Changes mark Dragway’s opening

A new track manager, a new tower, and a new image will be on display Sunday when Winterport Dragway opens for the season.

Time trials begin at 9 a.m.

Bangor’s Derrick Cunningham will be the track manager, replacing Dave Cookson; the new tower will house the computer system, the public address announcer, and a storage room for track equipment, and there are also other improvements to the facility.

“We want to clean up our image. It’s a new-look Winterport Dragway,” said the 28-year-old Cunningham. “The tower gives us a strong appearance. We’ll lose that gypsy look we had in the past when we had to take a trailer out every week [to compile the results]. Now we’ll have a permanent structure. We’ve also put down a new starting line and we’ve put the wires to the [starting] lights underground. We used to run them up over the track.”

The improvements have cost $25,000-$30,000, according to Cunningham. The money was raised through donations and has also come out of the pockets of the 11 owners.

“I have real high expectations for this year with the improvements they’ve made,” said Harmony’s Barney Ryan, the defending champ in the pro eliminator class.

Ryan feels the tower is a positive addition and the new concrete launching pads “will help us get off the starting line.”

Dover-Foxcroft’s Tim Huff, one of the owners and the defending champ in the super pro eliminator class, said, “We received a lot of volunteer help from our racers. We’re really pleased. We’re hoping to provide a more consistent product that is more crowd-pleasing.”

Ryan said the improvements will help them attract new sponsors.

“I’ve picked up new sponsors for my own team [Ryan and Cunningham race team], so I’m sure the track will be able to do the same,” said Ryan, who considers Cunningham a good choice for track manager.

Cunningham was the manager for the Ryan and Cunningham race team a year ago.

“He’s young. He knows a lot about racing and that makes a big difference,” said Ryan.

There will be four classes of racing over the ?-mile track, including two divisions of the street eliminator bracket: experienced and beginner.

The street class is comprised of street legal cars like the basic everyday family car. The only criteria is they need to have passed state inspection.

“This class is an opportunity to attract a larger number of racers and it’s a cheaper way of racing. They don’t have to dump a lot of money into their cars. The gas is cheaper and they don’t need to run with slicks [racing tires],” said Cunningham. “It’s like the minor leagues. Hopefully, it will whet their appetites so they’ll move up to the pro eliminator and then the super pro eliminator class.”

Those two classes and the street classes are joined on the docket by the motorcycle-snowmobile eliminator class.

Bud Atwater of Cherryfield is the defending points winner in the motorcycle-snowmobile class.

Cunningham said the goals for this season are “to provide a safe racing environment and increase participation and attendance. Everybody will be required to have helmets and seat belts, even in the street division.”

There has been testing and tuning the last two weekends and Cunningham said they had 116 vehicles pass technical inspection.

“That’s a very good number for us. That’s one of our best,” said Cunningham, who anticipates over 50 cars in the street eliminator division and 20-30 in the other three classes.