There’s an old saying in sports that goes something like: “It doesn’t matter whether you win or lose, it’s how you play the game.” That means playing with respect for your opponents, the sport, the officials, the fans and yourself. All that is great, but it’s also nice to win once in awhile! In this week’s Conversation we meet a driver, who is dedicated to racing, Speedway 660 and our great fans. And this guy had a really big night back on June 4^th. 

  A Conversation with Shawn Warren

Wade: You’ve been doing this for a long time Shawn. Can you tell our fans how and when you got into racing and what motivates you to come out and compete in the Martins Home Heating Sportsman Division every week?

Shawn: I was brought up around cars and trucks with my Dad and much of the rest of my family being mechanics and/or auto enthusiasts so since I was little, pretty much anything with an engine and a steering wheel interested me. My earliest example of this is probably my brother and I taking the lawn tractor into the woods to see if it would pull fallen trees! As I grew up I watched all sorts of motorsports live and on television, but took a special attraction to stock car racing. When 660 (then NBIS) opened in 1994, I started coming and I remember saying “I am going to do that someday” and the desire got stronger every time I came to watch. As it turned out someday came sooner than expected.Back on June 10, 2012  Shawn won the sportsman feature. It would almost be four years to the day before he would win another one.

In the summer of 1997, I believe, we went to Colburne’s and got an old Crown Victoria chassis and took it home. With a lot of help, from many people, we finished the car in time to start the 1998 season. Never having sat in a race car before in my life it was certainly intimidating, but, I survived and off we went slowly but surely. I have always enjoyed a challenge, and racing has certainly proven to be that, so that is partially what keeps me coming back. Mostly though what keeps me doing this is the camaraderie and time shared with my family and team. Shawn has driven several different cars over the years. He’s been one of our most dedicated drivers, supporting his home track and the Speedway 660 brand of racing.

Wade: You won the sportsman feature back in early June. It was your first victory in awhile, but it wasn’t easy because you and Justin Cole ran door-to-door for pretty much the entire 40 laps.

Shawn: Yes that race showcased a great deal of respect among drivers with Justin and I running that close and barely touching a wheel the entire race.  It was our first feature win since 2012 and winning has not come easy, or often, for us so every one of them is very special. We have always had a very competitive sportsman division here at speedway 660 so you have to earn every inch on the race track. Everybody knows you have to earn a feature win at Speedway 660. Back on June 4th Shawn Warren did just that taking the 40 lap Martins Home heating Sportsman feature.

Wade: You’ve raced against some pretty great drivers here at 660 over the years.

Shawn: Yes, when I look back over the years, I have been fortunate to race with some of the best around.  I could list names all day of the great drivers, but at the time when I started I remember Brian Gillespie and Bradley Logan were at the top of the food chain.  I would be lying if I said it wasn’t a bit intimidating starting from scratch against the veterans like that, but I stayed out of their way and showed them respect, and I got respect in return. That’s the way it works, and I could see that as a fan even before I started, so that has been how I have always chosen to race. Brian Gillespie is the most celebrated champion in the history of Speedway 660. He’s got seven championships: two street stock (1994 &95) and five sportsman (98, 2002, 03, 07 & 08).

Wade: You mentioned Brian Gillespie and Bradley Logan. Those two guys have eight Martins Home Heating championships between them. But they’ve hung up their helmets and a new generation of drivers has come along. How do you feel about racing against all these young guns.

Shawn: I think that it is great to see that there is a strong roster of youngsters filling these seats. They are coming in younger all of the time, but often have as much seat time, or more, than a lot of veterans so they are competitive right out of the gate. That helps keep us old guys sharp I guess! I often tell people I plan on continuing to be a fan long after I have hung up my own helmet, so it I reassuring to know I’ll have lots of guys and gals to cheer for! Ryan Messer, Jacob Logan and Drew Greenlaw crossed the stripe first, second and third the last time the Martins Home Heating Sportsman Division ran in the Geary Woods. These are three of the kids who fans will be cheering for, for many years to come!

Wade: You have been loyal to Speedway 660 for many years. This is your home track. What is it about this place and racing here that keeps bringing you back year after year?

Shawn: Since we first started racing, I have raced full time a little more than half of those seasons, and a few more part time, but it has always been at Speedway 660. In my opinion Speedway 660 has always had the best weekly racing in the region. From fan participation to car count, to the organization of events, I feel we have everyone else beat, so being from the area, why would I travel anywhere else?Shawn says he likes racing at Speedway 660 for many reasons, but our awesome fans top his list.

