It’s Sunday night. I just got home from an extended Modified weekend. I have 160 unread emails and I don’t even know who won the Cup race. The Cup and Ernie were there for a lot of action this weekend, so let’s get started.

It didn’t look like we were going to get Friday’s New Hampshire 100 in on Wednesday. It didn’t look too good on Thursday when time trials were washed out either. The sun broke through on Friday and we completed our race at the Magic Mile. What a show!

When I got to the track on Thursday, the teams were unloading on pit road. This was something for which I had hoped, especially with inclement weather on tap. There was something cruel and unusual about having the Modifieds and the Busch East teams wrestle around the infield in the mud.

The #48 car was a late arrival. Supposedly, the car was being strung around midnight the night before. It had been a long week for the defending Tour champion.

The Ed Whelan crew showed up with a Ford powered Modified for Ted Christopher. Final round practice times seemed to indicate that Ted would be a favorite to win the race. Horsepower isn’t everything but it doesn’t hurt to have a little more.

Eric Sanderson showed up with a one-race sponsorship deal from a friend. The Crazy Gringo Bar & Grille graced the taillight panel of the #16. The team had a couple of other surprises in store for the Modified Tour point leader.

Inside the car, up by the right-side screen there was a clipboard. The written on the clipboard’s pad was neatly organized complaint sheet. One of the things that Mike had complained of was that he couldn’t see the tachometer. There was a magnifying glass over that.

Rob Summers missed Modified Mania because his car was too damaged from an accident at Martinsville. The car the TG team brought to Loudon was a brand new Chassis Dynamics car; they saved time by not applying paint to it.

CD didn’t actually have a car to sell to Guy Ronzoni and Bill Frasco. They did have a completed chassis for L.W. Miller. L.W. graciously allowed the TG team to take that one as he didn’t need it yet.

One thing I was able to take care of on Thursday was the six champion interviews. I asked three questions of our six Whelen Modified Tour champions, past and present. I hope everyone enjoys that article.

There were hopes that we would get in our full schedule on Thursday as we started off in sunshine. Todd Szegedy was fastest in practice followed by Tony Hirschman and Donny Lia. Shortly after Busch East practice got underway, the heavens opened up. The day’s festivities were called early enough for everyone to get to where they would spend the night in daylight.

At the hotel, I took advantage of the spa and exercise facilities. I met Jeremy Davidson down there. Jeremy was substituting for Mark Mockovak as our PR person. Some may remember that Jeremy ran the Boston Marathon this year. I waited until he was done to use the treadmill.

Friday morning offered up an opportunity for our competitors to fine-tune their racecars. Todd Szegedy improved his fast time but it wasn’t fast enough to keep the top spot. Ted Christopher strutted his #36 with new found Ford power to the top of the charts. Christopher and Szegedy were followed by Ed Flemke at the top of the charts.

I lumbered across the track and unloaded up in the press box. Once that was completed, I scoured the midway to see if I could locate one of the “Onion” tee shirts. Those were the shirts printed up to promote the Bo-Dyn Bobsled project. I found none for sale. Apparently they were over in the area by the Chevrolet booth out by K-lot.

Although there wasn’t anyone at the base of the elevator to meet me before the race, that was definitely a great place to hold a meet and greet. Many of the WMT team’s scorers and spotters as well as some of the NASCAR WMT officials were hanging out there. Keep that in mind for next season.

NASCAR NEXTEL Cup qualifying was coming to its conclusion as we prepared for the start of the Tour race. The Front Row Motorsports team hustled Chad Chaffin to the line in their attempt to bump his way into the Sylvania 300. Chad had crashed his primary car in practice and that team had difficulty getting the backup car through tech.

Chad made a great effort on his second lap bumping Stanton Barrett from the field. Ted Christopher made the field for Sunday’s race and that was good news for some folks up in Oswego. Ted chose not go to the Race of Champions event on Saturday once he had qualified for the Cup event. Ted would drive Kirk Shelmerdine’s #27 Lilly Trucking Chevrolet Sunday.

