New Smyrna Speedway Update: February 28/11
We all arrived back home safe after a great
week down in Florida! With warm weather
and two nights of great racing, we all had a
great time. We struggled a little bit on
the first 100lap race. We started deep in
the field of 28 cars and started to work our way
forward. Unfortunately we lost the
handling on the car but we were able to hang on
for an 18th place finish. The 2nd night
saw the finishing order of the first race
inverted which meant we were starting 2nd.
During practice we loosened up the car hoping
that would help us for the race later that
evening. It worked for a while as we were
able to get around the leader and open up a gap
between the rest of the field.
Unfortunately, after only 10 laps of leading the
race, the car started to tighten up again.
We once again finished 18th which gave us an
overall finish of 17th for the championship.
The entire #31 NAPA Team worked hard all week
and had fun. Thanks to everyone for their
hard work!
February 2011
CURLEY'S CORNER
What a great
race event the Goodyear Speedweek Cup at the
New Smyrna Speedway in Florida was last
week. The reaction from the wonderful
northern fans who went to Florida to support
the show and the remarkable effort the very
mixed group of ACT competitors put on for
two nights was nothing short of exceptional.
What was most
interesting was there were two very different
races on each night, but both were equally
entertaining. Sunday we had a classic
battle for the win between breakaway stars Joey
Pole and Patrick Laperle (both of whom had run
New Smyrna before and it showed). That race
could have gone either way. Equally competitive
was a group of 6 or 7 teams racing together in
the top 10, side-by-side for what seemed like
the full 100 laps. It was a great first effort.
Monday was one of the best races we have
seen in years. The inversion and a race under
their belts brought a whole bunch of people out
to race. There was not much question that Joey
and Patrick were going to have their hands full,
and they did. Great performances by ACT Champ
Brian Hoar, Mark Lamberton, Jonathan Urlin,
Wayne Helliwell, Jr., and Patrick Hamel.
Some
additional information:
-
Both days were
Sunny with temps in the mid 60's-low 70's
-
Race nights
were chilly with temps in the high 40's to
mid 50's
-
The big half
mile was very fast and the banking was only
one degree less than Thunder Road's 18
degrees!!
-
We missed the
call on the possible gear to use and most
teams spent a considerable time the first
practice session getting that problem worked
out.
-
We practiced
for 4 hours over the two days with only two
minor spins?no wrecks?no blown motors?.an
excellent effort.
-
The first race
had only 3 cautions, two minor and one bad
wreck.
-
The Sunday
100-lap race took around 50 minutes to
complete.
-
There were 7
cautions in the second race?all were minor
and none was lengthy.
-
The Monday
100-lap race took around :58 minutes to
complete.
-
Ken Squier and
Troy Germain did the PA and radio broadcast
on Sunday.
-
Dave Moody did
the Monday event for both the PA and radio
broadcast.
-
Speed 51 did a
great job with coverage for both days,
including practice?the live radio feed for
both events went on both-- WDEV Radio for
Vermont listeners and a national audience on
Speed 51 for both events.
-
Perhaps the
best thing for the ACT organization was that
we were very pleased with the parity of the
Ford and Chevy teams. New Smyrna provided a
neutral track to see if the adjustments we
made during this past off-season were
positive to try and assure that there was
not an edge by either the Fords or
Chevys?From everything we saw at New Smyrna,
we are happy with our rules package at this
time as we enter the 2011 season.
-
Robert Hart,
the promoter at New Smyrna Speedway was very
pleased with the ACT organization and the
way the competitors raced?before the start
of the second feature on Monday night, he
invited ACT back for 2012?we will see if
that becomes possible.
Here are some
individual team thoughts:
31ON Spencer MacPherson-
The Ottawa driver had a successful year
in 2008 on the Castrol Series, but took
some time off to join the family
business over the past couple seasons.
