Richie Helger Jr. Relishes First Career Victory in Bandolero Bandits
Another first-time winner.
Richie Helger Jr. earned his first career victory in the Seekonk Grand Prix Bandolero Bandits on August 28, capturing the win by leading all 15 laps of the feature. In just his seventh start at Seekonk in the Bandolero, Helger showed he had the power to get the job done. He beat Brent Robidoux and Ethan Dion to score the win in a great battle at the front of the field.
And, as usual, the Victory Lane celebrations were emotional for a first-time winner — with his dad — Rich Helger — the owner of track sponsor Helger’s Southcoast Power Equipment — and his mom and brother trackside. If you look at the Victory Lane photos, somehow, his brother actually smiled more than the feature winner himself.
What a family moment.
“It was amazing when I won, to get this win early on in my career and it was awesome to move around and win this race,” Richie Helger Jr. said. “It was tough. It was a little bit hard to block them both at the same time. They both did a good job. Brent has been getting better every week, and Ethan has been doing a good job. We are all getting better every week.”
The victory lane moment was the icing on the cake for his whole family.
“It was exciting… when I got out of the car I was going to jump on my dad, but I was afraid he wasn’t going to catch me, so I just jumped down and gave him a hug. My mom was proud, clapping, and my brother was really happy. I told my brother after tech inspection that he could drive the car back to the trailer, and he was so happy.”
Helger wishes to thank Charlie Rose, Rob Murray, Scott Harkin, Harkin Construction, Cat Country 98.1, Bad Boy and Ferris, along with Helger’s Southcoast Power Equipment.
“I have to thank dad and Helger’s Southcoast Power Equipment for all they do for me and the track,” he said in his interview. To hear the rest of the interview with Richie Helger Jr. following his first win, check out the latest Seekonk Speedway Race Day Rewind podcast, which can be found on YouTube, Apple Podcasts and more.
Seekonk Speedway returns to Fast Friday racing, with no spectators due to Massachusetts restrictions due to COVID-19, on Friday, September 4, with the Labor Day Fast Friday Spectacular.
For more information on Seekonk Speedway, visit Seekonkspeedway.com and follow the track on social media.
Sources: Kyle Souza/Souza Media