by Jay | Aug 14, 2009 | ACT, Canada, NASCAR, New England
Waterbury, VT – The American Canadian Tour (ACT) announced today that over a 30-day period from August 29th through September 27th there would be purses posted of over a quarter million dollars for Late Model race teams in the Northeast and Canada.
Starting with the Coors Light Showdown of Champions event at the 1/3-mile banked Autodrome Chaudiere in the Beauce region outside Quebec City, the top eleven (11) US ACT Tour teams will go head to head with the top (11) ACT Castrol Serie teams. The winner of the event gets the grand prize of $5,000 from the $35,000 in posted purse. Everyone is guaranteed $1,000 minimum, but this year, promoter Michel Lessard has posted a ‘kicker’. The winning ‘team’, be it the US or Castrol team, will share equal portions of an added $5,500.00. The $500 bonus per member will go to the team whose 11 total finishes outpoint the other team. The biggest names in ACT racing from both sides of the border will be attending the second edition of the Showdown. Patrick Laperle barely beat defending ACT Castrol Champion, Alexandre Gingras, in the inaugural 200-lap event in 2008.
The Americans won the overall title as a team last year. Ironically, former Castrol Champions Patrick Laperle of Montreal and Donald Theetge from Quebec City both helped the US team win as they raced on the ACT US Tour in 2008. This year they are locked in a tight battle for the ACT Castrol Serie championship in Quebec and Ontario and will be representing the Canadian team during the classic.
Next up in the marathon ‘ACT Money Month’ will be a return to Thunder Road Speedbowl in Barre, Vermont for the 47th annual running of the Bond Auto Labor Day Classic. A record purse and prize posting of $45,000 has been offered. Renowned car builder and car owner Pete Duto entered Brad Leighton from Center Harbor, NH in last year’s Classic. In one of the most memorable come-back races in the long history of Thunder Road, Leighton crashed twice in the event but came back to win $10,000 and the first place trophy. He will be back to defend the Bond Auto Labor Day Classic in 2009.
One of the most anticipated events of the year is up next for the Late Model teams. The long awaited return of the Fall Foliage 300 is back on the ACT schedule in 2009. The newly renovated and redesigned Airborne Speedway in Plattsburgh, NY will again host the historic ‘300’ weekend with a posted purse of $40,000. This fall classic event was held in many forms and different numbers of laps. The inaugural event was held in 1972 and was won by Bobby Dragon of Milton, VT. Catamount continued the tradition of a big fall event until it closed in 1987. After the closing of Catamount, the race moved to Beech Ridge Motor Speedway in Scarborough, ME for a three-year stop. Buzzie Bezanson of Plaistow, NH surprised all present with a no pit stop ‘300’ win in 1989. Two of the greatest Late Model drivers in New England racing history won the other two Beech Ridge events, Robbie Crouch from Tampa, FL in 1988, and “Dynamite” Dave Dion from Hudson, NH won in 1990. The race moved to Airborne Raceway for the next ten years. A one and only stop for the ‘300’ took place at Thunder Road in 2003, where Ryan Moore, in his only year racing the ACT Tour, was the surprise winner. The Fall Foliage 300 returned to Airborne the following year and has found its home there since 2004. The most recent ACT winners included Airborne and ACT Champions Brent Dragon and Jean-Paul Cyr of Milton, VT, and Quebec’s great Patrick Laperle. Under the leadership of present owner Steve Fuller and promoter Mike Perotte, the outstanding DIRT driver Kenny Tremont, Jr.has won all three Fall Foliage extra distance events in a Modified on the ½-mile asphalt speedway. The ACT Tour returns in 2009 after a three-year absence.
The championship month will continue with what has become the most talked-about event in Northeastern Late Model racing of any kind this season. The inaugural ACT INVITATIONAL at the New Hampshire Motor Speedway will take place on Saturday, September 19. No championship title points, no pressure, just an historic day for Late Model racers throughout the region, as they race for $65,000 and a name in the NHMS record books. This year-long promotion will be the racing career highlight for many of the lucky 36 invitees. It is sure to be a highlight for the many short track fans that take in the atmosphere of the first NASCAR Chase event weekend held each September at NHMS.
Finally, the $250,000 month will fittingly come to a close with the ‘grand-daddy’ event of them all, the 47th Annual Chittenden Milk Bowl. Thunder Road will bring the curtain down on its 50th season with a $10,000-to-win, $70,000 Milk Bowl. The gloves are sure to come off at this year’s Milk Bowl. For the first time in recent memory this event will be strictly for the money, the glory, the right to kiss the cow — with no points for either Thunder Road teams or ACT Tour teams. The three-segment format of the Milk Bowl provides the ultimate equal playing field for the ACT competitors. You don’t have to win all three segments, you just need to race every lap like it is the white flag lap, and have a whole bunch of luck.
