ACTion News Wednesday, December 12, 2007
-by Justin St. Louis

A fifteen-person panel including media members from Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine, and Québec, officials from
the American-Canadian Tour and Thunder Road, and a pair of die-hard race fans have compiled their efforts to
decide the Top 25 ACT Drivers of 2007.  The criteria for each panelist were simple: 1. Using your personal
opinion, create a list of the ten ACT/Thunder Road drivers that you felt stood head and shoulders above the rest
in 2007; and 2. Rank them in order.

From there, the 25 drivers receiving the most votes and/or praise would be ranked against the others, with an
additional ten on the list of racers that missed it by this much.  The intent was, in theory, to pit ACT Late
Model Tour Champion Jean-Paul Cyr against, say, Power Shift Online Junkyard Warrior Champion Bunker Hodgdon, at
least on paper.  Also included were the Série ACT Castrol and Thunder Roads weekly Late Model, NAPA Tiger
Sportsman, and Allen Lumber Street Stock divisions.

All told, 79 drivers received at least one vote!

The list stems from an idea originally put together by this columns author in 2003, and invited a large,
regionally diverse group to take part in it for the first time this year.  (It should be noted that one
participant went the extra distance, creating a list of 10 drivers for each of ACTs six divisions and series, and
a handful weighed overall attitude into their selections, as well.)  Each week, we will look at five drivers in
the 2007 list, starting here with positions 25 through 21.

Without further ado, here are the first five honorees in the Top 25 ACT Drivers of 2007

25. Matt White, #42 Whites Heating/Bethel Central Market Chevrolet NAPA Tiger Sportsman.  (Top 10 votes: 4)

Its hard to believe that just three short years ago, Matt White had just made his Junkyard Warrior debut after
winning the M&M Beverage Enduro 200 at Thunder Road.  How far has he come?  Try a starting berth in the 44th
Annual Chittenden Milk Bowl, the first time he ever sat in a Late Model car.  In the mean time, White was a
championship contender for the second-straight year in the Sportsman ranks, winning twice and giving fans plenty
to talk about after ruffling some feathers on more than one occasion.

Dave Moody, Thunder Road announcer, MRN Radio personality: (Matt has) a load of natural talent behind the wheel. 
Experience will allow him to temper his naturally aggressive style, and when he does, the championships will come.

Moodys naturally aggressive comment is merited Whites father, Wayne, drove the Crazy 8 Flying Tiger to his
share of thrills, spills, and victories in the 1980s.  Matt made highlight reels on local television with his
jaunt off Turn 3 in July, and subsequent, um, discussion with a fellow competitor in the moments following.  Seems
as though Papa Waynes flair for the dramatic was handily passed on to his boy.

Pete Hartt, Sports Editor at the Barre-Montpelier, VT Times Argus: There were nights when it looked like Matt
could have driven a go-kart to the front, he was that good.

It would seem, though, that young Whites high level of driving talent is also a second-generation trait.  Its
not every day you see a driver as exciting to watch like White has the ability to be.  The next generations
answer to Eric Williams, perhaps.

24. John Donahue, #26 National Guard Ford ACT Late Model.  (Top 10 votes: 4)

Its no secret that Irish John Donahue has become one of the most popular drivers at Thunder Road.  That was
obvious in his days as a multi-time Tiger Sportsman champion.  But its also no secret that when the timing is
right, there may not be anyone as good as Donahue.  Driving for new team owner Kendell Roberts and a high-profile
sponsor in the National Guard, Donahue put together some memorable moments in 2007, including his first career ACT
Late Model Tour victory on Labor Day weekend.

Travis Barrett, Kennebec Journal & Central Maine Morning Sentinel:  If theres one thing I like, its drivers who
rise to the occasion.  Donahue not only won one of the biggest races of the season the Bond Auto Labor Day
Classic 200 but he also won at Oxford Plains Speedway in an emotional win for a guy that used to drive long
hours round trip just to race a Strictly Stock there back in the day. Im telling you, you cant write a better
story than that one.

Donahues L/A Harley-Davidson Challenge victory at OPS was indeed an emotional one.  Early in the 2000s, Donahue
would make the long trip from Graniteville, VT to the Maine oval each week, racing an entry-level Strictly to more
than his share of checkered flags.  Since then, however, Donahue had struggled at Oxford behind the wheel of a
Late Model.  His 100-lap score there in June was proof that he hadnt lost his touch there, and his 200-lap Super
Series win at Thunder Road established him as a solid ACT-level threat for years to come.

