Picturing Speed: Getting Horsepower Hill From The Shop To The Speedway

Preparation for loading cars in the Horsepower Hill race shop

Preparation for loading cars in the Horsepower Hill race shop

ANDOVER – Ten minutes have gone by since Dean Streeter snugged up the straps at the rear of the trailer that keep the SK Light Modified that Joey Ferrigno races at Stafford Motor Speedway in place for the ride to the track.

The car is setup, loaded and ready to go.

And then comes minor catastrophe.

A white-wall tire – a loader tire that goes on the right front of the car for travel – is discovered in the Horsepower Hill shop.

Problem is, that’s the tire that’s supposed to be on the right front of Ferrigno’s car in the trailer.

It doesn’t matter that the tire mounted on the car in the trailer can serve the exact same purpose as well as the white-wall tire can. Superstition is superstition, and in racing superstition runs deep.

“Ok, we need to change that,” Ferrigno says. “That’s gonna piss me off.”

And with that the loaded up No. 87 car becomes the unloaded No. 87 car, to make superstition right.

“It has to be that way or it’s not right,” Ferrigno says.

At Horsepower Hill on this night the finishing preparations are made on three SK Light Modifieds to be raced at Stafford Motor Speedway. Ferrigno’s No. 87, Jeff Smith’s No. 76 and Paul French’s No. 37.

Horsepower Hill is French’s shop. Though in racing parlance, the term shop would have many envisioning some sort of Hendick Motorsports-esque Taj-Mahal of racing. Horsepower Hill though is a slick name for a two-car garage packed with racecars and racing “stuff”, a lot of which includes “stuff” nobody can find when it needs to be found.

On a Thursday night, readying for racing in less than 24 hours, the shop is abuzz with activity. And activity is clearly code for losing things, trading obscenities and pranks and sucker shots flying faster than John Force down a quarter-mile.

On hand with Ferrigno, and French and Smith are the crew that helps things go. Working are Streeter, Frank Lemieux, Steve Zoppa, John Caffazzo, Lenny Bansavich, Wayne Smith, Greg Long and French’s two sons, 11-year old P.J. and six year old Brian. For moral support is the French family dog, Riley.

“It’s amazing they even get one car to the track every week,” French’s wife Lori-Lynn says during a visit while the crew works to prepare the final car to be loaded for the night.

Said Paul French: “Ignore the crazy lady over there.”

Smiths Move car HPH

Wayne Smith (left), Jeff Smith (center) and Lenny Bansavich move the No. 76 car.

Dean Streeter straps the No. 87 car into the hauler.

Dean Streeter straps the No. 87 car into the hauler.

Paul French (left) and Joey Ferrigno go to battle in a  grabber vs. sledgehammer duel.

Paul French (left) and Joey Ferrigno go to battle in a grabber vs. sledgehammer duel.

PJ French (left) helps Jeff Smith (right) move the No. 76 car while John Cafazzo (rear of car) looks on

PJ French (left) helps Jeff Smith (right) move the No. 76 car while John Cafazzo (rear of car) looks on.

Riley the dog gets involved in the shop work.

Riley the dog gets involved in the shop work.

Joey Ferrigno (left) and Paul French go over some thoughts for car preparation.

Joey Ferrigno (left) and Paul French go over some thoughts for car preparation.

PJ French works to get the loader tire on the No. 87 car.

PJ French works to get the loader tire on the No. 87 car.

French and Wife HPH

Paul French (left) and his wife Lori-Lynn trade some barbs in the shop.

Joey Watching Work HPH

Joey Ferrigno (right) looks on as Dean Streeter (left) and Frank Lemieux work on the No. 37 car.

The team pushes the No. 87 car into the hauler.

The team pushes the No. 87 car into the hauler.

Getting 37 ready HPH

Jeff Smith (left), Wayne Smith (center) and Frank Lemieux work on the No. 37 car.

 

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Comments

  1. Gee,,, Why are there tires wrapped in cellophane???

  2. Ken Ouellette says

    Awesome bunch of guys working together having a great time

  3. Not Stan Greger says

    No kidding with the tires covered in Saran Wrap. Every single car at New Smyrna for years had their tires wrapped like that after soaking them all day. Haha, good planning for the photo shoot cheaters.

  4. WOW!! Either poor planning or Mr French just stirring the pot… (Planted tire) !! But it sure makes one think!!! Cars are always fast..

  5. That’s way to friggin funny.they just got bagged.lmao

  6. late model fan says

    A tire is like a loaf of bread once opened or used if you don’t seal it up they go stale and hard. If you look in the trailers on half the sk teams at stafford you will see they are wrapped. Nice try haters. HpH is doing everything right and of coarse people automatically thinking cheating. Good work boys on your success this year. Just because you guys got it figured out and they can’t then you must be “cheating”. Let Em hate a winner.

  7. Andy Da Woodchuck says

    @Late model fan: if that stale bread theory was true why isn’t the rest of the pile done? durrrrr drrrr

  8. Tires aside, I like the feature article here with the pictures, you should do more of these.. maybe a series of sorts… of local teams and behind the scenes stories.. I’m sure there are plenty… good job.

  9. Hahaha the tires are wrapped to get the haters talking!

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