We printed 'til 4AM, sold over 50 prints, got sunburnt to a crisp, and somehow still managed to have one of the most fun, fulfilling weekends of the year.
Alberta Diesel Days? You were a friggin' blast.
From the moment I pulled into RAD Torque Raceway on Saturday morning, I knew I was in for something special. The rain was coming down, and racing delays were already the talk of the pit, but even in that grey, soggy chaos, the energy felt right. It was that familiar, chaotic hum of truck-lovin'' Albertans who all came out for the same reason: to watch some gnarly diesel machines throw down. It just felt easy to be part of. It felt like home.
Now prints on property. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t nervous going into the weekend. Last year, I tried doing prints on property for the first time and honestly? I hated it. It didn’t work, it caused nothing but frustration, and it just left a bad taste in my mouth about the whole idea. But for some reason, and the number of people I have had voice their thoughts on this topic, I felt like giving it another shot, except this time, I wanted to do it differently. I came up with a new system, brought a team into the picture, and holy hell... what a difference.
Saturday, I shot start to finish, 8 AM to 9 PM and then headed back home to team up with Momma Powell (aka Cindy, aka Momma FUP). We ate pizza and dove headfirst into the late-night chaos of printing and framing until 4 in the morning. I was a full-on mess, like ink on my hands, frames scattered everywhere, and at one point, I even passed out on the couch for a solid 25 minutes while Momma Powell just chilled like a villain. Somewhere in the middle of all that, we both hit that overtired giggle stage where absolutely nothing made sense, but everything was hilarious. It was the kind of perfectly chaotic vibe you don’t plan, but you just ride it out. But between the two of us, we managed to knock out a full batch of printed and framed 8x10s, leaving me locked and loaded for Sunday morning.
Bright and early the next day, I was back at the track but that Sunday, I had Paige.
This girl, man. She’s not just my best friend, she’s the MVP of the weekend. She rolled around in a golf cart selling prints like a pro, shouted at me about sunscreen (which I clearly ignored, hence the full-face sunburn), reminded me to eat and hydrate, made fun of me for slamming energy drinks, and somehow kept the energy high all day. She was slinging prints, making people laugh, and pushing Fuelled Up with more love and pride than I could’ve ever asked for. I genuinely wouldn’t have made it through the weekend without her.
The support didn’t stop there either. I met Dan from Double D Mechanical Inc. and honestly? What a legend. He’s not a sponsor or a formal partner, just a straight-up good human. He helped Paige track down racers, pointed out trucks I should be shooting, answered every random question I threw at him, and just made the whole weekend smoother. And then on Sunday, he surprised us with Double D hats and yeah, Paige and I rocked the hell outta them. The amount of love and support Dan and his crew gave me and Paige was unreal, and I’ll never forget it. Shoutout to Double D Mechanical Inc., a badass, family-run diesel shop that knows what they're doing when it comes to Detroit Diesel, Cummins, CAT, diagnostics, inspections, and all-around good vibes.
I also got to meet Gary and Jayden from That Track Channel, which was a highlight. They usually shoot drag racing like your radial, pro mod, no prep-style stuff and they were just straight-up awesome to hang out with. They gave me a hard time about my sunburn (because let’s be real, I was matching the same shade as a stop sign), and what started as a golf cart ride to the tractor pulls on Saturday night turned into an unexpected connection that made the whole weekend feel more like community than like I was just there doing a job.
But the actual event itself. Holy, it had everything.
You could just tell it was put on by people who knew what they were doing, but more importantly, people who genuinely cared. The attention to detail, the flow of everything, the way things ran... It all just worked. There was never a moment where the staging lanes were empty, never a time where something wasn’t going down. The lineup of builds was wild, from clean and classic, the rat rod style full of personality, to lifted and loud and the range of people? All walks of life. You had knowledgeable builders, passionate racers, small business owners, and even YouTubers like DarkIronDiesel, Khaos Diesel, Brown Bros Garage, and Steve Darnell from Welder Up walking around the pits. It was Alberta through and through, yanno fun, rowdy, and full of people who live and breathe this diesel culture. And I was absolutely here for it.
As the weekend wrapped up, I found myself looking back at everything I captured, and damn, there were some gems. What you’re about to see is some shots that I find to be my favourite from the event. No explanations. No deep captions. Just the moments that stuck with me most.
If you were there, thank you.
If you stopped by, bought a print, gave me a high five, or even just smiled and were kind to Paige when she rolled up to your pit, thank you.
You made this event feel like something special.
Here’s the full gallery so you can check out the chaos yourself:
https://fuelledupphotography.pixieset.com/albertadieseldays/
This weekend reminded me that second chances can be worth it. That doing the hard thing, especially with people who’ve got your back can turn into something pretty damn cool.
Until next time - Becks
