Oswego, NY — After twenty-two years of hosting the premier short track, short race, the “Mr. Novelis Supermodified” event, the Oswego Speedway doubles up with two “$10,000 to Win” feature…
Read moreOswego, NY – With the details of the Berlin Raceway doubleheader put to bed recently, the 2009 International Supermodified Association is now ready to begin its 36th racing season. While…
Read moreOswego, NY — Chris Porter from SuperRacingNews.com and the International Super Modified Association (ISMA) have come together to offer a new award for ISMA racers in 2009. The SuperRacingNews.com Up…
Read moreJenison MI — Berlin Raceway is pleased to announce another very exciting weekend of racing. One week following the crowning of Champions for Berlin Raceway’s weekly divisions, race fans and teams…
Read moreOswego, NY – “We’re ready to make another kick at the can,” said PATCO Racing team owner Brad Lichty recently from his trucking business in Canada. And, after more than 30 years of can-kicking Lichty knows what it’s all about. Having started out in the supermodified class in 1970 helping his late brother Dennis, Brad has developed his 3-car ISMA race team into one to definitely be reckoned with. His drivers, Dave McKnight and son Mike, are joined when time permits by Craftsman truck star Johnny Benson, whose dad was a “super” star in his own right when the division was evolving in the decade of the 1960s. Benson Sr. won the prestigious Oswego International Classic in 1966, and held the distinction of being the first driver to break the 20-second time trial mark at the famed 5/8th’s mile Oswego oval.
“We plan on running a full ISMA schedule in 2008 with Dave (94) and Mike (84),” said Brad. “John (Benson) is planning on six ISMA shows if his schedule permits. As a matter of fact he’s in Oswego right now at Xtreme Chassis helping out Paul Colloca who is building him a new car, which will be numbered 21 – his dad’s old number. His first ISMA show will be at Toledo and he hopes to be piloting that new car but if it’s not quite ready, John will drive the 74 as he has in the past. The 21 will be part of a 4-car stable, but we will only be fielding three cars at a time. If the 21 isn’t ready, the 74 will be.”
Oswego, NY — In 1974 supermodified legends Jim Shampine and Nolan Swift, along with businessman Tom Heveron, laid the foundation for the International SuperModified Association (ISMA). In 1976, with the fundamentals of the club in place, a point fund system for the traveling group was begun as was its history. As the 35th season begins, the founding fathers can look down with pride at what has been accomplished throughout the years. The veterans and rookies competing in 2008 carry the ideals instituted and nurtured into the fourth decade of ISMA racing as new challenges face them on the horizon.
The ISMA May 24th opener takes place at Waterford Speedbowl for the third year in a row. Last year, after two years of really bad luck at the inaugural event, Chris Perley began his record-breaking season with win number one to be followed by ten more feature victories down the line. With a total of 22 cumulative wins over the 2006 and 2007 ISMA seasons, Perley and the Vic Miller team established themselves as standard bearers for the division. Their dominance has been unprecedented in winged supermodified racing.
Tentative Cayuga race will not be held on Classic Sunday
In a brief statement Lane said that the Budweiser-Burke’s Winged Super Nationals would now be a co-sanctioned ISMA and MSA event on Friday, August 29. The $35,000 purse should once again bring in the best of the best of supermodified racing to the 15th running of the Super Nationals 50 as part of the week-long events. It was also announced that to show further solidarity among the three groups, the Cayuga Speedway ISMA race tentatively included in the 2008 ISMA schedule would NOT go on as planned. It was decided for all those involved – racers and fans alike – that this race would not be held on the same day as Budweiser Int’l Classic 200.
Oswego, NY — The New Yorkers reading this will probably already be aware of the border crossing requirements that currently are in effect, as of Feb. 1, but anyone who will be crossing into Canada a couple times this season for ISMA events should take heed.
