My Banknorth\Oxford 250 Memories…Year by Year

1980 – Geoff Bodine’s First Win - I seem to remember that it was quite a big deal. My parents had friends over and we all headed to the track. I had been to Oxford a few times already so I didn’t think much of it. I didn’t realize the magnitude of the race until I saw how full the stands were! I don’t think I’d ever seen that many people in one place until then. I know that my older brother was cheering for Dave Dion whose knickname of “Dynamite” really stuck out in my mind. My clearest memory is that I was overwhelmed at how long the race was. I’m pretty sure I feel asleep but was woken up by my father yelling “He ran out of gas!” when Butch Lindley sputtered to a halt on the final lap.

1981 – Geoff Bodine Wins Twice! – Of course, as a young and easily influenced person, I was cheering for Bodine the following year when I got to go again. I picked him to win and got to rub it in my brother’s face when I was right! However, when I left the race I had a new favorite driver. I don’t know if it was Robbie Crouch’s simple racecar or the fact that he came from way back to finish second. I became a fan of his that night. Bodine came back from being spun out with a hundred or so to go to win.

1982 – Mike Barry…Who? – I thought I was the Sultan of Race Car knowledge at this point and was very disappointed that my main man Crouch ended up in 32^nd place. After Crouch was gone I started cheering for a bright green car that looked very fast and Ed Howe had a respectable race. In the end, however, Mike Barry outlasted all the big names (Butch Lindley and Dick McCabe specifically) to enjoy his one big payday.

1983 – Tommy Ellis - Rebel without a clue – I don’t think there has been a less popular win in the True Value 250 then this one. Ellis went on to offend every northern driver and fan in the post race celebration and has been hated ever since! Beating local legend Dick McCabe didn’t help with the chorus of boooos! Interestingly, a little known driver named Mark Martin finished in 6^th place.

1984 – Mike Rowe brings it home – One of the stories before each ‘250’ back then was when the heck was a Maine driver going to win the big one? Rowe answered that question by winning the 1984 race. I was somewhat disappointed at the time because Crouch finished in second place…again, but looking back on it, I’m glad that I got to see the first Maine driver, and Oxford driver, win the True Value 250. If I recall, this was also the year that Dick McCabe and Geoff Bodine banged each other all over the track! Rubbin’s racing, but they were out to get each other!

1985 – Dave Dion and the race that got me for good – All of the 250’s up to this point had been good races, no doubt, but I was either too young or too stupid to appreciate the drama that this race had. I never thought much about Butch Lindley running out of gas on the last lap years earlier or Ralph Nason’s lap scoring “incident” in 1976 because I was simply too young. However, in 1985 I picked Joey Kourafas to win the race (he had a cool orange car and was number 33…Larry Bird’s number!) and I thought I looked like a genius picking the 28^th place starter. Something interesting happened on lap 250 that will stick in my mind forever. Down the backstretch Kourafas had a slower lapped car in front of him. The lapper was unsure of where to go and entered turn 3 sort of in the middle of the track. Joey had plenty of room way up high so he went up there to get around. However, Dave Dion was sticking his nose below the same lapped car and actually made the pass to take the win! Unbelievable! This race solidified my seat at every True Value 250.

1986 – Chuck Bown could have had a V8! – All the talk leading up to this race was who was going to use a V6 and who would use a V8. Bown went with the V6 in his Skoal car and pulled away from the battle between Dion and Crouch at the end. I’ll never forget Crouch sticking it in under Dion into turn 1 on the last lap to claim second place. My brother and I still argue about that move! It was pretty cool to see Darrell Waltrip and Bobby Allison in the race as well. I thought Darrell had a legitimate shot at winning the race, but something broke on his car.

1987 – Jamie Aube and the BGNN – This was the year that NASCAR came in with its new Busch Grand National North division. I don’t know all of the details of the move, but the racing was still pretty good. Jamie Aube, a relative unknown to me, won the race going away over Dion. This was the first year I started to realize that some big names from down south were making the trip up north to win the big money. The whole Tommy Ellis thing made more sense to me at this point. Dale Jarrett, Jack Ingram, and the late Robbie Moroso all invaded the speedway that year.