I had contemplated going to the 200-lap race at Oswego for over a week. I knew that my credentials weren’t in order. I didn’t have a hotel room there. I’d never been to the track and needed directions. Joe Skotnicki helped me make the decision.

I told Joe that if I went I would leave on Saturday morning. I felt it probably would be best to drive to Worcester, MA and take I-90 straight from there. He told me I was crazy and gave me directions that would get me to the track by cutting across New Hampshire and Vermont.

I tried to watch the race with Joe, Brian Danko and Bones Bourcier while I posted the Live Updates. Apparently I should have posted something about refreshing as the board went down several times during the race. Fortunately, I was able to post some stuff on the FlashChat during the times that the board went down.

This race seemed a lot cleaner than the one the WMT ran here in July. There were only two cautions and I don’t think I saw one dirty trick out there. TC may have had the horsepower to win but I don’t think he ever got his car in a position to show all of its power. John Blewett, III took down his third Whelen Modified Tour victory of the season and swept the two races at NHIS.

As it turns out, the Whelen Modified Tour event, once again, was the best race of the weekend. The Modifieds had as many lead changes at the line as the Cup race in one third the laps. The Craftsman Trucks and the Busch East Series drivers both demonstrated that they know how to crash. The New Hampshire 100 WMT race was slowed only twice for caution for a total of eleven laps.

After the Mod race, I asked John, “NOW would you say this is redemption?” Blewett said, “Yeah, and especially to pass Teddy for the lead. This was a good win for us. We’ve run so well every race we’ve been in this year. I’ve kind of felt that every race we’ve had a shot to win. Certain things don’t happen for whatever reason and today the race kind of fell our way and we were there at the end.”

I asked Blewett, “What was your car like before you pitted?” John said, “The car was just way too tight. I couldn’t even use the motor. I was just waiting on the throttle. After we came in and pitted it was too loose. I said, “Oh geeze, we really (screwed) this up. It just seemed to come back around there at the end.”

I said, “Tell me how the battling was up front. It actually looked like it was pretty clean.” Blewett replied, “It was: I mean it was close and it was hard but it was definitely clean. I thought the last race here was kind of hairy. This one didn’t seem to compare to that. I think at the end of this race, there weren’t as many good cars as there were at the end of the race before.”

I told John, “With about two laps to go there was a lapped car that you were able to clear and two of the competitors behind you got side-by-side. That allowed you to pull away a couple of car lengths.” JB said, “I was able to catch a draft off of them guys there at the end on the straightaway and clear them before the corners. That was a big part to winning the race at the end. When you’re all by yourself out there, you’re all by yourself. When a line of cars get together, its bad news for the leader. When I saw two [laps] to go, I knew we were in good shape, it was just a matter of getting to the checker.”

I told Jerry Marquis, “This was a better run than you had back in July.” Jerry responded, “We really concentrated on working on the racecar today. We wound up freeing it up too much. The racetrack was real tight this morning and we freed it too much for the first session. We came in and tightened it back up and put the tires on it that we had practiced on and the car came around a whole lot. We were running them back down again. We just ran out of time in the end.”

I commented, “It still looked like you were pretty loose at the end of the race.” Marquis said, “Yeah, you know it was a lot better than what it had been yesterday. If you get too tight here you wind up bogging the motor down and you don’t get a good run down the straightaway. So you’ve got to keep the car kind of free and try to keep it underneath you. It’s so difficult to get that fine line.”

I said, “You had a little adventure with about twenty-five laps to go in turn one where it looked like you had two handfuls of steering wheel.” Jerry replied, “Oh yeah. We were kicking it back and forth and I got out of line. I was hoping someone was going to come with me and no one did. I’m like here we go again, back to the back of the pack. They said it was open on the top and I’d seen there was a big opening and by the time I drove it up in there. Teddy [Christopher] had come down and I just didn’t anticipate that. I caught him in the left rear nerfbar. I cut the wheel hard trying NOT to hit him, I just touched him and got him sideways, but I was COMPLETELY sideways. We were able to save it. I just cranked the wheel around and flattened the throttle and that’s what I think got the car going straight again. Otherwise we would have been head over heels, who knows what would have happened.”

