by Jay | Jan 5, 2010 | Canada, Maine, New England, PASS
FARMINGDALE, Maine — Johnny Clark is getting an early start on the 2010 PASS North Series season.
Clark, a 4-time PASS North champion, was among the first three drivers to register with the sanctioning body for the upcoming season as he seeks to become the first driver to win five championships in the PASS North Super Late Model ranks.
“There’s no reason to believe we can’t contend for a fifth championship,” said Clark, who won back-to-back series championships in 2008-2009. “The same team is coming back, with (crew chief Robert Green) heading it up. I think it’s going to be a great year for us.”
That year kicks off this coming weekend, Jan. 8-10, at the Northeast Motorsports Expo at the Augusta Civic Center, just a few miles down the road from Clark’s Farmingdale home. Clark will be on hand to sign autographs on Friday night and again on Saturday afternoon.
The racing season begins in earnest with the opener at Speedway 95 in Hermon, Maine, on April 18.
Clark has 19 career PASS North victories to rank second all-time in the series. He’d not only like to break the 20-win plateau this season, but he’d also like to snap a tie with Ben Rowe for the most career PASS championships.
Green, of Benton, Maine, will be back as crew chief on the familiar black, red and yellow No. 54 Port City/Clark’s Car Crushing Chevrolet which won three times in 2009.
“The bottom line is that he wants to win races and that’s it,” Clark said of Green. “That’s really it. He doesn’t go to the racetrack to make friends. That’s a little hard sometimes, because it even goes for our own team, but he simply wants to win races.
“You’ve got to respect that.”
The 30-year-old Clark also won championships in the 2004 and 2006 PASS North seasons, giving him three of the last four series titles. He’s one of only two PASS drivers with multiple championships and more than 15 career wins.
He hopes that the momentum from last year will continue to right through the first half of the 2010 season. Four of the first five series races will be held at tracks where Clark has visited victory lane — Speedway 95, Beech Ridge Motor Speedway, Speedway 660 in Geary, New Brunswick, and Unity Raceway.
But winning isn’t everything on the path to the championship, Clark said.
“You’ve got to be consistent all year,” he said. “The competition is so tough on this tour that you can’t really afford to have any bad races, especially early in the year.
“We’ll be ready, for sure.”
by Jay | Jan 2, 2010 | Maine, New England, PASS
PASS Stars Clark, Rowe, Fogleman highlight Northeast Motorsports Expo autograph sessions
Naples ME (January 1 2010) The New Year is upon us, and race fans from all over northern New England will converge on the Augusta (Maine) Civic Center next weekend for the Northeast Motorsports Expo, the traditional lid lifter to the new racing season. The Pro All Stars Series (PASS) will once again celebrate the New Year in Augusta with autograph sessions from racers in every division.
One of the many highlights of the January 8-10 event will be appearances by 2009 PASS North Super Late Model Champion Johnny Clark and 2009 PASS South and National Champion Ben Rowe. Clark is celebrating his fourth PASS North title, while Rowe now has the distinction of being the only driver to claim all three PASS super late model Championships.
A special guest will join Clark and Rowe in Augusta on Friday and Saturday. PASS South star Jay Fogleman will make the trip from Durham North Carolina to meet and greet northern super late model fans. Fogleman has more than 100 career wins to his credit and track championships at Orange County, South Boston and Ace Speedways. He’s won four times at Martinsville Speedway and has nine wins in the former Hooters ProCup series. In 2009 Fogleman finished fifth in the PASS South super late model standings with three wins, six top five and nine top ten finishes in his fourteen starts. Fogleman chased Rowe for the PASS National Championship title as well, finishing fifth.
PASS officials will be on hand throughout the weekend to answer questions; rules and schedules for all four PASS divisions will be available.
The autograph schedule:
Friday January 8 6:00 PM – 8:00 PM: Jay Fogleman, Ben Rowe, Johnny Clark
Saturday January 9 12:00 PM – 2:00 PM: Jay Fogleman
3:00 PM – 5:00 PM: Ben Rowe and Johnny Clark
Expect a number of additional drivers to join Clark, Rowe and Fogleman for the autograph sessions. Keep an eye on www.proallstarsseries.com throughout the week for more driver appearances.
