by Jay | Sep 15, 2013 | Devils Bowl, Modified, Vermont
Williams, Bryant Open Vermont 200 Weekend in Victory Lane
Germain, McCarron also score in Shootouts; main events Sunday at 1:30pm
WEST HAVEN, VT – Modified stock car driver Joe Williams and Late Model racer Robert Bryant, Jr., highlighted an exciting opening day at the Vermont 200 Championship Weekend at Devil’s Bowl Speedway on Saturday, September 14. Williams and Bryant scored victories in 10-lap “Shootout” races for weekly competitors who had not yet won a NASCAR Whelen All-American Series main event in 2013.
Scotia, NY driver Williams nearly didn’t complete the opening lap in the Bond Auto Parts Modified Shootout. Williams bounced through an opening-lap scrape involving Jamie LaFountain and Vince Quenneville, Jr., but escaped and sped to the win ahead of Ron Proctor and Cody Sargen. Bryant, of Brooklyn, CT, dominated the Late Model Shootout with rookies Seth Bridge and Tom Eriksen in tow.
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by Jay | Sep 15, 2013 | Connecticut, Modified, Stafford, Touring Series News, VALENTI MODIFIED SERIES
Stafford Springs CT — Ryan Preece, of Berlin, CT, started outside front row, jumped into the lead, and was never headed as he won the 4th annual Lincoln Tech 80, Friday night, at Stafford Motor Speedway, Stafford, CT.
Preece becomes the 10th different winner this season in 14 races and the third first-time series winner in 2013.
Preece received pressure early on from Ted Christopher, of Plainville CT. Christopher dropped out with mechanical problems during the only caution period on lap 34. From that point on it was all Preece to the checkered flag.
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by Jay | Sep 15, 2013 | Devils Bowl, New England, Vermont
Devil’s Bowl Speedway, NASCAR Green to Donate Trees to Irene Victims
Ceremony to take place during Vermont 200 on Sunday
WEST HAVEN, VT – Devil’s Bowl Speedway will reach out to Vermonters affected by Tropical Storm Irene in a ceremony on Sunday, September 15. Prior to the start of the season’s final championship stock car racing events on Vermont 200 Weekend, Devil’s Bowl Speedway – through the NASCAR Green “Clean Air Project” – will celebrate the donation of 90 trees to long-term recovery committees and other beneficiaries across Vermont, where they will be used to repair some of the damage still remaining from the August 2011 storm.
Devil’s Bowl Speedway was one of five NASCAR-sanctioned speedways selected to participate in the NASCAR Green Clean Air Project in 2013 – a program striving to improve environmental sustainability through recycling, tree planting, and alternative energy programs. The Clean Air Project, which also involves the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, captures 100% of the emissions created by race vehicles through tree planting.
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by Jay | Sep 14, 2013 | ACT, New Hampshire, NHMS, Touring Series News
The 43-car field for the 5th Annual Bond Auto ACT Invitational at New Hampshire Motor Speedway has been announced. The biggest names in American Canadian Tour Late Models will be on hand for the event on Saturday, September 21.
The field will be led by twelve drivers who have won an Invitational qualifier event. A strong contingent from New Hampshire includes Wayne Helliwell, Jr. and Joey Polewarczyk, Jr. Vermont drivers Brian Hoar, Jimmy Hebert, Bobby Therrien and Cody Blake claimed qualifier wins. From north of the border, Quebecer’s Jean-François Déry, Alex Labbe, Donald Theetge, Dany Trepanier have all won qualifying events. Travis Stearns of Maine and Eddie MacDonald of Massachusetts complete the 12 Invitational Qualifier winners.
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by Jay | Sep 14, 2013 | Canaan, Granite State Pro Stock, New Hampshire, Touring Series News
Canaan 100 This Saturday Night!