I told James Civali, “Nothing like grabbing a share of that Lincoln Electric/Merriam-Graves money today, great job young man, how did you like your run today?” James said, “It was good. I wasn’t so sure how we were going to be in the beginning because we changed so many things before the race. The car was good. After we changed the tires, the car was comfortable. Before that it was not comfortable. It was loose in and I really couldn’t go very hard and if you got hit in the wrong spot it got really, really loose. After we pitted, that’s when it got comfortable and that’s when we started coming through the pack.”

When I got done with the interviews, I quickly got my computer booted up. Amie told me the board was up and running as she was packing. I got the finish together and posted it.

William Camire is a Jack Ratta Media Center regular. Bill is usually at the main entrance of the media center, ready to help out any way he can. I asked Bill, “Can you get me a cab?” Bill quickly got a key for a golf cart and he brought me out to the back of I-lot.

On our way out to the car, I couldn’t help thinking of how hard Fred Neergaard, Kristen Costa, Jolene Drandson and the rest of the NHIS PR staff worked to make things run so smoothly for us. I would have loved to just sit and chat with Fred over the weekend. I knew it was best to leave him to what he has to do, keeping the wheels of public relations well oiled and on track.

I drove out of I-lot by the tunnel entrance and the SPEED stage. Trackside Live was on. The fans were just as crazy as they had been in July. It was wise of the powers that be to move that stage back about a hundred feet. It sure made the traffic a whole lot more manageable.

The Sylvania hospitality was pretty cool. Amie was nice enough to let me use her invite. I sat with Dave and Hazel Meredith. It wasn’t quite like two years ago when I sat with Val LeSieur and each ate a half dozen lobster. We got one each and got to look at their new consumer items designed for the campground crowd. Check out their online store to look at some of Sylvania’s cool new products.

My cell phone rang; it was Charli Brown calling from Ace Speedway. He asked if he could call me with Live Updates. I said a quick goodbye and dashed to my car. I knew I had to get back to the hotel if I was going to post them.

Charli called a couple of times while I was driving pretty quickly on I-93 with a cop on my tail. I could barely make out what he was saying over the roar of the engines. I called him when I got to my hotel room and I could barely hear anything but horsepower.

I had a long chat with Charli after the WSMT race was over. I’d love for Charli or someone from the WSMT to do the Live Updates for all of their races. It might help to have someone on our staff down there too. We can all hope.

By the way, haven’t heard many responses about folks interested in doing Live Updates for next season. Should we find that there isn’t anyone who is willing to do all of the events, I will try to recruit one person to do Updates from each track. We need callers and posters. Shoot me an email if you are interested.

I got about five hours sleep Friday night. I headed out on the path that Herr Skotnicki laid out for me. About three hours into my trip I was ready to strangle him. I spent more time in no-passing zones behind people who were interested in saving the economy by driving ten miles per hour under the speed limit than I care to relate. On top of that, it seemed like half of the roads were under construction.

The folks up in northern New York have an interesting sense of humor. Who would have thought I would go through Phoenix and Mexico on the way to a track near the Canadian border? Those are two towns NY 481 takes one through on the way.

I thought that Joe’s directions were about as good as fish reproducing on land. They did however lead to my destination. I can say this; Oswego Speedway was not what I expected.

I met Lindell Miller at the press sign in. She has worked with Andrew Harpell and the RoC staff for a number of years. I don’t know how I charmed her into it but she gave me a press pass. Tickets for this Saturday event were $60, so it was a good deal for me.

I ran into Joe by Eric Beers #9 car with Eric and Bear. I razzed him about the directions he gave me. He told me he was probably sleeping when I told him I would be traveling in the morning. We got a good laugh.

