This Saturday September 16th
April Preston
Class of 2023 Announced!
The New England Auto Racers (NEAR) President April May Preston-Elms
is honored and pleased to announce the 2023 NEAR Hall of Fame Class.
The landmark 25th class for the region’s most highly regarded motorsports shrine will be formally inducted into the NEAR Hall of Fame on Sunday, November 5, at the Log Cabin-Delaney House in Holyoke, Massachusetts.
A wide-ranging group of drivers and car owners will join the NEAR Hall of Fame, raising the total to over 275 members enshrined.
Brad Leighton, Ted Marsh, Mike Ordway Sr., Andy Santerre, John Stygar,
and Mike Weeden will be joined in the Hall of Fame, along with Veterans Committee inductees Al Hammond and Joe Howard.
The NEAR White Moutain Motor Sports Park event scheduled for Saturday June 16, 2023 has been canceled due to RAIN!
We look forward to seeing you all at our next event at Seekonk Speedway on Saturday June 24th.
New England Auto Racers are gearing up to hit a venue near you in 2023.
For Immediate Release NEAR-042323-1
The New England Auto Racers (NEAR) have a full schedule set for the 2023 racing season across New England.
The first stop will be at the Northeast Motor Sports Museum located at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon NH, as they kick off their season with the2nd annual New England Racers Reunion: Race Car Show. From there they will hit the track for some fast action at Thunder Road Speedbowl in Barre Vermont on June 15th.
The group is set to make appearances at fourteen different venues across four New England States. The owners of these cars from yester year are anxious to share their gems with you and look forward to seeing everyone at a venue near you this summer.
2023 Event Schedule
Date Day Facility Location Type Start Time Special Notes
6-May Saturday NHMS Museum Concord NH Still/Display Setup: 8 AM
3-Jun Open
15-Jun Thursday Thunder Road Barre VT Running Sign-in: 12 NOON 3 hour track time
17-Jun Saturday White Mountain Speedway No Woodstock NH Running Sign-in: 12 NOON
24-Jun Saturday Seekonk Speedway Seekonk MA. Running Sign in: 1 PM
15-Jul Saturday Northeastern Speedway Waterford VT Still/Parade Sign-in: 8 to 9 AM
22-Jul Saturday Riverside Speedway Groveton NH Running Sign in: 1 PM no carts
5-Aug Saturday Monadnock Speedway Winchester NH Running Sign-in: 3PM
Aug 11-13 Fri-Sun VAE Car Show Waterbury VT Still/Parade Sign-in: 9 AM
19-Aug Saturday Bear Ridge Speedway Bradford VT Still/Parade Sign-in: 12 NOON
25-Aug Friday Claremont Speedway Claremont NH Running Sign-in: 4 PM TENTATIVE
16-Sep Saturday Waterford Speedbowl Waterford CT Running/Display Sign-in: 1 PM
Sept. 23 Saturday Plainville Reunion Berlin Fair CT Display Setup: 8 AM rain date 24th
1-Oct Sunday Westboro, Ma. Reunion Westboro MA Still/Display TENTATIVE
7-Oct Saturday Pines Reunion Groveland MA Display Sign-In: 10 AM
Schedule is subject to change. ALL SHOWS ARE POINTS EVENTS!!
