As much as we long for those nostalgic days of our youth, the stark, quaint simplicity of an open trailer and pick 'em up truck has been sacrificed for the security and anonymity of a "box". There was a time when we would welcome a chat with the crowd of curious folks surrounding the race car at a roadside restaurant or rest stop. Now, that scenario comes with fears that it may have been vandalized, stolen, or marked for future collection as we take a break from the highway. Also hard to argue that our aging group is less likely to be happy with a few relaxing hours in the cab of a half ton while the heavens dump their anger in our lap. I don't know where the milestone in the evolution of race haulers occurred, but someone saw the opportunity to move up and thought, "Why not?".....blame him.
Not sure if others have noticed, but I see quite a few youngsters trailering their entry level cars to events in my neighborhood and they use stuff that looks very much like my first rig. Lots of them destined for competition other than drag racing btw.