By Lou Modestino
Finishing with three wins and a second, Randy Cabral of Plymouth and owner Tim Bertrand captured the 2012 Northeastern Midget Association championships going away. Cabral/Bertrand, with four, was the only multiple winner in a campaign, NEMA’s 60th, that saw 11 different winners visit victory lane.
There were 10 different winners before Cabral became the first “two-timer” at Maine’s Beech Ridge Speedway on Sept. 16. From that point, Cabral drove the Bertrand #47 to a second at Waterford Speedbowl’s Finale and then to victories at Thompson Speedway’s World Series and Lee USA Speedway’s Ocktoberfest.
It was the second straight championships and the fourth in five seasons for Cabral and Bertrand who finished 166 points in front of Bridgewater’s Russ Stoehr and the Dumo’s Desire #45, the latter in the runner-up spot for the second straight season.
Veteran Jim Miller of Weymouth, a winner at Oswego, rode a runner-up finish at Ocktoberfest to finish third, the top owner-driver. It was one of the most popular wins of the season.
John Zych Jr. (Waterford), Lakeville’s Greg Stoehr (Waterford), Mike Horn (Stafford) and Adam Cantor (Lee) were winners before Cabral won his first of the season at Star Speedway on July 21. Rookie Seth Carlson (Seekonk), Anthony Marvuglio (Waterford), Jim Miller (Oswego) and Todd Bertrand (Waterford) were winners before Cabral finally ended the steak.
Russ Stoehr was winner number 11 at Waterford before Cabral doubled out. Stoehr finished with 12 top fives including seconds at Oswego and Thompson. Getting caught up in an early crash at Ocktoberfest was a factor in the Cabral/Bertrand final bulge.
“I was absolutely amazed that we were able to win four races,” said Bertrand. “There was a point where I would have been satisfied if we won just one. I think the club has really figured out an extremely well balanced rules package. At every race, the top 10 cars are within two-to-three tenths of each other.
“Even at the big tracks,” Bertrand continued, “the team who figures out the setup best usually wins.” He pointed to Glen Cabral’s efforts in rebuilding the car after Stafford but said a decision to go back to 2008 set ups over the final six races was, in the final reckoning, the difference. “We never stop thinking about the car,” Bertrand added.
“This championship is a credit to the crew” insists Cabral, who was out of the top 10 only once, that an eleventh after a crash at Stafford. “I didn’t do anything spectacular. I just drove the car. The crew made it very easy for me.” Since coming together a dozen years ago, Cabral has won 28 times in Bertrand equipment.
Zych gets special mention from Cabral, pointing out weather and business commitments shortened his season to nine starts. He was in the top five six times.
Rookies Jim Santa Maria and Carlson were 10th and 11th in the final driver rundown.
FINAL STANDINGS
OWNERS:
1. Tim Bertrand #47, 2040; 2. Dumo’s Desire #45, 1874; 3. Jim Miller #3m, 1650; 4. Jeff Horn #93x, 1465; 5. Greg Stoehr #26b, 1454; 6. Paul Scally #30 (Raynham), 1318; 7. John Zych Sr. #9, 1293; 8. Tammy Boubeau #38, 1,230; 9. Susan Saint Maria #99, 1,170; 10. Ed Breault #44, 1,142; 11. Bertrand Motorsports #39, 1,101; 12. Lee Bundy #2, 1.059; 13. Gene Feigel #71, 1001; 14. Bobby Seymour #4, 977; 15. Allan Cantor #33, 917.
DRIVERS
1. Randy Cabral, 2040; 2. Russ Stoehr, 1874; 3. Jim Miller, 1650; 4. Greg Stoehr, 1642; 5. Mike Horn, 1465; 6. Todd Bertrand, 1410; 7. Paul Scally, 1318; 8. John Zych Jr., 1293; 9. Anthony Marvuglio, 1230 (E. Bridgewater); 10. Jim Santa Maria, 1,170; 11. Seth Carlson, 1095; 12. Jeff Horn, 942; 13. Lee Bundy, 896; 14. Anthony Nocella, 819; 15. Adam Cantor, 802
On Saturday evening November 10, the New England Antique Racers (NEAR), present their annual Movie Party at the Dante Club, 1198 Memorial Ave in West Springfield, Mass. (across from the Big E Fairgrounds). Admission is just $15 with tickets available at the door. Things get underway at 6 p.m. The event is open to the public. Appetizers are up at 6 p.m., and a hot and cold buffet will be served at 6:30. There will be a cash bar throughout the evening.
