Emily Packard Looking For Home Track Advantage As ACT Heads To Devil’s Bowl


RaceDayCT Northbound New 550 Clean
RacedayCT Northern Points Green 280When the ACT Late Model Tour returns to Devil’s Bowl Speedway for a 100-lap main event Saturday night, Emily Packard will be hoping to make history.

Packard, who became the first woman in more than two decades to win a feature race at Thunder Road International Speedbowl when she won a Street Stock event there in 2012, is looking to record her first ACT victory in the People’s United Bank 100.

“I’m really excited to get back to Devil’s Bowl,” said Packard, 18, of East Montpelier, Vt., who competed weekly at the track in 2013 and 2014 before stepping back this year to work on college credits while running the full ACT slate. “I’ve been in Rutland a lot for college, but I’ve missed racing there. A lot of Devil’s Bowl fans have asked me where I’ve been, so it’ll be good to see them.”

Emily Packard (Photo: Travis Barrett)

Emily Packard (Photo: Travis Barrett)

Packard is currently sixth in the ACT standings in her sophomore season, but she’s won three Late Model features at Devil’s Bowl and has finished on the podium in each of the last two extra-distance races she’s entered there. She has confidence and a home-track advantage on the half-mile in West Haven, Vt.

As an added bonus, previous ACT races at Devil’s Bowl have been contested during the afternoon hours; this is the first to take place at night.

“My team goes to every race thinking we have a shot to win, but especially at Devil’s Bowl,” Packard said. “We have a lot of laps there and we know what the track conditions are like at night. I hope that gives us an advantage.”

In 2001, Tracie Bellerose become the first — and, to date, only — woman to win an ACT race.

FENCED IN

Star Speedway avoided what could have been a true disaster last Saturday night when a crash in the track’s Supermodified feature sent one car nearly through the fence and into the frontstretch grandstands.

Matt Seavey’s No. 91 touched wheels with another competitor just past the flagstand on the tight, .25-mile track and tore down a section of fencing. A plastic trash barrel was thrown hard into the front row of the bleachers only a few feet away from the track.

Miraculously, it appeared nobody was injured.

This week, according to the track’s official Facebook page, repairs had already been made to improve the original fencing. Trash barrels are now anchored to the fence, and some electrical work was already done.

“New fence is up and ready,” according to the track’s post on Facebook. “Barrels have now been cable-tied to fence. Two new lights installed and speaker system fixed… We are set to go racing.”

A video of the crash can be seen on YouTube here

Star Speedway returns to racing this Saturday night with the Wicked Cool Midgets, along with weekly action.

FINALLY…

Wayne Helliwell Jr.’s win in the rain-shortened Generation Next ACT 151 at Speedway 51 in Groveton, N.H., vaulted the former series champion into the point lead through five races. Helliwell, of Dover, N.H., also won at Lee USA Speedway in the season opener in April. Reigning champ Joey Polewarczyk Jr. of Hudson, N.H., trails Helliwell by nine points heading into Devil’s Bowl. Each driver has two wins through the first five events of the season… Dave Sanborn of Tilton, N.H., won the opening night Supermodified feature at Lee USA Speedway last Friday night, while Frank Eldridge won the caution-free Late Model Sportsman event… Kyle Treadwell earned his first career Super Late Model feature win at Oxford Plains Speedway last weekend… Nick Cusack, a third-generation champion at Beech Ridge Motor Speedway, won the caution-free Pro Series 50-lap event on Saturday for his second career victory. Cusack, who won the track’s Wildcat championship in 2012, joined father Glenn Cusack and grandfather Ralph Cusack as a Beech Ridge champion that year… The PASS North Series is off until they hit Speedway 95 in Hermon, Maine, for a Sunday afternoon show on June 14.

Comments

  1. Chris D. says

    Scary crash at Star. They were lucky. Take note New London Waterford Speedbowl.

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