FINALIST: Cassidy Back In The Hunt
Battling Field in another championship chase at Waterford
Daytona Beeach, FL — A second-generation driver is in a pair of very close points races as the season enters its make-or-break month of August.
Ken Cassidy Jr., 27, of Lisbon, Conn., is battling with Danny Field for Waterford (Conn.) Speedbowl’s Norwich Bulletin Mini Stock Division track championship.
The duo is also among the leaders in the NASCAR Finalist Division IV standings.
The new NASCAR Finalist national recognition program focuses on the divisions outside of the Feature Division at each NASCAR Whelen All-American Series track. Points are kept separately for dirt and asphalt tracks. A NASCAR-licensed driver’s best 14 finishes are counted toward their final points total for the year.
Each track in the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series designates its top division as its Feature Division, and assigns its remaining divisions a designation of II, III, IV or V. The Finalist Program was established this season to recognize the drivers in those latter divisions.
Field leads the asphalt Division IV standings this week followed by Tim Hollen of Raceway Park in Shakopee, Minn., and Cassidy. Other asphalt leaders include Division II, Danny Johnson, Raceway Park, Shakopee, Minn.; Division III, Matt Galko, Stafford Motor Speedway in Stafford Springs, Conn.; and Division V, Doug Schmitz, Raceway Park.
Dirt leaders entering this weekend include Division II Jesse Sobbing, I-80 Speedway, Greenwood, Neb.; Division III, Brad Derry, I-80 Speedway; Division IV, Jamie Spanel, I-80 Speedway; and Division V, Andy Wilkinson, Junction Motor Speedway, McCool Junction, Neb.
COMPLETE DIRT STANDINGS | COMPLETE ASPHALT STANDINGS
Cassidy has two wins, 13 top fives and 15 top 10s in 15 starts and enters the weekend third in Div. IV, just 11 points behind Field. Field, who has five wins, also leads Cassidy by 11 points in the Waterford track standings.
Cassidy’s father raced in the Street Stock division at Waterford for 12 years.
“Dad won a lot of races over the years at the Speedbowl,” Cassidy said. “I was too young to go into the pits to help him. I was a ‘grandstand driver’ with him all those years. When I finally got in a race car, I felt like I knew my way around.”
The Mini Stock division at the .375-mile paved oval is comprised of Ford Mustangs. They are all front- wheel drive, and each is built into a race car by the individual teams.
“It’s affordable and fun,” Cassidy said. “As long as it’s fun, I’ll keep racing, and I don’t think I’ll be stopping anytime soon.”
There might be some credence to Cassidy’s ‘grandstand driving’ career helping him prepare to compete at Waterford Speedbowl. He was good from the start. He was the division’s rookie of the year and most popular driver in 2005, when he posted five wins and finished eighth in points. He was selected as the most popular driver in the division again in 2007, and won his first track championship, repeating the title in 2008.
Cassidy Jr. and Field have been the dominant drivers in the division in recent seasons, with Field winning three championships to Cassidy’s two.
“I hope it’s my turn now and we can even that up,” Cassidy said. “Danny and I are rivals and we race each other hard but we keep it clean. We usually have about 20 cars in the feature, and there are more guys than just us who can win on any night.”
Cassidy thinks the new NASCAR Finalist Program introduced this year to recognize drivers in the support divisions at NASCAR Whelen All-American Series tracks around the nation is a great addition.
“I think it’s awesome,” Cassidy said. “It gives us something extra to shoot for and race for NASCAR points.”
Cassidy’s car owner is Scotty Bellisle and Glenn Colvin is the engine builder. Crew members include Cassidy’s dad, Ron Harper, Keith Michaud, girlfriend Cara Coffey, and Phil Evans. Family members include Hayley Paige, Michelle Cassidy, and the driver’s yellow lab, Champ. Sponsors include Treat’s Pools and Spas, Gary Baker, Mem and Pep Coffey, Stonehouse Bar and Grill, G. Smith Construction, ServPro of Norwich, GCR Power, and C&J Septic Services.
The NASCAR Finalist points structure is the same as the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series featured division at each track. The feature winner receives two points for every car in the feature up to 20. Second place receives two fewer points and that distribution continues through the field. Race winners receive five additional bonus points. For example, if there were 20 cars in the feature, the winner would receive 45 points, second gets 38 and third 36. If there are 15 cars the winner receives 35 points, second gets 28 and third 26.
At season’s end, the top driver in each of the four asphalt and four dirt NASCAR divisions will receive invitations to the 2010 NASCAR Whelen All-American Series awards banquet December 10 in the Crown Ballroom in the NASCAR Hall of Fame in Charlotte, N.C., where they will be recognized.
Sources: Paul Schaefer/NASCAR PR