(May 4, 2016) The 2016 racing season is so close that we can almost taste those Famous Speedway Fries! Our pre-season tech inspection and practise is set for 1PM on Saturday, May 14^th and the Riverview Ford Season Opener goes green at 2PM on Sunday the 15^th. It’s going to be an awesome year of racing at Speedway 660. 

Rumours of Glory

Things seemed to be pretty quiet all winter, but in race shops all across our region, teams were hard at work preparing for the 2016 season. We had a banner year of racing in 2015, but from what I’m hearing competition is going to be even better when we kick off the new season in a little over a week.

The Re/Max Group Four Realty Pro Stock division is going to look a lot different when we all head down to Speedway 660 for the Riverview Ford Season Opener on the 15^th. I’m told there will be an influx of rookies in numbers like we’ve never seen before. Devin Snell, Brandon Skidmore, Cody Price, Brent Roy, Ashton Tucker and Jeff Doherty are all said to be going pro stock this year. Devin Snell (left) is moving up from Sportsman to our top division this year and will join his mentor Lonnie Sommerville (right) the defending RE/MAX Group Four Realty Pro Stock champion, 

And I also hear that we might even see Ian Rasmussen, from New Denmark. I remember when Ian was just a little pup, peering thru the fence to watch his Dad power the Big Black Dodge around “Canada’s Fastest Short Track”. Glenn Rasmussen pretty much owned Speedway 660 in the first decade of this century. He won pro stock championships in 2000, 03, 05 and 07. Those four championships are second only to Dave O’Blenis who has five!Glenn Rasmussen’s “Big Black Dodge” was a force to be reckonned with a few years ago. We could see Glenn’s son Ian behind the wheel of a pro stock car in the very near future! 

I also understand that Robert Tomlinson might return this year. I will be more than a little happy to see Robert, who is one of the true gentlemen of our sport. Two things are for certain when it comes to pro stock racing in the Geary Woods. We’ll have an intense battle for rookie of the year honours and the chase for the championship will be just as fierce as it was in 2015.

Lonnie Sommerville is expected to be a strong contender to defend the title he won for the first time last season. Greg Fahey, Dave OBlenis, Matt Harris, Kevin Moore and several other vets are also expected to be in the hunt and don’t be surprised if one or more of those rookies don’t win feature races and mix it up with the veterans.Look for Greg Fahey (#29) to make a bid to become a four-time pro stock champ in 2016. Matt Harris will also likely be a strong contender.

The other division that is getting a make-over is the DMR Auto Sales & Service Street Stocks. I hear that Riley Goodwin and MacKenzie Brewer are both going to jump out of their bandos and into street stocks this year. Noah Gillespie and Ryan Richards are also expected to run street stock. Courtney Barton is going to run full time too and fans will be stoked to hear that Heidi Cooper is expected  to be back behind the wheel. Heidi, one of Speedway 660 all-time favourite drivers took last season off to have little “Mini Cooper”! I also have heard that 2013 champ Roger Slocum will unveil a brand new ride for 2016.Noah Gillespie, who won the Sharp Shooter Rookie of the Year Award last August, is reported to be moving up to Street Stock this year.

We had six rookies in the Martin’s Home Heating Sportsman Division last season and we can expect another great season in this incredible division. I hear that Ryan Raynes is moving up from street stock. There are likely other rookies ready to race Sportsman, but we will just have for the opener to see who shows up. Someone told me that Drew Greenlaw is going to unveil another  new incredible paint scheme on opening  weekend. Watch for Ryan Messer this season. He hopes to follow up his unbelievable Rookie of the Year season by challenging for a championship in 2016.Ryan Messer (#1) and Drew Greenlaw (#23) are expected to be top contenders for the Martin’s Home Heating Sportsman championship in 2016.

I am not hearing too much out of the Fredericton Gun Shop Sharp Shooter division. I expect another large Sharp Shooter car count because this little front wheel drive, four cylinder division has taken on a life of its own.Speedway 660’s Sharp Shooters are sure to raise a little dust and keep our fans and each other on the edge of their seats when the 2016 season gets underway.

And that brings us to the West Wood Estate Apartments Bandolero division. With all of the talent moving out of the Bando division in the last three years, there just aren’t enough drivers to fill the void. So the Bando division is likely taking the year off, but hopefully another generation of youngsters will take up our great sport and bring those little cars back in the near future.The Bandoleros have been an incredible feeder system for the rest of the divisions at Speedway 660. Several kids have moved up, including Riley Goodwin who will pilot a Street Stock ride this season. Here’s hoping that we’ll see these little cars & drivers back at 660 soon.

The Capital City Auto Parts  Enduro Division is getting a make-over in 2016. That’s because it is getting more difficult to find those mid 1980 rear-wheel drive cars that have been used for Enduro racing. As a result, the car count has dipped in the last few years and although they always put on a great show something had to give.

So beginning this year the move is being made to newer front wheel drive cars. Right off the bat, the car count may be a little low but hopefully this will be the beginning of a new era for ENDURO racing. So if you are a veteran ENDURO racer we would love to see you continue and if you are up for an incredible amount of fun, please consider building an ENDURO car and keep this brand of racing alive.ENDURO racing has provided Speedway 660 fans with a lot of thrills over the years, but those old mid 80 cars have taken a beating and are becoming hard to find. Let’s hope ENDURO racing can re-invent itself with the move to newer front-wheel drive cars.

I want to wish Speedway 660’s office manager Wanda Campbell all the best as she continues to deal with health issues. We are all thinking of you Wanda and hope you get well  and are able to come back to the Geary Woods soon to hang out with all of the folks in the Speedway 660 racing family.

Well the 2016 racin season will be here before you know it and we sure are going to have a lot to talk about. So get the word out and let folks know they ought to get down to the Geary Woods for a practice session on Saturday, May 14th  and the Riverview Season Opener on Sunday the 15th.

We’ll see you at the races!