Column Compiled By: PHIL SMITH / RPW – WESTERL, RI – Seventy five years ago in 1949, Charlie Barry was the feature winner at the Buffalo Civic Center in New York. Rain washed out all racing at Seekonk.
Seventy years ago in 1954, Moe Gherzi was the winner in Sportsman action at the New London Waterford Speedbowl. Lou Tetreault was the non Ford winner.
Sixty five years ago in 1959, George Janoski made it two in a row on the dirt at Stafford on Friday night. The New London Waterford Speedbowl ran its final Saturday night program before switching to Sundays for the final four events. Dick Beauregard won the 25 lap Sportsman feature while Charlie Webster took the checker in the non-Fords and Newt Palm took top honors in the Bombers.
Sixty years ago in 1964, Ernie Gahan took the top spot on the dirt at Stafford on Friday night. George Janoski finished second with Bill Wimble, third. Saturday night at the Norwood Arena saw Steady Eddie Flemke in victory lane. Dick Watson was the Modified winner and Ed McAvoy was the Bomber feature winner at the New London-Waterford Speedbowl. Billy Clarke was the A division winner at Seekonk. Bob Anderson was the 15 lap Cadet division winner.
Fifty five years ago in 1969, the Albany-Saratoga Speedway ran their season finale with Andy Romano taking the win. Lou Lazzaro finished second and was followed by Bernie Miller, Jerry Cook, Dick Clark, Ron Narducci and Kenny Shoemaker. At the Norwood Arena on Saturday night, Fred DeSarro took the win over Don McCullogh, Bugsy Stevens, Mike Murphy and Johnny Thompson. Jerry Cook, in search of Nascar points paid a surprise visit and finished 12th in his only appearance at the now closed track. Islip also ran on Saturday with Herbie Hulse taking the win over Mousie Kempster and Jack Reinhard. Waterford switched to Sundays and it was Newt Palm taking the win. Stafford ran a 50 lapper on Sunday with Bobby Santos taking the win over Bill Greco, Cook, Hop Harrington, Bugsy Stevens and Rene Charland. At Seekonk, George Summers was the A division winner. In Winston Cup action at Talledega the drivers went on strike but the event went on as planned and was won by Richard Brickhouse.
Fifty years ago in 1974, with the exception of Oswego and Thompson, the main action was on Long Island. Riverhead ran on Friday night with Charlie Jarzombek taking the win over Fred Harbach and Richie Evans. On Saturday at Freeport, Chargin Charlie made it two for two as he beat out Dan MacNamara and Gino Spada. At Islip on Sunday, 35 cars started the 300-lap grind on the tough 1/5-mile oval. Lou Lazzaro took the win over Jim Hendrickson, Gary Winters and Cliff Tyler. Rain washed out the final Saturday night at Waterford. George Murray took the A division win at Seekonk.Jim Shampine won the Oswego modified 200 over Don Diffendorf and Jim Winks and at Thompson, George Moose Hewitt took the win over Dick Caso and Fats Caruso.
Forty five years ago in 1979, the annual Race of Champions was held at Pocono Raceway. Promoted by Joe Gerber, the event drew 97 modifieds. Richie Evans led 83 of the 120-lap distance to take the win over Maynard Troyer, Gail Barber, Jim Shampine and Satch Worley. Jack Bateman won at Monadnock while it rained at Westboro and Waterford.
Forty years ago in 1984, Stan Gregger won an open competition event at Riverside over John Rosati. Shangri-La ran a 150-lap event, which saw Richie Evans take the win. Corky Cookman finished second and was followed by Jim Spencer. Evans made an overnight trip to Maine where he finished second to Brett Bodine. Brian Ross finished third at Oxford Plains and was followed by Spencer. In Winston Cup action at Martinsville, Darrell Waltrip won the 500-lap event by a full lap. Pole sitter Geoff Bodine broke an oil line and finished 30th.
Thirty five years ago in 1989,the mod tour was scheduled to run at Shangri-La on Saturday but was rained out. Lancaster ran an 89 lap open on Sunday which was won by Jan Leaty. Brian Ross finished second with Mike McLaughlin, third.
