Vermont Motorsports Magazine Launches All-New Website

VMM releases new website, announces alliance with Times Argus

BURLINGTON, VT -- Vermont Motorsports Magazine has launched an all-new website for stock car racing coverage at www.vtmotormag.com. The new VMM website is an easy-to-use, all-inclusive place for feature stories, on-site reporting, weekly columns, photography, video, and more.

Originally launched as a blog in February 2009, Vermont Motorsports Magazine has become a leading source for grassroots auto racing news, focusing on Vermont's weekly tracks and regional touring series. The new www.vtmotormag.com, built by Anthony Sweet Designs, has organized and streamlined VMM's coverage. Race fans will find the new website much more attractive and easier to navigate.

"I have been overwhelmed with the recognition Vermont Motorsports Magazine has achieved in such a short amount of time," said Editor Justin St. Louis. "The blog quickly outgrew itself and we found that functionality was decreasing radiply, so it was time to make a change for our dedicated readers. Anthony Sweet comes from a racing family, and he understood what VMM needed. I feel that the new website he designed will bring VMM to the next level."

Vermont Motorsports Magazine has also formed a partnership with The Barre-Montpelier (VT) Times Argus; St. Louis' popular weekly column will appear each Wednesday in the Central Vermont newspaper.

"It is such an honor to write for The Times Argus," St. Louis said. "To follow in the footsteps of writers like Dave Moody, Tom Herzig, and especially the late Pete Hartt really is a childhood dream come true."

Vermont Motorsports Magazine will offer on-site coverage of more than 50 short track events in 2010, providing in-depth coverage of events at Thunder Road Int'l Speedbowl in Barre, Bear Ridge Speedway in Bradford, and Devil's Bowl Speedway in West Haven, events for the American-Canadian Tour and Modified Racing Series, and regional and national racing stories with Vermont interest. VMM also extends its coverage to social media including Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube.

The new www.vtmotormag.com will debut Friday, April 30, as racing seasons open at Thunder Road and Plattsburgh, NY's Airborne Speedway on Saturday, May 1, and Sunday, May 2. VMM is online now at www.vtmotormag.com with links to the VMM blog, Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube pages.

For advertising and promotional information, email LCRaceMedia@yahoo.com or call (802) 355-3282.

Centre For Speed Brings ACT Late Model Division to Maritimes in 2011

SHEDIAC, N.B. -- Nearly a year's worth of rumors and talks were confrimed Friday: the American-Canadian Tour Late Model division is headed to the Canadian Maritimes. The Centre For Speed -- a 3/8-mile oval in Shediac, New Brunswick near the city of Moncton -- will introduce the division into weekly competition in 2011.

"The time is right for our race facility and race teams to join forces with what has become the most successful form of weekly and touring racing in the northeastern United States and the provinces of Quebec and Ontario," said Centre For Speed general manager Tim Wile. "We are happy and excited to be the first organization in the Maritimes to introduce this very successful type of Late Model racing to our region."

The Centre For Speed will become the 11th weekly track to utilize some or all of the ACT Late Model rulebook, joining Barre's Thunder Road Int'l Speedbowl, New Hampshire's White Mountain Motorsports Park, Twin State Speedway, Lee USA Speedway, and -- new in 2010 -- Canaan Fair Speedway, Oxford Plains Speedway in Maine, Waterford Speedbowl in Connecticut, Seekonk Speedway in Massachusetts, and Ontario's Kawartha Speedway and Capital City Speedway. The ACT Late Model Tour and Serie ACT-Castrol also use the rulebook in the U.S. and Canada.

"We designed the ACT Late Model division with a high priority on weekly racing as a base to our business model," said ACT president Tom Curley. "The philosophy was, and continues to be, to provide a cost-efficient for race teams, tracks, promoters, and fans. We now have over 400 teams who use the ACT rules and we continue to enjoy expansion. We are eager to work with the Centre For Speed on this expansion project."

The Juice: A Bunch of Random Stuff. Seriously.

-by Justin St. Louis
VMM Editor

April what? Feels like June. I'm in shorts and a t-shirt as I write this column, and my lawn is as green as I've ever seen it this time of year. By the way, this week's "Juice" has no real direction, but rather it's just a mindless collection of thoughts and notes I've taken during the last few days. Then again, I guess that's pretty much what this column is every week anyway. Enjoy.

***

We continue to watch Kevin Lepage in the NASCAR Nationwide Series. Since missing the cut at Daytona, the Shelburne native has easily made the starting field in all four events, qualifying no worse than 28th in Jack McNelly's #56 MacHill Motorsports cars.

Alas, Lepage is forced to "start and park" his car each week due to a lack of funding. A botched sponsorship deal with distributor Revolucion World Wide and its START Natural Energy Drink brand left the team scrambling for money to go racing. McNelly is funding the now-sponsorless operation out of his own pocket at this point, and can't afford the costs accumulated by completing the entire distance of each race.

On Wednesday, this post came from Lepage himself on a message board dedicated to his fan base: "First of all, the MacHill Team is a better team then what I'm showing," he wrote. "We need to take care of these two cars so I can be at the track each week. Second, until we get a sponsor we will continue to [start and park]."

***

Go support the Autism Puzzle Foundation's "Casino Night" fundraiser at the Barre Auditorium on Saturday. This is the fifth year that the benefit will have the stars of the American-Canadian Tour and Thunder Road on hand to deal Black Jack, Craps, and Roulette, and it's a great time for a great cause.

Over 150 items will be auctioned off, including trips to Ireland and Las Vegas, and $1,000 cash. The dealers will be ACT Late Model Tour champion Brian Hoar, "King of the Road" Jean-Paul Cyr, top dogs Phil Scott, Robbie Crouch, Dave Pembroke, John Donahue, Nick Sweet, Joey Laquerre, and Eric Chase, and ACT/Thunder Road president Tom Curley.

Click here for more information.

***
We got a nice response from Waterford (Conn.) Speedbowl race director Scott Tapley regarding our comments on Keith Rocco's restarts on March 28. After suggesting that Rocco was kinda-sorta getting away with jumping the gun a little bit in last week's "Juice", Tapley responded with this:

"No special treatment for Rocco, in fact, his first three restarts were perfect. Our rule is that leader must maintain pace car speed and the leader, and only the leader, well be the first car to fire at the restart line in the middle of turn 3.

"His next restart, however, was a brake check at the line (I know because I race direct at the line), and I immediately told our spotter official to tell Rocco's spotter that that was his one and only warning on the brake check. He maintained his correct restarts for the remaining restarts with absoultely no question in my mind.

"[At] our season finale last year ... Keith's team argued for "extra" caution laps when the rule is four laps no matter what ... because of our pit in/out blending problems. (Editor's note: Waterford has a very odd pit road; the only entrance from the track surface is a swinging gate on the backstretch that can only be opened by an official during a yellow flag period.) We went green at our normal four laps and it took the Rocco team 18 laps to complete the change. A broken track bar braket cost him the title, as he entered the event the leader. The team claimed that we could have provided a "courtesy" [lap] but I my opinion it would nullify any rule ever made.

"If you dont have ruling consistency than you have no crediblity, and I'm proud of the fact that I and our officials have shown that in our first year of operation, much different than the Speedbowl I attended when I first moved to Connecticut in 2005."

So there you have it. Thanks to Scott Tapley for reading VMM, and thanks even more for the response.

***

Sad news comes with the passing of pioneer racer Ronnie "Satch" Hunt on Easter Sunday. Despite his youth, Hunt was a top driver in the barnstorming days of the open-wheel Coupes in Vermont and New Hampshire, winning multiple features in the #59 and #60 cars at Barre's Thunder Road and Northeastern Speedway near St. Johnsbury. At the time of his first win at Northeastern in 1960, he was just 19 years old.

Satch owned and operated Hunt's Auto Repair and AKM Recycling in his native Franconia, N.H., and was an active member of the community; he had roles with the Franconia Board of Adjustment and the Franconia Planning Board, was a town selectman and firefighter, and was a member of the LaFayette Lions Club. He also attended the Northeastern Speedway 50th reunion last July.

Satch was 68.

***

That NCAA title was one of the best basketball games you'll ever see. And thanks to Duke, I won a basketball hoop of my very own. #bracketology

***

There's something about Dale Brackett that you can get behind. Most small teams -- especially when they're based more than a thousand miles away from most of the action -- don't make it in the big leagues of NASCAR. I don't know whether or not Brackett's new NASCAR Camping World Truck Series team will, but at least he's got the right attitude about it.

"We're trying to make our own opportunity here," he said after failing to qualify for his debut at Martinsville on March 27. "It's a huge jump from where we've been, and we know that. There's no real way to prepare for it. But you've either got it or you don't."

Amen, fella.

***

Some numbers from the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East this year. Just for fun.

Races: 2
Winners: Darrell Wallace, Jr. (Greenville), Max Gresham (South Boston)
Oldest winner: Gresham, age 16 years, 11 months, 4 days
Number of starters: 30 (Greenville), 26 (South Boston)
Number of rookies: 16 (Greenville), 16 (South Boston)
Average age of Top 10 finishers: 22 (Greenville), 21 (South Boston)
Average age of Top 10 finishers at South Boston without Matt Kobyluck (age 40) and Eddie MacDonald (age 29): 18
Drivers younger than Joey Polewarczyk, Jr., (age 20) at South Boston: 13

My, how this sport has changed.

***

Our many thanks to Dave Parker and Subway of Barre, Montpelier, Waterbury, and Northfield for the live updates at Hickory Motor Speedway's Easter Bunny 150, part of the PASS National Championship series. Dave made it possible for us to get photos, interviews, and mid-race updates from North Carolina (much as he did for us at New Smyrna in January).

Unfortunately our northern drivers didn't fare too well overall, but what can you do?

Tarheel racer Preston Peltier won the race over Jay Fogleman and young Ryan Blaney. Maine's Cassius Clark led a bunch of laps before finishing fourth and Ben Rowe turned in a "miracle" performance to finish in eighth place, but that was the best we could get. New Brunswick racer Lonnie Sommerville was 25th, with Maine racers Johnny Clark 26th and Ryan Moore 28th, New Hampshire's Brad Leighton -- who entered the race as the National point leader -- 30th, and Danville, Vt.'s Steven Legendre a crashed-out 31st.

We had it all covered on our Twitter page on Saturday, including quotes from Moore and Legendre, and photos of guys like David Ragan and Max Papis, who were moonlighting from their regular gigs as NASCAR Sprint Cup Series drivers to have a little short track fun.
If you're not on Twitter, you'll be missing some good stuff this year that you may not find on the VMM homepage, like in-race updates, photos, quickie interviews, contests, and who knows what else!

