Devil's Bowl News & Notes
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January 22, 2011
Official Press Release
Announces NASCAR Whelen All-American Series Sanction Devil’s
Bowl Devil’s Bowl Speedway, a
.500-mile paved oval in “We welcome the Richards
family, their tracks and participants to the NASCAR Whelen
All-American Series,” said George Silbermann, NASCAR managing
director of racing operations. “Both tracks provide a solid
foundation for great racing and family entertainment.” Family patriarch C.J. Richards
founded the CVRA in 1960, then built Devil’s Bowl Speedway during
the winter of 1966 and opened it in 1967. The track has operated with
paved and dirt surfaces. Devil’s Bowl was reconfigured with
progressive banking in the turns and paved in April 2010. C.J. was an original promoter
in the days of the old NASCAR North Series. He also pioneered the
track tire rule, 358 c.i. small block engines for dirt Modifieds, and
retaining a paved racing surface while adapting it to dirt track
racing. He remains a consultant for the tracks. Son Jerry Richards is
promoter and general manager for the track while son Bruce Richards is
promoter and general manager of the family’s Albany-Saratoga
Speedway in “The branding that NASCAR
offers and the notoriety it brings to our pavement racing is great for
our drivers and their fans,” Bruce Richards said. “There’s
nothing bigger or better for our drivers than competing for the
accolades NASCAR offers. Nothing’s better than competing for NASCAR
championships. This is hands down what everyone strives for.” The two tracks will mirror
their weekly divisions. NASCAR Division I, NASCAR Modifieds based on
dirt-style chassis that add a newly introduced GM 602 crate engine;
Division II, Pro Late Models; Division III, Renegades; Division IV,
Bomber Warriors which are four cylinder front wheel drive cars. Ken
Tremont won the Modified division championship at both tracks in 2010. NASCAR-licensed drivers in
NASCAR Division I at each track are eligible to compete for track and
state or province championships and ultimately the NASCAR Whelen
All-American Series national championship. In addition to Division I
point fund awards, state champions receive customized driver’s
helmets and racing uniforms from series sponsor Whelen Engineering.
State or province championships are determined by drivers’ highest
18 finishes at NASCAR tracks within a state. NASCAR-licensed drivers in
NASCAR Divisions II through V accumulate points in the NASCAR Finalist
program. The top 100 drivers in each of eight groups will be ranked
each week and those point standings will determine the top eight
support division drivers in the nation. A driver’s best 14 finishes
at NASCAR tracks within a state count toward the season’s ending
standings. Points will be kept separately for dirt and asphalt tracks.
The top eight drivers will be recognized at the series’ awards
banquet. NASCAR also offers a NASCAR
Learner’s Permit for drivers age 14 and 15 who may be eligible to
compete in Divisions II through V. Eligibility is determined by local
track rules, and the permit can be upgraded to a Charger license when
the driver turns 16. Other series awards programs
include the Craftsman Mechanic of the Year Award, the Rookie of the
Year Award presented by Jostens, the University of Northwestern Ohio (UNOH)
Scholarship Award and the Wendell Scott Trailblazer Award. All NASCAR Division I track
and state champions, the national champion, eight NASCAR Finalist
program winners and special award winners will be honored at the
NASCAR Whelen All-American Series Awards Banquet at season’s end. The NASCAR Whelen All-American
Series is the grassroots foundation of NASCAR and consists of more
than 50 short tracks across December 2, 2010 CVRA Announces Changes for
2011 “We've been hemming and hawing about this for a while, and it's time to stop hemming and hawing,” said Albany-Saratoga Speedway race director Bruce Richards. “With the economy the way it is now, this change is needed for the health and well-being of racing.” The change to 602s follows the cost-cutting trend that CVRA founder C.J. Richards began in 1985, when he phased out big blocks and replaced them with 358 small blocks at both Albany-Saratoga and Devil's Bowl Speedways. “C.J. was the pioneer when he switched from big blocks to 358s, and here we are again,” said Bruce Richards. “Our modified division is no longer sustainable from a monetary point of view,” said Jerry Richards, Devil’s Bowl Speedway race director. “For years now, we’ve had almost no new drivers joining the modified ranks. All