Thirty years ago in 1994, Waterford ran on Saturday night. Bert Marvin took the mod win over Mark LaJunesse and David Gada. Twin late model features were run with Phil Rondeau and Larry Cote taking wins. Riverside ran their final point event of the year. Bobby Gegetsas took the win over Steve Park. Chris Kopec finished third and sewed up the track championship. The modifieds and the Busch Grandnational North Series were at Loudon. Jeff Fuller took the lead from Reggie Ruggerio with four laps to go and went on to take the win in the Modified event. Ruggerio finished second and was followed by Steve Park, Wayne Anderson and Bruce Dell. Joe Bessey was the BGNN winner. It was on this weekend that Richie Gallup was relieved of the driving chores of the x6 and it was announced that Mike Stefanik would be the new driver. In Winston Cup action at Martinsville, Rusty Wallace and Dale Earnhardt finished one-two.
Twenty five years ago, in 1999, Tony Hirschman won the Stafford Fall Final 300 lapper. It was a day of excitement to say the least. Ed Flemke Jr. was the center of attention as he was involved in three separate incidents. First off, he dumped Mike Ewanitsko on lap 115, and then he spun out his business partner, Reggie Ruggiero who was leading. After the second incident he was parked for two laps. The third and final incident came on lap 288 when Nascar parked him again when he was blocking the leader. Also the center of attention was John Blewett III who became upset after a confrontation with Carl Pasteryak. While the field was under caution, Blewett jumped on Pasteryak’s hood and started ripping wires off the engine. Reggie Ruggiero recovered from his early spin and finished second. Tim Connolly finished third and was followed by Tom Cravenho and Jan Leaty. Mike Christopher was the 50 lap SK-Modified winner. Waterford announced that they had secured a NASCAR sanction for 2000.In Saturday night action at the shoreline oval, Ed Dachenhausen took the win over Jerry and Jeff Pearl. During the running of the event, Todd Ceravolo suffered severe injuries when he was dumped into the retaining wall, drivers side first, by Rob Janovic. In Winston Cup news, Ray Everham announced that he was leaving Hendrick Motorsports and Jeff Gordon to form his own team. Mark Martin was the winner of the Winston Cup event at Dover.
Twenty years ago in 2004 the NASCAR Featherlite Modified Tour was at the Stafford Motor Speedway for the annual Fall Final. The Modifieds continue to be the big draw for any of NASCAR’s touring divisions as 48 cars were on hand. Ted Christopher was the Busch Pole sitter and as luck should have it, picked the pole starting position. Christopher led the first 10 laps before giving way to Mike Stefanik whom led to lap 23. Christopher took it back after a restart on lap 24. Chuck Hossfeld, who had been rumored to be considering changing rides, put the Mystic Missile out in front on lap 38. Tony Hirschman and Ed Flemke, who had been battling for the series title kept each other in sight and on lap 75 displaced Hossfeld for the lead. With only 20 points separating them going into the event Hirschman knew he had to finish ahead of Flemke if he had any hope of getting the title. Hirschman passed Flemke for the lead on lap 87 and never looked back as he went on to score the win. Flemke glued himself to Hirschman and wasn’t about to give up another spot as he held off Stefanik to finish second. Rounding out the top five were Jerry Marquis and Hossfeld. Hirschman left Stafford leading Flemke by 30 points going into the season finale at Thompson. Jerry Marquis sits in third spot with Christopher fourth and Jamie Tomaino, fifth.
In Dodge Weekly Racing Thunder at the Thompson Speedway on Thursday night Todd Ceravolo was looking to sew up the 2004 Sunoco SK-type Modified title but lady luck had other ideas. During his qualifying heat the Ledyard, Connecticut driver was hit from behind and ended up suffering severe damage to his family owned modified. Mike Finkeldey was gracious enough to loan his car to Ceravolo for the 30-lap feature but lady luck stepped in again, causing electrical problems and an ultimate low finishing spot. Kerry Malone, who was second in points going into the event, suffered a similar fate, as he was involved in an accident, which also resulted in a low finish. Bert Marvin, who has had terrible luck this season, took his second win of 2004. Bo Gunning finished second with Richard Savory, third. Ted Christopher recovered from an early spin and finished fourth. Jeff Malave rounded out the top five and put himself in second spot in the point standings, 20 points behind Ceravolo. Norm Wrenn won the Pro Stock feature. David Berghman, despite a 16th place finish, sewed up the division championship. Glenn Boss won the Limited Sportsman feature but it was Larry Barnett who sewed up his division championship with a third place finish. Rick Gentes was the Late Model winner, Seth Duval won the All-Star Truck feature and Scott Michalski was the Mini Stock winner.
