January 27--- Manager Bill Dill the 3DRACINGMX.com team based in Middleboro plans to have a strong presence at the Bookoo Professional Arenacross Brought To You By Manchester Honda Part Of Manchester Sports Center on the weekend of February 9-11. "I'm bringing two of my top pro riders Chris Wisniwski of Wellfleet (Honda) and Jake Morrison of Wareham (Kawasaki)to that event. There's a great purse and it's close to home. Plus I expect a lot of the local fans from our area will be there to cheer both of my guys on.  We  decided on which Armature rider from 3DRacingMX.com that we will be entering. He's Chase Burdett of Chelmsford and he just turned 16. He also won the NESC 125 Amateur Championship and he's ready for the big step up. It was a tough choice because there were seven other good Amateur riders on our team, " said Dill.

          3DRACINGMX.Com is a performance parts company based in southeastern Massachusetts and riders sponsored by them travel to selected events coast-to-coast year round.  The Pro Rounds are set for Friday, February 9 and Saturday, February 10 while the Amatures will have their opportunity to get into the spotlight on Sunday, February 11.  Dill's company is located in a major motorcycle racing hotbed.  Because  the Capeway Rovers track across town has launched several careers of local competitors for over five decades.

       Among the top riders that Wisniwski and Morrison will have to take on in the early rounds at the Mohegan Sun Arena include Josh Demuth of Richland Hill, TX and transplanted Canadian Darcy Lang currently residing in Corona, CA.  Both of those riders are heavy favorites and have won their share of National Championships in recent years. All that translates into the fact that this pair of Bay State riders, while very experienced, will still have their work cut out for them at the Mohegan Sun Arena event before they can  transfer into the main event.

            The U.S. Open of Arenacross will also be the final race in the coast-to-coast BooKoo Arenacross Championship Series which has over 3 million dollars in purse, point fund and posted contingency for the 10-city tour.  The event at the Mohegan Sun Arena will have a $110,000.00 purse with $50,000.00 going to the U.S. Open Champion making this the richest arenacross in history.

         Here's another item relative to the Boo Koo event. He's just 41-years old and still thinking about racing in the upcoming BooKoo Arenacross event at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, CT in mid-February.   Considering his age, it should be the farthest thing from his mind.  Because by the time pro Motocross, Arenacross and Supercross riders turn 21, many consider them to be "Over The Hill".  "The people around this sport never considered me to have natural talent for racing motorcycles. Even when I was going at it hot and heavy I was still considered the 'Underdog,' " said John Dowd, originally from Chicopee and now calls Ludlow home after he moved there three years ago.  Dowd went onto say that to this day he still
holds many records  for being the oldest guy to earn those awards in the world of Motocross, Arenacross and Supercross.  The fact that when he won his first and only Supercross title he was 30 years old, according to many in this sport he was some nine years beyond his prime.   "I've also got a lot  of moto wins and I finished second overall four times. But, you know what they say about finishing second.  It's not very complementary."

     Pretty much retired from racing, Dowd continues to be still deeply involved in this sport by conducting motocross schools around New England and the like. Coming out of retirement for the BooKoo event his Coastline Motorsports Suzuki machine will be sponsored by Mototown, the indoor Motocross track, in Windsor, CT.  "I'm planning on running in both Pro classes  on that Friday and Saturday night(Feb. 9 and 10) of that weekend," revealed Dowd. At this time, Dowd is in Germany on Motocross instructional business.  Dowd also wants it made known that MotoTown's proprietor Tommy D, that all BooKoo competitors can come earlier in the week and practice at that indoor motocross track.

      So the big question is can John "Junkyard Dog" Dowd rebound from retirement and qualify for the main events on February 9-10? Incidentally, Dowd grew up in a junkyard which was a family business while on the weekend's he raced Motocross at various New England tracks. So that nickname fits.   He'll have to contend with such notables as Josh Demuth of Richland
Hill, TX and Canadian ace Darcy Lang currently residing in Corona, CA. Each of those riders have won recent championship titles in Arenacross.  Rather than stand around watching the contemporary riders in ArenaX, John Dowd is going to try and prove that he still has it in spite of the fact that his peers, fans and officials  consider him to be a Senior Citizen.

