Gate City Classic Up Next for GSPSS at Hudson Int’l Speedway
The next stop for the Granite State Pro Stock Series will be the newly renovated Hudson Int’l Speedway in Hudson NH. Ben Bosowski and his team started multiple renovation projects in the fall of 2018 and now all of that is paying off with the latest rendition of the Gate City Classic.
Hudson has become a favorite of the competitors, and with the new wall on the backstretch all of the series regulars are ready to tackle the high banked oval. Joey Doiron comes to the track with the series point lead and is looking forward to a strong run. When asked about the track in Lee USA Speedways victory lane he said: “That’s my favorite race track that the series goes to”. He went on to say “the surface is old and worn out and that’s my favorite kind of race track, its got character”.
The Gate City Classic has become a tradition for the NH based series and its promoter Mike Parks took a minute to explain why. “The track promotes great racing. These old surfaces give the guys options if their car isn’t quite right.” He went on to say “Ben and his team have recreated the facility without taking away from the character that makes it great. The teams and the series staff can’t wait to get there every year”.
A Surprise entry is Hudson’s own Joey Polewarczyk. Joey “Pole”, as he is known, will be making his series debut on Sunday and looks forward to the track that is just down the road from his home. “I’ve lived in Hudson my whole life and just bought a house two miles from the race track” said Pole during a recent break from his busy work schedule. “I drive by the track every day and they have put in an unbelievable amount of work. It’s special to see the track coming back to life. I used to come when I was a kid and watch my dad run the old bud light division they had, so it will be special for me to run there.”
Another pair of home town drivers set to compete at the NH bullring are Wayne Helliwell Jr and Jimmy Renfrew Jr. Both drivers have won with the series in the past and look to add a notch to their belts on Sunday. Helliwell has competed primarily in late models in 2019 while Renfrew has driven in several divisions including the full GSPSS schedule.
Cory Casagrande also returns to GSPSS competition at Hudson. Casagrande has been doing a bit of barnstorming in 2019 and looks forward to his return to the series and one of his favorite tracks. “I’m really excited to get back to Hudson,” said the driver of the number 7. “I’m not sure what draws me in but it’s where I made my pro stock debut in 2014 and I’ve loved it ever since. The new pit area looks great from the pictures I’ve seen and I’m excited to check out all the improvements that Ben has made”.
Other notables who have entered are defending series champion Devin O’Connell along with 2017 champ Mike O’Sullivan and 2016 champ Barry Gray. Middlebury VT’s Todd Stone has filed his entry and announced that the team will go back to the car that they finished second with three times in a row at the end of 2018. Ray Christian III and Dennis Spencer have each entered and will compete with their Crazy Horse Racing chassis while Josh King will try to stay in the top five in points with his Dale Shaw Race Cars machine.
Track owner and promoter Ben Bosowski took a few minutes out of his busy schedule to talk about the return of the Pro Stocks to his race track. “I’ve always loved it when the Pro Stocks came to Hudson, even before I bought it. They are just a great division to watch race here.” When asked about the renovations to the track Bosowski stated: “The pit area has been completely redone, there is new track lighting going up as we speak and the wall replacing the tires is all gone”. When pressed about the reasoning for the new wall Bosowski said “I had to rebuild the backstretch wall like five times during the GSPSS race last year. I swore I wouldn’t ever do it again”.
The Gate City classic for the Granite State Pro Stock Series will consist of time trials with the Crazy Horse Racing race for the pole, heat races and the NHSTRA back of the pack challenge, all to get qualified for 100 green flag laps of racing action.
For more information follow the Granite State Pro Stock Series on the World Wide Web at www.gspss.net or on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
Pre Entry’s as of 7-9-2019
52 Jake Matheson
1x Todd Stone
14 Matt Frahm
43 Devin O’Connell
21 Josh King
29 Barry Gray
93 Ray Christian III
73 Joey Doiron
46 Dennis Spencer Jr.
08 Mike O’Sullivan
16 Tommy Rosati
21 Jacob Perry
8 Angelo Belsito
12 Bobby Pelland
7 Cory Casagrande
05 Jacob Dore
97 Joey Polewarczyk
40 Mike Mitchell
Sources: Mike Parks/Granite State Pro Stock Series PR
John Miller Photo