For once NASCAR Dodge Racing Series at Stafford was tame. Willie Hardie Jr. won the SK Modified portion of the Fall Final. Chuck Docherty finished second with Jeff Malave, third. Malave was later disqualified, as it was determined that his engine had a lightweight flywheel. Ted Christopher who had previously sewed up the track championship, finished seventh. Ryan Posocco was the Late Model winner and also the track champion for his division. Brian Hitchcock was the DARE Stock winner and Larry Barnett won the first-ever Limited Sportsman feature run at the track.
Eddie Reed Jr. got a little closer to gaining his first SK-Modified championship at the Waterford Speedbowl on Saturday night. Reed didn’t win, in fact he finished fifth, but his main challenger Dennis Gada was eliminated early enough to give Reed a 40 point cushion going into the final two events at the shoreline oval. Gada had been hoping to set an all time record of six championships in a row but unless a miracle happened, it would be a done deal for Reed. Ronnie Silk started second in the 35-lap feature and led every lap to score his first win of the 2004 season. Don Fowler ended up second with Chris Pasteryak and Rob Janovic following. Other Saturday night winners at the shoreline oval were Jay Lozyniak in the Sportsman division, Timmy Jordan in the Mini-Stocks and Jeff Paul in the Legends. The tracks Late Models had the night off.
The Nextel Cup along with the Busch Racing Series and Busch North Series divisions of NASCAR were at the Dover Downs Speedway in Delaware. Dale Quarterly won the MBNA 150 for the Busch North Series event. Andy Santerre finished fifth and sewed up his third series total in a row. Twenty-eight started the event that saw six finish on the lead lap. Mike Stefanik finished fourth and Jerry Marquis experienced overheating problems and finished 18th. Ryan Newman took the Nextel Cup win over Mark Martin and Jeff Gordon. Martin Truex and Mike McLaughlin finished one-two in the Busch Series event.
On again, off again. According to those at NASCAR that oversee the Dodge Weekly Racing Series everything was on the up and up at the Lee USA Speedway when Richard Wolf was declared the winners on September 11 after the first two finishers ahead of him were disqualified. Ted Christopher, who had been in the top spot of the New England Region, was been moved back to the second spot in the standings as Wolf has been designated the Region Champion. The change made for a big cut in pay for Christopher as the Champion would receive $45,000 and the runner-up received $24,000. Christopher, fresh off his dominating win in the Featherlite Modifieds at Loudon was extremely unhappy, not so much with NASCAR but with the Stafford Speedway as he feels that the track gave him “the business” on September 3 when he was put to the rear in the second of two 30 lap events. The incident in question involved Chris Jones who had since been put on indefinite suspension for his actions against Christopher. Christopher feels that if he weren’t put to the rear on September 3 he would have won and would have been in a better position to win the regional title. The Stafford management felt they made the right decision. Jeff Strunk, who competed at the Grandview Speedway in Pennsylvania, finished third in the standings with Ledyard Connecticut’s Todd Ceravolo in fourth. Ceravolo, who competed at the Thompson Speedway, would receive $16,000 for his and his family’s efforts. Waterford Connecticut’s Ed Reed JR who competed at the Speedbowl would receive $8200 for his sixth place finish. It’s also official that Corey Hutchings is the New England Region Short Track Champion. Hutchings, who hails from Salem, Connecticut, was the point leader at both the Thompson Speedway and the Waterford Speedbowl and had a combined feature win total of 14. Hutchings would receive $2,500 plus a $1,000 bonus for each track title at season’s end.
