Column Compiled By: PHIL SMITH / RPW – WESTERLY, RI – The SMART Modified Series converged on the Caraway Speedway in North Carolina last Sunday with 26 cars strong. Carson Loftin, at 15 years of age, continues to impress at he made it two in a row as he took the win in the Warrior 100.
Loftin, who dedicated the win to his fallen friend Zach Brewer, took the lead following a restart on lap 63. Matt Hirschman, who had the lead at that point, pitted for a right rear tire only to spend too much time in the pit area and was forced to restart in the rear.
SMART rules were very clear as they stated that cautions do not count and competitors are allowed only two laps to change tires or else they restart at the rear. Hirschman was the leader when the caution was displayed on lap 63 when a car stopped in turn three.
Danny Bohn started on the pole following a redraw. Bohn led the charge to the green with Hirschman and Bobby Labonte in tow. Seven cars piled up almost immediately. Bohn continued to lead until Hirschman took the point following a lap 30 restart. It was Hirschman’s race to lose after that as Lofton was running second, he had nothing for the high flying No. 60. Brandon Ward brought out a caution on lap 63 when he stopped in turn three. Hirschman pitted for a right rear tire and Loftin for a left rear. Loftin rejoined the field in less than two laps and Hirschman didn’t. It was as simple as that!. It appeared that Hirschman’s spotter had dropped the ball.
In a post race statement from Hirschman Racing, “For those that watched today’s SMART Modified event at Caraway Speedway and are questioning what happened and why we went to the tail here is the reasoning. During our pit stop after changing the RR tire it was noticed that the RF tire was going flat. On controlled stop you have a certain amount of time to return to track to maintain position and we did not do this. Also you only have 3 RS tires to work with so we had to put the RR we took off back on the car putting us at a competitive disadvantage. While unfortunate for our team these same rules apply to all teams. We will move on to our next event.”
Ryan Newman was all over Loftin at the end but couldn’t rattle the youngster. Newman settled for second with Bobby Labonte, third. Danny Bohn and Jason Myers rounded out the top five. Sixth thru tenth were Luke Baldwin, Hirschman, Joey Colter, Will Lambrose and Jimmy Wallace.
Coming up on Saturday, March 23, at the South Boston Speedway in Virginia will be the Pace-O-Matic King of the Modifieds which now has one of the richest purses in Modified racing. In addition to the $20,000 first place prize, it was announced that the second-place finisher will score $10,000. If you are one of the 36 starters for the event, you will be guaranteed to take home at least $1,200. Third place will be at least $4,000, fourth will be $3,500 and fifth will be $3,400. “I am excited to add Dominion Energy to the Pace-O-Matic King of the Modifieds. This will make the event the true crown jewel we were hoping it would be,” said Chris Williams, Series Director for the SMART Modified Tour. Pace-O-Matic powers the series and Dominion Energy now makes this an event for the ages. We can’t thank these sponsors and Senator Stanley enough, for all they do for our series, as well as Virginia short tracks and local businesses. They have helped build this historical event at South Boston Speedway to the magnitude that it is.” An infusion of competitors from the north is expected.
Vista Installations, a family-owned window and door installation company for more than 50 years, is one of the companies helping build the purse to its historic mark. Stanley Law Group of Virginia is the title sponsor of “The King’s Court,” which will be the area in which the winning team and the top-three finishers celebrate at the conclusion of the event. A total of 32 cars will lock in from qualifying on Saturday, March 23, at South Boston Speedway. The tally will be made up of the top-18 in current SMART Tour points that have participated in the first two events of the season, as well as 14 other starters from time trials. That group will be lined up via their qualifying time for the starting order of the race. An additional four cars will earn their way through a last-chance race, which will bring the total to 36 starters. The series reserves the right of an optional provisional starting spot.
The schedule of the event weekend has also been released. A tech day for teams will occur on Friday, March 22. Registration will open at 10am. There will be no practice for SMART Modifieds on Friday. Race day, on Saturday, March 23, will see registration open at 7am, qualifying at approximately Noon and the Dominion Energy Last Chance Race for SMART Modifieds to begin shortly after 2pm ET.
Discounted tickets for the Pace-O-Matic King of the Modifieds are available through the South Boston Speedway website. General admission tickets are available now for $17. That price will be $20 on race day, Saturday, March 23. Children 12 and under are free for this event. The Sentara Health Late Models and the VSP HEAT Hornets will also be in action.
All races can also be seen on FloRacing, the official streaming broadcast partner of the SMART Modified Tour powered by Pace-O-Matic.
In NASCAR Cup racing, Christopher Bell took the race win in Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series Shriners Children’s 500 at Phoenix Raceway. The driver of the No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota Camry XSE worked his way to the win from the 13th starting spot. Chris Buescher finished runner-up to Bell, Ty Gibbs came home in third, while Brad Keselowski and Ryan Blaney rounded out the top-five finishers in the race. Ryan Preece finished 23rd, one lap down.
It was good to hear that third-generation driver Tyler Barry will be moving up to the SK Modifieds at Stafford in 2024. After racking up 3 wins and the 2022 championship in 3 seasons of SK Light competition at Stafford Speedway, Griswold, CT native Tyler Barry will make the move into the SK Modified® division for the 2024 season. Barry will have his sights set on capturing NAPA Rookie of the Year honors with his #18 Pro Systems Integration team as well as trying to continue his streak of winning 1 race per season that he began with his SK Light debut in 2021.