Time trials had been completed and the first heat race was in line for the RoC. While in the infield I noted that it is really difficult to see the track. I was told one of the best places from which to watch in the infield is between turns three and four.

It’s kind of odd to see folks sitting there several feet from the racetrack in the grass. The infield is elevated; the racecars go around below your feet on the inside and at eyelevel on the outside. I thought that was quite unique.

When the heat races were over, I crossed the track and found my way to the press box. Amazingly, with as limited seating that was available, there was a spot for me. The press box puts the writers directly on top of the track. The glass is angled so if something happens against the outside wall below, one can lean forward to see it.

I spent most of my time in the press box with Michael Monnat (pronounced Mo–Nay) from Gater and Carol Houssock who is an announcer at Chemung. Michael had taken extensive notes that helped me get things sorted out before the feature. Forty-seven cars showed up for the 56th Annual Sunoco Race of Champions.

Oswego Speedway had a 10 year old girl sing the Canadian and American National Anthems. She did a great job. I remembered last season, listening to her sing on the RoC web cast and wondering how anyone could have made that poor girl stay up until one in the morning to sing.

Before there was a command to start engines, one fired. It was J.R. Swansboro. It would have been harder to tell but one of his crewmembers pant legs was flapping from the exhaust. About a minute later, the rest of the field joined J.R. and their never was a command.

All of the drivers had started their engines. Actually all started except the #11 car of Steve Whitt. The WMT regular had transferred into the feature by finishing second in the first consolation event. Whitt’s car was pushed to the infield and wound up as a DNS.

Zane Zeiner dashed off to the lead from his pole starting position. Eric Beers went to the outside of Zeiner on lap 57 and took three laps to get past him. Beers led until he pitted around lap 145.

By then, TJ Potrzebowski had moved his way to the runner-up position. When Beers pitted TJ assumed the lead. Potrzebowski had pitted during the first caution period that allowed a legal mandatory pit stop. All of the drivers had to stop at least once after fifty laps were complete.

I had thought it was a big mistake when Potrzebowski and Dave Wollaber pitted after lap fifty-one was complete. RoC Race Director, Andy Harpell, had told the competitors over the one-way radio that stops would be legal on the previous lap under caution. Seven drivers, including high rollers like Chuck Hossfeld, Pete Brittain and Lee Sherwood, had all pitted the previous lap. That was seven positions that would have to be made up on the track.

The pits were like a rodeo. It appeared the rules were there were no rules. The cars came into the infield at breakneck speed. I think teams could have used three jacks and four guns if they had the resources.

Eric Beers had incorporated the strategy that he had used to win this race two years ago. He pitted late and counted on his fresh tires being able to catapult his car toward the front of the field. He really put on a show.

Beers spent about a dozen laps trying to get around Lee Sherwood. He was clearly the fastest car on the track and was making up time on the leaders while passing cars through the field. With three circuits remaining Beers got inside Swansboro and J.R. chopped him in turn one. J.R. spun bringing out the yellow with the finish still in question.

Actually, on lap 197 Matt Hirschman had stuck the nose of his #60 car past Potrzebowski at the line. TJ ran Matt up in the marbles in turn one and reassumed the lead before the yellow flew. Matt had had a great run after pitting just after halfway.

The RoC was going to finish with two green flag laps. The caution flew two more times and fuel became a concern for some of the competitors that pitted early. Beers had a problem on the last restart and faded from third to finish seventeenth. TJ Potrzebowski went on to take down the win.

On the cool down lap, Matt Hirschman ran TJ down toward the water barrels protecting the back pit entrance. It was a little excitement that was not Hirschman-like. There appeared to be little damage to Potrzebowski’s car and probably put Matt in a little disfavor with the local crowd.

TJ was asked about his fuel situation in Victory Lane. TJ said, “I didn’t talk about it with the crew but it was really on my mind. We pitted early so I wasn’t sure what I had. It’s going to be interesting to see what is left.”

