Maine drivers filled out field at Oxford 250

If there was one definite trend at the Oxford True Value 250 it was the heavy Maine influence.

Sixty-two of the 86 entrants and 35 of the 41 qualifiers for the 28th annual event were in-state drivers.

Windham’s Gary Drew was the sixth consecutive Maine driver to claim the checkered flag after a string of three Canadian drivers had triumphed in 1993 (Junior Hanley), 1994 (Derek Lynch) and 1995 (Dave Whitlock).

Unity’s Ralph Nason, who had won the previous three, Turner’s Mike Rowe and Scarborough’s Larry Gelinas were the others during the string.

The race no longer attracts big-name drivers from all over the east coast like it used to.

“It has become more of a regional race than it was 10 years ago,” said Oxford Plains Speedway owner and general manager Bill Ryan. “Twelve years ago, you could give a Winston Cup guy a case of beer and $1,000 to haul his car up and run this race. Not any more. Now to get Dale [Earnhardt] Jr. to sign autographs up here for an hour would cost you $20,000. And it goes up from there. Jeff Gordon would get a lot more than that.

“You don’t get many Winston Cup drivers running other [non-Winston Cup] races any more. And why would a Busch South driver race here when they can make 10 grand signing autographs somewhere else?,” Ryan said.

“I certainly would like to get more New England guys but Maine pro stock guys have bigger engines and are allowed to do a lot more with their cars than they are in southern New England. So the southern New England drivers don’t feel they can come up here and run [competitively],” said Ryan.

Ryan said another reason there aren’t as many drivers from other parts of the country is his unwillingness to offer any guarantees.

“I had an inquiry from a guy in Florida this year who said if he hauled his car all the way up here, what would I do to make sure he got into the show. I said ‘nothing.’ He was going to be on the same page with everybody else. I want to be fair to everybody. I couldn’t give Jeff Gordon a provisional. He isn’t a past [Oxford True Value 250] champion and isn’t in the [weekly] Oxford points hunt,” said Ryan, who added that he was aware that provisionals were guaranteed to big-name drivers in the past to entice them to run the race.

The implementation of the new tire rule went well, according to Ryan.

Drivers had to keep the racing tires they purchased at the track on the premises until 8 a.m. Sunday, the day of the race.

They had to be in plain sight outside their trailers.

This was designed to prevent drivers from doctoring their tires to gain an unfair advantage.

“We wanted everyone to be on a level playing field. It was a massive undertaking to keep a watch over 900 tires. We had guards in front of three tents around the clock. The tires to be used in the race had a custom brand and two people knew what they looked like,” said Ryan. “But everything went flawlessly. We didn’t hear any complaints.”

Ryan said he had no choice but to implement a tire rule.

“It has been building up over time. People were going to extraordinary lengths to cheat with their tires. If they put the time and effort into their own businesses that they put into fooling around with their tires, they would be independently wealthy,” said Ryan.

Winner Drew and runner-up Scott Robbins of Dixfield applauded the move.

“Being able to soften your tires [by using chemicals] isn’t racing. You should have to work on your race cars [to improve your chances of success],” said Drew.

Robbins said, “The fast cars are still going to be fast but they aren’t going to be as dominant.”

Ryan was thankful the weather cooperated and they had good attendance.

He said he felt “rich for two days” before he sat down and wrote out the checks.

The payoffs range from $25,000 to the winner to $1,200 for last place (41st). In addition, drivers receive $100 for every lap they lead.

Some drivers mentioned that the track should be re-paved because it has gotten progressively slower.

Ryan said they shouldn’t hold their breaths waiting for that to happen.

“They’re all running on the same track. If it’s slowing down, it’s slowing down for everybody,” said Ryan. “The problem is they all want to be as fast as they can be. It’s a silly complaint. The track is in good shape. There’s no problem with the surface.

“I did look at getting it paved and the estimate I received was $300,000. That’s so incredibly high. I never bothered to get another estimate after that. Besides, if you have it paved, you only have one groove for a couple of years. You can’t pass with one groove,” said Ryan.