The town hall in Plainfield, CT was the scene of a meeting between the developer of the proposed domed speedway and the town’s Economic Development Commission. The object of the meeting was to change local zoning laws to allow the proposed project to go foreword. The commission did not take action that would have allowed for comprehensive entertainment and amusement facilities, hotels, etc. The application also called for allowing special revenue facilities. Some people in the town believed that the race track proposal was just a smoke screen which would hide the fact that another casino would be coming to the state. The New England Raceway Corporation continued to project that they would host approximately nine events per year including one Nextel Cup event or “Tier One” drag racing, two Busch Series races or two CART events. The NASCAR legal department had notified that there is no agreement in place or any promise made that any NASCAR sanctioned events would be held in Plainfield. The commission would re-convene on October 14. Later in the week, word was let out that the International Speedway Corporation planned to build a ¾ mile oval that will seat 75,000 in Washington State on the West Coast.
Forbes Magazine listed the 400 wealthiest people in the country. Tied in 215th spot are Bill France JR and his brother Jim who own and control NASCAR and the International Speedway Corporation along with O. Bruton Smith who owns Speedway Motorsports. Forbes says they are each worth $1,300 million. Top man on the list is Bill Gates of Microsoft who is worth a cool $4.8 billion.
Fifteen years ago in 2009, The NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour Series headed to Martinsville Virginia for the Made In America Whelen 300. The 200-lap event carried a race purse of $131,427. Among those who got an early start for their trip south was Ted Christopher who found himself suspended by the Stafford Motor Speedway for his on track actions on September 18. Keith Rocco was also suspended from Stafford but remained behind in order to compete at Waterford on Saturday night. Ronnie Silk subbed for Rocco in the Eddie Partridge No. 12.
With the exception of a limited practice session on Saturday morning the rains washed all activity at Martinsville for the day.
Forty-three Modifieds were on hand to qualify for the 43 starting spots. Ron Silk and Donny Lia were the top qualifiers. Following the re-draw, Southern Modified Tour competitor Brian Loftin was placed in the pole position. Rowan Pennick drew the outside pole starting spot. Rounding out the top five starters were Burt Myers, Silk and Lia.
In a little over an hour and a half Mike Stefanik was able to take the win in the Made in America Whelen 300 at Martinsville. Stefanik, who managed to avoid multiple wrecks during the running of the event, took the lead from Todd Szegedy with 19 laps remaining in the 200-lap event. Szegedy finished second with Ryan Preece, third. Ronnie Silk and Burt Myers rounded out the top five. Sixth through tenth were Kevin Goodale, George Brunnhoelzl, III, Donny Lia, Eric Goodale and Jamie Tomaino. Burt Myers was the highest finishing Southern driver which meant that he will get credit for the win in the southern tour as the event was a North-South combination event.
For Ted Christopher it was a long day as he spent most of the race going in and out of the pit area with engine problems. Finishing 30th in the final rundown, the defending series champion lost considerable ground to Lia. His finish, combined with Lia’s eight-place effort, closed Lia to within just one point of the championship lead with two races remaining in the season. Wrecks and mechanical problems took their toll. Of the 43 starters less than 12 were competive at the end. Brian Loftin led the opening three laps but ended up in 29th spot after his brakes failed. Rowan Pennick led from lap 4 through 80. Pennick, who was quite fast, ended up in 16th spot, 15 laps down as a result of being shoved into the wall on lap 186. Chris Pasteryak, who led from lap 81 to lap 165 was collected in the same wreck and ended up in 15th spot.
There were 10 cautions for 60 laps. Stefanik’s average speed was 68.091 mph. For his efforts he collected $9,534.
In Thursday night Thunder action at Thompson, the speedway closed out their weekly racing series with a better than average crowd thanks to the folks that officiate at the Stafford Motor Speedway. After the on-track confrontations between Ted Christopher and Keith Rocco plus their suspensions from competition the fans came out to see if there would be a showdown at high speed on the high banks at Thompson. There was an ongoing war of words but there was no crunching of metal between the two. Instead it ended up being a plain good night of racing. Christopher took his third straight victory but it was Rocco taking the Sunoco Modified Track Championship crown. Jim Banfield won his career first Super Late Model feature event while teenager Derek Ramstrom earned his first Thompson track championship. Rick Gentes made it two in a row in Late Model competition. John Materas had a joy ride on Thursday night as he clinched the championship the week before. Tom Tagg scored his fifth win of the season in the TIS Modifieds as Tim Sullivan earned the title in the division by a scant eight points. Shawn Monahan scored his second straight Limited Sportsman feature victory. After an eventful night, Larry Barnett recovered from an early race incident to become a multi-time Limited Sportsman champion. Randy Churchill scored his third win of the season in the Mini Stocks. Scott Michalski had a banner year to win the division’s title.
