10/16/2025
Oswego Speedway
Pathfinder Bank SBS Veteran Jack Patrick To Join Oswego Speedway Hall of Fame Friday Night
OSWEGO, NY (October 16, 2025) - A true mainstay of Oswego Speedway’s Pathfinder Bank SBS division, veteran driver Jack Patrick will officially take his place among the track’s all-time greats this Friday night when he is inducted into the Oswego Speedway Hall of Fame as part of the Class of 2025. The induction will be held at Oswego Elks Lodge during the annual Oswego Speedway Hall of Fame and Championship Banquet.
For Patrick, who first began racing at Oswego in 1996, the news came as a complete surprise. “I was shocked completely. I had no clue,” Patrick admitted. “It did cross my mind during my career where I hoped I could get in there before I’m long gone. So many people deserve to be in there – I guess I’m just one of the people that have been racing there a long time. Next year will be year number 30.”
That three-decade career has been one of outstanding consistency. Patrick ranks among the most accomplished drivers in SBS history, sitting fifth all-time in top-five finishes with more than 50, third all-time in top-10 finishes with 141, and tied for 13th all-time in feature victories with seven. He also owns over 50 career heat race wins, including 42 officially recorded between 2006 and 2018. In just his final three seasons competing full-time with the SBS division, Patrick entered 35 events, earning 33 top 10 finishes and 16 heat race victories – a testament to his steady, methodical approach behind the wheel.
Patrick says that every one of his seven career wins were hard earned, but his first victory remains especially meaningful. “Every win I had to work for,” he reflected. “I remember every one of them. The first one, Shawn Muldoon was on my bumper for the last 12 laps, pounding me for the end of the race. That one sticks out more than any because it was the first one.”
It took Patrick six years of trying to capture his first SBS victory in 2001, and then another 11 years before finding victory lane again. That second triumph came in the 2011 edition of the Twin 20’s, holding off fellow Hall of Famer Mike Bond to take the win. Patrick’s third victory, in the 2012 Fall Championship, also over Bond, was particularly rewarding after rebounding from a significant Classic Weekend crash. The following year, he passed Dalton Doyle in turn 1 with just a lap remaining to notch another memorable win. He later held off Dave Cliff in 2016 for win number five, then one month later, engaged in one of the closest finishes in SBS history, edging Mike Bond at the line by a razor-thin 0.032 seconds in a photo finish fans still talk about today. Patrick’s seventh and final feature win with the class came in July 2017 after a duel with Russ Brown, that eventually led to him picking up his seventh checkered flag over Camden Proud.
After more than two decades in the Small Block Super ranks, Patrick made the leap to the Novelis Supermodified division in 2019, where he continues to compete today. “I do miss the SBS class though,” he admitted. “It was more relaxed for me – I had gotten so comfortable with the division that I didn’t get stressed out at all. With the Super, it’s different – you better be set to get to work and hang the hell on! I do miss the SBS class, but I don’t regret my move to the Supers at all.”
Looking ahead to 2026, Patrick expects to return for what could potentially be his 30th and final full-time season. “It’s getting harder and harder, I don’t want to say for sure it’s the last one, but we’re going to be back. I think I’ve got a good engine – just got that one done – and another we’re rebuilding. I need to get out there early in the year; it takes me a while to get going real well. We ran fourth on Championship Night this year and clocked a 16.3 in the Classic warmup which is by far the best I ran all season, and then suddenly the year was over. It goes by really quick”
Patrick also hasn’t ruled out trying something completely new to him. “I’d really like to try a dirt car sometime because I’ve never done it and mess around with the dirt a lot on iRacing,” he said. “Running SBS again definitely isn’t out of the question either – if the Super is too much, maybe I’d step back to SBS or a Dirt Sportsman Modified. Having Fulton Speedway 10 minutes from home makes that pretty tempting too.”
The former Fulton Fireman’s passion for Oswego Speedway began long before he ever climbed behind the wheel. “My earliest memory was when my brother first started bringing me there at eight years old,” Patrick recalled. “The first time I walked through the gate and smelled the rubber and fuel and heard the cars – I was hooked. My favorite driver growing up was Steve Gioia Jr., but I liked all of them because I was just a race fan. I liked Shampine, and Bellinger, and I of course respected them all, but those guys were my big three.”
Patrick’s first race car, a Powell Chassis Limited Super, came in 1996, marking his official start in racing after nothing more than a childhood go-kart. “I raced a go-kart down a hill before going to Oswego and that was it. I started racing at Hayden’s Hill when I was a kid. When I turned 16 and graduated high school, I gave that up for party time, but I never lost track of what I wanted to do. In my mid-20s I started doing side jobs nights and weekends and saved my money. On my 30th birthday I bought my first house, and seven days later I had Harry Powell’s chassis sitting in my garage. I went from my parents’ house to having a race car and a house in seven days.”
Patrick ran the Powell car from 1996 through 2006, earning that first win with it, before switching to a newer Hedger Chassis that carried him through the next 11 years to his final six victories. “I would say with the Hedger, another win that really sticks out was definitely that one beating Mike Bond at the finish line. We raced wheel-to-wheel for a couple laps and I knew I had to get my foot to the floor to make it to the start finish line before him, and I did. That was probably the most memorable. Mike always raced clean – you knew he wasn’t going to hit you. He pulled up outside and it was like, okay, let’s go. I didn’t start up front; and I worked my way up there, so that one was rewarding."
Over the years, Patrick credits a small but loyal group of people who have stood by him throughout his career. “It’s only been my brother Don, who’s been there since I started. I haven’t had a lot of help. He’s been by my side the whole time, from playing hockey and lacrosse to go-karts to the past 30 years at the race track. He doesn’t know a lot about the car, but he’s been there for moral support and motivation. Doug Holmes and Ray Hedger definitely come to mind as well. They were two of the guys that helped me the most – Ray with the chassis and Doug with the engine. They made me faster, no doubt about it.”
One thing Patrick has yet to accomplish at Oswego is a feature win in the Supermodified, but he does have heat wins and a career best third place finish in 2022. The big block win is something that remains high on his list. “A win in the Super is at the top,” he said. “I also always wanted to win the Mr. SBS race.”
Reflecting on his Hall of Fame induction, Patrick says it represents the greatest honor of his racing career. “It means I’ve been here a long time,” he laughed. “I’ve been at the race track most of my life. This is the biggest honor I’ve received in my life. I don’t have any really big signature wins – I didn’t win the Classic or the championship or anything like that – so this sticks out in my mind as being a huge milestone in my career. To have it when I’m still there racing means a lot to me. I didn’t want it when I was some old guy walking up there with a cane. I’m still going, and I always wanted to have some kind of legacy, so I guess maybe this is it. I’ve spent my life there. I really have. I’m thankful to John and Eric Torrese, the committee, sponsors, my girlfriend, and my brother. They made my dream come true.”
Patrick also expressed deep appreciation for the many sponsors who have supported him over the years. “I’ve got to thank all my sponsors over the years that have been with me – Longley Brothers Dodge, E-Z Companies, and Red Baron Pizza have been with me since day one. Dennis Longley, who just passed away, took me in when I came along back in 1995 and sponsored me ever since. This wouldn’t be possible without him.”
Submitted By: Oswego Admin