A second race for Jimmy Goodleaf

A little over 10 years after his passing, 30 drag racers went back to Napierville Dragway for a race day dedicated to Jimmy Goodleaf’s memory on Sunday.

The idea to have a race day dedicated to Goodleaf came 10 years ago when a trophy, bought by Derek White, was given at the Indian Summer Championship, but a second race date separate from the Indian Summer Championships never materialized.

That is, until this year, when at the latest race day a few weeks ago, steps were taken to actually make the second race happen.

Karlie Goodleaf, Jimmy’s daughter, said that she was proud that her father finally had her own race day - and Jimmy would have been, too.

“I’m just so happy about it. It feels really good that he’s getting that recognition that he deserves,” said Karlie. “He did so much for the racing community.”

The racers at Napierville recognized what he had done during his decades-long implication in the community, with Indian Summer Championship winner Darren Decaire offering to give back the trophy he had won at Napierville for this race.

Karlie was on her way to a trophy store in Chateauguay when she got the call that Decaire was offering the trophy back.

“He said ‘nope, I have the trophy, this is the one you should give out. Don’t get another one,’” said Karlie.

She still wanted to do something extra to commemorate the event, getting hats done that she is still in the process of giving out to the racers.

White, who originally bought that trophy, has been front and centre to see that implication.

“Jimmy was a close friend of mine; we raced together for about 30 years. He was a great polite man. My dad raced with him for about 50 years,” said White.

Karlie remembered how her father brought her to races when she was a kid, and now, she got to bring her son to the race - who said he loved the experience so much, he wants to race next year.

Karlie said when she was young, she was more interested in the hot dogs than in the racing, but she got behind the wheel on Sunday and had a blast, even if she was eliminated after her first race.

“You want to do it again right away, get right back to the front of the line, but you can’t. It’s really exciting and thrilling to do it,” said Karlie.

Another cool moment was when her cousin, Bart Goodleaf, drove one of Jimmy’s cars that he had bought, a fully restored 1965 Plymouth Satellite off the showroom floor and into the race.

“I was amazed he drove it there. I never thought it would leave the showroom,” said Karlie.

Brandon Stalk was the racer who won, driving his everyday car, a Ford Explorer SUV with the stock performance package, to victory thanks to consistent times and a lot of practice.

“I’ve only had it for three months. One of the reasons why I bought it was to have fun with it at Napierville. So, whenever I have time, I like to go out there on street nights and race against the other street cars,” said Stalk.

Much like the Goodleafs, racing has been a family thing for Stalk.

“My stepfather, Brian Lawrence, used to drag race back in the day, and he’d been taking me to the track when I was a kid,” said Stalk.

Stalk has raced in the Indian Summer Championship for about 10 years, and even though he’s done pretty well in the past, he’s never won the whole thing.

“I know I made a mistake that day,” said Stalk of his performance a few weeks ago in Napierville.

“I learned from my mistakes, I stayed focused and did what I had to do, my focus was really good. I was able to hit consistent, fast reaction times, which is what really paid off in the end.”

Another opportunity to race is always welcome for him, but he was also happy to race to commemorate someone who was very important to the community.

“This race was a nice way to honour the late Jimmy Goodleaf,” said Stalk.

Karlie agreed.

“I was a great day. The sun was shining, and I think my dad was smiling,” she said.

[email protected]