Mulkern Racing: PASS North Series
White Mountain Motorsports Park Race Preview
Mulkern Racing LLC of Falmouth, Maine, will bring a two-car effort when the PASS North Series heads to White Mountain Motorsports Park in North Woodstock, N.H., for the PASS 150 on Sunday, August 12. Full-time driver Lonnie Sommerville of Saint John, New Brunswick, will join Brad Keselowski Racing devlopment driver Austin Theriault of Fort Kent, Maine, on the banked quarter-mile in the heart of the White Mountains. Sommerville and the No. 48 A.E. McKay Builders/Southern Maine Motors Chevrolet team currently sit sixth in the overall PASS North Series standings and they’re looking to bounce back from a disappointing visit to WMMP back in May. Theriault will be making his second consecutive start in the No. 18 Southern Maine Motors/Community Pharmacies Chevrolet after a stellar sixth-place debut with the team last weekend at Seekonk Speedway.
THE FACTS
WHO: Lonnie Sommerville, Saint John, New Brunswick
TEAM: Mulkern Racing No. 48 A.E. McKay Builders/Southern Maine Motors Chevrolet
CREW CHIEF: Gary Crooks, Mooresville, N.C.
BEST CAREER WMMP FINISH: 4th (September 2011)
LAST RACE AT WMMP: 12th (May 2012)
WHO: Austin Theriault, Fort Kent, Maine
TEAM: Mulkern Racing No. 18 Southern Maine Motors/Community Pharmacies Chevrolet
CREW CHIEF: Seth Holbrook, Turner, Maine
BEST CAREER WMMP FINISH: 21st (May 2010)
LAST RACE AT WMMP: 21st (May 2010)
WHAT: PASS North Series 150
WHERE: White Mountain Motorsports Park, N. Woodstock, N.H. (.25-mile oval)
WHEN: Sunday, August 12 – Practice, 11 a.m.; Qualifying, 2 p.m.; Race, 4 p.m.
LAST RACE: August 4, PASS 150, Seekonk Speedway, Seekonk, Mass.
NEXT RACE: August 26, PASS 125, Stafford Motor Speedway, Stafford, Conn. (.500-mile oval)
DID YOU KNOW?
Lonnie Sommerville finished fifth last time out at Seekonk Speedway for his second Top-5 finish in as many career starts at the track.
Austin Theriault is currently second in the ACT Late Model Tour standings this season, and he will make the trip to White Mountain Motorsports Park after competing in a 100-lap event at Sanair Super Speedway in Ste-Pie, Quebec, on Saturday night.
Mulkern Racing has posted four Top-5 finishes in the last five races at White Mountain Motorsports Park dating back to the beginning of the 2010 season.
WHAT THEY ARE SAYING
LONNIE SOMMERVILLE, Driver of the No. 48 A.E. McKay Builders, Southern Maine Motors Chevrolet, On racing at White Mountain Motorsports Park: “White Mountain takes a little bit of finesse. You don’t overdrive the car, manhandle it, run into guys like you do at a place like Star (Speedway). But it’s still hard to pass because it’s so fast. You can be running behind a guy and be quicker, but to find that way to get around him and find the line that will work makes it a pretty tough place.”
On building off of last week’s momentum at Seekonk Speedway: “For us, it’s just one of those years. It was nice to drive by guys and battle for lead (at Seekonk). I don’t really feel like our cars have been bad. We just haven’t had the results. Wrong lines, flat tires, that kind of stuff. That’s racing.
“The first part of the year, we led laps in every race. The first four or five races, we led laps and didn’t close the deal. After that, I just decided I wasn’t going to worry about leading the most laps or any of that stuff. There’s no bragging rights for leading laps. At this stage, I only want to go lead the last one.”
SETH HOLBROOK, Crew chief on the No. 18 Southern Maine Motors/Community Pharmacies Chevrolet, On what it takes to get around White Mountain Motorsports Park: “It’s all about turning there. You have to be able to get down into those corners, get the car to turn, and then be able to get on the gas and come the hill.
“Austin has some experience at White Mountain already. He’s pretty good at getting adjusted to tracks, so we should be able to run up front.”
UP NEXT
The PASS North Series makes its inaugural visit to Stafford Motor Speedway in Stafford, Conn., for the PASS 125 on Sunday, August 26… Mulkern Racing will field two cars in the event, including one for Ted Christopher – the all-time winningest driver in Modified history at the half-mile oval.