Eddie Mac Finishes 22nd In Nationwide Debut

Story by Amanda Leach

Memphis, TN - Who would have thought Memphis, Tennessee, would have been cold, windy and bitter in late October? Memphis Motorsports Park has been host to the Nationwide series for the past 11 years. This year's event, “Kroeger on Track for the Cure 250,” was a caution-filled event allowing nearly every car in the field to be involved in at least one altercation. Successor of the charade was Brad Keselowski who battled against Kyle Bush in a nail-biting finish.

Every race fan loves a close finish but, the real standout story of the weekend was of a small startup team from Maine. Go Green Racing and car owner Archie St.Hilaire decided the standalone event at Memphis, would be the perfect opportunity to try out the new Nationwide car he recently purchased. Now that St.Hilaire had the car, all he needed was a driver, a team and a hauler. He explored his options and eventually found a group of great guys eager to crew the car, so he rented a hauler and then found one of the most talented drivers in New England to wheel the car.

Eddie MacDonald has been driving in the now Camping World East series for the past 10 years. While being a part of the East series he has raced with some prominent drivers and has seen plenty of people move on to bigger things; and now it was his turn.

Eddie MacDonald has accumulated many wins, pole awards and other notable achievements over the later part of his career. One of the highlight moments was when he brought his # 17 late model to victory lane at the 36th annual TD Bank 250 at Oxford Plains Speedway this past summer. This race in particular is a challenge and has been won by some of the best drivers in the country including Sprint Cup driver Kevin Harvick. The way MacDonald drove at the TD Bank 250 was aggressive in the sense he brought his car to the third groove at OPS not once but many times. Who knew OPS had a third groove? When MacDonald was asked if he was going to find the third groove at Memphis, he just chuckled and said “not this weekend.”

As MacDonald and his crew rolled the # 39 Go Green Race car off the hauler, no one really knew what to expect. In the first practice the # 39 Ford was 44th quick and only gained a couple spots as they headed out late in the second practice.

Qualifying day came with much anxiety; the task was to make it in the show; even if it was the last spot on the starting grid. There was intensity in the pit area with the crew guys hustling to make last minute adjustments. With breathes held at home and at the track, the # 39 Go Green Race car rolled off pit road to make its best effort to qualify. After the time was turned a huge sigh of relief was let out because MacDonald made the show. He not only made the show, he qualified 27th ahead of many high dollar teams. High fives were exchanged; St.Hilaire was beaming and said “I’m glad the kid’s in the show, he deserves this.” St.Hilaire maintained his glow all day long. It was the first sunny day since the team had been in Memphis and he had a car that was starting mid pack in its first Nationwide race.

If you didn’t watch it on TV, the “Kroeger on Track for the Cure 250” was a survival of the fittest event. The race could have gone either way; it could have been a dual caution race with only six cars finishing on the lead lap, like the year before. Or it could have shown characteristics of most small tracks and been a wreck fest. Unfortunately, luck was not on MacDonald’s side. He was involved in multiple incidents, all in which were not his fault. If there was one thing MacDonald had it was patience. He stuck out the race with a tore up car that was still competing in the top 20. As the car was being loaded up MacDonald jokingly said, “Geesh, I hit everything but the push truck out there!” Although he was a little hung up on how much he damaged the car; St. Hilaire was still in high spirits saying, “We started the race in the top 30 and we came home with a 22nd place finish, that’s something to be proud of.”

Taking into consideration all the factors-a new car owner, a crew chief new to the series, a driver new to the series and a hodgepodge crew- what the Go Green Race team accomplished is very admirable. And on top of it all, these guys didn’t have an extensive budget like the rest of the teams in the pit area.

All-in-all Eddie MacDonald has competed in his first Nationwide series race and survived. What’s next for this rising star? There is speculation you may see him on the grid at the last Nationwide event of the season at Homestead Miami Speedway. Stay tuned.
 

EDDIE MAC TO ATTACK MEMPHIS IN NATIONWIDE SERIES

Go Green Racing, Inc and Eddie MacDonald of Rowley,MA are pleased to announce that MacDonald will be driving the Go Green Racing #39 at Memphis Motorsports Park on October 24, 2009 in the “Kroger on the Track for a Cure 250” sponsored by The Kroger Company, a retail grocery chain.

Go Green President and owner of the # 38 Camping World East Series team, Archie St. Hilaire, says “We are very happy to have Eddie driving the #39 car for us at Memphis. There will be many challenges for both the team and driver as we both step up to the second highest form of motorsports in the country. We purchased a Ford Fusion Nationwide car a couple of months ago and have been preparing the car down at our Mooresville, N.C . shop to enter a few Nationwide races before the end of the season to see if it is where we want to be for next season. We originally wanted Eddie to race at Richmond in September but agreed that he should focus on winning the Camping World East Championship this season for the first time in his career. This would be a huge plus for us going into Memphis and beyond.”