The ACT Late Models have reached the top of the Northeastern-racing scene. Promoters have recognized them as the best in the business, and tracks from throughout the Northeast and Quebec are rewarding them with the ACT $250,000 Money Month of racing. The real winners will be the fans.
by Jay | Aug 13, 2009 | ACT, New England, Thunder Road
Barre, VT – Thursday Night racing during 50th Anniversary Season celebration at Thunder Road International Speedbowl will finish with a bang, literally, on Thursday, August 27. The event, which is sponsored by the Vermont State Employees Credit Union (VSECU), will feature NASCAR star David Ragan, who will compete in the final Late Model point counting race. As part of the celebration and in honor of Ragan’s appearance the Late Models will run 100 laps to decide the 50th Anniversary “King of the Road.”
The point battle is shaping up to be one of the closest in Thunder Road history. Currently the top three drivers, Jean-Paul Cyr, Dave Pembroke, and Phil Scott are separated by only 14 points. The competition will only become more intense as we continue the countdown to the finale.
As part of the finale celebration, drivers from the original flat head days to the stars of today have been invited to a private luncheon. These Thunder Road heroes will then be available in the concession area to tell their stories and sign autographs for the fans throughout the night.
The action won’t stop there when following the event the biggest display of fireworks in the history of the “Nation’s Site of Excitement” will be set off in celebration of the conclusion of 50 years of the traditional Thursday night racing at the Barre highbanks. All of this plus the NAPA Tiger Sportsmen, Allen Lumber Street Stock, and Power Shift Junkyard Warriors action is available for only $12 for adults, $3 for kids 6 to 12 and only $25 for a family of four (two adults and two kids).
The NAPA Tiger Sportsmen, Allen Lumber Street Stocks and Power Shift Junkyard Warriors will wrap up their seasons with the Bond Auto Labor Day Classic 200 featuring the American Canadian Tour followed by the 47th Annual Chittenden Milk Bowl. The Labor Day Classic is scheduled for 1:30 pm on Sunday, September 6 and the Milk Bowl will be on Sunday, September 27 at 1:00 pm with Booth Bros./H.P. Hood qualifying on Saturday, September 26 at 1:30 pm.
Next up is this week’s doubleheader with only four nightly events remaining in the 2009 50th Anniversary Season. Thursday, August 13 will be ACE Hardware Night featuring the third and final Tiger Sportsmen Tri-State Series 100 plus Late Model, Allen Lumber Street Stocks and Power Shift Junkyard Warriors. Then Friday, August 14 is Pepsi Night featuring all four weekly divisions plus the Pepsi Sock Hop after the races with a live DJ and prizes. Post time Thursday is 6:30 pm, and Friday is 6:00 pm. Bring your ticket stub from Thursday Nights event and adults are only $5 while kids under 12 are free.
by Jay | Aug 11, 2009 | NASCAR, NASCAR K&N Pro Series, New England
Uncasville, Conn. (August 11, 2009): Matt Kobyluck isn’t quite ready to turn over his title of road course King just yet. The 39-year-old driver, who has been dubbed the NASCAR Camping World Series East’s road racing ace, is ready to defend his win in the Mohegan Sun 200 at Lime Rock Park. Kobyluck won both road racing events last year during his championship winning ’08 season, but finished second to Ryan Truex at Watkins Glen this past June. Kobyluck, who wants to put his team and race sponsor Mohegan Sun Casino in victory lane, will accept nothing less than a win.
Kobyluck feels his preference for technicality in driving will be an advantage at Lime Rock Park. The 1.53-mile course is demanding on a driver, and hitting your marks is key to a solid finish.
“I love the road courses,” said Kobyluck. “In fact, our best finish this year was at Watkins Glen. At the same time, Lime Rock is a very challenging course and it demands a rhythm. You can try and overdrive at Lime Rock and you’ll end up going slower. It’s very easy to get off course there.”
Kobyluck’s success on the road courses isn’t understated. Since 2001, the driver of the No. 40 Mohegan Sun Casino Chevrolet, has four wins, eight top fives and 11 top 10’s in just 14 road-course starts. A win at Lime Rock Park this weekend would put Kobyluck in the record books. Right now, he’s tied with Butch Leitzinger as the only drivers to have won three times. A win this year would mark his third straight victory, but it would mean career win number four at Lime Rock Park.