***

WEEKEND SCHEDULE:

Saturday, April 10
Albany-Saratoga Speedway, Malta, N.Y. -- 1:00pm (Open Practice)
Canaan Fair Speedway, Canaan, N.H. -- 2:00pm (Open Practice)

TOURING SERIES:

NASCAR Nationwide Series: Fri., April 9 -- Phoenix Int'l Raceway, Phoenix, Ariz. (9:00pm)
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series: Sat., April 10 -- Phoenix Int'l Raceway, Phoenix, Ariz. (7:30pm)

The Juice: Where Were YOU?

-by Justin St. Louis

JFK. The first moon landing. The Miracle On Ice. The Challenger space shuttle. September 11.

And now, electronic scoring.

Where were you when these life-changing events took place? I'll never forget where I was yesterday, messing around at my "real" job, reading Twitter on my phone, when messages came across from ACT and Thunder Road that the organizations would be switching to electronic scoring systems for 2010. I'm telling you I almost dropped my Blackberry right there.

I had to read it again. And again. Then I read the actual press release itself. Could this really be happening?

Since the dawn of its existence, Thunder Road has been very steadfast and proud of its traditional tape-scoring procedures. Hand-written scoresheets scribbled hastily each and every lap by as many as five or six people for as many as 200 laps. The practice was perfected at the Barre track in 1963 by Dr. Gordon Nielsen, and techniques and systems were developed there and spread to the masses at race tracks across the country, from tiny Vermont bullrings to the wide-open spaces of Daytona. But tape scoring is becoming a forgotten art, and yesterday it lost another battle in its war of surivial.

In an age where everything is done by computers (and here I am), Thunder Road and ACT -- or, more specifically, front man Tom Curley -- have been deadset against implementing electronic scoring, citing its many faults. In person, I have heard Curley go on maybe a dozen times in as many years about the disadvantages of electronic scoring. I agree with many of his arguments, including the dreaded "glitch" that seems to happen only in the most important of moments.

Many fans may not know this, but the first Modified Racing Series event at Thunder Road in 2008 was a nightmare for the electronic scoring system used that day. I have also witnessed first-hand several scoring-related delays at places like Oxford Plains and Lee USA speedways, transponders either not registering or simply "missing" a random lap at many other tracks, and myriad other problems.

As I understand it, each race car's transponder is in the same pre-determined location, so many inches or feet from the front edge of the front bumper, with a scoring loop buried in the racing surface the same number of feet or inches in front of the start/finish line. This means a car's transponder crosses the scoring loop at the same time the front bumper crosses the start/finish line. (For the record, the NEKC go-kart series has used electronic scoring at Thunder Road for many years, and the scoring loop wires are clearly visible in the asphalt about four to five yards before the start/finish line at the track; MRS has used this same system in both of its appearances at the track, and NASCAR used the system with its Busch North Series events in the late 1990s and early 2000s.)

But at most tracks, the scoring loop travels only a couple of feet into the infield, if at all. What if a car has to go through the infield for some reason and misses the loop, but is able to continue? Is the car not scored that lap?

How about this scenario, and say for the sake of the argument that the transponders are located on the rear frame rail of each car (which is quite common): What if two cars are racing for position coming to the line, and Car A spins but Car B continues, yet Car A -- now facing backwards -- has its transponder cross the line before the Car B, which although its nose may have crossed the finish first, its transponder is scored behind Car A's. Yeah, I made a diagram. According to the transponder, Car A is the winner, but according to everything else logical, Car B is the winner. In theory, you would think such a decision could be easily overturned by a race director or anyone else that physically witnessed the incident.

In a situation where there are between three and six human scorers watching every single car with their own eyes and writing everything down as it happens, it'd be a moot point and Car B would win every time. In this case, where transponders have replaced humans (and the impression that the official press release gives is that there won't be as many people sitting in the scoring tower as there used to be, meaning less eyes watching), it's plausible that such a scenario could be missed if it was to happen somewhere in the middle of the pack rather than at the front.

Is that a likely thing to happen often? Probably not. Am I reaching a little bit to try and prove a point? Absolutely. But it's entirely possible. And a computer error could ultimately cost someone a championship.

Here's why I feel I have some ground to stand on: I was a tape scorer for ACT in 2008. I worked the position at each Série ACT-Castrol event that year as well as ACT Late Model Tour races at Waterford, Kawartha, and White Mountain, the Showdown at Chaudière, and a handful of weekly races at Thunder Road, probably 15 events in total. Am I an expert? Of course not, but I did take a crash course with a very steep learning curve, and I now feel like I could get the job done at any track anywhere.

Tape scoring is without question the toughest job in racing, and I don't care who you ask. This media stuff is easy, trust me. Tape scoring is the dumps. You need 100% focus and concentration every second of every lap. You have to change your techniques all the time, even once a lap. You have to be able to anticipate, react, and get it right in the blink of an eye. You don't even get to watch the race, but rather focus on a group of six or eight or fifteen cars. But you feel damn proud of yourself when the night is over and nothing got totally botched.

Try scoring a 30-lap Tiger Sportsman feature at Thunder Road, when the pack never breaks up from side-by-side racing. And under those horrendous 60-watt lights hanging over the track. I've done it. It's hard and it totally sucks. But when that happens this year and one of those guys twitches out of Turn 4 and someone goes through the infield -- and I know you can picture it in your head -- and he misses the scoring loop, he's gonna be real mad when he recovers to finish seventh only to discover he never crossed the "line" on lap 13 and really finished in 26th, one lap down. And when titles come down to 13 points over the top three drivers like the Tigers saw in 2009, it will make a HUGE difference.

What about the practice of going back to the last complete green-flag lap when there's a wreck? Will that change? Will partial laps be deleted or not scored?

There are many, many advantages to electronic scoring, including better accuracy, instant results, lap-by-lap breakdowns, and more. Transponders take the inevitable and cruicial guesswork out of photo finishes or tight-quarters racing, and are usually able to handle an entire race without issue.

But when things are running smooth, it's no big deal. It's those freak incidents that get people up in arms.

I hope for everyone's sake that the transition to electronic scoring goes well. Because I'll certainly rememeber where I am if it doesn't.

***

We've heard encouraging news that the region's three dirt tracks are thinking about working together this season toward a common, successful goal. We've learned of an upcoming meeting between promoters Butch Elms of Bear Ridge Speedway in Bradford, Dick Therrien, new boss at New Hampshire's Canaan Dirt and Canaan Fair Speedways, and first-time track operator Mike Rivers, who has completely rebuilt the track in Rumney, N.H., now known as Big Daddy's Speedbowl.

Wouldn't a Friday-Saturday-Sunday circuit be just awesome for the dirt racers around here? Cross your fingers, kids.

***

Joey Doiron is making a big mistake. At just 18 years old, he has decided to move from ACT to PASS in an attempt to win back-to-back Rookie of the Year titles. In a press release earlier this week, Doiron said he is looking forward to "going against guys like Richard Moody Racing, Scott Mulkern's team and Johnny Clark on all those different tracks with PASS this year," and eventually maybe moving up the NASCAR ladder.

Doiron is a likeable kid with some obvious talent. His parents have poured their hearts and souls into building a small-but-solid race team around their son. They have a huge behind-the-scenes ally in chassis man Dale Shaw, and could really turn some heads this year if they stuck with ACT. Moving to PASS is certainly not a bad thing, but the timing simply isn't right. Last year Doiron ran well in his first PASS start at his home track, Beech Ridge Motor Speedway in Maine, and started to get his ACT legs under him late in the season with impressive runs at Waterford, Twin State, and the ACT Invitational at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, but that's only four races. Out of 15. He also failed to qualify at Lee, Thunder Road, and the Oxford 250, and struggled in races at Airborne, White Mountain, and Beech Ridge.

Doiron's late-season progress showed that he'd have certainly been ready to be in the top-five consistently in 2010, up a bunch from his 14th-to-24th-place runs earlier. Instead, he'll have to start over in a different series with a different car, and the learning curve goes instantly back to where it was at the beginning of last year.

What Doiron needs to do is focus on staying consistent, becoming a threat week in and week out in ACT, get some seat time out front, maybe win a race or two, and then make the jump. And running four or five PASS events on ACT off-weekends would be a great idea in the mean time.

While he is generally easy on equipment, he still has an average of only two crew members -- his parents -- at each race. He needs to establish himself, recruit some more help, and get comfortable racing against the likes of RPM Motorsports, Brent Dragon, John Donahue, the Pete Duto #55NH team, Joey Pole Racing, and the powerhouse ACT teams that are pound-for-pound every bit as good as the PASS-based Moody, Mulkern, and Clark organizations.

We just think Doiron would be better off running in fourth place in ACT than running 12th in PASS. If he had one year of solid consistency in ACT and then went to PASS, the momentum alone would give him a better shot at doing well in PASS right off the bat.

***

We're watching our TVs a bit more this year than we did last year, with eyes on Shelburne's Kevin Lepage in the NASCAR Nationwide Series and Boris Said in the Sprint Cup ranks.

You might recall a sharp-tongued column from last summer about Lepage's recent disappointments, but maybe he's found something better this year in Jack McNelly's #56 Start Energy Drink Chevrolets. Last weekend at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, Calif., Lepage practiced and qualified at around 25th place before falling out with a bad wheel bearing on lap 40.

Is this a start-and-park operation? It's hard to tell, but we don't think it will be. McNelly didn't run any races last year, and ran just four times in 2008 with drivers Danny O'Quinn and Travis Kittleson. We're going to wait and see on this, but the car has what appears to be decent sponsorship, and past results with McNelly's cars don't indicate a start-and-parker. Lepage may not win any races in the car, but it seems like a much better deal for Lepage than what he had with Derrike Cope and Jimmy Means last year.

Said, of course, is the pilot of Latitude 43 Motorsports, owned by new guy Bill Jenkins of West Wardsboro. Said finished 25th in the Daytona 500 on the lead lap despite two crashes, but fell out of Fontana in 38th place with a broken rear gear after chasing ignition problems all weekend.

Jenkins has made it clear that he fully intends to run the #26 Ford at every event on the Sprint Cup schedule this season, and is still locked into the lineup (based on last year's top-35 in owner points; the #26 points were purchased from Roush-Fenway Racing) for Las Vegas this weekend, Atlanta next weekend, and Bristol on March 21 before the team will have to worry about qualifying. With little in the way of sponsorship, but a talented team in Said and crew chief Frankie Stoddard, Jenkins remains confident that his team will succeed.

Said ranks 32nd in driver points with Jenkins 33rd in owner standings, 20 points ahead of 36th-place Bob Germain's #13 car and driver Max Papis.

World Series: Crate Late Model Finale Rained Out, Laperle 2nd Overall Again

Delaney finishes third overall

NEW SMYRNA BEACH, Fla. -- It seems only fitting that the 44th Annual World Series of Asphalt Stock Car Racing would end for the Crate Late Model division as it began -- soaking wet. Heavy rains on Friday have forced the cancellation of Night 8 on the nine-night championship at New Smyrna Speedway, which was scheduled to be the final night of racing for the division. Inclement weather also cancelled racing on opening night of the World Series last Friday (Feb. 5) and again on Tuesday.

