2022 NEBSMS

Opening Day for the NESS
Big Blocks Postponed

Naples, ME - The New England Supermodified Series is one of the most anticipated divisions in the northeast this season. Bringing Big Blocks back to prominence and into new and exciting markets while tackling the immense cost of Supermodified racing. While there is a great amount of support behind the new division, supply chain issues are hurting supermodified teams as bad or worse than any division in the country.

While the new 572 spec motor is installed and ready to race, many of the built motor teams are scrambling for enough engine parts to make opening day. Half of the 15 teams do not have an operational motor in their cars with the opener coming up in less two weeks.

NESS has big dreams of growing Supermodified racing and the thought of running an eight-car event is not one of them. NESS officials have decided the best course of action is to postpone the event at Oxford Plains Speedway scheduled for May 7th. The decision has been one that officials have grappled with immensely.

While we understand some teams are ready and eager to get to the track, we want to put our best foot forward for every event on the schedule. The best way to do that is to open up the season at White Mountain Motorsports Park May 15th.

White Mountain is one of the new venues previously mentioned and what a way to start a new division than to debut at then a quarter mile bullring. While missing out on the first race is a bummer, giving these teams more time to get their cars ready will create better racing and a better championship battle throughout the entire 2022 NESS Season.

New Name for the New England
Big Block Supermodified Series

Creating a new series has a lot of challenges. Finding a rules package that keeps the cars and budgets in check. Building an exciting schedule and getting support from owners, drivers and fans alike. The all new Supermodified Series based in New England has accomplished all of those so far but the original name is a bit of a mouthful.

The NE Big Block Super Modified Series started as a dream in collaboration from supermodified teams that could no longer afford to travel 6 plus hours to compete and the Pro All Stars Series (PASS). In a few short months the dream has become a reality and has quickly become one of the most talked about series in the northeast. As we move closer to race season to save race announcers, media personnel, teams and fans some breath, series officials have created a new name. The NE Big Block Super Modified Series is now the New England Supermodified Series or NESS for short. The new name and logo will lean into the connection with PASS, featuring a similar logo and a quick and easy acronym.

NESS will still hold the same schedule of events including races at Oxford Plains, White Mountain Motorsports Park, Thunder Road, Monadnock Speedway, Lee USA Speedway, Seekonk, and Thompson. With 15 drivers pre-registered for the season and many others planning on running events, NESS will continue to grow its following with a new easier to remember name.

While we all anxiously await opening day on May 7th, 2022 as Big Block Supers return to the Plains of Oxford, Maine for the first time since 2014, there are plenty of exciting events happening in the meantime for NESS. Former Busch North competitor turned supermodified driver Kenny White Jr. will have his 2022 Gangsta Racing #77 on display at Marks Northeast Motorsports Expo on March 11 to 13.
https://marksnemotorsportsexpo.com/ The show formerly known as Race-A-Rama at the Big E in West Springfield Massachusetts has been a staple in the motorsports world for decades.

Kenny will be promoting NESS and the Olive Silva Classic at Lee USA Speedway this summer. Other events including a supermod at a professional hockey game and an appearance in the Thunder Road Car Show are also scheduled in the next month.

Big things are happening in the Big Block SuperModified world. To keep tabs on all things NESS follow Proallstarsseries.com and New England SuperModified Series on Facebook.

Jon McKennedy #79

Super Mods To Monadnock

The all new for 2022, NE Big-Block Super Modified Series (NEBSMS) will be roaring into Winchester, NH Saturday June 25th, 2022. While Monadnock Speedway is "driven by passion and fueled by fun," on the fourth Saturday in June this premier division will be fueled by methanol and driven by some of the most talented open wheel drivers in the country. Really what could be more fun than 800 plus horsepower, side by side, wheel to wheel action at a blistering pace on a 1/4-mile bullring?

