Foxwoods Resort and Casino of Connecticut

(Stafford Springs, CT)—Stafford Motor Speedway kicked off its final race event of the 2019 season with feature events for its Limited Late Model, and Street Stock divisions, as well as a feature event for the Vintage All-Stars and the special Ladies Challenge feature that raised over $18,000 for various charities as part of the Saturday NAPA Auto Parts Fall Final Weekend festivities.  The Street Stock feature was also the third and final leg of the RSMPCO.com Street Stock Triple Crown that split $4,500 from RSMPCO.com among the top-10 finishers with Meghan Fuller taking home the winner’s share of $1,000.  Taking feature wins were Matt Clement in the Limited Late Model feature, Fuller in the Street Stock feature, Don Howe in the Vintage All-Stars Feature, and Nicole LaRose in the Ladies Challenge.  Jeremy Lavoie clinched his second consecutive Limited Late Model track championship and Zack Robinson became the 2019 Street Stock track champion.

In the 20-lap Limited Late Model feature, Gary Patnode took the lead at the drop of the green and began to open up his lead over Matt Clement in second.  Duane Provost was third with Jeremy Lavoie fourth and Andrew Durand in fifth.  Clement was starting to close down the gap to Patnode and with 8 laps complete, Patnode’s lead was a car length over Clement with Provost and Lavoie right behind Clement.

Clement was able to take the lead from Patnode on lap-12 and that move opened the door for Provost to move into second and Lavoie into third as Patnode slid back to fourth.  Provost briefly took the lead from Clement on lap-18 but Clement was able to retake the lead.  The two leaders took the white flag with Provost glued to Clement’s back bumper.  Provost was unable to get by Clement as Clement scored his 7^th win of the 2019 season.  Lavoie finished third to clinch his second consecutive Limited Late Model track championship with Patnode and Devon Jencik rounding out the top-5.

In the 30-lap Street Stock feature, Nicole Chambrello took the lead from polesitter Marvin Minkler at the drop of the green flag with Tyler Trott taking second.  Meghan fuller was third with Minkler slotting into line in fourth and Tyler Trott was fifth in the early laps.

Zack Robinson made a move to the inside of Trott for fifth on lap-4 to move into fifth.  Minkler’s car went high in turn 2 on lap-4 and he lost several positions and the caution came out for a spin by Dave Secore coming out of turn 2 with 4 laps complete.

Chambrello took the lead on the restart with Fuller and Hydar side by side for second.  Robinson was fourth and behind him Walker, Adrien Paradis, III, and Trott went 3-wide for fifth with Walker taking fifth.  Fuller took second and Robinson got by Hydar on lap-7 to move into third as Chambrello and Fuller were still leading the field.

Fuller was applying heavy pressure to Chambrello and she was able to take the lead from Chambrello on lap-9.  Robinson followed Fuller by Chambrello and took second.  Hydar also took advantage of Fuller’s move for the lead to take third as Chambrello fell back to fourth with Walker fifth.   Hydar went around Robinson to take second place on lap-12. 

At the halfway point of the race, Fuller held the lead with Hydar, Robinson, Walker, George Bessette, Jr., Jason Lafayette, Chambrello, Paradis, Trott, and Nick Bendiak lined up behind her in the top-10.  Adam Huff and Bendiak both spun on lap-20 but they were both able to keep going and the race stayed green. 

Hydar was starting to apply heavy pressure to the back bumper of Fuller on lap-22, looking high and low for a way to get by and take over the lead.  Fuller was still leading Hydar as they came to the two to go mark.  Fuller was able to hold off Hydar to the checkered flag to pick up her fifth feature win of the 2019 season.  Robinson finished third, which made him the 2019 Street Stock track champion.  Walker finished fourth with Bessette rounding out the top-5.

In the 15-lap Vintage All-Stars feature, Don Howe took the lead at the green with Scott Anderson, Jim Kelly, Mark Miller, and John Maybury making up the top-5.  The caution 2 complete for a spin in turn 2 by Frank Saladino. 

Howe took the lead back under green with Anderson, Kelly, Maybury, and Miller making up the top-5.  Howe and Anderson were quickly stretching out their advantage over Kelly in third.  The two leaders split a lapped car going three-wide on lap-8 with Howe maintaining the lead over Anderson.

The two leaders continued to split lapped traffic with Howe able to keep Anderson behind him.  They came to the white flag with Anderson right on the back bumper of Howe but he was unable to make a pass as Howe took the checkered flag.  When the race was over, Dave Morgensein took a Bob Potter Tribute car around the track for a tribute to the 5-time Stafford track champion who passed away

In the 8-lap Ladies Challenge feature event, Debbie DeSanctis took the lead at the green with Nicole LaRose right behind her in second.  LaRose took to the outside lane to take the lead from DeSanctis on lap-2.  DeSanctis nearly retook the lead on lap-3 but LaRose used lapped traffic to her advantage to keep DeSanctis behind her. 

DeSanctis regrouped and charged back into the lead on lap-5 but the caution came out with 4 laps complete for a spin in turns 1+2 by Brianna Macha to put LaRose back in front for the restart.