       At SpeedwayEXPO race teams will get advice from some of the best minds in the racing business, thanks to a complete line-up of informative seminars. For example, on Saturday afternoon, March 3, NASCAR on FOX Sportscaster and champion crew chief Jeff Hammond will host a pit stop training session in the Stroh Building at SpeedwayEXPO.

     In recent years Hammond has gained celebrity status as a premier racing analyst. With partner Chris Myers, he provides insightful commentary during the weekly pre-race show from the famed Hollywood Hotel.  He also contributes to the race coverage on Fox and FX with booth announcers Mike Joy, Larry McReynolds and Darrell Waltrip. Every Friday night in the racing season, Hammond and co-host Steve Byrnes report on all on- and off-track activities for Trackside Live on the SPEED Channel.

      Hammond spent many years in the NASCAR trenches. His sum includes 43 wins as a crew chief and two NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Championships with Junior Johnson and Darrell Waltrip, making him one of NASCAR's all-time great crew chiefs. He also helped earn four championships earlier in his career as the jackman for Cale Yarborough and Waltrip. During his highly successful tenure as a crew chief, Hammond has acquired a wealth of practical knowledge, which he puts to work every week as a broadcaster for FOX Sports and as the co-owner of PIT Instruction and Training, LLC.

      PIT Instruction and Training addresses specific areas of performance related to race-team training, corporate entertainment, team building, process and effectiveness improvement, and fan experience. Hammond's PIT CREW U and 5 OFF 5 ON Race Team Performance Programs develop individual and team skills to superior levels.

      PIT CREW U is the over-the-wall, experiential education division of PIT. The training includes equipment selection and maintenance, pit-stop choreography, position responsibilities and skill development, and race day preparation. 5 OFF 5 ON Race Team Performance is the practice, placement and coaching division of PIT Instruction & Training. 5 OFF 5 ON provides a variety of pit crew-related services for both individuals and race teams.

      On Saturday, March 3, three lucky teams will experience a portion of the Pit Crew U training right at SpeedwayEXPO. These pre-selected teams will perform a pit stop in the Stroh Building in front of the watchful eye of Hammond. He will then critique each crew's execution and provide constructive recommendations to help their performance in 2007 and throughout their careers. Hammond will be on hand for a short autograph session following his presentation. A full schedule of Hammond's activities at SpeedwayEXPO will be released on www.speedwayexpo.com in the coming days.

               Marshfield's Bobby Grigas III learned a lot of lessons in his rookie season of Modified racing last year.  He learned how to win by visiting victory lane at Waterford and Canaan.  He also learned how to be consistent by winning the True Value Modified Racing Series Rookie of the Year award despite sitting out for several events with a wrist injury.

     Most of all, though, Grigas learned just how much he loves to race a Modified, which explains the ambitious schedule of racing that he plans to embark on in 2007.  Grigas and his #09 Triple G Scaffolding team will race on the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour and then compliment that schedule with as many NASCAR Whelen Southern Modified Tour, True Value Modified Racing Series and open competition events that they can fit in.

     "I want to race as much as possible," said Grigas.   "I'm not overwhelmed, but I am very excited.  I love racing and the more that I can race, the better." Stepping up to the Whelen Modified Tour is a challenge that Grigas is looking forward to.  He made his Tour debut at Thompson last year and ran solidly in the top 10 before getting caught in a wreck.

       "It's a professional series that I will be proud to be a part of," said Grigas.  "I plan on going there and trying to give it a whirl.  I don't know if my season is going to be good, bad or indifferent yet.  I'm just going to go out and do my best each time in the car. "I hope to finish in the top 10 of the points and win the Rookie of the Year.  I'm not looking to set the world on fire, but I want to do well."

      The Whelen Southern Modified Tour will be a completely new experience for Grigas.  He's raced down south before, showing well in last year's North-South Shootout at Concord and Mason-Dixon Meltdown at South Boston before running into bad luck at each place, but he has not even seen a WSMT event yet. Grigas has heard great things about the tour, its rules and race procedures, though, and he expects to feel right at home on the road.

