NEW ENGLAND MOTORSPORTS NORTH
By Lou Modestino

Former stock car racing champion Ryan Keith of Pittsford, VT will make his return to Devil’s Bowl Speedway in 2012 with one goal in mind: Another championship. Keith has purchased a car for weekly NASCAR Whelen All-American Series competition in the Renegade class at the West Haven, VT half-mile.

Keith had a major impact in his previous tenure at Devil’s Bowl, winning the 1994 championship in the former GT four-cylinder division. Keith won the Albany-Saratoga (NY) Speedway title that same year, scoring an incredible 17 total feature victories. A three-year stint in the top-level Pro Stock division at Monadnock (NH) Speedway saw Keith emerge as a title contender and take multiple wins while racing against short track standouts including Kirk Alexander and Pete Fiandaca.

After more than a decade off to focus on his successful business at Winning Image Graphix, Keith returns to his Devil’s Bowl Speedway roots behind the wheel of a 1988 Chevrolet Monte Carlo in the Renegade class; the car was previously driven to victories at Airborne Speedway and Thunder Road International Speedbowl by Lance Rabtoy. Keith will carry his familiar number 31 with sponsorship from Interstate Batteries, Total Home Improvement, The Stove Shop, Celebration Rentals, and other local businesses.

The Devil’s Bowl Speedway Renegade class has enjoyed some expansion with the addition of Bill Burlingame of Gansevoort, NY, two-division racer Randy Miller of Ballston Spa, NY, and rookies Greg Racine of Essex Junction, VT, Robin Cummings of Milton, VT, and Bob Monroe of Granville, NY. Monroe’s brother, Frank, will try for his second Renegade championship in three years, and top drivers Jeremy Jones of Leicester, VT and Matt Livingston of Ballston Spa, NY will each try for their first career wins.

The Renegade division will be in action as Devil’s Bowl Speedway opens its 46th season of stock car racing at the annual Spring Green 112 on Sunday, May 6. Also on track will be the Bond Auto Parts Modified and Bomber divisions, and the American-Canadian Tour Late Models. General admission is $18 for adults, $15 for seniors (62+), and free for children 12 and under; discount season passes are available.

Legendary NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour car owner Mario Fiore has been named the grand marshal for David’s House 106 presented by Fenton Family Dealerships Granite State Pro Stock Series event at Monadnock Speedway on Saturday, May 26. David’s House 106 event will benefit Ricky’s Race for Kids, a charity that assists David’s House, a home-away-from-home that offers support for families with children receiving treatment through Children’s Hospital at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center, in Hanover, NH.

Ricky’s Race for Kids was created in the memory of the champion stock car racer Ricky Miller, who passed away in 2004. Miller was a one-time crew member and driver for Fiore. “I have to say that I was totally humbled when Don Miller asked if I would do the honors of Grand Marshall for the David’s House 106 event at Monadnock Speedway,” Fiore said. “One purpose of the race is to keep Ricky Miller’s memory alive, and I can say with Rick’s passing I lost one of the best friends that I ever had. [There was] never a dull moment when Ricky was around, and there were great times and great memories. I’m looking forward to the David’s House 106.”

“We felt it was the perfect fit,” said Don Miller, father of Ricky and a former modified standout himself, nicknamed “The Golden Jet.”

The David’s House 106 will be an afternoon long event with an on-the-track pit party, live bands, The Pit Girls, door prizes, and much more. In addition, one fan will have the chance to win $5,000.

The David’s House 106 presented by Fenton Family Dealerships will take place on May, 26 at Monadnock Speedway in Winchester, NH. Practice begins at 4:00pm with a scheduled start time of 6:00pm. For more information, visit the Granite State Pro Stock Series website at www.gspss.net.

The first entry for the recently announced Vermont State Late Model Championship series has been received from Phil Scott, the Lt. Governor of Vermont from Berlin. The all-time win list leader at Barre’s Thunder Road and multi-time Champion is an early favorite to win the Vermont State Championship Series.