LaRose took the lead on the restart with DeSanctis giving chase from second.  The caution came out with 5 laps complete as DeSanctis spun in turn 2.

LaRose took the lead on the restart with Laura Secore taking second.  Dana Janetty was third in line with DeSanctis coming from the back up to fourth and Mary Ann Gambacorta was fifth.  It was all LaRose at the front as she took the checkered flag to win the Ladies Challenge.  DeSanctis charged back up to second at the end with Secore, Jannetty, and Gambacorta rounding out the top-5.

LIMITED LATE MODEL (20)

1) Matt Clement, Wethersfield

2) Duane Provost, Palmer, MA

3) Jeremy Lavoie, Windsor Locks

4) Gary Patnode, Barkhamsted

5) Devon Jencik, Canton

6) David Tefft, Southampton, MA

7) Lucas Leone, Southington

8) Jim Boyle, Pomfret Center

9) Kevin Crosby, Coventry

10) Damian Palardy, Willington

11) Andrew Durand, Chicopee, MA

12) Alexandra Fearn, East Longmeadow, MA

STREET STOCK (30)

1) Meghan Fuller, Auburn, MA

2) Travis Hydar, Woodbury

3) Zack Robinson, Putnam

4) Johnny Walker, Agawam, MA

5) George Bessette, Jr., Danbury

6) Jason Lafayette, Somers

7) Nicole Chambrello, Kensington

8) Adrien Paradis, III, Plainville

9) Dave Secore, Jr., Union

10) Tyler Trott, East Hartford

11) Chris Danielczuk, Goshen

12) Bobby Stirk, III, Naugatuck

13) Marvin Minkler, Stamford

14) David Macha, Sr., Columbia

15) Nick Bendiak, Hopkinton, MA

16) George Yuska, S. Glastonbury

17) Chris Ciriello, Beacon Falls

18) Chris Kuczo, Stamford

19) Daltin Mccarthy, Oxford, MA

20) Adam Huff, Philadelphia, PA

VINTAGE ALL-STARS (15)

1) Don Howe

2) Scott Anderson

3) Jim Kelly

4) Will Maybury

5) Frank Saladino

6) John Maybury

7) Mark Miller

8) Gary Byington

9) El Herbert

10) Rick Rumplick

11) J.D. Distefano

12) Dave Morgenstein

LADIES CHALLENGE (8)

1) Nicole LaRose

2) Debbie DeSanctis

3) Laura Secore

4) Dana Jannetty

5) Mary Ann Gambacorta

6) Ashley Bubna

7) Brianna Macha

8) Heather Varricchio

9) Allison Boyle

10) Elizabeth Vassar

11) Tiffany Spinnato

Source: Scott Running/Stafford Speedway PR

Note: If your track, tour or event is not posted on this blog send your press releases and flyers to: lmodestino@hotmail.com



Sweet Dominates PASS 150 for Victory

Hinesburg’s Bobby Therrien circles the Thunder Road high banks on his pole-winning lap for the 57th Vermont Milk Bowl presented by Northfield Savings Bank. (Alan Ward photo)

Barre’s Nick Sweet celebrates his dominating victory in the PASS Prelude to the Milk Bowl 150. (Alan Ward photo)

Barre, VT – Hinesburg’s Bobby Therrien will lead the field to the green flag in the 57^th Vermont Milk Bowl presented by Northfield Savings Bank on Sunday, September 29. Therrien posted a fast lap of 12.379 seconds around Thunder Road’s high banks to bag the $1,000 Pole Award on Booth Bros./H.P. Hood Qualifying Day.

The 2017 “King of the Road” was actually initially the second-fastest driver on the track for the Maplewood/Irving Oil Late Models. However, provisional polesitter Trampas Demer’s time was disallowed after his car was found to be too wide in post-time trial technical inspection. The disqualification also moved Essex Jct.’s Matthew Smith onto the outside pole after a surprising effort of 12.389 seconds.

Fayston’s Brooks Clark and Montpelier’s Kyle Pembroke will start in the second row after taking victories in the 50-lap qualifying races. Clark inherited the lead on lap 26 of the first 50-lap qualifier after Therrien fulfilled his race requirements and pitted. The 2019 Vermont Governor’s Cup winner then held off late charges by Danville’s Tyler Cahoon and St-Denis, QC’s Patrick Laperle for the win.

Milton’s Dylan Payea qualified for his first Milk Bowl with a fourth-place finish while Graniteville’s Chip Grenier came in fifth. Rich Dubeau, Stephen Donahue, and Scott Dragon earned the final transfer spots.

Pembroke grabbed the lead from Smith right off the start of the second 50-lap qualifier. After a caution on the second lap for a brief rain shower, Pembroke pulled away in the middle stages before holding off Marcel J. Gravel’s belated charge for tine victory.

Two-time American-Canadian Tour (ACT) Champion Scott Payea of Colchester finished third. Joey Polewarczyk, Nick Sweet, Matt White, Jason Corliss, and Joel Hodgdon also transferred into the Milk Bowl. Lance Allen, Jimmy Hebert, Darrell Morin, and Eric Chase fell back on their time trial speeds for Milk Bowl starting positions 19-22. Allen will give up his seat to Christopher Pelkey on Sunday and Pelkey will start last in Segment 1 due to the driver change.

