(June 30, 2015) The Parts for Trucks Maritime Pro Stock Tour is coming to Speedway 660 this weekend. The Tour will feature the best Pro Stock drivers from the Maritimes including Truro’s Dylan Blenkhorn. Dylan got off to a great start this season winning the first two races and he’s the Tour point leader heading into this weekend. 

A Conversation with Dylan Blenkhorn 

Wade: Speedway 660 will roll out the welcome mat for the Maritime Pro Stock Tour this weekend. You’ve had a chance to run here a time or two. What are your impressions of the track and fans up here?

Dylan: The track is fast and it’s a fun place to go. You guys run a weekly Pro Stock division and have got a lot of great drivers up there. We don’t go to 660 much, so the local guys have a bit of an advantage on us. I hope a few of them come out and run with us on Saturday. I like competition and the Tour drivers combined with some of your top Pro Stock drivers should make this race one of the most competitive of the season. The 660 fans are awesome and the camping is really fun too. So I’m really looking forward to coming up your way this weekend for the race.

Wade: Tell us about how you got your start in racing and how you got to where you are now.

Dylan: I started watched Bandelero racing at Scotia Speedworld and begged my father to get me one for about a year before he did. I really enjoyed it and moved on from there. I did a little racing in Legend cars, have run some Sportsman races and now am running the Maritime Pro Stock Tour.Before jumping into a Parts for Trucks Pro Stock car, Dylan had a lot of impressive outings in Bando and Legend cars.

Wade: You’re a little too modest Dylan, so if you don’t mind I’ll fill in the Speedway 660 fans about a few of your racing career highlights. Bandolero Rookie of the Year in 07 and champion in 08 at Scotia Speedworld; 2011 Legend champion at Scotia and Atlantic Tiltload Maritime League of Legends champion; Exide Batteries Rookie of the Year in 2013, on the Parts for Trucks Pro Stock Tour; Atlantic Cat 250 champion in 2014; five race wins on the Maritime Pro Stock Tour including two this year and; a 2012 Nova Scotia Provincial Exhibition Demo Derby championship! You’re building a pretty impressive resume.

Dylan: Thanks Wade. I just like to go fast and I have been pretty lucky to grow up in this sport. I love racing and have met some great people. It’s nice to win races and be successful, but I am always looking to improve and get better. Racing on the Parts for Trucks Tour is really a steep learning curve, but it also is an opportunity to get better every week.   Dylan won the 2014 Atlantic Cat 250 down at Scotia. It’s the biggest win so far in his racing career.

Wade: There is a youth movement going on in racing here in the Maritimes. We’re seeing it in every division. How does it feel to be part of that new wave of young drivers who are giving those older veterans a run for their money?

Dylan: It wasn’t that long ago that I was sitting in stands watching the races. I’ve always loved the brand of short-track racing that we have here in the Maritimes. It’s really cool to be racing with the guys I grew up watching. I feel honoured because I always looked up to them all as a kid. And now there are lots of other kids coming up through the ranks. For example, the Speedway 660, 2014 Bando champ Cole Tanner, is having a real good rookie season in a Legend car down in Scotia. You guys are also seeing how good Braden Langille is in a Bando car. Those are just two of the kids that are on the fast track! Fans at Speedway 660 are seeing just how good Braden Langille is in 2015. Braden’s Dad Craig is one of Dylan’s crew members.

Wade: Family plays a big role in racing, especially for the younger drivers. Tell us about your family, your crew and your sponsors.

Dylan: That is so true, my family does play a big role. Without the support of my grandparents, Evelyn and Sheldon Blenkhorn, we just wouldn’t be able to race. We have an awesome group of guys who come to the race track with us every week. Our team includes my Dad Paul; Wendy, Jim, Wade and Stewie Slaunwhite; Craig Langille, Braden’s Dad, is my spotter and we also have Jeff, Matt and Andy. We enjoy working together and have just as much fun in the shop as we do at the track. I really want to single out Tony Quinn, from Quinn Flooring, who is playing a huge role in our team this season. Our other sponsors are the Cat Shack; CSS Insurance and; Blenkhorn’s Auto Recyclers. I’m sure you hear this all the time from other drivers, but we could never even dream of going racing without our sponsors, crew members and families. It takes a real team effort.Dylan and his race team have already been to the Parts for Trucks Victory Lane twice in 2015. Dylan hopes to score another win this Saturday night in the Geary Woods.

Wade: You won five of your first 27 races on the tour. That winning percentage is right up there with Shawn Tucker, Wayne Smith and John Flemming. How does it feel to be keeping that kind of company?

Dylan: Those guys are all legends and even though I’ve had a little bit of success, I’m not in the same league as them, at least not yet. Starting out in Bando a few years ago, I never imagined being where I am today, so early on in my career. I’m honoured to be compared to such a talented group of guys and the people I grew up watching. I didn’t think the success would come this early, but we work really hard in the shop and spend a lot of time working on the set-up on our race car. It’s really cool that all of our hard work is paying off.

Wade: SpeedWeekend is a pretty big deal on the Maritime racing calendar. And our Re/Max Pro Stock 250 attracts the best in the Maritimes and some top teams from the States. Any chance we might see you come back for that one?

Dylan: I sure would love to. The IWK 250, the Atlantic Cat 250 and the Re/Max 250 are the three biggest races of the season. We’ve always wanted to do it and it’s on our bucket list. Our focus and commitment is on the Parts for Trucks Pro Stock Tour and we’ll have to see how things are going when SpeedWeekend rolls around. Really, it depends on sponsorship and how the week before goes, but it would be awesome to make it up there for that race.Dylan knows just how big of a deal SpeedWeekend is and would like to come back to Speedway 660 in early September to run the Re/Max 250.

Wade: I know you are focused on the Maritime Tour right now, but do you have any thoughts about your future in racing?

Dylan: We’re maxed-out as far as what we can afford to do right now, but we’d like to go further in racing at some point. For now we are focussed on 2015 and we’ll see how the year goes, before looking too far into the future!

Wade: Who inspires you in racing and why?

Dylan: You mentionedJohn Flemming earlier and he’s the one guy that I really look up to. That’s because when I started racing he made me feel welcome in the racing fraternity and has always helped me out in so many ways. He’s won a lot of big races and championships, but I have always looked up to him because he is such a gentleman and a clean driver. He’s a great role model for us younger drivers.John Flemming, who won the Tour race here in 2013, has inspired and encouraged Dylan to be the best he can be. Dylan is honoured to race alongside his hero in the Parts for Trucks Pro Stock Tour.

Wade: Tim Terry calls you “Big Bird”. I know nick-names are common in our sport so how did you get yours and what do you think of it?

Dylan: The first Pro Stock car I had was yellow. Cole Butcher got the name Clifford because his car was red, so he gave me the nickname “Big Bird” for yellow. At the time neither of us was too far removed from those kid’s TV shows, so they kind of worked for us! I think it’s fun and good for the fans.Dylan would rather be behind the wheel of his race car, but this kid is a pretty good hand in the shop too.

Wade: Thanks for doing this Dylan. We look forward to seeing you this weekend and good luck in your race here at Speedway 660.

Dylan: Thanks Wade, I can’t wait to go up to Fredericton and hang out with you guys at 660. I want to thank Parts for Trucks for continuing to be the number one marketing partner for the Pro Stock Tour and Cummins for sponsoring the race at 660. I’m really looking forward to our race there and want to invite all of the great fans in your area to come out and see us this Saturday night.