February 19--- Last Sunday night the 2007 BooKoo Arenacross Championship awards ceremony was held in the  Uncas Ball Room at the Mohegan Sun Casino and Hotel. An extremely large gathering of teams, riders, sponsors and industry personnel were recognized for their contributions and achievements.

    The 2007 K&N presents BooKoo Arenacross Championship Series brought to you by Honda series produced some serious racing and payouts throughout the 10-round series.

     Darcy Lange riding the Babbitt's Monster Energy Kawasaki was the big winner, taking home a $25,000.00 check and a new Honda Ridgeline Truck for becoming the 2007 BooKoo Arenacross Championship Series. Dave Gowland from the Kawasaki Motor Corporation was also there to present Darcy with a new Kawasaki Quad.

    Two Brothers Racing provided Brad Ripple with a package good enough to win the MotoVert Pro Pit Bike class, receiving $5,000.00 of the $10,000.00 MotoVert Point Fund.

      At only 15 years old, Tyler Bowers riding the American Honda MDK Speed Equipment Hondas made a big impression in his rookie season as an expert. Taking second in the BooKoo Arenacross Championship Series, winning rookie of the year and capping it off winning the BooKoo U.S. Open of Arenacross which came with $50,000.00, just put Bowers in fast motion to a successful professional motocross career.

Awards Presented at the Banquet

Entertainer of the Year                                Steve Carnegie
Most Improved Rider                                   Brad Ripple
Hard Luck Award                                          Gregg Lynk - Team Fun Center
Mechanic of the Year                                   Ian Woods
Manufacturer of the Year                            American Honda
Truck driver of the Year                              Rob Burkhart
Rookie of the Year                                       Tyler Bowers
Most Dedicated                                            Marty Leum
Utility Player of the Year                              Erin Normoyle
Team Excellence                                          Babbitt's Kawasaki
MotoVert Pro Pit Bike Champion               Brad Ripple
BooKoo Arenacross Champion                  Darcy Lange
BooKoo U.S. Open Champion                    Tyler Bowers

         Town Fair Tire has become the presenting sponsor of SpeedwayEXPO, March 2-4 at the Eastern States Exposition in West Springfield. Town Fair Tire is a strong supporter of short-track racing in the Northeast, and the decision to join forces with what is shaping up to be the best racing exposition in the region supports the company's strategy.

      "We are excited about joining SpeedwayEXPO," said Jim Uliano, Vice President of Marketing for Town Fair Tire.  "The show provides us with a fun and exciting atmosphere in which to meet our customers. We are also happy to be able to help the racing world get their discount coupons for this great event."

      In business for more than 40 years, Town Fair Tire now has 67 stores in Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island and New Hampshire that expertly sell and install the region's largest selection of tires and wheels.  All attendees are invited to stop by the Town Fair Tire display trailer at SpeedwayEXPO to see the latest styles of custom wheels along with high-performance tires.

     SpeedwayEXPO will feature more than three acres of indoor space dedicated to motorsports, with displays from local and regional race tracks and organizations, vendors specializing in performance parts, safety equipment, accessories and the best apparel and memorabilia vendors on the East Coast. In addition there will be a full schedule of special events and activities at SpeedwayEXPO, including (among many others) autograph sessions with racing celebrities, a pit-crew Contest and pedal-car races, and a host of specialty vehicle displays.

     Coupons worth $5 toward EXPO admission will be available at all Town Fair Tire stores. A store locator can be found on townfairtire.com. At the door, daily admission for SpeedwayEXPO is only $15 for adults, no charge for children ages 10 and under. Advance discount tickets are available online at speedwayexpo.com.

     "We are honored to work with Town Fair Tire a company that, like Speedway Illustrated and SpeedwayEXPO, holds the racing community in such high esteem," said EXPO's producer, Silvio Calabi. The excitement of SpeedwayEXPO starts when the doors open on Friday night, March 2, with autograph sessions featuring NHRA superstars Melanie Troxel and Tommy Johnson, Jr. as well as NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Champion Todd Bodine. On Saturday appearances by NASCAR NEXTEL Cup drivers Kenny Wallace and Clint Bowyer headline a day chock-full of entertainment. On Sunday SpeedwayEXPO will culminate with the presentation of the Speedy Awards, honoring the best of Northeastern racing. For complete information on SpeedwayEXPO presented by Town Fair Tire, please go on-line to speedwayexpo.com.

        If you feel like traveling for another indoor event, then Racin Preview is on for this weekend at that Portland (ME) Expo where several north country tracks, tours and competitors will be on hand.

         Here's another update from the folks at Pit Stop Talk airing on Fox Sports New England and other outlets. On Saturday, February 24 at 11 a.m. EST - EPISODE #3 - American Powersports - featuring 'Dyno Chuck' owner of American Powersports in DERRY, NH showing how they dyno snowmobiles and ATV's to get the best performance out of them and other tips and tricks for the motorsports nuts. PST will also be airing on TV 13 Nashua, NH every Saturday morning at 11:30 a.m. EST and on Wednesday evenings at 8 p.m. EST.

     The PIT STOP TALK CHALLENGE has set a date for Saturday, June 23 up at Londonderry Raceway with a rain date of Saturday, June 30.  This event will be taped on camera by the PST Crew and aired on FSN and other local channels in the New England Area.  To participate the rules are:  Must be 18-years of age, no open toe shoes, and long pants or sweats must be worn.  Everything else is supplied by Londonderry Raceway, including the karts your team will be driving.  So, get your team together and register at Pit Stop Talk at:  www.pitstoptalk.com or get additional info by emailing them at: Hosts@pitstoptalk.com on the internet.

    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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