Nichols has a “classic” 250 experience

The New Sharon, Maine driver was an underdog who beat a lot of alpha dogs

By Mark Truman

Nick Nichols’ paint scheme was a tribute to the late, great Scott Fraser. Nichols’ victory lane smile showed that he was satisfied with his top three finish (Lee Truman Photos)

I had heard a little bit about Nick Nichols’ new paint scheme from Oxford Plains Speedway media coordinator Kalle Oakes who wrote in one of his late June post-race notes that Nichols' “black paint scheme with gold trim is a nifty tribute to the late Scott Fraser, who built the car before his death in a snowmobile accident in 2004." I immediately e-mailed Kalle to see if he had any pictures, but he did not. I really wanted to see this car and see if it did justice to the Shubie Shuttle’s exotic, and potent looking, cars.

Why would I care? I was not a rabid Scott Fraser fan but I always looked forward to him racing at Oxford. Like Junior Hanley, Ralph Nason, or Jeff Taylor you just knew if Fraser was at a race he was going to be a serious threat for the win AND you knew his car was going to look just a little different. When I finally started covering races a few years ago I got to speak with Scott for the first time and realized that he was one of THE nicest people to talk to! Most drivers will give you the time of day, but Fraser stopped working on his car (even though I told him I didn’t really want to bother him) and stepped to the side and talked to me about how his practice sessions were going and even started educating me on his setups a bit! I was stunned, and I’ll never forget it. That was the year 2002 and Fraser dominated the early parts of the TD Banknorth 250 until he lost a right front tire.

Where does Nick Nichols come into this story? I guess it began with finding out he had a Fraser “tribute” paint scheme. Since Fraser’s death last year I guess I hadn’t admitted to myself how much Fraser meant to Pro Stock racing in this region. Just seeing a car with a similar paint scheme was going to be very cool and would possibly carry his “spirit” in the Banknorth 250. When I walked through the pit gate on Saturday morning I was surprised to see Nichols’ car just inside the gate. I looked at the paint scheme and I was not disappointed. All black. Yellowish-gold trim. And mean looking. It just looked like an “outlaw” car and there’s no better compliment to a Pro Stock driver then to say that their car looks like it must be illegal, but it isn’t!

During practice on Saturday I timed a bunch of cars but I only got “solid” lap times from about 20-25 cars. As I went down through my notes and was preparing to make a list of the fastest times I saw on Saturday I was surprised to see this just below Johnny Clark and Ben Rowe:

3^rd - Nick Nichols (5) – 15.31 (black car…the red # 5 is Kyle Busch)

I even made a disclaimer that he was in the black #5 so that nobody would confuse him with the #5 getting all of the pre-race hype, Kyle Busch. But on my stopwatch, Nick Nichols was among the fastest cars. As I watched him take laps I noticed he was having some problems keeping the car down in the corners but I could also tell that he was fast. This prompted me to make sure I spoke to him before I left. I forgot.

Luckily, on Sunday, as practice was nearing it’s completion I remembered that I wanted to talk to Nichols and remind him about an International Pro Stock Challenge race at Oxford Plains in 1999. I knew Fraser had set a track record (at that time) during time trials and that the guy Fraser had bumped from the pole (and the record) was Nick Nichols. There had to be some story here, right? Sort of. There was more then a story here there was a low-budget driver making a career run in the 250 in a car built by another driver who loved to race in the 250 in his day. It was a “classic” 250 experience for Nick Nichols.

Like Fraser, Nick Nichols didn’t know me at all, but he stopped what he was doing and took the time to talk to me. Here’s how my conversations went with Nichols on Sunday.

Sunday, July 31, 12:30 PM - Practice

Me: “I had you on the clock yesterday and you’re hanging right with those big guys.”

Nichols: “Yeah, I guess we’re 12^th fastest today. I need to pick it up a little bit.”

Me: “Looks like your struggling through the corners a little bit.”

Nichols: “Yeah, well, I haven’t been out much this year so it could just be me. I told the guys that if we can get into the show we might have a chance.”

Me: I reminded him of the 1999 IPSC time trials in which Fraser knocked him off the pole.

Nichols: <laughing> “Yeah, I remember that. He beat me. When he did that I looked at his car and decided I needed to get one. He was a cool cat. I miss him.”

Me: “He certainly had a lot of fans.”

Nichols: <nodding> “Maybe I can get this thing in Victory Lane and have a little tribute to him.”

Me: “Do you believe it’s all about the luck of the draw?” (to get into the feature)

Nichols: “Yeah, but also luck. You can’t win the 250 with a car you mess up in the heats. I can pass mid-range cars up high, but the fast cars…I can’t pass them on the outside. I’m going to have to pay attention to my spotter.”

