Emily Packard has emerged as one of the rising stars on the American Canadian Tour and is looking for success in this Saturday’s ACT Tour Invitational at NHMS, (Credit: ACT Tour photo)
By Lou Modestino
The starting field for the 6th annual Bond Auto ACT Invitational at the New Hampshire Motor Speedway (NHMS) on Saturday, September 20, 2014 has been set. The sixth edition of the event will have the American Canadian Tour (ACT) introducing fans to a promising future for regional Late Model short track stock car racing. Veteran champions and former NHMS winners Eddie MacDonald, Rowley, MA; Joey Polewarczyk, Jr. (Pole), Hudson, NH; Ray Parent, Tiverton, RI; and Brian Hoar, Williston, VT have all won events at the “Magic Mile”. This year there are lots of young emerging stars who will challenge the veterans.
Top ten point chasers who are looking to make a statement at the Bond Auto ACT Invitational include two Vermont drivers, Jimmy Hebert, Williamstown and 18 year-old Emily Packard, E. Montpelier. Hebert already has two ACT wins with an opening event at Lee USA Speedway in 2013 and a win at the 7/8ths mile Sanair Speedway, outside Montreal, Quebec. He was also second-fastest of the thirty-five (35) cars participating in the recent test and tune session at NHMS. Packard may have more laps in 2014 than any other competitor in the field entering the Invitational. She has raced a full schedule on the ACT US and is currently 5th in points, less than 10 points out of second place. She also has maintained full-time weekly schedules at both Thunder Road Int’l Speedbowl in Barre, VT and Devil’s Bowl Speedway in West Haven, VT.
The State of Maine sends two drivers to the annual event with Rowland Robinson, Jr. from “Downeast” Steuben and Ben Ashline from Pittston. Robinson’s family team has found consistency in the 2014 season and this will be the #28ME team’s third Invitational. Ben Ashline has been the surprise of the 2014 season. After sitting out over a year and a half from racing due to non-racing injury, the Ashline team has been fast, and brought home consistent top finishes all season.
Veteran Joey Pole said, “This is always one of the most fun races to be involved with. Not only is it in my home state, and I have lots of friends and family there, but it really is like no other race we run all year. ACT has a starting system that makes teams like ours sweat it out all day. We try to figure out what we should do to come from what usually is in the mid twenties on the starting grid in order to try and win in just 50 laps. We usually end up throwing the playbook out the window and just put the right pedal on the floor and hang on!”
Two young Quebec stars have experience and talent to challenge the former winners and ACT Champions. Alex Labbe, driving the Larue Industrial Ford out of Quebec City, has risen to become another in a long line of favorites for an enthusiastic Quebec fan base. Labbe will lock up his first ACT title at the Autodrome Ste. Eustache 200 on Sunday, September 14, 2014 just by showing up. He was at the top of the speed charts throughout the NHMS test and tune day. The potent Larue team won two events during the championship run this season. Dany Trepanier is another of the fast Quebec teams with experience in the Bond Auto ACT Invitational. He won an event this season at the Autodrome Ste. Eustache (ASE), and currently sits just five points out of second place in the ACT Quebec Series, going into the final event of the year in a return visit to ASE.
Tom Curley, President of the American Canadian Tour said, “I think the great strength of our ACT system is that the program seems to introduce new and talented young teams every season., As we look to the future this is good for ACT and especially good for regional racing, both weekly and touring. The field of 43 teams we have assembled for the Invitational this year is the most diverse to attend over the past six years. It should be exciting.
The 6th annual Bond Auto ACT Invitational will be part of a sensational triple-header Saturday at NHMS. Forty-three (43) ACT teams will join the NASCAR Modified and the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series on Saturday, September 20, 2014. Post time is 1:00 following the final NASCAR Sprint Cup practice. The ACT 50 mile event will post at 5 p.m.
6th Annual Bond Auto ACT Invitational Driver Roster
Car # Driver Hometown
3VT Ricky Roberts Washington, VT
4NY Brandon Atkins Au Sable Forks, NY
5RI Richard Staskowski Hope Valley, RI
7ME Glen Luce Turner, ME
8NH Guy Caron Lempster, NH
9ME Emily Packard East Montpelier, VT
9MA Brian Tagg Oxford, MA
9NH Kyle Welch Newport, NH
9VT Chip Grenier Graniteville, VT
10MA John Falconi Oakham, MA
10VT Josh Demers Middlesex, VT
11NH Brett Gervais Island Pond, VT
11NY Josh Masterson Charlotte, VT
15ME Ben Ashline Pittston, ME
15VT Joey Laquerre East Montpelier, VT
16ME Travis Stearns Auburn, ME
16VT Scott Dragon Colchester, VT
17MA Eddie MacDonald Rowley, MA
17RI Ray Parent Tiverton, RI
19QC Dany Trepanier St-Edouard, QC
20NH Taylor Martin Windham, NH
27NH Wayne Helliwell, Jr. Dover, NH
28ME Rowland Robinson, Jr. Steuben, ME
29NH Aaron Fellows Croyden, NH
34NH Todd Davis Claremont, NH
37VT Brian Hoar Williston, VT
38VT Tyler Cahoon St. Johnsbury, VT
41QC Jonathan Bouvrette Blainville, QC
41VT Jamie Aube N. Ferrisburg, VT
48QC Alex Labbe Quebec, QC
49NH Matt Anderson Franklin, NH
50ME Jeff White Winthrop, ME
58VT Jimmy Hebert Williamstown, VT
66VT Jason Corliss Barre, VT
77MA Jimmy Linardy Somerville, MA
78QC Stephane Descoste Oka, QC
84QC Martin Latulippe Vallee-Jonction, QC
88VT Nick Sweet Barre, VT
91CT Larry Gelinas Buxton, ME
91QC Patrick Laperle Montreal, QC
97NH Joey Polewarczyk, Jr. Hudson, NH
99VT Cody Blake Barre, VT
07MA Tom Carey, Jr. New Salem, MA