23. Mike Martin, #01 E.H. Danson/Johns Gun Shop Ford Allen Lumber Street Stock.  (Top 10 votes: 3; First-place
votes: 1)

Street Stocker Mike Martin received a first-place vote in the balloting based his non-stop nice guy demeanor,
but Martin was a bit of criminal at the Mekkelsen RV Memorial Day Classic at Thunder Road in May, stealing his
first victory of the season.  In one of the most exciting moments of any race held in any division in 2007, Martin
ran fourth on the final lap, but was in the catbird seat as the two race leaders took each other out.  The former
Warrior champion dove from the far outside lane to the low groove, passing the spinning leader, the offending
second-place driver, and third-place man Josh Demers to take the victory.

Pete Hartt: It seems like whenever he was on the track, Mike Martin was always driving very, very well.  In my
opinion, the Street Stocks are the hardest division to succeed in at Thunder Road, and Mike has plenty of success.

Thats no lie. Martin started the 2007 season with eight-straight finishes of 9th place or better, including a
pair of victories, and was playing the part of Eventual Champion.  A hard crash in July knocked him from the
point lead, but three runner-up finishes in the final five races brought him back up to finish in third place
overall.

22. Joel Hodgdon, #36 Watson Real Estate/Tofanis Used Furniture Chevrolet NAPA Tiger Sportsman.  (Top 10 votes: 4)

Another one of the talented second-generation drivers, former high school basketball standout Joel Hodgdon is the
first of three rookie racers to make the Top 25 list.  The 19 year-old outlasted one of the most talent-rich
freshman classes the NAPA Tiger Sportsman division has seen in years, and outperformed most of the divisions long-
standing veterans to boot.

Bethany Bell, Thunder Road fan: The kid can drive.

Alan Ward, photographer and Racin Paper columnist: Joel was very consistent and drove like a veteran most of the
time.

Hodgdons veteran style was apparent from the get-go.  In a division where not even the champion qualified for
every feature race, Hodgdon worked out his rookie bugs early, missing three of the first nine shows.  But in the
shows he did make during that time, he finished 8th or better four times, including a podium finish on Ferguson
Waterworks night and 5th place in the WDEV 100.  Oh, and on the night of that tenth race, the Times Argus Mid-
Season Championship, Hodgdon won.  It all boiled down to third place in overall point standings and an easy stroll
to the Rookie of the Year title.

21. Joey Polewarczyk, Jr., #97NH Poles Automotive Chevrolet ACT Late Model.  (Top 10 votes: 3)

Marc-Patrick Roy, Série ACT Castrol reporter for Speed51.com: A sentimental favorite since he set the fastest
time at the 2006 Milk Bowl, Pole showed more than once he has the talent and the patience to make it at the top.

The future of the American-Canadian Tour record book potentially rests in the hands of young Joey Pole.  At just
18 years old, the Hudson, NH driver is already a three year veteran of the Tour, and he has found a way to get
around the toughest short tracks in the northeast with the best of em.  In fact, sometimes the best of em have
all they can do to try to keep up with the diminutive kid.  At the 1/4-mile Seekonk Speedway in August,
Polewarczyk smoked the field, passing perennial ACT champ Jean-Paul Cyr and cruising to his first victory.  But
that wasnt all: 3rd-place honors at the 3/8-mile Oxford Plains in April and 4/10-mile Kawartha Speedway in
September, an edge-of-your-seat runner-up showing at tiny White Mountain Motorsports Park in June, and a second
consecutive Booth Bros./H.P. Hood Pole Award at Thunder Roads Chittenden Milk Bowl were all highlights to strong
season.  It was recently learned that the youngster will be trying his hand during Speedweeks at Floridas New
Smyrna Speedway, racing his ACT-legal Late Model in the week-long World Series of Asphalt Stock Car Racing.

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Looking for that last-minute holiday gift for your favorite race fan?  Thunder Road 2008 Season Passes are
available in three flavors: General Admission, Child, and Gold.  General Admission passes are valid for all stock
car events at Thunder Road in 2008, and at just $190, the year-long savings add up quickly.  Child passes are only
$50!  Gold passes are $250 and include reserved seating at all stock car races for 2008, including four
appearances by the American-Canadian Tour, the True Value Modified Racing Series, the M&M Beverage Enduro 200, and
more!  Call the Thunder Road office at (802) 244-6963 for more information.

***

Did You Know? will return on January 16.  In the mean time, keep your eyes peeled here and at www.acttour.com
for the ACTion News columns between now and January 9 for the Top 25 ACT Drivers of 2007 list.  Next week, we
honor drivers in positions 20 through 16.  Questions and comments may be sent to media@acttour.com.