Wade: Racing has really changed in recent years. Not only are the cars getting more technical in terms of set-up, but safety has improved a lot too.

Shawn: Yes, I have certainly seen a lot of change in the sport since I started. As far as speed goes, technology has allowed each division to almost move up a whole division, if that makes sense. What I mean is that, for example, a street stock car now is approaching the kind of speeds we saw Sportsman cars running in the 90’s and the same with Sportsman cars running nearly Pro Stock speeds from 20 years ago. For that reason safety has become a huge concern, and it has been addressed accordingly.  The first thing I saw starting to progress early on were the seats – containment seats are in the majority of cars now, and have been for a while.  From there we saw open faced helmets eliminated in favour of full faced helmets. The addition of neck restraints, which has become mandatory at Speedway 660, is probably one of the biggest safety movements we have seen.  The past few years we have also had the addition of two-way communications with spotters/teams and drivers.  This has been a learning curve for all of us, but in the end helps alert us of cautions sooner which make is safer for drivers, teams and fans.Shawn knows just how important safety is when it comes to racing. From modern roll cages, to full-face helmets to head & neck restraints, safety is the number one concern for folks at 660.

Wade: Tell us about your family, race team and sponsors, all of the people who help you do what you love to do?

Shawn:  I’m not even sure where to start with this one, there have been so many people help out over the years!  Early on, when we built the first car, we had no garage to work out of.  We actually started building the chassis in Hubert Hanson’s back yard.  He, along with my Dad and my uncles built the majority of that first car and when the weather got too cold to work outside we had a few people who were willing to let us use their garages.  We would stay at one until they needed it and then move to the next one and we rotated through 4 or 5 of them like that for a few years.  Finally we were able to build a race shop at my parent’s home and we have been there ever since.  Of course, my family has always been a huge part of the race team, and over the years we have had awesome pit crew members.  In the beginning it was Hubert Hanson, my Dad, my brothers, my uncles and Morris Shannon who prepared and pitted the car.  Over the years we took several seasons off and each time we came back the crew would look a little different.  Currently our crew is comprised of George Eastwood, Rick Hilchie, my Dad John, and my brother Chris.  There are so many people that I would like to name, but I wouldn’t have space, so I would like to say thank you to all of them as well as team and division sponsors from over the years. Currently we run with limited sponsorship with Warren’s Auto Care, Technical Heat Treatment Services Ltd. and NAPA Oromocto. Perhaps most importantly a huge thank you needs to go out to all of the special ladies in our lives that put up with all of the late nights!Shawn enjoys a break in his trailer with his crew members just before jumping into the 88 sportsman car for another night of racing in the Geary Woods.

Wade: The Clark’s Chevrolet Firecracker 150 is coming up this weekend. How do you approach a race like that? Do you spend extra time in the shop the week of the race? And how do you prepare yourself physically and mentally to run a long race instead of your normal 40 laps?

Shawn: Yes Wade, those races do require a little extra preparation for sure.  These cars, unlike Pro Stock cars, aren’t really built to take the abuse of extended races, so it is important to give them a little extra TLC.  We will spend some extra time this week going bumper to bumper doing a nut and bolt check to make sure everything is tight.  We will check the status of brake pads, and other wear parts to make sure they are up for 150 laps.  Perhaps most importantly we will change all fluids and clean the radiator to prevent overheating.  I go to the gym several days a week, so physically I won’t do a lot differently besides making sure to drink plenty of extra water during the days leading up to the race.  Making sure to get a good sleep the night before is probably the most important thing for mental preparation.Shawn Warren hopes to have another good run on Saturday night when the sportsman drivers line-up for the Clark Chevrolet Firecracker 150.

Wade: Everybody I talk to in the pits has got a lot of respect for you. The other sportsman drivers know what to expect when they line-up to go racing with you. They know they can trust you out there.

Shawn: As I mentioned earlier, respect is huge in this sport, and if you don’t have it the road will certainly be rougher.  I know how much time, effort and money goes into these cars and the last thing I want to do is tear up my car, or anyone else’s.  I race clean and show everyone respect, unless I feel I am not getting the same in return.  My motto has always been to race others as they race me, and that works out quite well, everyone knows what to expect that way.Shawn has earned the respect of the other drivers at Speedway 660. He treats them the way he would like to be treated and that approach is one that seems to work pretty good.

Wade: Thanks for doing this Shawn and good luck in the Clark Chevrolet Firecracker 150 and the rest of the season.

Shawn: Thank you Wade for the work you do in our sport, and for this opportunity!  I would like to thank all of the fans who come out to support our sport, and I hope they enjoy this week’s show.