Canaan NH – It is with mixed emotions that the Granite State Pro Stock Series rolls into the Canaan Fair Speedway this Saturday night. When the Checkered Flag falls on the 100 lap main event it will be the final one that will wave at this speedway, As the Speedway has been sold and no racing is planed in the future. “There is a lot of buzz for this event from all the divisions that are competing” stated series president Mike Parks. The GSPSS will compete in a 100 Lap main event, According to series Race director Josh Vanada we are looking at what could be our largest field to date. (more…)
by Jay | Sep 14, 2013 | Devils Bowl, Modified, Vermont
Twin 50s up next for Northern Modified Challenge Series at Devil’s Bowl
Top three drivers only 10 points apart
WEST HAVEN, VT – The Northern Modified Challenge Series will be busy during the Vermont 200 Weekend at Devil’s Bowl Speedway on September 14-15. The first-year championship tour for open-wheel Modified stock cars is expected to draw its largest field yet as drivers race in twin 50-lap features.
Only 10 championship points separate the top three title contenders entering the two-day event at the series’ home track at Devil’s Bowl. Eighteen year-old Jessey Mueller of Olmstedville, NY holds the lead through the first three races of the season, with a victory in the opener at Thunder Road Int’l Speedbowl in May, a runner-up finish in the Carrara Masonry C.J. Richards Memorial at Devil’s Bowl in August, and a sixth-place showing at Canaan Fair Speedway in August.
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by | Sep 13, 2013 | Beech Ridge, Maine, PASS
PASS North Series: Bradley Babb
Beech Ridge Motor Speedway Race Preview
THE STORY
Bradley Babb of Windham, Maine, returns to the PASS North Series with an eye on one of the marquee events of the season, the Southern Maine Chrysler Dodge Jeep 300 at Beech Ridge Motor Speedway in Scarborough, Maine, on Sunday, September 15. Babb, the 2012 NASCAR Whelen All-American Series track champion at the track, enjoyed one of his best career PASS performances in this race in 2011 when he was running third in the late going before getting collected in a wreck. The son of a five-time Beech Ridge Motor Speedway champion is hoping to grab his first career series victory in the longest race of the season.
THE FACTS
WHO: Bradley Babb, Windham, Maine
TEAM: No. 14 Babb Wood Contractors/McGoldrick Bros. Blasting Chevrolet
CREW CHIEF: Bobby Babb, Windham, Maine
BEST CAREER BEECH RIDGE MOTOR SPEEDWAY FINISH: 11th (May 2012)
LAST RACE AT BEECH RIDGE MOTOR SPEEDWAY: 24th (July 2013)
WHAT: PASS North Series Southern Maine Chrysler Dodge Jeep 300
WHERE: Beech Ridge Motor Speedway, Scarborough, Maine (.333-mile banked oval)
WHEN: Friday, September 13 – 11 a.m., practice; Saturday, September 14 – 10:20, practice; 12:15 p.m., qualifying; Sunday September 15 – 11:10 a.m., practice; 3 p.m., race.
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by | Sep 13, 2013 | PASS
PASS Sportsman Series: Dan McKeage
Beech Ridge Motor Speedway Race Preview
THE STORY
GORHAM, Maine – Dan McKeage of Gorham, Maine, returns to the PASS Sportsman Series for the PASS Sportsman 100 as part of the PASS 400 weekend at Beech Ridge Motor Speedway in Scarborough, Maine, on Sunday, September 15. McKeage won the last PASS Sportsman Series race at Beech Ridge back in May, and he heads into the second-to-last race of the season just 33 points behind the series leader, Carey Martin. He’s hoping a home-track advantage – McKeage is a past track champion at Beech Ridge and finished second in the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series standings there this season – will help him close the gap on Martin heading into the season finale in two weeks.
THE FACTS
WHO: Dan McKeage, Gorham, Maine
CREW CHIEF: Dan Bubar, Windham, Maine
TEAM: Naughty 40 Racing No. 40 Top Gun Construction Chevrolet
BEST CAREER BEECH RIDGE MOTOR SPEEDWAY FINISH: 1st (May 2013)
LAST RACE AT BEECH RIDGE MOTOR SPEEDWAY: 1st (May 2013)
WHAT: PASS Sportsman Series 100
WHERE: Beech Ridge Motor Speedway, Scarborough, Maine (.333-mile oval)
WHEN: Sunday, September 15, 12:15 p.m.