As a result of the cancellations, former American-Canadian Tour champion and Milk Bowl winner Patrick Laperle of St-Denis-sur-Richelieu, Qué., has clinched second place in the Crate Late Model point standings for the second-straight year, with former CVRA and Devil's Bowl Speedway racer Dustin Delaney of Mayfield, N.Y., third overall.

Laperle posted a victory -- the fourth of his career at New Smyrna Speedway -- on Wednesday night after a drive from 15th starting position, and also turned in a pair of third-place finishes and an 18th-place effort in his four starts during the World Series. Delaney's best result was a runner-up finish on Monday night, followed by a third-place showing on the night of Laperle's win. Delaney was fifth on Saturday and eighth in Thursday's 50-lap feature.

Sean Bass of Orlando, Fla., found himself in the right place at the right time on Thursday night, winning the 50-lapper and taking the point lead away from 14 year-old Stephen Nasse. Nasse wrecked out of a top-five position with five laps remaining, eventually limping home in 16th place and dropping from first to fourth in the standings. Brandon Johnson finished fifth overall in the division.

Northeast noteables include Stayner, Ont., teenager Brandon Watson, who finished in a three-way tie for ninth place in the Crate Late Model division, and Shaun McWhirter of Mt. Forest, Ont., and Wayne Smith of Timberlea, Nova Scotia, who were among a six-way tie for 13th overall.

In other action at the World Series, B.J. McLeod leads St. John, New Brunswick's Lonnie Sommerville entering the Super Late Model division's Pete Orr Memorial 100 finale on Saturday, and Ted Christopher of Plainville, Conn., holds a slim three-point lead over Chuck Hossfeld of Ransomville, N.Y. entering Saturday's Richie Evans Memorial 100 in the Tour-type Modifieds. Ronnie Silk of Norwalk, Conn., leads the SK Modified division, Todd Allen leads the Limited Late Model class, and T.J. Duke leads the Pro-Trucks. James Tucker defeated second-generation driver Travis Eddy for the Florida/IMCA-type Modified championship.

FINAL POINT STANDINGS
44th Annual World Series of Asphalt Stock Car Racing
New Smyrna Speedway -- New Smyrna Beach, Florida
Crate Late Models, after Night 7, Thu., Feb. 11, 2010

Pos.-Driver-Hometown-Points

1. Sean Bass, Orlando, Fla. -- 178
2. Patrick Laperle, St-Denis, Qué. -- 158
3. Dustin Delaney, Mayfield, N.Y. -- 154
4. Stephen Nasse, Pinellas Park, Fla. -- 150
5. Brandon Johnson, Tampa, Fla. -- 146
6. David Wagner, Akron, Oh. -- 102
7. Austin Kirkpatrick, Ocala, Fla. -- 98
-- Jerick Johnson, Mooresville, N.C. -- 98
9. Thor Anderson, Bondurant, Ia. -- 90
-- Brandon Watson, Stayner, Ont. -- 90
-- Erik Jones, Byron, Mich. -- 90

Devil's Bowl Speedway Releases 2010 Schedule

WEST HAVEN -- The Champlain Valley Racing Association has made official the 2010 Devil's Bowl Speedway schedule, featuring 16 championship events for its first season as an asphalt 1/2-mile since the late 1970s. The track will feature weekly competition from the traditional dirt-style Modifieds, along with new-look divisions including the Sportsman (formerly Budget Sportsman), Renegade (formerly Limited), and Bomber Warrior (formerly Mini Stock) classes, and the Duke Stock division. A new American-Canadian Tour-legal Tiger Sportsman division is slated to begin racing at Devil's Bowl in 2010, but will not race weekly; the Tiger Sportsman schedule will be confirmed at a later date.

The 44th annual season opener will be held on Sunday, May 23, with a special 100-lap race for the Late Models from Thunder Road Int'l Speedbowl in Barre. The new Modified Tri-Track Series, including drivers from CVRA sister track Albany-Saratoga Speedway in Malta, N.Y., and Airborne Speedway in Plattsburgh, N.Y., moves in on May 30, followed one week later by the first of four championship programs that will also include an Enduro.

Other special events include an Independence Day fireworks celebration on July 4, the annual Mid-Season Championships on July 25, and the CVRA.com 100 for the Tri-Track Series on Championship Night, Sept. 5. Two snowmobile "grass drags" are planned with dates to be announced, and the season will conclude with the first-ever Vermonster Enduro 150 on Oct. 10.

DEVIL'S BOWL SPEEDWAY 2010 SCHEDULE (as of Thu., Feb. 11, 2010)
West Haven, Vt.

#-Day-Date-Event

-- Sat., May 15 -- Practice
-- Sat., May 22 -- Practice
1. Sun., May 23 -- Opening Event (Late Model 100)
2. Sun., May 30 -- Modified Tri-Track Series 50 (ACOT/STAR antique racers)
3. Sun., June 6 -- Regular Event (Enduro)
4. Sun., June 13 -- Regular Event (Renegade 50)
5. Sun., June 20 -- Double Points Event (Kids Rides/Driver Autographs)
6. Sun., June 27 -- Regular Event
7. Sun., July 4 -- Independence Day Fireworks (Sportsman 50)
8. Sun., July 11 -- Regular Event (Duke Stock 25/Enduro)
9. Sun., July 18 -- Regular Event (Spectator Racing)
10. Sun., July 25 -- Double Points/Mid-Season Championships
11. Sun., Aug. 1 -- Regular Event (Black Flag Night/Officials Race)
12. Sun., Aug. 8 -- Regular Event (Enduro)
13. Sun., Aug. 15 -- Double Points Event (Kids Rides/Driver Autographs)
14. Sun., Aug. 22 -- Regular Event (Judith L. Richards Memorial Night)
15. Sun., Aug. 29 -- Regular Event
16. Sun., Sept. 5 -- Double Points/Championship Night/Modified Tri-Track Series 100 (Enduro)
17. TBA -- Snowmobile Grass Drags
18. TBA -- Snowmobile Grass Drags
19. Sun., Oct. 10 -- Vermonster Enduro 150 (Renegade 50/Bomber Warrior 50/Duke Stock 30)

Gappens says ACT-NHMS Partnership is "Win-Win"

SOUTH BURLINGTON -- Jerry Gappens is a believer, in the American-Canadian Tour and in its fiery figurehead, Tom Curley.

The New Hampshire Motor Speedway Executive Vice President was presented with ACT's prestigious Don MacTavish Award on Saturday night at the annual Banquet of Champions, but his affinity for the series has roots much deeper than just being given a trophy.

Gappens took a chance on Curley's series at a meeting in 2008, agreeing to host the first-ever ACT Invitational on Sylvania 300 weekend in Septmeber 2009 -- the kickoff event of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Chase for the Cup -- and seems happy to have done so; grandstand attendance for the Saturday program at NHMS was around 40,000, up significantly from prior years, thanks in part to the Invitational. But his affinity for ACT is even deeper than just increased ticket sales.

In fact, Gappens is a short tracker. Growing up in Indiana, he raced dirt track Sprint Cars in high school and attended local races with his father as a boy. Gappens may be in charge of a high-profile superspeedway in the national spotlight, but he still takes time to appreciate where he came from. He's been to Thunder Road to watch the Milk Bowl, he's been to Lee USA Speedway, a weekly Friday-night track not far from NHMS, and he keeps tabs on who's doing what in the local circuits. In the middle of the interview for this story on Saturday night, he went out of his way to introduce himself to one of ACT's young stars, and called him by name.

Gappens knows how vital ACT and its band of grassroots racers have become to the success of New Hampshire Motor Speedway, and he knows that's a two-way street.

"I think it's very important. We saw in September that our attendance was up over the previous three or four years by having ACT there, and I give them all the credit for increasing the crowd," he said. "The economy has been down, ticket sales have been down, but that [Invitational] gave us the shot in the arm to help us have a great crowd on Saturday."

A strategic promotional move by Curley and Gappens was to make each ACT race in the U.S. and Canada in 2009 an ACT Invitational qualifying event, thereby making the September weekend at New Hampshire the focal point of every race from April to mid-September.

"One of the reasons we wanted to do the partnership with ACT was that they're out there racing every weekend throughout New England, up into Canada, and that Invitational format gave us a chance to promote New Hampshire Motor Speedway and our September weekend at all the ACT events," said Gappens. "It was really beneficial for both of us. It gave the participants of ACT a venue for really a Super Bowl-type atmosphere, a chance to run in front of NASCAR car owners and drivers, and it helped us promote our event. It was a win-win situation for both parties."

New Hampshire Motor Speedway has invited Curley and ACT back for another go in September 2010. "It's still going to be an invitational, [but] I think there will be a day you'll see it be an actual points race on the calendar," Gappens said. "Right now Tom says let's do another year as an invitational, and I think that's good, I trust his guidance on what's best for the tour."

The 50-lap, 36-car ACT Invitational race, which featured several lead changes and competitive side-by-side racing, immediately followed a decidely lackluster 200-lap NASCAR Camping World Truck Series event as the sun began to set on September 19. Gappens says that he jokingly thanked NASCAR President Mike Helton in the pressbox that day for putting on the "lead-up event" to the ACT race, which proved to be the best show of the day. As it turned out, Helton and NASCAR were paying attention.

"[ACT is] definitely coming back," Gappens is quick to say. "We're working with NASCAR, and one of the things I'm talking about is shortening the truck race from 200 laps to 150 laps, just to make sure that we have more time for the ACT race on Saturday afternoon. They're actually pretty receptive to it, so I think we'll get that accomplished."

Curley had a dream to bring his series of local short track racers to the biggest stage in the northeast, and Gappens took a chance on it. And so far, it seems, everybody is a winner.

(PHOTO: Tom Curley (left) and Jerry Gappens are working together to benefit both ACT and NHMS. Leif Tillotson photo)

Hoar, Gappens, Cyr Honored at ACT/Thunder Road Banquet

NHMS' Gappens "humbled" by MacTavish Award

SOUTH BURLINGTON -- A crowd of some 500 honored Brian Hoar of Williston on Saturday night at the Sheraton-Burlington Hotel & Conference Center, celebrating Hoar's sixth American-Canadian Tour championship.

Hoar, 37, captured his first championship on the series since 2000, driving for RPM Motorsports and car owner/crew chief Rick Paya. Paya previously won seven ACT championships with driver Jean-Paul Cyr; Cyr left the team after 2008 to drive for Joey Laquerrre and challenge for the track championship at Barre's Thunder Road, which he did successfully.

"The irony behind it all is that probably if [Cyr] hadn't decided to go with [Laquerre], I might not have the opportunity to be where I'm standing right now," Hoar said during his championship speech.

Jerry Gappens, Executive Vice President of New Hampshire Motor Speedway, was presented the prestigious Don MacTavish Award by ACT President Tom Curley, for the speedway's contributions to ACT racing.