Senioa, GA invader Bubba Pollard came up one spot short in his qualifying race and will start on the outside pole of Sunday’s Last Chance “B” Feature alongside Warwick, MA’s Tom Carey III. Demers, Brent Dragon, Jonathan Bouvrette, and Mason Mitchell are among the other notable drivers who are not yet qualified for the Milk Bowl.

Barre’s Sweet found greater success in the Pro All Stars Series (PASS) Super Late Model Prelude to the Milk Bowl 150 as he dominated the event. Sweet took the lead from Gabe Brown shortly following the first caution on lap 27 and ran away from the field for his second straight PASS victory on Vermont Milk Bowl Weekend.

PASS North point leader D.J. Shaw of Center Conway, NH finished a distant second. Northfield’s Even Hallstrom took a popular third place. Derek Griffith and Brown rounded out the top five.

Waterbury Center’s Jason Woodard took the first two notches of the weekend in the Lenny’s Shoe & Apparel Flying Tigers. The newly crowned champion earned the pole for Segment 1 of the Flying Tiger “Mini Milk Bowl” and went wire-to-wire for the win. Woodard held off multiple charges by Hinesburg’s Cooper Bouchard, including one for a three-lap sprint to the checkered flag following the race’s third caution, for the victory. He will thus start last in Segment 2 on Sunday.

Kelsea Woodard came home in the third spot. Jason Pelkey, Mike Martin, Kyle Streeter, Stephen Martin, Danny Doyle, Tyler Austin, and Mike Billado completed the top-10.

Berlin’s Eric “Pork” Chase made his move late to claim the win in Segment 1 of the Burnett Scrap Metals Road Warrior Mini Milk Bowl. Polesitter Paige Whittemore of Graniteville led most of the event until she bobbled in lapped traffic coming to the two-to-go signal. Chase saw his opportunity and dove low to take the Segment 1 win.

Whittemore settled for second. She was followed to the line by Brian Putney, Fred Fleury, Luke Marcheski, Todd Raymo, Jason Kirby, Frank Putney, and Tyler Whittemore.

Segment 1 of the Allen Lumber Street Stock Mini Milk Bowl was halted after three laps when rain moved back into the area. Polesitter Brandon Gray of East Thetford was the leader at the time. The remainder of Street Stock Segment 1 and Segment 2 of the Road Warrior Mini Milk Bowl will be added to the Sunday schedule of events.

The Thunder Road season concludes at 12:15pm on Sunday, September 29 with the 57^th Vermont Milk Bowl presented by Northfield Savings Bank. The day begins with the Last Chance “B” Feature for the final spots on the Milk Bowl starting grid. The three-segment Milk Bowl will follow along with the conclusion of the Flying Tiger, Street Stock, and Road Warrior Mini Milk Bowls plus a Mini Milk Bowl for the 7-Eleven Dwarf Cars. The pits open at 8:00am and the front gates open at 10:00am. Admission is $30 for adults and free ages 12 and under.