The evening features historical videos and slide shows from a variety of New England speedways. As-always, it’s expected that many rare images from the early days of New England auto racing will be present for viewing, some of-which have not been seen for decades.
The Movie Party is the primary fundraiser for NEAR. This year’s proceeds will go to funding maintenance on the van that houses the NEAR Mobile HOF Museum which will be on display outside in the Dante Club for the evening.
Many of New England’s most-revered racing personalities are expected to attend, giving fans a chance to rub-elbows with those that helped build the sport. Customarily, many Hall of Fame members are present, so it’s the perfect opportunity to break out those vintage scrapbooks to get a few autographs and relive some racing memories.
Then on Sunday, November 18 at the Speedway Clubhouse located on the grounds of the Thompson International Speedway in Thompson, Connecticut twenty racing pioneers considered central to the success of the sport in New England during its formative era will be inducted into the New England Auto Racing Hall of Fame.
Included in the 2012 Pioneers Class are stock car drivers Tony Mordino, Sparky Belmont, Hank Stevens, Ed Patnode, Johnny Georgiades, Wally Silva, and Ray Brown. Midget racing standouts Eddie Casterline, George Rice, Al Pillion, Billy Tibbert of Mansfield, Frank Simonetti, Charlie Ethier, and George Monson round-out the open-wheel inductees. Completing the list are car owners Anthony “Beebe” Zalenski, Ed Stone, Wen Kelley of Milton, Bob Oliver, Gordon Ross, and owner & promoter of Connecticut’s former Plainville Stadium, Joe Tinty.
Tickets for the Pioneers Induction Ceremony are economically-priced at $35. Order forms may be downloaded from the NEAR website at www.near1.com Purchase deadline is November 1. No tickets will be available at the door. Payment is to be sent to NEAR Pioneer Banquet, Box 172, Milldale, Connecticut, 06467. For additional information, contact NEAR President Val LeSieur at 508.238.7797 or email [email protected]
Since 1998, NEAR has inducted over 100 individuals into the New England Auto Racing Hall of Fame. The New England Antique racers are a non-profit organization that supports the history of New England auto racing. NEAR has been in existence since 1981 and has a growing membership of approx. 350-400 members and 80 antique race cars. Members reside throughout New England and are available on a no-charge basis for exhibition events at raceways in New England and several tracks in the New York area, with both original and historical replica race cars.
After winning seven DARE Stock feature events in his first two seasons of competition at Stafford Motor Speedway, Josh Wood made the move into the Limited Late Model division for the 2012 season. Wood enjoyed a remarkable rookie year that saw him nearly win the track championship as he won 6 feature events.
Wood began the 2012 season on fire, putting together two three-race winning streaks to take 6 of the first 8 checkered flags of the year. Wood didn’t get back to victory lane again over the final 10 races of the season and he came up just 12 points short of Cory Casagrande in the chase for the championship. Although he lost out on the championship, Wood says he and his #51 R.A.D. Automachine team exceeded their expectations this season and had a lot of fun.
“It feels good to be Rookie of the Year, especially moving up a division,” said Wood. “The last time I was a Rookie of the Year was in go karting. We surprised ourselves this season. We figured it was going to be a learning year for us and we expected to maybe win a race or two. The championship would have been great for us this year, but racing is all about having fun and Cory [Casagrande] deserved to win the championship this year. He raced better than we did, but we still had a great year and we had a lot of fun this season. We exceeded our expectations big time this year and we’re excited about next season.”
After winning a DARE Stock championship in 2004, Kevin Gambacorta moved into the Limited Late Model division in 2005 and won two more track championships at Stafford Motor Speedway. The 2012 season saw Gambacorta continue his full fendered ways with a move into the Late Model division, where he scored 3 top-5 and 9 top-10 finishes to end the season in 9th place in the points standings and earn SPAFCO Race Chassis & Parts Rookie of the Year honors.
After a rough start to the 2012 season that saw Gambacorta finish 15th or worse in 3 of the first 4 races as well as missing a race, he finished in the top-10 in 9 of the final 13 races of the season with a best finish of second on August 24th.
“I think we did better than we expected,” said Gambacorta. “At the beginning of the year, we thought we’d maybe get a couple of top-10 finishes towards the end of the season. We almost won a race and we finished in the top-10 in points, so it was a pretty good year for our first season. The Late Model division is a tough class, once you get into the top-10, there’s a lot of former track champions like Jim Peterson, Woody Pitkat, Mike Quintiliano, and Corey Hutchings.”
