Passing of the Torch

Hard-nosed racer Roger Brown wins the northeast’s crown jewel short track event

Pictures Below Recap

Roger Brown (#99) enjoyed the biggest night of his racing career and took home $35,800 at the 34^th Annual TD Banknorth 250. Brown finished second in the second consolation race to qualify for the race in the 30^th starting spot (above).

Results of the 2007 TD Banknorth Oxford 250

1. (30) #99 Roger Brown, Lancaster, NH
2. (12) #56 Dale Verrill, Paris, ME
3. (16) #89 Scott Payea, Milton, VT
4. (6) #77 Jon Brill, Bridgton, ME
5. (27) #8 Dennis Spencer Jr., Oxford, ME
6. (22) #10 David Avery, North Woodstock, NH
7. (2) #51 Ricky Rolfe, Albany Township, ME
8. (17) #85x Trampas Demers, South Burlington, VT
9. (32) #40 Eric Chase, Milton, VT
10. (14) #55 Brent Dragon, Milton, VT
11. (24) #6x Cris Michaud, Williamstown, VT

12. (8) #26 John Donahue, Graniteville, VT
13. (3) #55x Brad Leighton, Center Harbor, NH
14. (28) #48 Karl Allard, St. Felicien, Quebec
15. (40) #72 Scott Robbins, Dixfield, ME
16. (26) #00 Jeremie Whorff, Bath, ME
17. (20) #02 Randy Potter, Groveton, NH
18. (36) #15 Joey Laquerre, East Montpelier, VT
19. (41) #03 Travis Adams, Canton, ME
20. (33) #2 Zach Emerson, Sabattus, ME
21. (43) #88 Kevin Lepage, Mooresville, NC
22. (39) #1 Billy Childs Jr., Leeds, ME
23. (4) #17 Eddie MacDonald, Rowley, MA
24. (25) #7 Eric Williams, Hyde Park, VT
25. (42) #13 Jamie Aube, Bow, NH
26. (19) #05 Ron Henry, New Gloucester, NH
27. (13) #41 Josh St. Clair, Liberty, ME
28. (10) #20 Kurt Hewins, Leeds, ME
29. (7) #18 Carey Martin, Denmark, ME
30. (5) #63 Don Wentworth, Otisfield, ME
31. (23) #50 Jeff White, Winthrop, ME
32. (15) #6 Tommy Ricker, Poland, ME
33. (21) #41VT Peter Potvin III, Granjiteville, VT
34. (35) #60 Tim Brackett, Buckfield, ME
35. (9) #68 Dale Shaw, Center Conway, NH
36. (31) #66 A.J. Begin, Merrimac, MA
37. (38) #78x Ryan Nolin, Georgia, VT
38. (29) #12 Corey Williams, Harrisburg, NC
39. (37) #70 Gary Chiasson, Peru, ME
40. (1) #94 Shawn Martin, Turner, ME (Pole)
41. (34) #36 Brad Hammond, Sabattus, ME
42. (44) #44 Terry Labonte, Thomasville, NC
43. (18) #32 Jean-Paul Cyr, Milton, VT
44. (11) #04 T.J. Watson, Harpswell, ME

July 22, 2007 – Oxford, Me

Controversial contact by the leaders and a wild, last lap dash to the finish are the enduring memories of the 34^th Annual TD Banknorth 250 at Oxford Plains Speedway. American-Canadian Tour (ACT) regular competitor Roger Brown emerged unscathed from an altercation with fellow upstart David Avery on lap 226 and then held off a last lap charge by Oxford regular Dale Verrill to win northern New England’s historic long distance Late Model event and take home $35,800 for his troubles. While Oxford weekly competitors will get some notice for their stout performances, it was the late race action between Brown and Avery that fans will remember.

"I think he had a better car then I did," said Brown of Avery. "With a little patience, I think he could have gone around me. Heck, I probably would have done the same thing. I mean, we were racing for the win in the Oxford 250!”

Brown’s name joins the impressive list of regional and national stars that have won the event. Legendary short track stars such as Bob Pressley and Butch Lindley, nationally known drivers Chuck Bown and Ricky Craven, and northeast legends Dave Dion, Dick McCabe, and Mike Rowe have all won the prestigious event.

