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RYAN PREECE
WINS THE NWMT 46th ANNUAL NAPA AUTO PARTS
SPRING SIZZLER "200"
Preece and Dowling are Just Living the Dream
by Denise DuPont |
 After
a rain delayed day the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour
(NWMT) started their feature event almost two hours
later than planned. It did not make any difference
to the fans though they were there for some NWMT
racing and the grandstand remained standing room
only to the end. As the temperatures dropped and the
wind picked up, fans just added a layer on and
hunkered down waiting for the ground pounders.
For the first half of the race things were mostly
uneventful as Doug Coby from Milford, CT took the
lead on the initial green flag and stayed there
until a caution on lap 41. Most of the field pitted
for gas and when Coby went to exit pit road he
stalled the #2 Mayhew Tools/Dunleavy/AJ Romano
Const. Chevrolet. With the delay, Coby found himself
leaving pit road fourth and Ryan Preece of Berlin,
CT had the lead without any hesitation. Preece
remained in the lead until Coby on lap 78 retook the
top position. Lap after lap it was Coby at the helm
until Wade Cole of Riverton, CT spun on the front
stretch to bring out a caution. It was then an
opportunity for the field to pit for fresh rubber.
Eric Goodale of Riverhead, NY led briefly after the
caution only to be brought up high and passed by
Coby who wanted the top spot back.
From there on it seemed like it was going to be a
Coby show as caution after caution and even a red
flag Coby led. Then with only fourteen circuits to
go, Preece made his way by Coby and never looked
back. He stayed in the lead after one more late
caution and crossed the finish line first to capture
his first ever Stafford Motor Speedway Spring
Sizzler win.
 Preece
was all smiles and overjoyed with the win. He was so
excited he pulled up to the starter stand to get the
checkered flag and when he went to spin the tires he
dropped part of the #6 modified's drive train. He
then sat there stranded as he waited to be towed to
Victory Lane. “I do not even know what to say to be
honest with you” Preece said after drinking the milk
and donning the flowers. “It was a long hard run.
That is all that I have to say.”
Preece has taken the responsibility of working
fulltime on the #6 modified to better understand the
car that is under him. “I am now working full time
on this race car. I have learned a lot about race
cars over the past few year,” confessed Preece. “I
said to my father that I want to be in control. I
really have to thank my father, Jeff Preece, and
Mike Paquette. They have taught me so much growing
up and I am so excited that I can apply it.”
After trailing Doug Coby by three seconds, what was
your strategy? “Beat him!” Said Preece jokingly. “He
had the car to beat the first half and the next 30
to 40 laps just played right into my hand.”
“I have to thank Eddie and Connie Partridge for
believing in me and let me drive this TA2 car, all
my sponsors and Shawn Waddell for being a great
spotter.”
 After
dominating most of the race Coby had to settle for a
second place finish. Two of his pit stops were not
kind to him. The one where he stalled and a second
one where the soft tire he took did not grow as he
needed it to for the race end.
“I could not do it without my guys. They are a great
team and we will be back in the hunt. The right rear
tire never came up on the second set so we were way
shy on the stagger. The track had so much rubber on
it that we were never going to fight through it.”
Coby expressed after the race ended.
“We survived all those restarts on the end. The
series has proven in the last two races that late
race restarts do not work really well with all of
us. It was good to see that there were only minor
wrecks so everybody can go forward to Langley.” So
with a second place finish at Stafford was not a win
but a great recovery for Coby after Thompson’s bad
luck at race start.
Chase Dowling of Roxbury, CT, started the race fifth
and was a top contender for most of the 200 laps. He
had come hot off of a 40 lap SK Modified win earlier
in the day and was ready to challenge the leaders in
the NWMT race.
 This
year Dowling has moved to the seat of the #15, Rob
Fuller owned modified. “We had a good run with the
#15 team. We were fast in practice an d then
something happened in qualifying but we came back
with a big rebound.” Dowling said about his day.
“All and all we had a great race and a huge gain
from last week. The crew and I were better. We
stayed on the lead lap. There were a lot of wrecks
at the end and I was trying to keep my nose clean. I
got out in front of them and go forward.”
With an SK win and third place NWMT finish Dowling
was having one of the best racing days of his life.
“Today was a dream day. I was sitting in my seat
during a caution thinking that things were going too
good to be true. And then I was just waiting for
something to happen. The team had a phenomenal
weekend and I cannot thank my sponsors enough. Now I
am going to have to prove myself in the tour this
season.“
So the forty-sixth Spring Sizzler at Stafford Motor
Speedway comes to an end with Ryan Preece and Chase
Dowling both living their dream. The NASCAR Whelen
Modified Tour will returns to the track at Langley
Speedway on May 13. Please join us there for more
racing as we continue to watch racers live their
fantasies on the track.
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Source:
Denise DuPont /
TheChromeHorn.com
Posted:
April 30, 2017 |
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