With Ted Christopher and Keith Rocco under suspension the Friday night season was anti-climatic without the track’s main attractions in competition. Both Christopher and Rocco had their twin brothers pinch hitting for them but it wasn’t the same. Doug Coby took his first victory of the season in the 40-lap SK Modified feature, Tom Fearn took his second win of the season in the 30-lap Late Model feature, David Webb took down his second win of the season in the 20-lap SK Light Modified feature, Bill Davis took down his first victory of 2009 in the 20-lap Limited Late Model feature event, and Don Wood scored his second win of 2009 in the 15-lap DARE Stock feature.
Ted Christopher clinched the 2009 SK Modified track championship, his record seventh championship at Stafford Motor Speedway. Frank Ruocco, who was under federal indictment for obstruction of justice for trying to hide records of a scheme to illegally double the cost of removing contaminated soil from a New York construction site and had been charged with conspiracy, mail fraud, wire fraud and money laundering, finished in 18th spot. Ruocco dropped to third in the point standings as Woody Pitkat moved into the second spot.
At the Waterford Speedbowl Ron Yuhas Jr. won his third SK-Modified feature of the season cutting into division leader Keith Rocco’s points lead. Tyler Chadwick finished second, followed by Rocco, who leads the points race by six with just two events left. Tim Jordan won his second Late Model feature. Danny Field (Mini Stocks), Walt Hovey Jr. (Street Stocks) and Jason Palmer (Legends) also earned victories.
Jimmie Johnson was the NASCAR Sprint Cup winner at Dover International. Clint Boyer was the Nationwide Series winner.
Ten years ago in 2014, Keith Rocco broke the strangle hold that Rowan Pennink had on the SK Modified division at Stafford on Friday night. Pennink, up until Friday night, had a string of three wins in a row. It was also not a good night for Ryan Preece who lost the division point lead to Ted Christopher after his car developed problems and he was forced to drop out. Other winners were Adam Gray, who won his fifth feature of the year in the 30-lap Late Model Feature, and Justin Bren, who won his second Limited Late Model feature of the year. They were joined in NAPA Victory Lane by three first –time winners at Stafford and they were Paul French in the SK Light feature, Dan Dembek in the DARE Stock feature, and Devin O’Connell in the Legends Car feature.
In the SK Modified 40 lapper, Pennink finished second while Woody Pitkat beat Dan Avery to the checkered flag by a nose for third, and Eric Berndt got around Christopher for fifth. Christopher hung on for sixth. Preece ended up 20th while Nicole Morgillo finished 23rd. Preece had a very ambitious weekend planned as he intended to compete at Riverhead on Long Island on Saturday and at the Oswego Speedway in the Race of Champions on Sunday.
Rocco had won at all three Connecticut tracks and had a total of 27 feature wins to his credit which include 15 in Modified competition and 12 in the Late Models at Waterford.
The NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour Series was scheduled for a 200 lap event a the Riverhead Raceway on Long Island this past weekend. Rain moved over the track during afternoon practice and persisted into the evening, forcing the cancellation of the event by NASCAR and track officials. There were 30 cars on hand
Due to local regulations that prohibit Riverhead Raceway from running events after the month of September, no make-up date was available to reschedule the Riverhead 200. Competitors were given refunds for pit passes and for unused tires that they bought for the event.
Once the cancellation was made Ryan Preece made a hasty retreat and did an all nighter to Oswego, NY where he finished third behind Chuck Hossfeldt and Tony Hanbury on the annual 200 lap Race of Champions.
In NASCAR Whelen All-American Series action at the Waterford Speedbowl the races were cancelled for the second week in a row. Rain moved into the Waterford Ct area shortly after 5:00pm on Saturday afternoon. The only action at the speedbowl during the week was the final night of Wacky Wednesday competition which saw Mike Christopher Jr record his 23rd win if the season in Legends competition at the shoreline oval.
