Inspired by His Hero, Garvey Drives for Snowball Derby Champ Gary Balough By Chuck Corder At 56, Mike Garvey still remembers the moment he decided to be a stock-car driver. As a kid, Garvey and his family would make annual pilgrimages from their native Michigan down to Nashville for the All-American 400. It was at the historic Fairgrounds where Garvey first caught a glance at a chromed-out, sleek, and cool look of the No. 112 of short-track icon Gary Balough. “The car was immaculate,” Garvey recalled. “That’s what always caught my eye about Gary’s cars. Not only were they the fastest, but they were always the best looking. That’s what stuck with me. 3 Joseph Meyer 9 Logan Boyett 12 Tony Dalton 12 Brandon Burks 18 Jesse Salazar 18 Jessie Reid 29 Shanna Ard 38 Chopper Stagner 40 Kody Brusso 51 Trevor Dalton 54 Grant Thompson 56 Darryl Rudd 56 Josh Hicks 64 Cale Gale 96 John Heil 97 Hunter Lambert
“That’s what I wanted to do. NASCAR was never a big deal to me. I wanted to race for a living. Guys like Gary, Rusty Wallace, Mark Martin, Terry Senneker – those were my heroes.” Garvey will get to live out his childhood dream this Friday at Five Flags Speedway. He will team with his idol, Balough, and get behind a Senneker
2 Donnie Wilson 03 George Gorham 4 Kyle Plott 5 Dalton Armstrong 11 David Rogers 11 Logan Boyett 14 Chris Davidson 14 Connor Okrzesik 14 Austin Nason 15 Austin Thaxton 16 Lucas Jones 18 Casey Roderick 18 Trey Bayne 20 Anthony Sergi 20 Jack Dossey III 21 Jeremy Pate 21 Bronson Butcher 21 Ryan Herbert 26 Bubba Pollard 26 Travis Braden 30 Jessie Dutilly 30 Bobby Knox 33 Dustin Smith 33 Carter Stokes 47 Allen Karnes 51 Cole Rouse 51 Stephen Nasse 55 Cole Anderson 53 Boris Jurkovic 66 Logan Bearden 78 Corey Heim 79 Kyle Bryant 79 Joe Aramendia 81 Giovanni Bromante 83 Scotty Ellis 88 Roger Reuse 97 Steven Davis 98 Paul Kelley 99 Casey Smith 99 Chase Purdy 112 Augie Grill 112 Mike Garvey
Performance Super Late Model for the Southern Super Series Mid Summer Sizzler, Balough, the two-time Snowball Derby champion (1980, 1986), will be helping Garvey out with the car, which will be wrapped in a throwback theme to Balough’s glory days dominating the shorttrack world. “I used to love coming to Pensacola and racing, especially for the Snowball Derby,” Balough said earlier this week. “That’s the biggest show and that’s the best show all year long. There’s nothing like the Snowball Derby.” Balough will also spend some time before the race in the Fan Zone where he will be signing copies of his book, “Hot Shoe! A Checkered Past: My Story.” “It’s so strange the way this whole thing worked out,” Garvey said.
Friday July19th 1:00pm Pits Open / Pre-Tech / Practice Tire Selection 2:30pm Driver’s Meeting 3:00pm – 3:30pm Southern Super Series Practice Round 1 3:45pm Race Tire Selection 4:30pm – 5:30pm SSS practice Round 2 5:35pm PT, SP, PS Practice Round 1 6:15pm PT, SP, PS Practice / Qualifying 7:15pm PT, SP, PS Driver’s Meeting 7:50pm Pre-Race Festivities 8:00pm Blizzard Heat Races Pure Stock Feature (20 Laps) Sportsmen Feature (25 Laps) SSS Mid Summer Sizzler 75 Pro Truck Feature (30 Laps)
3 Mark Barnhill 07 Jim Pokrant 8 B J Leytham 13 Paul Mathis 28 Dayton Sidner 29 Shanna Ard 29 Garrett Cobb 55 Jimbo Walker 71 Tommie Blocker 76 Tony Boyd 97 Hunter Lambert 99 Billy Hoover
National Anthem
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Tony Boyd, Pensacola, Chance Imel, Irvington, AL Johnathan Day, Mobile Cameron Leytham, Mobile Michael Moody, Mobile T J Thompson, Mobile Robert Loper, Theadore, Brad Mosley; 8 Mile Rocky Boyd; Pensacola Lee Williams, Theadore, Daryl McDonald, Theadore, Butch Harvell, Pensacola Dylan Courtney, Citronelle, John K Merritt, Pensacola. Caleb Burkett, Pensacola Jimmy Hollingsworth, Mobile Matt Thompson, Wilmer, AL Bobby Suarez, Pensacola Cory Pittman, Cantonment Brandin Sidner, Pensacola Jay Whalen, Pensacola Randall Moye, Robertsdale Robert Balkum, Pensacola Zack Jordan, Pensacola Jonathan Smith, Theadore Robert Riley, Gulfbreeze
Sarah Marcial Garvey’s career has been welldocumented. A talented driver, Garvey racked up dozens of short-track victories and reached NASCAR’s three touring series before returning to the late model world nearly a decade ago. He hasn’t competed since a “terrible” showing in the Blizzard Series finale in 2016, Garvey said. Truth be told, Garvey knows it was a blessing of sorts. He was already experiencing nerve damage that was taking a toll on his legs and feet. Stepping away from racing allowed him to focus on attending to the needs of his late model customers, such as Chris Davidson and Grand Bay teenager Connor Okrzesik. -Story continues on our web site.
2019 Schedule Aug 2 Demo Derby, Mods of Mayhem, O SP Aug 16 ATPLM O, PT, PS Aug 31 * Big Rig Trucks Sep 14 * O, PT, SP, PS, Championships Sep 21 * Blizzard, ATPLM Championships Nov 23 * SBD Preview Dec 4-8 Snowball Derby
Michael Moody Robert Balkum Corey Pitman Caleb Burkett Randall Moye
Joshua Hicks Grant Thompson Logan Boyett Brandon Burks Hunter Lambert
Mark Barnhill Tommie Blocker Jim Pokrant Garrett Cobb Dayton Sidner
Geo Bromante Lucas Jones Anthony Sergi Logan Boyett Casey Roderick
Chris Cotto Bill Tutchtone Jason Furrow Bubba WInslow Jody Hende rson
Connor Okrzesik Colby Howard Jake Garcia Casey Roderick William Hale