Tadd Parks and Stewart Friesen Team Up for a Limited Schedule in 2016; Parks Purchases New Cyclone Chassis for Big-Block Competition
Story By: MATT NOLES / RACERSGUIDE.COM Photos By: DAVE DALESANDRO and MATT NOLES / RACERSGUIDE.COM
SPRAKERS, NY- April 7, 2016- The word dominance is often overused by sports writers; so much so that the term seems to lose its effectiveness. Regardless of the tenure of their success, whether it’s two weeks or 20-years, out of sheer laziness, the aforementioned word is applied whether deserving or not.
Yet for the past six seasons, the partnership of Stewart Friesen and Tadd Parks has been nothing short of dominant. To say anything less of their incredible accomplishments in the sport of dirt modified racing is to turn a blind eye to the truth. In fact, if their performance isn’t the very definition of the word then the dictionary needs to be amended and quickly.
From 2010 to 2015, the Parks Enterprises team with Stewart Friesen at the helm has garnered six consecutive track championships between their exploits at the Five Mile Point Speedway in Kirkwood, New York and the Fonda Speedway in Fonda, New York. With 71 total victories amassed during that time frame, they were a threat to win week in and week out and generally the bane of existence for their competition.
As the 2015 season came to a close, uncertainty abounded as it seemed that even the very best of times were slated to come to an end. “I was a little bit burned out at the end of last year,” stated Tadd Parks. “I felt my life at the time was going in a different direction and I felt like there were other things that I wanted to do. I was ready for a little bit of a break.” With that mindset, the writing seemed to be on the wall for the wildly successful duo.
“He [Friesen] took that Halmar ride which was a great deal for him,” continued Parks. “I wasn’t going to try to hold him back from that because he’s been working for a ride like that for a long time and it’s what he deserves.” With his driver committed elsewhere, Parks took the next logical step for a man in his situation; he sold off his equipment.
“I sold both the cars that we were running last year,” stated Parks. “I sold off one of my motors and all the spare parts that I had.” After being a consistent championship-winning car owner, the steady march of time had even worn Parks down. With an expanding business and less time to spend worrying about racing, he made the decision that was best for him at the time; or so he thought.
“My problem now is that my life really didn’t go in a different direction,” remarked Parks. “I started regretting not really having that weekly thing to occupy my time like racing did and it didn’t really hit me until this past Saturday when I was down at Middletown [Orange County Fair Speedway in Middletown, New York] when they announced his name as a regular down there and not at Fonda where we had a good run going. It kind of bothered me a bit.”
When Friesen agreed to drive for Halmar at the end of 2015, he also left the door open for Tadd Parks to stay involved. It’s a good thing he did. “I knew at the end of last year that I didn’t really want to give up racing cold turkey because you just can’t,” Parks said. “And I also felt like I didn’t want anybody else to drive for me either. Stew has spoiled me and I don’t know if I could go racing with anyone else.”
With a driver that is committed to another team and a car owner that is committed to that driver, there was only one logical step left to take; run a limited schedule together. “The two of us talked and decided that we wanted to run a limited deal,” continued Parks. “When Middletown has a weekend off with the big-blocks, we’re going to run Fonda in the Halmar No. 1 that I own and we’re also looking at going to Utica-Rome [Speedway in Vernon, New York] now and then as well.”
Their schedule isn’t the only item that has changed for Friesen and Parks; their choice of chassis manufacturers has as well. After all the success behind the wheel of Bobby Hearn’s Teo Pro cars, Parks and Friesen have decided to think outside of the box and venture into the unknown with the purchase of the newly formed Cyclone Chassis built by Dave Constantino, Kyle Hoffman and Eric Mack in Fultonville, New York.
“Dave [Constantino] and Kyle [Hoffman] approached Stew and I and at first I was a little leery,” Parks said. “But I thought about it and we aren’t running for points anywhere so I went down to their shop to check things out and I was impressed.” Parks was so impressed that he ordered a chassis immediately and already has plans to put a big-block under the hood when the season starts.
“This whole deal is exciting for them and exciting for us at the same time,” stated Parks. “I’m really looking forward to it. I’m so impressed with the car and to be honest it’s probably going to be one of the nicest cars I’ll ever own.” The only thing left for Parks, the only thing that matters now, is getting the car to the track.
“Hopefully we’ll have the same success with this car as we have had with Teo in the past,” continued Parks. “Dave ran one [Cyclone Chassis] last year and won five times with his and Kyle won with his too so these cars have been validated and I think we’re going to have a really good piece.” With Friesen back behind the wheel of a Tadd Parks owned modified, it’s hard to imagine them being anything but successful but only time will tell that tale.
“I did order a new Teo for this year as well,” Parks said. “I’ve got enough brand new spare parts that I kept to slowly piece that car together and put our small-block in. There’s no rush to complete that car though; we’re committed to running the Cyclone Chassis this year.” With his life going from one direction back to another, Parks has something to look forward to when the season kicks into high gear in only a few weeks’ time.
“I’m just glad that Stew still wanted me to be involved this year,” said Parks. “It’s been a big help and it will continue to be a big help with Halmar this year. I might only own the car and the motor, but I’m just as happy because we get to go racing together again.”
Race fans and competitors alike won’t have to wait too long to see the return of Parks and Friesen or the debut of their newly minted Cyclone Chassis big-block modified. In fact, the wait is probably shorter than most of them would like.
“Tentatively we’re going to run Utica-Rome on April, 24th,” concluded Parks. “We’re going to shake the car down and see what’s going on and then look forward to heading back to Fonda when we can. Everything is hit or miss right now but then again, my whole racing career with Stew started off that way and we ended up racing every weekend for six years and won six championships together so I guess you really never know.”
For now, the win total for Parks and Friesen is officially at 71; and counting.
Matt Noles is a contributing writer for Racer’s Guide and Speedway Illustrated. He currently resides in Sprakers, New York.