attempts we’ve made to move experienced sportsman drivers to the modified division have failed. Mostly because they just can’t afford to field a modified car, so they end up staying in the sportsman ranks even though they have enough driving experience to move up. The days of the sportsman being a stepping stone to the modifieds have been over for a long time now. We feel strongly that it’s our responsibility to bring the cost of racing under control at our tracks.” Hoosier Tire has developed a new, long-wearing tire for this division, plus the 602s run on pump gas instead of racing fuel, which is another savings. The new open-wheel division will be known as Crate Modifieds and will pay $750 to win, and the entire purse structure will be posted on the CVRA website located at cvra.com. The Crate Modified engine program will be overseen by RPM Racing Engines of Georgia, Vermont. RPM is a complete machine shop that specializes in high performance engines. Owner Rick Paya provides crate engines and services to a total of 12 race tracks in the northeast. RPM will be the only authorized engine dealer for Crate Modified cars racing on the CVRA. Contact Rick for more information at 802-524-7406. In addition, the CVRA will reinstate a point fund for the open-wheel division for the 2011 season. “We'll take the best 10 Crate Modified races at both tracks,” said Bruce Richards. “The point fund will pay $3,000 to the winner, $1,500 for second, $1,000 for third, and $500 for fourth and fifth place. In addition, we will draw two Wild Card Winners from among the 6th-10th place finishers, paying $500 each.” The CVRA pro stock division will begin making the conversion to a true asphalt late-model style car. CVRA officials have been working closely with American-Canadian Tour director Tom Curley on a rules and tech package, and intend to eventually adopt ACT late model rules. “We're starting the transition phase this year to make the cars that we have now competitive with asphalt late models,” said Bruce Richards. Both CVRA tracks will still be running Renegades and Bomber Warriors in addition to the Crate Modifieds and Pro Stocks. New this season, individual track memberships will be sold for $50 each, while a combination license for both Albany-Saratoga and Devil's Bowl will be priced at $75, if the memberships are purchased prior to March 1. See the web site at www.cvra.com for information and updates.
September 3, 2010 Devil’s Bowl Speedway Announces Fall Schedule WEST HAVEN, VT – With the regular stock car season winding down, Devil's Bowl management has posted a fall schedule of events that has something for everyone. On Saturday, September 11th, the Sports Car Club of Vermont will be holding its third event. This is timed speed autocross with classes to suit most any type of car. You can enter your car ahead of time at their web site www.sccv.org. Spectators are free. Lunch will be available in the concession stand. The first "Who Needs Snow?" snowmobile grass drags will be held at the speedway on Saturday September 18th. They will be held out behind the paved track in the field west of the pond. Speaking of the pond, snowmobiles will also be allowed to drag race on the surface of the water for the first time! The second and third editions of the Grass/Water Drags will be held on Saturday October 2nd, and Saturday October 16th. There will be amateur classes and everyone is welcome. These are designed to be family-friendly, fun events. On Sunday, October 10th the first ever Vermonster Enduro will take to the track with $2,010 on the line for the top three finishers. This enduro is for 4 and 6 cylinder cars. Rules are available on the web site at www.devilsbowlspeedwayvt.com. It's also Bikers Night with all bikers and passenger admitted free to the grandstands. In addition, the Red Knights Motorcycle Club will hold their ride to raise funds for the Marrow Donor Program at Rutland Regional Medical Center. The ride begins at RRMC in Rutland and the riders will be escorted by a fire truck from each town along the way. When the fire trucks and the motorcycles get to the speedway they take a few "victory laps" around the track. It's quite a sight. Last year they had just over 200 bikes and raised $2,000! Closing out the season will be the 6/60 Enduro
on Saturday November 6th. For this event, spectator racing returns by
popular demand, where you get to enter your car right out of the
parking lot and race side by side on the track. Enduro cars will have
a 6 lap Backwards Race, followed by a 60 lap Enduro.
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