For motorsports fan Blake Stewart, there are few feelings that compare to drag racing.
When he puts one hand on the steering wheel and the other on the shifter of his competition orange 2015 Ford Mustang, he feels the rumble of 800 horsepower. With a rev of the engine, the horsepower turns to a lion’s roar.
As he lines up for his turn at the quarter-mile dragstrip at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park, he feels a bit of fear.
“‘Just don’t mess up.’ Yeah, that’s all I’m thinking the entire time,” Stewart said.
But when the countdown lights turn on, the fear turns to focus. When yellow turns to green, he shifts into gear and shoots down the strip as fast as his car will allow.
“Your adrenaline just keeps going up. It’s always something special,” he said.
Next Wild Wednesdays
May 13
June 17
Sept. 23
Oct. 7
Oct. 21
Stewart is one of dozens of drivers testing their metal ride’s mettle during the park’s Wild Wednesdays.
On these seven nights a year, both amateur and professional drivers alike push their vehicles to the limit down the dragstrip, no matter the vehicle’s make or model.
Stewart’s Mustang is his weekend car. Most days he drives an old Dodge 1500 pickup truck.
The Mustang gets the thrills, but the truck pays the bills. He says he might try it on the strip sometime. No matter what he brings to Wild Wednesdays, Stewart knows he’ll be in good company.
“I think the part I enjoy most is all the camaraderie. Everybody with a common interest gets together and just has a good time enjoying car stuff. I mean, the racing is kind of just a little bit of a bonus,” Stewart said.
The veteran
Vietnam veteran Tom “The Breeze” Brissey has had the need for speed for decades.
Brissey’s first car was a Chevrolet Corvair, a vehicle that was believed to be so unsafe it warranted a federal investigation. For Brissey, the car was nothing but fun.
“I drove the hell out of it,” he said.
He joined the Army and became a reconnaissance soldier, gathering information about enemy forces behind enemy lines.
After he returned from Vietnam, Brissey bought a 1967 Pontiac Firebird, a muscle car known for having a more powerful engine than its competitors at the time.
“It was pretty intense over there, and I might have been trying to duplicate that ever since,” he said.
Now, he races a modified 1932 Ford Roadster. Brissey’s souped-up car is older than most of the people racing but still manages to hit about 130 miles per hour.
“That’s what it’s all about — going faster,” he said. “You feel like the wind.”
The engineer
Cummins engineer Shelby Freese comes from a racing family. Her grandparents used to race in the 1960s, and her father passed on the love of racing to her.
She races professionally, usually behind the wheel of a 1982 Chevrolet Camaro. In March, she competed at the Snyder Sportsman Classic in Pomona, California.
Freese recently relocated to Plainfield from California and is getting to know the area and where to race.
Just off of work, Freese came to the park in her Tesla Model Y SUV.
“I’ve never been on this track. The goal is to race the U.S. National, so I’m like, I might as well just drive in my daily car after work and get some runs in on the track,” she said, referring to the yearly National Hot Rod Association event, which is considered the most prestigious in drag racing.
“When I come with my actual race car, I’ll already have some seat time here,” she said
Freese is not only racing, she’s also taking the opportunity to meet like-minded people and potential competitors on Wild Wednesdays.
“That’s why I guess I’m here. It’s to meet other people that race in my (racing) class. I’ll see them down the road,” she said.
The former champ
Lebanon resident Dalton Deffenbaugh comes to Wild Wednesdays to refine his craft.
“It’s simple to go fast, but it’s hard to be good at it,” he said.
Like Freese, Deffenbaugh comes from a racing family. He started racing at age 7.
“I actually cried my first time racing. I cried going up to the lanes, and I was like, ‘I don’t want to do this, I don’t want to do this.’ And then I made my first pass, and I got over it. I’ve been doing it ever since,” Deffenbaugh said.
He joined the NHRA Junior Drag Racing League, where he learned to fine tune his racing. There, his childhood interest became a passion.
“I always want to be here every single day. It never stops. It never goes away,” he said.
Persistence has paid off for the Deffenbaugh family.
Deffenbaugh’s father, Scott, earned the top spot in the Super Gas category at the 2019 NHRA JEGS SPORTSnationals, defeating two former national champions along the way.
Deffenbaugh won a national event himself in 2024, the Super Street category at the Route 66 NHRA Nationals. He still competes at national events in his modified Chevrolet Nova.
He says Wild Wednesdays are a great time to see if you have the need for speed. But he warns racing can become addictive.
“You start slow and you start going faster. Then, you start wanting to do this all the time,” Deffenbaugh said.
How to race
Wild Wednesdays are open to drivers with a vehicle that can pass a tech inspection.
Drivers under 18 must have a minor release form signed by their parents or guardians and notarized.
Admission is $35 for drivers that want to race their car or $20 to watch the races. Children under 12 get free admission.
For more information about technical requirements, you can call Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park at 317-969-8600 or talk to tech personnel on scheduled Wild Wednesday nights.
For a full list of events at the park, check out its event website.
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Mirror Indy reporter Enrique Saenz covers west Indianapolis. Contact him at 317-983-4203 or enrique.saenz@mirrorindy.org. Follow him on Bluesky at @enriquesaenz.bsky.social.
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