1988 – Dick McCabe finally wins – With all of the laps he had led over the years and with five top 5 finishes in his past, Dick McCabe finally won the True Value 250. It was a popular win as McCabe’s Kelly green Buick had been a fixture in the race for years and he had many fans. If I’m not mistaken, Kelly Moore led the majority of the race, but pit strategy cost him in the end.

1989 – Jamie Aube…Yawn!! – I don’t know why this race was so boring for me. Many of the same players from years past were there and many big southern names were also present. I remember Rusty Wallace, Davey Allison, and Harry Gant made the show, but the track was becoming too predictable. It seemed that at this point there was only one groove to race on. Maybe it was just that the race had very little drama. Aube was just as dominant as he was two years before in pulling out the win.

1990 – Chuck Bown with a southern drawl – For me, Chuck Bown was the first driver I really remember heading south and transplanting himself to be able to race more. He was no longer in the familiar Skoal Bandit #7 but was in a fancy Nescafe #63. He was very fast and nobody could touch him for most of the race. Again, like 1989, this race held very little drama for me. I like the twists of fate that sometimes show their ugly head or I at least like a good battle on the track. I didn’t get it.

1991 Ricky Craven dominates – As happy as I was to see a young Maine driver win the race, the excitement of the race just wasn’t there. The crowd was noticeably smaller and the years with time trial qualifying kept fans from seeing much exciting racing. Sure, some big southern names made an appearance as this was an official combination event, but the race was not what it once was. During this year I started to help my cousin work on a Late Model (now Pro Stock) at the track and I knew what the problem was…there was very little participation in the BGNN races from the locals. The Saturday night warriors no longer had similar cars as the True Value 250 driver so they couldn’t participate. Car counts dwindled and so didn’t the fans.

1992 Dave Dion is a 3-time champ – I actually watched this one from the pits as we had a Late Model race that day. We didn’t do very well either..hehe. It was fun being in the pits to meet some of the drivers that are now Winston Cup stars (Terry Labonte, Kenny Wallace, Chad Little, Jimmy Spencer, Ernie Irvan, etc), but the darn time trials stunk again! I could clearly see the main grandstands were very empty and it was quite frustrating to see this great race crumbling. Surprisingly, Dion and Dale Shaw put on a great battle at the front of the pack. Shaw simply couldn’t get around the outside of him and the Dynamite one became the first 3-time winner of the race.

1993 Junior Hanley and ACT - This was the year that saw the American-Canadian Tour come to Oxford. The series ran cars more like the local Pro Stock division at Oxford, which gave ordinary drivers from all over the northeast a chance to enter. Of course, the tour was a sanctioning body and the race wasn’t really an Open Competition, but it was much closer then the NASCAR years. Heat race qualifying and luck of the draw were back. Of course, the result was never in much doubt as Junior Hanley completely dominated this race. He was due. He had been a contender several times before in this race and finally broke through. This race also saw a “new” breed of southern drivers make the trip north. Southern Late Model standouts Rich Bickle and Freddie Query had good runs and represented the All-Pro series. The True Value 250 was not quite as prominent as it used to be, but it was a better race.

1994 Derek Lynch and Ralphie woes – ACT again sanctioned the race and it looked like Ralph Nason would finally get the goblins off his back in this race. However, a broken wheel with less then 100 to go gave the lead to ACT young gun Derek Lynch who never looked back. Midwestern driver Kevin Cywinski made the show this year and, like Bickle and Query in 1993, brought another part of the countries great Late Model type racers to Oxford.

1995 Dave Whitlock rules - Dave Whitlock was on fire in the ACT tour at the end of 1994 and the beginning of 1995. He had a setup at Oxford that was one of the toughest we had ever seen. Reigning Oxford Pro Stock champion Jeff Taylor started near the front and looked to be the car to beat. However, Whitlock had worked his way to the front and the two would wage a two-car battle the rest of the night. It was a back and forth struggle as Taylor was better on restarts, but Whitlock had him covered in longer runs. It was very memorable as it was one of the few times the two fastest cars on the track were near each other for the whole race.

1996 Larry Gelinas, Gas, and Open Competition – Open competition racing made its way back to the True Value 250. There was no sanctioning body with the race and the rules were opened a little to give more Pro Stock\Late Model cars a chance at $50,000 to win. Larry Gelinas won the first heat and the pole position, however, many faster cars worked their way past him early on. It looked like it might be the Jeff Taylor-Tracy Gordon show until those two left the race. Late in the race it became obvious that Ben Rowe was the only car on the track that was good on the long runs and he took off on the field. Gelinas had battled his way back to third and was passing for second place with two laps to go when Rowe…ran out of gas! The drama of the race was back. Gelinas, unbeknownst to him (and most of the fans) came around and took the win! Whoa!