BOOTH BROS./H.P. HOOD MILK BOWL QUALIFYING DAY

UNOFFICIAL RESULTS

MAPLEWOOD/IRVING OIL LATE MODELS

VERMONT MILK BOWL PRESENTED BY NORTHFIELD SAVINGS BANK

STARTING LINE-UP

Pos., Driver, Car #, Hometown

1. Bobby Therrien ( 5VT ) , Hinesburg, VT

2. Matthew Smith ( 04VT ) , Essex Jct., VT

3. Brooks Clark ( 68VT ) , Waitsfield, VT

4. Kyle Pembroke ( 27VT ) , Montpelier, VT

5. Tyler Cahoon ( 38VT ) , Danville, VT

6. Marcel J. Gravel ( 86VT ) , Wolcott, VT

7. Patrick Laperle ( 91QC ) , St-Denis, QC

8. Scott Payea ( 37VT ) , Colchester, VT

9. Dylan Payea ( 7NH ) , Milton, VT

10. Joey Polewarczyk ( 97NH ) , Hudson, NH

11. Chip Grenier ( 9VT ) , Graniteville, VT

12. Nicolas Sweet ( 88VT ) , Barre, VT

13. Rich Dubeau ( 30NH ) , Plainfield, NH

14. Matt White ( 42VT ) , Northfield, VT

15. Stephen Donahue ( 2VT ) , Graniteville, VT

16. Jason Corliss ( 66VT ) , Barre, VT

17. Scott Dragon ( 16VT ) , Milton, VT

18. Joel Hodgdon ( 36VT ) , Craftsbury Common, VT

19. Lance Allen ( 64VT ) , Barre, VT

20. Jimmy Hebert ( 58VT ) , Williamstown, VT

21. Darrell Morin ( 17VT ) , Westford, VT

22. Eric Chase ( 40VT ) , Milton, VT

23. 1^st Place – B-Feature

24. 2^nd Place – B-Feature

25. Thunder Road 80% Provisional

26. ACT 100% Provisional

PRO ALL STARS SERIES SUPER LATE MODELS

Pos., Driver, Car #, Hometown, Lap

1. Nicholas Sweet ( 40VT ) , Barre, VT , 150

2. D.J. Shaw ( 60 ) , Ctr. Conway, NH , 150

3. Evan Hallstrom ( 1VT ) , Northfield, VT , 150

4. Derek Griffith ( 12G ) , Hudson, NH , 150

5. Gabe Brown ( 47 ) , Ctr. Conway, NH , 150

6. Jeremy Davis ( 09 ) , Tamworth, NH , 150

7. Ben Rowe ( 4 ) , Turner, ME , 149

8. Bobby Therrien ( 5X ) , Hinesburg, VT , 149

9. JP Josiasse ( 24J ) , Ennismore, ON, CN , 148

10. Brandon Barker ( 5B ) , Windham, ME , 146

11. Phil Scott ( 14VT ) , Middlesex, VT , 69

DNS Jeremy Sorel ( 77 ) , Westfield, MA , 41

LENNY’S SHOE & APPAREL FLYING TIGERS

MINI MILK BOWL SEGMENT #1

Pos., Driver, Car #, Hometown

1. Jason Woodard ( 68VT ) Waterbury Ctr., VT

2. Cooper Bouchard ( 7VT ) Hinesburg, VT

3. Kelsea Woodard ( 55VT ) Waterbury Ctr., VT

4. Jason Pelkey ( 64VT ) Barre, VT

5. Michael Martin ( 01VT ) Craftsbury Common, VT

6. Kyle Streeter ( 37VT ) Waterbury Ctr., VT

7. #Stephen Martin ( 9VT ) Craftsbury Common, VT

8. Danny Doyle ( 51VT ) Chelsea, VT

9. Tyler Austin ( 5VT ) East Calias, VT

10. Mike Billado ( 8VT ) Grand Isle, VT

11. Brett Wood ( 29VT ) Georgia, VT

12. Robert Gordon ( 20VT ) Milton, VT

13. Kevin Boutin Jr. ( 25NH ) Fairfax, VT

14. Micheal MacAskill ( 33VT ) Williamstown, VT

15. Matthew Potter ( 23VT ) Marshfield, VT

16. Michael Potter ( 23NH ) Plainfield, VT

17. Brian Delphia ( 25VT ) Duxbury, VT

18. Brad Bushey ( 52VT ) Vergennes, VT

19. Adam Maynard ( 57VT ) Milton, VT

20. Bryan P. Wall ( 3VT ) E. Kingston, NH

21. Burton Spooner III ( 4VT ) E. Montpelier, VT

22. Chris Chambers ( 14VT ) Brookfield, VT

23. Colin Cornell ( 54VT ) E. Burke, VT

24. Amanda Wheeler ( 20NH ) Bradford, VT

25. Kevin Streeter ( 67VT ) Waitsfield, VT

26. Bunker Hodgdon ( 83VT ) Wolcott, VT

27. Dwayne Lanphear ( 40VT ) Morrisville, VT

28. Tommy Smith ( 22VT ) Williamstown, VT

BURNETT SCRAP METALS ROAD WARRIORS

MINI MILK BOWL SEGMENT #1

Pos., Driver, Car #, Hometown

1. Eric Chase ( 13 ) Berlin, VT

2. Paige Whittemore ( 47 ) Graniteville, VT

3. Brian Putney ( 87 ) E. Corinth, VT

4. Fred Fleury ( 99 ) Graniteville, VT

5. Luke Marcheski ( 40 ) Boston, MA

6. Todd Raymo ( 26 ) Swanton, VT

7. Jason Kirby ( 71 ) Milton, VT

8. Dan Garrett Jr. ( 54 ) Berlin, VT

9. Frank Putney ( 78 ) Graniteville, VT

10. Tyler Whittemore ( 74 ) Graniteville, VT

11. Anthony Campbell ( 14 ) Berlin, VT

12. James Dopp ( 0 ) Northfield, VT

13. Josh Vilbrin ( 07 ) Northfield, VT

14. Michael Stearns ( 3 ) Johnson, VT

15. Chris Davis ( 69 ) Berlin, VT

16. Tom Blaney ( 23 ) Craftsbury, VT

17. Brittany Lamprow ( 00 ) 0

18. Steve Reno ( 04 ) Barre, VT

19. Mike Mitchell ( 1 ) Essex Jct., VT

20. Zach Audet ( 19 ) Morrisville, VT

21. Nate Brien ( 16 ) Brookfield, VT

22. Taylour Hay ( 64 ) East Hardwick, VT

Source: Michael R. Stridsberg/American-Canadian Tour Media Director

WISCASSET SPEEDWAY TOP 5 RESULTS SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 28th GROUP 2 CHAMPIONSHIP NIGHT AMSOIL DOMINATOR STRICTLY SHOOTOUT

AMSOIL DOMINATOR STRICTLY SHOOTOUT (50 laps)

Pos	No.	Name	Home Town	State	Laps	Diff
1	4	Jordan Russell	Norway	ME	50
2	83	Dan Brown	Turner	ME	50	2.432
3	23	Zachary Emerson	Sabattus	ME	50	2.793
4	36X	Nate Leavitt	Sabattus	ME	50	3.103
5	36	Richard Spaulding	Lisbon	ME	50	3.324