His Monday race at NSS showed that he
still is fine racer. With the inversion
from Sunday, Spencer battled for much of
the night at the front in a very
competitive pack. He ended the two-day
event with the field in the second
highly competitive race.
Early Start to the
Season: January 25/11
hope everyone had a great
Christmas and New Year! We have been working
very hard all winter as the team made a last
minute decision to head down south to New Smyrna
Beach, Florida for the first ever ACT Goodyear
Speedweeks Cup. We completely stripped the
racecar this winter to go through everything and
we are ready to head to Florida! It will be a
nice break from all the cold weather and snow we
have been having and we all look forward to get
back to the track. There will be two races for
us down at New Smyrna Speedway. The first is a
100-lapper held on Sunday February 13th and the
second is also a 100-lapper held on Monday
February 14th. There are 28 latemodels
registered so far for the event and it should be
two very fast and competitive nights of racing!
After a long winter we can't wait to get down
there and get onto the track! Thanks a lot
Spencer
Question Session:
LateModel #31 Spencer MacPherson
By OntarioOval.com
In our latest edition of
Question Session we caught up with Spencer
MacPherson, the sensational young racer from
Carleton Place, Ontario. At just 22 years of age
Spencer has been competing in various forms of
racing for the past 13 seasons. We had the
chance to get an inside look at the driver of
the #31 NAPA Auto Parts Late Model and find out
his thoughts on everything from the importance
of karting to his overseas racing experiences.
The Basics
Birthdate: October 31, 1988
Hometown: Carleton Place, ON
Career:
Automotive Service Technician
Years in
Racing: 13
Website:
www.spencermacpherson.com
As is the case with many drivers, you got
your start in karts at an early age. How
important do you feel it is for young drivers to
spend the time in the karting ranks when
starting their driving careers? Karting is a
must! You can start at such a young age which
is so important if you want a career in
motorsports. In karting you learn so much about
car(kart) control & proper techniques that stick
with you for life. With karts you have to be
super smooth which will help you excel in any
series.
You have had the
opportunity already to travel to many
interesting places to both train and compete.
What has been your favourite experience thus far
in all your travels? My favourite would have to
be my trip to Valencia, Spain. Before I
transitioned to stock cars, I was chasing a
career in formula cars. One of the series we
were looking at was the Formula BMW series. In
order to compete, you had to advance through
their licensing program which was held at the
Formula 1 test track in Valencia. The cars were
a blast to drive and the entire experience was
amazing!
In 2010 you drove at
a variety of speedways, what goals did you set
and were they accomplished? The only goal we set
for ourselves in 2010 was to be competitive
everywhere we went. We weren't stuck to a
particular schedule or going for a championship,
we were just out to race wherever we wanted. We
struggled during our first few races so we made
some changes in the shop & that turned it all
around. After that, I would say we were
competitive everywhere we went.
For a race
team the off-season is a busy time preparing for
the new year. What are you and your team working
on now that will increase your chances of
success in 2011? Right now the team & I have the
car stripped down to the bare frame. We are
going through every part on the car making sure
that the car & ourselves are fully prepared for
2011. Preparation, in any form of motorsports,
is key and we plan on being ready for testing by
the end of march.
What are your
plans for 2011, what tracks and races do you
have highlighted on your calendar? I'm not 100%
sure yet. We are waiting for all of the
schedules to come out so we can compare them
all. Whether we run the full season or not, we
will definitely be at Kawartha in 2011. I would
also like to run some Thunder Road races in
Barre, Vermont as well as some select races on
the ACT Tour.
Putting together a full
season of racing takes many sponsors and
supporters. What is involved in making sure the
#31 is on the track week? Like most other
racers, sponsors are a major factor in racing or
not racing. Thankfully for us we are teamed up
with a great group of people and organizations
like NAPA Auto Parts, Cavanagh Construction,
MacPherson�s Auto Centre, Kenyon Racing
Products, Sign Design, and T-Wat Construction.
