Busy season looms for New England racers

At this time there are 54 confirmed races in New England, central and western New York, New Jersey, Virginia and South Carolina.

Canton's Richard Savary had planned to enter the  March 30 PASS Modified Open race at the Richmond International Raceway in Virginia, but has since had a change of heart.

"I don't have a suitable motor for that track, so right now we are passing it up," said the local Modified driver.

 That local team will have plenty of other races from which to choose. At this time there are 54 confirmed races in New England, central and western New York, New Jersey, Virginia and South Carolina. There could also be another five more pavement Modified races added to that total at the Lancaster Speedway in western New York. All of those events will be taking place in a 30-week season

 Elsewhere:

Thompson Speedway is going to open the 2019 racing season on the weekend of April 5-7. That track is adding Sk Modified Lights to its 10-race schedule. That three-day event is known as the Icebreaker and it has officially kicked off the racing season for many decades.

The World of Wheels auto show is scheduled for the weekend of March 22-24 at the Boston Seaport. That show traditionally draws lots of fans over the three days as well as some New England racing venues such as New England Dragway in Epping, N.H., and New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon, N.H.

 Boston's Caz Gralar has been hired by Richard Childress Racing to drive a NASCAR Xfinity race car, commencing with the upcoming race at the Texas Motor Speedway. Grala has driven a family car in the Xfinity Series, owned by his father Darius Grala, with some strong finishes. Previous to that, Caz recorded a win in a NASCAR Truck at Daytona a few years back.

 The New London-Waterford Speedbowl in Connecticut is undergoing some major construction efforts. The old grandstands have been ripped down and new ones are replacing them. The Saturday night track will host three American Modified Opens this coming season under the aegis of race engine builder Bobby Carrita of Somerset.

 Needham's Steve Rubin, food concessionaire of long standing, has offered his services to other New England racing venues. Currently he's working with Thompson Speedway in Connecticut and Star Speedway. Rubin comes from a long line of track concessionaires. His late uncle, Harry Oxman, performed the same duties at many New England ovals starting in the late 1940s until he retired about two decades ago.

 Information for this column came from press releases and personal notes.