{"id":15391,"date":"2014-03-13T10:25:34","date_gmt":"2014-03-13T14:25:34","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/newenglandracingnews.com\/blog\/?p=15391"},"modified":"2014-03-13T11:11:05","modified_gmt":"2014-03-13T15:11:05","slug":"new-england-motorsports-north-03-13-2014","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newenglandracingnews.com\/blog\/2014\/03\/new-england-motorsports-north-03-13-2014\/","title":{"rendered":"NEW ENGLAND MOTORSPORTS NORTH 03-13-2014"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Lou Modestino<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

With the 2014 season lurking, the GSPSS is heading into its third season with some experienced staff members on board, as well as a couple of new faces joining the team.<\/p>\n

President Mike Parks is rejoined by core staff Josh Vanada and Jenn Ready. Vanada, the Managing Event Director of the GSPSS, is confident of the staff around him. Vanada states \u201cWe are glad to welcome back our talented group of officials, as well as welcome a few new ones. Our staff is the lifeblood of our race day operation, and we are fortunate enough to have a talented and accommodating team.\u201d Ready, the Director of Operations and Race Day Coordinator, is quick to applaud the GSPSS staff as well. \u201cI am personally looking forward to 2014 as we will, quite possibly, have the best touring staff in the Northeast,\u201d declares Ready. The team also welcomes back Handicapper Carrie Kelly, Starter Bryon Callen, and Spotter Official Rich Keator.<\/p>\n

Scott Miller and Pete Frappier will be teaming up to oversee the technical staff in the series\u2019 third season. The duo are long time officials in the racing business, and Parks assures they possess the knowledge and drive to keep things running smoothly. Frappier and Miller will be joined by Randy Stefanik, Mike Green, Ken Fowler, and Ray King on the tech pad.
\n
\nCynthia Tebbetts will be joining the team in 2014 as the Assistant Event Director. Tebbetts is a former race director of Lee Speedway and the Northeastern Midget Association (NEMA), as well as working for the International Supermodified Association (ISMA) tour. \u201cI was quite content sitting in the local short track grandstands, until I had a few inquisitive discussions from the Granite State Pro Stock Series,\u201d Tebbetts explains. \u201cInitially, I politely declined, but upon investigating the 2014 GSPSS schedule, the tracks where the tour is racing and the people I would be working with, I knew it was a win\/win situation for all parties involved to say \u2018yes\u2019 to helping on a part-time basis.\u201d Tebbetts is looking forward to the upcoming season and contributing to the growth of the tour throughout the region.<\/p>\n

Another acquisition in the off-season for the GSPSS was the hiring of Announcer\/Media Relations person Shawn Sicard. Sicard joins the team after working at Riverside Speedway in Groveton, NH, and is thrilled about the opportunity to join the young series. \u201cThe series is bursting with talent on the track and behind the scenes,\u201d exclaims Sicard. \u201cI am eager to be a part of the product this series has to offer.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Granite State Pro Stock Series will kick-off its third season with the Icebreaker presented by Town Fair Tire at Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park on\u00a0April 5-6. A full schedule of the weekend\u2019s events can be found at\u00a0www.thompsonspeedway.com<\/a>. For more information about the GSPSS, contact Mike Parks at\u00a0mparks@gspss.net<\/a>, check us out on facebook, or follow us on twitter @gsprostocks.<\/p>\n

This\u00a0Saturday, March 15\u00a0there’s a Third Annual Winter Movie and Slide Show in Beverly, MA at the Victtori-Rocci Post 56 Italian-American War Veterans in the lower hall and is handicap accessable at 143 Brimble Ave in that town. The presentation includes drag action from the 1960’s by Ed Pearson of the Orientals, Baron Hazen of the Strokers and Memorbilia by Kurt Hussey of the Lone Wolf club.<\/p>\n

There will be a raffle by Donnie Cavanaugh of the Strokers. Memorablia, photo albums, club jackets, plaques and DVD slides will be there. You can bring what you have to share. Please bring snack foods and a cash bar will be available. Take Route 128 to Exit 19 onto Brimble St. The Victtori-Rocci Post is across the street. The parking lot entrance is at the lower level.<\/p>\n

With the 2014 season opener fast approaching, the Valenti Modified Racing Series welcomes new marketing partners, long-time racing supporters Vinny Beedle and Mr. Rooter Plumbing of South Central, Connecticut, and Shawn Waddell of Waddell Communications.<\/p>\n

Beedle owns and operates Mr. Rooter Plumbing, a 24-hour service headquartered in New Haven and committed to providing high<\/p>\n

quality plumbing services for the New Haven area and beyond.<\/p>\n

Three drivers have committed to the 2014 schedule and will vie for the \u2018Mr. Rooter Rookie Of The Year\u2019 award. .<\/p>\n

Mike Willis, of Grantham, New Hampshire, intends to compete full-time. Willis tested the VMRS waters in 2013, competing in four races with three top-ten finishes for his efforts. Willis was the 2013 Canaan Fair Speedway Modified \\Champion, is a 3-time Crate Modified Champion at Canaan and Twin State Speedways, and a 500cc Mini Sprint Champion.<\/p>\n

