March 31, Brockton, MA--- To kick off a season-long celebration of 60 years of Modified champions, NASCAR is recognizing a trio of NASCAR Modified titlists in the 2008 opener April 6 at Thompson (Conn.) International Speedway. NASCAR plans to recognize each of its past Modified champions throughout the season. The celebration will begin with the honoring of Frankie Schneider, Donny Lia and the late Richie Evans at the season-opening Icebreaker.

Schneider, who captured the NASCAR Modified division title in 1952, is the oldest living champion. Lia became the 60th Modified champion in NASCAR history when he won his first NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour title in 2007. Both champions will be in attendance and will be honored during the pre-race festivities. In addition, NASCAR will recognize the accomplishments of Evans, one of the greatest champions in Modified history. Evans will be represented at the Icebreaker by family members, and one of his restored cars will be on hand for the event.

New Jersey’s Schneider began racing in 1947, one year before the formation of NASCAR. A driver of modified, stock, sprint and midget cars, Schneider is believed to have won more than 750 races in his long and distinguished career. In the days where there were no limits to how many events a driver could participate, Schneider’s Modified win total during his 1952 championship season is said to have reached 100.

Lia captured the 2007 NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour championship in a storybook season. With five career wins entering 2007 driving his own equipment, Lia teamed up with longtime Modified owner Bob Garbarino to run the No. 4 “Mystic Missile.” With the new partnership, Lia and Garbarino visited Victory Lane six times en route to the first NASCAR championship for both. A New York native, Lia parlayed his Modified success into a ride this year in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series.

The king of Modified racing, Evans’ accomplishments are nearly immeasurable. The Rome, N.Y., native captured nine Modified titles in a 13-year span, including a remarkable eight in a row from 1978-85. Evans ranked No. 1 in the 2003 voting of the “NASCAR All-Time Modified Top 10 Drivers,” and he was included in “The 50 Greatest NASCAR Drivers of All Time” list in 1998. In the first year of the current NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour format in 1985, Evans won 12 races, including all four events at Thompson. Evans had already clinched his ninth career title heading into the season’s final race at Martinsville, but tragically perished in an accident during a practice session, cutting short a career that is unmatched still today.

Activities at the Icebreaker, the annual season-opener for NASCAR racing in New England, will commence this Saturday, April 5 with practice and qualifying. Pre-race ceremonies for the 150-lap NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour event on Sunday will start at approximately 2:45 p.m., with the green flag tentatively set to wave at 3:15 p.m.

The Icebreaker will be NEMA’s 68th event at Thompson. Johnny Mann is the all-time NEMA win leader with six. Plymouth's Randy Cabral, the winner at last fall’s World Series, is one away from equaling that. Cabral won the 2001 Icebreaker…In addition to Cabral and Ryan Dolan, active NEMA drivers with at least one NEMA Thompson win are Russ and Greg Stoehr, Greg Stoehr of Bridgewater is still an active NEMA driver. Other Thompson winners are Bobby Santos III of Franklin and Ben Seitz of Monument beach. Among active owners Gene Angelillo has six checkereds including his 100th win (with Payne driving a backup car) on Oct. 13, 2000…Hank Rogers Jr. won the 1980 opener in a Scrivani car. The Scrivani family, Mike and present NEMA president Mike Jr. of Brockton have at least a half dozen Thompson wins.

When Phil Evans and Jeff Miller amicably dissolved their successful Mini Stock team, Miller assured his long-time friend he’d be there to offer any assistance during the upcoming season. Evans took him up on the offer. What was the first thing Miller did after he inspected the new Evans ride? He cut the car in half.

“Jeff came over, took a look at the car, and before I knew it, there it was in two pieces,” chuckles Evans. “I’m sure not going to doubt him though. I know first-hand his expertise in building cars. I’ve won a few races in his cars.”

Both Evans and Miller will be part of a strong Mini Stock field when the Waterford (Conn.) Speedbowl gates swing-open on April 12-13 with the 12th annual Budweiser Nationals. Highlighted by the lucrative SK-150, the schedule also includes the NASCAR Whelen All American Series Late Models, and Sportsman. The NEMA Midgets, Legends, All Star Race Trucks, Pro 4 Modifieds, and Allison Legacy Cars are all part of a busy weekend agenda.

Driving for Miller, Evans, who has 20 career Speedbowl wins, recorded six victories last year, placing fourth in the points battle. Miller will return to driving this year. “I wasn’t sure what I was going to be doing this season, and then I heard that the Joe Godbout ride was up for sale,” explains Evans. “Joe enlisted in the Army, so his dad decided that it was time to sell the operation. We struck-up a deal and I became the new owner.”

The car was very successful at the Speedbowl (Godbout set a qualifying record in it) and the deal “was hard to pass up.” It was banged up at another track late in the year. Getting it ready for this year started with the “cutting episode” with Miller.

The new ride comes with an “old” number. Part of an extended Speedbowl racing family that includes the likes of the Coates brothers and their mom Emma, as well as uncle Phil Evans and Bob “Inky” Greene, Evans will sport a number that’s familiar to long-time Waterford fans.

“We were able to get #12 this year, which was the number that Emma Coates had on her car for so many years,” he says. “It’s kind of neat that we’re able to continue on with a tradition like that, keeping it in the family. I’ve been going to the Speedbowl since I was only months-old, and I can remember when Emma was the only lady driver out there.”

