News Tidbits...

2009 Tidbits - September/October...



• 10/30: There will be a meeting for the Home Hardware Sportsman Series teams November 10 at 7:30 at the Charles Keating Millennium Center at St. FX University in Antigonish. The topic in the 2010 season and the possibility of the series becoming a tour. Those who plan to attend the meeting should email their name and number of attendees to blta@eastlink.ca...
  
  
• 10/30: Sunday’s AMP Energy 500 is the 100th NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race to be held in the state of Alabama. All but 20 of those races have been held at Talladega Superspeedway. Six other Alabama tracks held events from 1951 through 1968; the most recent at Montgomery Speedway, a .5-mile track. That race, was won by the NASCAR Hall of Fame nominee Bobby Allison. Allison, from Hueytown, won four times at Talladega...
  
  
• 10/30: AJ Allmendinger, driver for the No. 44 team in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, has been placed on probation until Dec. 31, 2009. Allmendinger has violated Section 12-1 (actions detrimental to stock car racing) of the 2009 NASCAR rule book...
  
  
• 10/29: We're still hoping to have coverage of last Saturday's Scotia Speedworld Awards Banquet. Apparently they're having issues getting the story/photos posted on their website and have to decided not to release elsewhere until after their site is fixed. Sorry for the delay...
  
  
• 10/28: Congrats to Bedford NS's Justin MacNeill; he's just been announced by 600 Racing as the 2009 Canadian Pro Legends Champion!!!
  
  
• 10/28: NASCAR/country music fans should watch for Dale Earnhardt Jr. to make an appearance at the CMA Awards November 11. Earnhardt Jr. will reportedly be a presenter at the ceremony which will be broadcast by ABC...
  
  
• 10/27: A TV broadcaster has been suspended after making a "taco" remark in reference to Juan Pablo Montoya. ABC college football analyst Bob Griese has apologized twice on air but will sit out this coming weekend. Montoya is not commenting on the issue...
  
  
• 10/26: Morgan Shepherd, one of the charter members of the NASCAR Nationwide Series and still going strong at age 68, will be inducted into the Talladega-Texaco Walk of Fame on Saturday along with Jack Smith. Shepherd won the active driver nomination over Michael Waltrip and Kasey Kahne. The Walk of Fame in downtown Talladega is both a focal point saluting NASCAR’s greatest names and a tribute to one of racing’s brightest stars – the late Davey Allison. Developed in 1994, the Talladega-Texaco Walk of Fame has inducted one active driver and up to two inactive drivers since 1995 based on the fans’ vote chosen from a ballot of nominees selected by strict guidelines. Shepherd made his NASCAR Sprint Cup debut in 1970 at Hickory Motor Speedway. And, for nearly 40 years since, has competed in one of NASCAR’s top divisions. He is a four-time winner in NASCAR Sprint Cup and has 15 wins in the NASCAR Nationwide Series where he currently competes on a full-time basis...
  
  
• 10/23: Toyota can clinch its second consecutive NASCAR Nationwide Series manufacturer championship Saturday, needing only to finish better than fourth among manufacturers, or have Chevrolet finish anywhere but first. Even in a dominating season, however, Toyota has only one victory at Memphis while Chevrolet leads all manufacturers with six wins. Ford has two victories at the .75-mile track and sits third in this year’s standings...
  
  
• 10/23: Two points of interest ahead of Sunday’s TUMS Fast Relief 500: 1) If Jeff Gordon wins the pole during Friday’s qualifying session, he’ll tie three-time series champion Darrell Waltrip for all-time poles at Martinsville (eight). 2) If a Hendrick Motorsports driver wins, team owner Rick Hendrick will tie Petty Enterprises for most owner victories at Martinsville (19)...
  
  
• 10/23: JR Motorsports announced Thursday it has mutually agreed to release Brian Campe from his contractual duties as crew chief of the No. 5 team in the NASCAR Nationwide Series, effective immediately. Tony Eury Jr. will serve as the team’s crew chief this weekend in the Kroger “On Track For The Cure” 250 at Memphis Motorsports Park where Richard Boswell, a developmental driver in JRM’s late model program, will drive the No. 5 RCCA Chevrolet in his Nationwide Series debut...
  