Monadnock Speedway has always been a supporter of new series. Multiple new tours have had their inaugural seasons come through Monadnock Speedway. General Manager Michelle Cloutier is enthusiastic about the date. "To be a large part of the NE Big Block SuperModified Series inaugural season is really exciting for us. Monadnock fans are Modified fans, and as fast as the Supers are we are sure it will be one of our biggest events of the year."

Monadnock hadn't run a big block supermodified race in almost 40 years until 2018 when the International SuperModified Association (ISMA) came to town. The race was eventually won by Canadian hot shoe Mike Lichty, edging out NEBSMS drivers Dan Bowes and Jon McKennedy. McKennedy broke the track record with a blistering 11.138 second lap, a record that still stands today. After a few rainouts in 2019 and 2020 the Supers came back in 2021. This time yet again John McKennedy was the fastest car on the property and claimed the checkered flag over fellow Whelen Modified competitor Anthony Nocella.

Nocella and McKennedy are no slouches at Monadnock. They both have multiple wins from various modified and midget series at the speedway. If their busy schedules allow them to compete, they will have plenty of familiarity with the track as the Whelen Modifieds are scheduled the week prior to the NEBSMS race on June 18th.

While Nocella and McKennedy have the most victories at Monadnock, Dan Bowes has an outstanding career 4.5 place finishing average as well. Other 2022 registered drivers, Kenny White Jr, Jake Smith, Rob Summers and Ben Seitz, also have multiple Top 5's and Top 10's at the track in various touring divisions.

Another driver that has a love for Monadnock Speedway is Dave Helliwell. Dave has won 7 Small Block Supermodified Championships across three different New Hampshire tracks but has never raced a supermodified at Monadnock. He does have a history in dwarf cars where he always finished on the podium. A podium this time around would go a long way toward helping him earn his 8th straight supermodified championship.

Accompanying the NEBSMS on Saturday June 25th will be Monadnock's weekly divisions including the NHSTRA Modifieds, Late Model Sportsman, Mini Stocks, Pure Stocks, Six Shooters and Young Guns. Racing will start at 6:00 PM. You can get your tickets at the gate or order them now at this link: https://www.myracepass.com/events/394923/tickets/

Big Date for The Big Blocks

Naples, ME - Lee USA Speedway and the NE Big-Block Super Modified Series (NEBSMS) have inked a deal to run the 22nd annual Ollie Silva Mid-Summer Classic Saturday August 6th, 2022. For the past 21 seasons ISMA has sanctioned the event. Reduced cost of the sanctioning body and huge faith in the new series prompted the switch.

Joe Bassett, the General Manager of Lee USA Speedway, says he is really excited to try something new in 2022. "This race is special to my heart. It's extremely important to me not only for Lee but with the importance of Super Modifieds in my back ground. With the all the great things that Tom Mayberry has done with the Pro All Stars Series and Oxford Plains Speedway I know he is going to put an amazing product on the track."

While NEBSMS is a brand-new series this year, supermodifieds have a rich history in Lee, NH dating all the way back to 1965 with NESMRA (New England Super Modified Racing Association). Originally featuring races on a freshly paved 1/3 mile tri oval both on the pavement and on the snow, Lee was reconfigured in 1984 to its current 3/8-mile configuration. Over the years Lee has had many of the supermodified greats celebrate in Victory Lane - namely Bentley Warren, Chris Perley and Russ Wood who all top the all-time ISMA Win list.

The First Ollie Silva Mid-Summer Classic was won by Russ Wood in 2001, and since then 10 other drivers have taken victory in the prestigious race. 11 races have been won by the same three drivers. Dave Shulick Jr. has three wins while Chris Perley and Jon McKennedy are tied atop the list with four each. With McKennedy winning two of the last three Ollie Silva Memorials and all 8 of his last supermodified starts he is favored to break the tie this year. However when it comes to Lee there is never a guarantee. With the massive horsepower of supermodifieds and the nearly 4-decade old racing surface tire management is going to be a key. The difference from old tires to new tires is well over a second, providing lots of comers and goers and action throughout the race.