Me: “There might be a lot of bumper tag.”

Nichols: “There will definitely be some of that.”

Me: “I know that not many people have listed you as a favorite but I saw you on the stopwatch and figured I’d better drop by and talk to you.”

Nichols: “Well, you are the only person who has interviewed me. That’s good. I’ll sneak up on them.”

Sunday, July 31, 9:30 PM - Nichols has just finished in third place in the TD Banknorth 250 and won $7,700

Nichols in victory lane interview with Kalle Oakes: “I want to take a minute to remember Scott Fraser who we lost last year. He built this car and this paint scheme and my finish in this race are a tribute to him.”

Nichols speaking to me on the track:

Me: “Congratulations Nick. I spoke to you before the race and you said you might be here in Victory Lane.”

Nichols: <recognition dawns on his face> “Yes!! You!! You were the only one who came up and gave me an interview! How about that, huh?!?”

Nichols is congratulated by Jeff Taylor.

Jeff: “Good run Nicky.”

Nichols: “Thanks Jeff.”

Me: “Great run. What do you think at about lap 220 and you’re running second in the 250 and think you might win this thing?”

Nichols: “I knew we could do it.”

Nichols shakes somebody’s hand and says to me with a smile, “I have some of that guys parts on my car too!”

Me: “How does this feel?”

Nichols: “This feels great. I was just telling somebody else that I think I’m the only car back there with a flat-bed trailer.”

Nichols has to run to the victory lane interview mentioned above.

Sunday, July 31, 9:45 PM – Post race press conference

Me: “Hey, what are all these reporters doing? I didn’t think anyone was talking to you?”

Nichols: “I guess that has changed!”

Me: “Why were you able to run up front with these guys?”

Nichols: “I don’t have the big budget, but hey, it isn’t always money that makes a car go fast. Sometimes it’s hard work. A lot of those teams in the garage will be a little disappointed to know that’s my old LMS motor from 1998 in that car. Actually, that motor was in Leon Heckbert’s car when he was running back in 1994.”

Me: “I watched you struggle through the corners in practice but you obviously found something.”

Nichols: “Yep. Time-wise we weren’t quite with the fastest cars today. When we were changing tires we actually broke one of the broke one of the bleeders. Maybe that helped the left side tire grow enough to bring the setup to me. I don’t know. After we changed those tires I was able to start passing guys.”

Me: “At one point you were the leader of the race but you didn’t actually get to lead a lap.”

Nichols: “Yeah, I got bottled up by those lapped cars. I didn’t care. I’ve been one of those lapped cars and I know they are racing for position too.”

Me: “You probably figured you had a lot of time left at the point anyhow, right?”

Nichols: “Well, I wanted it to go green longer. We were good on the long runs and I knew Mike (Rowe) was coming with fresh tires so I didn’t want to get bottled up in another restart.”

Me: “You were aware it was Mike Rowe coming up behind you?”

Nichols: ““Of course you know it’s Mike Rowe. He’s a legend and I knew he wanted that 150^th win and that he was coming. I gave it all I had but I didn’t have anything for Johnny and once Mike got by me…well, I was kind of hoping they might get together.”

Me: “You look like you had fun out there.”

Nichols: “Yeah, definitely. It was all the car. Maybe Scotty (Fraser) was out there with me. I want to race more at this point whether it’s driving for someone or something. I’m ready to get back into it. We actually made some money today so this is great! I got on the radio after lap 200 and told my wife and my crew that it doesn’t matter what happens from this point on, it’s been a great night.”

Me: “Congratulations. It’s fun to watch a classic Oxford 250 story like yours take place.”

Nichols: “Thank you. I appreciate it.”

Final Thoughts

Will Nick Nichols hook up with a car owner or find a good sponsor to do more racing? Who knows. He showed on TD Banknorth 250 night that he could run with the best that this region has to offer and he definitely has a car that can keep up. More than anything else, to me, he embodied what this race is all about. A driver shows up to the track with a racecar and a dream of winning the race. He puts in the time and the effort and gets it done when nobody thought he was a legitimate threat for the win. Even though I noticed him before the race I have to admit that I did not have him in my top ten picks. Maybe if I would have seen his car beforehand I might have thought differently!

Whether people believe that Scott Fraser was “in that car” helping Nick Nichols is a discussion for somebody other than race fans (maybe a paranormal society or something!) but I’ll say this: there was a spirit and a feeling I got from watching that race that it might be possible. There was a mean-looking black and yellow car in the pits on Sunday and Scott Fraser built it. The car was driven by Nick Nichols, who appreciates what Fraser did for racing in this region, and used some memories or thoughts of Fraser to push him to success in the TD Banknorth 250. It’s kind of weird writing this, but I just can’t help but think there was something at work here.