Three races. Three winners. No lead changes.
The Busch North series arrived Thursday at New Hampshire International Speedway in Loudon with an infamous record this season – each race winner has led every lap from green flag to checkered.
“Everybody in the series is disappointed,” said Andy Santerre, the three-time reigning series champion from Cherryfield.
“You won’t see that at New Hampshire. It’s a bigger track. We have to make a pit stop. And we’re using the old tires.”
Santerre blames the parade to the finish line on the new tires from Goodyear that the Busch North series is now using. The tires have performed too well. The harder rubber does not wear out, which has saved teams money. The downside, though, is that the tire has less grip on the track, making passing extremely difficult.
“There’s actually good racing going on up front,” Santerre said. “There’s a lot of side-by-side racing, but no one can pass.”
That has hurt Santerre, who has aggressively challenged the race leaders, only to record two frustrating second-place finishes.
With the series moving to one of the two superspeedways on the circuit, the softer tires will be back on the cars at NHIS. While teams may encounter problems with tire wear, the drivers should have enough grip to feel comfortable riding in a second groove that would allow passing.
Santerre, currently third in the points standings, nearly didn’t race this year. When his former car owner Joe Bessey of Rangeley pulled out of the series, Santerre was left unemployed. But the three-time Busch North defending champion and the 1998 Busch Series rookie of the year, was quickly scooped up by Steve and Peg Griswold of Freeport, the owners of Grizco Racing.
They hired Santerre as the team’s general manager, not as a driver, but to oversee the cars of Busch North regulars Brad Leighton and Mike Stefanik. This partnership of racing rivals formed a Grizco super team, not unlike Jack Roush’s operation in Nextel Cup.
The team uprooted itself from its Vermont-based operation and settled at Santerre’s successful shop in North Carolina.
Santerre’s duties soon multiplied.
“I was looking for a job, and Steve asked me to run his operation,” Santerre said. “In the middle of February he decided he wanted me to race and added a third car. I didn’t plan on racing this year, but (the Griswolds) wanted me to run for that fourth title.”
The three drivers have combined for seven Busch North titles and 66 victories.
Calling the first year the toughest, Santerre and his crew of six have had to build all new equipment. Santerre is also responsible for each car’s setup. He admits that it has taken away some of his focus from his own car, “but I’m OK with that,” he said.
Despite the workload, Santerre trails points leader Matt Kobyluck by 37 points, while teammate Stefanik sits in second.
No qualifying
A thunder storm that resulted in a loss of power at the track Thursday canceled qualifying for the Busch North New England 125 race. The first 20 positions were determined by points, with Kobyluck and Stefanik sitting on the front row for today’s race, scheduled to start at 5 p.m.
Drivers did get in one practice session earlier in the day, with Scarborough’s Ryan Moore leading the way at 125.865 mph, followed by Stefanik and Ted Christopher. Santerre was 15th fastest.
The session proved costly for Tracy Gordon of Strong. He reportedly found oil on Turn 3 and baked into the outside wall. The damage forced the team to withdraw from the race.
Opportunity for Moore
This is a big weekend for Ryan Moore, who won his first Busch North race last weekend. Under contract to Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s team DEI, Moore is making his Busch series debut Saturday in the No. 81 car Earnhardt drove once earlier this year. Tony Eury Sr. will serve as his crew chief. Moore plans another five or six Busch starts in 2005.
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