"It is unbelievable to think of myself on that list with Dave Dion, Mike Rowe and Ralph Nason," said Brown. "I'm pretty sure my name doesn’t rank up there with them.”

Oxford weekly racer Shawn Martin, who has defeated the ACT tour invaders a couple of times in the last few years on his home track, got the jump from the outside pole in heat race number one and held off Dale Shaw to earn the pole for the feature. Ricky Rolfe, multi-time Busch North champion Brad Leighton, Eddie MacDonald, Donnie Wentworth, Jon Brill, Carey Martin, and John Donahue also won heat races.

The consolation round winners were Eric Williams, defending TD Banknorth 250 champ Jeremie Whorff, Dennis Spencer Jr. and multi-time Canadian touring champ Karl Allard. Last Chance qualifying races were won by Gary Chaisson, Ryan Nolin, Billy Childs Jr. and Scott Robbins. The Last Chance winners had the opportunity to take a $1500 check or join the field at the back of the feature. All drivers chose to start the feature. All competitors took home money as there was even a purse for each Last Chance race!

Martin led the field to the green flag and would act as the rabbit for the field as he racked up $100 for every lap led, a TD Banknorth 250 trademark, with fellow Oxford standout Ricky Rolfe in hot pursuit. It took until lap 42 for Rolfe to put his Ford Fusion out front as the leaders began negotiating lapped traffic and the first caution of the night flew. David Avery had and off-track adventure in turn one with Dale Shaw. Shaw evidently was not too happy about it and he let Avery know by ramming into him as the cars sat just off the track. Shaw would be assessed a one-lap penalty for his actions while Avery got back into line. Avery was able to recover and get back into contention while Shaw opted out of his car and let his son DJ finish off the remainder of the race

On the restart Rolfe and Martin swapped the lead and battled side-by-side and nose-to-tail from lap 43 to 57. Rolfe finally cleared Martin at lap 57 but another Oxford regular, Carey Martin (no relation), started to put the heat on the top two.

A skirmish on lap 65 was relevant to the night’s proceedings as Roger Brown was involved in his own skirmish in turn four with a couple of other cars. No significant damage was done to Brown’s car and he got back into line in the top twenty.

Rolfe continued to set the pace to lap 90 when the third caution of the night waved for Eric Williams. Brown and a host of others, including Terry Labonte, all went to the pits for their service. It would be Brown’s only stop and as others would pit after him, the 29 year-old from Lancaster, NH just had to keep the fenders on his car and let others pit and fall out around him.

“The pit strategy really worked in our favor,” commented Brown. “It seemed that everyone had to come back to the pits for some reason and we just gained track position as they left the track. I didn’t really need to pass anyone.”

The action was just beginning as Carey Martin wrested the lead from Rolfe at lap 95 and set his own torrid pace. The first half of the event was completely dominated by Oxford regulars. The experienced long distance drivers from ACT and the Busch East Series were hanging around the top ten, and lucky for them, were ahead of a lap 102 melee that involved no less than nine cars and sent Terry Labonte out of the event. The former Cup series champ was on the lead lap and seemed to be gaining confidence and speed in his Richard Moody Racing Monte Carlo, but he, along with Brad Hammond, Trampas Demers, Ryan Nolin, John Donahue, and others suffered a lot of damage and Labonte retired from the race.

When the race resumed, Carey Martin again got a good jump, this time over David Avery. Avery got hung out to dry by Eddie MacDonald and Randy Potter and was forced to fall in line and ride in the top ten for awhile. Back up front, MacDonald caught Martin in traffic on lap 133 and put his Pontiac in the top spot. The battle continued lap after lap and Carey Martin showed a lot of fans that he can wheel it with the best of them by getting the lead back at lap 140! The action was furious with Martin, MacDonald, and Potter all jockeying through traffic and trying to find the best way around Oxford’s tricky second groove.

The complexion of the race would change during a caution at lap 141. MacDonald, Potter, Dennis Spencer, and John Brill, all running near the front, opted to pit. MacDonald and Potter inexplicably passed the pace car upon entering the pits and were assessed one lap penalties! Carey Martin stayed out in an attempt to earn more of the lap leader bonus money. But with so many cars entering the pits, Martin suddenly had to deal with the black and green Ford Fusion of The Rocket, Roger Brown..

