HAMPTON — “Old Guys Rule” isn’t just a T-shirt slogan. At Langley Speedway in 2025 it is a fact.
One race after Greg Edwards, 54, finalizes his record eighth Late Model Division title on Saturday, Paul Lubno, who turns 60 on Dec. 17, will hoist the Grand Stock championship trophy marking his eighth division crown. They trail only the late Shawn Balluzzo, who won 11 titles at venerable Langley, which turned 75 this season.
“We go there to race, be competitive and win, and if points championships work out for us that’s great,” said Lubno, a Hampton resident who drives for JR and Sandy Smith. “I’m lucky to have a good crew with good chemistry.
“Everybody gels together and we have a good time at it.”
Lubno has had fun driving at Langley for more than four decades, some early races and an apparent first win aside. Lubno, then 18, thought he was hot stuff that first season (1983) he took to the track in the ’68 Chevelle he bought from Buddy Hyatt, but he got a quick comeuppance.
“I was running around and thought I was looking pretty good ’til Chip Hudson and all them guys went flying by me,” he said. “I thought, ‘This ain’t for me, I done wasted all my money.’”
He won his first race in the All-American Division the next season in 1984, only to be disqualified because of a weight violation. Undaunted, he came back the next week with 67 pounds more lead and won.
“I was ecstatic,” he said. “We just kept at it and here we are.”
His eight titles have come in the All-American, Limited Stock and Grand Stock divisions. He is at 137 victories, the most in the track’s 75-year history, with a single win in the Limited Late Model Division to go with 136 in the three divisions he won his titles.
Greg Edwards has won almost 125 races, with Balluzzo and Danny Edwards Jr. next at more than 100 apiece. With a division-leading six wins this season, age is not slowing Lubno, in the garage or in the cockpit.
Lubno says his job as a mechanic with Amentum — which performs maintenance on the wind tunnel and surrounding facilities at NASA — keeps him active and in shape. With a crew of eight that includes brother-in-law Glen Green, his tire man and crew chief much of the past four decades, Lubno doesn’t have to do all the work on the Chevy Monte Carlo by himself.
He and the crew had plenty of repair to do following a major wreck four years ago (Lubno was unhurt). Runners-up a year ago, they’ve found their best handling combination since, this season. Powered as always by Marty Strickland engines, they’ve built an insurmountable points lead going into Saturday.
His favorite memory is a win several years ago attended by his father (Paul William Lubno), son (Paul Aaron Lubno) and grandson (Brody Cole Lubno). He celebrated his 40th anniversary to Melissa this year (in addition to Brody they have a granddaughter, Emma).
With family support and a loyal crew — along with sponsorship from J&J Clearing & Demolition, Pro Turf Lawn & Garden, and PC Doctor — Lubno is not planning retirement any time soon.
“Greg Edwards asked me at the banquet last year how long I’m going to keep doing it,” Lubno said. “I told him, ‘As long as I can keep crawling through that window, I’m going to keep doing it.’”
Noteworthy: While Lubno (Grand Stocks) and Greg Edwards (Late Model) have virtually clinched their titles, close battles remain in three other divisions on Langley’s Championship Night 2: Brad Adams leads Spencer Conrad by 251-249 points (at one point per track position) in Modifieds; Thomas Fontaine leads Jason Aukland 201-197 in UCAR; Matt Dail leads Chris Bechtel 175-170 in Pro Six.
Langley Speedway on Saturday
What: Five stock car races — UCAR 25, Modified 50, Pro Six 25, Late Model 100, Grand Stock 40.
Where: Larry King Law’s Langley Speedway, 11 Dale Lemonds Dr., Hampton.
When: Gates open at 2 p.m., qualifying at 3:10 p.m., racing at 5 p.m.
Tickets: Adults $17; Seniors and Military $13; Kids (6-12) $7.
Marty O’Brien, mjobrien@dailypress.com
