WINSTON SALEM, NC :: Alas, it’s that time once more. “The Most Exciting of Them All” is set to roll once more for the 65th season of racing. Bowman Gray Stadium is the legendary site, and you can bet your bottom dollar this season will be full of drama and surprises just as in years past. There is a reason it is the most attended race track in America.
As we roll into the opener this week, the landscapes in the divisions have changed slightly, just as they have stayed the same. We will try to get you up to speed on everything going on as the day quickly approaches.
Modified:
This is the feature division and what the legends are made from. “By The Grace of God and 600 Horsepower”, the mod division looks much like it has in years past. Tim Brown has had a stranglehold on the division as last year he passed the legendary Ralph Brinkley to pick up his record ninth championship racking up eight wins on the season, a personal best and a feat not seen since Frank Fleming’s eight wins in 1988. Brown looks to keep setting the records as he shoots for his tenth championship in 2013.
A few drivers have something to say about that though as Jason Myers looks to make a strong run at Brown after being a bridesmaid in the championship last season. The quieter of the Myers brothers, Jason, looks to be peaking in his mod career as he has already picked up a win on the NASCAR Whelen tour this season and his strong season at the Stadium last year looks to carry over.
On the other side of the Myers duo is Burt Myers, who has five Stadium championships of his own. Burt has struggled a bit over the last year from his usual standards but looks to rebound in 2013 after finishing fifth in the points standing last year.
One of the new guys this year in the mods will be Kevin Neal. While Neal isn’t new to racing, the modified is a whole new ballgame for him. After winning in the Sportsman Division six times then moving to Late Model Stocks, Neal hopes to make the mod division his “home”.
“This is a big learning process we have now, but after a few practices I think we are going to be really competitive,” said Neal. He is driving a 2009 chassis formerly piloted by Northern mod winner Anthony Selsey so they are starting off on the right foot.
JonBoy Brown and his brother BoBo will be there also with new rides and the list of the regulars goes on with potential winners, Robert and Lee Jeffreys, Randy Butner, Tommy Neal, Dean Ward and Michael Clifton just to name a few. The hottest driver in the Southern mod ranks last year hasn’t committed to the entire season because of unknown funding, but Danny Bohn will be there for the opening race for sure. 30 drivers have filed early entries for the 200 lapper this Saturday night
Sportsman:
The highly competitive Sportsman (Limited Late Model) division will be that once again….competitive. This year it will have a new twist as reigning champ Derek Stoltz won’t be running for points, he is racing for wins and letting the points fall where they will.
“I’m never racing like I did last year, it took a lot of fun out of it,” said Stoltz. “We are going out to win every race we enter. I have a championship now so we got that out of the way. It’s all or nothing from here on out, no pressure, just racing”.
If the early season practices are any indication, a few of the top names have just gotten better. Bryant Robertson has a sweet new green paint scheme and is turning consistent fast laps. Michael Adams is right there with him along with Zack Clifton and Kenny Mitchell in one of the former Triplett cars driven by Gary Ledbetter.
The two everyone has their eyes on so far has been Taylor Branch and Noah Triplett. Branch has consistently been the fastest car in the practices and his new setup from Late Model guru Stacy Puryear has paid dividends right out of the gate. Of course we all know about the #70 car of Triplett, over the past two years it hasn’t mattered if it was Noah or Ledbetter behind the wheel, the Tim Triplett owned car has been the favorite every time the gates open on race day.
Street Stock:
And here is where it becomes a little complicated. This is by far the wildest division at Bowman Gray, and the offseason is just as wild as the activities on the track. While a few veterans will be returning, the Street division has by far had the biggest influx of rookies over the offseason. Right now we are counting 15 rookies, and that’s just off the top of the head.
Of course the big dogs will be up front when the cards are dealt. 2012 champ Billy Gregg is coming back, at least until the annual 50 lapper on May 18th and they will evaluate what they are going to do from then on. The youngster who continues to turn heads, Jon Jon Holleman, is returning and will have a massive team with no less than four cars out of their stable.
Doug Wall is returning but is leery of the new drivers coming in.
“We usually have just a few new drivers, but this year it looks to be over 12 and they are all more or less just getting their feet wet in racing,” Wall explained. “I just hope we don’t go back to the old days where the time limit comes into play and we can race for the wins, instead of racing a clock.”
Two other drivers to keep an eye out for will be Aaron Hylton, son on long-time track photographer Eric Hylton who will be racing for Ronnie Clifton in the same car that Ryan Nelson took the championship with in 2008. The wily veteran John McNeal will be back once more after sitting out last season with hopes to add to his championship collection also.
Stadium Stock:
Over the years they have become the most competitive division at the stadium, well pretty much at every track for that goes. The Stadium Stocks (Mini-Stocks everywhere else) always put on a show and you can bet you’ll see some racing, some drama, some wrecking and maybe even some fisticuffs on certain nights.
At the top it’s going to be as competitive as ever with defending champ Charlie Curry returning along with Chuck Wall who is competitive at numerous tracks. Crowd favorite….and sometimes “unfavorite” Jason Keaton will be strong as will the drivers of Derek Taylor and Rob Young.
Going into a season you always have a driver that is a threat no matter what and once again, as it has been for many years, that is AJ Sanders. Sanders has already raced at numerous tracks this season and looks to add another Bowman Gray championship to his already full trophy room. He will be joined by his son Andrew who is returning full-time at the Stadium after racing at Caraway Speedway for a while and picking up a championship there.
Jimmy Absher will make a go of it this year after sitting out with an injury, and everyone’s favorite, the “Pintang” driven by Chris Allison will be showing people what the racing of the division looked like in the early 90’s with his Pinto/Mustang hybrid car.
All in all, it’s different but it’s the same ole same ole. While some faces change and the cars slightly advance, it’s still the stadium we all grew up with and loved. 2013 will be no different, 12,000 people in the stands, full car counts and plenty of action all around, at no track in America can you get more bang for your buck.