Brown had fresher tires than Martin, got the jump on the restart, and became a dominant leader. He built up a full straightaway lead on Martin over the next ten laps until Martin’s car began to slow and fall back. A caution at lap 164 pulled the field back together with Brown leading, Chris Michaud, upstart Kurt Hewins, Scott Payea, and Avery now comprising the top five and Dale Verrill from Oxford, Maine just on the outside in sixth place. The race was hitting a bumpy stretch with many cautions. Beyond lap 150 is what could be considered “money time” and equipment and driver concentration was beginning to wane. The drivers with the best handling cars and the fortitude and energy to race hard in crunch time were beginning to surface. A restart at lap 194 set the stage for the final stretch of action as Avery was now the contender for Brown’s lead with Payea and Verrill lined up in row two.

Brown wasn’t able to shake Avery has he had the other second place cars. Avery, who has shown immense improvement running on the ACT tour in 2007, was glued to Brown’s bumper and even looked to the low side on lap 197 for the lead. Brown wouldn’t yield the spot and both drivers were racing hard for the coveted first place prize. A minimum of $25,000 was on the line and all the prestige of winning the event. Nobody could expect them back off with such high stakes. The two leaders stayed within a couple of car lengths of each other as they came upon heavy traffic. Avery was knocking on Brown’s bumper and waiting for him to make a mistake. Avery finally caught his break on lap 225. While Brown went to navigate to the high side of a slower car, Avery filled the low spot down the backstretch and became the race leader out of turn four. Brown fought back and as Avery drifted up the track a half groove out of turn four, Brown looked back to the low side into turn one. The two cars raced for the same real estate, that being the low groove in turn one, and Avery was sent spinning off the top of turn one to bring out a caution. Brown retained the lead but Avery would be forced to the rear to try and race his way back into contention.

The new contenders for Brown to deal with were now Payea and Verrill. Dennis Spencer and Jon Brill were also in the top five but had not shown the speed of the other three cars for most of the race. It became a two car battle by lap 240 as Verrill worked his way under Payea who was struggling to keep his car in the low groove. Verrill’s setup was suited for the longer runs and pulled to within a car length of Brown with five laps remaining. The two cars took the white flag with Brown just ahead of Verill’s bumper. Down the backstretch Verrill mustered a run to the outside of the leader! The crowd rose to its feet out of turn four as Brown gave up a lot of ground and Verrill had a strong run to the finish line. At the line it was Roger Brown by a half a car! The close dash to the finish caused contact by the two leaders just after taking the checkered flag and Verrill spun off into turn one. Payea held on for third while Brill and Spencer filled out the top five. Avery made a comeback to the sixth spot but was more concerned with interrupting Brown’s victory lap. Needless to say, there are some new hard feelings between him and Brown.

“I passed him cleanly on the backstretch in lapped traffic,” said Avery to Late Model Digest’s Norm Cote. “We got in turn four and he decided he was going lower than me and he wasn’t lifting and as soon as we got into one, he just hit my left rear quarter! He weren’t even to the tire yet! He just turned me around and sent me off the race track. It’s too bad because I raced him clean. I don’t like to race that way, but it was the Oxford 250 and you can expect most anything. It’s a big money race. It’s very frustrating! I can’t believe this ever could happen! I never thought I would be in contention for winning an Oxford 250 and then to get it stolen from me like that! I’d have raced him clean even if I didn’t get by him. Roger and I were, well, I thought we were fairly decent friends but I guess that friendship is about over now!”

Brown had a differing viewpoint.

“He got under me down the backstretch. I guess he thought I would lift and give him the spot when he tried to come down. I was up to his door and with 25 laps remaining in the Oxford 250 and there was no lifting. I think he would have done the same thing.”

While that moment was a big moment in the race, Verrill’s late race charge also will be remembered by many fans. The 59 year-old Verrill had not raced in the TD Banknorth 250 for fifteen years but had a strong car in the closing laps.

“I think with five more laps I would have gotten him,” said an elated Verrill. “I was gaining and gaining and I lost track of what lap it was…and nobody told me!”

“I saw him coming,” explained Brown. “My crew said that he was really coming so I just kept it in the low groove and he was either going to go around me or go through me”

“He was slipping a bit at the end,” said Verrill. “He gave me the outside groove on that last corner. But he almost gave me too much. I got a great run on him and just about got him at the line. Five feet was the difference between $12,000 and $25,000.”

