All that hard work with nothing to show for it … yet.
That can be said about race car drivers and teams throughout New England as they wait for the OK to take the green flag. Numerous teams have taken advantage of open and private test sessions at Monadnock Speedway in Winchester, N.H., as the quarter-mile bullring awaits its turn in reopening from the coronavirus pandemic. What was supposed to be a May 2 opening has turned into a wait of more than a month.
On Thursday, good news came out of the Route 10 oval when it announced that the first race of the season will be June 27, although fans will not be permitted. The main grandstands will be closed unless Gov. Chris Sununu lifts the restriction on racetracks, although Star Speedway in Epping, N.H., announced that the state has said small tracks can open at 50 percent capacity.
For one driver in particular, the wait has been agonizing.
“It’s very frustrating,” said Willie Kuhn, a driver in the Late Model Sportsman division. “It sucks even worse because I was so far ahead of the game as far as being prepared for the 2020 season.”
Kuhn, of Springfield, had a productive winter preparing for the season.
“I got all my big stuff done very early in the off season,” Kuhn said. “Motor refresh, new rear end setup, new body.”
Kuhn was slated to show his No. 0X car at the Monadnock Speedway booth at the annual car show held at the Big E in West Springfield, so he made sure his car looked race ready for the event.
There have been a few days of practice open to all cars, and this week the speedway can be rented for private testing. Kuhn, who finished fifth in points as a rookie last season, has not taken to the track but feels he hasn’t had to.
“I didn’t go to any practices but I’m confident my car would have been among the fastest there,” he said.
Kuhn would like to thank his sponsors: JC Mattress Co., Whip’s Sporting Goods, Sun Valley Fire Equipment, Pennington Painting Inc., Roberlo, Connecticut Warlocks, Richies Landscaping, Hawley’s Auto Body, Williams Race Gear, RAD Auto Machine and Grandma Hamms Chassis.
TOP LOCAL FINISHERS: The following drivers from Franklin County and the North Quabbin region finished high in the points in their respective divisions at Monadnock last season:
Sportsman Modified: Benjamin Byrne, Greenfield (2nd); Joel Monahan, Whately (3rd); Tyler Jarvenpaa, Orange (18th); Cole Littlewood, Orange (20th).
Late Model Sportsman: Cole Littlewood, Orange (2nd); Justin Littlewood, Orange (3); Dennis Stange, Athol (4th); Scott Beck, Greenfield (9th); Shawn Stone, Montague (13th).
Mini Stock: Kevin McKnight, Orange (3rd); Shelby Avery, Bernardston (5th).
Street Stock: Michelle Leh, Montague (7th); Ben Williams, Turners Falls (12th); Mike Radzuik, Northfield (15th).
Pure Stock: Mike Douglas, Millers Falls (5th).
No points are kept in the Young Guns Division, but Jake Puchalski of Sunderland led the way with 11 victories last season. Joining him in the division were Christopher Phelps of New Salem, J.D. Stockwell of Turners Falls and Craig Carey of Athol.
FLAG NOT STILL THERE: On Wednesday, NASCAR banned the Confederate flag from all races and properties — a move made in the wake of the strengthening of the Black Lives Matter movement. The flag carries with it a legacy of slavery, yet it also is a source of southern pride for many NASCAR fans.
I can see both sides of the issue. Confederate flags at NASCAR races are as common as the seventh-inning stretch in baseball. It’s become part of the fabric of the sport.
However, the flag does make some people uncomfortable because of its history. What it also does is perpetuate the stereotype that NASCAR fans are southern hicks and rednecks. It’s been the one thing that’s kept NASCAR from truly becoming America’s fifth major sport. It might be the sixth sport now with the emergence of soccer.
Bubba Wallace, NASCAR’s only black driver, has led the charge against the Stars and Bars in the wake of the recent protests surrounding the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis. Wallace’s No. 43 car sported a very slick looking Black Lives Matter paint scheme Wednesday night at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway, in the same state where the capital of the Confederacy once was.
What concerns me is that once fans are allowed back at the racetrack, the new policy will be hard to enforce. Is NASCAR going to go to each campsite and ask all Confederate flags to be removed? I expect a lot of resistance and defiance of the order, especially in the South. Up to 5,000 fans will be allowed into Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway in a few weeks. That track is the ultimate stereotype of NASCAR fans.
This decision was the right move, but it is one that will continue to alienate the root of the fanbase. They’re the ones who are resistant to any sort of change in the sport — from changes in the points system to elimination of certain sponsors. They still compare current drivers to Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt when it’s really an apples-to-oranges scenario now.
Kudos to NASCAR for doing the right thing but beware of a fan uprising.
Jason Remillard is a copy editor and page designer at the Recorder. He can be reached at jremillard@recorder.com and followed on Twitter @racinwithjason.