It is 158 miles one-way from Center Conway, New Hampshire, to Hermon, Maine.
But the trip was well worth it for Center Conway native D.J. Shaw, whose six trips to Hermon’s Ricky Craven Speedway presented by Bar Harbor Bank and Trust this season produced four victories, including the inaugural Bar Harbor Bank and Trust 200 pro stock race on Sunday.
Shaw, who said he has always enjoyed the track, earned a PASS Super Late Model North Series win in 2018.
But after a 2019 race, the PASS SLM North Series never returned.
Former NASCAR Cup Series driver and two-time winner Craven from Newburgh bought the track from long-time owner Del Merritt 14 months ago and reinstituted the Pro Stock class, which represents the fastest and most expensive stock cars at this level.
The Late Model class had been the top class at the speedway for the last several years but it is a notch below the pro stocks.
Craven established a seven-race series on six dates. There were twin 50-lap races on July 12.
Shaw, who had two seconds and a third in the other three races, captured the series championship followed closely by Gray’s Austin Teras, who won the other three races and also posted a second, two fourths and a ninth.
Craven made several improvements to the track as part of a $5 million renovation he will oversee over several years.
“It’s a good atmosphere. The buzz is good. People are excited about Ricky reviving a place that didn’t look like it had much of a future a year ago,” said the 36-year-old Shaw, son of New England Auto Racers Hall of Famer Dale Shaw. “He has the fan support, he has the car support. Everything is on the up-and-up.”
Shaw turned in an impressive performance on Sunday.
He won the pole but they made one mistake before the race by not getting the right front tire tight enough, which meant he had to make an unscheduled pit stop just 15 laps into the race.
Following the pit stop, Shaw and his Ford were hovering around 25th place.
“That changed the complexion of the race for us,” Shaw said. “It became more of a come-from-behind kind of deal.”
There was a mandatory caution scheduled for lap 80. But a natural caution occurred on lap 77 so that served as the mandatory caution.
“We were able to climb from the mid-20s to fifth by the break and that enabled us to stick to the plan as far as not having to make anything happen. We had recovered at that point,” said Shaw, who took the lead for good with 46 laps to go.
Craven said Shaw is a very gifted racer.
“He is a generational talent in New England,” said Craven, who added that Teras is also a top-notch driver.
Durham’s Evan Beaulieu was second and Stetson’s Mathew Bourgoine finished third with Teras and Windham’s Cole Robie completing the top five in the 28-car field.
Casey Call of Pembroke, New Hampshire, wound up sixth and rounding out the top 10 were Joey Doiron from Berwick, Lonnie Somerville from Barnesville, New Hampshire, Ryan Deane from Winterport and Jamie Wright from Woolwich.
There were several other races during the three days of racing that concluded Craven’s first year as the owner.
The Crown Vic class involved three 33-lap races and the driver with the best results in the three races earned the championship.
Frankfort’s Joey Doyon posted finishes of second, third and fourth to claim the title.
Wiscasset’s Kevin Sherman was second with finishes of second, fifth and eighth, and third was Lily Smith of Hermon, who had two thirds and an 11th.
Smith is the granddaughter of Bangor’s Gary Smith, who won pro stock races at all of the state’s tracks, including Scarborough’s Beech Ridge Motor Speedway, which closed in 2021.
Completing the top 10 were Hermon’s Steve Kimball, Detroit’s Chandler Myrick, Corinth’s Lloyd Nickerson, Liberty’s Josh St. Clair, Hudson’s Donny Silva, Winterport’s Fred Brown and Glenburn’s Talon Blanchard.
In the 100-lap Super Street-Street Stock Open, Jimmy Renfrew Jr. of Candia, New Hampshire, took the checkered flag with Max Dolliver of Londonderry, New Hampshire, and Ryan Robinson of Clinton joining him on the podium.
Finishing fourth and fifth were Isaac Rollins of Hudson and Corey Fanning of Mapleville, Rhode Island, respectively.
The sixth through 10th-place finishers were Keith Drost from Stetson, Shane Tatro from Levant, Scott Modery from Hermon, Jeff Alley from Machias and Andrew Turbovsky from Albion.
In the 25-lap Super-Street-Street Stock Open, Robinson captured the win followed by Thorndike’s Jordan Pearson, Renfrew Jr., Drost, Wiscasset’s Tiger Colby, Gorham’s Dan McKeage Sr., Modery, Sanford’s Adam Lovejoy and Hollis’ Mike St. Pierre.
None of the other cars in the 16-car field finished the race.
Lincoln’s Brock Worster collected the win in the 50-lap Road Runners race followed by Etna’s Nick Bickford, Newburgh’s Mark Sawyer, Hampden’s Erik Worster, Etna’s Waylon Giguere, Bangor’s Derek Smith, Hermon’s Andrew Crosby, Appleton’s Karigan Glasier, Bucksport’s David Boulier and Newcastle’s James Grover Jr.
Kyle Robinson won the 50-lap Sport 4’s race and seven others finished the race with Nick Miller of Berlin, New Hampshire, in second place followed by Brownville’s Roy Hathorn, Hudson’s Mason Silva, Rome’s Wyatt Dipietro, Norridgewock’s Ricky Austin, Milo’s Josh Dillon and Vassalboro’s Kalib Bernatchez.
The 20-lap Vintage race had Woolwich’s James Osmond and Adam Chadbourne taking the top two spots followed by Tim Reynolds of Milford, Donnie Young of Fredericton, New Brunswick, Kris Watson of Kenduskeag, Jamie Young of Hancock, Keith Smalley of Warren, Nick Overlock of Warren and Barrett Ayer of LaGrange.
Just three finished the 20-lap Northeast Pro Sprint Series feature with Lamoine’s Aaron Carter, Hancock’s Gary Dow and Milford’s Mike Headd placing in that order.