The sport of auto racing lost one of its greatest ambassadors Thursday night with the passing of Charlie Mitchell, former sports editor and longtime writer at The Hour Newspaper (Norwalk CT). Mitchell, 74, was a fixture on the pages of his hometown paper for more than four decades in both news and sports. A lifelong resident of Norwalk, Mitchell began working at The Norwalk Hour (as it was known then) in 1969, following in the footsteps of his grandfather and father. He kept readers abreast of the latest happenings in the world of NASCAR, which was going through its popularity boom. “I never missed a Daytona 500,” he said in 2010 of the sport’s showcase race every February. He also served as a board member of the National Motorsports Press Association and was a member of the nomination and selection committee for the International Motorsports Hall of Fame & Museum at Talladega Speedway. Mitchell retired from The Hour in 2001 after a 32-year career, but he continued writing his auto racing column every Sunday. His final column appeared on Nov. 28. 2010.(The Hour), no word on services. This report came from The Hour of Norwalk, CT.
The roar of auto racing engines outdoors, soon to be silenced across the Northeast, will reverberate anew in December with Indoor Auto Racing events planned for Baltimore, Md. and Providence, R.I. over a three week period.
Lightning fast Three Quarter (TQ) Midget race cars and nimble Champ Karts will be featured at 1st Mariner Arena in Baltimore on December 8 and at Dunkin’ Donuts Center in Providence on December 31. A two day card of Indoor racing is also planned for Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City. N.J. on February 1-2, 2013.
The three events are produced by Len Sammons Motorsports Productions headquartered in Trenton, NJ.
The first driver to confirm his entry in the Baltimore and Providence races was Plainville, Ct. ace Ted Christopher, a winner of TQ Indoor races in both Dunkin’ Donuts Center and Boardwalk Hall in the recent past. Christopher, the 2012 SK Modified champion at Stafford (CT) Motor Speedway, will be driving the same car he has experienced his prior successes with.Ryan Tidman, Levittown, PA., the 2012 and 2011 outdoor TQ champion, is also among the first wave of entries committed for the inaugural Baltimore race and the sixth Indoor meet at Providence.
Another prominent early entrant, Patrick Emerling, of the Buffalo, NY suburb of Orchard Park, is NASCAR’s Whelen Modified Touring Series 2011 Rookie of the Year. Emerling’s prowess on NASCAR’s short tracks should prove to be invaluable in competing on the tenth mile Baltimore and Providence tracks and Atlantic City’s eighth-mile speedway.
Other TQ drivers who have entered both of the Indoor December races are Ken Andreas, Hamilton, NJ, Steve Craig, Levittown, Pa., Tony DiMattia, Malvern, Pa., Paul Lotier, Lebanon, Pa., Erik Musto, Lockport, N.Y., Shawn Nye, Lancaster, N.Y, Mike Osite, Brooklyn, N.Y, Tim Proctor, Hamilton, N.J., the Quinones sisters Amamda and Ginny from Indian Trail, N.C., and Jonathan Reid, Loekport, N.Y.
Entries have been coming in at a steady rate as well for the Baltimore and Providence Champ Kart class. Heading this list are Glen Meisenhelder, Feeding Hills, Ma., Ron Midford Jr., Tolland, Ct., Brandon Ruszek, Wallingford, Ct., and the Sullivan brothers, Brian and Tom of South Windsor, Ct. Entries for both races are limited to 60 TQ Midgets and 42 Champ Karts. Registration forms, technical rules and race procedures for both
events are available on line at www.aarn.com or by calling 609-888-3618.
In Baltimore, each class will compete against the clock in time trials that will determine starting positions in a series of qualifying heat races. The heat races will narrow the entries down to twenty-two starters for a 40-lap TQ Midget A-Main and a 25-lap Champ Kart feature event.
The Saturday, December 8 time schedule calls for truck parking and unloading beginning at 8:00 am. The first on-track activity begins with practice at 1 p.m. Time trials will begin at 4:15 p.m. Grandstand gates will swing open at 6 p.m. with racing starting one hour later beginning with qualifying heat races.
The addition of the Baltimore race to the previous two events provides TQ drivers and Champ Kart racers with three major events in three destination cities. “Baltimore is a great location for an Indoor race,” said event
event organizer Len Sammons. “It is easily accessible from central Pennsylvania, Delaware and New
Jersey. We expect the event to be as popular as our Atlantic City and Providence races have become in its very first year.”