1997 Mike Rowe and car preservation – The crowds seemed to be coming back as the open competition racing allowed Maritime drivers, southern New England drivers, and just about any type of Late Model car to enter and compete for big money. Mike Rowe saved his car for the first half of the race and was around at the end. It looked like a Scott Fraser night but an overzealous Ralph Nason ended that thought. It also looked like under appreciated Larry Gelinas might make it two in row. Rowe had too much rubber left at the end and won his second ‘250’ thirteen years after his first.

1998 Ralph Nason breaks through – The crowd was almost back to numbers of years ago when the 1998 edition of the race started. Slim –Jim All Pro champion Hal Goodson was back to win some Yankee money but would finish 15^th. The story of the night was Ralph Nason. Twenty-two years after he thought he had won the race, Nason took the checkers in the silver anniversary edition of the race. He overcame a tangle with Brad Leighton and his own screw-up when he tried to go three-wide around Junior Hanley (that will NEVER work) to come all the way back and win the race. Tracy Gordon had very little chance at Nason as he was as dominant a car as the track has ever seen.

1999 Ralph Nason stuns the non-believers – Ralph even made a believer out of me in 1999. It is very rare for a driver to have all things go his way in the True Value 250. If they do, that driver will probably win. Ralph Nason ran a very good race and “bopped” his closest competition (Tracy Gordon). At that point the race was academic and Ralph reeled in Ben Rowe and blew everyone away at the end. Impressively, Scott Fraser came from 38^th starting position to claim 3^rd. This race was part of the International Pro Stock Challenge series but seemed to run under Oxford Open Competition rules. A healthy car count and a VERY healthy attendance is indicative that this race is as strong as ever.

2000 All Hail King Ralph Nason – What else can you do? Ralph Nason won his third straight True Value 250 by being patient and letting the young rockets make mistakes around him. Nason didn’t take the lead for good until lap 183 and held off a hungry Ben Rowe for a record-breaking victory. Nason became the all-time money winner in the event and tied Dave Dion for the most wins in the race. Eighty-five cars attempted to qualify and the grandstands were PACKED! I guess the big question is whether Ralph can do it four times in row next year, or will Ben Rowe finally break through? I can’t wait and it’s still a year away!

2001 A New Face in Victory Lane – Gary Drew had finished in the top 3 in the True Value 250 back in 1997 and most observers were skeptical that he’d ever get back. Drew’s racing program was generally under-funded compared to some of the competition and he hadn’t been a constant front-runner at the track for years. The year 2001 changed all that. Drew won on opening day and carried the Oxford Plains Pro Stock point lead into the True Value 250. It started well for Drew as he won the pole and led the early laps. However, the three time and defending race champion, Ralph Nason, reeled him and passed him quite easily. The way Nason was going, it looked like the race was over by halfway!! An incident on a lap 157 restart put Nason almost a lap down, however, and there simply wasn’t enough time for him to get to chase Drew down. Drew pulled away from young Oxford driver Scott Robbins for a popular victory.

2002 A Dream Come True – Scott Robbins has dreamed of winning the True Value 250 for more then 20 years. In 2002 his team made the pit stop of the year and got his Ford Taurus back on the track in front of the competition (he made a four-tire stop versus everyone else two 2-tire stops). While everyone else either pitted twice (Mike Rowe and Ryan Moore) or faded late (Ralph Nason), Robbins was clicking off the laps out front. He took control of the race at lap 132 as the top 4 cars were forced to pit. Robbins held off Ralph Nason on one restart and kept Mike Rowe and Ryan Moore in his rearview mirror the rest of the way. Robbins has finished 1^st, 2^nd, 6^th, and 15^th in his four True Value 250 starts and is already making a case to be included with the top drivers of all-time in the event.

