12 Year Drought is over: Wade’s Weekly 17 #9
(July 4, 2017) Where were you on Sunday, July 2nd, 2017? I hope you were in the stands at Speedway 660, because if you were you saw something special. Those of us who hang out in the Geary Woods know that Greg Fahey is a great driver. Four RE/MAX Group Four Realty Pro Stock titles, two DMR Auto Sales Street Stock championships and one Martin’s Home Heating Sportsman crown is an impressive resume. But Sunday he did something that hasn’t happened here since 2005.
Despite all of the championships and big wins, Greg Fahey still has a few things left to accomplish on his racing “bucket-list”. He checked one of them off that list last weekend. He’s always wanted to win a Parts for Trucks Pro Stock Tour race and did it in a big way on Sunday.
The McLaughlin Roof Trusses race team has celebrated some big wins in the last few years. Andy Fox (4th from the right) has got to be proud of his driver and entire team for winning the Cummins 150 on Sunday
Greg, who is committed to running in our weekly RE/MAX Group Four Realty Pro Stock division, has run the annual tour race at his home track many times and has always been competitive, but on Sunday he ran the race of his life. “The Pride of Charlotte County” not only outran the best drivers on the tour, he lapped nine of the 19 cars that started the Cummins 150! Pretty impressive indeed.
Fahey ran hard early in the race and used up a lot of car battling Dylan Gosbee for the lead. After getting to the front Greg didn’t let up. He continued to drive the wheels off the Paterson Toyota, setting a blistering pace.
The competition was fierce on Sunday. Greg was out front for most of the race but he had Gosbee, Turple, Blenkhorn, Butcher, Proude and Slaunwhite breathing down his neck.
As the laps wound down you could see the car really getting loose, drifting through the turns. Fahey adjusted his line to the second groove down in turns one and two and that seemed to help a little. He spun the wheels a couple of times exiting turn four and got more than a little slideways a time or two.
In the final ten laps you could feel the tension in the Speedway 660 crowd as our weekly fans were pulling for one of their own. There was a combination of emotions as the checkers flew – jubilation for the win and a sigh of relief that Greg hadn’t completely used up his Paterson Toyota on the way to victory. He had just enough car left to do an impressive burn-out on the front stretch.
Joy and relief! The Paterson Toyota was great all afternoon, but in the final few laps of the Cummins 150 she got more than a little loose.
I’ve got to say that the Parts for Trucks Pro Stock Tour guys were real gentlemen and showed a lot of class. Dylan Gosbee and Dylan Blenkhorn, who finished 2nd and 3rd in the race praised Fahey for the win on Sunday. They obviously wanted to win the race themselves, but when it was all over they took time to acknowledge Greg’s impressive win. Pretty classy in my books!
The Cummins 150 didn’t just take a toll on the cars. The drivers endured a muggy afternoon inside blistering hot race cars. You can see that Greg is totally exhausted as he climbs out of the Paterson Toyota in victory lane. In my books these guys are real athletes!
Sunday’s win was one of the biggest moments in the history of Speedway 660. Greg’s win was just the fifth time in 24 years that one of our weekly Pro Stock drivers has ever won a Maritime Pro Stock Tour race here. Dave O’Blenis did it twice (2002 & 2003), Matt Harris won in 2004 and Kevin Moore won the tour race here in 2005. So it’s been 12 years since one of our guys turned the trick!
Matt Harris, one of the guys who helped build this place, has been racing at Speedway 660 since day one, back in 1994. Matt won a Parts for Trucks Pro Stock Tour race in the Geary Woods back in 04.
Greg Fahey still has a couple of things left to accomplish on that racing “bucket-list”. Another championship would give him a grand total of eight at 660 and surpass the great Brian Gillespie. And another Pro Stock title would be number five, tying him with the legendary Dave O’Blenis. Greg still has a lot of work to do, between now and the Night of Champions in August, to make that happen.
Fahey also wants to win the McLaughlin Roof Trusses 250 on SpeedWeekend. If you think the competition was tough on Sunday, wait until the Americans roll into the Geary Woods on Labour Day Weekend. They have won the last three 250’s, but perhaps Mr. Fahey will become the first New Brunswicker since Shawn Tucker to win our big race. 
The Americans have dominated the McLaughlin Roof Trusses 250 in recent years. They’ve won the last three and five of the last seven. In 2016 it was an all American podium with winner Joey Doiron, Cassius Clark and Ben Rowe.
Meanwhile Greg will be back in action this Saturday night in the RE/MAX Group Four Realty Pro Stock Division. And he’ll be off to Riverside International Speedway on the 15th for the IWK 250.
What we saw Sunday was pretty special and impressive. The Speedway 660 racing family has got to be proud of one of its own this week. But when the RE/MAX Group Four Realty Pro Stocks hit the track Saturday night the “Pride of Charlotte County” is going to have to prove himself all over again.
We’re proud of our weekly Pro Stock division at Speedway 660. We’ve been racing Pro Stocks here since “day one” – July 20th, 1994! They’ll be back in action this Saturday night.
You can be sure the other RE/MAX Group Four Realty Pro Stock drivers will congratulate Greg on his big win, but when Tim Elliott flies the green flag on Saturday night, they’ll race as hard as ever. It’s never easy winning one of our weekly 50 lap Pro Stock features, even if you are coming off of a Cummins 150 win!
Each week presents new challenges and while a driver can momentarily bask in the glory of a big win, they’ve got to come out the very next week and prove themselves all over again.
And that’s why we love racing!
