ACT YOUNG GUNS POLEWARCZYK, THERIAULT, AND BABB LEAD THE WAY
Waterbury, VT – Beech Ridge Motor Speedway (BRMS) in Scarborough, ME is perhaps the most neutral track the American Canadian Tour (ACT) visits during the season-long touring campaign. There will be no weekly teams that enter the event; by design, it might be compared to Oxford Plains Speedway, but veterans will tell you that is not true; it races as good as any track the Tour visits; and the atmosphere from the staff and management to the fans is first class. The food is also some of the best.
Defending Champion Joey Polewarczyk, Jr. (Pole) from Hudson, NH bested a 33-car field to turn his 2010 season around. That victory set the stage for Pole to go on to win at Waterford Speedbowl last August, a podium finish at the Fall Foliage 300 at Airborne Speedway in Plattsburgh, NY last September, and then Pole finished the 2010 season with three wins in a row – the ACT Invitational at the New Hampshire Motor Speedway, the prestigious Peoples United ‘Milk Bowl’ at Barre, VT’s Thunder Road, and a repeat performance in the finale at Waterford Speedbowl in October, 2010.
“Our team is really looking forward to this weekend at Beech Ridge. It is a special place for us. It gave us a big lift in 2010. If we can pull off a win this Saturday, maybe we can use that momentum to jump back into the hunt for a respectable finish over this second half,” said Pole. The 97NH team currently sits outside the top five in the championship battle, holding down sixth place, but less than 100 points from second.
Beech Ridge attracts teams from throughout the large New England Late Model community. A favorite stop on the Tour not just for the great racing that takes place, but it is conveniently located to the Maine turnpike, very fan friendly, and the local racing is as good as any track in the country.
Three generations of the famous Babb family from nearby Windham, ME have been racing at Beech Ridge for over six (6) decades. The latest edition is another of the young ACT champions, 18-year old Bradley Babb. He was the 2010 ACT Rookie of the Year, and had done the majority of his stock car racing at Beech Ridge with notable success driving a family owned Pro Stock. Nobody knows the BRMS oval better than his father, Bobby, who raced Beech Ridge when he took over the reins from his father, Robert Sr., in 1979. The elder Babb statesman started racing at the `Ridge in the 1950’s. There will be lots of knowledge to share with the youngest Babb. It should make him a near favorite to challenge the older ACT veteran teams like Brian Hoar, Brent Dragon, and Irish John Donahue from Vermont, Randy Potter and Wayne Helliwell, Jr. from New Hampshire and Oxford Plains Speedway veterans Tim Brackett, Dennis Spencer, Ricky Rolfe and Jeff Taylor among 30 other of the best race teams in the region.
Another member of the young ACT brigade is Austin Theriault from Fort Kent, ME. The seventeen year old, entering his senior year in high school this fall, just finished a spectacular third place in the TD Bank 250 at the Oxford Plains Speedway last Sunday. Thunder Road Champion Nick Sweet from Barre, VT and NASCAR Sprint Cup star Kyle Busch were the only two racers Theriault did not beat out of the 82 car field. His career high second place a year ago at Beech Ridge during his rookie season certainly positions him as another young star who can make a statement this Saturday night.
“It was a real thrill to finish second to Joey (Pole) last year at Beech Ridge. I have learned a lot from being with the RPM team (owner, Rick Paya and seven-time ACT Champion Brian Hoar) this year. I can’t wait until this weekend. Brian won the race two years ago, so hopefully, he can give me and Mickey (Green, crew chief for Theriault) some pointers and we can bring the RPM cars to the front. The ‘250’ was really special and we hope we can use that as a stepping stone to more top finishes as we head to the second half of the season,” concluded Theriault.
The ACT 150-lap event will post at 6:00 with ACT qualifying heats this Saturday night at Beech Ridge. Beech Ridge Pro Stocks, Sport Series, Road Runners and Wildcats will run feature events. The winner of the ACT 150 will receive an invitation to the third annual ACT Invitational at the New Hampshire Motor Speedway, on Saturday, September 24, 2011.