TJ was asked about the late race restarts. “Did you feel you could hold Hirschman and Beers off in the final laps?” TJ responded, “I thought we could for a lap or two but I knew they were on fresher tires and they were going to be a serious threat. We did what we had to do tonight.”

“How does it feel to get the sweep like this?” Potrzebowski replied, “It probably will be a while sinking in. I can’t believe it.” TJ Potrzebowski won the SST Modified race on Friday night.

I spoke to Eric Beers after the race. I commented, “Some race?” Eric said, “Yeah, it was fun.” I said, “You earned a lot of money out there.” Beers responded, “Yeah, we did what we wanted to do. I didn’t want to kill the car in the beginning. There’s a lot of money up when you’re leading.” Eric earned the lion’s share, a little over $10,000, of the lap money.

“It was tough passing Zane [Zeiner] on the outside. The top of the track wasn’t even there yet. I knew we had a good racecar. We got by him and I was just riding until Matt came along and I picked up the pace a little bit. We were definitely as quick as him. He wasn’t going to pass us. That’s why I think he pitted. My plan was to stay out to at least 140 and it worked out.”

I noted that he had gotten stuck behind Lee Sherwood. Eric said, “Wow. Yeah, then I just didn’t care. I’m just going to pass him or crash. At least I passed him. Once I passed Sherwood I was passing cars left and right and going and going and going. I got to eighth and the caution came out.”

“We weren’t going to be good for the first two or three laps after a caution. The car wasn’t fast on cold tires. We got the green and started picking them off again and I got to the #06 there and I got to the outside of him and he was just driving me up in the dirt. It made no sense to me.”

“I caught eight car lengths on him in one turn. I get to the top and he runs me up. He comes off the corner sideways and I ducked under him. We were even going into the corner and he ends up driving right into me and spinning himself out. That bent my right front rim and it [eventually] went flat. What are you going to do?”

The audio from the race was broadcast over the Oswego website. We had a few people listening in and conversing on the FlashChat. That was kind of cool.

It was great to see Ed and Tommy Cloce up at Oswego. They had planned on being at the New Hampshire 100 at NHIS but they couldn’t get their engine installed in time to go. Ed gave me some tips for going home.

When I walked out of the track I could think of only one thing, Pocono. It smelled like Pocono. It sounded like Pocono. It sure didn’t look like Pocono. Good or bad, that was fine with me.

As I said earlier, I had no hotel reservations. I figured I’d drive as far as I could and I would stop. I had Vicki on the phone and she kept asking where my hotel was. She had TBax calling me with ideas too. Finally, I just shut my phone off and drove.

I knew that I wasn’t going to get far. I stopped in Courtland, which I only know as a college town. I got a room at a hotel. Let’s just say there wasn’t much comfort carrying all of my crap up the stairs.

Being that I was checking in well after midnight, I asked to have a late checkout. They gave me an extra hour. I put the “Do not disturb” sign out and was woken at 7:45 by “Room Service?”

I got a phone call about fifteen minutes before regular checkout time to ask if I was leaving. I asked the person if they could call me back in an hour when my wakeup call was scheduled. I couldn’t sleep. I packed up and left.

I decided to take an alternate route home. Consequently I wound up stuck in New York City behind guys with wires coming out of their ears for about two hours. I think NYC traffic is a form of domestic terrorism.

At one intersection, I was stopped at the crosswalk. The crossing traffic blocked my path as a NYPD cruiser weaved through the traffic behind me. A traffic cop at the intersection told me to MOVE. I replied, “Where do you want me to go?” There was suddenly a gap in the crossing traffic and I ran the red light to get out of the cruiser’s way.

That’s when the car started smoking. It’s too long a story to tell here but let’s just say my trip home was about three hours too long and involved about four quarts of transmission fluid. I’m just glad I made it.

The Whelen Modified Tour heads to Waterford Speedbowl for the Town Fair Tire Finale and the Volunteer Fire Department 150 this Sunday. I figure we will have a meet and greet shortly after time trials near the gate that separates the spectator area from the paddock outside turn one. I hope to see you there.