Christopher has already made his debut in open wheeled competition as he has recorded a 15th and a sixth in SK Lite competition. Ryan Morgan who had been a top runner in the Legends in past years will be moving up to the SK Modifieds in 2015.
In Modified racing in the Southland, Kyle Ebersole decided to change up his pit strategy and pitted early on Lap 53 and was able to hold off a late charge by Andy Seuss to win the South Boston 150 NASCAR Whelen Southern Modified Tour event at South Boston Speedway. It was the second career victory for Ebersole. His first came in 2013 at Langley Speedway in Hampton, Virginia. Andy Seuss made several attempts in his quest for a season sweep at South Boston, but was ultimately forced to settle for second. He was followed across the line by George Brunnhoelzl III, Burt Myers and J.R. Bertuccio.
Pole winner Danny Bohn, rookie Spencer Davis, Jason Myers, Joe Ryan Osborne, and Thomas Stinson rounded out the top-10 finishers. There were 19 cars on hand.
Kevin Harvick got his fourth Nationwide Series win of the season, giving JR Motorsports nine on the year, with his victory Saturday at Chicagoland Speedway. In NASCAR Sprint Cup action, Brad Keselowski showed how badly he wants to win another championship.
Keselowski used a three-wide pass of Kyle Larson and Kevin Harvick at Chicagoland Speedway on Sunday to win the opening race of the Chase for the Sprint Cup championship. The victory automatically advances Keselowski into the second round of the 10-race Chase, which will eliminate four drivers every third race under NASCAR’s new format.
Five years ago in 2019, The NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour Series headed for the Riverhead Raceway on Eastern Long Island. Justin Bonsignore captured his fourth straight victory as he won the Miller Lite 200. Bonsignore started in second spot along side pole sitter Craig Lutz. The two ran together through out the event which went 206 laps. Tom Rogers and Timmy Solomito were in the mix. In the end the top four were Long Island competitors. Following Bonsignore was Timmy Solomito, Lutz and Kyle Soper.Patrick Emerling rounded out the top five.
Of the 30 cars on hand, 17 were tour regulars. Chuck Hossfeld, subbing for injured Jimmy Blewett, finished sixth and was followed by JB Fortin, JR Bertuccio, Tom Rogers Jr and John Beatty Jr. Point leader Doug Coby recovered from two separate spins to finish fifteenth on the lead lap. Coby continues to lead the point standings with a 19 point edge over Bonsignore.
It was the fifth victory of the season for Bonsignore, and his 25th career in Whelen Modified Tour competition. He’s the only driver in the 64-race history at the track to win four straight, breaking a previous tie with Mike Ewanitsko and Ryan Preece, who both had three.
In weekly racing at the Stafford Motor Speedway on Friday night, impending rain caused the event to be cancelled. Two events remain in the 2019 season, First Responder night scheduled for this coming Friday, September 13th as well as the season ending NAPA Auto Parts Fall Final Weekend scheduled for Saturday, September 28th and Sunday, September 29th.
In the battle for the SK Modified track championship, Ronnie Williams held an eight point lead over Todd Owen. Keith Rocco sat in third spot, fourteen points back. Michael Gervais JR was fourth, some 34 points back. All four had a legitimate shot at the title. Rounding out the top five was Glen Reen, 126 points out. Of the 18 events run, Williams and Rocco had won five events each. Steven Chapman led the SK Lights as he held a four point lead over Teddy Hodgdon. Although winless, Chapman had been consistent as he has finished in the top ten in 17 of the 18 events run. Third generation racer Alexander Pearl sat third, some 20 points down. Sophomore sensation Bryan Narducci with eight wins sat in fourth spot, some 58 points back and still had an outside shot at the title. Wesley Prucker rounds out the top five, 92 points back. Tom Fearn iced the Late Model championship. With eight wins Fearn held a 122 point lead over Michael Wray. He won his first title in the division in 2016. Fearn also has three championships at the track in the former Pro Stock division (1993, ’95 and ’98).
Fearn is the track’s all-time winningest Late Model driver with 56 victories in the division dating back to 2004. He’s had 40 victories in the division since 2015. Jeremy Lavoie held a four point lead over Matt Clement for the Limited Late Model title and in the Street Stocks, Zack Robinson led second generation racer Megan Fullerby 38 points. Robinson had five wins and Fuller, daughter of former NASCAR Whelen Modified Champion Rick Fuller had four wins.
