Brian Blessington first steered an IMCA stock car in 1989. Last Wednesday, he earned his 228th win in the class at Buena Vista Raceway in Alta, Iowa. The victory tied him for fourth on IMCA’s all-time wins list for the division. However, Blessington did not come into the sport a winner.
“Luckily, I didn’t get discouraged after my first time out,” Blessington, of Breda, Iowa, said. “I didn’t know what I was getting into. I seriously underestimated what it takes to put a winning stock car together.”
Blessington eventually figured it out. He even won IMCA’s largest race, the IMCA Speedway Motors Super Nationals at Iowa’s Boone Speedway, in 2001.
“In 1997, we finished second [in the Super Nationals], and I thought that was probably the closest I would ever get to winning [the race],” said Blessington. “I was wrong. We won, but we have been trying to repeat for 20 years.”
Blessington makes a living as a farmer of buffalo and row crops, and as an engine builder. He frequents Buena Vista Raceway on Wednesdays and Crawford County Speedway in Denison, Iowa, on Fridays.
“I’m spending more time building engines, but I really enjoy driving,” Blessington said. “It gets harder to balance racing and work.”
His passion for racing still burns bright after 32 years behind the wheel. Blessington cites one key that keeps him going in the sport.
“Don’t keep track of how much money you are spending, or you will quit,” said Blessington.
Brian Blessington remains thankful that he didn’t give up after his first race. He says it takes many things working together to punch a ticket to victory lane.
“How good of a driver you are depends on how hard you want to win,” Blessington said. “You have to be good on the wheel and right on the chassis. You will advance your career if you are willing to work for success. Also, it doesn’t hurt to have a little luck.”
Mike Adaskaveg has written hundreds of stories since the website’s inception. This year marks his 54th year of covering auto racing. Adaskaveg got his start working for track photographer Lloyd Burnham at Connecticut’s Stafford Motor Speedway in 1970. Since then, he’s been a columnist, writer, and photographer, in racing and in mainstream media, for several outlets, including the Journal Inquirer, Boston Herald, Stock Car Racing, and Speedway Illustrated. Among Adaskaveg’s many awards are the 1992 Eastern Motorsport Press Association (EMPA) Ace Lane Photographer of the Year and the 2019 National Motorsports Press Association (NMPA) George Cunningham Writer of the Year.
