A rivalry that turned into a friendship will culminate into a sentimental tribute on Saturday night.
Rodney Cook was a larger than life character at Ace Speedway and his memories will live on not just with his name in the race, but with his car on track. Cook’s iconic number 14 car will be competing in the Rodney Cook Memorial and will be driven by former Ace Speedway general manager Brad Allen.
Allen, 52, used to race with Cook at Ace Speedway when he competed in Late Models. The two drivers had a rivalry for many years, but also gained a lot of respect for each other and became close friends before Cook passed away on December 10, 2013 after a long battle with cancer.
“It’s quite an honor to be able to sit in that seat,” Allen told Short Track Scene. “They talked about using it for a pace car then, just one thing led to another and they were interested in me driving it. We put a deal together. We’ll go out there and try to stir up memories of Rodney in that 14 car that he drove at Ace and make some new memories. It’s going to be a lot of fun.”
Brad Allen was the general manager of Ace Speedway from 2010 through last season and organized the first Rodney Cook Memorial race in 2014. This year, the event is being run by Allen’s longtime friend, Langley Austin. Now that he’s not the promoter of the event, he can get back to racing and fulfill one of Cook’s last wishes when he competes on Saturday night.
Allen began racing Cook in 1995 and the two shared the same desire to win, making them rivals on the track. Allen recollected on those early years racing with Cook and the rivalry that simmered.
“I started running Late Models back in 1995 with a host of other drivers that have moved on to the top levels or left their mark there,” Allen recalled. “Rodney is one of those figures that is associated with Ace for many, many years. Rodney and I raced together. We were somewhat rivals as he was making his way up to the upper echelon. We pounded on the track, butted heads quite a few times.
“His style was very aggressive and he’s one of those types that, you’re racing for ninth place and he’s in 10th, you better hold on for dear life because we would hold on for dear life. I was the same way, trying to get more from the car than was there. We rubbed each other the wrong way on numerous occasions.”
As Late Model Stock Car racing evolved, the costs eventually drove Brad Allen out of Late Model racing. He began racing in Modifieds and became very successful, winning races and championships at Ace Speedway while Rodney Cook ushered in an era of dominance in the Late Model division.
“I realized I couldn’t keep up with the financial end of Late Models,” Allen explained. “I stopped racing in 2002. Raced maybe once or twice in 2003. Moved into Modifieds which certainly became my niche and, by then, Rodney had become a fixture at the front end of the pack. He won his first championship the same year I won my first championship.”
The two drivers became closer when they each won championships – Brad Allen in Modifieds and Rodney Cook in Late Models.
“He repeated in 2006 and 2007 so we got to share that stage and arrived at our goal at the same time. Knowing what we had to do to get there and accomplish at the same time washed all that stuff we went through in the early days. We gained respect and became friends. When I operated the track in 2010, I realized how important Rodney was not just to that racetrack but short track racing in that region.”
Rodney Cook didn’t just race at Ace Speedway. He also raced at South Boston Speedway, Franklin County Speedway and other racetracks in the Carolinas and Virginia. He also competed annually in the Martinsville Late Model race. Ace Speedway, however, was Cook’s home track. And, it was now operated by his rival-turned-friend Brad Allen.
Brad Allen greets competitors during a driver’s meeting at Ace Speedway. (Andy Marquis/Short Track Scene photo)
“Rodney was in position to win the track championship at Ace in 2010 as well as the ASA National Championship but there were some spindles that we found to be wrong that cost him both those championships,” Allen explained. “Through that whole scenario, Rodney never told his crew or fan base, he let them stay mad at us. In private, we talked and he told me he understood and, to me, that went a long way to understanding who he really was and what that meant to him.
“The week after he was found wrong, I always said most people in that position given the politics probably wouldn’t have come back and run but he came back then next week and won the race and went on to win a couple more the rest of the season. That was the year we did our Fallout Invitational which was the most money we ever offered and he won that one.”
For Brad Allen, Rodney Cook’s ability to come back from the penalty and win races said a lot about the character of Cook. Cook’s character was not just that of a racer, but as a competitor who knew how to entertain.
“For a man to take a bad situation and come back and show what he was capable of and his team and car are capable of and leave his stamp on that season spoke measures about his character. From then on, it was clear he was doing it for the right reasons. He knew how to put on a show, satisfy his fans and antagonize the other fan bases.”