Dover, Mass. native MacTavish, the 1966 NASCAR National Sportsman (present-day Nationwide Series) Champion, was killed in a crash at Daytona Int'l Speedway in 1969. MacTavish won his national title racing weekly at places like Catamount Stadium in Milton, and New York tracks including Airborne Speedway and Albany-Saratoga Speedway. Past recipients of the award include NASCAR founder Bill France, Sr., Thunder Road founder Ken Squier, Curley, and drivers Robbie Crouch, Jean-Paul Cabana, Hoar, and Cyr.

NHMS hosted the first-ever ACT Invitational in September during Sylvania 300 weekend for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. As a result, NHMS saw an increased Saturday crowd of 40,000 spectators, and ACT and its drivers gained national attention throughout the year.

"(The ACT Invitational) was a win-win for both parties," said Gappens, who grew up around the short tracks of Indiana. "Any time you get an award with Bill France, Sr.'s name on it, and all the other great people that have contributed to the success of short track racing, is quite an honor. I appreciate short track racing and haven't forgotten where I learned the sport from the grassroots up, so to get what I consider the highest honor, other than being the champion of the series, is very humbling and very much appreciated."

Shawn Duquette of Morrisonville, N.Y., was crowned with his first ACT Tiger Sportsman Series championship. Duquette earned the title after a tie-breaker with St. Albans driver Jason Bonnett.

John Doiron of Berwick, Me., was given the ACT Crew Chief of the Year Award; Doiron coached his son, 16 year-old Joey, to the ACT Rookie of the Year title.

Tucker Williams of Hyde Park won the Dr. G.R. Nielsen Rookie Achievement Award as the top-performing freshman driver across all ACT/Thunder Road divisions; Williams, 18, was a four-time Street Stock winner at Thunder Road in 2009.

Cyr, of Milton, was honored with his first Thunder Road Late Model "King of the Road" championship in the track's 50th season. Thunder Road's support division champions were also honored: Jimmy Hebert of Williamstown (Tiger Sportsman), Gary Mullen of Tunbridge (Street Stock), and Donny Yates of North Montpelier (Junkyard Warrior). Rookies of the Year were Dylan Smith of Randolph (Late Model), Erik Steel of Barre (Tiger Sportsman), and Williams.

ACT/Thunder Road announcer Troy Germain was given the Ken Squier Award for his decade-long contributions to the sport.

Seth Leavitt of WCAX-TV Channel 3 was named the winner of the first-ever Pete Hartt Memorial Media Award. Mike McCune, Leavitt's colleague, accepted the award on his behalf. Hartt, the Sports Editor at the Barre-Montpelier Times Argus, passed away in March.

Sportsmanship and "Most Improved Driver" awards were also given out in each division. Sportsmanship award winners were Chip Grenier (ACT Late Model Tour), Brooks Clark (TR Late Model), Brendan Moodie, Jr. (TR Tiger Sportsman), Mike Martin (TR Street Stock), and Ken Christman (TR Junkyard Warrior). Most Improved awards went to John Donahue (ACT Late Model Tour), Craig Bushey (TR Late Model), and Derrick O'Donnell (TR Tiger Sportsman).

Airborne, CVRA Lead Asphalt Modified Racing Expansion

(From Airborne Speedway press release)

Plattsburgh, N.Y. – The Champlain Valley Racing Association (CVRA), which owns and operates Albany-Saratoga Speedway in Malta, NY and Devil's Bowl Speedway in West Haven, VT announced at its 2010 rules meeting that it will implement Airborne Speedway's Modified rules and participate in a six-race Modified series with two events at each track.

"The first event of the Series will be at Albany-Saratoga on Sunday, April 25 as a part of a card that will include an American Canadian Tour (ACT) Late Model event," CVRA promoter Bruce Richards said.

The conversion of the CVRA tracks from dirt to asphalt in 2010 has sparked interest throughout the northeast. "This is a validation of the efforts we've made at Airborne to turn it into a successful family entertainment facility," Airborne promoter Mike Perrotte said. "To have two quality race tracks in our region make the effort to promote asphalt racing with DIRT-style Modifieds as their headline division should be a plus for everybody. We are working on finalizing our 2010 schedule and selecting dates for the two series races."

Airborne and Albany-Saratoga have both scheduled 2010 special events for two well-established open-wheel asphalt tours, the International SuperModified Association (ISMA) and the Modified Racing Series.

Airborne hosts the ISMA Supers Saturday, July 17. The Modified Racing Series, formerly known as the True Value Modified Racing Series, will appear at Airborne Saturday, May 29.

"We've widened the backstretch at Albany-Saratoga by 10 feet and we're going to use the best pavement money can buy," Richards said. "We're entering a new decade and a new era. We will be offering fans in the Capital District more choices than before. We owe a special thanks to Mike Perrotte for his co-operation, interest and effort."

Airborne's 57th season opener is set for Saturday, May 1. Martin Roy of Napierville, QC, will begin defense of his 2009 Ernie's Tools Modified championship.

Laperle, Watson Headed to New Smyrna's World Series

NEW SMYRNA BEACH, Fla. -- Former American-Canadian Tour champion Patrick Laperle of St-Denis-sur-Richelieu, Qué. has filed an entry for the 44th Annual World Series of Asphalt Stock Car Racing at Florida's New Smyrna Speedway, Feb. 5-13. Laperle will race in the Crate/ASA-Type Late Model division, competing alongside fellow ACT driver Brandon Watson of Stayner, Ont., and former CVRA Modified competitor Dustin Delaney of Mayfield, N.Y.

Laperle won three of the first five features in the Crate/ASA division at last year's World Series, but was involved in a hard crash on Night 6, which ultimately led to him finishing second in points to champion David Wagner of Akron, Oh. Laperle went on to finish second in points in the Canadian-based Série ACT-Castrol later in the year with three wins, adding another victory on the U.S.-based ACT Late Model Tour at Airborne Speedway.

Watson, 16, is one of the hottest prospects in northeastern Late Model racing, having success in ACT, OSCAAR Super Late Models, and at Kawartha, Barrie, and Peterborough Speedways in Ontario; he finished third in the inaugural ACT Invitational at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in September.

Delaney, who raced with the Champlain Valley Racing Association at Devil's Bowl Speedway in West Haven and Albany-Saratoga Speedway in Malta, N.Y. as recently as 2008, finished eighth in NASCAR Camping World Series East points last year, with Vermont native Jamie Aube as his crew chief.

Eric Chase of Milton has finished in the top ten in points in each of the two previous World Series and was a feature winner in 2008, but confirmed on Monday that he will not return to New Smyrna this year.

ACT Releases 2010 Tiger Sportsman Series Schedule

Four 100-lap events make up mini-tour

WATERBURY -- The American-Canadian Tour has released a four-race schedule for the 2010 Tiger Sportsman Series. The second-tier division has held its own short-schedule touring series 14 times in the last 20 years; Shawn Duquette of Morrisonville, N.Y. was the 2009 champion.

The first of the four 100-lap races will be held at White Mountain Motorsports Park in North Woodstock, N.H. on June 5. White Mountain has adopted the ACT Tiger Sportsman rulebook for its new weekly "Super Sportsman" division in 2010. Barre's Thunder Road Int'l Speedbowl, which has operated the class in some form since the mid-1960s, hosts the series on July 1. Canaan Fair Speedway in Canaan, N.H. will hold an event on August 21, and the series ends a seven-year absence at Riverside Speedway in Groveton, N.H. on October 9. White Mountain, Thunder Road, and Riverside are all high-banked, 1/4-mile ovals, while Canaan Fair is a low-banked 1/3-mile.

Notably absent from the 2010 schedule are Airborne Speedway, Devil's Bowl Speedway, and Albany-Saratoga Speedway. Airborne, a 4/10-mile, progressively banked track in Plattsburgh, N.Y., has had the Tiger Sportsman division as a weekly fixture since 1990, and held a 100-lap ACT event in July. The newly-paved, CVRA-sanctioned Devil's Bowl, in West Haven, and Albany-Saratoga, in Malta, N.Y., have recently upgraded their Limited divisions to the Tiger Sportsman rulebook for 2010.

ACT TIGER SPORTSMAN SERIES 2010 SCHEDULE (as of Dec. 24, 2009)

#-Day-Date-Track-Location-Laps

1. Sat., June 5 -- White Mountain Motorsports Park, North Woodstock, N.H. -- 100
2. Thu., July 1 -- Thunder Road Int'l Speedbowl, Barre -- 100
3. Sat., Aug. 21 -- Canaan Fair Speedway, Canaan, N.H. -- 100
4. Sat., Oct. 9 -- Riverside Speedway, Groveton, N.H. -- 100

The Juice: Brushing the Snow Off

-by Justin St. Louis

You didn't think I was going to stay shut up the whole off-season, did you?

As you're probably aware, there's been a lot going on behind the scenes here at VMM HQ. I've been away from the website for a while, but definitely not away from racing. I've collected some loose ends that were sort of flapping in the breeze, many of which you've, again, probably heard about already. But the itch to ramble on at length in a column here has been too big to not scratch. So let's get the snow brush out and dust off the car for a couple laps.

***

First of all, a major (albeit a bit belated) congratulations goes out to Tom Placey, winner of the first-ever Vermont Motorsports Magazine Driver of the Year Award presented by Subway! The DOTY thing was a lot of fun for me to watch during November and early December, and we'll do something similar to it again in 2010, for sure.

Many congrats also to Tim LaDuc on his Devil's Bowl Speedway award, Tucker Williams on his Thunder Road Int'l Speedbowl award, Eric Williams for his "On The Road" award, and to Placey for also winning the Bear Ridge Speedway award.

Thanks to all 6,350 of you that voted, and to Subway of Barre, Montpelier, Waterbury, and Northfield for supporting the Driver of the Year program.

***

The Tigers are catching on like wildfire. In less than two months' time, news has broken about the division coming to four new tracks in 2010. New Hampshire's White Mountain Motorsports Park announced in early November that it will drop its Super Street division in favor of a new "Super Sportsman" class using the American-Canadian Tour/Thunder Road/Airborne Speedway Tiger Sportsman rulebook.

Soon after, news came that the ACT Tiger Sportsman Series would return to another New Hampshire track, Riverside Speedway, for an event in October. Last week, Champlain Valley Racing Association president Bruce Richards announced on his organization's website that in the wake of a switch from dirt to asphalt at its two tracks, Devil's Bowl Speedway in West Haven and Albany-Saratoga Speedway in Malta, N.Y., the former Limited division has been replaced by the Tiger Sportsmen. (Thunder Road's Junkyard Warrior rulebook has also been phased in at both CVRA tracks, in favor of the former Mini Stock class.)

This all brings me to formulation of several theories, although none of them have been confirmed by, denied by, or discussed with any track or series officials. Okay, ready?