2003 All in the Family – It was one of the more exciting finishes in the history of the event (see Exciting Moments #2). Ben Rowe ran out of gas in 1996 and finished second in 1999 and 2000. To win the 2003 event he would have to overcome some stellar Oxford regulars and regional outlaws. Rowe started on the pole with his father alongside. He led many portions of the race, but it was apparent that Gary Drew and Steven Knowlton would have something for him as the race wound down. A controversial restart on lap 209 gave Rowe the lead over Drew. However, another restart with 3 laps to go put Knowlton and Drew on his bumper. It was a great short track finish with Rowe holding off Knowlton by less then a car length and Drew finishing in third. Three cars under a blanket at the finish…and Ben Rowe adding his name to the first place trophy alongside his father.

2004 The Hunted Becomes the Hunter – Unlike 2003, Ben Rowe did not have to hold anyone off to win his second consecutive Oxford 250. This time around Rowe was chasing down tough-luck Alan Wilson and on lap 239, Wilson’s right rear tire failed him and sent him off the track. Rowe was there to capitalize and go on to the victory. Rowe came from 25^th starting spot to take the win. Johnny Clark was the early rocket as he led 128 of the first 131 laps. The race had the added excitement of Matt Kenseth and Kurt Busch in the field which brought a capacity crowd to the event. It was the biggest event in the race’s history. Kenseth was impressive as he improved the most spots in the history of the race…finishing in third after starting 41^st! Oxford track champion Ricky Rolfe made it an all-champions top three by taking second.

2005 A 250 Veteran Gets 150 – There was a lingering storyline for 2005 that Mike Rowe could get his 150^th career Oxford Plains win. He saved that victory for the ‘250’ when he passed Johnny Clark for the lead on lap 240. The media blitz for the event was the return of Matt Kenseth and the appearance of Kyle Busch. Busch was very strong in the middle segment of the race while Stan Meserve was the early dominator. Surprise Nick Nichols chased Clark over the second half of the race in his Scott Fraser tribute paint job (and Fraser-built car!). However, both cars succumbed to the King of Oxford and Mike Rowe was able to drive under both cars with his fresher tires and get number 150 at the 250. This was a somewhat uneventful race with a near-capacity crowd. A somewhat disappointed 71 cars attempted to qualify.

2006 All in the Family #2 – The big storylines for this event was the return of Kyle Busch and his determination to win this race after being near the top in 2005. Busch put in the exciting run of the weekend in a consolation race by coming from 20^th to 1^st in 17 laps!! However, his race came to an end battling eventual winner Jeremie Whorff. Whorff was unheralded coming into the event but was among the top ten fastest cars and his equipment held together while everyone else fell apart around him. A testament to the quality of the equipment was father Bill Whorff coming home in second place. A great son-father combination made for a great story. Add in the local flavor with South Paris’s Sam Sessions bring home third place and it was an interesting race. 83 cars attempted to qualify. Denny Hamlin, J.J. Yeley, and Ricky Craven were also in the race.

2007 A New Era Begins – All of the buzz leading up the 2007 race was that Oxford Plains had changed the type of car that raced in the “250”. Nobody told the late model guys that they couldn’t cut it…or they didn’t listen…and 95 cars showed up and put on a great show. Terry Labonte made a trip back to Maine and never really got untracked. Local drivers like Ricky Rolfe, Shawn Martin, and Carey Martin led early but it was the ACT regulars, “Rocket” Roger Brown and David Avery dueling. With 25 or so laps to go the leaders touched after Avery passed Brown for the lead…Avery went off into turn one. It looked like Brown was home free until local Dale Verrill tracked him down and got to within a half car length at the finish!! It was wild, it was big, and crowd was huge…and the race didn’t suffer one bit.

2008 One of the stars finally delivers – The 2008 event was all about NASCAR star Kevin Harvick making his way north to try his luck at the race. What was different about his attempt was the genuine feel of a group of folks looking to have a good time while making a serious attempt at winning. Shane Wilson of Vermont, who worked for Harvick’s race team down south, convinced the high profile group to come up to Maine on vacation and try to win the race. Wilson built an ACT legal (ahem…) car and they trailered it up here! Harvick avoided major issues early in the feature from an over-zealous local racer, Carey Martin, and kept his car clean for the second half of the event and actually took the victory…on Monday night. Yeah, the other big story was RAIN! Qualifying and consi’s were all affected and that caused the field to have a competition yellow at the halfway point which changed strategy from all other 250’s. I’m not sure how much it mattered…Harvick was very fast and held off a late charge from local touring driver Glen Luce and up and coming touring driver Joey Polewarzyck.