Northeast Motorsports Expo gets underway Friday January 8th. Doors open at 5:00 PM and the show wraps up at 10:00 PM. On Saturday January 9th show hours are 10:00 AM – 9:00 Pm and Sunday January 10th the Expo runs from 10:00 AM until 3:00 PM.
by Jay | Jan 1, 2010 | NASCAR, New England
(Rangeley, ME) The 11th Annual Busch Sport Scene Snowmobile Ride for Charity will take place on Saturday, February 6th, at the Club House Restaurant in Rangeley, Maine. There will be many New England based race car drivers and team members joining the ride again this year, including PASS, ACT and local track racers. The ride is open to everyone: teams, fans and all, so make your plans to ride with the best racers in the northeast!
The day will start with an optional 10:30AM drivers meeting at the Club House – which was formerly the People’s Choice (for those of you that attended in the past). Ride credentials can be purchased for $20 at the Club House starting at 9AM. You can ride with the 11AM group or ride with your own group at any time during the day. You can even purchase more than one ride credential, allowing better odds of holding the winning hand!
The $20 ride credential also gets you admission into the full night of entertainment at the Club House that evening. There will be dinner specials and drink specials exclusively for those with a ride credential. The proceeds from the ride will all go to several great charities including the Multiple Sclerosis Society, Maine Special Olympics, Travis Roy Foundation, Rangeley Snowmobile Club and Busch Sport Scene Scholarship.
What is a poker run anyway? Once you get a ride credential, you ride to five separate check points, getting your credential stamped at each checkpoint. At the end of the ride, you get one card dealt for each stamp on your card. The person with the best five card poker hand will be the winner! For example, if the five cards you drew were two jacks, two aces and a two of hearts, that would be your hand for the event. The winner will be awarded a full prize package that will include some great snowmobile gear, gift certificates and more. There will be prizes for second and third best hand as well.
The ride by snowmachine can be as quick as less than two hours or as long as you like if you take longer trail routes. Poker Run stops will be announced soon. Participants will meet back at the Club House at 6 PM. The cards will be dealt to see who has the best hand, which is announced at 7 PM.
“The event is held rain or shine, snow or not. Many of the participants at the event don’t even ride snowmachines,” event organizer and Busch Sport Scene Publisher George Campbell said. “If anyone is concerned about the weather, or does not ride snowmobiles, each check point is accessible by car as well as snowmachine, making it possible for those that do not ride snowmobiles to participate equally.”
Much of the fun takes place inside the Club House during the evening festivities, which are capped of by a comedy show featuring nationally known comedians Eddie Hurst and Freddie Stone.
There will be 100’s of raffle prizes and great auction items at the event. Some of the auction items will include great sports items including race tickets and signed memorabilia. Some of the items in past auctions include an NFL football signed by Teddy Bruschi as well as several Red Sox signed items Jason Varitek, Dustin Pedroia and Jonathan Papelbon. Signed NASCAR items have included Kevin Harvick, Joey Logano, Jeff Gordon and Martin Truex items.
Steve Perry, host of the popular Mainely Motorsports television show, will be at the annual event with his crew riding & taping for a future episode. Mainely Motorsports airs on Time Warner Cable channels weekly through out northern New England.
“This is the eleventh year I have been involved in this event,” Campbell said. “We should top $100,000 raised over those years. We have some great plans for this year’s event, including several specials guests and many terrific auction items. If you are a race fan or a sports fan, you do not want to miss this year’s event. Even if your not, it will be a great time for everyone and all the proceeds go directly to some great charities.”
Credentials for the event can be purchased for $10 in advance either at the Club House, the Rangeley Chamber or from Busch Sport Scene, after January 15th. The tickets will be $15 the day of the event. Busch Sport Scene is a New England based sports magazine. Current Busch Sport Scene subscribers will receive a $5 discount on the day of the event, as will NASCAR, PASS & ACT team members that present their licenses.