1. ACT will almost certainly add a Tiger Sportsman Series event at either Devil's Bowl, Albany-Saratoga, or both, or will at least stage a stand-alone event for the division at one of the two tracks in 2010, a la the May 23 Late Model event at Devil's Bowl.

2. With promoter Dick Therrien now at Canaan Fair (N.H.) Speedway and the Leblanc family taking over operations at Riverside, expect ACT to have a growing presence at Riverside in the coming years. It's no secret that ACT boss Tom Curley has a soft spot for the tiny, high-banked Riverside track and its tendency to throw off a good race, and it's also no secret that Therrien and Curley don't exchange Christmas cards. With Therrien out, you'll probably see Curley there more often.

2a. I say here and now that Riverside will probably bring the Tigers into its weekly program by 2011, and that the ACT-type Late Model rulebook now in place at nine tracks in New England and Canada will be in place at Riverside no later than 2012. And, um, Riverside has decided to close its gates on the weekend of Thunder Road's -- read: Curley's -- Milk Bowl, so as not to have competing events. In this day and age, that's pretty unheard of.

2b. I have no idea how well the Leblanc regime will or won't perform at Riverside, but Canaan needs a bull-in-a-china-shop personality like Therrien to get the ship righted. He'll be good for the place.

3. If the CVRA is using the Junkyard Warrior rulebook -- and this is a total off-the-wall guess -- then the Thunder Road Warriors are not dead. As the car counts shrink, the speculation grows that the entry-level class will be cut from the program at Thunder Road, possibly as soon as next season. The CVRA move suggests maybe a sliver of hope for the division to turn itself around. It's worth noting that the Bomber division -- a class very similar to the Warriors that runs at Airborne in Plattsburgh, N.Y. -- is very successful.

***

Speaking of promoters, I was a little bummed to hear that Arnie Malcolm is gone from Capital City Speedway in Ottawa. Arnie is a funny dude, and has an obvious passion for racing. He also has one hell of a temper if you mess up his show. Here's hoping that the powers that be at CCS can get the right person to replace him.

***

Hey, did you know VMM is on Facebook? It's true. And Twitter is a lot of fun, too. I'm constantly fooling around with my Blackberry while I'm at my real job, or when I'm driving, or at any other inappropriate time when I should be paying attention to something else, so that means there are usually a few updates a week away from the VMM main page. So go ahead and check 'em out.

***

Don't ever buy a 1997 Toyota Corolla, unless you plan to buy something else to replace it soon after. Same goes for 1999 Plymouth Neons. ---Cue NBC's "The More You Know" theme---

***

Ben Rowe is out of Richard Moody Racing's PASS #4 Super Late Model and Brad Leighton is in. Rowe and Moody teamed up to win three PASS championships and 11 main events, along with successful outings at races from the Canadian Maritimes to Florida and Alabama. The Rowe-Moody split breaks up one of the most potent and most marketable short track teams in the country.

Rowe told Speed51.com that if he is unable to find a full-time PASS ride, he believes he "could do the full [ACT] schedule" in David Avery's #10 car.

Leighton is expected to run the entire 2010 PASS North schedule with Moody, while still racing the Pete Duto-prepared #55 car in up to six events on the ACT Late Model Tour; he won events at Lee USA (N.H.) Speedway and Kawartha (Ont.) Speedway in 2009 in the Duto car.

Leighton has made a handful of PASS appearances over several seasons. His last full-time season in a Super Late Model/Pro Stock-type car was in 1995, when he won the final ACT-sanctioned championship for the division.

***

Finally, one quick, but very heartfelt "Thank You!" to the racing world. The outpouring of support my family received -- and continues to receive -- following my father's passing has been just... wow, unbelievable.

Dad and I have made many good friends through motorsports, and have each supported a few of them during their own tough times. And while not everyone likes me, EVERYONE liked him. And it shows, big time. Thank you, thank you, thank you, to everyone that has left a comment, sent a card or an email or a text message, or called the house -- and that number is quite literally in the hundreds. Our family is so grateful for your compassion.

It's times like these that make me so proud to be part of the racing community. Happy holidays to you all.

ACT Late Model Tour Releases Partial 2010 Schedule

Tour returns to Québec; Director Curley asks for earlier start times

WATERBURY -- The American-Canadian Tour released most of its 2010 Late Model Tour schedule earlier this week, with 13 confirmed dates at nine venues in New England, New York, and Québec. Two more dates are expected to be added this month, according to the series' official press release.

Tentatively, the ACT Late Model Tour will open its season for the third-straight year at Lee USA (N.H.) Speedway, on April 18. The series then travels to Malta, N.Y. on April 25 for its first-ever visit to Albany-Saratoga Speedway, which is currently undergoing a major transformation from a clay surface to asphalt.

Barre's Thunder Road Int'l Speedbowl will host three events, while Airborne Speedway in Plattsburgh, N.Y. and Oxford Plains (Me.) Speedway will each have a pair of races. Single events will also be held at White Mountain Motorsports Park in North Woodstock, N.H., Beech Ridge Motor Speedway in Scarborough, Me., Twin State Speedway in Claremont, N.H., and Riverside Speedway in Ste-Croix, Qué. Two dates have been reserved for non-championship events: the TD Bank 250 at Oxford Plains on July 18 and the third-annual "Showdown at Chaudière", an all-star race for the ACT Late Model Tour and Série ACT-Castrol, at Autodrome Chaudière in Vallée-Jonction, Qué. on August 28.

POINTS OF INTEREST

--No mention of a return date to New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon, N.H. was made in the ACT press release, although it is widely believed that an announcement will be made in the near future. NHMS hosted the first-ever ACT Invitational, a 50-lap, non-points event, on Saturday, Sept. 19 during the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series' Sylvania 300 weekend. The spectator crowd, estimated by some near 40,000, was reported to be one of the track's most successful Saturday draws in its 20-year history.

--The 200-lap event at Riverside Speedway (formerly Circuit Ste-Croix) on August 14 marks the first championship-counting ACT Late Model Tour event in Québec since a race at Autodrome St-Eustache in July 2007. The "Can-Am Confrontation by the Seaway" at Riverside will also be a combination event for ACT's two touring series, and is the first race since the 2007 St-Eustache event that will award championship points for both the U.S.-based ACT Late Model Tour and the Canadian-based Série ACT-Castrol. Riverside's 5/8-mile layout is the largest that either series will compete on in 2010.

--ACT president Tom Curley has asked track promoters to be conscientious of traveling race teams and fans in the upcoming season. "For 2010 ACT feature events, we have requested that the features be started no later than 8:30pm," said Curley. "We continue to try and accommodate the fans and teams of ACT racing in our efforts to make the tours friendlier to compete in and to attend." Some events were negatively effected by late start times in 2009, including a 100-lap feature at Twin State Speedway in September that began just before 11:30pm.

--Big Bigelow of the Caledonian-Record (Vt.) is reporting that there will be no "Pick 10" championship format in 2010, and that all point-counting events on the schedule will count toward the ACT Late Model Tour championship.

--Two tracks that have hosted multiple ACT Late Model Tour events, Connecticut's Waterford Speedbowl and Kawartha Speedway in Ontario, have not yet been included in the 2010 ACT schedule. Kawartha has held one ACT event each year since 2007, while Waterford rejoined the schedule in 2008 and '09 after a four-year absence; Waterford recently staved off foreclosure for the second time. Both tracks operate with a weekly Late Model division under ACT-legal rulebooks.

--The 100-lap event at Albany-Saratoga will be the 200th championship-counting race for the ACT Late Model Tour, which began in 1992.

--Two major events at Thunder Road -- the Merchants Bank 150 and the Bond Auto Labor Day Classic 200 -- remain on the ACT Late Model Tour schedule. The third event, however, will not be the Mekkelsen RV Memorial Day Classic, as it was in 2009, but rather the Chittenden Bank Milk Bowl, which closes the ACT championship on October 2/3.

ACT LATE MODEL TOUR 2010 SCHEDULE (as of Nov. 9, 2009)

#-Day-Date-Track-Location-Laps

1. Sun., April 18 -- Lee USA Speedway, Lee, N.H. -- 150
2. Sun., April 25 -- Albany-Saratoga Speedway, Malta, N.Y. -- 100
3. Sun., May 2 -- Thunder Road Int'l Speedbowl, Barre -- 150
4. Sat., May 8 -- Airborne Speedway, Plattsburgh, N.Y. -- 100
5. Sun., May 16 -- Oxford Plains Speedway, Oxford, Me. -- 150
6. Sat., June 19 -- Oxford Plains Speedway, Oxford, Me. -- 150
7. Sat., June 26 -- White Mountain Motorsports Park, North Woodstock, N.H. -- 150
-- Sun., July 18 -- Oxford Plains Speedway, Oxford, Me. -- 250 (non-points)
8. Sat., July 24 -- Beech Ridge Motor Speedway, Scarborough (Portland), Me. -- 150
9. Fri., July 30 -- Twin State Speedway, Claremont, N.H. -- 100
10. Sat., Aug. 14 -- Riverside Speedway, Ste-Croix (Québec City), Qué. -- 200 (Tour/Castrol combo)
-- Sat., Aug. 28 -- Autodrome Chaudière, Vallée-Jonction, Qué. -- 200 (non-points)
11. Sun., Sept. 5 -- Thunder Road Int'l Speedbowl, Barre -- 200
12. Sun., Sept. 12 -- Airborne Speedway, Plattsburgh, N.Y. -- 300
13. Sat./Sun., Oct. 2/3 -- Thunder Road Int'l Speedbowl, Barre -- 150

The Juice -- At What Point Did John Donahue Become a Star?

-by Justin St. Louis

Don't look now, but there's a new kid in town. Actually, there's nothing new about him at all, really, or kid-like. He's a hard worker with strong, dirty hands, hints of an old-time "ayuh" accent, and has been around this game for the better part of 20 years.

But all of a sudden, for the first time, John Donahue is a headline driver.

There's no telling the exact moment when he became one. Sunday, after winning the Milk Bowl? It might have been the crown jewel of his career, but it certainly wasn't his first win, or even his first important win. But in writing the post-race wrap-up of the Milk Bowl on Sunday and Monday, I found myself surprised, thinking something to the effect of, "Holy cow, Donahue's racked up quite the résumé. When did that happen?" In reality, it began a lot longer ago than I realized, maybe longer than anyone did.

A farmer by trade, the woodchuck-through-and-through Donahue rolled out of the rural Graniteville hills with a block-long Chevrolet for the "Killer B" class at Barre's Thunder Road in 1994. He recalled thinking that his car -- a larger, heavier, less powerful version of the era's Flying Tigers -- was "too slow" to have any fun in, so he moved up to the Tigers to race against his older brother, Bill, who had followed in their father Paul's footsteps as a multi-time winner and championship contender in the division.

