Andrew Durand Changes Over to NGB body & 602 Spec Engine in Chase for 2009 Ltd. Late Model Championship at Stafford
Stafford Springs, CT — Over the past four seasons at Stafford Motor Speedway, Andrew Durand has won a total of 18 Limited Late Model feature events, putting him at the top of the all-time winners list. As the 2009 season approaches, Durand and his #43 RaD Automachine team will make a switch over to the new Limited Late Model 602 spec engine package. Durand will also change his car over to the new Mid American NGB Body style with the New Era wing. Durand is confident that he and his team can find the same success with their new package as they have had the last four seasons.
“We’re pretty confident that we can still win races,” said Durand. “It’s not all motor that wins races, you have to have the car handling good. Our spec engine looks good on the dyno, we haven’t had any problems with it, and we think we can go out this year and win races with it. It might not have the top end down the straightaway, but you will still get into the corner the same and I think it will be better getting off the corner because you can put the gas to the floor quicker and get the car hooked up faster than with our regular motor.”
When it comes down to engine power, most racers will tell you that more power is always better, but Durand is one of the few who will give you the opposite view on engines.
“I’ve found that for myself, less power works out better,” said Durand. “Towards the end of last season, we had some problems with our primary engine and we had to go to our back-up engine, which had less power than the spec engine. The car handled better because it was easier on the tires coming out of the corners and I was able to win races with the back-up engine. With the spec engine being better than that back-up motor, we feel like we can go out and win races this year.”
Although Durand may differ from other racers on the power issue, one area where he is in the majority is the pursuit of a track championship. In his four seasons of Limited Late Model competition at Stafford, Durand has posted points finishes of third, fifth, fourth, and third, and he is determined to work his way into the number one position at the end of the 2009 season.
“The goal for this season is to get the championship this year,” said Durand. “I’ve been in this division for four years now, and we’ve been close before, but I always seem to have that one night every year where we wreck the car bad enough to where we can’t make it back to the track the next week and that has hurt us in the points. Right now, we’re working on our motor from last year and we have our car from last year that we’re going to make into a back-up car if we should need one this season.”
Durand’s and his team will run the Cadillac CTS NBG Body with sponsorship from RaD Automachine, Payless Auto Glass, and Johnson Chassis. Their pursuit of the 2009 championship will begin at the 38th Annual Tech-Net Spring Sizzler, scheduled for April 24-26, 2009. Tickets for “The Greatest Race in the History of Spring” are now on sale at the Stafford Motor Speedway box office. Tickets are priced at $35.00 for adult general admission tickets, $5.00 for children ages 6-14, $38.00 for reserved seats, and free for children ages 5 & under.
Tickets are good for admission to the Saturday April 25, and Sunday, April 26 portions of the Tech-Net Spring Sizzler, with the Friday, April 24 practice session open the public free of charge.
For more information, or to order Spring Sizzler tickets, contact the Stafford Motor Speedway track office at 860-684-2783 or visit us on the web at www.staffordspeedway.com.
Sources: Scott Running/Stafford Motor Speedway PR