2015-10-06

ACT Three Stars Selected for Fall Foliage 200


ACT Three Stars Selected for Fall Foliage 200

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                                             ACT100615-133

 



<<ATTACHED PHOTO (DSC06502.JPG): Airborne home track favorite Brandon Atkins (#4NY) finished fifth in the Fall Foliage 200 after starting last. (Heather Aube photo)>>

 



<<ATTACHED PHOTO (DSC06773.JPG): St-Edouard, QC's Dany Trepanier (19QC) secured his first Serie ACT Championship at Airborne, while Windham, ME's Brad Babb (#15NH) came from deep in the field to finish sixth. (Heather Aube photo)>>

 

Waterbury, VT – The American Racer Three Star program is designed to recognize three teams in no particular order of performance that had outstanding races at American-Canadian Tour (ACT) U.S. Tour events. There are no specific criteria for deciding who might receive the award of a free American Racer Tire (value $125.00), but a special effort by a team, exceptional race, just plain old hard luck, or any other accepted reason is used to decide the award recipients.

 

The Three Stars are chosen by ACT officials and will receive certificates for use of a free American Racer tire at a race of their choosing during the 2015 season.

 

AIRBORNE PARK SPEEDWAY

FALL FOLIAGE 200

 

The 41st Annual Fall Foliage 200 at Plattsburgh, NY's Airborne Park Speedway is perennially a grueling affair that nonetheless is seldom decided until the final laps. The 2015 edition was no exception. The drama began just 34 laps into the event when Hudson, NH's Joey Polewarczyk Jr. suffered a broken shock mount while leading, dealing a crushing blow to his bid to repeat as ACT U.S. Champion. Meanwhile, Quebers Dany Trépanier and Jean-François Déry were duking it out from the get-go for the Série ACT Q.C. Championship in their season finale.

 

After the top dogs positioned themselves in the first ¾ of the event, the final 50 laps were some of the hardest-fought of the 2015 ACT season. Alex Labbé, Patrick Laperle, Nick Sweet, and Brian Hoar all took turns at the front, with the leaders running side-by-side for numerous circuits. Hoar eventually inherited the win after Laperle was found to be in violation of ACT's shock rule, but memories of the thrilling duel will remain. Behind the lead quartet, a number of other drivers had outstanding efforts in their own right, and there were several deserving candidates for the American Racer Three Star Awards. The winners for the Fall Foliage 200 are:

 

*Dany Trépanier, St-Edouard, QC – #19QC –The 2015 season was one to remember for Dany Trépanier and his Construction JC-7 team. Trépanier finished second in the 2014 Série ACT point standings, and entered his sixth season with the Tour with a new car from Crazy Horse Racing and the determination to win his first title. Entering the Série ACT season finale at Airborne he held a 30-point lead over 2013 Champion Jean-François Déry on the strength of one win and eight top-5 finishes.

 

Trépanier knew entering the event he had to look at the big picture; one wrong move could cost him the prize he had worked all season for. After starting 18th, Trépanier drove a clean, smart race. He worked his way into the top-10 by lap 60 and ran there most of the event, eventually finishing ninth. Coupled with Déry's eighth-place result, it was more than enough to secure the Série ACT crown. ACT congratulates Trépanier and his team, and they receive a Star Award for knowing the situation and doing exactly what they needed to clinch their title.

 

*Brandon Atkins, Au Sable Forks, NY – #4NY – The Fall Foliage 200 was the first event at Airborne since the death of Leon Gonyo, a veteran of racing for more than 40 years and a staple of Airborne for the past decade. In tribute to his fallen idol, Brandon Atkins carried yellow #4's on his car at Airborne just as he did the previous week at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.

 

Atkins started last in his heat and was moving forward when an incident with Gaetan Gaudreault left him with heavy right-side damage. After making repairs Atkins again started last in the main event – and again rocketed to the front. The Northline Utilities Dodge entered the top-10 on lap 84 and cracked the top-5 on lap 151. Although the drive didn't leave Atkins with enough car to challenge the leaders, his fifth-place finish was his best of 2015 and positioned him to potentially finish as high as fourth in the final standings. Atkins receives his ACT-high fourth Star Award of the season for a stellar day that continues his late-season push.

 

*Brad Babb, Windham, ME – #15NH – Over the course of the 2015 season, seeing Brad Babb in contention at an ACT event has gone from a pleasant surprise to an expectation. It's now a shock when they struggle – which is how his day began at Airborne. Babb was unable to break out of the pack in qualifying and was relegated to the 20th starting position for the Fall Foliage 200. To compound matters, an "accordion effect" a dozen laps into the event resulted in a puckered nose on his Joey Laquerre–owned Ford.

 

But Babb has faced adversity before this season, and he's always bounced back. He did so again on Saturday, staying on the lead lap through a pair of long green-flag runs and readying for the final sprint. Babb then took advantage of three late restarts and sliced to a final sixth-place finish. He is now all but assured of finishing third in the final ACT Tour standings, which surpasses almost everyone's expectations entering the season. The team receives its third Star Award of 2015 and is already on the short list of title contenders for 2016.

