to March Down to Easter Bunny 150
Entries Come in From All Over for Season-Opening PASS South Super Late Model Race CONCORD, NC (March 31, 2007) Many Americans will be hitting the roads next weekend during the Easter weekend to visit family, celebrate the holiday or just take in some rest and relaxation. A number of PASS North Super Late Model teams will be headed for the highways as well. But they aren’t planning on taking it easy or off hunting Easter Eggs, instead they’ll be on the prowl for trophies.
More than a half dozen New England drivers are expected to head to North Carolina’s Hickory Motor Speedway for the second annual Easter Bunny 150 PASS South season opener. Included in that bunch are three champions from the North: 2004 and 2006 PASS North champion Johnny Clark, 2002, 2003 and 2005 PASS North champion Ben Rowe and 2006 PASS Outlaw Late Model champion Derek Ramstrom.
All three drivers are making their first trips to Hickory, but they don’t plan on having to face much of a learning curve. These guys didn’t get to become champions in the first place without doing their homework. “Hickory is a track that I’ve never been to, but quite a few of my friends have raced there and told me about the track,” said Clark. “I talked to Chuck Barnes last night – he finished second in last year’s Easter Bunny 150 to Mike Rowe. My shock guy, Dennis Reno, has experience there by building shocks for cars that have run up front. I’m doing my homework on the track and trying to find out as much as possible about the place before I get there. “The cool thing is that nobody will really have much experience there. We always seem to do well as a racetrack where nobody has experience. [In PASS North], nobody had much experience at Groveton [New Hampshire’s Riverside Speedway] and we won two out of three races there and finished second in the other one. Last year at South Boston, we finished second in the Mason-Dixon Meltdown and we had never seen that place. We did well at Pensacola for the Snowball Derby. We are a team that can figure out a track pretty quickly and we’re hoping to continue that at Hickory.” And while Ben Rowe hasn’t raced at Hickory before either, he’s been just about everywhere else during the PASS North off-season. The Maine driver and his Richard Moody Racing team have been busy racing in Florida, Virginia and Alabama since the 2006 season officially ended in October at Unity Raceway (ME). “We basically haven’t stopped racing at all since last year,” said Rowe. “We had a month between races during the winter and that’s been it.” Rowe’s father Mike won the inaugural Easter Bunny 150 and followed that up by winning the PASS South championship as well. Now, the younger Rowe would like to follow in his Dad’s footsteps. “Hopefully, we can catch him down there,” said Rowe. “We’re going down a year later than him and he’s been to all of these tracks. We just want to go down there and run in the top five. When we go south, we just want to be competitive. I just want to know that we have a shot to win against those guys. That’s what it is all about to me – bringing our stuff all across the country and running in the top five against some really good competition.” The Easter Bunny 150 has a different meaning for 15-year-old Derek Ramstrom. The inaugural PASS Outlaw champion is moving up into a Super Late Model full-time in 2007 and Hickory is his first outing of the season in the more powerful car. “We’re going to run Hickory,” said Ramstrom. “It’s our first South race of the year and our first race of the year with the big motor. So it’s should be a little scary at first, but I think that I’ll catch right on. I hope so at least.” For a teenaged racer who hopes to go places, the PASS South tour presents a great number of opportunities. Ramstrom hopes to make as many PASS South races in 2007 as his budget will allow. “The South is a great place to race,” said Ramstrom. “All of the tracks are good. The people are all good. The driving styles are a little bit different and it takes some getting used to. We’d love to do all of the Southern races, but our budget won’t allow it. The more that we can do and the more publicity that we can get down there helps us a lot.” Other New England drivers who are expected to compete in the Easter Bunny 150 include 2006 PASS South champion Mike Rowe, former NASCAR Busch North champion Dale Shaw and 2006 Mason-Dixon Meltdown winner Cassius Clark.
Once again, fans will see much more than just the PASS South Super Late Models at Hickory Motor Speedway. In addition to the 150-lap feature for the Super Late Models, the fans will also be treated with a 50-lap Aaron’s Pro Challenge Series event, a 25-lap Redneck Racing Series event and a 50-lap Allison Legacy Series race. Fans will once again also be encouraged to bring their kids to Hickory Motor Speedway to see the Easter Bunny and participate in an Easter Egg Hunt. Pit gates on Saturday, April 7th, will open for competitors at 11am. Practice for the PASS South Super Late Models will begin at 1, with qualifying going off at 4:15pm. Racing will start with the PASS South heats at 6pm. Spectator gates will open for fans at 4pm. The Easter Egg hunt and visit from the Easter Bunny will begin at 6:30pm on the track. For more information on the PASS South Series, contact Jeremy Troiano at (704) 455-2051, and for news regarding the PASS North Series, contact Mike Twist (207) 590-1786. For more information on PASS contingency programs and for technical questions, contact Scott Reed at (207) 625-3230 and be sure to visit www.racewithpass.com, as well as the official website of PASS North, www.proallstarsseries.com.