Issue 50

Notebook - The 250

Cha-ching!

Hallowell, Maine’s Johnny Clark heard that many, many times during Sunday’s festivities in the Geary woods. The PASS North regular won his second Pro Stock 250 at Speedway 660 this past weekend and took home $26,300 after all was tallied up at the New Brunswick track! Even though the #54 Clark’s Car Crushing Impala led over 180 laps in the event, he did not go unchallenged during the event. His biggest challenge would come from a blue and white #5 with Chapman Brothers Construction and CASTLE Building Center on the side.

Jonathan Hicken of Brudenell, Prince Edward Island poured the heat on Clark for a majority of the 250-lap green flag racing event. Hicken would win heat race number two to put him on the outside pole for the final Triple Crown race of the season and would lead laps early after battling with pole sitter Shawn Turple. When Clark made his way to the front, Hicken would play his shadow as they made their way through lapped traffic and when Clark pitted just past the halfway mark, Hicken would follow the leader. A scramble on a restart in the second half of the event in turn two sent Turple spinning and Clark to the rear, putting Hicken on the point.

Hicken battled with the likes of Scott Chubbuck, Travis Benjamin and Kevin Moore on the lead lap and Lonnie Sommerville who was a lap down and with no “Back in the Race Free Pass” award would have to fight his way past the leaders to get back on the lead lap. The scenery changed on lap 200 when Chubbuck would give Hicken a shot in the rear as they worked on the outside of Sommerville. That shot would send Hicken to the beach, Chubbuck to the rear and Sommerville back on the lead lap. Hicken would end up coming home in sixth place and just one point shy of the overall Triple Crown trophy.

Speaking of Sommerville, the #23 A.E. McKay Builders Chevrolet Impala and team had some tough sledding in the Pro Stock 250. Lonnie Sommerville Racing also fielded cars for Travis Kittleson and NASCAR Camping World Truck champ Johnny Benson and it took up until the Last Chance Qualifier for all three to wheel their cars into the event, leaving their fans with little nails left before the big dance! The 250 didn’t fair very well for the team as Kittleson and Benson would both need assistance off the track by Colborne’s Auto Salvage. Meanwhile Sommerville was at the wrong place at the wrong time in the early stages and the LSR crew went to work bandaging the #23 – which was visible with a big black piece of tape on the nose of the white car. When a long green flag run came, Sommerville would fall back a lap to Clark and Hicken but battled hard with third place runner Wayne Smith. As the two ran hard to stay in front of each other, they made contact sending the lead lap #44 Jetco Contracting Impala to the beach in the second corner. Sommerville and Smith would finish 9th and 10th respectively.

When asked on Sunday morning what he had for the rest of the field, Greg Proude simply said “I have a car that could win this race.” Greg was in the top five in all the practice sessions and finished second in his heat to lock himself into the 250. The #29 APM Dodge was quiet for the first two thirds of the race before appearing at the top of the board on lap 204. Proude would lead four laps before handing the lead back over to Clark and ran at the front half for the remaining laps, eventually coming home with fourth. Proude, from Springvale came home as the top finishing Prince Edward Islander in the third Triple Crown race after two Island teams won the first two events!

In ten races we have ten different winners on the Tour. Shawn Tucker still hasn’t won a feature but his consistency has not only rewarded the #52 AL Gullison Disaster Kleenup Impala with the point lead on the Tour but it has given him another first place trophy. With finishes of 3rd, 2nd and 3rd in the three Triple Crown races the Fredericton driver was rewarded with the Triple Crown Trophy! Tucker will look to wrap up the season with a win at Scotia Speedworld this weekend in the Parts for Trucks 200 – a track where he has a trio of second place runs in 2010!

His closest rival in the points finished 2nd in the Pro Stock 250 this past weekend. Shawn Turple knows what it takes to get to the end of these long 250-lap events and once again proved that fact as he brought his #0 Dexter Construction/Municipal Group Chevrolet home in second. With his home track coming up to close the season out and the thoughts of a mid-season win at said track still in the back of the minds of those on his team, Turple is still very much in the mix to go back-to-back on the CARQUEST Tour!

Once again a tip of the cap needs to go to Chris Johnston, Steve and Tracy Burns and the rest of the Speedway 660 staff who put on a fantastic weekend of racing. The drivers put on a great show on track and everyone involved should be proud of the show put on in the Geary woods this weekend. Congratulations are in order for Myles Harris who put on a dominating performance in the Sportsman 150, along with Peter Gaddess (Street Stock), Steve Pye (Maritime League of Legends), “Miss Rawdon Rocket” Emily Meehan (Bandolero), Kevin Peterson (Four Cylinder) and Jamie Brown (Atlantic Open Wheel) for their victories on the weekend.

Coming up later in the week, we preview the Parts for Trucks 200 featuring NASCAR Legend Ken Schrader. Just a reminder to make sure you are not only at Scotia Speedworld on Saturday but on Friday as well as the track contests “Finale Friday.” Four of their Weekly Racing Series champs will be crowned and for more on that, you can check ScotiaSpeedworld.ca!

Until then, keep the hammer down and we’ll see you at the track!