Luckily 13 of the 16 licensed drivers living within 2 hours of Lee, and 8 living within an hour from the track, understand all about tire management. Joe Bassett is thrilled to see some more familiar faces on the track this year. "It's cool to see some of the cars that have been pulled out of the woodwork. Bringing out the local cars is going to be really big for us and the new series. This is going to bring out a lot of New England supermodified fans because it's going to be primarily their local drivers. In years past it has been a lot of guys from the Midwest and New York. We loved having them but the fans really want to see their drivers from NH and Massachusetts."

Tell your friends that on Saturday August 6th, 2022, the 22nd Annual Ollie Silva Mid-Summer Classic will no doubt be one of the biggest events in New England. Stay tuned for more information regarding laps and purse to be announced within the coming weeks.

Big Block Supers Schedule Set

Naples, ME - The NE Big-Block Super Modified Series has received a plethora of support from not only New England but from across New York, Pennsylvania and Canada. The cost-saving measures and general excitement have enticed 16 teams to purchase a series license and a large amount to commit to the entire schedule for the inaugural season.

NEBSMS will be kicking the season off at Oxford Plains Speedway in their first event for Super Modifieds since 2014 and also returning the night before the 49th Oxford 250 in late August. While White Mountain Motorsports Park is not known for Super Modified Racing and Thunder Road International Speedbowl has never had a Big Block Super race, NEBSMS will run twice at both the beloved quarter miles. Look for track records to fall as both tracks could feature sub ten second lap times.

For those looking for races a little further south, Seekonk Speedway will host a midweek special August 24th for the Boston Louie Memorial. Jon McKennedy picked up the victory over Ben Sietz last season and should be poised for another great battle this year with a great field of drivers. Not to be forgotten NEBSMS will also be on the card for World Series Weekend at Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park. Big Block Supers have a lot of history at Thompson with legendary winners like Bentley Warren and Richie Evans. Current NEBSMS registered drivers Russ Wood, Rob Summers, Ben Sietz, and Jon McKennedy have also picked up big Super Modified Victories at Thompson in more recent history. Over the last three Big Block Super races at Thompson an average of 22 cars were in attendance for the Marquee event. We are anticipating to surpass that number in 2022.

Additionally, as a bonus for fans, half of the NEBSMS events are in combination with the Pro All Stars Series, giving spectators a fantastic mix of Super Modified Racing and Super Late Model racing at a great ticket value.

We are extremely excited for our inaugural season and growing Big Block Super Modified Racing. See the schedule below or pick up a copy at the Northeast Motorsports Expo January 7th-9th at the Augusta Civic Center in Augusta, ME and check out Rob Summers #5 Big Block Super Modified on display.

2022 NESS Schedule

POSTPONED Saturday, May 7th - Oxford Plains Speedway - Kick Off Classic

Sunday, May 15th - White Mountain Motorsports Park

Friday, June 10th - Thunder Road International Speedbowl

Saturday, June 25th - Monadnock Speedway

Friday, July 15th - White Mountain Motorsports Park

Saturday, August 6th - Lee USA Speedway - Ollie Silva Mid-Summer Classic

Wednesday, August 24th - Seekonk Speedway - Boston Louie Memorial

Saturday, August 27th - Oxford Plains Speedway - Oxford 250 Weekend

Friday, September 30th - Thunder Road International Speedbowl - Milk Bowl Weekend

Saturday, October 8th - Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park - World Series Weekend

NEBSMS 11/29
RULES MEETING REPORT

2022 TEAM LICENSE/NUMBER
REGISTRATION FORM

Hollis, NH -- A group of 30 plus supermodified drivers, car owners, and track promoters made the trip to NEMRS (North East Motor Racing Supply) in Hollis, NH Monday evening November 29th, 2021. The 90-minute meeting was overwhelmingly positive and has created even more hype around the inaugural season of the NE Big-Block Super Modified Series. More than ten teams grabbed licenses forms including prestigious car owners Such as Howie Lane, Vic Miller, and ISMA and tour modified superstar Jon McKennedy.