“I don’t go to Lime Rock with the intention of breaking records. I just go there to win,” said Kobyluck. “But to put this team in a class all it’s own wouldn’t be such a bad thing either!”
Kobyluck is currently fourth in the points – 67 points behind leader Ryan Truex. Only 100 points separate the top six drivers in points with only three races remaining in the season.
For more information on Matt Kobyluck, Mohegan Sun Casino, or the Mohegan Sun race team, visit www.mattkobyluck.com.
by Jay | Aug 11, 2009 | New England, PASS
Naples ME (8/11/2009)– The Pro All Stars Series (PASS) North super late models have raced hundreds of times from Nova Scotia to Connecticut in their nine year history, but this Saturday the series will make its’ first appearance in the Bay State when they travel to the birthplace of the Pro Stock, Seekonk Speedway.
The first ever PASS battle at the Cement Palace will pit a collection of Seekonk’s weekly competitors against the toughest touring pros in the Northeast, and it’s entirely possible that the PASS regulars will be up ended for two races in a row. Randy Turner claimed the winner’s spoils at Unity Raceway two weeks ago, and home track advantage played a major role in his triumph over the likes of DJ Shaw and Ben Rowe. Seekonk is home to a very strong field of weekly racers and they know “their” track inside out. Fred Astle, Tom Scully Jr. and Sr., and a host of other Seekonk specialists will be on hand when Cirelli Foods presents the PASS 150 Saturday night.
It won’t be an easy task to top the PASS teams. The travelling racer teams have a knack for adapting to a new race track quickly, and they are certain to be up to the challenge. Johnny Clark leads the series to Seekonk, with three wins and nine top ten finishes in the first ten events of 2009. As the schedule heads down the home stretch, Clark is seeking his second consecutive PASS North title. Ben Rowe, Adam Bates, Richie Dearborn and Derek Ramstrom are all chasing Clark and there’s still four events left to gain ground and challenge the point leader.
Seekonk’s own Late Models, Street Stocks and Sport Trucks complete the program. Pit gates open at 1:00 PM, practice gets underway at 3:00 PM and the racing card goes green at 6:00 PM. Seekonk Speedway is located at 1710 Fall River Avenue in Seekonk Massachusetts. Their web address is www.seekonkspeedway.com .
The Pro All Stars are on line at www.proallstarsseries.com and www.racewithpass.com .
by Jay | Aug 10, 2009 | NASCAR, New England, Thompson
Preece On A Roll Heading To Thompson
The 2009 NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour season has reached its halfway point, and as the Tour heads to Thompson (Conn.) International Speedway this week, Ryan Preece is perhaps the hottest driver on the circuit.
Preece, from Berlin, Conn., has won the last two NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour races and is now just 27 points out of the championship lead thanks to top-10 efforts in six of the season’s seven events.
The last two weeks have been a constant emotional high for Preece, who recorded his first career win last year at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway, but never got to celebrate in Victory Lane as Burt Myers was there originally, before being disqualified. His triumph at Riverhead (N.Y.) Raceway on Aug. 1 was the first time he got to pull into Victory Lane, and symbolically, it felt like his first win.
Last Friday at Stafford (Conn.) Motor Speedway, Preece then got the first win of his NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour career at his home track.
Preece had a stout car the last handful of races at Stafford, but the cards didn’t line up for a victory. The long wait ended in the Town Fair Tire 150 when he led the final 47 laps to take the checkered flag.
“I’ve always wanted to win here, and I finally got it,” said an elated Preece following the win.
Both wins have been hard-earned for Preece. In the previous week’s win, he had to fend off a host of Riverhead regulars to get to the finish line first, and Friday’s win at Stafford featured a similar storyline as he had to outlast the winningest driver in the track’s storied history: Ted Christopher.
Christopher had led the first two-thirds of the race after starting first on the redraw, but after a restart, Preece was able to get past the defending NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour champion on Lap 104 and hold off some hard charges from Christopher for the win.
As the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour now heads to Thompson for the Budweiser 150 presented by New England Dodge Dealers on Thursday, Aug. 13, Preece will have to turn the page quickly. The Tour is currently halfway through its busiest part of the 2009 schedule with four events in the span of 19 days. Fortunately for Preece and the No. 3 team, momentum is clearly on their side, for the time being.
“The month of August seems to be a real good month for me, and hopefully my luck will stay like this,” Preece said.
