It was probably a silly question, but it had to be asked.
Hey Grant, are you going to defend your title this weekend at Race on the Rock?
“Yes sir, I certainly am. I can’t just give that away,” he replied.
Wheeler, a 33-year-old Corner Brook native, is the defending King of the Bumps champion of Race on the Rock.
The avid snowmobile racer will be gunning for his third consecutive title when he lines up on the start line for the sno-cross races scheduled to get underway Sunday 1 p.m. at Marble Mountain ski resort in Steady Brook. The sno-cross races, brought back into the mix of Race on the Rock last year, will be a wrap on a weekend that 100 snowmobilers from across Canada will compete in the Uphill Drags beginning 10 a.m. on Saturday.
Wheeler said he’s starting to feel nervousness and excitement all rolled into one with Race on the Rock only days away.
He is a competitive soul who wants to win every time he jumps on the machine and this weekend is even bigger for him because there is the added pressure of having a bunch of keen snowmobilers looking to knock him down off his pedestal.
“Absolutely, there’s always a target on my back,” he said. “Especially this weekend there’s going to be a big target on my back because, of course, I’m the guy everybody wants to beat.”
It’s one of the best days of his snowmobiling season. He has been a snowmobiling enthusiast for many years, racing in various parts of the country, so he’s going to be feeling right at home in what he calls a great atmosphere with like-minded individuals ready to put it all on the line.
“I live to put on a show. I’ve chased this thing my entire life,” he said.
He couldn’t think of a better place to be this weekend. His heart is pumping and he’s eager to get on with the show.
“Just to be able to go out and race head-to-head with some really fast guys that gets me pumped up,” he said.
