Mulkern Racing: PASS North Series
Lonnie Sommerville Seekonk Race Preview
THE STORY
Lonnie Sommerville of Saint John, New Brunswick, joins the PASS North Series in its return to Seekonk Speedway in Seekonk, Mass., for the PASS 150 on Saturday, August 4. Sommerville finished fourth in this event a year ago in the No. 48 A.E. McKay Builders/Southern Maine Motors Chevrolet and is looking for a return to form on a track very similar to his home track. The tight, .333-mile Seekonk Speedway layout is akin to Speedway 660 in Geary, New Brunswick, where Sommerville is a two-time Auto Value 250 champion.
THE FACTS
WHO: Lonnie Sommerville, Saint John, New Brunswick
TEAM: Mulkern Racing No. 48 A.E. McKay Builders/Southern Maine Motors Chevrolet
CREW CHIEF: Gary Crooks, Mooresville, N.C.
BEST CAREER SEEKONK SPEEDWAY FINISH: 4th (August 2011)
LAST FINISH AT SEEKONK SPEEDWAY: 4th (August 2011)
WHAT: PASS North Series 150
WHERE: Seekonk Speedway, Seekonk, Mass. (.333-mile oval)
WHEN: 6 p.m., Saturday, August 4
PASS North Series
LAST RACE: July 21, Dunkin Donuts 150, Oxford Plains Speedway, Oxford, Maine (15th)
NEXT RACE: August 12, PASS 150, White Mountain Motorsports Park, N. Woodstock, N.H. (.25-mile banked oval)
CURRENT POINTS POSITION: 7th
DID YOU KNOW?
Lonnie Sommerville has finished in the Top-10 in five of nine PASS North Series races this season.
Last week, Lonnie Sommerville served as crew chief and led Matt Harris to a fourth-place finish in the Best of the Best 150 at Speedway 660.
Mulkern Racing will have a two-car effort at Seekonk Speedway this weekend, with Austin Theriault as a teammate to Lonnie Sommerville.
Lonnie Sommerville won one of two qualifying races at Seekonk Speedway in 2011 and never ran outside the Top-5 in the event.
WHAT THEY ARE SAYING
LONNIE SOMMERVILLE, Driver of the Mulkern Racing No. 48 A.E. McKay Builders/Southern Maine Motors Chevrolet, On returning to Seekonk Speedway this weekend: “We ended up getting a little bit tight on the long runs there last year, so we changed the setup a little bit to free the car up for this weekend. We were good in practice (last year), and won a heat race.
“I didn’t mind the place at all. It’s a little rough, it’s got some bumps and holes, but that only adds to its character.”
On the track’s similarities to Speedway 660: “The size is about the same, and the rear gear we use is the same, and it’s very close to the same setup. It’s close to the same thing – the same characteristics – as opposed to a Beech Ridge, Oxford or a White Mountain (Motorsports Park). I went with an open mind to all these new tracks last year and I think that helped figure them out.
“To be honest, going to places first or second time, you don’t have bad habits. Sometimes experience helps, but experience isn’t always good experience, either.”
On his goals for the remainder of the season: “My goal never changes. It’s to go and win races. If you look at the points, there are five or six guys in front of us that need to have bad luck, and they’re not all going to have bad luck.
“We went to Beech Ridge the first week with the intentions of winning – and we’ve done that every week since. Realistically, are we going to have same points finish we had last year? Probably not. But if you told me we wouldn’t have had a win by August 1, I would have said there was no chance – but that’s no different than 20 other guys out there trying to win every week, too.”
UP NEXT
The PASS North Series returns to White Mountain Motorsports Park in North Woodstock, N.H., for the PASS 150 on Sunday, August 12 – the second of three races at the track this season… Lonnie Sommerville finished 12th there in May.