PASS Sportsman Series
LAST RACE: August 4, PASS Sportsman Series 75, White Mountain Motorsports Park, N. Woodstock, N.H. (4th)
NEXT RACE: September 28, Oxford Plains Speedway, Oxford, Maine (.375-mile oval)
CURRENT POINTS POSITION: 2nd
DID YOU KNOW?
Dan McKeage won the 2010 PASS Sportsman Series championship.
Dan McKeage finished second in the 2013 NASCAR Whelen All-American Series standings at Beech Ridge Motor Speedway this season.
Dan McKeage won the only previous PASS Sportsman Series race this season at Beech Ridge Motor Speedway.
Dan McKeage won the 2010 NASCAR Whelen All-American Series track championship at Beech Ridge Motor Speedway in Scarborough, Maine.
WHAT THEY ARE SAYING
DAN McKEAGE, Driver of the Naughty 40 Racing No. 40 Top Gun Construction Chevrolet, On whether there’s a home track advantage for him this weekend at Beech Ridge Motor Speedway: “I think when it comes to Carey (Martin) going to Oxford, he’s got a home-track advantage there – so I’d like to think I’ve got a little bit of a home track advantage when we go to Beech Ridge.
“When it comes to the cars, I think the Super Late Model and the Sportsman cars are right along the same lines. You’re still trying to get four tires to the track, and one tire to the next, they’re all going to change. Whatever we would do in the Super Late Model, we would do in a Sportsman in terms of getting it to work on the race track. Hopefully, we’ll have a good car this weekend – if we want to have an advantage. I mean, I think it wouldn’t be such an advantage to Carey to go to Oxford if he didn’t have a good car there. He has a good car everywhere it seems, but he’s good there, for sure.”
On why this is a big race for the Naughty 40 Racing team: “I definitely is. As far as things go, if you finish in the Top-2, it just pays for your tires most weeks. This is a race where you can actually come out ahead, which is rare in racing. If you win this race, you’ll more than break even.
“But it’s more than that. It’s more special to us here. It’s our hometown crowd, this is our favorite place to race, and we definitely want to put on a good show.”
On getting away from the stress of weekly points racing at Beech Ridge this weekend: “I guess you could say that, but I didn’t really put too much pressure on myself doing the weekly thing. It was more stress-free this year than it had been in the past. The nice thing about it this weekend is that we don’t have to leave Beech Ridge on Saturday night after racing and then get geared up for the next morning and driving to a track three hours away.
“We’ve had a couple of weeks to get ready and get prepared and get gung-ho for this weekend.”
UP NEXT
The PASS Sportsman Series concludes its season on September 28 at Oxford Plains Speedway in Oxford, Maine… Dan McKeage finished eighth in a rain-shortened event at Oxford in July.
by | Sep 13, 2013 | Devils Bowl, Vermont
New champion to be crowned at Vermont 200 Weekend
WEST HAVEN, VT – Vermont will see a new stock car racing champion crowned at Devil’s Bowl Speedway on Sunday, September 15, as the title fight between racers Nick Sweet and Chip Grenier is decided during the Vermont 200 Championship Weekend.
Despite limited experience at the fast half-mile oval, each driver has been impressive at Devil’s Bowl. Sweet, a two-time champion at Thunder Road Int’l Speedbowl in his hometown of Barre, VT, posted his first Devil’s Bowl victory in the People’s United Bank 100 in June, the second event of the four-round Vermont State Late Model Championship Series. Derrick O’Donnell and Cody Blake earned wins in the two races held at Thunder Road earlier in the season.
Grenier, of Graniteville, VT, has finished second in his last two starts at Devil’s Bowl – including a photo finish at the 2012 edition of the Vermont 200 Weekend. Should Grenier complete the come-from-behind drive, the championship would be the first of the notoriously underfunded driver’s career; he scored a runner-up finish behind Sweet in June with the words “Wanted: Sponsor” appearing on his car.
