ACT Late Model Tour: Brian Hoar
Devil’s Bowl Speedway Race Preview
THE STORY
GEORGIA, Vt. – Eight-time ACT Late Model Tour champion Brian Hoar of Williston, Vt., will try and make it two wins in a row when he heads to the Spring Green 113 at Devil’s Bowl Speedway in West Haven, Vt., on Sunday, May 5. Hoar earned his ACT-record 38th career victory last weekend in the Merchants Bank 150 at Thunder Road International Speedbowl, and the driver of the RPM Motorsports No. 37 GossCars.com Dodge Charger won the Spring Green at Devil’s Bowl in 2011 in ACT’s inaugural visit to the half-mile. Hoar sits just eight points out of the lead in the ACT standings, one of only three drivers to post Top-10 finishes in each of the first two Tour races this season.
THE FACTS
WHO: Brian Hoar, Williston, Vt.
TEAM: RPM Motorsports No. 37 GossCars.com Dodge Charger
CREW CHIEF: Rick Paya, Georgia, Vt.
BEST CAREER DEVIL’S BOWL SPEEDWAY FINISH: 1st (most recent, May 2011)
LAST RACE AT DEVIL’S BOWL SPEEDWAY: 11th (May 2012)
WHAT: ACT Late Model Tour Spring Green 113
WHERE: Devil’s Bowl Speedway, West Haven, Vt. (.500-mile oval)
WHEN: Sunday, May 5 – 11 a.m., practice; 1:30 p.m., qualifying; 4:30 p.m., race
ACT Late Model Tour
LAST RACE: April 28, Merchants Bank 150, Thunder Road International Speedbowl, Barre, Vt. (1st) NEXT RACE: May 12, Airborne 100, Airborne Speedway, Plattsburgh, N.Y. (.500-mile oval)
CURRENT POINTS POSITION: 2nd
DID YOU KNOW?
- Brian Hoar holds the ACT Late Model Tour record for championships (8) and wins (37).
- RPM Motorsports will run a part-time schedule in 2013, including the first four ACT Late Model Tour events of the season and then select Late Model events throughout the summer and fall.
- Brian Hoar has won back-to-back ACT Late Model Tour races seven times in his career, most recently taking consecutive events at Riverside Speedway in St. Croix, Que., and Thunder Road International Speedbowl in Barre, Vt., on Aug. 25 and September 2 of 2012.
- Brian Hoar plans to make a second consecutive appearance in the 25th anniversary of the Vermont City Marathon in Burlington, Vt., this coming Memorial Day weekend.
WHAT THEY ARE SAYING
BRIAN HOAR, Driver of the RPM Motorsports No. 37 GossCars.com Dodge Charger, On heading to Devil’s Bowl Speedway this weekend: “We had one really bad race there in this race last year, but every other time we’ve gone there and been good. We ran well there several times before, and I expect to run good again this weekend. I really like the place – it’s close to home, only an hour from me – so I can’t wait to get there and make up for last year’s (ACT) points race.
“One of the things that’s different there than some of the other tracks is you use a lot of brake. It’s flat, but you get some pretty good speed going on the long straightaways. You’ve got to have a good brake package, and like anywhere you’ve got to have a good setup in the car. It’s really not a lot different than most weeks, but it does race more like an Airborne or even Lee than the bullrings like Thunder Road or White Mountain (Motorsports Park.”
On whether the bigger tracks on the schedule require a different race strategy: “I don’t know about that. I don’t really have a ton of experience there, but a lot of it factors on where you end up starting on how you approach the race. It’s not as long of a race (at 113 laps), so it might race a little more like a Saturday-night special.
“Then again, the weather’s going to be warmer than it was the last time we were there, so we’ll see how slick it is. It still has tons of grip, so we’ll see if you have to bide your time or not. I’ve always run well that way, anyway, where you have to try and save some for the end.”
On the decision to only run a partial schedule in 2013: “We do feel good about it right now. That’s probably going to be difficult in a couple of weeks, when we miss that first race at Riverside (Speedway in Groveton, N.H.). Right now, it’s no different. We’re still going to the track every week, going to every race and being around everybody.
“It’s going to be really strange after Airborne (on May 18), when you miss a race or two or three. Right now, though, it’s too much fun just to say to everyone who asks if we’re really not going to run the whole thing, ‘I guess you’ll have to wait and see.’”
UP NEXT
The ACT Late Model Tour heads to Airborne Speedway in Plattsburgh, N.Y., for the Airborne 100 on Saturday, May 18… Brian Hoar is a two-time winner of the Fall Foliage 200 at Airborne Speedway, which this summer will host the inaugural International 500 on July 21.