2014 Stafford Motor Speedway DARE Stock Division Season Preview
Stafford Springs, CT — In the week leading up to the green flag of the 43rdAnnual NAPA Auto Parts Spring Sizzler, SMS Online will offer a sneak preview into each of its NASCAR Whelen All-American Series divisions for the 2014 season. Today’s sneak preview takes a look at Stafford’s DARE Stock division.
The winds of change are abound for the DARE Stocks in 2014. Gone are 5 drivers who between them won 13 of the 18 DARE Stock features held last year. Jeremy Lavoie, Kyle Casagrande, Kris Fluckiger, Cliff Saunders, and defending DARE Stock champion Dave Secore have all moved on or will not return to racing this season. But as they exit the DARE Stock scene, there are four rookie drivers who will be making their very first DARE Stock starts in the NAPA Spring Sizzler.
Nicole Chambrello, who is the niece of former Stafford Street Stock champion Pat Chambrello, bought Fluckiger’s #28 car over the winter and renumbered it to #16. Fluckiger won twice last season and Chambrello is eager to make a name for herself as a third generation driver from the Chambrello family. Trace Beyer is another rookie who bought a proven car over the winter. Beyer purchased the #66 car that Lavoie piloted to a division leading 4 DARE Stock victories last season. Dan Dembak will take over the driving duties of the #38 car that Secore piloted to 2 wins and the DARE Stock championship as Secore is stepping away from racing to start a new job. Bill McNeil, who has experience racing at Waterford Speedbowl, takes over the wheel of the #36 that was driven last season by Kelsey Rottino and Frank Alessio rounds out the crop of rookie drivers for the 2014 season.
Among returning drivers, there are drivers who ran DARE Stocks last season, and there are several drivers who are making a return to the division after taking some time away. Leading the way among the returnees are 2013 DARE Stock feature winners Frank L’Etoile, Jr., Johnny Walker, Brandon Michael, Ryan Fearn, and Dave Comeau. L’Etoile was a multiple feature winner, taking two wins last year, while Walker, Michael, and Fearn each won a single race. Walker just missed out on winning the championship, finishing second to Secore by only 6 points, so he will be hungry to put his #01 machine back at the top of the points standings. Both Michael and Ryan Fearn were first time winners last year, with Fearn becoming the youngest feature winner in the history of Stafford at 14 years of age. Fearn will once again be part of a two-car team with his older sister Alexandra, who nearly had her first win on several occasions last season. Comeau was the winner of the non-points Paradiso-Muska Shoot-Out at the end of the season and he was a championship contender throughout much of the 2013 season.
2 drivers who are returning to the DARE Stock division this season are Dennis Eschenbrenner and Jeff Jolly. Eschenbrenner is still chasing after his first Stafford victory, but he has experience in not only the DARE Stock division, but the SK Light division as well. Jolly returns to the DARE Stocks driving a car that is prepared by Casagrande Motorsports. Casagrande Motorsports cars have won 20 DARE Stock features since 2010 with Cory and Kyle Casagrande and Jolly will be looking to continue that streak of success.
Among returning drivers that have won at Stafford in previous seasons are Stacey Botticello, Gary Spinnato, Jr., and Vince Gambacorta. They will all be eager to once again enjoy the taste of victory lane while Andy Marchese, Matt Davis, Ky and Paul Jensen, Doug Phelps, Gus and Allison Coelho, Bryan Iwaniuk, Josh Parker, and Katie Brice will all be in search of their very first career victory.
The 2014 DARE Stock division is a perfect combination of veteran experience and youthful exuberance and men and women of the DARE Stocks should provide race fans with some great racing during the 2014 season.
For more information, contact the Stafford Motor Speedway track office at 860-684-2783 or visit us on the web at www.staffordspeedway.com. To view the Sizzler event schedule or to order tickets online, please CLICK HERE.
Sources: Scott Running/Stafford Motor Speedway