People entering the country will no longer be allowed to simply declare to immigration officers at border crossings that they are citizens. Instead, those 19 and older will have to show proof of citizenship — a passport, trusted traveler card or a birth certificate (embossed) and government-issued ID such as a driver’s license.” Research shows that the passport may not be needed entering from some other states like Ohio or Vermont until later in the year or into 2009. Apparently some states have delayed the stricter requirements. Not so in New York, however. So be safe, not sorry, by looking into it now, not later in the year.
Springfield, MA — The second annual SpeedwayEXPO ‘08 is scheduled for February 29-March 2 in the Mallary Complex on the grounds of the Eastern States Exposition Center in West Springfield, MA. With more than three acres of indoor space dedicated to motorsports, displays will include local and regional race tracks and associations. Exhibitors include vendors of performance parts, safety equipment, accessories and the best in apparel and memorabilia. In addition there will be a full schedule of special events, racing seminars and activities, including autograph sessions, the Pit Crew Challenge, pedal-car races and a host of special vehicle displays. This show was a great hit in 2007 and should be even better in 2008.
Among the many happenings at EXPO ‘08 are the special awards to be presented to area racers, individuals, media, speedways etc. The 2nd Annual Speedy Awards will recognize the best of the best in northeast racing in 11 categories. Young Mike Ordway Jr. of ISMA has been nominated for the Break-Out Racer of the Year. The Break-Out Racer of the Year award is given to the competitor who stood out for his or her performances during the 2007 season. The inaugural winner in this category was Matt Hirschman.
2008 ISMA Rulebook [PDF Format]
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Oswego, NY”s Paul Colloca of Xtreme Chassis Inc. had the beautiful new Bob Haynes Sr.-owned, Bobby Haynes Jr.–driven winged supermodified which was completed earlier this fall in his booth at the prestigious PRI show in Orlando, Florida. The PRI show, held in early December, is touted as the show to be at by everyone in the auto racing business and this year proved to be no different.
Colloca, of Xtreme Chassis Inc. agreed to display the Haynes ISMA Supermodified when ISMA president Howie Lane’s plans on attending with his own 97 car fell through. Colloca proudly showed off his newest creation to the many interested show participants and attendees. The Collocas – Paul and his wife Megan – also helped answer questions about the winged ISMA supermodifieds and where they competed. Xtreme chassis are currently run by Todd Stowell, Joe Gosek and Bobby Bond. Bobby Haynes Jr. will run his new car beginning in 2008 and Paul has a new car in the works for MSA champion Dave Shullick Jr.
“Big Phil” Was Loyal Crew Member on Vic Miller’s #11
Long time crew member of the Miller-Perley race team lost his long battle with heart disease on Tuesday 12/04/2007. Phil started working with Vic Miller back in the 1980’s when Larry Record was driving the #11. He was the truck driver and fuel man for more than 20 years until his ailing health caused him to cut back on his travel with the team.
Rest In Peace Big Guy, you will be missed.
Verona, NY — The 33rd ISMA –Wirtgen race season concluded November 17th with their annual awards banquet, held once again at the Turning Stone Casino. The Vic Miller- Chris Perley team, after a second straight record-break season, once again took home the huge ISMA championship trophy where it will remain until November 2008. With 11 feature wins this season and 10 last, Chris Perley, admittedly is not quite sure how it all happened. But, he’s certainly happy it did, as are car owner Vic Miller and the entire team.
Speaking from the podium the Rowley, Mass. driver commented on the team’s accomplishments. “Every year we start out hoping we can win a couple races and end up close to where we were before. None of us would have expected that we would improve on last year. I couldn’t do it without a dedicated crew, a great car owner, and great sponsors who supply us with great equipment. I’m real lucky to be part of this team and to be a part of a great group of guys to race against because obviously I wouldn’t be here if there wasn’t anybody to race against.
Thompson
World Series Photo Page Here
“ It was tough out there,” said Chris in victory lane. “I knew Dave and Mike were going to be my toughest competitors because of the way they both were running yesterday in the heats. For a while I didn’t have much for Dave. I was just trying to keep in touch with him. He’d get through the lap traffic and he’d get some distance on me. So I just tried to stay with him. He ended up getting a little tight. I was a little loose. Then my car kind of came around toward the end. I didn’t know if I could stick on the outside but I thought if I could show him a wheel I might be able to hold him down. That was the only shot I had.
