NEW ENGLAND MOTORSPORTS NORTH
By Lou Modestino
The entry list for the American Racer Challenge event to be held at the New Smyrna Speedway (NSS) during the 2015 World Series of Asphalt Racing in New Smyrna Beach, Florida, on Monday and Tuesday, February 16 and 17, is filled with ACT Champions from both the ACT US and Quebec tours.
Defending New Smyrna Challenge Champion, and 2014 American Canadian Tour (ACT) Champion, Joey Polewarczyk, Jr. (Pole) from Hudson, New Hampshire won the first event held at New Smyrna in 2011. “I can’t think of a better way to start the new season off than to win again at New Smyrna. I really like the race track, and we had a blast there a few years ago. Our goal is to use this as a springboard for defending our Championship on the Tour (ACT) this year,” said Pole.
Additionally, newly crowned Serie ACT Quebec Champion, Alex Labbe, from Ste. Albert, QC has entered the two-day racing event. Labbe will pull double duty as he will also compete in the Pro Late Model division throughout the week of racing at NSS. Two-time Serie ACT Champion, Donald Theetge, Quebec City, will join fellow Quebec racers, Jonathan Bouvrette and Jean-Pierre Ouimet, Montreal, and Martin Latullippe from Vallee-Jonction to fill out the entry list from Canada.
Tom Curley, President of the American Canadian Tour said, “We really enjoyed our first trip to New Smyrna Speedway (NSS) in February 2011. When longtime owner and promoter Robert Hart called and asked us to come back in 2015, we had immediate interest from ACT teams. I would expect the twin 100 races to be even more exciting than the first time we visited the fast half-mile at NSS. When you are from Quebec and New England, there is nothing wrong with heading to the Daytona Beach, Florida region for Speedweeks during February. Bringing along a race car makes for extra fun.”
Additional entries include two-time ACT Champion Wayne Helliwell, Jr., Dover, NH, and 2014 runner-up Jimmy Hebert from Williamstown, VT. Full-time ACT Maine drivers Travis Stearns and Rowland Robinson, Jr. will make the trek down from the Pine Tree State.
Over 20 cars have entered the American Racer Challenge which will run two 100-lap races over the two nights at New Smyrna. Individual winners will be crowned in each race, and the Cup will go to the winner of the two best combined finishes over the event.
With a full field of seventy Three Quarter Midgets ready to ‘Battle’ in ‘Trenton’ on Friday and Saturday, December 19, and 20, 2014, Len Sammons Motorsports Productions (LSMP) has decided to fill the grandstands to capacity as well by offering an advance purchase discount ticket sale that kicked off today, December 10, and will last through Saturday, December 13.
In this limited window of opportunity, Friday night Lower Level Reserved Seat tickets will be available for just $17 each and Saturday tickets in the same seating area for just $20. That is a savings of $5 per ticket!
These discounted tickets are available only at the Len Sammons Productions office. Tickets can be ordered by phone at 609-888-3616 from 10 a.m. through 5 p.m. today, Thursday and Friday; and from 10 a.m. through 2 p.m. Saturday. Shipped tickets will incur a $10 processing fee; purchasers who pick up their tickets at Area Auto Racing News (2829 South Broad Street, Trenton, NJ) will incur no shipping fees.
As an added incentive, tickets purchased through December 13 will also entitle purchasers to gain access to the popular Pre-Race Fan Fest, held on the arena floor before the start of competition on Saturday night, Dec. 20
Standard priced tickets are still available online at www.comcasttix.com and at the arena box office which is open Monday through Friday 10:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. and Saturday 12:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. Tickets can be purchased at the box office the day of the event, however the price does increase $2.
Seventy TQ Midget drivers, the maximum that can fit into the Sun National Bank Center safely, come from ten states and two nations and represent the cream of the crop in dirt track and paved track racing and compete in Modifieds, Sprints, Supermodifieds, Midgets and TQ Midgets, with and without wings.
Anthony Sesely of Matawan, N.J., a three time winner at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City Indoor racing action and Ted Christopher of Plainville, Ct., a seven-time Indoor winner in LSMP races, head the field of favorites with the always exciting Jimmy Blewett of Howell, N.J., three ISMA Supermodified standouts Lou Cicconi, Jr. of Aston, Pa., Joey Payne of Fairlawn, N.J., Rob Summers of Manchester, Ct., and Mike Lichty of Innerkip, Ontario, Canada, and a pair of competitive upstate New Yorkers Erick Rudolph of Ransomville, N.Y., and Andy Jankowiak of North Tonawanda, N.Y. plus ‘Jersey guy’ dirt track favorites Richie Pratt, Jr., of Hurffville Jr. and Mike Iles of Medford all very capable of winning.
A full field of TQs will race in a two-day series of efficiently promoted events in a unique format. Friday’s event will allow 40 competitors to run in one of the Twin 20 Lap features. Six Heat races will be run setting up (2) 20 car, 20 lap features. Saturday’s Schedule will feature a more traditional format of time trials, heat races, B-mains leading up to a 40 lap feature event.
