NBIS - Sunday, May 20th

Sunday, May 20th - Cancelled
North Super Late Models
New Brunswick Int'l Speedway
Due to uncertain weather conditions and to save the teams and fans travel expenses, the NBIS event
for Sunday May the 20th has been cancelled.
Make-up date to be announced.

Sun. May 20th - Cancelled
Outlaws & MODS
Riverside Speedway
River has overflowed its bank and there
is a foot of water or more on the grounds.

SOMMERVILLE AIMS TO PROTECT HOME TURF IN NBIS PASS SHOW

51's Northern Exposure
Compiled by Mike Twist

When the PASS North teams head to New Brunswick International Speedway this Saturday, one name might stand out a little bit above the rest when you are handicapping names.

But don’t consider Lonnie Sommerville the favorite in the race. Even though he won last fall’s NBIS 250 at the track and knows the place very well, he doesn’t believe that in such a talent-rich field that there is such a thing as a “favorite”.

“There will be 15 guys who will be in contention to win there,” said Sommerville. “I think that Rollie MacDonald is going to run it. There will be a handful of Maritimers there who can win it too. It will be a good race.”

And then there are the PASS North regulars like Ben Rowe, Mike Rowe, Johnny Clark and Travis Benjamin.

“It’s going to be tough because those guys are on their game no matter where they go,” said Sommerville. “Even if they have never been some place, they are good.

Sommerville should be right among that group though.
We had good luck last year in the 250 and we’ll change our set-up a little bit because of the American Racer tires. But I’m still confident that we’ll have a good run.”

But don’t consider Lonnie Sommerville the favorite in the race. Even though he won last fall’s NBIS 250 at the track and knows the place very well, he doesn’t believe that in such a talent-rich field that there is such a thing as a “favorite”.

“There will be 15 guys who will be in contention to win there,” said Sommerville. “I think that Rollie MacDonald is going to run it. There will be a handful of Maritimers there who can win it too. It will be a good race.”

And then there are the PASS North regulars like Ben Rowe, Mike Rowe, Johnny Clark and Travis Benjamin.

“It’s going to be tough because those guys are on their game no matter where they go,” said Sommerville. “Even if they have never been some place, they are good.

Sommerville should be right among that group though.

"We had good luck last year in the 250 and we’ll change our set-up a little bit because of the American Racer tires. But I’m still confident that we’ll have a good run.”

And having a good run at NBIS is very important to the native of St. John’s, New Brunswick.

“That place is pretty neat because it is only an hour from our home. When we go to
Halifax, there aren’t as many people cheering us on in the grandstands, but when we
go to Fredericton, it is always jam-packed and full. They’re great fans.”

PASS North Teams Look Forward to
New Brunswick Return
Cushman Team and Travis Benjamin Already Know a Thing or Two about NBIS

It’s been a few years since the Pro All Stars Series has been to New Brunswick International Speedway near Fredericton, New Brunswick. Many of the entrants in the May 19th PASS North Super Late Model race there will be seeing the facility for the first time. However, there are a few who already have a notebook full of good information from the track.

The #29 Cushman Competition team, as well as the #17 Irving team of driver Travis Benjamin, have been regular visitors to the track’s annual Labor Day open show, the NBIS 250, over the past few seasons. In 2005, the #29 team won the race with Scott Chubbuck as their driver after a close battle with Benjamin.

Now the team is returning with a new driver – PASS North rookie Trevor Sanborn, who will be visiting the facility for the first time.

“[Team owner] Jay [Cushman] told me about the wins that they have had up there and the top fives,” said Sanborn. “I’m looking forward to going up there to check it out. We’ll see what we can do. It is going to be an experience, I know that. I haven’t been to a whole lot of tracks so far, and this will be my first race in Canada. I can’t wait.”

Cushman isn’t expecting that it will take his talented young driver long to get used to the NBIS oval.

“I’m excited about going,” said Cushman. “I think that Trevor will adapt really quick up there. I think that he’ll be fine. He shouldn’t have any trouble at all.”

Actually, Sanborn is getting used to going to new tracks on the PASS North tour, and he’s feeling right at home, right away.

“It’s definitely a big jump [to go tour racing],” said Sanborn. “I just go out there and feel things out. I do what I can do. I definitely have a good team and good equipment behind me.”

Meanwhile, Travis Benjamin won’t have any learning curve. The Morrill, Maine, driver logged plenty of laps around NBIS and is looking forward to making more.

“We’ve got a good setup for there, I think,” said Benjamin. “But it will be different this time, too. There’s a different car and a different tire. But it’s good to have the experience on the track and know that we’ve run well there before.”

One thing that both teams can attest to is the fact that NBIS fans are both extremely enthusiastic and hospitable to the teams that hail from the United States.

“I love racing up in Canada,” said Cushman. “We have a lot of fans up there who we like to race in front of. We like to support New Brunswick because they race Pro Stocks [Super Late Models], and we like to support any track that supports this class.”

“The fans are just so incredible up there,” said Benjamin. “I’ve been there [for the NBIS 250] three years and it has been a packed house every time. They cheer for everybody, and they are great.

"All Canadians are like that anyways. Wherever you go up there, they pack the place. It’s fun. It’s always good to go to Canada.”

The PASS North Super Late Models return to action on Saturday, May 19th, at New Brunswick International Speedway near Fredericton, New Brunswick. It will be the first of four Canadian appearances for the Super Late Model tour in 2007.

nmarx-dtp

dracut, ma

PASS Webmaster & Photographer: Norm Marx

nmarx-dtp@comcast.net