Over the winter months, Barry and his father Ken, a former driver who also owns and operates Spafco Race Chassis, have been working on putting a new SK Modified® car together that Barry hopes will help to make his transition from SK Light to SK Modified® a bit easier.
More Money for weekly competitors at Stafford. Stafford Speedway has announced that Gaston Racing’s “GRE6” will return to the Stafford Speedway contingency program for the 2024 season. Gaston Racing / GRE6.com will provide a weekly $100 bonus to each SK Light Modified 3rd place finisher and a weekly bonus of $50 to each 3rd place finisher in the Street Stock division. In addition to the weekly bonuses, Gaston Racing / GRE6.com will also furnish a $200 bonus to the driver who advances the most positions during the May 24 SK Light Double Down, the first of two 40-lap feature events the SK Light division will participate in during the 2024 season.
“We are incredibly proud to continue our support for the local racing community, carrying on the legacy of my father, Bill Gaston,” said Emily Gaston, Owner of Gaston Racing / GRE6.com. “Grounded in his vision of helping others, giving back, and mentoring aspiring talents, our sponsorship renewal reflects our commitment to upholding these invaluable principles. Our dedication to fostering a supportive environment where every individual has the opportunity to thrive remains unwavering. This sponsorship renewal is a testament to our enduring mission of making a positive difference in the lives of the local racing community,” said Emily Gaston, owner of Gaston Racing’s GRE6.com.”
Gaston Racing / GRE6.com is a full-service performance parts dealer located at 96 Burnham Street in South Windsor, CT. Gaston Racing / GRE6.com can be found in the Stafford Speedway paddock area every week at the track parts truck and they can also be found online at gre6.com as well as on Facebook.
On a sad note New London-Waterford Speedbowl legend Don Collins recently passed away on February 21st. He was 93 years old.
It can’t be understated that Don Collins was the best of the best at the shoreline oval for it’s first 2 decades of existence. From 1951-1969, he won over 100 races and 5 modified championships. His championships in 1955, 1957 and 1963 came in driving his familiar #106 coupes, which were nicknamed “The Little Jewel”. In 1960, he took over the Vitari & Bombaci famed V-8 car that Bill Slater won the title driving in 1959. That trio left for Norwood Arena with a new car the following year while Collins dominated the Speedbowl with 17 Modified wins in the old car. He actually won a record 23 wins overall at the track in 1960. He won his 5th Speedbowl title during his last full season of competition driving Billy Simon’s “Excavator Special” #9.
Don retired after the first race in 1970 and called it a career. Nobody had more championships or wins at the Speedbowl than Collins at the time. It took almost 20 years for future Speedbowl legends like Bob Potter & Phil Rondeau to approach his stats. And it took 53 years before Keith Rocco broke his 23 wins in a single season record.
By all accounts, Collins was a very clean racer, a very quite guy, yet ultra-competitive, and one of the smartest drivers during his era. His accomplishments were almost exclusively at the ‘bowl and it was rare that he didn’t compete in one of his trademark cowboy shirts.
The following season, Collins finished second in the season opener, then abruptly retired. At the time, nobody had more wins (101) or championships (5) than him. Don was a car builder and mechanic, as well as a driver. He prided himself on being wise on tire knowledge. “Like today’s cars, if you could make your tires last until the end of the race, and your tires were in better shape than your competitor’s tires, you stood a better chance of winning the race”, says Collins. He also competed at Norwood Arena, Seekonk Speedway, Plainville Stadium and Albany-Saratoga Speedway.
The all new book, The Modified Years At Stafford, by the Grace of God and 600 hp, is gaining interest and has become a must have in race fans and competitors library. Race by Race, Year by Year, it’s all there. Read all about it! Books are now available on Amazon.com and Coastal 181 (877-907-8181 toll free) and are available thru Stafford’s web site in their store. Order yours now. Makes a great gift!
With the cooperation of the Arute family another book has been published with pictures and biographies of the 50 Greatest Drivers at Stafford.
The Stafford Motor Speedway had become the epicenter of NASCAR Modified racing in the northeast by the late 1980’s. From its dirt beginnings to its lightning-fast asphalt, Stafford had become the toughest and most gratifying track to score a victory. The Arute family which has owned and guided the destiny of the facility commissioned their thousands of loyal fans to name their favorite drivers. In alphabetical order so as not to offend anyone:
Tom Baldwin, Gene Bergin, Brett Bodine, Geoff Bodine, Ken Bouchard, Ron Bouchard, Mario “Fats” Caruso, Rene Charland, Ted Christopher, Leo Cleary, Tim Connolly, Jerry Cook, Corky Cookman, Pete Corey, Fred DeSarro, Richie Evans, Mike Ewanitsko, Ed Flemke, Sr., Jeff Fuller, Rick Fuller, Ernie Gahan, Bill Greco, Bo Gunning, Ray Hendrick, George “Moose” Hewitt, Tony Hirschman, George Janoski, Charlie Jarzombek, George Kent, Buddy Krebs, Randy LaJoie, Jan Leaty, Jerry Marquis, Mike McLaughlin, Ray Miller, Steve Park, Bob Polverari, Bob Potter, Brian Ross, John “Reggie” Ruggiero, Greg Sacks, Ollie Silva, “Wild” Bill Slater, Jimmy Spencer, Mike Stefanik, Carl “Bugsy” Stevens, George Summers, Jamie “The Jet” Tomaino, Maynard Troyer and Satch Worley.
Books are priced at $17.95 each and be purchased at the track at the Novelty Booth or at the Stafford Motor Speedway on line store. Books are also available at Amazon.com and at Coastal181 (877-907-8181).