  
• 10/22: Published reports out of North Carolina today have Michael Waltrip as being involved in a motor vehicle accident Wednesday evening. Waltrip was allegedly making a u-turn in his Lexus when it collided with a Harley Davidson motorcycle. Waltrip, who was uninjured, received received a failure to yield citation after passing a field sobriety test. The motorcycle driver was treated at a nearby hospital...
  
  
• 10/22: Short track racing veterans will know the name Bob Senneker as one of the great ASA racers from the mid-west of the late 90s, winning 50 races and the 1990 title. But you may not know that Senneker's nephew, Terry Senneker, is now one of the premier short track racers in the mid-west - and the 2009 NASCAR Whelen All-American Series Michigan state champion...
  
  
• 10/22: NASCAR announced Wednesday that the crew chief, owner and driver of the No. 16 NASCAR Nationwide Series team have been fined and penalized for violations involving sealed engine rules. Crew chief Eddie Pardue has been fined $30,000 for violating Section 12-1 (actions detrimental to stock car racing); 12-4-J (Race equipment that has been previously sealed by NASCAR for use in an event) and sub-section 8-6 (Failure to submit the sealed engine from the race winner for inspection; removal of the seal from the winning engine without authorization from NASCAR) of the 2009 NASCAR Nationwide Series rule book. Team owner Jack Roush was penalized with the loss of 100 NASCAR Nationwide Series championship owner points while driver Matt Kenseth also was docked 100 NASCAR Nationwide Series championship driver points...
  
  
• 10/21: The top NASCAR stars will gather at historic Daytona International Speedway on Jan. 15-16 for the annual NASCAR Preseason Thunder Fan Fests, which give race fans a sneak preview on the new NASCAR racing season as well as Speedweeks 2010 and the 52nd annual Daytona 500. On those dates, race fans will be able to get their “racing fix” prior to Speedweeks 2010 and the 52nd annual Daytona 500 on Sunday, Feb. 14 with numerous activities with their favorite drivers from the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Nationwide Series and Camping World Truck Series in the Sprint FANZONE located in the heart of the “World Center of Racing.” Ticket information, driver appearance schedules and more details about the NASCAR Preseason Thunder Fan Fests will be released in the coming months...
  
  
• 10/20: Looks like Maritime race fans heading for Florida in February will have a local to cheer for as Wayne Smith is planning a run in the World Series of Asphalt Stock Car Racing at New Smyrna Speedway just a few miles south of Daytona - on the same week as the Daytona 500. It's been a few years since we've had someone to watch and cheer for at the fast 1/2-mile. Go Wayne! More details as the time gets closer...
  
  
• 10/20: Retired NASCAR racer Ricky Rudd is still racing - mountain bikes...Rudd, who typically rides his bike 12 miles a day at least four days a week recently entered his first ever mountain bike race and got his "butt kicked." Rudd said he just wanted to see where he's at so entered the 50-year-old class. Unfortunatley for Rudd there were a lot of hills on the course, his self-professed weak spot...
  
  
• 10/18: Anyone who doubts Jimmie Johnson has to be the odds-on favourite for the 2009 Sprint Cup title should know that after Saturday's race at Lowe's Motor Speedway Johnson has the biggest points lead ever with five races remaining in Chase history. Johnson currently holds a 90-point advantage over Hedrick teammate Mark Martin. If Johnson's good fortune holds out the rest of the season and he wins the title he will make NASCAR history as the first driver to ever win four consecutive championships - but as we all know: it's not over til it's over - and a lot can happen in five races...
  
  
• 10/16: Carl Edwards and his wife Kate are expecting their first child in mid-February - a baby girl scheduled to arrive in time for the 2010 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season opener at Daytona...
  
  
• 10/14: Robert Good, a crew member for the No. 26 team in the NASCAR Nationwide Series, has been indefinitely suspended from NASCAR for violating the sanctioning body’s substance abuse policy. Good violated Sections 12-1 (actions detrimental to stock car racing) and 7-5 (violation of the NASCAR substance abuse policy) of the 2009 NASCAR rule book. Good’s violation came on Oct. 9...
  
  
• 10/12: SPEED television will offer extended coverage of the new NASCAR Hall of Fame festivities which will see the inaugural class of five legends named on Wednesday. A new SPEED show, NASCAR Race Hub, will debut tonight at 8:30 p.m. (AT) with special guest Richard Petty. The 30-minute show will air every Monday to Thursday...
  