Without the help of these people, the #31 Late
Model wouldn't be on the track every week. Just
like I need my sponsors, I also need my team! I
have a great group of guys that help me out with
the car week in and week out. Without them
helping me year round, we wouldn't be able to
get out there every week.
What are you goals for
the 2011 season and how do you plan to achieve
them? For 2011, I believe we are going to have
the same goal as last year. I want to be
competitive and fighting for a win everytime we
get on the track no matter where we are racing.
As long as we continue where we left off in 2010
I don't think that will be a problem. We are
already preparing for 2011 and we are going to
come out swinging at the beginning of the
season!
At the age of 22 you
still have the prime of your career ahead of
you, what are your long term aspirations in
motorsports? The ultimate goal for me is to get
to where, instead of working to support my
racing; I'm racing to support myself. Whether
it be one of the top three NASCAR series or a
touring car series, it really doesn't matter. I
love all forms of racing and if I can get to the
point where my income is from my racing, that
would be awesome!!
#31 NAPA Late Model
Progress: Jan. 24/10
I hope everyone had a good
Christmas and New Years. I am down in High
Point, North Carolina until the middle of March
as I am attending Hedgecock Racing Academy.
I am learning lots down here and enjoying some
warmer weather as well. I am missing home
though as I can't do anything with the late
model but fortunately for me we have a great
team who are working hard at getting the car
ready for the upcoming season. Special
thanks to my Dad and Casey for continuing to
work on the racecar. Without them I
wouldn't be able to do this. Stay tuned
for information on our upcoming season!
Chaudiere Race
Report: June 7/09
Once again the NAPA Late
Model team headed back down to Quebec City this
past weekend, this time for the 3rd Round of the
Serie ACT Castrol at Autodrome Chaudiere. We
have run well here in the past and were excited
to go as it is a very fun and interesting
track. The car was fast right away which is
always good because you just have to worry about
fine tuning it. We were running in the top five
for lap times in practice which was good to see,
especially after our last two weekends.
We started 6th in our
heat race and unfortunately were spun out by a
slower car who hit us coming off of the corner.
We were lucky though as the caution did come out
and we were able to restart from the rear of the
field. With only a few laps to go we were able
to make our way back up to 6th which secured us
a spot in the feature.
We didnt want to adjust
too much for the feature so we only made a small
change. We started 6ht for the feature and
right away the car was hard to drive. The track
had changed so much on us since the heat race
that the car wasnt fast anymore. We continued
to come into the pits on most of the caution
laps but were unable to get the handle back on
our #31 NAPA Late Model. We were however able
to stay out of trouble and bring the car back in
one piece, finishing 16th.
Once again thank you to
my entire team for sticking with me and keeping
a good attitude while we figure out how to turn
our luck around. This weekend we are headed to
Capital City Speedway for the 4th race of the
Serie ACT castrol.
Autodrome
Montmagny Race Report: May 31/09
This past Saturday the
#31 Late Model team travelled down to Autodrome
Montmagny hoping to bounce back from our poor
finish in St. Eustache. We struggled with the
car during practice but were able to figure it
out and finish 3rd in our heat race. After
running the Semi-Feature and drawing for
position, we once again got a poor starting spot
of 17th.
We didnt let that
bother us though as we started the feature and
started our move to the front. Just a few laps
into the race, the car became extremely tight.
It felt exactly the way it did during the St.
Eustache race. We had planned on coming in on
the next caution to change the right side tires
but unfortunately we were the next caution as we
were hit from behind in corner 4 and backed into
the pit wall.
The car was towed back
to the pits where we could inspect the damage.
Unfortunately we weren't able to continue on as
we had hit hard enough to bend our rear
clip. The cause of the push condition was
because of a flat right rear tire for the 2nd
weekend in a row. The entire team did a great
job all weekend as we struggled with the car to
get it right. Special thanks to Doug, Shakey,
and Cuddles for helping us out this weekend
while we were short of some crew members.
