OXFORD – You couldn’t see it Sunday night but a huge monkey came off Ben Rowe’s shoulders and melted into the summer night.

The Turner driver took convincing advantage on the final three restarts to fight off Steve Knowlton and 2001 winner Gary Drew to win the 30th Annual True Value 250 at Oxford Plains Speedway Sunday.

It was his first win in the short track event. He has a pair of second-place finishes, but that was probably not what the 28 year old was most known for.

“I ran out of gas in ’96,” said Rowe. ” I went to Florida and people down there knew I had run out of gas. The prestige behind this race is huge.”

It would be bad enough at just that, but consider he is following in the footsteps of his two-time winning father, Mike, and it just adds more pressure.

By the driver’s own admission, this long race was the toughest to win. With a final caution on Lap 247, even Rowe had his doubts.

“With three to go I thought ‘man I’m in trouble,'” said Rowe. “I got on the radio and told them I don’t think I can hold them off. Brian, my crew chief, said that I was 3/4 beat already. If you don’t think you can beat them they’re gonna beat you. He told me to step up.”

For Rowe, despite quite a bit of success in other races at OPS and real success on the PASS tour, the 250 remained the ultimate gem.

“I’ve been coming here since I was nine watching my dad,” said the driver. “To win this race is to beat the best drivers in the northeast.”

Patience played a major role in the win as the No. 00 car started on the pole and finished first. There was plenty of time in the middle where he wasn’t the rabbit everyone else was chasing.

“My dad always said it’s better to be the hunter than the hunted. I was content to sit back. I wasn’t worried. One of the advatages of the PASS series and other long races is that I am more comfortable with how my car will react to longer races. I am much more confident in what I know I will be able to get out of it. The short feature racers can do well in long runs but the experience of long races pays off.”

The win marks the Rowes as the only father-son winners in the history of the race.

As Rowe celebrated in victory lane and received the trophy that will now bear his name as well as his dad’s, someone slipped him a cell phone. As he talked on it, there were tears in his eyes.

“My mom watched me run out of gas in ’96,” said Rowe. “She told me she would never come to another one after that. Someone handed me the phone and I got to tell her I won the 250. It was the greatest thrill.”

pmullen@sunjournal.com

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