  
• 10/12: Veteran racer James Hylton suffered an ankle injury during an ARCA ReMax Series race Sunday. Hylton was taken to hospital after the incident, treated and released...
  
  
• 10/11: Tom Logano - father of NASCAR driver Joey Logano - reportedly had his NASCAR annual credential suspended Saturday after making gestures at, and confronting, Greg Biffle following the Nationwide Series race in California, which Joey won. Biffle had driven Joey into the outside concrete wall early in the race as the two drivers were racing for the lead. NASCAR will apparently require the elder Logano to apply for single event licenses while the incident is under review...
  
  
• 10/8: The 37th annual TD Bank 250 Presented by New England Dodge Dealers at Oxford Plains Speedway in Maine is set for Sunday, July 18, 2010, with qualifying starting at 2 p.m. Ticket information and details about the weekend schedule will available in the coming weeks...
  
  
• 10/7: Ford and Roush Fenway Racing unveil the new 2010 NASCAR Nationwide Mustang on Tuesday, Oct. 13. This is the first public unveiling of the new 2010 Nationwide Mustang, that will compete in limited races next year. The unveiling will take place at Roush in Concord, NC...
  
  
• 10/7: JR Fitzpatrick will drive a pro stock and a Legends entry this weekend at Centre for Speed. Fitzptrick, from Ontario, is a recent winner in the NASCAR Canadian Tires Series race in Montreal and has also run several NASCAR Camping World Truck Series and Nationwide Series races. He was in Halifax last month running a Legends car at Scotia Speedworld. This weekend at Fitzpatrick will drive Vance Hanes' Legends car on Saturday and Robbie MacLean's pro stock on Sunday - both presented by Racing Trader. Fitzpatrick is expected to compete against pro stock hotshoes including Wayne Smith, Shawn Tucker and Kirk Thibeau...
  
  
• 10/6: Centre for Speed owner Tim Wile told us yesterday he has over 200 teams registered to compete in this weekends Atlantic Championships. Saturday will see racing for sportsman (100-lap feature), legends, AOW and mini's - starting at 1 p.m. Sunday will see pro stock (150-lap feature), sportsman and street stock racing - starting at 1 p.m...
  
  
• 10/6: Get well wishes to Bruce Langille, longtime maritime motorsports journalist, who suffered a heart attack at the end of last week. Bruce remains in hospital and is expected home this week. All the best for a speedy recovery Bruce...
  
  
• 10/5: Centre For Speed (Shediac, NB) is pleased to announce for the first time, and in partnership with Avondale and Thunder Valley Speedways in Newfoundland, several Newfoundland teams are now registered to compete in the Atlantic Championships set for this coming weekend at CFS. Expectations are that between two and six entries from NF will register in Pro Stock, Sportsman and Mini Stock divisions...
  
  
• 10/4: NASCAR drivers will play the all-new half-hour version of "Are You Smarter Than A 5th Grader?" hosted by comedian Jeff Foxworthy. On October 6th NASCAR drivers David Ragan & Michael Waltrip enter the classroom to play the game for charity. On October 26th NASCAR week kicks off on the new nationally syndicated "Are You Smarter Than A 5th Grader?" Carl Edwards, Kurt Busch, and Denny Hamlin are among the contestants playing the game for their charities. Check your local listings for broadcast information...
  
  
• 10/3: Mark your calendars! The 2010 edition of the IWK 250 is set for July 17 on Riverside Int'l Speedway's tentative schedule, which sees five events in total. The other four shows are two CARQUEST Tour races (June and August), the second annual Antigonish Truck & Tractor Pull (date tba), and the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series event (date tba)...
  
  
• 10/3: The NASCAR Hall of Fame is one step closer to its May 11, 2010 opening day with the placement this week of the first artifact in the 150,000 square-foot entertainment attraction. The iconic bright orange Unocal 76 spotter ball traveled on a flat-bed trailer from a restoration company in Florida to the NASCAR Hall of Fame Monday. It arrived in three sections, and the construction teams worked on assembly and placement of the ball for three days, completing the project late Wednesday night. Due to its immense size, this item had to be placed much earlier than other artifacts, which are scheduled for placement after the New Year. It is one of the four spotter balls first installed at Daytona International Speedway in 1969. At the time, the enclosed platform replaced open platforms and offered a better view and more protection from the elements for officials and broadcast spotters. Driver spotters used other locations around the track...
  
