Motorsports Racing News & Blog Articles
Stock car racing back at Spud Speedway in 2022
Episode 381
November 14, 2021
Racing at Spud Speedway to return in 2022
Though on the Pro All Stars series (PASS) 2020 schedule, Spud Speedway had to relinquish the date due to COVID-19 issues with crowd size limits of 200. Few of the large crowd watching DJ Shaw win the 2019 Firecracker 200 would in their wildest dream imagine that the racing world would be joining every other entertainment business with no racing.
DJ Shaw, Center Conway, New Hampshire, takes the checkered flag at the Firecracker 200 Super Late Model race at Spud Speedway Sunday. Shaw was followed by Barre, Vermont’s Nick Sweet in second. Shaw was runner up in the 2018 race. (Lindsay Ellison photo)
Another concern for the racetrack only 11 miles from the US/Canadian border is the shutdown in cross border travel. Special races at the Caribou track typically consist of 30-35% of the gate according to track owner Troy Haney. Without the fans from Canada, any event at the track needs to be closely scrutinized since in the end the track needs to make money to stay alive and viable.
With these concerns in mind, conversations with PASS officials resulted in acquiring a date for the Super Late Models (SLM) and PASS Modifieds. When racing returns to Spud Speedway on June 19 a new name will accompany the event, Feed the County 150.
Dixie Shaw (left) with Catholic Charities and the Feed the County project conversing with Austin Theriault’s mother Terry prior to the 2018 race. Feed the County was able to raise over $10,000 at the race. This involvement seemed to bring the community together. (HTF Motorsports photo)
The new name fits one of the core values of track owner Haney who wants to not only host races, but, contribute to the solution for hunger in the County. Thousands of dollars from past shows have helped Catholic Charities feed the county.
With a renewal of racing at the Caribou track, allow me to place a bunch of ideas out before the readers, none of which are currently part of the show. I repeat these are my dreams only and do not reflect track management.
Will the County favorites #94 Shawn Martin, #57 Austin Theriault, and #28 Kirk Thibeau race at their “home” track? Will PASS superstar Derek Griffith in the 12G come back to defend his 2018 win? PASS 2021 champion Johnny Clark coming back to the County as the first PASS race would add another dimension to the race.
Will the Canadian contingent who race in the Maritimes Pro Series make the race marking the first time some will race in the USA for a couple seasons? Love to see Ryan Messer Motorsports, Harvey, New Brunswick make his debut in a super late model at the Caribou track where he last raced and won in a Maritimes Modified.
Ryan Messer with parents Penny and Robb Messer in Victory Circle at Speedway 660, Geary Woods, New Brunswick. The 21-year-old is a multi- feature race winner in the province. (Mike Francis photo)
The race will include the return of the PASS Modifieds which some fans said was their favorite race at the last appearance at Spud Speedway. Names like the young guns Garrett Lamb, Brandon Varney, and Ajay Cates will soon be familiar to the average fan as they work their way up the ladder in the modified class. Veteran Shawn Knight will be in last year’s champion Max Cookson’s car which makes him a force to be reckoned with.
Other events are being considered for 2022. Stay tuned.
PASS SLM and Modified 2022 schedules posted
Bennett’s CORE Autosports team finishes season in second.
CORE Autosports #54 Ligier LMP 320 in action at the Motul Petit Le Mans 10-hour endurance race. (CORE Autosports photo)
The past few race seasons UpNorth Motorsports has been covering a team which races in what might be considered America’s premiere international race series, IMSA Weather Tech Sports Car Championship. CORE Autosports is located across the river from Charlotte in Rock Hill, South Carolina and is owned by Jon Bennett.
Going into the season finale the team stood a chance to take what would be their sixth national championship. In their own words here is the story of what might have been at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta Saturday:
” CORE autosport arrived at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta with a shot at the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship LMP3 title. Frustrating mechanical issues, however, brought that possibility to an end early and denied CORE a sixth team championship.
Having tested at Road Atlanta only a few weeks ago, CORE was confident it was prepared in every way to fight for the LMP3 championship in the 10-hour Petit Le Mans race. Though the team was meticulous in its work, some things cannot be prevented or predicted.
The No. 54 Composite Resources / CrowdStrike Ligier JS P320 was quick in practice with drivers Jon Bennett, Colin Braun and George Kurtz. When qualifying day arrived, the tables turned: the crew discovered a fuel flow issue and spent the day working on a solution. The car was not ready for qualifying and as a result had to start from ninth on the LMP3 grid and scored zero qualifying points.
The team stayed late into Friday evening to make sure the problem was resolved. On race day, during the early morning warm up session, all signs indicated that the fuel cell issue was indeed fixed.
Bennett started the race and ran as high as third thanks to some clever pit strategy.
Kurtz took over next and continued to show strong pace through several restarts from yellow. It was toward the end of his stint though, that the car began to show signs that perhaps the fuel cell issue wasn’t fully resolved.
The team attempted several quick fixes during Braun’s first stint and Bennett’s second, but the problem was getting worse. By Kurtz’ second stint, it was obvious the problem was not fuel cell related, but instead connected to fuel pressure. CORE had no choice but to bring the car back to the paddock for a lengthy repair.
The team completed the fix and got the car back out on track with Braun behind the wheel. The No. 54 returned to the circuit in seventh place and multiple laps down.
The fuel pressure set back was solved, but there was not enough time left in the race to make a difference in the championship. So as not to risk the car or impact any other team’s race, Braun brought the No. 54 into the pits to officially retire.
CORE ends the 2021 IMSA season second in the LMP3 championship with four podium finishes, including wins at Road America and the 12 Hours of Sebring.”
Team owner/driver Jon Bennett had these comments about the race, ““We had a really good race car for part of the day and unfortunately toward the end of my stint there were some abnormalities that got worse and worse as we went. There are some things that just can’t be fixed quickly in the middle of a race and this was one of them.”
“The season as a whole was fantastic. I missed racing a lot in 2020, a lot more than I thought I would. It was fun to come back. The Ligier is a great race car and we enjoyed racing it. We had success at Sebring and Road America. We added George Kurtz to the team. I enjoyed spending time with George and he’s very, very fast in the race car. He fits in with our team very well.”
Colin Braun, professional race driver who has been driving with Jon Bennett most of the years that CORE Autosports has been in existence said, ““The season as whole was great, of course with wins at Sebring and Road America being the highlights. I really enjoyed getting to drive again with Jon after he took a break. The crew did a great job with the car. It was a lot of fun driving with George and I’m happy we could get him that first, big sports car racing win at Sebring. I think you’ve got to be happy with your season when you come into the last race fighting for a championship. It doesn’t always go your way but that’s what makes it even better when it does.”
New to the CORE Autosports team for 2021, George Kurtz owner of CrowdStrike was the third driver in the longer races. The rookie remarked, ““Overall it was a great season. I was really excited to be a part of the CORE team for the endurance races. We got the big win at Sebring and had good results at Watkins Glen. We were hoping for fantastic results here, but that’s just racing. The car got really bad when I was out there for my second stint and really became undrivable. We did the right thing and we brought the car in, got it fixed and got Colin back out there.”
Hope to see them at the Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona in January 2022.
Let’s go racing,
Tom Hale
Soli Deo Gloria (Joshua 1:9)
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