The 1st Mariner Center is near the very popular Camden Yards and is in the middle of Baltimore’s trendy Inner Harbor area, a tourist mecca with dozens of shops, restaurants and attractions. A host hotel will be the Holiday Inn directly across the street from the Center.
The Providence race in Dunkin’ Donuts Center is the fifth Indoor race at that venue promoted by Sammons. The December 31 scheduling – on New Years Eve – has provided race teams and their followers with a rare opportunity to compete against one another, then party the night away and herald the coming of the New Year.
The Clarion Inn in Seekonk, Mass. will serve as the host hotel for the Providence Indoor race.
Located less than ten minutes from the Dunkin’ Donuts Center, Clarion guests will enjoy the ease of parking their vehicles at no charge in a secured area. Reservations, available at a reduced nightly rate of $89, may be
made by calling l-508-336-7300. With making reservations, ask for the “Indoor Racing” special rate.
A gala post-race New Years’ Eve Party has been planned at the Clarion, featuring beef and turkey carving stations, fruit and cheese displays, complimentary beer and wine from 11 p.m. until the stroke of
midnight and a champagne toast to herald the arrival of 2013. A cash bar will be open from 10 PM to 1 AM. A DJ will provide music until 2 a.m. Hats and noisemakers will be supplied. Tickets are available by
calling the Len Sammons Motorsports Productions office.
Entry forms for two-day Boardwalk Hall Indoor Race, featuring TQ Midgets, Champ Karts and Tobias Slingshots, will be available shortly. The 2013 running at Boardwalk Hall will be the eleventh event under Len Sammons Motorsports Productions. Racing indoors in Boardwalk Hall took place for the first time in 1938.
Waterford Speedbowl returned to action Saturday, hosting the final NASCAR Whelen All-American Series racing of the season. Championship battles were settled in the final races for the SK Modified® and Street Stock divisions with 50-lap races. Jeff Rocco of Wallingford took his first career victory in the SK Modified® race while
Tyler Chadwick of Ledyard secured his first ever Speedbowl title in the division.
Walt Hovey settled the issue in the Street Stocks, winning both the race and the track championship. The Bob Valenti Auto Mall Late Models and Mini Stock divisions also completed racing on the day. Scoring victories were Bruce Thomas Jr. of Groton in the Bob Valenti Auto Mall Late Models and Ken Cassidy Jr. of Lisbon in the Mini Stocks.
The 50-lap NASCAR Whelen All-American Series SK Modified® feature was brought to the green flag by first-year driver Craig Lutz. Lutz held the lead through a lap-3 restart when he gave way to Kyle James. Jeff Rocco
was on the move from his 8th place starting position, up to second place as James pulled away in the lead. A caution on lap-5 for a spinning car enabled Rocco to line up outside James for the ensuing restart.
Rocco powered past James when racing resumed, leading lap-6. He pulled away during a stretch of green flag racing that brought the race from lap-7 through lap-20. James held second position with Rob Janovic third
when the run was halted by a caution for a spin by John Montesanto.
The championship battle between Chadwick and Jeff Pearl took a turn on lap-25 when the next caution came out. Lutz spun from fifth place, collecting Pearl as well as Joe Perry. Pearl spun to the infield, forcing him to pit road before resuming from the rear of the field. Chadwick continued to hold a spot comfortably inside the top-ten.
Up front Rocco was in control on the restarts, pulling away from James. Todd Ceravolo marched to the front from a starting position deep in the field, taking third from Janovic on lap-27. Another green flag run brought the race to lap-44 with Rocco stretching his lead over James. Ceravolo remained third while Shawn Monahan was on the rise, taking fourth from Janovic on lap-35. The final caution was out on lap-44 when Pearl, trying to fight back into the top ten, tangled with Montesanto in turn one.
Rocco was unchallenged on the final restart. James had Ceravolo race to his inside for second before slipping in turns three and four on lap-45. Ceravolo moved to second and Monahan third as James dropped out of
contention. They chased Rocco to the checkered flag but had no answer. Rocco took down his first-career victory in impressive fashion, dominating the race once he took command. Behind Ceravolo and Monahan, Janovic
finished in fourth while Nichole Morgillo ran a clean race to place fifth.
Chadwick began the event with a 21-point lead over Pearl in the championship battle. He finished the race in ninth, running a cautious race to stay out of trouble and claim the crown. Pearl’s troubles dropped him to 18th in the final results.
The 50-lap NASCAR Whelen All-American Series Late Model feature was run without a caution flag. The green-to-checkered flag affair was run in rapid fashion, with Thomas starting in the pole position. Thomas led
throughout, distancing himself from Jeff Smith in the early going. He built a comfortable lead and was never challenged. The biggest hurdle for Thomas was navigating lapped traffic, which he did without interference.
