14-year-old claims Pro Late Model honors in first night racing program of 2013 OPS season
Oxford, Maine – Tommy Stilphen of Arundel became the youngest Oxford Championship Series race winner ever, posting his first career Oxford Plains Speedway main event victory in the 40-lap Pro Late Model feature Friday night.
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Oxford Championship Series: Chris Coolidge
Oxford Plains Speedway Race Report
OXFORD, Maine – Chris Coolidge of Norway, Maine, finished 12th in the Oxford Championship Series 40-lap Pro Late Model feature at Oxford Plains Speedway in Oxford, Maine, on Friday, May 17. One of Coolidge’s best runs in the last three seasons came to a disappointing end when, while battling for the lead, he was collected by a spinning lapped car off the final corner on the final lap. Coolidge led 35 laps after starting third in the 16-car field and taking over the top spot on Lap 4. The No. 72 Bill’s Automotive/Lloyd’s Land Chevrolet built a lead of more than a straightaway during the middle stages of the event, but the car’s handling went away in the closing laps and allowed the cars chasing Coolidge to close in on him. A chance at his first career Pro Late Model podium finish disappeared when he stopped just inches short of the frontstretch wall while trying to avoid a wrecking competitor.
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(Halifax, NS, May 15, 2013) The Parts for Trucks Pro Stock Tour will open another sensational season of stock car racing this Sunday at Scotia Speedworld with the Lucas Oil 150. The season opener will launch the 12-race schedule that will take the Tour to five Maritime markets over the next 17 weeks. Thirty of the best teams from across the region are expected to battle for a spot in Sunday’s feature event. Qualifying for the Lucas Oil 150 gets underway at 3:10 PM with racing slated for 4:00 PM. Grandstands gates open at 1:00 PM.
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Waterbury, VT—This Saturday, May 18 the American Canadian Tour will head to Plattsburgh, NY’s Airborne Speedway for the ACT 100: a race that will pit an experienced veteran class against ACT’s latest youth movement.
Point leader Jimmy Hebert and fourth-place point man Ray Parent will make just their second trip to Airborne Speedway in their ACT careers, but both earned top ten finishes when they debuted at the track in last year’s season finale. They make their return in brand new cars in 2013, and look to continue the hottest start of their ACT careers.
Defending ACT Champion Wayne Helliwell, Jr. has only raced with ACT twice at Airborne Speedway, claiming a fourth in his first try, and famously winning his first ACT title in last year’s finale with a victory in his second start. Airborne has been good to Helliwell, but veterans Brian Hoar and Brent Dragon will look to make use of their years of experience to dethrone the Champ. Hoar leads all ACT drivers with 7 victories at Airborne, while leading the most laps (723), and making the most money ($31,857). Dragon, on the other hand, has tamed the track for a series-leading 26 top tens in 34 starts.
Not to be counted out is former Fall Foliage 200 winner Joey Polewarczyk, Jr., who, in his last four attempts at Airborne, has an average finish of 3.5 including his 2011 victory. Polewarczyk comes into Saturday’s showdown tied with Dragon for fifth overall in the ACT standings.
Post time for the ACT 100 is 5pm this Saturday, May 18. The race will be part of a full card of racing action including Airborne’s own Modified, Renegade, Mini-Mod, and Sportsman divisions. Adult tickets are $17, children 12 and under are free.
WEST HAVEN, VT – Stock car drivers from Devil’s Bowl Speedway will be racking up the miles on Memorial Day Weekend. The track’s top two divisions – the ground-pounding, open-wheel Bond Auto Parts Modifieds and the sleek and racy Late Models – will see plenty of action between their NASCAR Whelen All-American Series home track at Devil’s Bowl in West Haven, VT and in special events at Thunder Road International Speedbowl in Barre, VT.
People’s United Bank and Mobil 1 present a jam-packed event to kick off the summer Friday night weekly schedule at the Devil’s Bowl Speedway half-mile on Friday, May 24 at 7:00pm. Twin 25-lap feature races for the Modifieds and the Late Model championship opener will be accompanied by regular events for the Renegade and Central Vermont Motorcycles Mini Stock divisions, along with a major fireworks display to celebrate the Memorial Day holiday.
New York State veterans Ron Proctor and Leon Gonyo split victories in the twin features at the People’s United Bank Memorial Day Special in 2012. Proctor’s victory was his first of three on the year and helped propel him to the track championship. Drivers aiming to knock Proctor and Gonyo off the top on Friday, May 24 include Vince Quenneville, Jr., Jessey Mueller, Hunter Bates, Alex Bell, Joey Roberts, and Spring Green opening day winner Todd Stone of Middlebury, VT.
The Late Model division is expected to draw as many as 20 entries for its championship opener at the People’s United Bank Memorial Day Special, and with champion Craig Bushey running only a partial schedule in 2013, the race for the title is wide open. Top contenders Kevin Elliott, Dan Petronis, Robert Bryant, Jr., Hunter Bates, Chris Bergeron, and more will be aiming for victory lane and the overall crown.
