OXFORD – Sometimes just qualifying for Maine’s biggest auto race is as much of a challenge as trying to win it.

Many of eastern Maine’s finest pro stock drivers tried to qualify for the TD Banknorth 250 at Oxford Plains Speedway on Sunday, but only a few were good (or lucky) enough to accomplish the feat.

Winterport’s Ryan Deane won the pole for the fifth heat race and held off Alan Wilson of Hebron and St. Denis, Quebec’s Patrick Laperle to win the heat race and advance to the 250, where he started fifth.

“It’s a pretty good [starting] spot,” said Deane, who raced at Speedway 95 in Hermon. “I think we can hold our own on the bottom [groove of the track].”

He went on to finish 18th.

Along with Deane, Corinna’s Paul White made his first Oxford 250 start. White’s car showed damage after contact with Stetson’s Gary Bellefleur, but he wasn’t too concerned.

“It’s beat up but in one piece,” said White, who also is considered a Speedway 95 alum. He finished third in the third consolation race to advance to the main event where he started 33rd.

“We needed that after wrecking in the heat race, but it’s going to be tough trying to stay on the lead lap because we’re starting so far back,” he added.

White had a disappointing day by placing 34th in the 40-car field.

Bellefleur’s day looked more promising than it ended up being.

The Stetson native started on the pole for the sixth heat race, but contact from White knocked him to the rear.

“We got our three laps of glory in the heat race by leading it and then on the next restart it was about over,” said Bellefleur, who raced in the last chance B Main, where only the winner advances to the 250, but he finished one lap down.

“Paul [White] got me there and then [Denny Hamlin] got into [Doug Coombs] in the consolation race and put me out over the bank,” Bellefleur added. “If we got the good jump [in the heat race], I think it would’ve been hard for them to get around me.”

Bangor’s Gary Smith is a three-time veteran of the TD Banknorth 250. His best finish of 18th came back in 1995. He failed to advance from his heat race, but a solid run in the first consolation race put him in the race. He had to pass NASCAR Nextel Cup Rookie of the Year candidate J.J. Yeley to do it.

“It was fun racing with him,” said Smith. “We drove a clean race. He had a good start and then Sammy [Sessions of South Paris] got by me and then J.J. had a little bit of a problem and he just raced us good after that. It was fun.”

He went on to win the consolation race.

The field of veteran drivers was hard to overcome, Smith said.

“That was a good field of cars behind me. I thought my chances of getting into the top three were slim. I figured they would line up on the inside and I wouldn’t be able to get down. But, fortunately I did and it worked out.”

Smith added that his car was tight throughout the day, but he was confident his crew would give him a good car for the 250.

“We have a bunch of guys working on [the car],” he said.

His son Jesse is also part of his crew. “He’s been with me ever since birth. He calls the shots and he knows what he’s doing.”

Smith kept his car clean and out of trouble and ended up eighth of the 19 cars that finished the race.

John Higgins of Bangor had some very good fortune after drawing the pole for the first heat race, but that’s where the good luck would end after he was spun on the second lap.

“We were going into turn 3 and you can’t go into these corners three wide and that’s what happened,” said a disappointed Higgins. “I felt that I had an awesome shot getting in there. I felt like that if I got through that first lap, that we’d would’ve been in there.”

Morrill’s Travis Benjamin stayed up front for most of the race and grabbed a fifth-place finish. Chuck LaChance of Cushing finished 16th, Glenburn’s Scott Alexander was 20th, Newburgh’s Ricky Craven failed to finish and placed 32nd, and Albion’s Scott Lee was 37th.

Jeremie Whorff, 22, of Topsham took the win in his first 250 start. His father, Bill, finished second, and South Paris’ Sam Sessions was third.

Others who attempted to qualify but were unable to make the field included: Kirk Thibeau of Fort Fairfield, Little Deer Isle’s Matt Eaton, Ricky Morse of St. Albans, and Bar Harbor’s John Phippen.