Brown’s victory was historic in some ways, as the Late Model type of car put on a great show in their inaugural showing. The historical impact was not lost on Brown, an avid ACT Late Model supporter and racer, as he stated in victory lane what many people have been arguing about on internet forums for months.

"I just won $36,000 with a $25,000 race car, and those guys (Pro Stocks) would win $36,000 with an $80,000 race car," said Brown. "And in my opinion the racing is every bit as good if not better. Every year I’d come to this race and have to sit in the grandstands because we knew we could never compete with the money that was in those Pro Stocks. Now we can and I think the fans got their money’s worth. I can’t believe I just won the Oxford 250!!”

Payea is another young driver on the ACT circuit who kept his comments pretty straight to the point.

“Coming to an event with history like this and being able to race for $25,000 to $30,000 is such a big deal to guys with cars like ours. I just got $7,500 for third place and that will keep our race team going for the rest of the year.”

Payea was ready for this race and had the right mindset.

“We had nothing to lose and there’s no pressure for points. This is the Oxford 250. This is BIG.”

A CHANGE FROM PRO STOCKS

An off-season change to Oxford Plains’ top division shifted the attention from the Super Late Model type of car to the more cost-effective Late Model that is prevalent on the ACT tour and many tracks in New England. With car counts over the past seven years averaging 82 entrants, track owner Bill Ryan decided it was time to embrace what seems to be the car of choice for track operators in Oxford’s region.

In the months and weeks leading up to the event Ryan stated, “Even before we made the switch to Late Models, we worked with ACT to try and put our rules in line with theirs. Why? Because it makes sense to have a universal rules package. Currently, cars from Oxford, White Mountain, Lee, ACT USA, ACT Canada, Thunder Road, Waterford, and a few Canadian tracks operate under rules that are almost identical. This means that we will likely see cars from all of these tracks at the TD Banknorth 250. It also means that these tracks will see competitors from Oxford when the schedule allows.”

With Oxford Plains putting out a tire promotion dating back to late 2006 there was a potential entry list of 180 names that could have shown up for the event. Reality set in on race weekend and a realistic number of 95 cars were in the pits on Sunday morning. Still, it was the largest field of entrants into the event in more than a decade and Ryan’s vision of participation outside of Maine also held true as five New England states, North Carolina, and Canadian provinces were all represented. With so many new drivers eligible for entry into the event under Late Model rules, there was a true feeling of the unknown about the 2007 edition of the race.

“I could give you fifty names of people who could win this race,” said 2002 TD Banknorth 250 champion Scott Robbins. “And I could take those same fifty names and there’s a chance none of them could qualify.”

Even with the Late Models taking center stage, this is the TD Banknorth 250 after all, and the best in the region want to win it. Ben Rowe and Mike Rowe had cars lined up for the event but a conflict forced Jeff Taylor and Patrick Laperle into those respective rides. Multi-time ACT champion Robbie Crouch, NASCAR North legend Bobby Dragon, and even two-time Oxford 250 champ Jamie Aube were back to the event that helped to put so many of them on the map. However, the “feel-good” stories ended at high noon on Sunday when drivers drew for their starting position in the heat races.

RACE DAY COMMENTS:

ROBBIE CROUCH - The six-time ACT champion and three-time Oxford 250 runner-up returns to racing after a ten year layoff.

Me: Hi Robbie…figured I’d stop by and ask you a few questions.

Robbie Crouch: Sure…do you want a picture or something too?

Me: Maybe afterwards. I’ve been a big fan of yours since 1981 and was curious how you are feeling (Crouch is still rebounding from a bout with prostate cancer)?

RC: I doing great and feeling great.

Me: Are those seats smaller than you remember? (as I watched him climb into his car)

RC: No…I don’t think so. I’m just older so I make it look harder!

Me: Here you are with your first race back and you see names like Bobby Dragon, Jamie Aube…

RC: Yeah, it seems like we’ve got an old-timers race going on (smiling).

Me: Have you had any seat time in the car in preparing for this race?

RC: We got to shake it down at White Mountain. It feels really good to get going again. I think the car is going to be better than the driver for awhile.

Me: Good luck…you have too many second place finishes on your resume in this race!

RC: I’ll see if I can improve on that.