  
• 10/2: The PASS Mods and Sportsman races scheduled this weekend for White Mountain Motorsports Park in NH have been cancelled due to an inclement forecast. Track and series officials will not attempt to reschedule the event...
  
  
• 10/2: Congrats to CARQUEST Tour driver Mike Stevens (#26) on his marriage to Sharon last Saturday (Sept. 26)...
  
  
• 10/2: The Maritime Motorsports Hall of Fame in Petitcodiac, NB is set to open its doors October 16 with a ribbon cutting ceremony set for 2 p.m. More details to follow...
  
  
• 10/1: Depending on the outcome of Sunday’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Price Chopper 400, Chevrolet could clinch the 2009 manufacturers’ title this weekend at Kansas Speedway. If so, it would be the 33rd such title for Chevrolet and the seventh consecutive one. The manufacturers’ championship debuted in 1950. What’s necessary for Chevrolet to clinch: Chevy’s top-finishing driver on Sunday must finish ahead of Toyota’s top-finishing driver...
  
  
• 9/29: We had a note yesterday from one of the guys on Donald Chisholm's crew this past weekend at Kawartha (ON) for the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series season finale. Chisholm's 17th-place finish was not indicative of a great day that saw him running as high as second. Chisholm and crew waited til close to the end of the race to pit for tires hoping new rubber would help earn a podium finish - unfortunately the heavens opened up just after Chisholm's stop and before the pit cycle ended - and that was that...
  
  
• 9/28: Saint John's Lonnie Sommerville is getting ready to head south for two PASS South events in October. Sommerville and his No. 23 team will enter events at South Boston Speedway in Virginia (October 17) and at Greenville-Pickens Speedway in South Carolina (October 24)...
  
  
• 9/28: Maine's Ben Rowe won Sunday's rain-delayed PASS South/National Super Late Model race at Southern National Raceway Park in North Carolina. Rowe pitted late in the race to swap front and rear tires and then came back through the pack. Clay Jones finished second. Preston Peltier led for awhile, but had a flat tire and had to come back through to pack to finish third. Rowe's closest rival in the PASS South points battle, Jay Fogelman, dropped out of the race early with mechanical problems.
  
  
• 9/27: Lake Doucette Motor Speedway near Digby (NS) is back in operation. The popular paved oval is under new management by the South Western Stockcar Association and will run a 150 for sportsman cars on October 17. The race is being sponsored by Murray GM and will offer more than $8,000 in prizes, including $1,000 to the winner. Many other local sponsors have pitched in to support contingency programs. The track will be open for practice October 16...
  
  
• 9/27: Hope to have results soon from Saturday's International at River Glade and open comp races at Oyster Bed Speedway - stay tuned...
  
  
• 9/26: Dover International Speedway has been a special race track for the Truex family through the years, and today it became even a little more special. Ryan Truex finished off his rookie season in the NASCAR Camping World East Series by claiming the series championship with an eighth-place finish in the Sunoco 150 at Dover on Friday afternoon. Truex, 17, did so two-and-a-half years after his older brother Martin won his first career NASCAR Sprint Cup series race at the Monster Mile, which the family from Mayetta, N.J., has long considered their home track...
  
  
• 9/25: This weekend, Brian Vickers will become the youngest driver ever to reach 200 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series starts in six full seasons of competition. Of the 200 starts, Vickers has only driven for two teams, Hendrick Motorsports, for which he made 113 starts, and Team Red Bull with 86 starts. Vickers currently is eighth in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup standings with one win, four top fives, 13 top 10s and six poles...
  
  
• 9/24: Good Luck to Donald Chisholm who heads for Kawartha Speedway in Ontario today for this weekends NASCAR Canadian Tire Series season finale. Chisholm hopes to carry the momentum of his fifth-place finish at Riverside last weekend with him. He finished 10th last year at Kawartha. Go Donald!
  
  
• 9/24: NASCAR's Regan Smith, winner of the 2008 edition of the IWK 250 at Riverside Speedway, celebrated his 26th birthday Wednesday - in anticipation of his return to Dover Int'l Speedway this weekend. Dover marks the start of six events out of the remaining nine for the part-time No. 78 team - planning to run a full-time Sprint Cup Series schedule in 2010...
  
