PASS Northern Champions Give Thanks at Awards Banquet
Naples
All five Northern champions were honored on Friday night in
“I can’t thank my crew enough,” said PASS North Super Late Model Champion Ben Rowe. “These guys bust their tails and I just show up and drive…”
“…I’d like to thank [PASS President] Tom [Mayberry] and all of his officials,” said PASS Outlaw Central Division champion Walt Hammond. “It’s a real joy to go to all of these racetracks and get in and out so quickly…”
“…I’d like to thank [runner-up] Jerry Harrison and his crew,” said PASS Sportsman Champion Dan McKeage. “They proved us with some tough competition all year long…”
“…I’ve got to thank my crew – all two of them…” said PASS Outlaw Northern Division and overall champion Jimmy Rosenfield.
“…I’ve got to thank my parents for paying the bills,” said PASS Modified champion Chris Staples. “I wouldn’t be racing without them…”
“…I’ve got to thank my wife for putting up with me all of these years…” continued Rosenfield.
“…Thanks to the officials,” continued Rowe. “I don’t think that anyone realizes just how much work they do. Four or five years ago, everyone was soaking tires and these guys cracked down and got a handle on that…”
“…and I really need to thank all of you, too,” ended Rosenfield, pointing out towards the assembled audience of PASS drivers, car owners, crew members, family, friends and fans.”
If you put together those snippets from each champion, you’ll get a feel for the dozens of people behind each winner that contributed to their titles. The speeches were similar and the thank-yous were heartfelt. There was also some humor and some news that was spoken about during the festivities.
Ben Rowe joked that racing his father Mike Rowe for the PASS
PASS president Tom Mayberry discussed the state of the PASS divisions after giving thanks of his own to those who have made the series successful. Mayberry told those in attendance that the PASS North schedule for 2008 looks to be either 14-15 races in length, with 14 of those dates announced already. He also spoke of a planned eight to nine PASS Sportsman races and indicated that the series is real close to putting together an end-of-season $10,000-to-win event at Wiscasset Speedway (ME).
Mayberry went on to tell teams that the PASS Outlaw slate for 2008 will likely be eight to nine races in length and that the Central and Northern divisions will likely be merged into one series. He also predicted that the official schedule for the PASS Modifieds will have 12-14 events on it.
Super Late Model racing could get a boost in 2008, with a three to four event National SLM championship series in the works, according to Mayberry. Beech Ridge’s PASS 300, the Mason-Dixon Meltdown, an event at
As for 2007, there were dozens of awards and contingency prizes given out to teams on all of the Northern tours thanks to a list of presenting sponsors that included Northern Race Tire, Sunoco Racing Fuels, SafetyFX, Five Star Race Car Bodies, The Joie of Seating, Butlerbilt, Bassett Wheels, 2nd Life Tools, AP Brakes, Performance Friction Brakes and Tiger Rear Ends.
The 2008 PASS North season is scheduled to kick off at Beech Ridge Motor Speedway in
Even though the 2007 PASS North season is complete, that doesn’t mean that all of the teams are done racing for the year. Several PASS North competitors, including Ben Rowe, Mike Rowe, Richie Dearborn, Johnny Clark, Trevor Sanborn, Derek Ramstrom, Adam Bates, Cassius Clark, Joey Porciello, Alan Tardiff and DJ Shaw, as well as PASS Modified driver Troy Morse, are heading south for the second annual Mason-Dixon Meltdown, which will take place at Concord Motorsport Park (NC) on November 16th-17th.
For more information on the PASS North and South Series, please contact 51 Sports at (704) 788-2134 and for technical and rules information on all of the PASS tours, please contact Scott Reed at (207) 625-3230.
Also, be sure to visit the official PASS South website at www.racewithpass.com and the official website of PASS North, www.proallstarsseries.com.
2007 PASS Northern Awards:
PASS North SLM Champion –
PASS Outlaw LM Overall Champion – Jimmy Rosenfield
PASS Outlaw LM Northern Division Champion – Jimmy Rosenfield
PASS Outlaw LM Central Division Champion – Walt Hammond
PASS Outlaw Northern Race Tire Rookie of the Year – Gunnar Lee Joselyn
PASS Outlaw Sportsmanship Award – Jay Sands
PASS Outlaw Hard Luck Award – Alan Wilson
PASS Outlaw Most Improved Driver – Jeremy Davis
PASS Modified Champion –
PASS Pullen Heavy Industries Sportsman Champion –
PASS Pullen Heavy Industries Sportsman Hard Luck Award – Nate Weston
PASS Appreciation Award – Bruce McMahon and Jack Gerbrands
PASS Commitment to Excellence Award – Norm Marx
Lifetime Achievement Award – Don Hoenig, Thompson International Speedway
SafetyFX Gift Certificate, PASS Sportsman – Dan McKeage
SafetyFX Gift Certificate, PASS Outlaws – Jay Sands
SafetyFX Gift Certificate, PASS Modifieds – Chris Smith
Joie of Seating Gift Certificate, PASS Sportsman – Mike Landry
Joie of Seating Gift Certificate, PASS Outlaws – Mike Thomas
Joie of Seating Certificate, PASS Modifieds – Richie Morse
Sources: PASS PR