St. Eustache
Race Report: May 18/09
The #31 team headed to
St. Eustache this past weekend for the opening
race of the 9 race Serie ACT Castrol. Although
the weather wasn't looking good and we were
rained out on Saturday, we were able to get the
race off on Sunday with alot of cars in
attendance.
We had the car running
well in practice and finished good in our heat
race but with the "inversion," we had a 13th
place starting spot for the feature race. We
made a few adjustments to the racecar before the
feature race to dial it in a little better.
The #31 NAPA Late Model
was running great in the feature race as we made
our way up to the 5th position. After running
there for a while, the car began to get
extremely tight. We didnt know until after the
race was over but unfortunately we picked up a
piece of debris on the track which was
flattening our right rear tire. We were able to
hang on for the closing stage of the race but
unfortunately fell all the way back to the 14th
positing where we finished.
Ottawa Regional
NAPA Trade Show: April 20th 2009
This past Thursday, the
#31 NAPA Late Model team headed down to the
Aberdeen Pavilion at Landsdowne Park for the
Ottawa Regional NAPA Trade Show. It brought
numerous NAPA stores and suppliers together to
showcase all of thier wonderful products. We
were very fortunate to be able to participate in
such a huge event. Along with getting the NAPA
name out there, we were able to answer questions
from curious customers and bring people up to
speed on our racing and the sport.
Thanks to the Body Shop
at Cavanagh Construction, both the truck and the
trailer were looking pristine as the guys there
did a fabulous job of detailing our equipment in
such short notice. With the truck, trailer, and
racecar all inside at the show, it was very
important that they were looking thier best.
With well over 500
customers walking through the doors, it was a
great show for all who attended. There was
something for everyone, whether it was cool
cars, tools or equipment for your shop, or even
just the friendly evironment and meeting new
people. If you weren't able to make it to this
show, you have to attend the next one!
Thank you to everyone
who made this show a success and to everyone
that helped out at all. Our new
2009 schedule is now out, look for it and
pictures from the trade show on the website.
ACT,
Thunder Road Announce 2009 Schedule Changes
The New
Hampshire Motor Speedway has confirmed
Saturday, September 19, 2009 for the
inaugural ACT Invitational at the
Northeast's only super speedway.
Thirty-six of
the best Late Model race teams in the
Northeast and Canada will be invited to
participate over the Fall NASCAR weekend at
NHMS in this $65,000.00 event. Approved
qualifiers will come from all 2009 ACT Tour
events in the US; all the winners on the
very successful S'rie ACT Castrol throughout
Quebec; and additional invitations will be
available to teams from ACT rules-affiliate
tracks including champions from Thunder Road
Speebowl (Barre, VT),Oxford Plains Speedway
(Oxford, ME), Lee USA Speedway (Lee, NH),
White Mountain Motorsports Park (Lincoln,
NH) Seekonk Speedway (Seekonk, MA),
Waterford Speedbowl (Waterford, CT), Twin
State Speedway (Claremont, NH), Kawartha
Down Speedway (Peterborough, ON) and Capital
City Speedway (Ottawa, ON). Additional
non-point events will also award winners
with invitations to the New Hampshire Motor
Speedway which include the TD Banknorth
250 at Oxford Plains Speedway on July
19, 2009, the CARQUEST Vermont
Governor's Cup at Thunder Road Int'l
Speedbowl on June 25, 2009, and the
Showdown at Chaudiere All Star Race at
Valle Junction, QC being held on August 29,
2009.
The S?rie ACT
Castrol has announced a change in the
opening date for Autodrome Ste. Eustache.
Originally slated for Saturday, May 23,
2009, the event has been changed to
Saturday, May 16, 2009.
Officials at
Thunder Road Int?l Speedbowl have announced
that the May 10, 2009 opening for the weekly
racing divisions has been cancelled. Thunder
Road, which is celebrating its 50th
anniversary during the 2009 season will
announce some capital improvement plans
shortly, which will be done during May 2009.