 

The cars and stars of ACT now head to Thunder Road Speedbowl for the 53rd Annual Northfield Savings Bank Milk Bowl. Booth Bros./H.P. Hood Qualifying Day on Saturday, October 10 at 1:30pm will feature time trials and "Triple 50" qualifying races to help set the 30-car starting field. The first segment of the historic event rolls to the grid at 1:00pm on Sunday, October 11.

 

For more information contact the ACT offices at 802.244.6963, media@acttour.com, or visit www.acttour.com.

 

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Alex Labbé troisième, à la porte de la victoire



COMMUNIQUÉ DE PRESSE – POUR DIFFUSION IMMÉDIATE

Fall Foliage 200 en Série ACT– Airborne Speedway, Plattsburg (NY)

 

Alex Labbé troisième, à la porte de la victoire

Montréal, le 5 octobre – Rapide lors de sa course de qualification, Alex Labbé partait de la quatrième place sur la grille à bord de sa Ford no48 VR Victoriaville/Larue Motorsport pour les 200 tours du Airborne Speedway, un beau circuit de 0,8 km avec ses virages relevés. Après une fin de course serrée au possible, Alex s'est mérité la troisième place derrière deux pilotes américains.

Alex Labbé aime courir à Airborne : « La piste est bien relevée dans les virages, ce qui permet de rouler à deux de large sans perdre de vitesse. On peut alors tirer avantage d'une meilleure tenue de route de sa voiture ou d'une petite erreur de l'autre pour le doubler à l'intérieur ou à l'extérieur. » Avec 29 pilotes au départ, la course promettait beaucoup d'action dans le peloton comme lorsque les meneurs prenaient un tour aux pilotes plus lents.

Parti 4e, le pilote de Saint-Albert se maintenait en 3e place puis en 2e place du 34e au 151e tour. À la relance, les quatre premiers ont roulé côte à côte pendant au moins 20 tours, avec Labbé en deuxième ligne, à l'extérieur puis à l'intérieur, toujours dans la roue des deux premiers qui occupaient toute la largeur de la piste. Malheureusement, la voiture devint alors de plus en plus sous-vireuse. « J'ai alors ajouté du freinage aux roues arrière pour réduire la charge de travail des pneus avant en entrée de virage. Et à environ dix tours de la fin, j'avais trop envoyé de freinage à l'arrière et j'ai fait un petit travers, juste assez pour que le pilote à ma droite passe devant moi, me laissant 4e à l'arrivée. » L'exclusion du vainqueur lors de l'inspection officielle d'après-course a ensuite donné la 3e place à Alex au final.

Labbé et l'équipe VR Victoriaville/Larue Motorsport sera en piste samedi et dimanche prochain, le 10 octobre pour les essais et la qualification, et dimanche 11 octobre pour la course en trois tranches de 100 tours du Thunder Road Milk Bowl, sur le petit ovale avec bol relevé de Barre (Vermont). Les qualifications du samedi comprennent des tours chronométrés et trois courses de 50 tours pour déterminer la grille de départ du premier 100 tours du dimanche. Le dimanche, on inverse l'ordre d'arrivée du premier 100 tours pour déterminer la grille pour le second, et les résultats du second pour déterminer la grille du troisième 100 tours. Le pilote qui a accumulé le plus petit total de positions aux trois arrivées est déclaré vainqueur, et la position à l'arrivée du troisième 100 tours brise toute égalité au final d'une course toujours spectaculaire.

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Photos libres de droits pour usage éditorial seulement. Crédit : Sylvain Morin

         

  Alex Labbé fan page  https://twitter.com/alexlabbe36   http://alexlabberacing.com/fr/ , 819 356-0436



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Jason Morand remporte le Challenge 200

Communiqué ASE 4 septembre

PHOTO-Présentation


Jason Morand remporte le Challenge 200

Alors que septembre sonne le glas de la saison du "Stock-Car" à l'Autodrome St-Eustache, octobre quant à lui, représente la fête des "Chauffeurs du dimanche". En ce 4 octobre ensoleillé, ce fut toutefois deux "Chauffeurs du samedi" qui auront occupé les premières marches du podium de ce premier de deux "Enduro" qui concluront la saison de courses 2015 de l'ASE.

Tout près de 70 voitures de 4 cylindres auront pris le départ du "Challenge 200", de ce nombre, 25 auront survécu à l'épreuve, ainsi qu'à la médecine imposée par leurs maitres. Si tout au long de la journée plusieurs semblaient prétendre aux grands honneurs, c'est toutefois Jason Morand #59, qui sera parvenu à ménager suffisamment mécanique et pneus, pour se mériter une troisième victoire en carrière dans ce type d'épreuve.

PHOTO-1:



Malgré son jeune âge, Jason Morand cumule déjà plusieurs années d'expérience en course automobile. Challenge-4, Sportsman Québec ainsi qu'un championnat Sport-Compacte de l'ASE en 2012 figures parmi ses accomplissements

Keven Huet Ouellet #05, un régulier de l'ASE en série "Challenge-4", aura croisé le fil d'arrivée en deuxième position, alors que Mario Brunet #90 s'empare de la dernière marche du podium. Yannick Miron #94, vice champion 2015 en série "Nascar Sport-Compacte MRQ", ainsi que Maxime Taillefer #144 complète quant à eux le "Top-5".