The Thompson Motorsports Park returned to racing on Sunday. Ron Williams won the first and second Sunoco Modified (SK type) events while Keith Rocco won the ten lap finale. The 20/20+10 awarded an overall winner which was Williams. In the first event Williams took the lead on the 11th lap as he out ran Troy Talman and Rocco to the checker. In the second 20 lap event Woody Pitkat seemed to have things going his way until the final lap when Williams made his move in turn three. In the 10 lap finale Rocco wasted little time as he took the lead on the first lap and never looked back. Pitkat finished second with Todd Owen, third. Williams ended up fourth.
Bryan Narducci sewed up the SK Light championship as he sat in the infield after a crash. Clearly the fastest in the field, Narducci and Steven Chapman wrecked while battling for the lead on lap 15 of the 20-lap SK Light Modified feature. Both blamed each other for the incident but it appeared that Chapman gave Narducci a brake job which caused the contact and resulting wreck. Narducci has won six of the nine SK Light Modified events this year at Thompson. Brian Sullivan inherited the lead following the lap 15 wreck and went on to garner his first SK Light Modified victory at Thompson. Alexander Pearl, Nardicci’s cousin, finished second with Glenn Griswold, third.
Other winners at Thompson on Sunday included Mark Jenison in the Late Models, Shawn Monihan over Ryan Morgan and Kyle Gero in the Limited Sportsman and Dave Trudeau in the Mini Stocks.
In NASCAR Monster Cup racing at Indianapolis in the sparsely attended Brickyard 400 Kevin Harvick took the win. Ryan Preece finished 16th on the lead lap. Kyle Busch was the Xfinity Series winner at Indy.
Last year, 2023, The NASCAR Whelen Modified tour series traveled to the Monadnock Speedway in Winchester, NH on Saturday night. Nineteen cars were on hand. Among those in the field was Jacob Perry who was making his debut in the top Modified division. Justin Bonsignore, still smarting from his wreck at Oswego took the pole position as he toured the .25mile oval in 12.72 seconds. Second fastest was Austin Beers. Sam Rameau was third. Anthony Noscella and Doug Coby rounded out the top five. Interesting to note that Jacob Perry qualified ninth while Melissa Fifield was 19th. Perry was 0.9sec faster on the .25 mile oval.
Justin Bonsignore more than made up for his mis-judgement at Oswego when he crashed out of the event and received a broken thumb in the process and lost the point lead. Starting from the pole, he led the entire 150 lap distance. On the other hand, Ron Silk, who had the point lead going into the event, was the victim of an early tangle with Jacob Perry. Shortly after the field completed lap one at the quarter-mile bullring, Perry clipped the left-rear of Silk’s No. 16. The contact spun Silk around in front of the field and Perry’s No. 21 Modified climbed over the left-front tire of Silk’s car as several other drivers piled into the crash. Silk continued on and quickly went to the pits, somehow emerging just in time to stay on the lead lap. However, moments after the green flag waved for the restart, more trouble found Silk as a left-rear tire went flat, causing him to spin and bring out another caution. His crew was able to bolt on a new tire, but Silk’s car was never the same and he finished two laps down in 12th. Perry ended up 13th.
Following Bonsignore at the finish was Austin Beers. Sam Rameau, who earned a career-best finish in third. Kyle Bonsignore was fourth with Doug Coby who rounded out the top five. Sixth thru tenth included Anthony Nocella, Jake Johnson, Brian Robie, Craig Lutz and Matt Kimball.
While Bonsignore was able to celebrate a win after 150 hard fought laps at Monadnock, Doug Coby and team owner Tommy Baldwin Jr. also had plenty of reasons to be happy after claiming the Whelen Granite State Short Track Cup championship. The accomplishment for Coby and Baldwin comes just weeks after Baldwin announced that his Tommy Baldwin Racing team would be parked while he undergoes cancer treatments. For Baldwin and Coby, the opportunity to race for the Whelen Granite State Short Track Cup and the $5,000 bonus that comes with it was too good to pass up. A fifth-place finish by Coby was just enough for Baldwin’s team to claim the Whelen Granite State Short Track Cup ahead of Bonsignore and Austin Beers, who finished second.
