Management of the Parts for Trucks Pro Stock Tour are pleased to announce they will honour Scott Fraser and Scott Kelly posthumously by retiring their car numbers, No. 00 and No. 12, respectively, at the upcoming Atlantic Cat 250 at Scotia Speedworld on August 9. Both drivers were short track legends who still live in the hearts of race fans across the region and the country. A ceremony will be held at the 15th edition of the Atlantic Cat 250, following which the two numbers will be officially retired from competition. Scott Kelly, 1995 (photo – Joan Roue) Both Scott Fraser and Scott Kelly were inducted posthumously as members of the Maritime Motorsports Hall of Fame and both are in the prestigious Hall along with their fathers, Frank Fraser and Junior Kelly. “We were both surprised and honoured when the Pro Stock Tour officials came to us with the idea of retiring Scott’s number,” said Frank Fraser. “And we’re even more pleased it is being done at the same time as Scott Kelly’s number 12. It shows the respect the racing community had, and still has, for both of them.” Both of the drivers whose numbers will be retired died at a young age and both in the prime of their racing careers – careers that paralleled each other. Both called Scotia Speedworld their home track and both came up through the street stock and open wheel modified divisions before moving to MASCAR. Scott Kelly started racing in 1988 and in 1994 won the MASCAR Rookie of the Year title. In 1995 he was second in MASCAR points, and in 1996 he finished second (among nearly 100 drivers) in the prestigious Oxford 250. In 1997 he was diagnosed with cancer but continued to race, often leaving chemo treatments to head directly to a race track; his grit and determination shone through, most especially the day he won his last race. In 1998 he won the International Pro Stock Challenge (IPSC) championship, beating the best short track racers in eastern Canada and the northeastern United States. In May 1999 Scott Kelly lost a courageous two-year battle with cancer; he was just 28 years old. Scott Fraser, 1995 (photo – Joan Roué) Scott Fraser started racing in 1987 and made his MASCAR debut in 1991 at the Halifax Moosehead Grand Prix, finishing second in his first-ever road course race. In 1992 he was the open wheel modified champ at Scotia Speedworld and in 1993 he won the first of six consecutive Riverside 250s. In 1996 and 1998 he won the MASCAR championship and he was the IPSC champion in 1999 – winning the title in a season that series had dedicated to Scott Kelly’s memory. In 2000 and 2001 he garnered national attention racing with the televised American Speed Association (ASA). In September 2003 he won what would turn out to be his last race, fittingly at his home track. In March 2004 Scott Fraser died in a snowmobile accident; he was just 33 years old. Scott Kelly’s racing career was recognized by the Parts for Trucks Pro Stock Tour in August 2008 when the Scott Kelly Memorial 100 was held, a race that was won by Craig Slaunwhite driving for the SFR (Scott Fraser Racing) team which was organized after Scott Fraser’s death to perpetuate his legacy. In that race Wayne Smith drove a car with a commemorative look replicating Scott Kelly’s No. 12. To mark the occasion of retiring the 00 and to commemorate the announcement earlier this year that Scott Fraser will become the first stock car racer to be inducted to the Nova Scotia Sports Hall of Fame, two race teams have decided to run commemorative Fraser paint schemes. Steve Henderson will field the black ’00’ that Fraser drove to 12 of 15 wins en route to his 1996 MASCAR title; Maine’s Ben Rowe, a three-time Atlantic Cat 250 winner and fierce competitor of Fraser’s, will drive that car. And King Racing, the team Fraser drove for from 1999 to 2003, will run the white ’08’ scheme that Fraser raced in 2003; Maine’s Cassius Clark, two-time Atlantic Cat 250 winner, will drive the ’08’, which will also bear a special decal to honour King Racing owner Rollie MacDonald’s 50th year in racing. [LATE BREAKING NEWS: Donald Chisholm will run a No. 12 tribute car for Scott Kelly in the Atlantic Cat 250. More to follow.] The Atlantic Cat 250 is a significant event on the Parts for Trucks Pro Stock Tour calendar with significant ties to both Scott Kelly and Scott Fraser. Scott Kelly’s long-time sponsor on his familiar No. 12 was Parts for Trucks, now sponsor of the Parts for Trucks Pro Stock Tour, which sanctions the Atlantic Cat 250. Scott Fraser’s long-time sponsor was Atlantic Cat, sponsor of the Atlantic Cat 250 for which the winner, since 2004, has seen their name etched on the Scott Fraser Memorial Cup. The Atlantic Cat 250 weekend kicks off Friday August 8 with the Dartmouth Dodge Sportsman 100 at 7:00 p.m., Saturday’s Atlantic Cat 250 will start at 5:00 p.m. with Atlantic Tiltload Time Trials slated for 4:10 p.m. Admission for the Dartmouth Dodge Sportsman 100 is $12.00 for adults, $2.00 for youth (8-15 years old); pit admission is $15.00. Admission for Saturday’s Atlantic Cat 250 is $35.00 for adults; $6.00 for youth; pit admission is $40.00. Two day passes are also available – adults are $40.00, two day pit passes are $45.00. Children 7 and under are admitted for free all weekend. Tickets will be available at the gate on race day. (Cash Only) Scotia Speedworld is located at Exit 6 on Highway 102 across from the Halifax International Airport. Visit www.scotiaspeedworld.ca for more information.