Oswego, NY — With anticipation building for the East-West Supermodified Shootout that will take place at Concord Motor Speedway on November 2 and 3 as part of the North-South Shootout action, A.J. Russell of Clovis, CA made a long trip to do some testing recently. Russell hauled his West Coast Super number 7 to Berlin Raceway on Sept. 29 to compete with the ISMA and MSA regulars. While not meeting his expectations finish wise, Russell none-the-less gained some insight into the east coast racing and he also enjoyed himself. So much so that he will also compete at Thompson Speedway’s World Series of Racing on Oct. 13-14.
Russell, used to running tracks like Meridian (ID), Rocky Mt. and Spokane (WA), Madera (CA), Douglas (OK) and TRP (AZ), brought the slick number 7 out of the hauler in Michigan and with the help of ISMA tech officials, made the car ready to race. While there are similarities between the West and East Coast built supermodifieds, there are differences – mainly that of the minimum weight. That may not be an issue at Concord.
Marine, MI – Chris Perley had two bad races in a row in the last two ISMA events, but he made a quick recovery from his mini downward spiral. Friday night he took a third at Delaware Speedway. Saturday night he lapped up to the fourth place car at Berlin Raceway in dominant fashion. Starting eighth in the field, he moved into the lead by lap seven after point man Johnny Benson Jr.’s strong sprint was for naught as the rear end went in his car. Perley moved out front and never was threatened after that. His Berin Raceway win was his tenth of 2007 matching his 2006 win total. With one race remaining on the ISMA-Wirtgen schedule, there is no doubt who will be champ.
Said Perley after his second straight Berlin win, “It’s been a small string of bad luck for us. I just wanted to get the race over tonight. I just wanted to do everything I could to stay out front. I had a big mire of lap traffic there for a while. Luckily I wasn’t involved in that lap one miscue. I just wanted to say ‘Berlin it’s worth the trip!’ When Johnny Benson took the lead I felt we were pretty even. I felt that there was going to be a waiting game between him and I. He looked pretty strong. I was running pretty hard to stay with him. But, I didn’t want to tackle him at that point because I didn’t know what he had. Then he dropped out. It was a great race for me. This crew just keeps digging. We’ve had a couple wrecks in the past couple weeks and obviously the car has come back and they’re number one. I’d like to thank all the fans for hanging around and watching the show tonight. I hope it was worth it. Berlin Raceway is a great place to race.”
Thompson, CT — It is a racing weekend like no other. Thompson International Speedway’s World Series of Speedway Racing brings together just about every type of racecar to be found in the northeast for a three-day racing extravaganza that includes over five hundred racecars and fourteen different divisions. It all happens the weekend of October 12th, 13th, and 14th.
The 34th annual World Series of Speedway Racing, presented by Whelen Engineering and XTRAMART, is the largest and most diversified racing weekend held anywhere in the country. Race teams and race fans from over a dozen states and two Canadian provinces make their annual pilgrimage to this incredible event which is as much a huge party as it is a non-stop race weekend.
Said a sore and tired McKnight in victory lane, “What can I say? After the crash at
Epping, NH – Ipswich, Mass. driver Justin Belfiore took a dominating win of the All-Star Classic Saturday night – a race he’d always dreamed of winning. He led the way after the first segment of the race, reformatted this year into two 75-lap segments. He then went on to dominate the second portion, especially after ISMA point leader Chris Perley had been eliminated late in the first race in a hard crash off the first turn. Justin acquired his third career ISMA-Wirtgen race by taking the prestigious Classic win and he also was able to give his young son Justin, a sweet birthday present to remember.
