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competition (in his words) was “Believe it or not, Biederman. He was one of my friends who didn’t start racing until I was well into it. We hooked up together and for three years we came down east to run the International Week races. If he didn’t win, I did.”
For someone who has been around as long as “young” Hallihan, the changes that he has seen are numerous but one is foremost in his mind. “The biggest change is the cost of the cars. When I was racing, there used to be a claim rule of 1000.00 on your car and you could win a 1000.00 if you won a hundred lapper. Today, you might win seven thousand but you could have eighty thousand tied up in your car. If I could make a change, it would be to bring down the cost.”
In 2002, Jim Hallihan was inducted into the Canadian Motorsports Hall of Fame. “It was a bit of a surprise but I had done real well in Ontario. They took that into consideration and the fact that I have never been out of racing since I was twenty. That’s probably why.”
Hallihan’s opinion of the best track was “Antigonish is the best track going on this side of the border and there aren’t many on the other side of the border that can equal it.”
On Saturday July 5th, Jim Hallihan had his long deserved recognition in the Maritimes. On Thursday of the past week, Forbes Chevrolet displayed a wrap of his #33 HUGGER. Hallihan was surprised of all the work that went into it. “Ever since I came down east, Forbes has been a real supporter of racing in the Maritimes. Forbes is a great place to work. I’ve been there for forty years and they let me come and go as I please. That’s why I’m still there.”
On Saturday his duties included “overlooking the visit of the Dartmouth Boys and Girls Club who will be helping with the opening ceremonies, The classic Chevy Club of Nova Scotia who will be presenting a $500.00 donation to Bonnie Lea farms, and of course looking out for the Forbes people in the tower. I also want to hang out with Mike MacKenzie around the HUGGER.
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