..K&A PROPERTY SERVICES MODIFIEDS (30 laps)* Moeller 1st win of 2019  .. 2017 Modifed Champ

Pos	No.	Name	Home Town	State	Laps	Diff
1	4	Allan Moeller	Dresden	ME	30
2	77	Nick Reno	West Bath	ME	30	0.642
3	1	Adam Chadbourne	Woolwich	ME	30	6.242
4	8	Richard Jordan	Kingfield	ME	29	1 Lap
5	48	Brian Treadwell	Hancock	ME	29	1 Lap

..KENNEBEC EQUIPMENT RENTAL OUTLAW MINI (25 laps)* Childs 5th win of season (2019 Outlaw Min Chamo)

Pos	No.	Name	Home Town	State	Laps	Diff
1	10	Jimmy Childs	Leeds	ME	25
2	19	Zach Audet	Norridgewock	ME	25	0.438
3	66x	James Grover Jr	Newcastle	ME	25	1.822
4	99	Scott Trask	Richmond	ME	25	2.794
5	3	Kalib Bernatchez	Vassalboro	ME	25	2.894

..WOOD PELLET WAREHOUSE LATE MODEL SPORTSMAN (40 laps)* Thorne 2nd win of season – first since opening day.  5th career championship

Pos	No.	Name	Home Town	State	Laps	Diff
1	17	Chris Thorne	Sidney	ME	40
2	9	Darin Ripley	Thomaston	ME	40	0.625
3	41	Logan Melcher	Fayette	ME	40	1.916
4	78	Tiger Colby	Wiscasset	ME	40	2.088
5	15M	Frank Moulton	Clinton	ME	40	2.467

Source: Ken Minott
Wiscasset SpeedwayPromoter / Announcer / Sales

The trees are creating a colorful background for fall’s events including motorcycle and legend car racing, racing clubs and teams, drifting, rally schools, a half marathon and the fan-favorite 24 HourThursday, September 26, 2019NHMS PR Official Release

The green landscape of New Hampshire Motor Speedway is transforming to rich hues of red, orange and gold, creating a beautiful New England fall background for the exciting events lined up for October at “The Magic Mile.”

“We love summer for obvious reasons, but fall in New England is just spectacular,” said David McGrath, executive vice president and general manager of New Hampshire Motor Speedway. “As the 2019 racing season quickly wraps up, October is still full of fun events with exciting action for our fans to enjoy – all while experiencing the beautiful New England foliage.”

The fan-favorite 24 Hours of Lemons Halloween Hooptiefest, the world’s first endurance race series for cars that cost $500 or less, returns to Loudon to take on the 1.6-mile road course Oct. 19-20. With 10,000 participants spread across dozens of races at tracks coast-to-coast, no other event creates bigger, weirder, more hilariously-irrational challenges than this weekend-long blowout of bumper-to-bumper competition between cars that are due for the scrapheap. Tickets, which include infield access, are $30 for the weekend and a portion of the proceeds benefit Speedway Children’s Charities New Hampshire Chapter. Overnight camping is available for purchase at the front gate on a first-come, first-served basis beginning Thursday, Oct. 17.

Two wheels take to the track when motorcycles come to town. Penguin Roadracing School will hit the track Oct. 4 prior to the Loudon Road Race Series taking on the road course for round seven, the final round of the 2019 season, Oct. 5-6. The following day, riders of any skill level who want to learn the physics of how a motorcycle works and how to make it do what you want can join Fishtail Riding School on Oct. 7. Legend cars will accompany the LRRS weekend with MOAT Mountain Road Course Series, Oct. 5-6.

Car clubs will invade the speedway when the White Mountain Chapter of the BMW Car Club of America (Oct. 5), COM Sports Car Club (Oct. 12-13), Sports Car Club of New Hampshire (Oct. 13) and the Boston Chapter of the BMW Car Club of America (Oct. 26) come to town.

Looking to get involved with drifting? The Team O’Neil Rally School will be at NHMS on Oct. 12-13 with their Drift Driving Course. This course helps drivers progress their skills with different levels of instruction that cater to everyone from beginners to intermediate drivers. North East Drift Co. will keep grassroots drifting fun and alive with their Fall Brawl on Oct. 5-6, and GIG Motorsports brings their Halloween Drift-tacular to the speedway on Oct. 20. Spectator wristbands are available for purchase for both events at the Operations window at the Main Entrance at NHMS on the day of the events. NEDCo will also be at the speedway Oct. 26-27 and offers free ride-alongs to those who purchase a spectator wristband.

The New England Half Marathon on Sunday, Oct. 13 will take runners on a scenic journey from the start line at the entrance of New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon, along country roads to the finish line at the New Hampshire State House in Concord. Registration is open now through the morning of the half marathon, and a portion of the proceeds benefit Speedway Children’s Charities New Hampshire Chapter.

For ticket information for all events at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, including the November 28, 2019-January 5, 2020 Gift of Lights presented by Eastern Propane & Oil, the June 13-21, 2020 Motorcycle Week at NHMS and the July 17-19, 2020 Foxwoods Resort Casino 301 race weekend, visit the speedway website at NHMS.com or call Fan Relations at (603) 783-4931.