“I can’t believe it,” said Belfiore in victory lane. “The lap traffic was kind of tough. I’ve been doing this for a long time. I had a perfect car. My luck finally held out. I ran lean in practice and the team made it just right. I thought Chris was going to be tough there as the race went on. He and I were kind of swapping spots a couple times but then he got in that accident. I didn’t know if I had anyone to race with. He was the only one that was passing cars the way I was.
Oswego, NY – It looked like Chris Perley was well on his way to win number ten on the ISMA-Wirtgen season Friday night at Oswego’s Bud Light Super Nationals. Perley took the white flag and suddenly the yellow flew for the Vic Miller 11 when a pass attempt at a slower car failed. Perley was able to get restarted but the road ahead was long and the race was short. Ohio’s Dave Shullick Jr. was quite capable of taking over for Perley after chasing him for half the 50-lap event. Dave easily pulled away from Joey Payne, driving the Cicconi 75 and young Mike Ordway Jr. to take the win. It was the first ISMA win for car owner Steve Stout and Shullick’s career second. Shullick’s mom and dad, “The Shoe” were on hand to view the victory after missing Shullick Jr’s Oswego MSA win in June.
Dave said, following a ride around the Big O before a cheering crowd, “This is awesome. It was a great run. The crew gives me a great car every time out. We didn’t have the best car here today. We probably had the second best car. Chris had it hands down. It was unfortunate he got tangled up there. I’m not sure what happened. I almost spun myself out a couple of times trying to keep up with him. As I said it was unfortunate for him, but we’ll take them any way we can get them. The car was real good. We made a really drastic change because the car was tight. The car was really good early but it got really loose toward the end of the race. It was a handful toward the end. But it worked out. I’d like to say congratulations to Steve Stout. He’s tried for a long time to get his first ISMA win and this is it. Congratulations to him and his whole team.”
The 75-lap triumph was the ninth victory in 12 starts this season for Perley, who also won an event at Lee USA Speedway in
Lee, NH — The Ollie Silva Memorial 75 got off to a real rough start at Lee USA Speedway Friday night but when all was said and done, Chris Perley came away with his eighth win of the season, and a tie for the ISMA All-Time win list. What was purported to be one of the largest crowds in years saw one hometown boy – Perley – take the lead on lap 38 from another hometown boy – Justin Belfiore. Another young hometown boy, Mike Ordway Jr., gained second on lap 42, to chase Perley to the checkers. It was a popular podium finish.
“It’s awesome to bring one home for the hometown crowd. There are so many people who came out. There’s a lot of pressure. You’re afraid you’re going to be an idiot out there. The first lap, the back of the car got drilled. The car lifted up. I was sideways. I thought we were all done. I just got lucky and plugged away. I’m just ecstatic. We’re still on a roll and that new bucket of luck still has some in it, so we’ll keep on rolling on to Oxford. To be tied for the top spot in the ISMA all-time wins is amazing. It’s great to just be among those guys at the top.”
Heading from a successful racing doubleheader at Mansfield Motorsports Park, the ISMA-Wirtgen super series has only a few days before they land in New England at Lee USA Speedway (NH) on Friday Aug. 10 for the Ollie Silva Memorial 75 and then head north to Oxford Plains Speedway in Maine.
A lot of the New England contingent will be right in their backyard at Lee including Mike Ordway Jr., who is just a stone’s throw away. And, then there’s Perley, Martel, car owner Howie Lane, Dave Sanborn, Justin Belfiore, Jamie Timmons, Eric Emhoff, Joe Petro, and possibly Russ Wood. A couple Mainers are expected at one or both of the shows in Vern Romanoski and the old vet Bentley Warren.
Mansfield, OH — Chris Perley said Friday night at Mansfield that he’d run out of luck after a minor wreck on lap six put him out of the 40-lap ISMA-Wirtgen event. But, he added kidding, that he had a new bucket of luck in the trailer, unopened. Saturday night he put that new batch of luck to good use as he stood in victory lane next to a hissing rear tire, which would go flat moments after his post-race interview. A lap or two more and he would not have been there. But, that’s the way things have been going this year – and last, for Perley and the Vic Miller team. Perley’s seventh win of the season puts him two races away from taking over the ISMA all-time feature win list from Pelham, NH’s Russ Wood.