Scott is thrilled with the opportunity to compete in the series.

“I think this is a great thing for Vermont. I believe this is the first time since Catamount that our state has had two paved tracks, and it’s terrific to have a racing series ‘in house’” Scott said. “It’s very exciting. I know talking with people throughout the state many people are exciting about it, also I think it will be a lot of fun for both the fans and drivers. It would be an honor to be the first Late Model Champion of Vermont.” Scott finished.

Being the first Late Model Champion of Vermont isn’t the only incentive for the four race series. Over $53,000 in winnings will be posted between the two tracks, raising the stakes that much higher for local Late Model teams.

Eight-time ACT Champion and the winner of last year’s ACT Spring Green 111 race at Devil’s Bowl Speedway, Brian Hoar of Williston, VT, has also said he will enter some of the events in the series. Scott and Hoar will face stellar competition from other Vermonters including former Thunder Road Champion Nick Sweet of Barre, Scott Payea of Milton, and Devil’s Bowl Speedway regular Craig Bushey of Fairfax.

The series will kick off Sunday, May 27 at “The Nation’s Site of Excitement” Thunder Road in Barre, VT for the Mekkelsen RV Memorial Day Classic. It will then roll into Devil’s Bowl Speedway in West Haven, VT for the Devil’s Bowl Vermont 100 on Friday, June 8th.

Most teenagers are just beginning to learn how to drive on the street. Not Hunter Bates – he’s racing toward a NASCAR national championship. In between classes at Middlebury (VT) Union High School, where he is an Honor Roll student, Bates will make his first attempt at the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series national title. His season begins on Sunday at Devil’s Bowl Speedway in West Haven, VT with the 101.5 “The Fox” Spring Green.

“We’re going for it,” Bates said with a grin. “Hopefully we can get some wins together and make a run at the national championship. I think it’s going to be fun.”

Bates, who turns 17 on July 3, will campaign two very different race cars at tracks in two states as he chases down NASCAR national short track stars Keith Rocco of Wallingford, CT and defending Whelen All-American Series champion Philip Morris of Ruckersville, VA. Bates will race an open-wheel car in the Bond Auto Parts Modified class at Devil’s Bowl Speedway and a full-fender Late Model at Canaan Fair Speedway in New Hampshire.

The NASCAR Whelen All-American Series national championship is based on each driver’s best 18 results in “Division I” competition – Devil’s Bowl’s Modified class awards NASCAR “Division I” points, while Canaan’s top class is the Late Models. Even at his young age, Bates has already seen success in both cars. He was the Sportsman Modified champion on the former Champlain Valley Racing Association circuit at age 15 and won the Devil’s Bowl Late Model title last year in his first season in the division.

Bates was more comfortable in his Late Model during pre-season testing than he was in 2011. “I feel a lot better about the Late Model because I’ve got that experience under my belt from last year,” he said. His Modified – the car he started his stock car career in – was very quick. “I like [Devil’s Bowl] a lot, and I think we’ve got a pretty good car. I’d like to think we can pick up a couple wins this year and maybe have a shot at least a track championship.”

Bates will start his year off by pulling double-duty at Devil’s Bowl Speedway on Sunday at the 101.5 “The Fox” Spring Green, racing the 35-lap NASCAR Whelen All-American Series Modified feature and his Late Model in a 112-lap American-Canadian Tour (non-NASCAR) event.

General admission for the 101.5 “The Fox” Spring Green on Sunday, May 6 is $18 for adults, $15 for seniors (62+), and free for children 12 and under; discount season passes are available. Racing begins at 1:30pm.

Victory lane at the Merchants Bank 150 at Thunder Road on Sunday, April 29 was all Brian Hoar, but for weekly contenders there was more to the race than just victory lane. For weekly racers at “The Nation’s Site of Excitement” this was not a point-counting race, but a proving ground to set the stage for a summer-long battle to become the next “King of the Road.”