(Stafford Springs, CT)—When the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour takes the green flag this weekend at Stafford Speedway for the NAPA Fall Final 150, Meriden, CT native and SK Modified® regular Matt Galko will look to realize a dream by making his NWMT debut.  Galko will be piloting the #41 Chevrolet owned by Susanne Lewis with Steve Mendoza serving as the crew chief.

“This is kind of a combo deal between Susanne Lewis and my crew chief Steve Mendoza,” said Galko.  “It’s a brand new car that they’ve been working on putting together.  I’ve known them for a while and I drove a couple times for Steve on the R.O.C. Tour two years ago so that’s how we got to know each other.  This has been a dream come true for me.  This has been something that my family and myself have worked for since we got started in the SK Lights.  The open modified shows are nice and all but the premier division that everyone wants to run is the Whelen Modified Tour.  I’ve had talks with some owners here and there over the past couple of years but nothing has worked out.  We’re going to have our challenges and growing pains as a brand new team, but it helps that we know the track and we’re hoping that everything will work out for us.”

There is no better track that Galko could have picked than Stafford to make his NWMT debut.  Galko is a two-time SK Light track champion (2010, 2011) and he has won a total of 10 races with 8 SK Light wins and 2 SK Modified® wins at the Connecticut half-mile.  Galko will be relying on his track knowledge to help overcome any learning curve he and the #41 team will face.

“We have to keep our expectations realistic because the Whelen Modified Tour is a whole different ballgame,” said Galko.  “First I want to qualify for the race, after that my goal is to finish on the lead lap.  If we could come out of the race with a top-15 finish or something like that, that would be really, really good for our first time out.  Pit strategy is always a big thing at Stafford and if you have the right strategy you could use that to your benefit.  Kyle Bonsignore won the Fall Final last year, which I think was a surprise to some people, and he was able to catch a lot of the guys off-cycle and had the freshest tires at the end of the race.”

Perhaps the biggest obstacle that Galko will have to overcome is his lack of experience in group qualifying.  In his career, Galko has only qualified through time trials once before and he says he will definitely be feeling some nerves as he prepares to make his qualifying laps in NWMT group qualifying at 2:30pm on Saturday.

“I’m feeling a lot of nerves right now more than excitement,” said Galko.  “I’m sure it’ll get a lot more exciting once we get to the track and start rolling.  I lack experience with group qualifying in the tour modifieds.  Everything I’ve run I’ve qualified through heat races.  I’ve time trialed one time at the Turkey Derby and the nerves I felt that day were unlike any I’ve ever experienced before.”

As Galko and the #41 team prepare for this weekend’s NAPA Fall Final 150, Galko is grateful to everyone who is helping him to realize his dream of making his first NWMT start.  They are also looking for any sponsors who would like to join the #41 team for the NAPA Fall Final.

“We have a lot of good equipment with this new team but we’re a little short on crew for pit road so I couldn’t do this without the help of all the crew members from our SK and Tour teams,” said Galko.  “It’s going to be a big team effort for us this weekend and I’m really looking forward to the race.  We’re funding this out of our pockets and the help of Steve Mendoza and Susanne Lewis.  Any marketing partners that would want to come on board with us would be greatly appreciated and would go a long way towards helping us out.”

Tickets for NAPA Fall Final Weekend, September 28 & 29, are priced at $40.00 for adult general admission, $10.00 for children ages 6-14, and children ages 5 and under are admitted free of charge when accompanied by an adult.  Reserved seat tickets are $45.00 for all ages.  All ticket prices include 10% CT Admission Tax. Stafford Motor Speedway offers plenty of free parking along with overnight parking available for self contained Recreational Vehicles.  Discount tickets are available through participating NAPA stores. 

Source: Scott Running/Stafford Speedway PR

(Stafford Springs, CT)—Ryan Preece Racing has announced a $500 bonus for Sunday’s SK Modified® feature at the NAPA Auto Parts Fall Final. The bonus will be split with $250 going to the winner and $250 to the hard charger of the race, the driver advancing the most positions over the course of the feature.  With the bonus, Sunday’s 40-lap SK Modified® feature will pay $2,075 to win, with a total posted purse of $10,060.

“I’m excited to have the ability to post this bonus for Stafford’s SK Modified® teams,” explained Preece.  “I attribute much of the opportunities I have today to my time spent on the Stafford half-mile running against guys like Ted Christopher, Keith Rocco, and Woody Pitkat.  The SK Modified® division is one of the toughest weekly divisions in the country and is home to some of the best short track talent around.”

Preece is no stranger to Stafford Victory Lane, notching 35 career victories including back to back Spring Sizzler® wins and a $12,000 pay day in the NAPA Auto Parts SK 5K, the richest SK Modified race of the season.  Most recently Preece grabbed the win in the June 2019 Stafford Open Modified 80 in Ryan Preece fashion, pitting late and blasting through the field with just 25 laps to go.