Smith ended up in second while Dillon Moltz, the champion in the division, finished third. Rich Staskowski was fourth with 2012 ACT Tour champion Wayne Helliwell running a strong race to end up fifth after starting the
race from the back.
The NASCAR Whelen All-American Street Stock division had a rough and tumble 50-lap feature. Hovey rose to the lead on lap-24 then survived multiple caution flags over the remainder of the race. Hovey was not seriously tested the rest of the way, beating back Corey Hutchings and Chris Meyer to the checkered flag, each of whom came back from early race trouble. With the win Hovey clinched his first track title.
Cassidy resumed the final 28-laps of the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series Mini Stock race from a lead he held back on October 7th when rain halted the race. Cassidy closed out the victory in dominating fashion, surviving
a caution flag on the final lap to hold on over the green-white-checkered flag conclusion. He beat out Ray Christian III of Norwich over the final sprint, while Jeff Cembruch of Wallingford placed third. Cassidy’s victory was his 12th on the year in the division, good for the all-time single season record in division wins. Cassidy is the division’s 2012 track champion in addition to winning a national title in NASCAR’s Division IV tier in the Whelen All-American Series.
Jammin 107.7 FM radio presented the event and concluded it with a “Great Pumpkin Drop”, dropping a huge pumpkin 100 feet above the Speedbowl’s frontstretch. Sue Pastore of Waterford was the winner of an expense-paid trip for two courtesy of the radio station.
Waterford Speedbowl continues to put finishing touches on its 2013 event schedule. News regarding upcoming rules meetings, 2013 season passes and more information will be released in the coming weeks.
For the 11th time Eddie MacDonald posted a top ten finish in the 13 races run in the K&N Pro Series East this season. In the rescheduled Labor Day rainout at the Greenville Pickens’ “Old House of Racing”, Eddie Mac rallied to score a tenth place run despite early engine problems in the Kevin Whitaker 140 on the half mile oval.
“Something was wrong with the engine almost from the start of the race,” said MacDonald. “It ran great in practice and we ran in the top five, but something happened shortly after we took the green flag. It really messed up the rest of the race but we managed to get a top ten finish. We haven’t had a chance to find out what went wrong with it. We have our other car ready for Rockingham this Saturday so we are in good shape.”
Qualifying and the race was rained out on Labor Day and the field was set by points. The Grimm Construction Chevy started fifth as a result. The #71 held his position for a while but the horsepower wasn’t there to hold off the field for long. “It was tough to run with these guys since this place is pretty fast with the long straightaways,” said MacDonald. “I just tried to hang on and try not to lose too many spots until we made our pit stop.”
MacDonald headed to the pits after going a lap down at the halfway flag in the 13th position. The Rowley, Mass. veteran ran in the 15th position after getting his lap back on caution lap 125. “We were really struggling with the engine and then near the end of the race the handling went away so we needed something to happen to give us a chance for a better finish and we got it.”
The race extended to 146 laps and finished with a green/white checker finish. In the last turn on the last lap Corey Lajoie moved leader Brent Moffitt out of the way that resulted in a huge crash on the frontstretch just before the start/finish line taking out the top runners. MacDonald was able to miss the carnage to take the checkers in the tenth spot.
“It was really wild at the end, “said Eddie Mac. “Cars were flying everywhere and I couldn’t even see the start/finish line with the smoke covering the track. We got lucky to miss the wreck and it helped turn a bad night into a decent one. Now we are headed to Rockingham for our final race of the season and we have “Blackie” all ready to go. It is our Loudon car so we hope it will run well on the mile track at Rockingham. Hopefully we will have a strong run there to finish up.”
With the run, MacDonald and team owner Rob Grimm moved in to sixth position in the point’s race. The event will mark the first appearance for the K&N Pro Series East in the Inaugural Classic 3 presented by RCR Racing Museum on the legendary Rockingham Speedway mile oval. NASCAR has scheduled a test day for Thursday with practice and qualifying on Friday. The green flag will fly at 2 p.m. on Saturday.
On Saturday and Sunday Don Hoenig’s Automotive Flea Market and Swap Meet goes at 7 a.m. each day. On Sunday the Capeway Rovers in Middleboro, MA host the NESC MotoX Series at 9 a.m. Down in Bristol, CT Compunce Park offers the 23rd Annual CT Street Rods Swap Meet at 8 a.m.