The 18-year-old driver knows that things can turn around quickly in auto racing, so he’s not going to get too caught up in the team’s current run.
“Who knows, I could be wrecking next week, so I’m living in the moment, and things are real great right now,” Preece said.
While he has traditionally been a front-runner at Stafford, Preece has yet to find much success at Connecticut’s biggest oval. In 10 career starts at Thompson, the third-year driver has an average finish of 15 with four top 10s. A fourth- place finish there in the season opener – the best of his career – should be encouraging.
While the season is only halfway over, it may be too early to hedge bets on the championship, but the consistency that Preece’s team has exhibited to this point indicates that they could be a legitimate title contender.
Preece and the rest of the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour competitors will get the action going on race day at Thompson with practice at 2 p.m. Time trials are set for 5:30 p.m. and the 150-lap race is scheduled to go green at approximately 8:45 p.m.
Fast Facts
The Race: Budweiser 150 presented by New England Dodge Dealers
The Place: Thompson (Conn.) International Speedway
The Date: Thursday, August 13
The Time: 8:45 p.m. ET
The Distance: 150 laps / 93.75 miles
Race Purse: $84,168
2008 Winner: Ron Silk
2008 Polesitter: None-rain
Event Schedule: Practice 2 – 3 p.m.; Tire Scuff 5:15 p.m.; Qualifying 5:30 p.m.
by Jay | Aug 9, 2009 | New England, Thunder Road
Barre, VT – Bill Davis of Monson, MA earned $5,000 with his win in the 250 lap 25th Annual M&M Beverage Enduro. Davis along with over 150 other cars from all over the northeast attempted to snag the big pay check. Long time leader Adam Gray of Belchertown, MA dropped out with less than 30 laps remaining and handed the victory to Davis. The event saw lots of action including several pile-ups and even a roll over.
Williamstown’s Michael MacAskill took home his second career Allen Lumber Street Stock win and first of the season in a special 50 lap event. MacAskill took the lead from Dave Whitcomb with two laps to go and survived a green-white-checkered finish. Whitcomb finished second followed by Tommy “Thunder” Smith, Tucker Williams and Jason Corliss. Forty cars started the fifty lap feature.
Bunker Hodgdon of Hardwick made a return to the Power Shift Junkyard Warrior division and won the Monza style two segment event. Hodgdon finished third in the first segment and won the second segment, both from the rear of the fifteen car field. Lance Donald also finished with a third and a win but lost the tie breaker because Hodgdon beat him in the second segment. Donald finished second followed by Kevin Dodge who compiled six points with a second and a fourth.
The 50th Anniversary Season at Thunder Road will continue with a double header this Thursday, August 13 and Friday, August 14. Thursday will be the Vermont ACE Hardware dealers event featuring the third and final Tiger Sportsmen Tri-State Series 100 lap event. Thunder Road Late Models, Allen Lumber Street Stocks and Power Shift Junkyard Warriors will join the card. Friday the action will continue with the rescheduled Pepsi Night. It will be a regular event for all four divisions with a 50’s/60’s themed sock hop in the pit area immediately following the racing. There will be a live DJ, a hoola-hoop contest and a costume contest. Post time on Thursday will be 6:30pm and Friday’s post time is set for 6:00pm.
Allen Lumber Street Stocks Unofficial Top Five – 1. Michael MacAskill (3) Williamstown, VT, 2. Dave Whitcomb (77) Elmore, VT, 3. Tommy Smith (50) Williamstown, VT, 4. #Tucker Williams (99) Hyde Park, VT, 5. Jason Corliss (61) Danville, VT.
Power Shift Warriors Unofficial Results – 1. Bunker Hodgdon (20) Hardwick, VT, 2. Lance Donald (52) Williamstown, VT, 3. Kevin Dodge (8) Barre, VT, 4. Keith Fortier (35) Hinesburg, VT, 5. Ken Christman (4) Cabot, VT, 6. Kevin Streeter (61) Waitsfield, VT, 7. John Prentice (87) Northfield, VT, 8. Donny Yates (05) N. Montpelier, VT, 9. Mark LaFleche (63) Williamstown, VT, 10. Thomas Elwood (33) Morrisville, VT, 11. Cheryl Kingsbury (13) Waitsfield, VT, 12. Alex Whitcomb (78) Montpelier, VT, 13. Matt Monaghan (11) Colchester, VT, 14. Justin Town (53) E. Barre, VT, 15. Bryan Nykiel (80) Berlin, VT.
