January 24, 2008 6:00 AM
This weekend, nearly 100 top-notch short-track drivers from all over are expected to travel to Lakeland, Fla., for the two races of SpeedFest 2008.
The three-day event at USA International Speedway is made up of a headlining 200-lap Super Late Model feature and a crate-engine Late Model feature. Drivers from the South and Midwest will make up most of the entry list, but there will also be five drivers with ties to Maine racing.
2007 PASS North champion Ben Rowe and his father, Mike — the 2006 PASS South champion — will both make the trip south from their homes in Turner. Cassius Clark from Farmington will be going as well, as will Beech Ridge Motor Speedway Pro Series regular D.J. Shaw and Boothbay native Corey Williams, who is now living in the Charlotte, N.C., area.
The good news for Maine racing fans is that each of those five drivers stands a strong chance of winning the race and bringing bragging rights back home.
For the drivers though, it is just another chance at winning against some tough competition.
“It’s a big deal in a way, but it doesn’t matter much to me,” said Clark. “It really doesn’t matter to me if I’m racing in the north, south or the west. I just want to run up front.
“It is good for the people back home to watch and follow though. For a long time, people have been saying that the guys up north can’t win down south. But we have all been doing a pretty good job keeping up lately.”
Of course, there is a little fun to be had with the rivalry.
“Everyone thinks that the north and south are rivals, so it is fun to play into that and duke it out at SpeedFest,” said Williams.
Racing against such a diverse group of drivers is both a challenge and an opportunity, depending on where a driver stands in his racing career.
For Shaw, who is still just a teenager, getting to go wheel to wheel with a new set of drivers is a learning experience.
“It’s good competition from all across the country and seat time is what I need,” he said. “I didn’t have a great year last year (at Beech Ridge) and we started to turn things around at the end of the year. So now I’m just looking for seat time. I’m excited to go down there.”
For a driver like Clark, who has already won two major races down south — including the 2006 Mason-Dixon Meltdown — racing the best of the best is a chance to chase after a big victory. He’s not concerned about the different styles of drivers from different regions either.
“Everyone races fine,” said Clark. “You learn who you are racing against and there is some give and take, just like anywhere. Most of the guys who go to SpeedFest have been there before and they know how to race. Hopefully, though, I won’t be racing with any of them and I’ll be running up front by myself. That doesn’t happen very much though.”
Among the drivers entering this year’s version of SpeedFest are two household names in racing. NASCAR Sprint Cup drivers Kyle Busch and David Stremme are both towing their own Super Late Models to the race to break up their offseasons. That extra added star power helps to make SpeedFest an even bigger event.
“We are really excited to have Kyle and David entering this year’s race,” said SpeedFest co-promoter Glenn Luckett. “Kyle is starting to really give back to the sport. I think that they will help to pack the stands at SpeedFest.
“I think that this has definitely become one of the high points to kicking off the season. There is no other racing going on right now and the teams are itching to race. The quality of drivers entering the event just gets better and better every year, and I think that this time there will be 35 drivers there who are capable of winning the Super Late Model race.”
SpeedFest 2008 practice begins today, with qualifying races set for Friday and the feature events set for Saturday night.
And if these things happen you must call 3 times in a row and hang up or I won’t know that it’s important and just ignore your call. lol I’m kidding…okay I’m not kidding but oh well, it’s a small price to pay for NASCAR 
