Dylan Kopec Looking for Breakthrough
Dylan Kopec of Palmer, MA enters the Valenti Auto Mall 100 at Seekonk Speedway 11th in the standings, five points out of tenth. Kopec is off to a better start than his rookie season. An eight place finish at Monadnock in April was his best career finish.
“My goals for this year are to take what I’ve learned from last year and try for some top 10s top 5s and to hopefully be a contender in the points,” Kopec said.
“The Valenti series is an awesome series,” Kopec said. “Huge car counts of extremely talented drivers and a great show at most every track. I like the fact that we have to race into the show.”
Since the series began awarding points for qualifying heats last season, Kopec said, “The 10-15 lap dashes really let you test your car and have fun while doing it.”
Kopec moved to the Valenti Modified Racing Series last season after a successful stint in the SK Light Modifieds at Stafford Motor Speedway.
“Last season was definitely a learning curve,” Kopec said of 2013, where he did not qualify for three events. “I learned a bunch of new faces and some familiar faces. I loved competing at all the new tracks with these great drivers. I learned so much between my dad coaching me and if I had a question I could even ask one of my competitors and they’d help me out if I was having an issue inside the car or on the track.”
The Kopec Motorsports team consists of Chris Kopec, Paul Schlesinger, Mike Forcier, Kyle Schlesinger (part time), Trey St Louis, Scott Allen, and Todd Doulliard.
Chris Kopec is a former Riverside park Speedway champion and NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour winner. Dylan said his father is “extremely helpful. He’s helped me with driving since the go-karts when I started. Whenever I have (a) question I know I can go to him if I need an answer that I can count on.”
RAD Auto Machine provides the horsepower for Kopec. Cliff Nelson with CLN Motorsports and Bruce Batcha are the primary sponsor. Northeast Racecars and Parts, TR Stone Trucking, HAMMS Welding, Astronaut Pizza, Pioneer Valley Indoor Karting, and Tom O’Sullivan and Sons also support the team.
The #66 car may have a new look for next season.
“We want to do a throwback paint scheme from one of my dad’s old cars from Riverside,” Kopec said. “(It is the) same scheme, just my own personal colors and number, maybe with a ghost M in front of my #66.”
Kopec attended the inaugural Riverside Pak Speedway Reunion on March 22 at the MassMutual Center in Springfield, MA.
“It was extremely fun, despite the Falcons losing,” Kopec said. “I met a bunch of people that watched my dad race and continue to watch me, and I think that’s really cool. I went through every photo album just to get an idea of how the track was. I had a blast overall especially with the M6 on display.”
Kopec won the third annual #44 Challenge subbing for former NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour champion Rick Fuller.
“I had a blast,” Kopec said. “I’ve always had an interest in RC cars and when Cliff Nelson called me to invite me to the event I was excited. I had a lot of fun with Ryan (Preece), Tommy (Barrett) and the crew from Racing 4 Vets.”
Kopec pointed to Justin Bonsignore and former NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour champion Todd Szegedy as the drivers to watch. Szegedy leads the point standings after four races. Richard Savary won the Sim’s Spring Kickoff last month over Justin Bonsignore and Anthony Nocella.
The Valenti Modified Racing Series will make its second of three appearances at Seekonk Speedway on Saturday night. The Valenti Auto Mall 100 is scheduled for 8:30pm. Late Models (40), Street Stocks (35) and Sport Trucks are also scheduled. The Street Stock feature is the first Phil’s Propane Triple Crown race. Admission is $26. Visit SeekonkSpeedway.com or ModifiedRacingSeries.com for more information.
Sources: Nicholas Teto/YankeeRacer.com Photos by Paul Fohlin, Michael Rothwell, Dylan Kopec collection