---

Team Olson Chad & Corey

My journey with team Olson started way back in high school being good friends with Chad and venturing to the race park to watch his older brother Corey. Through the years, the fun and excitement doubled as Chad was able to get a car and drive along with his brother. The racing led us to many different places. More than a few times traveling north of the border led to overnight stays due to some pesky "socials". Whether we were in Emo Ontario, Bemidji, Greenbush, and a host of other places, team Olson was competitive.

Corey and Chad’s driving styles were as different as they were. Corey being on the edge of disaster half the time and Chad taking the more conservative route while still ending up towards the front. Corey had many wins in the little rocket, and Chad a few 2nd place finishes in the green hornet. Through the years the colors of the cars changed and eventually Chad left the sport and still followed it and his car which he had sold to me. Corey had many entertaining crashes and finishes throughout his career. With a busy life away from racing he often didn't have the time to work on his car as much as needed but he always tried to do the best with what he had. Last year in North Dakota he had a great run with basically bald tires and even had the lead with a lap or two to go. He lost to Alan Truscinski and finished a close 2nd. Towards the end of his career he was definitely an underdog but the fight inside was as bright as it was 20 years ago when he was just starting out.

Loosing Chad to cancer was something that was hard on all of us who raced with him and enjoyed his company. Corey always wanted to win the race honoring his brother but had many breaks go the other way and never quite pulled it off. I will never forget the hug he shared with me when I won the Chad Olson memorial race a few years back. He was as happy for me winning as he would've been for himself. That was Corey and Chad in a nutshell. This spring we lost the other half to Team Olson when Corey lost his life in a car accident. It’s still hard to admit that the 2 won’t be on the track ever again.

Shortly after we said our goodbyes to Corey a few of us racers came together and started to plan to make this race happen. Building the trophy, I wanted to make it special. It’s made with many parts from their cars and things Corey had as well as lots of good memories. Since they both enjoyed hockey I thought it necessary to make part of look like the Stanley Cup. Hopefully when you see the race and trophy your memories will put a smile on your face. They gave us many throughout the years and it’s up to us to share them and make new ones. WFO as Corey would say!

---

Article Media

Back to News