Series director Tom Mayberry led the initial discussion laying out purse information and potential schedules while Brian Allegresso of NEMRS took over to talk about the spec motor option. Brian will be acquiring a motor around the middle of January and will be heading to a dyno immediately to see where it will stack up against open motors. Many competitors expressed interest in the GM spec 572ci engine while some wanted to make sure the tour will continue to allow open motors for multiple years to come.

In the spirit of gaining cars, NEBSMS will be allowing open motors conforming to ISMA rules to be able to compete throughout the foreseeable future with a gear rule in order to keep them in check. It was previously announced that NEBSMS would be 100% spec motors by 2023, but after this meeting that will not be the case.

Brian and Tom both feel that with the gear rule that, will be put in place, spec motors and open motors will be able to compete on an equal playing field. While the spec motor is still the preferred option for the future of NE Big-Block Super Modified Racing, the series also doesn't want to cost teams' substantial money to purchase a new spec motor if they have a perfectly good built motor already.

Other than the gear rule for open motors and the spec motor option, the only difference in NEBSMS and ISMA rules is the adoption of the two-element wing rule. Three-element wings are 7 feet wide opposed to the 6-foot wide two-element wing. Obviously the three-element wing is a substantial advantage for handling and limits the amount of air to the car following. The lack of air to the trailing car causes a lack of downforce and has been detrimental to Super Modified racing over the past several years.

The new rule will read as follows: two-element wings only - no three-element wings permitted. Wing shall be no more than 6' wide with a top wing that shall not exceed 24 square feet.

Essentially the tour is looking to promote a valley style wing. A two-element wing kit sells for $1,300, and there are plenty out there. The 3 element wings are almost four times the price and are not readily available to all competitors.

Along with rules there was a lot of discussion about race procedure. Mayberry has plans to enhance the competition in heat races by making heat races count towards starting position for the feature event while still maintaining a handicap for previous winners to prevent them from starting pole and running away with an event flag to flag.

NEBSMS will also feature double file restarts. Mayberry has always been a supporter of double file restarts. Long before NASCAR, the Pro All Stars Series has used double file restarts even at events in the south where it was basically unheard of. This supermodified series is going to be heavily geared towards fans and creating the next generation of Big Block Super Modified racers. Competitive heat races and side by side restarts will help create excitement and do just that.

Lastly the schedule was brought up. The initial tracks to be scheduled have stayed the same (Oxford, Thunder Road, White Mountain and Thompson). However there is a strong possibility of more tracks to be added as multiple venues have expressed interest in a NEBSMS race at their facility.

However in order to obtain dates on the schedule, NEBSMS will have to show that a sufficient number of teams are planning on running the series in 2022. In order to schedule races, NEBSMS will need 15 teams to purchase a series license by December 21st, 2021. Licenses cost only $100.00 for early entries. The license form will pay for itself for any teams planning on running 2 or more events this season.

If 15 teams have license forms in by December 21st a complete schedule will be announced by January 1st, 2022. If there aren't 15 licensed teams by then, NEBSMS will refund the license fee and will have to reevaluate plans for the 2022 season. As of right now we have well over 15 soft committals, but getting license forms in are the next biggest step in making 2022 a success.

License forms are available above or by request from Spencer Morse at spencermorse34@icloud.com or 207-890-8719.

NE Big-Block Super Modified Series
Looking To Launch For 2022

Now introducing the formation of the NE Big-Block Super Modified Series. An organization to help save the high horsepower, lightweight, methanol fueled speed machines.

Big Block Super Modifieds have always been a fan favorite division, but car counts have been less than stellar lately. Brian Allegresso, of New England Motorsports Supply and a former ISMA (International Super Modified Association) Board Director, has his thoughts on the current problems with big black super modifieds, the cost. "ISMA is losing two cars a year and one of the biggest reasons is travel".