Note: Crouch did not qualify for the race. However, he drew last in a heat race and got caught up in a wreck. He made a strong charge from last place in a Last Chance Qualifying race to finish in second place. Not a bad debut after over ten years of being out of the seat.

Notes:

- 95 cars attempted to qualify.

- Roger Brown is sponsored by Roger Brown Trucking and Simon Labranch Trucking.

- Dale Verrill is sponsored by R&D Land Sales and Speedway Auto Body.

- Scott Payea is sponsored by Ouellette P&H, Metropolitan Pipe Co. and SAC

- The competition was as intense as ever. The list of drivers who did not qualify could have had their own all-star race: Patrick Laperle, Bobby Dragon, Robbie Crouch, Jeff Taylor, DJ Shaw, Alexandre Gingras, Phil Scott, Joey Pole, Brian Hoar, Kip Stockwell, Mario Gosselin are all racers who have had success in regional and national events and could not race their way in.

- Jeff Taylor attempted to qualify Ben Rowe’s #4 and was leading the first consolation race. Two failed restarts with Laine Chase sent both cars to the rear. Taylor could not recover and did not qualify.

- Patrick Laperle opted to make his qualifying attempt with Mike Rowe’s #24. Laperle was part of a tremendous three-car battle with AJ Begin and Jeff White in a heat race but did not transfer. Contact and bad luck in the consolation rounds and last chance races kept him from qualifying, despite having one of the best cars.

- Mike Rowe and Ben Rowe, first and second in PASS points, could not give up their lead and were at a PASS show at New Riverside Speedway in Antigonish, New Brunswick. They followed their common sense, but their hearts were at Oxford. Said Ben Rowe, "You know, at this point I wish they (PASS) wouldn't have scheduled this race the same weekend as the 250. It kind of hurts a lot of guys who want to race the 250. That's our home track...my old man and I have won 5 of those things so we'd like to be there. Tough to miss it though with this 1 and 2 in points deal."

- With lap leader money, eight drivers earned $5,000 or more for their one day of work. Brown $38,500, Verrill $12,500, Payea $7,500, Brill $6,000, Spencer $5,000, Rolfe $8,700, Carey Martin $5,325, Shawn Martin $5,325.

Cautions: 15

Red Flag: 0

Official Lead Changes: 9

Leaders: S. Martin 1-41, Rolfe 42-47, S. Martin 48, Rolfe 49-94, C. Martin 95-132, MacDonald 133-139, C. Martin 140-141, Brown 142-225, Avery 226, Brown 227-250

Heat Race Winners (20 Laps)

Heat 1: Shawn Martin

Heat 2: Ricky Rolfe

Heat 3: Brad Leighton

Heat 4: Eddie MacDonald

Heat 5: Donnie Wentworth

Heat 6: Jon Brill

Heat 7: Carey Martin

Heat 8: John Donahue

Consolation Winners (20 Laps)

Consi 1: Eric Williams

Consi 2: Jeremie Whorff

Consi 3: Dennis Spencer Jr.

Consi 4: Karl Allard

Last Chance Winners (20 Laps)

Last Chance 1: Gary Chaisson

Last Chance 2: Ryan Nolin

Last Chance 3: Billy Childs Jr.

Last Chance 4: Scott Robbins

Provisionals:

High Point Oxford Late Model: Travis Adams

Past TD Banknorth 250 Champion: Jamie Aube

Promoter’s Options: Terry Labonte, Kevin Lepage

34^th Annual Oxford 250 Pictures

Patrick Laperle subbed for Mike Rowe in the Lux #24. A.J. Begin (66) and Jeff White held him off in Heat 7.

Dale Verrill (56) was strong in his heat race and made a run at Brown in the feature.

Roger Brown (99) couldn’t get by David Avery in Heat #6…but the two would meet again in the feature

Terry Labonte needed a provisional to get into the show. He ran well until getting caught up in a wreck on lap 102.

Bobby Dragon spun in his heat race and struggled in his return to the Oxford 250. He did not qualify.

Scott Payea took home third place in his first TD Banknorth 250.

It was great to see one of New England’s great drivers, Robbie Crouch, make his return to the Oxford 250.

Brad Leighton qualified well and ran strong in the 250 finishing 13^th.

2006 winner Jeremie Whorff (00) held off eventual 2007 winner Roger Brown in a consolation race. Whorff finished 16^th.

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