Competing with the TQ Midgets at Sun Bank Center on Friday night are the agile and lightning fast Champ Karts. The Lentini Auto Salvage Slingshots are the support class for Saturday night Sun National Bank Center indoor action.
Five weeks after the Trenton events, Atlantic City’s historic Boardwalk Hall will be the site of the annual Gamblers Classic. The Atlantic City meet, sponsored by NAPA Auto Stores and highlighted by the ‘Gambler’s Classic’ in Atlantic City’s Boardwalk Hall, is set for January 30 and 31, 2015.
There is an old saying ‘Good things eventually come to good people’ and that is appropriate for this year’s NASCAR Whelen Southern Modified Tour champion Andy Seuss.
It has been a long road for the 27 year-old Hampstead, NH, native. He clinched the title in his 84th career tour start which is the most by any of the six champions to win in the 10-year history of the southern tour.
His parents, Steve and Bobbi – where at least one of them has made it to every one of his starts, logging in over 175,000 miles in the process – brought him down South in 2006. He made four starts in each of his first two seasons, picking up his first win in only his fifth start at Fairgrounds Speedway Nashville in Nashville, TN.
Although winning his first championship might have taken longer than he might have envisioned back in 2006, he still enjoyed hoisting the champions trophy at Charlotte Motor Speedway this past October.
“We have been working so long to get this championship and it was such a relief when we finally were able to celebrate in Charlotte,” said Seuss. “When we first came down here we thought we would give it a year or so and see how things went and we won our first race just about a year after we came down to race and things just fell into place.”
Not sure what his family-owned team would be able to do moving forward, Seuss was then approached by veteran team owner David Riggs and his Riggs Racing team led by his son Jeff.
This was no ordinary team; they had won the first two NASCAR Whelen Southern Modified Tour titles with legendary driver Junior Miller behind the wheel.
The team gelled quickly and, although they didn’t get their first win together until the season finale in 2008 at Caraway, Seuss knew he had found a home.
“I have been so fortunate in my career to have the opportunity to partner up with some great people and with David and Jeff giving me that opportunity in 2008 I was able to learn and get better as a driver,” Seuss said.
The partnership would produce seven more wins together until tragedy struck the team in late 2010. Jeff Riggs passed away unexpectedly in November, leaving Seuss’ plans for 2011 up in the air.
“That was just such a shock to everyone,” Seuss added. “He was the guy who gave me my break in this sport and I wouldn’t be the driver I am today without him and David and it was just a tough time for everyone.”
After making a handful of starts for veteran Winston-Salem, NC car owner Bryan Fishel, Eddie Harvey and his father Howard decided to field a second car out of their Ideal Racing shop and Seuss jumped at the chance to drive their modified.
He finished third in their first race together at Caraway Speedway in July of 2011 and the new partnership was another smooth transition for everyone.
Seuss and Eddie Harvey picked up their first win together just one month later when they returned to Caraway and the duo have won 10 races together and now a championship since they teamed up 47 races ago.
“To be able to team up with Riggs Racing was awesome and then to have another great ride come along when Eddie called is just a blessing,” Seuss added. “It’s a ride every driver wants and I was lucky enough to get it and we have been able to accomplish a lot of great things together.”
Seuss has usually been a second-half of the season kind of driver and has been able to use wins to close in on the title but never quite getting close enough. He has finished second in the points standings in 2009 and 2011.
The difference this season was that Seuss and Harvey started the season on a roll, winning two of the first three races in the series and eventually three out of five to take the lead in the standings.
That quick start helped the team in the second half of the season as three-time defending champion George Brunnhoelzl III was making his charge for a fifth crown.
Seuss finished every lap of competition except one this season, when he spun on the final lap at Bristol Motor Speedway in August. After that race things just didn’t seem right for Seuss even though they still finished in the top 10 in the next two races.
“We fought the car and fought it and I eventually told Eddie something just didn’t seem right with the car,” Seuss said.
Harvey decided to check out the car and he found that a lower control arm and the chassis was a little bent so they took it to Brad LaFontaine at Northeast Race Cars and once they put on a new clip Seuss was back up front challenging for wins.
“To me that stretch we had with the car bent and still able to finish with top-10s and top-fives showed just how strong a team we have at Ideal Racing,” Seuss added.
Harvey echoed those same sentiments.
“We assumed we just had suspension damage and when we found the chassis damage, Brad and his group just did a great job getting us back to where we needed to be and we are very thankful to him and his staff for helping us get that fixed so quickly so we could stay in the hunt for the title.”
Although Seuss didn’t get back to Victory Lane he was able to finish the season with three consecutive top-five finishes and hold off Brunnhoelzl by 14 points.