For room availability or directions, you can call the Rangeley Chamber of Commerce at 1-800-MT-LAKES. For more details, or to become a part of the event or make a donation, please email at [email protected] or call Busch Sport Scene at 1-207-224-2060. There will also be news on the www.neracing.com website.
by Jay | Dec 27, 2009 | ACT, New England
Waterbury, VT – The American Canadian Tour (ACT) Tiger Sportsman division will compete in a mini-series in 2010. The popular Limited Late Model division will have a new tire by Goodyear, an expansion division at the beautiful White Mountain Motorsport Park (WMMP), and a four event Tour at four different race venues.
The opening event will be held on Saturday, June 5 at the White Mountain Motorsport Park ¼ mile oval in Woodstock, New Hampshire. White Mountain was one of the original tracks that helped start the ACT Late Model division touring back in 1998. That series has been going back to WMMP ever since. “We have adopted the ACT Sportsman rules for 2010 at WMMP, and with the large number of these cars at Thunder Road, we are hoping to show our race teams and fans how much fun this division can be for weekly racing,” said Donnie Avery, owner of the family run granite state facility.
The home of the Tiger Sportsman since 1964, Thunder Road in Barre, VT will host the second event on Thursday, July 1. The Tiger Sportsman division generally has between 40-45 teams that compete on a weekly basis at Thunder Road. One of the highlights for the division each season has been the 100 lap events. Brendan Moodie, a veteran of the division, said, “I think it’s great that we have this Tiger ‘mini-series’ for our division. Going to different tracks is not only fun but it presents a great learning experience. We really have to do some homework to find set-ups, and now with three other tracks participating, it will be a level playing field for all the teams.”
On Saturday, August 21, the Tour will make a return visit to Canaan Speedway in Canaan, New Hampshire. Sportsman teams from New York and Vermont converged on the smooth 1/3 mile track a year ago. Canaan management asked ACT for a Tiger Series return engagement in 2010. Teams all felt Canaan was the ‘perfect Tiger track’. Several years ago, the ACT Tiger teams visited Canaan on four occasions and had four different winners.
The Tiger Sportsman Tour will close the season at the Riverside Speedway in Groveton, NH on Saturday, October 9. This has been a favorite for many of the ACT Tiger Sportsman teams over the past few years. The 2010 Championship and final point standings will be decided with the finale event of 2010 at the new Riverside Speedway.
The metric chassis 602 GM crate motor division boasts many graduates from its ranks that have become the stars of the American Canadian Tour over the years. Eric Williams, John Donahue, Cooper MacRitchie, and David Pembroke were all former champions of the division. The recent youth movement from both the NEKC carting organization and Thunder Road’s Allen Lumber Street Stocks has made the division one of the most competitive and healthiest in the region. Now many fans from throughout the region will get to see Thunder Road’s famous ‘Flying Tiger Sportsman’ in 2010.
2010 ACT Tiger Sportsman Tour
# Day Date Track Laps
1 Sat. June 5 White Mountain 100
2 Thurs. July 1 Thunder Road 100
3 Sat. Aug. 21 Canaan Speedway 100
4 Sat. Oct. 9 Riverside Speedway 100
by Jay | Dec 19, 2009 | Maine, New England, PASS
Center Harbor, NH (December 18, 2009): Former NASCAR Camping World Series East and American Canadian Tour Champion Brad Leighton announced today a partnership with Richard Moody Racing to race in the Pro All Star Series (PASS) Super Late Model Series for the 2010 season. Leighton will run his familiar #55 on RMR’s Ford Fusions. Sponsorship negotiations are still underway.
“I’m very excited to be announcing this deal,” said Leighton. “One of the most important reasons I decided to do this was because of the people – it’s a good team. I worked with (crew chief) Brian Burgess and some of the other team members a few years back when I ran some races with SP2 Motorsports, and he’s a real sharp guy. At that time, SP2 was at the top of their game, and I view this team, Moody Racing, at the same level. This is one of the best teams in the PASS series – no doubt about it.”
Richard Moody Racing has raised the bar on competition in the PASS Series. With driver Ben Rowe, the team earned the 2009 PASS South Championship and finished runner-up in the 2009 PASS North point standings. Their combined regional accomplishments earned them the PASS National title for the 2009 season. In addition, they won a championship in 2007 with Rowe behind the wheel.
