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A SPECIAL
NIGHT OF RACING STARS
LIGHT UP CHARLOTTE CONVENTION CENTER
by
Denise DuPont |
On
Friday, December 9th, the 2016 NASCAR Whelen
All-America Series top competitors were honored once
again at the NASCAR Hall of Fame for their sweat and
hard work in 2016. The grandeur of the festivities
dazzled the Hometrack champions along with friends
and families who shared their special moments.
Notes from NASCAR
Hall of Fame Charlotte, North Carolina:
Connecticut
State Championship
Keith Rocco once again topped the charts in 2016
with Thompson Speedway Motorsports Motorsports Park,
Waterford Speedbowl and the State of Connecticut
Championship. Rocco missed the Whelen All-American
Series National Championship by a mere four points.
“I think that it was a great year with two track
Championships and a second place finish at
Stafford.” Stated Rocco as he reflected on his 2016
achievements. “The consistency was there and the
wins were there. Racing in the north and the south
is definitely different type of racing. I feel very
accomplished with the way that it finished up. Matt
Bowling did a great job every week doing what he had
to do to win. And he did it the right way. It is
nice to be back on stage again this year.”
State
of New York Championship
Jimmy Zacharias now has four consecutive New York
State Championships in the books. Capturing the
title was tougher this year as track racing and
competition was raised up a notch. With more race
competitors and race events at diverse tracks,
Zacharias had to stay on his game to earn the state
title. With the 2016 title his, he is now ready to
start planning for the 2017 race year.
“It is always a great accomplishment to be able to
top the whole state. There are a lot of good guys
that challenge you from Riverhead and I raced
against my brother all year. It was a lot tougher
year this year. I did a lot more traveling to
Riverhead Speedway, Spencer and other tracks. This
year Danny Watts helped us out. And we had a couple
of good runs at Riverhead and that pretty much
helped us seal the title this year.”
Stafford
Motor Speedway SK Modified 2016 Championship
At Stafford Motor Speedway, NASCAR Modifieds
continue to be the featured attraction as it was
several years ago where drivers like Sonny Hutchins,
Ray Hendrick, Donnie and Bobby Allison came to
Stafford as part of their quest for a national
title. Legends Bugs Stevens, Fred Desarro, Jerry
Cook, and Richie Evans all won at Stafford and then
went forward to capture NASCAR National Modified
Championships. So today as the tradition continues,
the weekly modified regulars continue to be a tough
challenge for the outsiders.
In 2016 Rowan Pennink was running for the SK
Modified Championship at Stafford. Week after week,
Pennink showed that the Kelly Iverson Monk’s
Mechanic Hand Wipes sponsored #99 SK modified was a
car to beat. When the year ended he had thirty point
lead over runner up Keith Rocco.
Pennink summarized his 2016 year very simply: “We
had another great year with the #99 tem at Stafford
(Stafford Motor Speedway). We finished up with
another six wins for the championship so it was a
good year and hopefully we can do this good again
next year.”
Bowman
Gray Stadium Championship
Modifieds have been the featured division at Bowman
Gray Stadium since racing began in 1949. The
all-time wins list features some of the best NASCAR
drivers including Lee Petty, Ralph Earnhardt, Ned
Jarrett, Richie Evans, and Jerry Cook to name a few.
This year Burt Myers was been able to capture Bowman
Gray Stadium’s modified championship for the seventh
time in his career maintaining a family tradition.
Myers was all smiles as he discussed his 2016 Bowman
Gray championship. “From a personal standpoint my
family’s history at Bowman Gray is always important.
For me to represent my family is very important.
People do not understand how tough it is to race at
Bowman Gray. It is a flat Quarter mile track right
in the middle of a football field. The handicap
systems and the atmosphere is just tough for a
weekly show. I am very proud to represent Bowman
Gray as a seven time track champion.”
The modified drivers accepted their trophies,
roasted one another and when the night is over,
everyone will head home for the holidays and to
prepare for 2017 race year.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year Everyone!
What are the NASCAR’s
All American Series State and Track Championship
driver’s plans for 2017 race year?
Keith Rocco
“We will do all the same stuff next year. Race three
nights a week. Our Thompson schedule is pretty thin
but we will still be there every month and race once
a month. And at Stafford we may do some of the MTS
(Modified Touring Series) races. You know you cannot
pass up a modified race if it is close by. And we
will see what else comes about.”
Jimmy Zacharias
“Plans for2016 are still up in the air. I had my
plans figured out right up until earlier this week.
I planned to run dirt cars. I was going to run
Spencer Friday and Chemung on Saturday and then
Utica-Rome on Sunday and then try to go for the
National Title. But Utica-Rome dropped NASCAR now
and their dirt cars so that put a damper on that
idea. I have dirt cars now so I am going to run
mid-week shows and ten stick to Spencer on Friday,
Chemung on Saturday and then figure out the rest.”
“I received a call yesterday and somebody offered me
a tour ride. A new guy who wants to start a team and
he has two cars that he wants to take tour racing.
But I like doing what I am doing, having fun and
staying local. But if the right opportunity comes
by, I will probably take it. Especially if he give
me enough incentive to do it and know I can be
running up front, then I will take my chance with
it.”
Rowan Pennink
“We are going to go back and run the #99 at Stafford
weekly. We will probably run the #3 on the tour
again and it will pretty much be the same thing as
this year. Hopefully we can get a little bit better
on the tour. We will also run some of the additional
modified series races with the Gary Casella car. We
have not talked about it yet but I am sure that is
the plan.”
Burt Myers
“As of right now I am going to have to evaluate my
situation this winter – my budget, my resources, and
schedules and make a decision for going forward.”
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Source:
Denise DuPont / TheChromeHorn.com
Posted:
December 10, 2016 |
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