“I wanted to post a hard charger award because the challenge at Stafford is starting deep in the field,” continued Preece, driver of the #47 JTG Racing Cup Car.  “With Stafford’s handicapping system and big car counts the top drivers always end up starting outside the top-10.”

Preece is currently in his rookie season in the Monster Energy Cup Series driving the #47 car for JTG Daugherty racing. Ryan has scored 3 top 10’s in his rookie campaign including a career best 3rd place run at Talladega in April.

“We want to thank Ryan for posting this bonus,” explained Stafford General Manager Mark Arute.  “Ryan’s passion for short track racing is unrivaled and he is a great representative of modified racing at the cup level.  All of us at Stafford are proud to have a past SK Modified® champion competing at the highest level of our sport and we look forward to whenever he gets a chance to come back to half-mile to compete.”

Tickets for this weekends NAPA Fall Final Weekend, September 28 & 29, are priced at $40.00 for adult general admission, $10.00 for children ages 6-14, and children ages 5 and under are admitted free of charge when accompanied by an adult. Reserved seat tickets are $45.00 for all ages. All ticket prices include 10% CT Admission Tax. Stafford Motor Speedway offers plenty of free parking along with overnight parking available for self contained Recreational Vehicles. Discount tickets are available through participating NAPA stores.

Source: Scott Running/Stafford Speedway PR

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Barre’s Jason Corliss (#66VT) is gunning for an unprecedented third straight victory in the Vermont Milk Bowl. (Alan Ward photo)

Barre’s Nick Sweet (#40VT) has made a last-minute call to go after a potential record-tying fourth Milk Bowl victory. (Alan Ward photo)

Barre, VT – The 57^th Vermont Milk Bowl presented by Northfield Savings Bank has almost arrived on the Thunder Road calendar. Booth Bros./H.P. Hood Qualifying Day on Saturday, September 28 and the Vermont Milk Bowl on Sunday, September 29 will feature some of the top Maplewood/Irving Oil Late Model racers in the state, region, and country battling for victory in “The Toughest Short Track Race in North America”.

Two hometown racers, Jason Corliss and Nick Sweet, will be chasing history this weekend. Corliss, the newly-crowned “King of the Road”, is chasing an unprecedented third-straight Milk Bowl crown. Sweet, meanwhile, is one of two drivers – along with St-Denis, QC’s Patrick Laperle – who could match Robbie Crouch’s all-time record of four Milk Bowl triumphs.

“I feel good,” Corliss said. “I have confidence, and the team has confidence. But the Milk Bowl is its own animal – previous results and history don’t mean a whole lot. You have experience, and you know you can get the job done, but as soon as the green flag drops in the time trials, it’s a whole new deal. There’s no resting on previous results. It’s all eyes ahead on what you have to accomplish to get in the show, hopefully get a good starting spot, and then do well in Segment 1. You just have to take it one step at a time, one practice at a time, and get the car driving the best you can – and enjoy the process as you go.

While Corliss will be focused on not getting ahead of himself when he gets to the track, he admitted the dream of three straight Milk Bowl wins has crossed his mind in the meantime. Such an accomplishment would be befitting a driver who fell in love with the Milk Bowl even before he got started in the Allen Lumber Street Stock ranks nearly 15 years ago.

“This race is huge,” Corliss stated. “It’s a big deal. It means the world to me. Just growing up at Thunder Road and being a part of this race as a fan or crew member, and now as a driver, it’s as big as it gets. (The Milk Bowl) is tough, it’s not easy, and it shows. The fans and everyone involved can see just how difficult this race is. You really have to have a perfect day to be able to win the race between car performance, driver focus, and just plain luck.”

Sweet, on the other hand, made a last-minute decision to enter this year’s event. As of Monday, Sweet was just planning to run the Pro All Stars Series (PASS) Super Late Model event on Saturday, September 28. However, a conversation with his Maddog Motorsports boss Eric Chase quickly changed that.

“I was talking to Eric and giving him the update on the shop status,” Sweet recounted. “And he said, ‘so what about you for the Milk Bowl?’ I replied, ‘What about me? I’m planning on working with you (as crew chief). I’ve got the PASS car.’ And he said, ‘No, no, you’re going to race, too.’ I said, ‘Well, I don’t have anything prepared.’ He was like, ‘I don’t care. Get working.’”

“So here we are,” Sweet continued. “We’re trying to manage getting people involved and get the car ready. It’s about as unprepared as I’ve ever been for the Milk Bowl – so it’ll be interesting.”

Still, fans of Northeast racing have learned to never count out Nick Sweet at Thunder Road or the Milk Bowl. He won three Vermont Milk Bowls between 2013 and 2016, a three-in-four-years feat that had previously only been accomplished by Laperle and Russ Ingerson. Add in his two track championships, four Labor Day Classic wins, three Community Bank 150 wins, and numerous other accomplishments, and it would be foolhardy to think Sweet won’t be a factor.

Despite this résumé, Sweet is keeping his expectations modest for this weekend. He’ll have a hectic schedule between preparing his Milk Bowl car and attempting to defending his PASS Super Late Model year from last year against the likes of D.J. Shaw, Derek Griffith, Bobby Therrien, and Vermont Governor Phil Scott. Nevertheless, he remains excited about the biggest Thunder Road race weekend of the year.