       "Not pitting and not changing tires is what I'm used to, and that is how they run the Southern races," said Grigas.  "It should be close to the True Value Modifieds with the rules like that.  Some of the races are 50 laps more than the True Value races, but they count caution laps, so it should be pretty close.  I've never raced a Whelen Southern Modified Tour race, but I've heard good things about the tour.  There isn't much crashing and bashing.  There is some good racing.  Just talking to people, it sounds like a laid-back place where you don't have these high-dollar teams and where you don't need to have a super pit crew like on the Whelen Modified Tour."

     And even with all of the races that Grigas has planned, he is still open to doing more if the opportunity presents itself.  The young driver is prepared to strap into any competitive racecar that's out there.  "I'm not afraid to hop into anything.  I'll drive Modifieds, Busch East, Super Late Models, Sprint Cars, Midgets, whatever.  I'll try anything."

       LENOX Industrial Tools announced today that the East Longmeadow based company will be the primary sponsor of Jeff Burton's No. 31 NASCAR Cup car during the newly announced LENOX Industrial Tools 300 at nearby New Hampshire International Speedway on July 1.

     LENOX, a leading manufacturer of premium band saw blades, power tool accessories, and torches, has partnered with Richard Childress Racing and driver Burton, New Hampshire's all-time race winner in the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series, in a multi-year sponsorship agreement beginning with the 2007 NASCAR Cup season.

      In addition to the LENOX Industrial Tools 300, LENOX will also serve as the primary sponsor of Burton's Chevrolet for the May 5 NASCAR Cup race at Richmond International Raceway. LENOX will be represented throughout the season as an associate sponsor on the No. 31 Cingular Wireless Chevrolet as well. The LENOX logo will appear on the rear quarter panels of the car just behind the rear wheels.

      "Becoming a sponsor of the No. 31 Richard Childress Racing team and Jeff Burton is an exciting step for our company," said Eric Pinkham, Director of Motorsports for LENOX Industrial Tools. "Both Richard and Jeff are proven winners on and off the racetrack, and we couldn't be happier about joining forces with them. LENOX has been involved in NASCAR since 2003, and we are looking forward to strengthening our commitment to the sport and its fans through this partnership with RCR. There are certainly no teams more committed to quality, innovation, and extreme performance than LENOX Industrial Tools and Richard Childress Racing."

     LENOX, which is utilizing the partnership through marketing and advertising initiatives, has an extensive product line including the LENOX Gold bi-metal reciprocating saw blades and LENOX ARMOR Rx+ bi-metal coated band saw blades for cutting structurals and tubing, just to mention a few. "We're proud to have LENOX join the RCR family of sponsors and the No. 31 Cingular Wireless Chevrolet team with Jeff Burton," said Richard Childress, president and CEO of RCR. "Their commitment to producing high quality saw blades carries over to their commitment to RCR through the many marketing and promotional programs they have planned. LENOX is a very welcomed addition to the No. 31 team's sponsorship group."

      Burton has four triumphs at New Hampshire's "Magic Mile" including an incredible win in September of 2000 when he led every lap on his way to Victory Lane.  This season, Burton is considered a contender for the series championship. Last year, he finished seventh in the "Chase for the Championship" with one victory at Dover. He had seven top-five and 20 top-10
finishes in addition to four pole positions.

      The 2007 season marks his 15th season in NASCAR's elite division. He's captured 18 victories and four times has finished in the top five of the final championship standings. In addition to his Cup success, he has also garnered 22 wins in NASCAR's Busch Series, two coming this season. "I can't tell the employees of LENOX Industrial Tools how proud I am to become a part of their team in 2007," said Burton. "I am going to work extremely hard to help promote the LENOX brand and to let consumers know that - just like our race team - LENOX is committed to being the best. The quality of the products prove that. We can't wait to compete in the LENOX Industrial Tools 300 at New Hampshire. The track is a special place for me and the employees of LENOX."

    Lou Modestino is a long-time columnist and Public Relations person, working for numerous tracks in the northeast, and now writes for The Enterprise in Brockton, MA.  He may be reached at lmodestino@hotmail.com. 

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