  
• 9/24: Speedway 660 has announced its 2010 rules meeting will be held November 20 and its 2009 Awards Banquet for January 30; both events will be held at the Fredericton Inn...
  
  
• 9/24: NASCAR announced Wednesday its 2010 testing policy for its three national and two regional touring series. The policy will again prohibit testing at tracks which host NASCAR national series events, by teams in the following series: NASCAR Sprint Cup; NASCAR Nationwide; NASCAR Camping World Truck; NASCAR Camping World East; and NASCAR Camping World West. In 2010, however, testing will be allowed at NASCAR-sanctioned tracks that host a regional touring event but do not host a national series event...
  
  
• 9/23: The local driver just became the hometown hero. Martin Truex Jr., always a fan favorite at the Monster Mile, has purchased 100 tickets to the “AAA 400” NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race for select fans who were unable to renew their September race tickets due to hardships brought on by the economic downturn or other unforeseen circumstances. Loyal Dover International Speedway ticket holders were contacted and told of Truex’s special donation of tickets to the upcoming “Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup” race. The list was compiled from letters or personal stories shared by fans during the ticket renewal period for the Sept. 25-27 race weekend. “When we heard that Dover had a list of fans who wanted to come to the race but couldn’t for one reason or another, we decided to take care of them,” said Truex, driver of the No. 1 Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. “The Martin Truex Jr. Foundation is always looking for new ways to help those in need in the NASCAR community, and we felt this was a great way to support fans who wanted to be at the race in Dover. Dover obviously has a special place in my heart.”
  
  
• 9/22: Scotia Speedworld Weekly Racing Series teams are reminded their annual awards banquet is set for October 24 - a change from the January date that has been "the norm" for several years. The event remains at the Glengarry in Truro. Tickets ($40 each) are available by calling 902.481.2514...
  
  
• 9/22: Robbie MacLean - one of the new co-owners of Oyster Bed Speedway - told us yesterday this Saturday's season finale open is shaping up to be a huge success, if expected car count is any indication. 28 sportsman have registered, 35 street stock, 14 for the Honda division and 19 4-cylinder's. MacLean says there are cars coming from throughout the Maritimes. The show will also feature a 50-lap race for the OBB modifieds. Racing starts at 2 p.m. this Saturday September 26...
  
  
• 9/22: NASCAR asked a federal judge Monday to order physical and mental examinations of suspended driver Jeremy Mayfield; to determine if Mayfield has a substance abuse problem and/or attention deficit disorder. Mayfield was suspended earlier this year under NASCAR's substance abuse policy. Mayfield sued NASCAR in response, and NASCAR has counter-sued. The case is not set to go to trial until October 2010...
  
  
• 9/21: Mark Martin has signed a contract extension with Hendrick Motorsports that will see him pilot the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series No. 5 through the end of the 2011 season. GoDaddy.com will sponsor the car...
  
  
• 9/20: NASCAR officials reportedly told Sprint Cup Series crew chiefs Saturday morning not to expect any major rule changes for the 2010 season - including the moratorium on testing...
  
  
• 9/19: NASCAR driver Greg Biffle's home sustained approx. $20,000 fire damage Friday morning - apparently caused by a gas leak. No-one was home at the time; deputies were called to the residence in response to a security alarm call. They, in turn, called the fire department...
  
  
• 9/18: Talked to Herman Berry from River Glade yesterday - mostly about the 45th annual International - rescheduled for September 26 at 2 p.m. The sportsman race is 145 laps. The winner could take home more than $2,225 if he leads all the laps ($1,500 to win + $725 lap leader bonus) as well as other contingency awards. There will also be a 50-lap Legends race on the card. The pit gates will open at 11 a.m., the grandstand at 1 p.m. Berry added there has been a tremendous outpouring of support for the event from sponsors and drivers alike; he expects a full-field of 25 cars to start the International...
  
  
• 9/17: Got an email from Robbie MacLean with more details about the open event planned for Oyster Bed Speedway in PEI, as follows: Sept 26 gates opening at 10:00 a.m. Sportsman 100, Pro Stock/Modified 75, Street Stock 50, Honda and 4cyl twin 40's. Payouts to follow at drivers meeting this Sunday. Stay tuned - we're still looking for more info - like the start time...update racing will start at 2 p.m...
  
