Speedway 660’s fans were treated to what might have been the best Re/Max 250 of all-time during SpeedWeekend. 2014 was a record setting season and Travis Benjamin’s win in our BIG RACE was a great way to cap it off. Here is my last Weekly blog for 2014. Thanks for checking it out each week. 

Race fans are still aglow and abuzz after the Re/Max 250. SpeedWeekend 2014 was going great until the rain came on Sunday evening, forcing officials to postpone the 250. We were all disappointed and went home or back to the campground wondering what SpeedWeekend Monday would bring.

Well the sun came out, the fans came back, the drivers rolled onto the track and our region’s most anticipated and most competitive Late Model/Pro Stock race took the green flag.  We knew we were in for something special during that first long green flag run. The first caution didn’t come out until lap 70 and the entire race was rattled off in just a little over two hours.

When Joe Barrieau waved the checkered flag, fans were spellbound by what they had just seen. It was an incredible race, right up there with the year Scott Fraser won the 250 without pitting, or the year Lonnie Sommerville pitted with about 20 to go and passed the entire field for the win!

Travis Benjamin, Austin Theriault and Ben Rowe put on some show all race long. In the closing laps of the Re/Max 250 these three short-track stars gave our fans lots to cheer about and lots to talk about for years to come.

It was a memorable Re/Max 250. No-one will forget the great racing between Travis Benjamin and Austin Theriault, door-to-door, lap after lap. Austin made a dramatic pass just before lap 125 to wrestle the half-way money away from Travis.  And the finish between Benjamin and Ben Rowe will go down as one of the best ever.

After the post-race ceremonies were over, one of our American fans approached me and excitedly said: “This is real racin, this is what racin is all about and these short-track drivers are the real heroes of our sport.” He also said: “You’re not going to see this on TV, you have to come out to local tracks like Speedway 660 to see what we saw here today.”

The disappointment we all experienced when the race was called on Sunday night turned to pure joy on Monday morning when we witnessed an incredible show in the Geary Woods. The old track came alive and gave us a race for the ages.

“This is a driver’s track and you’ve got to stay focused the entire race or you’ll get into big trouble” said 3rd place finisher Austin Theriault. “You obviously need a good car, but this track demands a lot out of the driver and I love it here, plus these fans are incredible to sit through the rain and then come back early in the morning to watch us race.”

Austin Theriault and his team were impressed with everything about Speedway 660. Austin was particularly humbled by the friendliness of our fans and hospitality he received in the Geary Woods.

SpeedWeekend and the Re/Max 250 weren’t the only things that made 2014 a great season. We had three incredible rookies in the Martin’s Home Heating Sportsman Division. Alexandra O’Blenis and Dawson McIntee both won feature races and although Drew Greenlaw didn’t win a feature, he was the most consistent of the trio and captured Rookie of the Year honours.

Drew Greenlaw followed up a Bando championship in 2013 by accepting the Sportsman Rookie of the Year Award from Richard Martin this year. Drew is one of several youngsters who are setting the Geary Woods on fire!

Luc MacLaughlin won the DMR Auto Sales & Service Street Stock title in a hard fought battle with a couple of cagey veterans. Luc was Rookie of the Year in 2013, Sharp Shooter champ in 2012 and Sharp Shooter Rookie winner in 2011. Correct me if I’m wrong, but I don’t think anyone has ever done anything like that before.

Grandparents, parents, family, friends and driver and pit crew had some celebration when the Street Stock trophy was handed out this year. Luc MacLaughlin represents what is great about our sport. This humble young man shared his moment in the sun with the people who mean the most to him.

And no-one had ever won three championships in a row until Dave O’Blenis followed up Re/Max Group Four Realty Pro Stock titles in 2012 & 13 with a third straight this year! Speaking of Team O’Blenis, back in May Dave and daughters Alexandra and Courtney visited the Riverview Ford Victory Lane an astounding six times! Then in August they each won features: Dave in Pro Stock, Alex in Sportsman and Courtney in Bando.

As if that wasn’t enough, Dave also won the Best of the Best 150, the Firecracker 150 and the Irving Oil Blending & Packaging 150. Dave’s 2014 championship gives him a total of five in Pro Stock. Brian Gillespie (Sportsman) and Rick Cashol (Street Stock) are the only other drivers who have won five in one division. So there’s no doubt in my mind that 2014 belonged to the O’Blenis Family.

What an incredible year for Dave O’Blenis! He won a 3rd straight Pro Stock title plus three major races in 2014. But if you ask him he’ll tell you his biggest thrill was watching daughters Courtney and Alexandra develop into two of the rising stars of our sport.

On second thought, maybe I should correct myself, because 2014 belonged to the Speedway 660 fans. You are amazing. You come out in all kinds of weather, you plan your vacays around our schedule and you love your racing!

Speedway 660’s marketing partners and the sponsors of all of the race cars also had a great 2014. They get great value for their investment and they know race fans are loyal and supportive to the businesses that are involved in our sport.

I want to thank all of the drivers and their race teams who put on the show for us every week. Hats off to them, especially the teams in our weekly divisions. And thanks to the visiting teams from the Maritime Pro Stock Tour, the Pro All Star Series and everyone who came out to race with us on SpeedWeekend and for our other big races this year.

All five of our racing divisions, including the DMR Auto Sales & Service Street Stocks, provide Speedway 660 fans with awesome entertainment. This is what keeps us coming back to the Geary Woods!

And our volunteers and staff are the best! From the front gate office and ticket booth, to the tech shed and pits, from Joyce’s Pit Stop to the Infield crew, from the Security Team to the Alpine Zone, Speedway 660 is blessed with an incredible group of dedicated people who love this sport as much as our fans do.

I want to personally thank my “team-mates” who had to put up with me in the tower this year. Margie, Jessie, Wallace and old “Quick-Draw McGraw” are as dedicated a group as you’ll find in this sport anywhere. And what about Joey and Tim on the flag-stand and Brian and Mr. Coughlan on the tower? They call the shots on race day and obviously can’t keep everyone happy, but they do a great job.

Whether it’s sweepin the track or cookin our “Famous Speedway Fries” we’ve got a large group of volunteers and staff who love being involved in racing. And we appreciate the work each and every one of them do to make things happen at Speedway 660!

And Wanda in the office, who does a thousand and one things to make race days run smoothly, is absolutely amazing. I don’t know how you do it, but without your dedication and extreme effort, what appears to be a smooth and organized operation would be utter chaos!

And to the Foley and Roy families, thank-you from all of the above. It’s not easy running a race track, you’ll never please everyone, but we all appreciate what you have accomplished in two short years and everyone is anxious to work with you in the future to see our sport prosper and grow.

So the curtain has come down on the 2014 racing season. It’s a long time between now and May, but the Riverview Ford Season Opener will be here before you know it.
Have a great off-season and come May, We’ll see you at the races!