PHOTO-2:


Podium "Challenge 200

Pour les résultats complet du "Challenge 200", consulter la page Facebook, Stock Car Montréal. Un dernier rendez-vous pour les amateurs est à l'horaire de l'Autodrome St-Eustache dimanche prochain, le 11 octobre. C'est le "temps des pommes" direz-vous, soyez sans crainte, vous aurez tout le loisir d'en faire bonne provision dans l'un des nombreux supermarchés sur le chemin du retour. Pour l'occasion, les voitures de 4,6 et 8 cylindres seront alors en pistes sur l'ovale de l'ASE pour la dernière fête de la saison 2015, l'Enduro 250. Pour ceux et celles qui voudraient participer et vivre l'expérience d'être pilote d'un jour, l'inscription pour cet événement est nécessaire. Pour ce faire, contacté l'Autodrome au 450-472-6222.

Dominic "Crack-Shaft" Beaulieu pour Autodrome St-Eustache

PHOTO-3




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Airborne Park Speedway Ownership Group Places Plattsburgh Track for Sale

Airborne Park Speedway Ownership Group Places Plattsburgh Track for Sale

Facility available as race-ready motorsports venue

 

For Immediate Release                                                                                                                                                                                APS-100615-1

 

PLATTSBURGH, NY – Airborne Park Speedway's ownership group has announced that the Plattsburgh, NY facility is available for sale or lease. The move comes following a mutual agreement between owners Steve Fuller, Jamie Atkins, and Mike Bruno.

Bruno, the managing partner, will step down from his position effective November 15, 2015; media director Justin St. Louis and marketing director Dick Therrien will do the same. Airborne Park Speedway recently completed its 62nd season and operated under sanction from the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series in 2015. Plans for a weekly competition format and schedule in 2016 are not presently known, though stock car special events and competition go-kart racing plans are under development.

An automotive and racing equipment swap meet and car show on Sunday, October 25 will continue as planned. The Airborne Park Speedway 2015 Banquet of Champions will also go on as scheduled, to be held on Saturday, November 14, at the Rainbow Wedding and Banquet Hall in Altona, NY.

For the ownership parties, increasing commitments to family and other business interests factored into the decision; all three members also own and manage separate businesses. Fuller owns and operates Fuller Excavating in Keeseville, NY and the Harmony Golf Club in Port Kent, NY; Atkins owns and operates Northline Utilities in Au Sable Forks, NY and manages an American-Canadian Tour Late Model racing team for his son and driver, Brandon Atkins; and Bruno owns and operates three Bruno's Towing & Auto Repair facilities in Rutland County, VT and Devil's Bowl Speedway in West Haven, VT.

Fuller purchased Airborne Park Speedway in 2007 and made major facility improvements including the construction of two VIP suite towers and a new track surface. "I'm encouraged by the progress that the track made in 2015 and I want to see it continue to thrive as a race track in the future," Fuller said. "Mike Bruno and the team that ran the track this year proved to me that racing will absolutely still work as a business, and they have left Airborne in a much better place than it has been in for many years."

Atkins, a former racer, became part of the Airborne Park Speedway ownership group in 2009. "We met or exceeded every goal that we set together this year and we saw many positive indicators for the future of racing at Airborne," he said. "This decision has more to do with time than anything else. Airborne turned a big corner in 2015 and became financially viable for the first time in many years, and that is due to the efforts of Mike Bruno and the staff that he put in place this past year. Now it is important that we select the right person or group to come into Airborne and keep the racing tradition alive and bring the venue to the next level."

Bruno, a former champion driver at Airborne, joined the ownership group and was named the track's general manager in November 2014. "We all love Airborne and this decision has been hard on all of us, but there came a point when reality set in," Bruno said. "I am very proud of what we accomplished in 2015, but at the same time none of us want to sacrifice time with our families or turn our attention away from our own separate businesses. Our internal conversations about this started a while ago, but I think that the recent passing of racer Leon Gonyo only strengthened our desire to spend more time closer to home."

The current ownership group agrees that it is important for a new prospective owner or leaseholder to operate Airborne Park Speedway as a stock car racing facility with a local focus. The facility is available for sale, lease, or event-ready rental.

"Plattsburgh loves racing, and the people of the North Country have been devoted to Airborne for more than 60 years," Fuller said. "The race teams, sponsors, and fans have been our biggest supporters, and we did not want to leave any of them guessing about our roles at Airborne for the future. It was important for us to be honest with them about this decision as early in the off-season as possible."

Airborne Park Speedway is located on Broderick Road in Plattsburgh, NY, one mile south of Exit 36 on the Interstate 87 Northway. Visitwww.airborneparkspeedway.com for more information, or call (518) 647-4444. Airborne Park Speedway is on Facebook at Facebook.com/AirborneParkSpeedway and on Twitter at @AirborneSpeed.

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