  
• 9/16: We had a phone message from Robbie MacLean, a co-owner of Oyster Bed Speedway in PEI, telling us the pro stock open show they had planned for later this month has been cancelled due to schedule conflicts. Other spurces tell us the sportsman show is still a go - we've left a message with Robbie to clarify what is happening - so stay tuned...
  
  
• 9/15: JR Motorsports crew chief Tony Eury Sr. is resting comfortably after being involved in a two-car accident Sunday afternoon near China Grove, N.C. Eury Sr. was treated overnight at Carolinas Medical Center-Northeast for minor injuries and is scheduled for release today. Eury Sr. is the crew chief of the No. 88 JR Motorsports Chevrolets driven by Brad Keselowski in the NASCAR Nationwide Series. The team is currently third in the Nationwide Series point standings after finishing fourth at Richmond International Raceway last Friday night. The Nationwide Series is off this weekend and will return to action on Sept. 26 at Dover International Raceway...
  
  
• 9/15: Officials of Rusty Wallace Racing announced Monday that effective immediately, the team's Director of Competition, Wes Ward and Lead Engineer, Dale Ferguson, will assume interim co-crew chief duties for RWR's No. 62 entry and driver, Brendan Gaughan. They replace Brian Berry at the helm of the No. 62 team. "This was a hard decision for us to make," said Rusty Wallace, team owner. "Brian (Berry)'s a good person and a good crew chief. There are just times when the communication between a driver and crew chief doesn't work out quite right and this was one of them. We're in a performance-based business and we owe it to our sponsors and our team to do everything we can to improve our level of performance. I'm confident that Wes (Ward) and Dale (Ferguson) will do a great job while we evaluate our options going forward."
  
  
• 9/14: It's not stock car racing - but - anyone interested in seeing a Formula One and Indy racecar should plan to visit a Mighty Auto location later this week. They'll be hosting Michael Schumacher's 2004 F1 car and Dan Wheldon's 2006 Indy car at the following locations in and around the Halifax area: Sept. 16 at Mighty Auto in Bedford; Sept. 17 at Mighty Auto in Cole Harbour; Sept. 18 at Mighty Auto in Burnside; and Sept. 19 at Mighty Auto in Halifax...
  
  
• 9/11: A hard-hitting lineup of top musical artists, including Gavin DeGraw and Blake Shelton, will convene on Charlotte, North Carolina's Whisky River nightclub in a month-long series of concerts appropriately entitled “Rockin’ The River” Concert Series. Five weekly concerts during the month of October will make up the series, with all proceeds benefitting The Dale Jr. Foundation and its associated charities, including Make-A-Wish Foundation and Victory Junction Gang Camp. Concert tickets will be sold for each individual event as well as a limited number of ‘Super Tickets’ that include all five events for only $75. Fans can go to http://whiskyriver.tickets.musictoday.com to purchase tickets. Whisky River is owned by Dale Earnhardt Jr...
  
  
• 9/10: Miramichi City Speedway (NB) will hold its third demolition of the '09 season this Saturday at 7 p.m. Dukes and four-cylinders will also be on the docket...
  
  
• 9/9: The 2009 CARQUEST Pro Stock Tour Awards Banquet will see not only a change of venue - but a departure from its traditional October date. The gala to celebrate the season ending this Saturday at Scotia Speedworld will be held at the Holiday Inn Harbourview in Dartmouth on January 23...
  
  
• 9/9: RAB Racing announced Tuesday that Travis Kvapil, the 2003 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Champion, will fill in for John Wes Townley in the No. 09 Zaxby’s Ford Fusion in the upcoming Virginia 529 College Savings 250 at Richmond International Raceway this Friday. Although this will be Kvapil’s first NNS start at the .750-mile oval, he is no stranger to the track. With 11 previous starts in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, NASCAR Camping World Truck Series and IROC Series, Kvapil sat on the pole in the NCWTS and posted a best finish of 9th in 2003...
  
  
• 9/8: Centre for Speed has announced its schedule for the 10th Annual Atlantic Stock Car Championships scheduled for October 9, 10, 11th. The weekend will feature cars in all major classes in the region. The speedway is promising that "Atlantic Canada's Year End Racing Celebration" will have a number of new features to further enhance the event for the fans and drivers from throughout our region. According to the track website more announcements will be made in the coming weeks regarding the event so stay tuned...
  