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by | Sep 13, 2013 | Devils Bowl, Vermont
Vermont State Championship: Emily Packard
Devil’s Bowl Speedway Race Preview
THE STORY
EAST MONTPELIER, Vt. – Emily Packard of East Montpelier, Vt., heads to one of her favorite stops in the northeast when she competes in the Vermont State Championship Series 100 at Devil’s Bowl Speedway in West Haven, Vt., on Sunday, September 15. Packard is currently fourth in the series standings through the first three races of 2013, and she’s looking to build on some of her career-best performances at the half-mile. She finished seventh there most recently, and Packard sits within striking distance of a Top-3 finish in the final series standings following the season finale on Sunday.
THE FACTS
WHO: Emily Packard, East Montpelier, Vt.
CREW CHIEF: Neal Woodward, Georgia, Vt.
TEAM: No. 9x Northstar Fireworks/Berlin Optical Expressions Ford
SPONSORS: Northstar Fireworks, Fecteau Homes, Berlin Optical Expressions, Yipes! of Barre, VT Shifter Karts, GossCars.com, Be The Match, Rutland Regional Medical Center, R.G. Paving
BEST CAREER DEVIL’S BOWL SPEEDWAY FINISH: 7th (June 2013)
LAST RACE AT DEVIL’S BOWL SPEEDWAY: 7th (June 2013)
WHAT: Vermont State Championship Series 100
WHERE: Devil’s Bowl Speedway, West Haven, Vt. (.500-mile oval)
WHEN: Saturday, September 14 – 12:20 p.m., practice; Sunday, September 15 – 10:15 a.m., practice; 1:30 p.m., qualifying; 3:30 p.m., race
DID YOU KNOW?
Emily Packard became the first woman to win a NASCAR-sanctioned Late Model event at Canaan Fair Speedway in Canaan, N.H., when she won the Twin 25s event at the track on June 1 of this season.
Emily Packard will be one of 43 Late Model drivers in the region to participate in the fifth annual Bond Auto ACT Invitational at New Hampshire Motor Speedway on Saturday, September 21 – her second consecutive appearance in the event.
Emily Packard became the first woman in a decade to win a feature event at Thunder Road International Speedbowl when she won a Street Stock feature at the track last summer.
Emily Packard was voted the 2012 Vermont Motorsports Magazine Rookie of the Year, and she was also named the Vermont Sportswriters & Sportscasters Association Athlete of the Month for August 2012.
Emily Packard Motorsports crew chief Neal Woodward is a five-time ACT Late Model Tour champion crew chief whose cars set track qualifying records at New Hampshire Motor Speedway and Beech Ridge Motor Speedway.
WHAT THEY ARE SAYING
EMILY PACKARD, Driver of the No. 9x Northstar Fireworks/Berlin Optical Expressions Ford, On why she likes Devil’s Bowl Speedway so much: “Everybody knows that Devil’s Bowl is one of my favorite tracks, along with Loudon. Going into both of them back-to-back is just a great feeling. We’ve had some really good runs there at Devil’s Bowl and been super-strong, so I’m super-excited to go back there.
“I think it’s just that as a driver I feel comfortable there. I seem to adapt to whatever the car is going to be (handling-wise), but every time we go it seems we have a car that is just about the same. I feel like I have a perfect car there, and that’s a great feeling for any driver in any race.”
On whether she approaches this final Vermont State Championship Series race of 2013 any differently: “No, I don’t think so. But this time, I’m going in and really want to have a good race there. The last time I was up at Devil’s Bowl I got taken out – it was like a replay all over again of the time we were there in June, just with a different person involved. I want to avoid that kind of stuff and have a good run and finish in the Top-5.
“We haven’t had one of the races in a long time, but we’ll take a look at the points going into the weekend. I want to get a good finish and do well in the series overall. It was the plan all year to run this.”
On how her recent test at New Hampshire Motor Speedway went: “Actually, we found out that the rear end was moving on me, and that’s what was happening – that’s why we were having the tight sensation all day. We figured some things out once we got back to the shop, and hopefully we’ll be better when we go back. I liked it, and I had a lot of fun with the test. Last year, I made a rookie mistake and I wanted to redeem myself this year.”
