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Redemption Song: Faircloth Shakes Off Tough Season Finish to Capture Butler U-Pull-it Bombers Derby Crown

Chuck Corder

Racing is all about how you finish.

Curtis Faircloth embodied that old adage during the Bombers division of the 44th annual Snowball Derby on Thursday at Five Flags Speedway.

The Sportsmen Derby was not completed at press time.

In a race that saw him start toward the back of the 24-car pack, Faircloth survived great attrition among the leaders and used a late charge to capture the thrilling 30-lap adventure.

The Pace resident held off a dogged attempt from Johnathan Day in the closing laps

“(Dang), I feel like a supermodel,� Faircloth said, wearing an ear-to-ear grin as he posed for photographs with his ecstatic family.

He had every right to take his turn on the catwalk in Victory Lane.

Faircloth’s roller-coaster season saw him ride a wave of success, winning five times early on.

All those good vibes went out the window, though, following a one-race suspension cost him most of his points.

Faircloth refused to yield his motor in June when another driver put a claim on it. Forfeiting just once race forced Faircloth to regroup and miss the second half of the season almost entirely.

He erased all those frustrations with a memorable run Thursday.

“This is the biggest accomplishment because of all the work I’ve put in myself,� Faircloth said. “I’ve had some great help from friends, but I’ve spent so much time on this car. Just ask my wife. She’s glad it’s over and so am I.�

His family and team were about the only ones that excited the season had closed.

Day, who won the season championship at his track in Mobile, was in prime position early on Thursday. He took the lead around Lap 11 following a vicious crash between then-leaders Jay Jay Day, Johnathan’s cousin, and Five Flags track champ Gary Goodwin.

Jay Jay Day, the fast qualifier, was running away with the Derby before his night ended with a loud thud.

On a restart, Goodwin shot in front of him, but immediately began to swerve all across the track. Jay Jay Day tried to check up, but it was too late. Goodwin’s loose No. 23 slammed Jay Jay Day’s No. 98 into the outside wall on the back stretch before it came to a screeching halt, pinched in the inside guard rail.

The violent collision opened the door for Johnathan Day, who wasn’t pleased that he couldn’t make his lead stick to the final lap.

“I felt like I let a lotta people down, but what are you gonna do?� he said. “(Faircloth) was real good on the restarts. We were better on the long runs. Unfortunately, we ran into lapped traffic.�

Faircloth wasn’t going to let that prevent him from the trophy and the checkered flag.

On one of the three restarts with 10 laps completed, he shot a tiny gap and went from fourth to first in the blink.

Faircloth’s lead didn’t last long because it was waved off when another caution came out before a lap was finished. Still, he served notice that nothing was getting between him and a coveted Derby title.

“I don’t know what move I made. I just drove,� Faircloth said. “I don’t think when I’m out there.�

A racer’s mentality for sure.

Bombers Snowball Derby 30 Lapper—1. Curtis Faircloth, 2. Johnathan Day, 3. Kenny Bullard, 4. Leonard Craig Jr., 5. Hunter Ward, 6. Kenny Williams, 7. Tally Warrick, 8. Jayme Corry, 9. Robert Balkum, 10. Tracy Soles, 11. Bryon Reed, 12. T.J. Thompson, 13. Gary Goodwin, 14. David Johnson, 15. Kim Bishop, 16. Wesley Barnhill, 17. Courtney Rodrigues, 18. Dave Smoot, 19. Rusty Powell Sr., 20. Brandon Burks, 21. Brian Lane, 22. Jay Jay Day, 23. Rusty Powell Jr., 24. Michael T. Nelson

 

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