“True Value Modifieds Taking Their Act To Lee”

When the True Value Modified Racing Series visits Lee USA Speedway, Lee NH, Sunday May 21, four of its drivers share a common bond. They have visited victory lane at the NH seacoast facility with those wins coming in each of the last two seasons. In 2004, veteran driver Jim Boniface entered the series record book as the first ever TVMRS race winner to score at Lee when he captured a 100 lap event driving for Maine Motorsports Hall of Fame member and car owner/builder Goodwin Hannaford. Later that season, at the speedways annual Oktoberfest weekend, Westbrook Me driver Tony Ricci, aboard a Bob Polverari owned racer, captured the “open” modified event, his first time driving the car. Ricci returned to the tour this season with the hope of running as many events as his busy schedule allows. He doubles as a crew chief for LW Miller, on the Hooters Cup Series in addition to maintaining race cars for several northeast teams.

2005 saw the reigning tour champion Kirk Alexander score one of his 12 wins at the 3/8 mile speedway. Alexander shared the Lee winners circle with Jimmy Dolan, Bethel, Ct., who drove to a popular win at the Oktoberfest weekend this past fall.
This weekend’s race will find the two top point men with the same totals going into the 3rd race of 2006. Connecticut entry Ed Dachenhausen and Vermont’s Dwight Jarvis each have tallied 138 points after the first two events of the new campaign. Monadnock winner Alexander and Canaan winner Les Hinckley are tied for third with 132 points. Holyoke Ma., driver Chris Wenzel is fifth in the point’s standings.

The first of four events at Lee this season will also be a first in New England motorsports history as the two touring divisions will share the billing for twin 100 lap races for the first time. When Lee management booked both groups this past winter, TVMRS founder Jack Bateman called it “a great opportunity to showcase our tour with a top notch operation like the ACT,”.

The Lee event is a homecoming of sorts for several members of the TVMRS. Rookie Bobby Grigas, Marshfield, MA was named rookie of the year at Lee last season in the tracks Late Model division and still plans to campaign a car there when the track switches to it’s traditional Friday night programs. Andy Seuss, Hampstead, NH, is last year’s most popular driver, New Smyrna, Fla., Speed Weeks champion and a former Lee late model competitor. Seuss cut his teeth in open wheel racing on karts and in Lee’s supermodified division. Former Lee hobby stock racer Mike Douglas Jr. is a second year competitor. He qualified for the season opener at Monadnock. His father and crew chief, Mike Sr. is a longtime Lee racer and ISMA supermodified competitor. Former Lee Race Director and Pit Steward John Tebbetts is a member of the team.
 

Fremont, NH, driver Karl Fredrickson, a longtime Lee Speedway competitor is also a second year driver on the tour. Former supermodified standout and 2005 ISMA rookie of the year Jon McKennedy is a rookie modified racer driving for Nashua’s Marco Turcotte. Turcotte is a former championship car owner at Lee. Veteran driver Jim Storace of Kingston, N.H., is another driver that is no stranger to Lee. Storace ran with the tour at Canaan last weekend.

Busch East standout, Eddie MacDonald, Newbury MA, is reportedly shopping for a ride for this Sundays 100 lap race. Reports indicated he may be teaming with veteran owner/driver Gary Casella, Saugus MA MacDonald’s parents own the Lee oval.

Flagman John Spence Jr. started his flagging career at Lee while announcer John Spence Sr. started calling races at Lee in 1975 when the track was a triangular shaped facility.

TVMRS operations manager Michelle Lavigne is now a member of the Lee staff. She was appointed as the tracks webmaster during the off season.

Fans are reminded of a change in schedule by the speedway for this event. Originally slated for Friday May 19, the program will be run on Sunday afternoon, May 21, with teams practicing at 12 noon. Qualifying for the history making event is at 2pm.