(Aug. 27, 2017) The countdown to SpeedWeekend is on and in just a few days the biggest event on Atlantic Canada’s racing calendar will be here. Everyone looks forward to SpeedWeekend all season long and every race team, local and visiting, hopes to have success. We caught up with a few drivers who told us what SpeedWeekend means to them.

 Talkin SpeedWeekend

Allison Hall: SpeedWeekend is all that matters to me right now. I can’t wait for it to get here. There are so many people who come to Speedway 660 from all over the place and even though we are a support class on Sunday, it’s an opportunity to race in front of a big crowd and show what we can do with our little Sharp Shooters. I love driving this little car, they are so much fun and it is helping me improve my skills.

I hope one day to move up to Street Stock, but right now I’m focussed on SpeedWeekend. We’ve come a long way and even if we could get a podium that would be a big accomplishment, not just for me but for our pit crew and family who have worked so hard this season.Allison Hall loves SpeedWeekend and loves driving her little Fredericton Gun Shop Sharp Shooter. Allison and the other Sharp Shooter drivers look forward to their race on SpeedWeekend Sunday.  

Matt Crocker: SpeedWeekend is definitely an awesome time of the year. It gives everybody a chance to get out and show their stuff one last time after the points racing is over. It’s really the most exciting racing weekend in all of Atlantic Canada. The DMR Auto Sales Street Stock drivers all look forward to SpeedWeekend Sunday afternoon. We want to put on a good show for the fans and let everyone see how awesome our Street Stock racing is here at 660.Matt Crocker has been to victory lane plenty of times at Speedway 660. Matt hopes to get another checkered flag on Sunday when the DMR Auto Sales Street Stocks go racing. 

John Rankin: Ever since I started racing SpeedWeekend has been the event everyone looks forward to. It’s huge, it’s the last big hurrah for us up here and everyone knows it’s the last weekend and you want to finish off your season with a strong performance. It’s just a fun atmosphere, we’re really looking forward to the Martin’s Home Heating 150 on Saturday night and we’ll come back Sunday to give some of the other guys a hand with their Pro Stocks.

I hope our luck continues. We were fortunate enough to win the first two big Sportsman races this year and won the championship too, so hopefully we’ve got one more good run left in us for SpeedWeekend. Five grand to win – that’s a really nice purse and whoever is lucky enough to win it will get a nice boost to start them off for next year. The competition is going to stiff though – that kind of money will bring in a lot of great teams.It’s been a dream season for John Rankin. He won Speedway 660’s Sportsman championship plus the Martin’s Home Heating 100 and the Firecracker 150. John hopes he can complete the hat-trick on Saturday night in the Martin’s Home Heating 150.

Lonnie Sommerville: It’s obviously the race of the year and we want to win the McLaughlin Roof Trusses 250. Speedway 660 is our home track and with sponsors, family and friends here for SpeedWeekend we want to have a great run and hopefully go to victory lane. SpeedWeekend is exciting and even at 42, I get amped up just thinking about it and can’t wait for it to get here. We won the race twice, but it seems like it’s been such a long time ago that we need to get another one just to experience how great it is to win this thing.

The competition is the best you are going to see anywhere in the Maritimes. I’ve raced with the guys from the Pro All Star Series a lot and they force everyone else to up their game. I love running against them and since you are only as good as your competition, it’s important to have them come up here because they only make everyone else that much better. The Americans have got top notch equipment and they really know how to muscle a car around the track for 250 laps and get the most out of it. Lonnie Sommerville won the 250 in 06 and 09. Lonnie hopes to once again experience the joy that comes with winning the biggest race of the season on SpeedWeekend Sunday night!

Derek Christie: I’ve been to every SpeedWeekend and enjoyed them all. I’ve come up through Street Stock, Sportsman and Pro Stock so I’ve experienced SpeedWeekend in all of those classes. There’s excitement in the air and everybody wants to have a good run, but the competition is always tough because you get to race against guys you haven’t seen all summer. When the grand stands are full, like they are every year, you just want to be part of it whether you are a driver, a crew member or a fan.

It’s really the Crown Jewel of racing in the Maritimes and it pretty amazing if you qualify for the McLaughlin Roof Trusses 250 and take the green flag knowing that if things work out, you just might have a chance to win it. I really enjoy racing against the Maritime Tour guys and the tough competition from south of the border. The Americans really bring a high level of professionalism to the race and they make us better. I love running with them and it wouldn’t be half as much fun if they weren’t here for SpeedWeekend.Derek Christie has raced in every SpeedWeekend. From Street Stock to Sportsman to Pro Stock Derek has  lots of experience in the big races. He is looking forward to getting down to the track and racing in SpeedWeekend 2017.

Dustin Tucker: It’s the biggest race of the year for sure, but for us we try to keep to our regular routine in terms of car preparation and we want to be competitive and like everyone else we would love to win it. It sure would be a nice trophy to have on the shelf, so we’ll first try to qualify for the race and if we get in, we’ll try to stay out of trouble and be in a position to make a move or two at the end of it.Dustin Tucker won his very first RE/MAX Group Four Realty Pro Stock feature earlier this season. This third generation driver hopes to have another great run this weekend.

My Dad has won the 250 three times and I would love to get my name on one of those trophies some day. It is really awesome to see all of these fans and all of these race teams come to Speedway 660 for SpeedWeekend. It blows my mind that all of these people love racing just as much as we do. For me to have the opportunity to run against the Americans and other visiting drivers is a real thrill. That level of competition really helps some of us younger drivers improve. Dustin’s Dad Shawn won the 250 in 04, 11 and 13, making him the only three-time winner of the race. BTW Dustin is the young guy in the photo!