Said Perley, “We just opened that new bucket of good luck because I don’t know if you can hear it, but my tire has a big hole in it. So we pulled this one off tonight. We got lucky. The car was just awesome. Last night was a bit of a disappointment but we just come back and try to do the best we can the next day. And the crew said ‘we’re going to give you a car tonight that will get the job done’ and boy did they because this thing was on a rail.
Mansfield, OH — Ray Graham Jr. took off from the pole at Mansfield Motorsports Park in Friday night’s ISMA-Wirtgen Super Series 40-lapper and stayed right there to finish in the same spot. It was a career first for the Iowa resident who has been in the hunt on many an occasion. Surviving a red and a couple yellows, Graham looked to be running away with the short sprint, but with ten to go, his 99 car began to falter and Dave Trytek and then young Mike Lichty came on to challenge. Lichty made a last lap, last corner attempt to take what would have been his career first also, but fell short as Graham brought his first win home. Six time winner to date, Chris Perley was out of the action on lap six after a brush, ironically, with Lichty. But it was Graham’s night to shine.
Said Ray in the post race interview; “The car was handling really well in the heat race until the motor started skipping. We thought we had it fixed but in the last ten to twelve laps of the race it started again. I could hear them coming but the motor just wouldn’t go. It kept sputtering. We have something in the fuel system that’s making the motor skip. It plugged up the motor after the heat race. So we’re going to have to find out what that is. If there were another five laps, they probably would have had me. I didn’t know whether it was Mike or Dave at the end there. I just put the car in the middle of the track and if they were going to go around, they were going to work hard for it. The first win feels good. “I feel good for the guys who do all the work. I just show up at the track”
With just two weeks off since the Sandusky Hy-Miler Nationals, the Wirtgen-ISMA super series group prepares for their second doubleheader weekend with a similar format. At Mansfield Motorsports Park, the only difference is that the Saturday night show is 75 laps, unlike the Hy-Miler 100.
Mansfield has been one place that Chris Perley has almost ruled the past couple years, winning four out of the last five events held at this beautiful Ohio oval. The Rowley driver and defending ISMA champion, has certainly been on a roll coming off a sweep at Sandusky and certainly will be favored to roll into and out of Mansfield with two more wins. But, Lou Cicconi had something to say about a similar circumstance last season as he stole the Friday night show from Perley. And, there are a lot of other drivers, like Perley’s closest opponents of late Dave McKnight and Mike Lichty that could put a crimp in a sweep. Add to the mix one young Ohio driver who has been a tear of his own, Dave Shullick Jr.
Sandusky, OH — Chris Perley continued his unbelievable performance on the ISMA-Wirtgen super series circuit Friday night at Sandusky. And, Perley continues to shake his head in disbelief. He once again set fast time and after starting 12th in a strong field of winged supers he worked his way quickly to the front. A challenge of his seemingly omnipresent rival Dave McKnight came once again as McKnight took the lead of the 40-lapper on lap 21 with Perley behind him. On lap 30, the 11 slung outside by the 94 off the fourth corner of the Sandusky half-mile, to take the lead from the Canadian – once again.
Standing in victory lane for the second consecutive year at Sandusky’s Hy-Miler prelim moments later Perley exclaimed, “This is crazy,” said the Rowley Rocket. “This was an intense, intense forty lapper. I got there and I couldn’t get there. On the restarts I was slower and couldn’t get going. I caught Dave and then I couldn’t do anything. I couldn’t get to the outside. I thought I’d used it all up and then my car starting coming in. I just kept it out there – heating up the tires. Then all of a sudden I had a shot. I bounced off his right rear once down in three and four. Luckily it didn’t hurt either one of us. I made it stick. It’s phenomenal. I’d even take a second over a first if I can’t have a first. We’ll just see what tomorrow brings.”