SK-Modified champion Rob Janovic Jr. will share center stage with four other champions at the 2007 Waterford Speedbowl Awards Banquet Saturday night, Jan. 12 at the Groton Inn & Suites in Groton, CT.
Fellow champions Bruce Thomas Jr. (Late Models), Dwayne Dorr (Sportsman), Ken Cassidy Jr. (Mini Stock) and Michael Gervais Jr. (Saturday Night Legends) will also be honored as the Speedbowl puts the cap on the ’07 season.
There’s still time to reap the benefits of Waterford Speedbowl’s “Super Savings” Plans for 2008 grandstand and pits season passes.
The Speedbowl will open its 58th consecutive season with the nine-division Modified Nationals on April 12-13. The season will run through the Finale Oct. 4-5 and again feature the SK-Modifieds, Late Models, Sportsman, Mini Stocks and Legends.
Rob Janovic Jr. is always mentioned in the same company with Dennis Gada, Jeff Pearl, Tom Fox and Ed Reed Jr. – all home-grown Waterford Speedbowl products. Now, Janovic has what they all have – a Speedbowl championship.
Beating back a challenge from Gada, Janovic put the 2007 SK-Modified crown safely away with a third in the 100-lap SK segment of the Finale. Gada won the race, the points battle going down to the checkered.
Greg Teraccianno is the “Tire Man” for the 2007 Waterford Speedbowl SK Modified champion VoJan team. Rob Janovic Jr. drove VoJan’s 12-year old car to his first-ever championship.
It was long before VoJan (the combination of co-owners John Volpe and Janovic) became an entity that Teraccianno’s “education” began. He came to the Speedbowl with Janovic and Janovic’s brother Gary in 1987 ready to do battle in a one-time C.J. Frye Late Model. The car was purchased from Artie Moran.
Only a couple of weeks into the season, Ken Cassidy Jr. realized that his goal to become champion might just become a reality if he played his cards right.
“Consistency was the key factor in our year turning out the way it did,” says the 2007 Mini Stock champion. “At the start of the season that was our game plan, and it worked.”
Dwayne Dorr entered the 2007 campaign sure of only one thing, and that was his full confidence in the crew that had made him the defending Sportsman champion.
“My guys, I simply can’t say enough about them,” states Dorr, who now two straight titles. “Honestly, everyone involved with the team was just perfect. After last season, everybody knew their part on race night, and it was such a smooth year from that standpoint. Yeah, I drive the car, but without the help of a dedicated crew, you’ll go nowhere fast.”
At the close of only his third season in the tough Saturday night Legends division, young Michael Gervais Jr. became a champion, proving that the “youth movement” is still in full swing at the shoreline oval.
“Unlike some of the other teams, we came to the division with a pretty good idea of what it takes to be competitive on a weekly basis, so it’s not like we were pure rookies,” says Gervais. “All of those years of kart racing helped to prepare me for what was ahead. The basic discipline is the same, although the cars themselves are a lot different. When we were in the karts, our team was fortunate enough to score multiple championships, so right from the start we had the proper perspective when it came to running for points.”
One of my favorite Christmas specials is “A Charlie Brown Christmas.” I like it because Charles Schultz chooses to quote the Scriptural story of Christmas found in the Gospel of Luke, Chapter 2. I still can see Linus reading the story and the attention of all being drawn to God’s word. I have put the story here, take time and read it this Christmas season. Sit down with your friends and family and truly embrace the gift that God sent to us. Greetings in the name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.