He’s called Speedy.

Speedy Faucette
372 Edgewood Church Rd,
Mebane, NC 27302-9727


372 Edgewood Church Rd
Mebane,  NC  27302-9727
(919) 563-4866

******************************************
[21 Apr 2004, Burlington Times-News]
ALTAMAHAW — There’s a saying that bad luck comes in threes. Speedy Faucette  is shouldering a triple dose of hardship that reaches a realm beyond frustrating.
    Mebane’s Faucette , the defending Late Models champion at Ace Speedway, hasn’t come close to finishing a race this season because of woes incurred during each of the division’s three events.
    It has been a situation so damaging to his car and his finances that he said he must take a break from competing. Faucette  called the predicament a heartbreaking one.
    "I race with the money the car wins and when you ain’t winning nothing you can’t race long," he said. "Unless I’m going to quit eating and making my house payment, I’m going to have to check up for a while. I ain’t filthy rich like some of them. I’m a working man, and that’s just reality."
    This is nowhere near a question of quickness. Faucette  has qualified fourth, first and second, respectively, the last three weeks.
    A broken axle finished Faucette’s  car about 10 laps into the season-opening 75-lap feature. First-lap wrecks kept him from completing a circuit in both of the last two races.
    These mishaps have resulted in a pair of 14 th-place finishes and a 13 thplace run, thus creating heavy workloads for Faucette’s  crew members and even more of a burden on his wallet.
    In terms of racing cash flow, it’s a particularly one-sided street. Faucette  said he has earned about $350, but spent more than $4,000 since the season began.
    "I count on running up front every week to pay for my habit," he said. "I don’t know when I’ll be back out. It ain’t because I don’t want to be there."
    Faucette  has always been a budget-conscious racer, making his rise to last year’s track championship all the more appealing.
    He counts Southern Microscope, Jeff Morgan Signs and his father-in-law, Larry Brooks, as the extent of his sponsorship.
    Faucette  said his financial foundation was in good order for most of the offseason. He had collected an $8,750 check for winning the division last year, but then Ace’s new rules allowing Crate engines wiped that out.
    "It ain’t been the rosy story everybody wants it to be," Faucette  said about the Crate engines. "The only reason I bought one is because I couldn’t have been competitive without it.
    "Until they changed the rules, I was looking good because I had two brand-new engines sitting there to go into the race car. They’re still sitting there collecting dust."
******************************************


******************************************

ALTAMAHAW — Speedy Faucette  has learned that his car goes faster when he slows down behind the wheel.
    Faucette  has uncorked two strong runs in Ace Speedway’s Late Models division. The Mebane driver finished fifth in the season opener and followed that with a thirdplace showing last week.
    He said his hot start has resulted from a cooler demeanor.
    "I’ve got a quick temper and I’ve kind of got the reputation of being an overaggressive driver who tears stuff up," Faucette  said Tuesday. "I’m trying to not do that this year and keep it in one piece.
    "The biggest thing is Donnie (West). Donnie’s been a calming influence for me on the radio."
    West won last year’s Mini Stocks title at Ace, but decided not to race this season. Instead, he’s serving in a crew chief capacity for Faucette .
    The pairing seems to have settled Faucette . Late Models races at Ace are usually 75 laps and West has trimmed the team’s strategy into different increments, a move that has helped his driver stay patient.
    "Donnie feels like if we can get through the first 30 laps, we’ll be all right," said Faucette , who turns 33 at the end of this month.
    Faucette  has raced off and on at Ace since 1995 and has shown signs of potential for several years. His first victory came in June 2001 and he has placed in the top three more than half a dozen times.
    He said his crew — which includes Jerry Fonville, Derek Hunter, Bill Lancaster, John Threate and Faucette’s  wife, Sharon — worked long and hard to improve his car during the offseason.
    The finished product has pleased Faucette . He said his car has been top-notch since they unloaded it for preseason practice.
    "To be honest with you, ever since we won that race (in 2001), every time I go to Ace I feel like we can be as competitive as anyone there," Faucette  said. "That’s not a brag, that’s just the truth.
    "Pretty much it’s just been bad decisions that’s hurt us and those are on me. I’m the one driving the car. The spotter can’t drive it."

**********************************
[12 Jun 2004, Burlington Times-News]
ALTAMAHAW — A champion and a nemesis returned Friday night to Ace Speedway.
    Mebane’s Speedy Faucette  was back ready for Late Models competition after a near two-month absence. But rain made it out to the track as well, washing out Ace’s events for a second week in a row.
    Faucette  would have been competing with a freshly assembled car, which has been equipped with a few upgrades, he said.
    The car he began the season with suffered through a broken axle and two wrecks in three consecutive weeks. That misfortune and subsequent financial burden forced him to take a break from racing.
    "I’m excited, very excited," Faucette  said Friday. "I’m nervously optimistic, I guess. We’ve been fast with the other car and we’re fast with this car. If we can get some luck, we’ll be OK.
    "We’ll just come and try to do the best we can. Every week I come it’s to win. That’s still the goal."
    Faucette , who won last year’s Late Models championship, is out of this season’s points chase. There are 304 points and 11 drivers between him and the division’s top spot.
    But he could factor in as a weekly wild card among the Late Models contenders.
    Faucette’s  lap of 15.90 seconds was the third-fastest qualifying time Friday. Only Gibsonville’s Brian King (15.80) and Mechanicsville, Va.’s Frank Deiny Jr. (15.85) were quicker.
    "We come over and tested two weeks ago and we could run faster with this car than we could at any time with the other one," Faucette  said. "And we already had a pole with the other one.
    "I know this car will go fast. It’ll run up front."
    Faucette  said he probably won’t be able to drive a full schedule from here on out. He said he’ll try to race at Ace as much as possible.
    "I’m just happy to be back," he said. "I just hope we can make a couple laps and not tear up nothing."
    The Late Models, Modifieds and Super Stocks had finished qualifying and pre-race activities were next on Friday’s agenda when a violent thunderstorm intervened.
    The track’s first eight racing nights of the season weren’t bothered by rain.
    Ace general manager Larry Barbare said radar reports indicated more rain was close Friday, so the decision was made to call things off.
    He said the track would’ve needed at least an hour to dry anyway.
    "It’s disappointing," Barbare said. "It was pretty much impossible last week and (Friday) we thought we were looking good for a good while.
    "We’ve been fortunate so far. It’s just the time of the year for weather like this. Everybody hang on to their rain checks and come back to see us next week."
Adam Smith can be reached at adam_smith@link.freedom.com