Now Seuss can get ready to enjoy his title with crew members Reggie Newman, Jimmy Harvey, Justin Wells, Justin Link, Mike Paris, Sammy Williams, Charli Brown and friends from RAHMOC Power that supplied the engines this season.
“This is going to be a time to celebrate but I wished David (Riggs) could have been here to celebrate with us too,” Seuss said. “I wished he was here with us, but I know he is not suffering anymore and that is all that matters. He wanted to see me do well in this series and we were able to bring home a title thanks to Eddie and I know he would have enjoyed seeing us get the trophy on stage.”
The elder Riggs succumbed to cancer just days before Seuss clinched the title in Charlotte in October.
The culmination and coronation of a season-long – and career-defining – road to NASCAR glory came Saturday night for seven drivers.
Abraham Calderón summed it up the best on stage at the NASCAR Touring Series Night of Champions.
“This championship was a dream a few years ago,” said the 26-year-old Monterrey, Mexico driver as he accepted the NASCAR Mexico Toyota Series title. “It was really hard. But now that it’s real, it’s way better than I could ever imagine.”
The evening concluded with all seven drivers on stage together: Calderón, NASCAR Whelen Euro Series champion Anthony Kumpen, NASCAR Canadian Tire Series presented by Mobil 1 champion LP Dumoulin, NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour champion Doug Coby, NASCAR Whelen Southern Modified Tour champion Andy Seuss, NASCAR K&N Pro Series West champion Greg Pursley, and NASCAR K&N Pro Series East champion Ben Rhodes.
The individual high-point of the evening for each of the drivers came on the stage at the Crown Ballroom of the Charlotte Convention Center at the NASCAR Hall of Fame, when NASCAR President Mike Helton handed out the prestigious championship rings and awarded the series championship trophies.
“Tonight, the past, the present and future all converge,” said George Silbermann, NASCAR vice president of regional touring and weekly racing. “The past, celebrated through the storied history of many of these series. The present, represented by a mixture of seasoned veterans winning another NASCAR championship and young guns winning their first. And most importantly, the future, drivers recognized on this stage in the past few years are already having a huge impact in NASCAR’s three national series. And given the talent tonight, that trend will definitely continue.”
Coby and Pursley each won their second touring series titles, while the other five are all first-time winners.
For Pursley, the championship was the crowning achievement on a long and storied career that also included a NASCAR Whelen All-American Series national title and 20 NASCAR K&N Pro Series West wins in 99 starts.
Rhodes joined current NASCAR Sprint Cup Series drivers Joey Logano, Ryan Truex and Kyle Larson in winning the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East championship and Sunoco Rookie of the Year in the same season. Kumpen, who has an impressive sports car resume, won the NASCAR Whelen Euro Series title in his first season driving stock cars.
“For a European race driver, a NASCAR championship seemed like an impossible goal,” said Anthony Kumpen.
Kumpen won his championship by one point over two-time titlist Ander Vilarino, while Rhodes clinched his with a race remaining in the season. Seuss, Coby and Pursley all staked themselves to early season leads and held off their challengers. Dumoulin used a stretch of five consecutive podium finishes in the summer months to lock up the top spot, while Calderón emerged victorious in the series’ five-race Desafio.
The seven champions combined for 14 wins, 67 top fives and 86 top 10s in 95 races.
“Everybody knows that most championship stories have a bump along the way,” said Coby, who became just the fifth different driver in 30 years of the Whelen Modified Tour to earn multiple championships. “We just did our thing and took care of business at each race.
“My team was resilient and they absolutely refused to flinch under pressure, and that is what defined our season and that is what makes them champions.”
Said Seuss: “One fact I’ll always point to about this championship is we completed every lap but one. That’s a testament to the team we have working on this car in the shop and at the track. This is a team sport and I couldn’t do it without all of you.”
The championship car owners and crew chiefs were also recognized Saturday night.
The champions weren’t the only ones to pick up hardware.
In addition to the championship awards, each series rookie of the year was honored. The Sunoco Rookie of the Year Award winners were Rhodes, James Bickford in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West, Tommy Solomito in the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour and Spencer Davis in the NASCAR Whelen Southern Modified Tour. Top rookie performers in the three international series were Matthew Scannell in the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series, Mario Dominguez in Mexico’s NASCAR Toyota Series and Eddie Cheever III in the NASCAR Whelen Euro Series.
The Most Popular Driver Awards for each series were also presented during the ceremony. The seven drivers honored with the award, which was voted on by the fans through NASCAR.com, were Ben Rhodes in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East, Brandon McReynolds of the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West, JR Fitzpatrick in the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series, Rodrigo Marban of the NASCAR Mexico Toyota Series, Freddy Nordström from the NASCAR Whelen Euro Series, Melissa Fifield from the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour and Andy Seuss from the NASCAR Whelen Southern Modified Tour.
The top-10 drivers and car owners from each of NASCAR’s touring series also were recognized during the gala