The usual suspects were in good form. John Donahue of Graniteville made a late race charge for fourth, former champs Nick Sweet of Barre and David Pembroke of Middlesex led sections of the race, multi-time Champion Phil Scott of Berlin was on his way to the front before an altercation with the front stretch wall. In 2012, however, these four names won’t be the only ones on the list of drivers to watch out for in the race for the 2012 Late Model Title.

Former Oxford 250 winner Jamie Aube of North Ferrisburg has come leaps and bounds from his return to Thunder Road in 2011. Aube posted a +6 in his qualifying heat, storming from eleventh to fifth, only one spot outside of qualifying. Had he placed fourth in his heat, he would have earned the pole for the Merchants Bank 150. In his consolation round, he finished second. Had he finished one spot better, he would have started second in the main event.

Aube showed he could compete with the top teams working the outside and making quality passes at arguably “The Toughest Short Track In America”. Aube will be at Thunder Road weekly to compete for the championship, and he has placed himself in the conversation after his strong showing in the Merchants Bank 150.

Brooks Clark of Fayston was another weekly Thunder Road contender who flexed muscle in the ACT opener. Clark started sixth in his qualifying heat, and wheeled his way to third, getting into the main event with a +3. Clark then ran with the top ACT teams all day in the top ten, finishing eighth overall. In a race where over 35% of the cars that showed up didn’t make the show, finishing inside the top ten was no small feat.

But for Clark, it is another step in a progressing career. Clark pulled off his first win at the Road in 2011, and has been steadily improving throughout his time in the Late Model division. With a win under his belt, and a message sent in the ACT opening Merchants Bank 150, he will set his sights on the title in 2012.

The chase for the next “King of the Road” begins with The Mekkelsen RV Memorial Day Classic at Thunder Road on Sunday May 27. It is also the first event of the newly created Vermont State Late Model Championship, a four race series with both Thunder Road and Devil’s Bowl Speedway competitors.

The day started out a little cloudy and dreary, but as if the racing Gods were looking upon us, we were blessed with sunny, comfortable weather for the first official practice at Riverside Speedway. A decent turnout brought the familiar smells and sounds that racers have missed all winter. Burgers and hot dogs were a cookin’, racing fuel and seared rubber wafted through the air as people shook down their cars and worked bugs out.

Some of the bugs were caught yesterday, which would be a better situation then opening weekend. Josh Barney brought his Town and Country Motor Inn Street Stock onto the track, only to realize he didn’t have third (running) gear, but still took advantage of the time and scuffed tires. Jeremy Wyman ran well getting used to his new Town and Country Motor Inn Street Stock as well, until blowing an oil line late in practice. From the way it looked from the stands, it seemed terminal, but the Wyman crew assured that it was a minor fix. Will Good brought his Volkswagen Jetta and turned some decent laps, and was very satisfied with the way his car ran. Alex Kopp piloted a beautiful blue Ford Probe, and enjoyed his updated equipment from a year ago. Dana Graham told me that he will be jumping behind the wheel of a Ford Fiesta this year, and assured that he added a few extra bars for weight. Ray Eames was also in attendance scuffing tires.

The North Country Ford Late Model division had a few competitors in attendance. Luke Shannon was pretty happy with where they were at the end of the day. Brian Greer has a new crate motor pushing his ride, and even though he never was sold on the crates, he enjoyed some of his best times he’s posted in a long time. New to the Late Model division, Matt Carbone shook down his ride, and even though he stated he was a little out of his comfort zone, he ran a pretty good line and threw down some respectable laps. Russ Clark was also there, sporting his new Race Basics chassis, and got some seat time feeling the new ride out.

The Amoskeag Beverage Twisted Tea Dwarfs, as always, whizzed around the track. Aric Cole sported a beautiful ride, and worked the outside lane quite a bit in practice. Eric Boucher updated his front end last year, adjusted some geometry, and got some bugs worked out. Jeff Ainsworth got some seat time in his Wyman Motorsports ride, after jumping up from the cyclones. Tim Anderson sported a new ride, with a unique body style, and put some blistering laps in the books. Dave Gyger walked out to the shop Friday night at 9:30, fired up his red monster for the first time, and decided to load up. He still had bits and pieces of Groveton from last year stuck to the bumper and side panels, yet still was putting some serious power to the tires.