Evans is looking for a good showing in the Nationals. “I like the longer races,” he declares. “It gives you a chance to plan your strategy and kind of survey the competition. It’s different than a regular Saturday night when sometimes things move so quickly.”

The Pro 4 Modifieds of New England Inc. announced the addition of Kevin Boucher as the announcer for the 2008 racing season. Kevin has been announcing for over a dozen seasons, working at Seekonk Speedway, Jack Arute's’ Stafford Motor Speedway, and Lee USA Speedway.

“I’ve had the opportunity to work with several of the teams and members of the Pro 4 Modified's in the past when they raced at Seekonk Speedway weekly, and I’ve also announced for them whenever they came to Seekonk to race” states Kevin. “I’ve become great friends with many of their competitors over the years. This will allow me to go out on tour with a group of competitors and families that enjoy racing together. “With the management changes at Seekonk over the winter, it has given me the opportunity to work with a touring group exclusively. This is a great step for the Pro 4 Modified organization and for me personally. I’ve wanted to branch out for a few years and go traveling, and who better to do it with than a group of people I enjoy being with. I can’t wait to take the mike for them in April, when it all begins at Waterford.”

“It’s been a few years since we’ve had our own voice. Having Kevin come in and join us for the upcoming season is exactly what we need.” mentioned Rob Richardi Sr. of Easton president of the Pro 4 Modifieds. “Since I’ve been involved with racing with my kids, Rob Jr. and Dave, I’ve had the opportunity to work with and listen to Kevin over the PA. His professionalism and enthusiasm has always come through, whether he was working with the Pro Stocks, S.Y.R.A, or the Pro 4 Mods when we traveled to Seekonk. He has always taken the time to be sure he gets all of the information needed, including driver and series sponsor information. Having that comfort level with him coming into our organization is very important to us. Knowing that our marketing partners will have a strong voice wherever we go can only help to bring us to the next level. We are continuing to grow. This is a major step for us.”

With the season approaching fast, it is important to get everyone onto the same page. Less than 20 days remain until the 2008 program begins at the Waterford Speedbowl on April 12, as part of their Budweiser Modified Nationals.

In a joint announcement, True Value Modified Racing Series president Jack Bateman and Thompson International Speedway owner Donald Hoenig advise additional races have been added for this years qualifying series for “Sunoco Mod-Mania” weekend at Thompson. The annual two day event will be held Sept 6-7 at the historic oval.

New England Racing Fuels, the official Sunoco Racing Fuel supplier and sponsor for New England’s modified racing series, will again present the special qualifying events including two newly added race tracks for the 2008 campaign. This years schedule has been increased to eight races. Six drivers captured guaranteed starting positions last year.

“Our hope is to add some special excitement and prestige to these True Value series events and to recognize the winning drivers on Modified Mania weekend at Thompson,” said Sunoco Racing Fuel representative John Holland.

The just announced schedule will find the first event taking place at Lee USA Speedway, Lee, NH Sunday April 20. The Lee race will be the season opener for the fifth year series.

The second event will be the first ever appearance for the tour at Thunder Road International Speedbowl, Barre, VT., May 24-25, Memorial Day weekend. The third “guaranteed” starter race is scheduled at Wiscasset Raceway, Wiscasset, ME., June 28, another first time race for the TVMRS.

The Independence Day holiday celebration at Monadnock Speedway, Winchester, NH., July 5, will provide the setting for the fourth qualifier, while the Oxford Plains Speedway in Maine sets the stage for race number five. The Oxford date is part of the annual “Oxford 250” weekend.

Beech Ridge Motor Speedway, Scarboro, ME., will again host a Sunoco Mod-Mania qualifier, Aug 2, with race seven headed to the historic Waterford, CT., Speedbowl. Aug 16. The famed Seekonk Speedway, Seekonk, MA., will host the final race, Aug 30, to establish the eight drivers that will have guaranteed starting positions.

All True Value Modified Racing Series feature races are 100 laps in distance with the exception of the 75 lap race at Thompson. Heat races and consolation events determine starting lineups.

Grigas Racing out of Marshfield along with the Brady Bunch crew out of Brockton made another trip back to NC for a Whelen Southern Modified Tour event at Southern National Speedway only to be rained out. No rescheduled date was announced.

Bob Tasca of RI took his drag racing effort up to the next level and will be moving from Top Alcohol Funny Cars to the Nitro Funny Car catagory in NHRA. At Pomona, CA, Bob ended up winning in the first round. Tasca will be looking for Rookie of The Year honors. The Ocean State drag racer is sponsored by AAA.

Lime Rock legends engineer John Fitch and former race driver turned race caster Sam Posey join Skip Barber for the launch of major improvements at Lime Rock Park next week. Barber has been out raising money by selling club memberships to fund the infrastructure improvements at LRP since last summer. We understand that his effort was successful and the construction will be starting this month at that western Connecticut venue.

Let's see what else is going on in southern New England this weekend. There's an Open Practice session on Saturday at the Seekonk Speedway. MotoTown in Windsor, Conn. plans an Off Road Truck event indoors the same day while it's Mini Sprints on the dirt on Sunday. Stafford Speedway offers a Bike and Swap Meet all day Sunday while MotoX 338 in Westfield brings in NESC MotoX action all day long on the same day.

    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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