Brian explained a lot of the teams in New England don't even want to travel to Oswego let alone Ohio. With rising fuel costs and 6-12 hours of traveling, the cost of hotel rooms and loss of time at work is keeping multiple cars home on jack stands. While ISMA races 8-9 times a year only a few races are one day trips for New England teams. Brian believes that is also preventing new cars from being built.

Another huge problem with Super Modified racing is the engine cost. While an article on ISMA a few years stated the cost to build a brand new turnkey Super Modified was $60,000.00 Brian says some teams are spending that amount of money to just build an engine. These Big Blocks produce 900 plus horsepower but they need to be rebuilt every year to the tune of another $10,000.00 or more. While racers have never had the allusion of turning a profit the expense has grown too great for a lot of teams and even scared some new teams away from joining the class. Without new teams building cars and so many current teams fading away Big Block Super Modified Racing is in trouble.

This is where Tom Mayberry steps in.

Mayberry, although mostly known for his work with the Pro All Stars Series (PASS) and Oxford Plains Speedway, understands what it's like to be a racer without place to race and he wants to prevent that from happening to others. In 2000 the North East Pro Stock Tour (NEPSA) was the premier tour. Mayberry finished 4th in points however the series was failing and the future was uncertain.

Mayberry decided to hang up the helmet and pick up promoting. Since the creation of PASS in 2001, the tour has now become the top Super Late Model tour in the country and just celebrated its 21st season. Tom also brought PASS to the Super Late model starved South East back by creating events like the Easter Bunny 150 held at Hickory Motor Speedway each year. Mayberry, also with assistance from the American Canadian Tour's Cris Michaud, prevented Thompson Speedway from closing its oval in 2021. When a division or race track is in trouble Tom has always stepped up to ensure the betterment of motorsports and he's ready to do the same for Super Modified Racing.

In no way does Mayberry want to step on toes of the ultra-successful ISMA tour. First of all, Mayberry is working hard to find ways to prevent any conflicts in the NEBSMS and ISMA Schedules. After consulting former ISMA Presidents and current board members its apparent it's time for a change and that a new tour is the best for the future of Super Modifieds in the North East.

This new series is looking to bring big block super modifieds to more local tracks, more frequently and help create a better outlook for an otherwise struggling division. With a tentative schedule soon to be released NEBSMS will hit famed Ovals like Thompson, White Mountain, Thunder Road and Oxford Plains.

Such a schedule will create no more than a 4-hour commute for any competitor in New England. The savings on hotel rooms and fuel bills alone will create extra dollars for more local competitors to compete.

With cost at the forefront of the conversation NEBSMS will be implementing an unaltered crate motor rule. This same thing that has saved late model racing across the country, although instead of a 400 Horsepower small block 350 cubic inch motor like the late models this will be a $16,000, 800 Horsepower, 572 cubic inch Chevrolet Big Block. A rule prohibiting 3 element wings will save racers even more money and level the playing field.

With these rule changes the class will save teams upwards of $20,000 a year, while still racing for an extremely competitive payout. After talking with Super Modified builders and racers alike it seems there will be no negative impact to speed on any track smaller than a half mile. Testing in the coming weeks will confirm the performance of the proposed configuration.

The tour looks to help younger racers make the jump to a Big Block if they are so inclined. Nearly a dozen drivers have already expressed interest in running NEBSMS in 2022 with new conversations happening every day.

For more information, please reach out to NEBSMS PR director Spencer Morse at 207-890-8719 or by email at Spencermorse34@icloud.com also keep an eye on the PASS website for more information to be posted as it becomes available.

An informational meeting is being planned for the end of November. Please RSVP if interested to Spencer Morse at the above email. We ask for your RSVP to allow for space at the meeting location. Date, time, and location of the meeting TBA.