Two big stories came out of Monadnock Speedway last weekend. First off, the speedway will be paved this fall before the snow flies and second of all the speedway will be leased and promoted by JDV Productions (Josh Venada} in 2023.
Friday night at Stafford it wasn’t in the cards that races were to be held. After a two-hour rain delay, Stafford Speedway officials made the decision to call off Friday night’s racing card. The Kid’s Night Big Wheel event scheduled for Friday has been rescheduled to Sept. 22. The TC 13 Shootout event for the SK Modified division will be run on Sept. 29. Tickets from tonight’s event will be honored on either Sept. 22 or Sept. 29.
Among the missing at Staffford last week was Jimmy Blewett. Internet news site RaceDayCt reported that Blewett had some herniated discs and has one disc that’s a little out of place. It’s nothing that isn’t treatable. Blewett said that he has to get the inflammation down in his neck and get the physical therapy and get everything put back in place where it needs to be. He hopes to return to racing at the upcoming Fall Final at Stafford. Woody Pitkat accepted the offer to fill the vacant seat.
Down in the southland the scheduled SMART Modified event slated for the Old Dominion Speedway in Virginia was cancelled due to rain.
In action at the New London-Waterford Speedbowl Eric Berndt was the winner of the SK Modified main event. After making contact with the wall the week prior, Berndt kicked off the 35 lap SK Modified® feature event looking like he was shot from a cannon. He would get off to a large lead while Todd Owen and Anthony Flannery moved their way up through the field in Berndt’s tire tracks. A caution shortly into the event gave fans a spirited battle that showed short run speed for Flannery, but as the laps clicked on Berndt would once again pull away. In a race contested without much conflict, lapped traffic would play a part in bunching up the field again giving Flannery another chance to strike, however a brief battle with Owen would allow Berndt to run for cover. Berndt went on to win his third race of the season, closing the point gap with Todd Owen to only 11 points with only three events left.
Jason Palmer’s quest for his fourth Late Model title has gotten a bit easier after this past 30-Lap event. Corey Fanning jumped out to the early lead but Palmer made quick work of the outside groove, taking over the lead on lap 3 and never looking back. It was the 46th career Late Model win at Waterford for Palmer and his 99th victory overall at the track. Palmer also has 53 wins in the Legends division.
Palmer is now two victories away from tying Don Collins for third on the track’s all-time win list at 101 victories. Keith Rocco leads the track’s all-time win list with 154 victories and Phil Rondeau is second with 107 wins.
Across the big pond at the Riverhead Raceway on Long Island the pairing of NASCAR Modified talent Kyle Ellwood and car owner Ken Matlach came about first week of July when Dillon Steuer could not run the Matlach Motorsports car due to dirt racing commitments. Saturday the new pairing dominated the Celebrating Chris Young Twin 49’s setting fast time and then winning both feature events for Ellwood’s second and third victories of 2023. By sweeping the two races, Ellwood earned $1,000 from the Highmark Building Efficiency Clean Sweep bonus.
In NASCAR Cup racing at Kansas City, in a bold move to the front of the field in overtime, Tyler Reddick won Sunday’s Hollywood Casino 400. Ryan Preece finished 18th on the lead lap.
This Sunday at Star Speedway the stars or the MiltonCat Modified Racing Series compete in SBM100 for a $25 k purse with an additional $11013 k in bonus monies making it the highest payout in the 2023 season for the series! Paying the winner a minimum of 5k to win!
On a sad note, Bones Bourcier sends word that Bob Vivari,has passed away. Vivari, who in the late 1960s and much of the ’70s was so typical of the Saturday-night local heroes who brought thousands and thousands of fans to short tracks across this country. If you weren’t from Connecticut, you probably never saw Bob race, and even if you were in that area you had to catch him at Plainville Stadium, because he didn’t travel much. “He was a local racer who brought local fans to his local track, and that, after all, is the foundation of motorsports in America. By the way, Vivari was good enough to be a two-time (1968 and ’72, I believe) track champion at Plainville.”
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).