And it turned out that "Irish John" was a chip off the ol' block, finishing third in points as a rookie. During the five seasons that followed, he would earn a pair of Thunder Road championships, a Triple Crown title at New Hampshire's Riverside Speedway, a "Tiger 50 Series" title, well over two dozen feature races at Thunder Road, Riverside, and Airborne Speedway in New York, and three Strictly Stock features at Oxford Plains Speedway in Maine.

In 2002, Donahue was hired to drive an American-Canadian Tour Late Model for Lee Delphia, winning top rookie honors at Thunder Road and finishing second on the Tour to the well-financed Ryan Moore, while also taking a Limited Sportsman win at Oxford. But a split from Delphia as the season ended left Donahue without a full-time ride for 2003, and the funding for his Maine-based team dried up as well. Donahue was on the outside looking in before another car owner, Mike Thompson, put Donahue in his Late Model for 2004.

Although comparatively underfunded, the team notched a win in the 2005 regular season finale at Thunder Road, a second win in mid-2006, and was constantly a top-five threat. A few on-track tussles brought some fanfare, including a couple involving Eric Williams, one of Thunder Road's all-time great villains. Add to that the fact that T-Road impresario Ken Squier loved to say the words "Irish John Donahue" (as he still does), and the name was becoming a water cooler topic in the offices of Central Vermont each Friday morning after the races, but still rarely appeared in print, radio, or television.

A windfall ride from new car owner Kendall Roberts -- complete with flashy, high-profile sponsorship from the National Guard, a pair of brand new cars with technical support from chassis builder Dale Shaw, and the occasional performance boost in crew chief Jeff Laquerre, at least in the first season -- appeared at Donahue's door in 2007, and, as far as my best guess goes, anyway, that's probably when things really began to click. Donahue knocked off a 100-lap open win at Oxford in June and took his first ACT victory in Thunder Road's 200-lap Labor Day Classic in September. The next season, he won back-to-back races at Thunder Road, on Mother's Day and in the ACT race on Memorial Day, then finished in the top-five in points with both the weekly Thunder Road chase and the ACT Late Model Tour. But still, he was never much for the headlines.

Now, this year, Donahue scored a dominating ACT win at White Mountain Motorsports Park, has three ACT runner-up finishes, pulled down a third-place effort in the Oxford 250 after leading some laps, took fifth in the ACT Invitational at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, won last week's Milk Bowl, and is about to again finish among the top five in ACT points. And we're finally talking about him. You'll notice that Donahue has won some races, big ones at that, but like was said earlier, he's been winning from the very start. So what's made him a star now? I think the answer might be John Donahue himself.

It's easy to tell that when speaking with the media, Donahue's still not always comfortable being in the spotlight. But he's certainly come a long way from the days of his Tiger championships; Donahue won the Milk Bowl season finale in 2001 to clinch both the track and Tiger 50 titles, and he got out of the car with big smile and a two-fisted "Rocky" salute to the crowd. All well and good for photos, but his victory lane speech -- and I still remember hearing it -- was pretty much void of the content or emotion a race fan might expect to hear from a driver going through so much excitement.

Last Sunday at the Milk Bowl, though, Donahue played it up for the crowd, for the media, for Squier, for the Governor, for everybody. He performed a series of smoky, spinning burnouts while carrying the checkered flag. He dumped Booth Bros. milk down his frontside as he drank from the bowl trophy. He lifted the farm-style milk can above his head as though it was the Stanley Cup. He kissed the cow in victory lane -- on the lips -- twice. He celebrated with his family and team. As a couple of television cameras and a crowd of a half-dozen reporters stuck their microphones in Donahue's face, he flashed a confident smile, answered on-the-spot questions, and even cracked a joke or two. He never backed down from a question, gave honest answers, and even spit a little bit of fire when confronted with another driver's ruffled feathers. At White Mountain in June, his victory lane and post-race radio interviews were well-spoken and entertaining. His confidence with being a publicly prominent sports figure in the region seems to grow after every top-five finish (and he's on a streak of six straight right now).

Travis Barrett of Green-White-Checker asked Donahue on Sunday if he has felt overlooked as a top driver. I asked him a similar question after the Fall Foliage 300 at Airborne last month, speaking in terms of the ACT championship battle. And it seemed as though Donahue didn't really care if he was forgotten or not. "I'm sort of out of the picture," Donahue said at Airborne. "That's okay, make 'em think." And then he rambled on -- yes, rambled -- about how good his car and his team are, and gave this writer more than enough to fill a blog post's worth of space.

If anyone on the track, in the media, or anywhere else -- myself included -- forgot to think about John Donahue in the past, well, we won't now.

He's not the new kid in town. But he's definitely in town.

***

Three words: Bucktona International Speedway. If you don't know, ask someone who does.

***

Interesting stuff from the Milk Bowl pit meeting:

--ACT president Tom Curley said that there is "no question" that his series will be invited back to New Hampshire Motor Speedway next year. Ken Squier said the same thing.

--Curley said that the 2010 ACT Late Model Tour schedule is expected to be completed and published by the end of October. The Tour will not return to Kawartha Speedway in Ontario, but will visit "one or two new tracks".

--ACT's announcement that it will continue to sanction the Castrol Series in Canada comes this early, in part, to dispell rumors that the recent Patrick Laperle scandal drove Curley's group away. In fact, Curley said he's going back to Canada in 2010 because he's "pissed off" about the Autodrome St-Eustache incident and wants to continue holding fair races for the teams that have supported him.

--Okay, this wasn't at the pit meeting, but we overheard Curley telling third-place finisher Eric Williams that he is exploring the idea of expanding the Milk Bowl's three segments from 50 laps each to 75 laps, as early as next year. Curley thinks that another 25 laps would help bring back the possibility of the single-digit Milk Bowl win and bring back more excitement to the race. The fact that John Donahue's winning score was 17 points, and other recent winning scores have been as high as 23 points -- a far cry from Brian Hoar's 4-point win in 1998 -- means to Curley that the segments are just too short to produce the kind of racing the Milk Bowl became famous for. With the current ACT rules package, the cars are too equal to allow for three back-to-front drives through traffic. Robbie Crouch was the last driver to win every segment and score a perfect three points... in 1986. And it was a distant nine years ago that Phil Scott and Tracie Bellerose each scored eight points in the race, the most recent single-digit scores.

***

Speaking of Bellerose, she will be back in competition at Riverside Speedway on Saturday behind the wheel of a Late Model owned by Jane LeBlanc. Bellerose has been out of competition since a 10th-place ACT Late Model Tour finish at Oxford Plains Speedway in October 2007.

***

And speaking of Oxford, we'll be there on Sunday for the New England Dodge Dealers Fall Spectacular 150 and the ACT Late Model Tour season finale, welcoming a new supporter to Vermont Motorsports Magazine in Burnett Scrap Metals of Williston, Vt. Burnett has been involved in local racing for many years, and fielded a pair of race cars -- Neal Foster's Tiger Sportsman and Keith Fortier's Junkyard Warrior -- at Thunder Road in 2009.

Brian Hoar will try to fend off Scott Payea at Oxford for his sixth ACT championship, and first since 2000. Payea, of course, is looking for his first title, but will have to break his streak of not-so-good luck at Oxford. In ten career ACT starts at Oxford, Payea's got an average finish of just 12th, with a pair of sixth-place runs as his best finishes. He also has two 17ths, a 19th in May of this year, and a 22nd. Payea readily admits that Oxford is his achilles heel, and has been rumored to be building a second chassis for the 2010 season strictly to help improve his Oxford program. It'll be fun to watch, either way.

***

Rookie Jacob Dore of Sanford, Me. celebrated his first True Value Modified Racing Series win... a day after the race. Dore finished second across the finish line at Twin State Speedway on Sunday, but was named the winner of the Ricky Miller Memorial 112 on Monday after Matt Hirschman was disqualified. Dore, 20, was informed of the ruling as he was doing homework in his dorm room at the University of New Hampshire. Dwight Jarvis of Ascutney was fourth, and his nephew, Joey, finished 19th in a car normally driven by his father, Peter. The TVMRS cars now head to Seekonk Speedway in Massachusetts on Saturday and Sunday for the annual D. Anthony Venditti Memorial Fall Classic event.

Against All Odds, Duquette Wins Tri-State Title

Fleury wins 100, New Yorker wins tie-breaker over Bonnett for championship


BARRE -- Sometimes all you need is a little luck, and Shawn Duquette got it. That, and a lot of help from some friends.

Duquette came to Barre's Thunder Road for the ACT Tiger Sportsman Tri-State Series championship finale on Thursday night. The Morrisonville, N.Y. driver won the opening round of the series at his Airborne Speedway home base in July, copped the second round at Canaan Fair Speedway two weeks ago, and held a 22-point lead over fellow New Yorker Toby Ebersole, with St. Albans driver Jason Bonnett 32 points back.

At Thunder Road, a track he'd seen for the first time just seven days earlier, Duquette moved forward in his qualifying heat, enough to earn him a '+2' handicap rating and give him the seventh starting spot in the ACE Hardware 100 finale. Ebersole quickly went a lap down, effectively eliminating him from title contention. While running in the top-ten two laps before halfway, Duquette looked strong against hometown stars Shawn Fleury, Brendan Moodie, and Jimmy Hebert. Bonnett, who needed to finish 15 positions ahead of Duquette to take the championship away, was on his rival's front bumper. Things looked to be under control for Duquette.

But as soon as it looked like he would be celebrating a championship, it was just as soon gone. Contact from rookie Erik Steel on lap 48 sent Duquette hard into the frontstretch wall. The sliver, black, and green #18 Toyota sat on the track motionless, its driver an emotional mess.

"I was almost in tears," admitted Duquette. "I said, 'There it goes.' I knew it was going to happen here."

During a caution period ten laps later, it was announced that, given the misfortunes of Duquette and Ebersole, Bonnett would need to finish ninth or better to win the championship. A pretty easy task, all things considered, for the two-time Airborne champion and past feature winner at Thunder Road, who in June had an outstanding Late Model debut at the track.

In the pits, however, a swarm of bodies surrounded the battered car. Crew members representing no less than nine Airborne-based teams -- and even Airborne Speedway promoter Mike Perrotte, who attended the race to cheer on his drivers -- repaired the car's broken suspension in just 19 laps' time. Duquette returned on lap 67, and soldiered on to finish 20th.

And in a magical twist of fate for Duquette, Bonnett finished sixth, only 14 positions better. The result left them tied with 204 points each, and Duquette's pair of victories earned him the tie-breaker, sending the championship trophy to the western side of Lake Champlain for only the second time in history.

"I can't thank everybody enough," said Duquette. "There were a lot of people helping. My crew, Jamy Begor (an Airborne driver not in competition at Thunder Road) was there, I don't really know who else was over there because there were so many people. It's awesome. They got me back out on the track.

"It's wonderful. I didn't think it was going to happen there, I was sweating bullets. We got lucky, it was just a tie rod and a couple of rims, and we got back out and finished the race. It's the best feeling I've had so far in racing."