Buddy Desrocher will be the crew chief of the 39 car headed to Memphis and will be assisted by Eddie’s crew chief Rollie Lachance, who has lead Eddie to many wins over his career including the coveted “Oxford 250” this summer at Oxford Speedway in Oxford, ME along with two wins last year at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.

Eddie is excited about making the move up to the next level saying, “This is a great opportunity for myself and the Go Green crew to test ourselves against some of the best drivers in the country with Kyle Busch, Carl Edwards, Matt Kenseth, and Dave Gilliland already signed up for the race. Memphis is a fast ¾ mile track that challenges even the best NASCAR drivers. Hopefully after we finish New Hampshire and Dover with high finishes and hopefully the championship, we can concentrate on getting ready for Memphis with a little testing of the car at a short track near Charlotte.”

The #39 car will be sponsored by BBI Waste Industries in Old Orchard Beach, ME . and longtime supporters of Eddie Macdonald Racing, Ken Thompson of Hancock Electric Motor Service of Quincy,Ma. and Ed Dooley from A & B Vending in Canterbury,N. H.

All PR inquiries can be directed to Tobin Trautz of Go Green Racing at 207-229-7239 or ttrautz@gmail.com

Photo by Norm Marx
 

       AUGUSTA, Maine (Jan. 2, 2009) - After a successful 21-year run that brought some of the biggest names in auto racing to central Maine, promoter Tim Attaya is turning over the reigns of his Northeast Motorsports Expo & Trade Show. Held at the Augusta Civic Center every January since 1989, the Northeast Motorsports Expo has become a tradition among northern New England's racing enthusiasts. Effective at the conclusion of this year's 21st annual show, the event will be managed and run by well known and respected motorsports personality Steve Perry.
       Perry, of Windham, Maine, is best known as the host of "Mainely Motorsports," a weekly television show on Time Warner Cable that showcases all forms of motorsports action. Racing insiders also know Perry from his days as half of the famed SP2 Motorsports team, for which Maine racing legend Mike Rowe drove with great success on the Pro All Stars Series.
       Attaya and wife Cathy have been synonymous with the Augusta show since they founded it over two decades ago. Unlike other racing-related shows, Attaya chose to include all forms of racing vehicles in his event, bringing in everything from vintage and current stocks cars, pulling tractors, motocross bikes, drag cars, snowmobiles and go-karts. If it had an engine and raced within Maine, New Hampshire or even Vermont, Attaya welcomed it to the show.
       At the official announcement, Attaya spoke with passion about his "baby," and how much he enjoyed the show despite the countless hours of work involved to put it on. He talked about his choice for a successor and what it meant to host the unofficial kickoff to each new year of short track excitement.
       "I had three possible buyers for the show," explained Attaya. "I chose Steve because I felt he would do the most with it. He's ambitious, has good ideas and has a good working knowledge of the sport. I had 21 great years, thanks to a lot of help from a host of dedicated sponsors, staff and fans. I wish Steve all the best in the future and feel confident he will take the show to new heights."
       Attaya says planning for each year’s show was time-consuming, but also led to many lasting friendships from people involved in the sport. The show became a big part of his life, but he will cherish the memories from those many weekends in the Civic Center.
       "It was very rewarding for me see the reactions from fans when meeting big-name drivers. We were lucky to have had some of the sport’s biggest heroes come up here to Maine. Fans loved it, and I enjoyed seeing them smile when getting an autograph or taking a photo."
       Perry has been a life-long race fan and has years of experience in various aspects of the sport. Just prior to the announcement of this venture, he spoke about the vision he has for the show and how he hopes to rejuvenate this once-prestigious annual gathering.
       "I was honored when Tim approached me to see if I was interested in taking over the show," Perry said. “I know what he put into it for 21 years, and he didn't want just anybody at the helm. I'm excited about this opportunity to not only continue a great motorsports tradition, but to bring back the excitement this show once had by making it attractive to national racers, their sponsors and of course more fans."
       Perry says Attaya's philosophy of including all forms of racing vehicles and displays is similar to that of his television show. That philosophy will not change under the direction of SP2 Promotions.
       "I feel the inclusion of all types of racing into the show has always worked. It keeps it interesting for fans and racers from all those groups. Our goals for the first couple of years are to enhance the displays, add new vendors and try to bring in a national star people will want to come see. It will take time and money to achieve these goals, but with hard work to attract new sponsors and build momentum, I believe we can bring this show back to where it was during its heyday."
       The dates for the 22nd annual Northeast Motorsports Expo & Trade Show were also announced here Friday. The show will be held on Jan. 8-10, 2009. To stay informed throughout 2009 regarding news and plans, visit the show’s Web site at www.northeastmotorsports.net.