On Sunday, May 26, drivers from both divisions will head to the high-banked quarter-mile at Thunder Road for the Mekkelsen RV Memorial Day Classic. The event features a 100-lap season opener for the Vermont State Late Model Championship Series and a 50-lap race for the brand new Northern Modified Challenge Series. Racing is scheduled to begin at 1:30pm.
The People’s United Bank Memorial Day Special presented by Mobil 1 begins at 7:00pm on Friday, May 24 and includes a special holiday fireworks show. General admission is $15 for adults, $13 for seniors (62+), and free for children 12 and under. Devil’s Bowl Speedway is located on Route 22A in West Haven, VT, four miles north of Exit 2 on U.S. Route 4.
Barre, VT – Barre’s own Lenny’s Shoe and Apparel has teamed up with Thunder Road to renew the Lenny’s Hot Shoe Challenge Award, which awards extra money to racers for feature victories at the “Nation’s Site of Excitement.”
The Hot Shoe Challenge Award will give a cash bonus of $150 to a Late Model driver who wins their first race of the season, as well as $100 for Bond Auto Tiger Sportsmen and $50 for the Allen Lumber Street Stocks. For the driver’s second win, they will receive half the amount of their first. Checks and an embroidered Lenny’s hat are given during the pre-race ceremonies of the next event.
“Lenny’s Shoe and Apparel is pleased to again be partnering with the ACT Tour and Thunder Road in sponsoring the Lenny’s Shoe and Apparel Hot Shoe Challenge Award,” said Mark McCarthy, Vice President of Lenny’s Shoe and Apparel. “”Lenny’s recognizes the impact the ACT Tour and Thunder Road have on the stock car racing landscape here in central Vermont, and throughout the Northeast, and is proud to be associated with such a great organization,” he finished.
Lenny’s also awards a year-end bonus to the driver in each division with the most wins. In the Late Models the bonus is $500, in the Bond Auto Tiger Sportsmen it is $250, and in the Allen Lumber Street Stocks it is $100.
“Lenny’s knows that it is the drivers and their teams who commit their time and resources to make Thunder Road the site of excitement that it is week in and week out, and we are proud to be able to recognize and reward these sportsmen for their efforts in our own small way,” McCarthy added.
Lenny’s Shoe and Apparel has been with Thunder Road since 2003.
The next event at the Nation’s Site of Excitement will be on Sunday, May 26 for the 51st Annual Mekkelsen RV Memorial Day Classic where the Thunder Road Late Models will be featured in a 100-lap race. It will also serve as the first race of the Vermont State Late Model Championship Series, and will include a special 50-lap feature for the Devil’s Bowl Dirt Modifieds as well as regular point counting events for the Bond Auto Tiger Sportsmen and Allen Lumber Street Stocks.
SOUTH PARIS, Maine – For veteran Late Model racer Donald Theetge, reaching out to a good friend for a little help made perfect sense.
“The first time we made a deal together was in 2008,” Theetge said of the first time he met Crazy Horse Racing owners Mitch and Judy Green. “Mitch was at Thunder Road with a new chassis, and I decided in wintertime to build a brand new car. I had a good friendship with Mitch and Judy, so I went to them and in 2009 I won the championship on the ACT Castrol Series in that car.
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THOMPSON,CT. The Valenti Modified Racing Series heads to Thompson Speedway this Sunday for the first of three appearances this year at the storied oval. A star-studded field of drivers is expected including defending champion, Jon McKennedy.
McKennedy will make his first start of the season in a Valenti Modified. His car owner, Art Barry, has been sidelined due to illness but he has improved enough to where he not only plans to field a car but fully intends to be at the track. “I’ve got enough guys to put a team together and I’m really looking forward to it,” said the long-time car owner.
The last time the Valenti Modified Racing Series was at Thompson was during the Sunoco World Series of Speedway Racing last October. Rowan Pennink claimed the 75-lap victory and the current VMRS point leader will be looking for a repeat win. That, however, will be a tall order for the Pennsylvania driver who will face stiff competition from a host of extremely competitive VRMS race teams. Read Full Article →
Resurgent Trans Am Series Opens Lime Rock Park’s 2013 Season
F1600/Formula F, F2000 and VSCCA races also on slate
LAKEVILLE, Conn. (May 15) – Yep, we know it’s a mouthful… What’s called the Lime Rock Park Season Opener featuring Trans Am and the Sunday Royals Garage Car Show benefitting the Wounded Warrior Project is Friday through Sunday, May 24-26.
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By Lou Modestino
Long-time Connecticut race announcer and well-known sportswriter, Matt Buckler Jr., has been added to the broadcast team at next month’s special open-wheel event at Seekonk Speedway, Seekonk, MA.
The three-in-one program, on Sunday afternoon, June 2, will feature a special race for SK type modifieds, NEMA Midgets, and Northeast Mini Stock Tour. Buckler will join track announcer Kevin Boucher for the special modified race.
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