Ironically, one of the volunteers helping make repairs was Bonnett's father, Ron, a former racer. "I guess it's sort of my fault that Jason lost the title," laughed Ron Bonnett. "[Duquette] would have helped us out. We've lost titles before, and we've won them, too. It would have been nice to win, but it's no big deal. Stuff like [tonight] is why we race."

Two-time Thunder Road champion Fleury, of Middlesex, turned his dismal season around with the second 100-lap Sportsman victory of his career; his first came in 2005.

"I definitely had to get up on the wheel tonight," said Fleury, who started 21st in the 27-car field. "We just had a bad start to the night and I really wanted to win it for the guys. They busted their butts tonight putting that thing together. We were overheating earlier and they changed the radiator, changed the water pump, we had a bad start but it all worked out for us. We've had a terrible year, and if I was going to win one, this is the one I wanted to win. I'm glad we got it, and whatever happens happens from here on out."

Fleury's National Guard Chevrolet stalked young Derrick O'Donnell of Bradford for the lead from lap 80 until making his move on the outside; Fleury took the lead on lap 91, then held O'Donnell and teenager Hebert off for the victory.

"[O'Donnell] had a real good car, he ran me clean, and it was just an awesome race," said Fleury. "They're pretty tough, no doubt. We've been doing this a long time and there's a lot of good drivers. The division has really evened out. Any car can win on any given night. [The young drivers] are tough to beat. Honestly, I didn't think I was gonna get him, and luckily we did."

O'Donnell inherited the lead on lap 45 after top runners Mark Barnier and Eric Badore crashed as Barnier blew a tire on a restart. After surrendering the point to Fleury with nine laps to go, O'Donnell held on to second over Hebert, Moodie, Scott Coburn, and Bonnett. David Finck, Joey Laquerre, Ray Stearns, and Josh Demers completed the unofficial top ten.

UNOFFICIAL RESULTS -- ACE Hardware 100
ACT Tiger Sportsman Tri-State Series -- Thunder Road Int'l Speedbowl, Barre, Vt.
Thursday, August 13, 2009

Pos.-Driver-Hometown (# - denotes rookie)

1. Shawn Fleury, Middlesex
2. Derrick O'Donnell, Bradford
3. Jimmy Hebert, Williamstown
4. Brendan Moodie, North Wolcott
5. Scott Coburn, Barre
6. Jason Bonnett, St. Albans
7. David Finck, Barre
8. Joey Laquerre, East Montpelier
9. Ray Stearns, East Corinth
10. Josh Demers, Middlesex
11. Eric Badore, Milton
12. #Erik Steel, Barre
13. Joel Hodgdon, Craftsbury
14. #Mike Billado, Essex Junction
15. #Neal Foster, Waterbury
16. Howard Stoner, Altona, N.Y.
17. Toby Ebersole, Peru, N.Y.
18. Joey Becker, Jeffersonville
19. #Kevin Godfrey, Wentworth, N.H.
20. Shawn Duquette, Morrisonville, N.Y.
21. Mark Barnier, Essex Junction
22. Joe Steffen, Essex Junction
23. George May, Barre
24. Lance Allen, Barre
25. Skip Liberty, Peru, N.Y.
26. Brian Delphia, Waterbury
27. Richie LaFond, Colchester


(PHOTOS: 1. Shawn Duquette (2nd from right) and a small representation of the team that repaired his car on Thursday night celebrate their Tri-State Series championship. 2. Shawn Fleury won the ACE Hardware 100. Photos by Justin St. Louis/VMM)

The Juice: Either Come Back or Get Out

-by Justin St. Louis

When is Kevin Lepage going to find something else to do? The guy should have retired five years ago and opened up, I don't know, a boat sales shop or a car dealership or a movie theater or something. Instead, he's now become just a guy that everyone says, "Who is that?" about when the Nationwide Series finishes are posted. And it's a shame.

Lepage was one of the racers I cheered for while I was growing up, because he won his share of races, mostly while driving and maintaining his own cars, and was one of the only Vermont drivers in the late 1980s and early '90s that could keep pace with the Canadian and Maine-based cars. He had some Vermont work ethic in him. He went out and got his own sponsorship dollars from Citgo and Allen Lumber, built his operation from the ground up, and became one of the better drivers in the northeast. One of the few that could beat Junior Hanley a couple times a year. His magical 1993 season was an exciting thing to watch, capped off by his Milk Bowl double win in both the Pro Stock and Late Model divisions.

When Lepage moved south out of his Shelburne, Vt. roots in 1994, he again did it on his own, with his own cars and equipment, and a hard-earned sponsorship from Vermont Teddy Bear. He finally got hooked up with some top-notch cars owned by David Ridling in 1996 and broke through with his first Busch Series win at Homestead, finishing eighth in points. The next year he had a handful of impressive runs in the #91 Winston Cup car, and began a full-season effort in 1998 with the team, only to be picked up midstream by powerhouse Jack Roush. Along the way, he took another Busch win at Bristol. It really was a very proud time for Vermonters with an interest in racing. When Lepage came back to Thunder Road, he was treated like a bona fide celebrity, which, in this area of hard-working folks that do what they can to scratch out a modest living, he probably deserved.

But then the bottom sort of started to fall out. Lepage's downfall in the Cup Series might be blamed on the fact that he was in the Roush's "R&D" car, the #16 ride. Ted Musgrave had been moderately successful in the car, but as the Roush organization began to expand around the time Lepage arrived, the car became more of an in-race test dummy. With Lepage's on-track performances likely suffering from that scenario, his market value dipped. After a breakup with Roush, Lepage was rideless for the first part of 2001 before taking over the once-stout Kodak #4 car for Larry McClure. Then came the Jim Smith #7 team that became the bastard child of Geoff Bodine's ex-team, which was the ex-team of the late Alan Kulwicki. Then McClure's stuff again in 2003, followed by pick-up rides in third-rate cars owned by people no one had ever heard of.

Lepage re-opened his Busch Series team during the first stint with McClure, then stepped into the potent #37 Timber Wolf car after Jeff Purvis was injured. Lepage put the car on the pole position a couple of times, but for whatever reason, never produced the finishes to back up the qualifying performances. And again, his market value dipped on that series.

Since around 2004, Lepage has been a go-to guy for any car owner looking to do the start-and-park thing, which is a great way to make enough money to pay your monthly bills, but a horrible excuse to own a "race" team. His current gig is on the Nationwide Series, splitting time between a car owned by former driver Jimmy Means, and running a two-car team with Derrike Cope -- whose career practically mirrors Lepage's, by the way, from the hometown beginning to today. Lepage's best finish this year has been 33rd in one of Means' cars at Texas Motor Speedway, when he finished 11 laps down. So far, it's the only race he's finished, and it's also the only race he's made it past halfway in.

That's just plain embarrassing. For all of us.

Let's face it, Kevin Lepage was probably never going to be the next Dale Earnhardt. But he could have been the next Ricky Rudd or Geoff Bodine, guys who owned their own stuff or drove for other prominent teams here and there, ripping off a Cup win or three every year.

For a guy that was proud to come from humble beginnings -- building a respectable career after flopping around at Thunder Road and Catamount Stadium for a few years -- this is not how it should have been. Kevin Lepage was not the next Dale Earnhardt; there were five or six Kevin Lepage types from the northeast that could have gone south and done as well or better. But Lepage himself was living the short track racer's dream, and built a name for himself at the top levels of the sport. Then, somewhere along the way, he forgot about that.

Would he have been better off running a Cup team on his own? Should he have stayed in the Busch/Nationwide Series full-time after losing the Roush ride, and tried to become a star there? There's really no telling now. It's a moot point. Kevin Lepage was on his way, but the road got rocky and it seems like Lepage just threw up his hands and gave up. And once he did that, he should have started himself a business outside of racing -- his Cup and Nationwide career winnings have totalled over $15 million, he could have probably afforded a restaurant or something -- and returned to the short tracks of the Carolinas or even back home in New England. There would have been no shame in that at all. There still would be no shame in it.

But to a kid like me that grew up saving newspaper clippings of the local guy making it big in NASCAR, well, we've given up on Kevin Lepage, at least nationally. He should get himself a short track car and begin a new career, or pick up where he left off in 1993. Rich Bickle did it, Dave Mader did it, Jimmy Horton did it, and they were wildly successful after their cup of coffee in NASCAR. Or just get out entirely. Do it for all of us. Do it for Vermont.

Lepage should think back to victory lane at at Claremont Int'l Speedway in 1987, where he was standing next to a car hastily cobbled together by he and his father after getting dropped from the E.J. Prescott ride, and remember why he ever got in a race car in the first place. Was it so he could split $22,000 with Derrike Cope after a 10-lap tour of Gateway Int'l Raceway, or was it so he could be the best racer on the track? Get out, come home, and build a Late Model. Win a Thursday night show at Thunder Road. Do it for all us.

But most of all, do it for yourself.

***

Not gonna lie, I'm excited to get back to Bear Ridge this Saturday night.

***

I'm hearing ACT point leader Scott Payea will drop in on Thunder Road tonight to test some new setups in his car.

***

Brian Hoar on his race for the win at Waterford Speedbowl last weekend: "This is the funniest thing I've ever said in my life, but Brad Leighton thought I drove him rough. That's bulls**t. And that's a direct quote. Write that down. He got his hand caught in the candy jar. I stuck my car up to his door and he came down and made contact. It was bulls**t. I'm obviously not going to hit the brakes. I like Brad, I've known him for a long time, but I knew it was going to be hard racing. If he's got a problem with me, we'll work it out."

Joey Polewarczyk on racing with Hoar, after the two tangled at Airborne Speedway in May and again last weekend at Waterford: "He blatantly drove over my nose. I'm not taking his crap any more. It's happened to me too many times."

Hoar on his incident with Polewarczyk at Waterford: "He's upset because he spun out. We were racing side-by-side and we touched. It wasn't hard, I didn't chop him. It was nothing intentional. I rather would have raced Joey Polewarczyk for the lead than Brad Leighton, given the choice. One time we had a minor problem on the track, and I thought it was over by the end of the race. I'm sure I've got an 'X' on my back now, but I'd like to think that he and his team will calm down."

Sounds like we missed a good one.

***

I'm 26. I started going to races regularly when I was four years old, and have been at no less than five races a year since then. So, by my calcuations, I've got only 18 years left before I'll know what I'm talking about. At least I'm over the hump, right?

***

I like the term "Money Month". It's catchy, and, quite honestly, there's a ton of dough on the line for the ACT teams.

***

My biggest fear is that the upcoming ACT Invitational qualifier at Wiscasset Raceway in Maine this Sunday will turn out to be a bad joke. Between track reports and what we're hearing from everyone out that way, Wiscasset will be lucky to get 25 Late Models for a show that pays the winner $5,000 and a trip to Loudon. At that point, you have to worry about track owner Doug White, who will pay another $5,000 to the winner of a companion 150-lap Pro Stock race on the same day -- one that is expected to draw no more than 20 or 22 cars -- and has been losing money every time the gates swing open this year. Good luck, Mr. White.

