Dresden native Stan Meserve has won points championships at four of Maine’s six tracks.

He is now keeping busy doing the race setups for JR Motorsports in NASCAR’s Nationwide Series. His primary responsibility is the setups for Brad Keselowski in the No. 88, U.S. Navy Chevy.

JR Motorsports is Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s third-year team, but in its first year in association with Hendrick Motorsports.

Meserve and his wife, Dianne, have returned to Maine this week for his “racing vacation” which will be capped by his participation in the Toyota Tundra 250 at Wiscasset Raceway on Sunday.

The 66-year-old Meserve had been preparing Sprint Cup cars at Dale Earnhardt Incorporated until a year ago when he went over to JR Motorsports at Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s request.

“I’m doing exactly the same thing I did at DEI,” said Meserve.

One of the differences is that he is having a much better time at JR Motorsports.

“I wasn’t having a good time at DEI. It got old,” said Meserve.

Second-year Nationwide Series driver Keselowski is having a great year. He is second in points with a win, eight top fives and 14 top 10s in 24 races.

He trails Sprint Cup regular Clint Bowyer by 128 points.

“I’m real happy. Things are going good. They treat us well. This has been a real good fit. We’re happy campers,” said Meserve, who has been impressed with his 24-year-old driver.

“All he wants to do is race and do well. He’s focused. I liked him right off the bat. He’s a racer and he’s from a racing family,” said Meserve, who raced in the Sprint Cup Series in 1968, finishing 26th in points.

Meserve is looking forward to climbing back into a race car this weekend.

He will drive for P.T. Watts, who owned the car he used to drive when he was racing in Maine.

Meserve has won track championships at Hermon’s Speedway 95, Wiscasset Raceway, Oxford Plains Speedway and Unity Raceway and he said he has always enjoyed racing at Wiscasset.

“It’s a nice track. I’ve raced more there than at any other track. It’s pretty fast,” said Meserve, who ran two races on consecutive nights at Wiscasset last year.

“I finished third on Saturday night and seventh on Sunday,” he said. “We were pretty good [in the big race] on Sunday but the car got tight and I lost spots late in the race.”

Bub Bilodeau and his team from Beech Ridge Motor Speedway in Scarborough are going to help Meserve with his car next weekend.

Meserve feels he can win “if my car is good enough.

“That’s a heckuva’ answer isn’t it?,” quipped Meserve. “I’ll have plenty of car. I’m not going in with any deficiencies. We just have to get it balanced right.”

Benjamin wins first PASS race

Travis Benjamin’s ascension in the Pro All-Stars Series Super Late Model North tour was missing one important achievement.

Not any more.

Benjamin, who has been a tour regular for four years after running eight races apiece in 2003 and 2004, won his first-ever series race Saturday night when he took the checkered flag in the Atlantic Cat 250 at Scotia Speedworld in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

Benjamin has had several top three finishes in his career but had never earned a trip to victory lane.

Benjamin beat four-time series points champion Ben Rowe of Turner across the finish line.

“It felt good,” said Benjamin. “It has been a while coming, We’ve been close so many times. There are so many ways to lose a race and I think we found every single one of them. We finally sealed the deal.

“It’s a relief. It’s a big load off our shoulders,” added the 29-year-old former Belfast High School standout point guard.

Benjamin led the first 50 laps and then dropped back to save his brakes. He and Rowe each pitted twice with the second stop occurring with 70 laps left.

“That was the difference. We each had fresher tires,” said Benjamin who, along with Rowe, forged to the front with 40 laps to go.

Benjamin had to battle lapped traffic and the surging Rowe to earn the win.

“This is a thrill. My family has worked so hard for so many years,” said Benjamin who also credited his crew and his long-time sponsors, Canadian-based Irving, for sticking with him.

“This gives us huge momentum and confidence. Now I know I can win,” added Benjamin who remained second in points behind Rowe.

His previous best points finish has been sixth, something he has accomplished twice including last year.

John Flemming of Halifax was third in the Atlantic Cat 250 and rounding out the top 10 were Turner’s Mike Rowe, Adam Bates of Atkinson, N.H., Marty Prevost of Fall River, Nova Scotia, Hallowell’s Johnny Clark, Parsonsfield’s Trevor Sanborn, D.J. Shaw of Center Conway, N.H., and Mike MacKenzie of Dartmouth, Nova Scotia.

lmahoney@bangordailynews.net

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