  
• 9/7: Congrats to Lonnie Sommerville and his No. 23 team on their win Sunday evening in the Peterbilt 250 at Speedway 660. It was Sommerville's second Peterbilt 250 win and his second Triple Crown win on the '09 season. Sommerville is also the champion of the '09 edition of Scotia Speedworld's Atlantic CAT 250 in August. Wayne Smith won the first leg of the Triple Crown - the IWK 250 at Riverside Int'l Speedway in July. The $50,000 bonus was only payable if the same driver won all three races. There were no runner-up prizes...
  
  
• 9/6: River Glade Speedway in NB will re-open September 26 for its 46th Annual River Glade International for sportsman competitors. The track closed mid-August after a disagreement with nearby Centre for Speed over the South East Challenge Series - just a week before the International was originally scheduled. The September 26 event is being promoted soley by River Glade with support from several local businesses. Laps sponsorships are being offered for $20 each; call Herman Berry at (506)882-2222 to participate...
  
  
• 9/6: We're hearing rumblings of potential late-season sportsman events at both Lake Doucette Speedway (near Digby, NS) and at Oyster Bed Speedway (in PEI). Anyone with further info on these events is asked to call us at 902.444.0703 or email news@checkerstowreckers.com...
  
  
• 9/5: Canadian racing star J.R. Fitzpatrick, a native of Cambridge Ontario, will be at Scotia Speedworld near Halifax next Friday and Saturday (September 11-12) for the facilities 2009 season finale weekend. Fitzpatrick, a CASCAR champion, has piloted racecars in NASCAR's Nationwide Series and Campion World Truck Series this year, will drive a Legends Car both nights at Speedworld...
  
  
• 9/3: According to a story published Wednesday in New Brunswick's telegraph-Journal newspaper, a NB store owner has been advised by legal representatives of NASCAR legend and champion Darrell Waltrip that he needs to change the name of his store - which has been called Boogity Sportswear since long before Waltrip registered "boogity" as a trademark in Canada in 2005. The store owner would like to fight Waltrip but won't since he knows it will take big bucks and Waltrip would have "deeper pockets" than the store owner. Read the entire story here - you will be re-directed to the Telegraph-Journal website...
  
  
• 9/3: Speedway 660 pro stock racer Chris Duncan has a new website. Check it out at www.duncanracing97.piczo.com - by clicking the link you will leave this website and be redirected to Duncan's site...
  
  
• 9/2: Mike Hennessy, a crew member for the No. 199 team in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, Gary St. Amant, a crew member for the No. 199 team in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series and Richard Henninger, a crew member for the No. 6 team in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, have been indefinitely suspended from NASCAR for violating the sanctioning body’s substance abuse policy. All three were found to have violated Sections 12-1 (actions detrimental to stock car racing) and 7-5 (violation of the NASCAR substance abuse policy) of the 2009 NASCAR rule book. Hennessy’s violation came on Aug. 27, while Henninger’s and St. Amant’s both came on Aug. 28...
  
  
• 9/2: Historically, Dover International Speedway’s spring race dates depend on where the Memorial Day holiday falls. Through the years it’s varied between late-May or early June, and because Memorial Day comes late in 2010, Dover International Speedway’s spring race weekend has been moved to May 14-16, 2010, three weeks earlier than this year’s dates to accommodate a busy spring NASCAR schedule. Dover’s fall “Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup” race weekend remains unchanged and is scheduled for Sept. 24-26, 2010. Tickets for the May 14-16, 2010 tripleheader weekend featuring the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, NASCAR Nationwide Series and NASCAR Camping World Truck Series go on sale to the public on Monday, Oct. 12, 2009. Tickets for the Sept. 24-26, 2010 races will go on sale on Monday, Dec. 14, 2009. Tickets can be purchased by calling 800-441-RACE or online at DoverSpeedway.com...
  
  
• 9/1: Thanks to all our fans for their patience over the last couple days as we were experiencing technical difficulties. First time in the nearly three and one-half years we've been plagued with such problems so guess we shouldn't complain. We were in Montreal for the NASCAR races and evidently our laptop thought it was a vacation - not a working trip - cause it just wouldn't do anything. Not good; bad laptop! In any case we're back online now and will have lots of great photos from the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve garage both Saturday and Sunday - so stay tuned...


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