Last weekend belonged to the Fedyk family at the NoDak Speedway in Minot.
Estevan’s Kyle Fedyk won the fourth annual Tyler Fedyk Memorial Pin It To Win It sprint car race in the event named after his cousin.
Tyler Fedyk, who died as a passenger in an ATV rollover near Minot in 2010, was a friend to everyone in the sport, his cousin said.
Minot is a special place for the entire Fedyk family and they’re grateful for the support of Minot track president Brandon Beeter.
“It’s been important to have this here for our family because it’s where it happened,” said Kyle Fedyk. “It’s where we lost Tyler. The very first sprint car event after we lost Tyler, in the spring there in May, was my first ever win.”
Kyle Fedyk had his love for sprint cars nurtured from watching races as a kid at NoDak and other area tracks.
“I’m very thankful NoDak continues to let us do it, and we hope it can continue for a very long time,” he said.
Kyle described his cousin as his “lifelong best friend” and essentially his crew chief from when he started racing mini sprints at age 15.
“When I was looking at buying my first mini sprint, he came with me to check out the car and he was with me every step of the way since then.”
While he was jubilant in victory, Kyle Fedyk realized that in order to win, the race has to be run first, and that meant treating it as he would most races.
“You’ve got to keep your emotions in check because you start to get emotional behind the wheel and the next thing you know… you miss your marks or you’re off the tracks and looking the wrong way or driving into somebody. When it’s all said and done, that’s when you can let the emotions take over and enjoy the moment, and remember what it’s really all about.”
The preparation for the race was also a routine mechanically.
“It goes to the racetrack every night as well prepared as it can be,” Kyle Fedyk said. “Race day you still try to make the right set of calls so you can make it the best it can be on the track.”
The event was co-sanctioned by the Canadian-American Outlaw Sprint Series and NOSA Sprints.
“My uncle Pete, Tyler’s dad, donates extra winnings money to boost the purse to try to attract as many cars as we can get,” Kyle Fedyk said. “It’s a big family gathering to commemorate Tyler’s life in the weekend that we lost him.”
