PENSACOLA, FL :: Super Late Model veteran Mike Garvey suffered a major health scare in late October when he was taken to the hospital with what appeared to be the symptoms of a stroke. Just over a month later, the 1990 NASCAR All-American Challenge Series champion is set to compete in his favorite event — the Snowball Derby.

On October 18, Garvey was lounging around his Pensacola home, watching the Sprint Cup Series race on television when he says he started to lose sensation in both his right arm and right leg. He immediately rushed over to the hospital where, after days of testing, his doctors ultimately diagnosed him with a pinched nerve — the result of an incident a month prior in the Alabama 200 Southern Super Series race.

“After five days of every test in the world, it ended up being a bulging disk in my back that was pinching my nerves and making my back go numb,” Garvey told Race22.com on Thursday. “They couldn’t do anything for it. It was just a matter of time and it’s definitely gotten better. I’m a 100 percent better this weekend than I was last weekend.

“It’s week-to-week and it’s taken a month but I’m getting there. I still have a funny feeling occasionally and these sensations in my back but every day is better than the last.”

Garvey has been told there is little that doctors can do and that it is simply a matter of time and natural healing before he’s back to 100 percent. As a result, Garvey wasn’t even sure that he was going to race in the Snowball Derby until they completed a test last week at Five Flags Speedway.

He may have needed to sit out if not for the December race date.

“Thank goodness there was a lot of time between when this happened at the Derby because frankly, two weeks ago, I didn’t know if I was even going to race,” Garvey said. “Luckily we came out and tested and I felt great and it’s a blessing that I can race at home — and it’s the Derby.”

Garvey said he was extremely happy with the speed and balance in his Tracy Goodson No. 1 Ford when they conducted their most recent test. They focused purely on long runs and their race day set-up, meaning that they’re going to focus largely on qualifying on Thursday and Friday.

“We have some work to do on our qualifying set-up because we focused so much on race trim,” Garvey said. “But as far as race trim stuff, this car has a lot of speed and keeps it throughout the run. Like everyone else, we’re optimistic and we’ll see how it shakes out.”

Garvey will make his 13th start in the Snowball Derby and fifth for Tracy Goodson Racing. The 1995 pole sitter has always brought fast cars to this race but has only scored one top-10 — a sixth in 1994. His other 11 starts have produced the following finishes: 21, 29, 25, 6, 36, 28, 29, 33, 12, 34, 31 and 35.

Garvey said winning the Snowball Derby is one of the few accomplishments that keeps him racing and he really wants to add the Tom Dawson Memorial Trophy to his resume. He believes the car he and Goodson have brought to the track this weekend is the best they have ever entered in the Derby and he really just wants to be a part of the conversation at the end of the race if nothing else.

“I’m really happy with this car,” Garvey said. “We’ve won some (Pro Late Model) races over the past two months and I really feel like we’re peaking at the right time. There would be nothing better than ending the season with a win in the Snowball Derby. I just want to run good and be in contention at the end. The past few years have been so bad.

“But 75 percent of the people here can say that too. The Snowball Derby will either be the best of time or the worst of time for you.”

But after his health scare last month, it appears the worst is behind him.