NASCAR sanction, youth vs. experience, changing of the guard among highlights
WEST HAVEN, VT — The 2011 stock car racing season was one with many important moments in Devil’s Bowl Speedway. The West Haven, VT track closes out one era as another begins, but not before a look back at the top five stories of the year.
5. Weather abbreviates racing: Mother Nature wreaked havoc on Vermont in 2011, and Devil’s Bowl wasn’t spared as seven races were lost including the final four events. Track management has offered Thor, the Greek god of thunder, a 2012 season’s pass in exchange for taking racing season off.
4. Spring Green is an instant classic: The American-Canadian Tour Late Models had a spectacular Devil’s Bowl debut at the Spring Green, and fans were treated to a thriller. Eleven lead changes highlighted the race including a 40-lap slugfest between Craig Bushey and eventual winner Brian Hoar. ACT opens the 2012 Devil’s Bowl season with the 112-lap Spring Green on May 6.
3. Youth movement at The Bowl: Watch out, veterans. Hunter Bates was a two-division star, scoring a mid-year Modified victory two weeks before his 16th birthday and later locking up the Late Model championship. Sixteen year-old Jessey Mueller and fourth-generation racer Bobby Hackel were Modified winners, and 14 year-old Joey Laquerre, another fourth-generation driver, finished third in his first Late Model start. Seventeen year-old Eddie Bruno grabbed his first Bomber championship with three wins.
2. Proctor cleans house at NASCAR banquet: Devil’s Bowl was sanctioned by NASCAR in 2011, and Modified veteran Ron Proctor was the chief beneficiary. The Devil’s Bowl Speedway and Vermont State Champion picked up nearly $11,000 in prize money and a truckload of trophies, helmets, and other goodies at the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series Awards Banquet in Charlotte, NC.
1. A new era begins at Devil’s Bowl: Devil’s Bowl Speedway founder C.J. Richards and family guided the track to success for over 40 years, but Devil’s Bowl was sold in October to local business owners and former racers Mike and Alayne Bruno. Devil’s Bowl will remain an asphalt half-mile with NASCAR sanction, but changes include a switch to Friday night racing during the summer months and the return of the iconic “358” Modified class. Planned improvements to the facility will benefit both fans and racers as Devil’s Bowl works toward its goal of becoming a community entertainment center.
Devil’s Bowl Speedway is just 15 minutes from Rutland, Vermont’s second-largest city, and opens its 46th season of stock car racing on May 6, 2012. The full 18-event schedule is online at www.devilsbowlspeedwayvt.com along with divisional rulebooks. For more information, call (802) 265-3112 or email devilsbowlspeedway@gmail.com.