The newly sponsored Ouellette Trucking Angels had a few drivers in attendance, as Jaime Carbone, Vickie Wyman, Jenna Randall, and Vanessa Brown logged seat time. Vickie stated her car was good in the beginning of the day, but they made some changes and the car developed a bit of a push, so they will wait and see for next weekend. Vanessa Brown had a different car under her, and had more power than she was accustomed to, and a loose condition that her other car didn’t have.

The Sign Depot Outlaw Sportsman and Kingdom Embroidery Daredevils had a couple of cars in attendance each. Aaron Smith tinkered a bit with his car, but was running old tires, and just wanted to make sure everything was in order. Chris Ouellette experienced some power steering issues, and didn’t get as much time on the track as anticipated. Doug Laleme showed up a little late, but didn’t disappoint with his stunning ride, and helped show his son, Dylan, around the track with his newly built Kingdom Embroidery Daredevil. Matt Kopp was also turning some consistent laps in his Ford Focus.

All in all, the day went well, and it was good for everyone to get back in the swing of things. This weekend’s events include the NAPA Car Show from 11 am – 1 pm Saturday, on State Street in downtown Groveton, followed by a parade to the speedway at 1pm. At 3
pm, awards will be given out, followed by an open practice. Grandstand admission is free for this event! Sunday is the NAPA Spectacular and Bobby Shores Memorial starting at 1p m. Being that it is Mother’s Day, the first 50 mothers accompanied with children will receive free grandstand admission! There will also be a special appearance by the Groveton High School band. We hope to see you all there!

Wayne Helliwell Jr. of Dover, NH dominated the second half of The Fox 101.5 Spring Green 112 on the way to his first ever American Canadian Tour victory on Sunday May 6, 2012 at Devil’s Bowl Speedway. Helliwell took over the lead on lap 58 and had to fend off a late race attack from Hudson, NH’s Joey Polwarczyk Jr. to take the checkers. Austin Theriault of Fort Kent, ME stormed from the 20th starting position to take over third, Ray Parent and Randy Potter completed the top five.

The race began with weekly competitor Craig Bushey leading the first lap after a +5 in the ACT plus minus system earned him the second starting position. Multi-time Oxford Plains Speedway Champion Ricky Rolfe took over for the next 26 laps before the lead was briefly wrestled away by former Thunder Road Champion Nick Sweet. Sweet only held on to the lead for two laps before Groveton’s Randy Potter took over the point.

Joey Polewarczyk, Jr. stormed from mid-pack to take the lead away from Potter on lap 50, only to have it taken away for good by Helliwell on lap 58. Helliwell started from the third position, but faded as far back as ninth before charging through the field in the second half. Helliwell had to endure a lap 98 restart and a no holds barred assault from Polewarczyk that put the large opening day crowd on its feet to claim his first ACT win and unofficially strip Williston’s Brian Hoar of the point lead.

Hyde Park’s Eric Williams climbed from 22nd on the starting grid to finish sixth, followed by Rolfe, Quinny Welch, Brent Dragon, and Luke Hinkley completing the top ten. The race was slowed by seven cautions, the first of which was a multi-car wreck when Glen Luce and Jamie Fisher spun in front of the field with no laps complete. The race was completed in 1:13:26, and 19 cars finished on the lead lap. All 34 ACT Late Models in attendance started the feature event.

Wayne Helliwell Jr. earned himself an invite to the ACT Invitational at New Hampshire Motor Speedway on September 22, 2012 with his win in the Spring Green 112. He joins Brian Hoar as the first two Invitational invitees to date.

The American Canadian Tour has next weekend off, but will be back in action at Oxford Plains Speedway in Oxford Maine on May 20, 2012 for the Oxford 150.