***

Two words: Jason Bay.

***

AROUND THE REGION:

Time to take a look at the top Vermonters from the past weekend...

ACT Late Model Tour: Brian Hoar of Williston made it two-for-two by winning the Nutmeg State 100 at Waterford Speedbowl in Connecticut on Saturday night. Point leader Scott Payea of Milton finished third behind Randy Potter, and Graniteville's John Donahue was fourth. Brent Dragon of Milton finished sixth, and Tyler Cahoon of St. Johnsbury earned his second top-ten finish of the season and of his ACT career in tenth place.

Airborne Speedway (Plattsburgh, N.Y.): Don Scarborough of Brandon was the top Vermonter in Saturday's Modified race, finishing sixth. Rich Watson of Milton was the lone Sportsman driver in the feature, finishing 15th. Milton's Rob Gordon was the runner-up in the Renegade feature; Swanton's Dave Rabtoy was ninth, with Lance Rabtoy of Fairfax tenth. Billy Jenkins of Milton was seventh in the Mini-Modified feature, and Brad Bushey of Georgia was tenth in the Bomber race.

Albany-Saratoga Speedway (Malta, N.Y.): Todd Stone of Middlebury finished fifth in the 358 Modified feature on Friday night, while Rob Langevin of Londonderry was the runner-up in the Sportsman class. Frank Hoard, III of Manchester finished fifth in the Budget Sportsman feature. Lori Langevin of Londerderry was third in the Pro Street Stock feature with Manchester's Chuck Towslee fifth, Fred Little of Salisbury seventh, and Ed Thompson of Fair Haven eighth.

Bear Ridge Speedway (Bradford): Gary Siemons of Orford, N.H. posted his second Sportsman Modified win of the season on Saturday night, over Bob Shepard of West Topsham, Travis Shinn of Groton, N.H., Blake Shepard of Newton, N.H., and Jeremy Huntoon of Bradford. Josh Harrington of Topsham won the three-segment Sportsman Coupe "Madness" event over Melvin Pierson of Topsham, Bryan King of Corinth, and Bradford rookies Billy Simmons and Jason Horniak. Dan Eastman of Thetford Center won his eighth Limited Late Model feature of the season over Troy Comeau of Alexandria, N.H., Will Hull of East Montpelier, Dan Cook of South Tamworth, N.H., and Jeremy Hodge of Bradford. Sharon's Mitch Durkee won the Fast Four feature, followed by Wilder's Andy Johnson, Steve Bell of St. Johnsbury, Mark Brown, and Kevin Harran of St. Johnsbury. Tom Placey of Bradford won his sixth consecutive Hornet feature, with Groton's Charlie Lakin, Karl Sheldon of St. Johnsbury, Amanda Gray of East Thetford, and Bobby Bell of St. Johnsbury completing the top five. Misty Bell of St. Johnsbury won the Hornet Queen race.

Canaan Dirt Speedway (Canaan, N.H.): Thetford Center's Dave Lacasse finished sixth in the Modified feature on Friday night, with Todd Petschke of Windsor seventh. Will Hull of East Montpelier was the Street Stock runner-up, with Ascutney's Cricket Williams eighth and Dan Eastman of Thetford Center tenth. Josh Sunn of White River Junction was the Fast Four runner-up with Wilder's Andy Johnson third and Ryan Dutton of Bradford eighth.

Canaan Fair Speedway (Canaan, N.H.): Kris Lyman of West Hartford was the Pro Stock runner-up on Saturday, while Bradford's Arnie Stylges finished third in the Super Street race. Jamie Hodgdon of Ascutney won the Pure Stock feature with Kyle Davis of Pittsford eighth and Rory Merritt of North Springfield ninth. White River Junction drivers Bobby Prior and Josh Sunn went 1-2 in the Outlaw Mini Stock race, with Robert Gioia of East Thetford third and Chris Lyman of Hartland fifth. Kyle Small of Quechee won the Bandit race over Ascutney's Tyler Lescord.

Devil's Bowl Speedway (West Haven): Defending track champion Todd Stone of Middlebury took his first 358 Modified win of the season on Sunday, over Kris Vernold of Glens Falls, N.Y., Vince Quenneville, Jr. of Brandon, Gardner Stone of Middlebury (Todd's father), and Ray Hoard of Granville, N.Y. Jimmy Ryan of Whiting was sixth, with the top-ten completed by Don Mattison of Wells, Cullen Howe of South Londonderry, point leader Kenny Tremont, Jr. of West Sand Lake, N.Y., and Frank Hoard, Sr. of Manchester. Frank Hoard, III of Manchester won the Budget Sportsman feature over South Londonderry's Seth Howe, Jack Swinton of Hudson Falls, N.Y., Josh Joseph of South Glens Falls, N.Y., and C.V. Elms, III of North Haverhill, N.H. Salisbury's Fred Little won the Pro Street Stock race over Cale Kneer of Troy, N.Y., Carl Vladyka of Fair Haven, Mike Bussino, and Chuck Towslee of Manchester. Randy Alger won the Limited feature over Bill Duprey of Hydeville, and Colin Clow of Troy, N.Y. won the Mini Stock feature.

Monadnock Speedway (Winchester, N.H.): Dana Shepard of Putney finished 11th in the Super Stock race on Saturday. Dick Houle of West Brattleboro won the 4-cylinder Enduro.

Riverside Speedway (Groveton, N.H.): Bob Ailes, Sr. of St. Johnsbury was the runner-up in the Late Model feature on Saturday night, with Howard Switser of West Burke third, Paul Schartner, III of Lyndonville sixth, Stephen Hodgdon of Danville eighth, and Brett Gervais of Island Pond ninth. Derek Ming of Island Pond won again in the Outlaw Sportsman division over Davey Ofsuryk of Newport Center. West Burke's Jesse Switser was the Street Stock runner-up with Lyndonville's Dean Switser fourth. In twin Dwarf Car features, Concord's Toby Merchant posted finishes of second and fourth, while Lyndonville's Ernie LaPlant was third and ninth. Andy Simpson of Lyndon Center beat Anthony Mason of Orleans for the Cyclone win, while sisters Lyndsay and Johanna Christman of Cabot finished second and fourth in the Angels, resepectively.

SCoNE 360 Sprint Cars: Mark Cole of Lebanon, N.H. won at Canaan (N.H.) Dirt Speedway on Friday night over Ossipee, N.H.'s Clay Dow and Lacey Hanson of Orwell. Dow won at Bear Ridge Speedway in Bradford on Saturday night, with Matt Shuart second and Bob Giuliani of Middletown, N.H. third.

Série ACT-Castrol: Patrick Laperle of St-Denis-sur-Richelieu, Qué. won the Luminaire Napert 150 at Autodrome Chaudière on Saturday night for his second-straight win. Trampas Demers of South Burlington finished 20th.

Thunder Road Int'l Speedbowl (Barre): On Thursday, Rich Lowrey of Charlotte was the Late Model winner over Shelburne's Jamie Fisher, Milton's Jean-Paul Cyr and Eric Chase, and Phil Scott of Montpelier. Mark Barnier of Essex Junction won the Tiger Sportsman feature over Milton's Eric Badore, Joel Hodgdon of Craftsbury, Hinesburg's Tommy Therrien, and Ricky Roberts of Washington. Ron Gabaree of Barre won the Street Stock feature over rookies Danny Doyle of Hancock and Scott Weston of Berlin, Greg Adams, Jr. of Hardwick, and Tim Campbell of West Topsham. Kevin Streeter of Waitsfield took his fifth Junkyard Warrior win of the year over Donny Yates of North Montpelier, Alex Whitcomb of Montpelier, John Prentice of Northfield, and Ken Christman of Cabot. On Sunday, Bill Davis of Monson, Mass. won $5,000 with his victory in the 25th Annual M&M Beverage Enduro 250. Mike MacAskill of Williamstown won the 50-lap Street Stock special over Elmore's David Whitcomb, Tommy Smith of Williamstown, rookie Tucker Williams of Hyde Park, and Danville's Jason Corliss. Bunker Hodgdon of Hardwick made his return to the Warriors with a win over Williamstown's Lance Donald, Kevin Dodge of Barre, Keith Fortier of Hinesburg, and Christman.

True Value Modified Racing Series: Jon McKennedy of Chelmsford, Mass. took another win and extended his point lead at Beech Ridge Motor Speedway in Scarborough, Me. on Saturday night. David Pinkham of Buxton, Me. was second, followed by Ascutney's Dwight Jarvis.

Twin State Speedway (Claremont, N.H.): Dallas Trombley of Rutland won the Late Model feature on Friday with Ascutney's Chris Riendeau seventh. Peter Jarvis of Ascutney won the Modified feature, with son Joey Jarvis fourth, Robert Hagar of Windsor fifth, Nate Kehoe of Windham seventh, and Leo Martin of Windsor tenth. Russ Davis of Cavendish won the Super Street feature with Dave Davis of White River Junction fourth, Bruce Jaycox of Hartland seventh, and Chris Wilk of Mendon ninth. Josh Lovely of Barre was the Strictly Stock runner-up with Tara Tarbell of Springfield fifth, Kyle Davis of Pittsford sixth, and and Jeremy Blood of West Hartford seventh. Kyle Small of Quechee won the Wildcat feature over Jeremiah Losee of North Springfield and Cody Small of Hartland.

White Mountain Motorsports Park (North Woodstock, N.H.): Bernie Lantagne of McIndoe Falls was the runner-up in Saturday's 100-lap feature, with Stacy Cahoon of St. Johnsbury third and Eric Williams of Hyde Park eighth. Stevie Parker of Lyndonville was fifth in the Strictly Stock feature, and Concord driver Rubin Call was the Strictly Stock Mini runner-up.

***

Thunder Road Int'l Speedbowl in Barre has a doubleheader week with full race cards on Thursday and Friday -- including the ACT Tiger Sportsman Tri-State Series finale on Thursday -- while regular events are on tap at Albany-Saratoga, Canaan Dirt, and Twin State on Friday night. The PASS North Super Late Models are at Seekonk (Mass.) Speedway on Saturday night, while the True Value Modified Racing Series is at Waterford (Conn.) Speedbowl, and regular events are scheduled for Bear Ridge Speedway in Bradford, Airborne, Canaan Fair, Monadnock, Riverside, and White Mountain. Wiscasset (Me.) Raceway holds an ACT Invitational qualifier on Sunday, Riverside (N.H.) Speedway has the $5,000-to-win "Clash of the Titans 150" Late Model event with PASS Sportsman also on the card, and Devil's Bowl Speedway in West Haven will have a 50-lap Budget Sportsman feature and regular event.