“It’ll be interesting, but it’ll be fun,” Sweet said. “Either way, I get to go out and race. Hopefully we can put it in the show – that’ll be the biggest thing. I’m looking forward to it. Things are just going to be a bit chaotic the next couple days. If I’m a little wall-eyed the next time you see me, it’s just because of no sleep!”

Vermont Milk Bowl Weekend kicks off at 3:00pm this Saturday, September 28 with Booth Bros./H.P. Hood Qualifying Day. The Maplewood/Irving Oil Late Models have time trials and 50-lap qualifying races to help set the Milk Bowl starting field. Thunder Road’s Lenny’s Shoe & Apparel Flying Tigers, Allen Lumber Street Stocks, Burnett Scrap Metals Road Warriors have qualifying and “Mini Milk Bowl” action. The night ends with a 150-lap event for the Pro All Stars Series Super Late Models, a fireworks show by Northstar Fireworks, and live music from local band Rumblecaddy. The pits open at 9:30am and the front gates open at 12:00pm.

Sunday, September 29 is the 57^th Vermont Milk Bowl presented by Northfield Savings Bank. The Last Chance “B” Feature at 12:15pm determines the final spots on the Milk Bowl starting grid. The three-segment Milk Bowl will follow along with the conclusion of the Flying Tiger and Street Stock Mini Milk Bowls plus a Mini Milk Bowl for the 7-Eleven Dwarf Cars. The pits open at 8:00am and the front gates open at 10:00am.

Adult admission for Vermont Milk Bowl Weekend is $45 for a two-day ticket, $30 for Sunday-only, and $20 for Saturday-only. Kids ages 12 and under are admitted free both days. Speed51 TV will also be doing a live pay-per-view broadcast of all the racing action. A 100-mile blackout is in effect for this broadcast. Visit www.speed51.com to learn more.

Source: Michael R. Stridsberg/American-Canadian Tour Media Director

(Stafford Springs, CT)—When the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour last visited Stafford Speedway in August, it was Ronnie Silk and the #85 Stuart’s Automotive team taking the checkered flag after a thrilling green white checkered shoot-out.  Silk and the #85 team would like nothing better than a repeat performance and to collect the accolades in the NAPA Fall Final victory lane. 

“I think we’re looking pretty good,” said Silk.  “We were planning on bringing our new car that we had at Loudon but it got destroyed so we’ll be coming back with the same car that we won with back in August.  I’m definitely looking forward to coming back to Stafford.  Obviously any race you can win is great but it would be cool to win two in a row at Stafford and getting a win in the NAPA Fall Final would be a good way to wind the year down for sure.”

In addition to going for two wins in a row at Stafford, Silk will be looking to turn his 2019 fortunes around.  Since he won the Stafford 150 in August, Silk has finished 16^th or worse in 3 of the 4 NWMT races held since then.  In that four-race stretch, Silk has gone from 2^nd in the points standings and 24 points behind Doug Coby to 3^rd in the standings, 64 points out of the lead. 

“It’s disappointing with the championship race,” said Silk.  “It’s not anything that we can put our heads down about.  We’ve had fast racecars at all the races but we got caught up in other people’s problems and had some bad luck.  I think we’ll look back at this year and be proud of what we’ve accomplished.  We’ve won 3 races so far and hopefully we can add to that in these last 2 races.  We’ve had some unfortunate circumstances but we’ve had a fast car at every track and we’ve run in the top-3 or top-4 every week.  There’s a lot of momentum that we can take into next season and try to be even better.”

Despite the last race at Stafford coming down to a green white checkered finish at the end of the race after going green for the first 146 laps of the race, Silk says he and the #85 team will be doing their usual preparations for the NAPA Fall Final.

“I think we’re going to prepare the car like we normally would for Stafford,” said Silk.  “I could see us putting a setup in the car for a longer run and then we have a caution about every 10 laps or so in the race.  The last race was an anomaly and we’re going to go with what we normally do and try to make the best adjustments that we can at the track to make the car as good as we can.  I never start a race with a set strategy.  It’s all going to depend on where the caution flags fall.  I prefer to take tires somewhere after halfway and with the 3 trips down pit road it takes to change 3 tires, I like to get all 3 tires changed in one pit cycle.  If you have a handling issue early enough in the race, you might come to pit road for one tire, but with changing one tire it gets hard to match the stagger.  We actually get 4 tires for the race, we have 3 new tires and we can bring one tire from practice to the race, so you could come in early for the one tire and still come back in later for three tires.  It’s all going to depend on your track position and what everyone else around you is doing.”

Tickets for NAPA Fall Final Weekend, September 28 & 29, are priced at $40.00 for adult general admission, $10.00 for children ages 6-14, and children ages 5 and under are admitted free of charge when accompanied by an adult.  Reserved seat tickets are $45.00 for all ages.  All ticket prices include 10% CT Admission Tax. Stafford Motor Speedway offers plenty of free parking along with overnight parking available for self contained Recreational Vehicles.  Discount tickets are available through participating NAPA stores. 

Source: Scott Running/Stafford Speedway PR