The Fox 101.5 Spring Green 112 Unofficial Results
American Canadian Tour
Devil’s Bowl Speedway – West Haven, VT
Sunday, May 6, 2012
Pos. (Start) Driver, Hometown, Laps Completed
1. (3) Wayne Helliwell Jr., Dover, NH, 112 Laps
2. (10) Joey Polewarczyk Jr., Hudson, NH, 112 Laps
3. (20) Austin Theriault, Fort Kent, ME, 112 Laps
4. (14) Ray Parent, Tiverton, RI, 112 Laps
5. (7) Randy Potter, Groveton, NH, 112 Laps
6. (22) Eric Williams, Hyde Park, VT, 112 Laps
7. (4) Ricky Rolfe, Albany Twp, ME, 112 Laps
8. (16) Quinten Welch, Lancaster, NH, 112 Laps
9. (11) Brent Dragon, Milton, VT, 112 Laps
10. (12) Luke Hinkley, Claremont, NH, 112 Laps
11. (21) Brian Hoar, Williston, VT, 112 Laps
12. (6) Nick Sweet, Barre, VT, 112 Laps
13. (9) Jamie Fisher, Shelburne, VT, 112 Laps
14. (18) Jean-Paul Cyr, Milton, VT, 112 Laps
15. (1) Todd Davis, Claremont, NH, 112 Laps
16. (5) Mark Lamberton, Mooers Forks, NY, 112 Laps
17. (15) Eddie MacDonald, Rowley, MA, 112 Laps
18. (17) Joey Becker, Jeffersonville, VT, 112 Laps
19. (8) Glen Luce, Turner, ME, 112 Laps
20. (2) Craig Bushey, Fairfax, VT, 111 Laps
21. (31) Travis Fadden, North Haverhill, NH, 111 Laps
22. (25) #Jimmy Hebert, Williamstown, VT, 111 Laps
23. (28) Todd Patnode, Richmond, NH, 111 Laps
24. (23) James Linardy, Somerville, MA, 111 Laps
25. (30) Bruce Jaycox, Hartland, VT, 111 Laps
26. (26) Derek Lynch, Warkworth, ON, 111 Laps
27. (27) Hunter Bates, Pittsford, VT, 111 Laps
28. (34) Jeffrey Labrecque Jr., Rochester, NH, 110 Laps
29. (33) Spencer MacPherson, Carleton Place, ON, 110 Laps
30. (29) Ben Ashline, Pittston, ME, 56 Laps
31. (24) Claude Leclerc, Lanoraie, QC, 31 Laps
32. (19) Rowland Robinson, Jr., Birch Harbor, ME, 28 Laps
33. (13) Eric Chase, Milton, VT, 21 Laps
34. (32) #Daniel Petronis II, Mechanicville, NY, 0 Laps
Lap Leaders: Craig Bushey (1), Ricky Rolfe (2-28), Nick Sweet (29-31), Randy Potter (32-49), Joey Polewarczyk Jr. (50-57), Wayne Helliwell Jr. (58-112)
Time of Race: 1:13:26
Margin of Victory: .191 seconds
Cautions: 7 (Lap 0, 28, 31, 49, 49, 57, 98)
Heat Winners: Eric Chase, Joey Polewarczyk Jr, Brent Dragon
Consi Winners: Craig Bushey, Glen Luce
B-Feature Winner: Jimmy Hebert

Here’s what else is going on in northern New England. On Wednesday New England Dragway in Epping, NH offers Street Night at 5 p.m. and MX101 next door plans practice at 9 a.m..Friday niight stockcar action is on at Lee USA in NH at 7 p.m while Star Speedway in Epping, NH offers a practice session from 4-8 p.m. NHMS in Loudon,NH offers Vintage racing from Thursday through Sunday at 9 a.m. each day.

Saturday’s offerings include; stockcar action at Bear Ridge in Bradford, VT at 6 p.m. At the same time the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour invades the Monadnock Speedway in Winchester, NH at 4 p.m. with more motoX practice is on at MX 101. Next door New England Dragway offers ET drags at 8 a.m.

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