On the track, Cook was always competitive and never afraid. He entered a rivalry with Dustin Rumley and raced wheel-to-wheel with one of Late Model Stock Car racing’s greatest competitors ever, Barry Beggarly. At the end of the night, regardless of what happened, Cook was happy because he was doing what he loved … racing.
“Many nights that he and Dustin Rumley had a simmering rivalry that flashed up to inferno level a couple times,” Allen remarked. “He wasn’t scared to go toe-to-toe with Barry Beggarly. Whatever happened at the track, you could see him smiling at the end of the night – even the night he and Barry played chicken in reverse. He was that type; he did it for the love of the sport. He loved running that car at Ace Speedway.”
While racing, Rodney Cook was also battling cancer. In 2007, he was diagnosed with cancer and had it taken care of. His cancer recurred and Cook was forced to sit out in 2013 while his condition worsened. He still made appearances at the racetrack but would never race again after the 2012 season.
“It was very hard to see him not be able to compete and even harder in 2013 when he got away from us so, it seems like a long two and a half years since he raced there,” Allen remembered. “His memories still stir emotions there and to return to a racetrack that I love, behind the wheel of the car that meant so much to that racetrack. As we told each other, we loved each other. Was one of our final conversations.”
Cook raced in Allen’s modified in a race where he beat Brian King. After that race, Cook wanted Allen to race in his car one day. Allen was unable to do so because he was still running Ace Speedway but did not want to race the iconic car once piloted by Cook anywhere else.
“Rodney drove my Modified there one night and beat Brian King in one of the best races I’ve been able to witness. To see fans, react, he told me I needed to drive that car. Running the racetrack, I didn’t want to do it anywhere else but Ace but what my duties were and the problems that would have caused, never could get that worked out while he was here.”
Ace Speedway is now run by Langley Austin and that has opened up the opportunity for Brad Allen to race in Saturday night’s Rodney Cook Memorial.
“He always wanted to even the score and have me drive that car and be able to satisfy his wish and also get behind the wheel of an iconic racecar,” Allen commented. “I’m humbled but also very, very honored. It’s one of those things that you want to race like Rodney did. I’ve gotten the go ahead and some help to do that and can’t wait to see how we stack up with the new guys who made their name.
“It’s going to be a great field of cars and given what the race stands for, it’s one of the crowned jewels in the area. Maybe not yet, but it’s going to be. To be able to have a chance to compete in it instead of promoting it is quite the honor.”
Rodney Cook celebrates his final win in victory lane at Ace Speedway. (Race22.com photo)
There may be no greater honor for Brad Allen than to put Rodney Cook’s car back in victory lane at Ace Speedway in the race honoring his old friend. After a test session in the car that has been sitting since 2013 when it last raced at Martinsville, Allen thinks he might be able to do just that, score a victory in the Rodney Cook Memorial.
“You know, when I first thought about doing it, it was more, let’s try to be competitive but, through the practice times we’ve had and how the car’s responding. The first time we practiced it still had tires from the Martinsville race in 2013. It was going to be a shakedown day and by the end of the day, we were right there. We backed those times up the following week.
“The car has responded. If my instincts are still there, we’ve got as good a shot as anybody. I’m looking forward to getting around other cars and learn to race this style of racing again. I’ve got a little way to go. By the time Saturday rolls around, I think, nobody talks about us but I have a feeling we’ll open some eyes.”
Allen is already popular with the fans and racers following his five-year tenure as the general manager of Ace Speedway. Driving the car once driven by a legend certainly makes him the fan favorite in Saturday night’s race. He says he’s racing that car not just to fulfill one of Rodney’s wishes but also to bring back memories for the fans.
“That’s the primary reason, just to let these people see we’re racing in his memory. If you can have people see that car on track, be competitive, they’ll remember day of Rodney doing this and that. We’ve done our jobs there. We’ll catch lightning in a bottle so to speak so they’ll have a memory that the 14 car still lives. We’ve got a slogan on that shirt, ‘14 forever’.”
If Brad Allen does win on Saturday night, it will certainly be one of the most popular victories and one of the most memorable wins in recent Late Model Stock Car racing history.
“There will be a lot of happy people there if we win, I know that.”