Rob Richardi, Jr. of Easton, Massachusetts, will compete for the Mr. Rooter title. Richardi was the 2012 New England Pro 4 Modified Champion and last year won five of the ten races he entered. Richardi made one start last season at Thompson, Connecticut.<\/p>\n

2013 NEMA Lites champion Carl Medeiros, Jr. of Westport, Massachusetts, intends to compete full-time with the VMRS. Medeiros has a long resume in kart racing with multi wins and titles, and joins fellow NEMA Lites competitor Anthony Nocella\u00a0on the New England series.<\/p>\n

The new Waddell Communications \u2018Lap Leader Challenge\u2019 award recipient will receive $1,000 at seasons end if they tally the most laps led for the year. Waddell, headquartered in Plainville, Connecticut, provides superior radio communication service and diagnostics for the regions top touring series and race facilities.<\/p>\n

Long-time marketing partner John Holland will present \u2018New England Sunoco Race Fuels Top Qualifier Awards\u2019 to qualifying heat and consi winners, Art Barry and SPAFCO Engineering will again support the \u2018Most Improved Driver Award\u2019 and Sherwood Racing Wheels of Owego, New York, will again support the series contingency program.<\/p>\n

The 2014 VMRS season opens at Waterford Speedbowl, Waterford, CT,\u00a0March 28,29,30, with the running of the \u2018Blastoff 100\u2019<\/p>\n

Lee USA Speedway owners and promoters Red and Judy MacDonald proudly announced this week that a new supporter will be coming on board for the 2014 season, with EKeys4Cars taking the lead sponsorship role for the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series Small Block Supermodifieds.<\/p>\n

EKeys4Cars, headquartered in North Andover, MA, is the industry leader in providing replacement keys for all makes and models of cars, and their longtime involvement in the sport at the local level has led to the recent announcement of their sponsorship of the headline NASCAR WAAS division at \u201cNew Hampshire\u2019s Center of Speed\u201d<\/p>\n

Principal Ted Broadhurst of EKeys4Cars has a strong history of supporting local racing, most notably having his company name on board as a sponsor of former Lee USA Speedway and current two-time American Canadian Tour (ACT) Late Model champion driver Wayne Helliwell, Jr. and the Bruce Bernhardt Ford over the past several seasons, but his roots run even deeper at Lee USA.<\/p>\n

Broadhurst\u2019s Ekeys4Cars has been the title sponsor for the popular Northeast Classic Lites series, featuring 5\/8ths scale racers reminiscent of the \u201cgood old days\u201d, when 1930\u2019s and \u201840\u2019s coupes and sedans were the order of business on the local ovals.\u00a0 The NECL racers have become a popular addition to the Lee USA family over the past few seasons.<\/p>\n

In one form or another, Broadhurst and his team have been supporting the racing action at Lee USA for over 25 years, dating back to the late 1980\u2019s, when his duties included publishing a weekly program covering the action at the fast 3\/8ths mile oval shortly after it\u2019s inception earlier in the decade.<\/p>\n

Lee\u2019s 2014 Small Block Supermodified roster includes several of the nation\u2019s top drivers in the open-wheel ranks, with feature-winning wheelmen such as three-time track champion Tommy Tombarello, Jr., Mike Netishen, \u201cSuper Dave\u201d Sanborn, and Sparky MacIver just a few of those considered favorites for the championship.<\/p>\n

No stranger to post-season banquet head tables, former Lee USA and NASCAR regional champion Ricky Wolf, Jr. is another pilot looking for 2014 glory, as are previous Small Block Super feature-winners Moe Lattime, Leslie Keyser, Jake Stergios, and Mike Spurling.<\/p>\n

Former Hobby Stocker Kyle Sawyer is just one of several newcomers to the division who are planning to put in their bids for the 2014 NASCAR Whelen All-American Series championship, where the Rookie of the Year battle is usually as exciting as the championship chase.<\/p>\n

Speedway owners and promoters Red and Judy MacDonald, along with track manager Bill Callen extend a warm welcome to the newest title sponsor at the track, and look forward to even more excitement in 2014, when the EKeys4Cars Small Block Super-Modifieds take center stage at \u201cNew Hampshire\u2018s Center of Speed\u201c.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Lou Modestino With the 2014 season lurking, the GSPSS is heading into its third season with some experienced staff members on board, as well as a couple of new faces joining the team. President Mike Parks is rejoined by core staff Josh Vanada and Jenn Ready. Vanada, the Managing Event Director of the GSPSS, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[15172],"tags":[15179],"class_list":["post-15391","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-new-england-motorsports-north","tag-new-england-motorsports-north-2"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/newenglandracingnews.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15391","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/newenglandracingnews.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/newenglandracingnews.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newenglandracingnews.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newenglandracingnews.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=15391"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/newenglandracingnews.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15391\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/newenglandracingnews.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=15391"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newenglandracingnews.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=15391"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newenglandracingnews.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=15391"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}