest boasting a 10-lug wheel-conversion setup. | 
Chris Boerm smoked us all out of the shop, but we were lucky enough to get a picture of his truck while we could still see. | 
Nick Almaguer's '06 Dodge Mega Cab dualie was the beauty queen of the day, winning the show-'n'-shine contest, hands down. |
This first-generation Cummins truck used to be an old sled puller. It was souped up with an upgraded turbo (above), a P7100 injection-pump swap, and an exhaust pipe that exits through the hood. | 
Burnouts were the name of the game when not on the dyno. Brian Carter's Dodge dualie sure put on an amazing show. He burned half the tread off his four rear tires in just two burnouts. Let's just hope there was no one in that portable toilet trying to find his way out through all that smoke. | 
Dyno Day wasn't only about those trucks that are made for this stuff. Many participants' work trucks enjoyed the ride on the dyno and pulled some amazing numbers. Who says your work truck can't be tough? |
Burnouts and Show 'N' Shine
Making dyno runs wasn't the only entertainment going on here in Buda. There was also a show-'n'-shine contest for diesel-powered beauties. After a very close competition and a few strategic bribes of the fans (just kidding), Nick Almaguer ended up getting the most votes to win this beauty contest with his white '06 Dodge Mega Cab dualie.
Traction is critical on an inertia-style dyno. Some competitors mounted slicks to get better power numbers.
Like many of us have done in the past (no, officer, that wasn't a burnout-clearly, the ground is just wet right there), people started showing how much power their trucks had by hitting the road. By early evening, we named Dave Dillon this year's unofficial burnout contest winner because he managed to leave more rubber on the road than he left on his tires.
See You Next Year
If you think you can do better or want to participate, look for this event again next year. You can check out www.centraltexasdiesel.com for more information.
But be sure to get there early; this event has grown tremendously over the past couple of years. More than 100 trucks showed up, and there were a couple hundred spectators this year.