Leighton has been equally successful in his driving career. He’s won championships in the American Canadian Tour (1995) and NASCAR Camping World Series East (1999 and 2000), won the New Hampshire Motor Speedway track championship four times (1998, 2000-02), and finished 11th in the American Canadian Tour point standings last season after competing in only eight races. He won at Thunder Road and Lee USA Speedway.
“At this point in my career I don’t view any opportunity as one of filling anybody’s shoes or a seat, or needing too live up to their success,” said Leighton about the new partnership. “Ben (Rowe) has been extremely successful with this team and obviously inherited the genes from his father. I have a lot of respect for both Mike Rowe and Ben. It’s a father and son that have enjoyed success that’s unparalleled in the Northeast and possibly at any short track level.”
Leighton will kick off his duties as RMR’s driver late next month when they head to New Smyrna Speedway in Florida for the Winter Fest 150, a PASS National race.
“Some of the guys in my race shop had worked with Brad in the past and told me that we should talk to him about driving our cars,” said car owner Richard Moody. “I met with him at his hotel in Auburn (Maine) and we got along really well. We want to have fun racing and I think we’ll be extremely competitive. We’re going to put some good cars underneath him and Brad’s record speaks for itself.”
Leighton’s schedule will include venues on both the North and South divisions of the Pro All Star Series. Full details of his schedule, which will include stops on the American Canadian Tour, are pending and will be announced at a later date.
by Jay | Dec 5, 2009 | NASCAR, NASCAR K&N Pro Series
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Following a season that saw him reach Victory Lane and finish fifth in the final standings, NASCAR Camping World Series East driver Steve Park is headed to the NASCAR Toyota All-Star Showdown, Jan. 29-30, in Toyota Speedway at Irwindale (Calif.).
Park, who returned to the Camping World Series East full-time in 2008 after competing for a decade in NASCAR’s national series, recorded seven top 10s in 11 outings in this past season to register his first top-five points effort. Park raced his way to Victory Lane in 2009 with his triumph at Adirondack International Speedway on Aug. 1 in Lowville, N.Y., which secured him a starting position in the NASCAR Toyota All-Star Showdown.
“It was great to get that win, get those seconds, finish fifth in the points and be competitive week-in and week-out,” Park said. “We really thought coming out of the box last year that we would be closer to where we were this year, and we weren’t, so we stepped up the program a little bit.”
The seventh running of the NASCAR Toyota All-Star Showdown, which brings together the top racers from across North America for the ”Daytona 500 of short-track racing,” will be highlighted by the 225-lap Camping World Series all-star race. Each race winner during the 2009 Camping World Series East and Camping World Series West seasons is eligible for a protected starting spot, as are the 2009 champions from each of NASCAR’s six regional touring series and the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series national champion.
Park joins NASCAR Camping World Series champions Ryan Truex (East) and Jason Bowles (West), as well as two-time Showdown winner Matt Kobyluck, and NASCAR Camping World Series West driver Greg Pursley as early confirmed participants in the all-star race.
Park, originally from East Northport, N.Y., made his first appearance in Toyota Speedway at Irwindale in this past January’s Showdown, and came away impressed.
“I thought the track was awesome,” Park said. “It’s a great facility, and the race track itself is real racy. I think that’s why you hear a lot of guys talk about how great it is to race out there.”
Despite being relegated to a 23rd place finish in his inaugural event there, Park eagerly anticipates a return to Irwindale to compete against the elite competition.
“It’s a melting pot that brings the best of the East and the best of the West together, and shows the fans on SPEED just how competitive NASCAR racing is nationwide,” Park said.
In addition to eligible 2009 race winners and series champions, the starting lineup will be determined through time trials, limited provisionals for Camping World Series regulars, and the last-chance “Open” race that provides drivers one final chance to make the grid.
The 2010 NASCAR Toyota All-Star Showdown schedule also includes 100-lap Whelen All-American Series Super Late Model and 75-lap Late Model races. Both nights of racing will air live on SPEED.
