(Aug. 18, 2015) – There are just two weeks of racing left before the Irving Blending & Packaging SpeedWeekend. That’s right, we’re just a little over three weeks away from the biggest, most exciting short-track racing event in the Maritimes. But before SpeedWeekend 2015 rolls around, we’ve got a couple of really fun and entertaining events on our schedule. 

 You can’t beat winning!

 

We had a really good day of racing in the Geary Woods last Sunday. The Firecracker 150 saw Dave O’Blenis go to victory lane for the third year in a row. Dave probably feels a little like Dale Earnhardt did when he was winning all of those NASCAR races and championships. It’s awful nice to go to the “pay window” but there’s always a few fans who don’t like to see a driver win “too much”.Dave O’Blenis is one of just three drivers to win five titles in one division at Speedway 660. Rick Cashol and Brian Gillespie are the others who have completed that amazing feat. O’Blenis will need great finishes the next two weeks to earn a fourth straight and sixth over-all RE/MAX Group Four Realty Pro Stock championship

For the record, Team O’Blenis is well prepared every week. On most occasions they bring one Street Stock, one Sportsman and two Pro Stock cars to Speedway 660. Sometimes they bring an additional Sportsman car. And everything that comes off the O’Blenis trailer(s) is competitive. That’s no easy task. Can you imagine how much work it takes in the garage every week to make all of those cars top-notch?

And you need more than great cars to be competitive at Speedway 660. You gotta have lots of talent. It’s not only Dave who can wheel a race car. Daughters Alexandra and Courtney are pretty darned good too! And those girls are quickly becoming pretty good little mechanics too. They make sure Dad doesn’t have all of the fun in the shop!Daughters 4 – Dad 0. Courtney (left) has won two Street Stock features this season and Alexandra (right) has won two Sportsman features. Just in case anyone is counting, Dave has yet to win a Pro Stock feature! To be fair, Courtney and Alexandra’s Dad has won Speedway 660’s two big Sportsman races.

A few “grand-stand” pundits might not like seeing those black and lime-green race cars on the podium or in victory lane every week, but everybody has got to admit that Team O’Blenis is at the top of their game right now.

Last weekend we saw three drivers come to Speedway 660 all the way from beautiful Cape Breton. Chris & Kyle, the Reid Brothers, who run cars built in Frank Fraser’s shop, were up for the Firecracker 150. Ken Magliaro, also from Cape Breton, made the trip as well. That’s a long haul and we appreciate their efforts and hope to see them come back up to see us on SpeedWeekend! Three Cape Breton Islanders, including  Chris Reid (#8) came up to the Geary Woods on the weekend for the Firecracker 150. Speedway 660 fans and officials hope to see these guys back up here in a couple of weeks.

One final note from last weekend’s races. Ashton Tucker got his first start in a Street Stock car. The kid from Sunny Corner did a nice job, coming home 9th in a 17 car field.  Ashton, the Bando point leader, is anxious to move up in 2016. Ashton Tucker drove the 68 Street Stock car last Sunday afternoon. With the Bandos off for the weekend, it was a perfect time for this talented youngster to get a little seat time in a bigger car.

This coming weekend it’s Fan Appreciation Night at Speedway 660. We’ve got the on-track autograph session before the races, which is always a blast especially for the kids. Then all five of our weekly racing divisions will do battle in the second last point races.This is one of my favourite photos. The late Jack Lane signs an autograph for a youngster on Fan Appreciation Night several years ago. 

I had a short chat with Glyn Nott last week. He’s one of the only drivers left who has been with us every year since Speedway 660 opened back in 94. The 2012 Martin’s Home Heating Sportsman champion goes out of his way to sign autographs and talk with fans. Glyn and our other drivers know the fans are the heart and soul of our sport. Our drivers appreciate seeing the fans and know that “the fans in the stands” are the folks who make this sport.Glyn Nott is one of Speedway 660’s most popular drivers. The 2012 Sportsman champ has a lot of time for our fans and knows they are the ones who make it possible for our drivers to go around in circles! BTW has anyone seen the Moose lately? 

Shortly after we update the championship point standings after Fan Appreciation Night, we’ll start getting ready for the Night of Champions. That’s the night drivers will let it all hang out. They won’t hold anything back as they give it their best shot to grab a championship, rookie of the year award or top five or top ten in points.

We’ve seen some pretty dramatic stuff go down on the Night of Champions. We’ve seen drivers crack under pressure and we’ve seen other drivers make up 20, 30 or more points and win a title. This year the standings are tight and we’re in for a big show on August 29^th! Rick Cashol knows what it feels like to win championships at Speedway 660. He’s got five Street Stock titles and was runner-up a time or two too! Hey Ricky do you know where the Moose went?  

I’m starting to feel like a kid who gets out of school in June and thinks summer will last forever, only to figure out in late August that it’s almost over!  Back in May, when the season is brand new, you look forward to an “endless summer” of racing, only to realize about this time of year that another season is quickly coming to a close!

But we’ve got three more great weeks of action remaining, so let’s all get out and Embrace the Race. Fan Appreciation Night, the Night of Champions and the Irving Blending & Packaging SpeedWeekend. It doesn’t get much better than this.Before Brian Gillespie retired from racing and started winning 50/50 draws, he was busy winning five Martin’s Home Heating Sportsman championships. Just for the record, Brian also won two Street Stock titles which gives him seven over-all. That’s a record and a little something for the rest of you “Hot-Shots” to aim for!

So make plans to come out to Speedway 660 early this Saturday for the Fan Appreciation Autograph session. It starts at 5:30 and racing in our five weekly divisions starts at 6:30PM.

We’ll see you at the races!