Have a question about any event please contact Rich Goucher at 860/209-7343 or rgoucher@rgoucher@comcast.net
-30-
Contact : Diane Ingerson Email: neantiqueracers@gmail.com
2023 Events Schedule
New England Antique Racers
2023 Event Schedule
Date Day Facility Location Type Start Time Special Notes
6-May Saturday NHMS Museum Concord NH Still/Display Setup: 8 AM
3-Jun Open
15-Jun Thursday Thunder Road Barre VT Running Sign-in: 12 NOON 3 hour track time
17-Jun Saturday White Mountain Speedway No Woodstock NH Running Sign-in: 12 NOON
24-Jun Saturday Seekonk Speedway Seekonk MA. Running Sign in: 1 PM
15-Jul Saturday Northeastern Speedway Waterford VT Still/Parade Sign-in: 8 to 9 AM
22-Jul Saturday Riverside Speedway Groveton NH Running Sign in: 1 PM no carts
5-Aug Saturday Monadnock Speedway Winchester NH Running Sign-in: 3PM
Aug 11-13 Fri-Sun VAE Car Show Waterbury VT Still/Parade Sign-in: 9 AM
19-Aug Saturday Bear Ridge Speedway Bradford VT Still/Parade Sign-in: 12 NOON
25-Aug Friday Claremont Speedway Claremont NH Running Sign-in: 4 PM POSTPONED – LOOKING TO RESCHEDULE IF POSSIBLE
16-Sep Saturday Waterford Speedbowl Waterford CT Running/Display Sign-in: 1 PM
Sept. 23 Saturday Plainville Reunion Berlin Fair CT Display Setup: 8 AM Rain Date Sunday 24
1-Oct Sunday Westboro, Ma. Reunion Westboro MA Still/Display TENTATIVE
7-Oct Saturday Pines Reunion Groveland MA Display Sign-In: 10 AM
Schedule is subject to change. ALL SHOWS ARE POINTS EVENTS!!
Have a question about any event please contact Rich Goucher at 860/209-7343 or rgoucher@rgoucher@comcast.net
2023 Mobile Museum Schedule
New England Antique Racers
Mobile Museum
2023 Event Schedule
Date Day Facility Location Start Time Special Notes
Apr 1&2 Sat-Sun Thompson Speedway Thompson CT Ice-Breaker
16-Aug Wed Thompson Speedway Thompson CT NASCAR Whelan Mod Tour
10-Sep Sun Coventry High School Coventry RI Mike Stefanik Custom Car Show
16-Sep Sat Waterford Speedbowl Waterford CT Nostalgia Night
1-Oct Sun Julio’s Plaza Westborough MA 11:00 AM Westboro Speedway Reunion
Oct 6-8 Fri-Sun Thompson Speedway Thompson CT World Series of Racing
Several more events are being reviewed for addition to the schedule
Updates will be posted on our social media and newsletters
Have a question about any event please contact Museum Chairman Rob Quinn at 401-641-1360
2021 HoF Inductee Jim Haynes passes.
James Edward Haynes was born April 24, 1933 in Port Huron Michigan and died March 2, 2023 in Tampa, Florida. At Port Huron High, Jim not only excelled academically, but was an accomplished athlete, participating in baseball, football, swimming and wrestling. He was accepted to Yale University. After graduating with a B.S. in Industrial Administration in 1955, Jim went to work for IBM in Poughkeepsie and New York City as a Methods Analyst. Already interested in auto racing, Jim began competing as a driver in various races, winning the 1959 SCCA (Sports Car Club of America) National Champion Formula III event. He also won the SCCA National Champion Formula Junior race in 1963. Since IBM would not allow employees to compete professionally, Jim raced under the name “Eddie James.” He left IBM in 1960 to form Lakeville Precision Molding in Lakeville, CT, which he sold in 1964. Car racing had become one of Jim’s primary passions, so when the opportunity arose, he bought controlling interest in Lime Rock Park, a beautiful natural-terrain road racing venue in nearby Lime Rock. He successfully ran the track until its sale in 1984. A seminal event in Jim’s always colorful life occurred in March 1978. He was asked to come to Florida to help revive the “Twelve Hours of Sebring” race which had been dormant for several years. He managed to get the track up to code to qualify as a sanctioned race. At the event itself, the catering for the corporate tents was being provided by Toni Abercrombie’s business, “Eat Your Heart Out.” They met and, as they say, the rest is history. As Jim would proudly say, “Toni has been my 4th wife for 43 years.” After Lime Rock Park, they moved to Denver where Jim was Vice President of Special Projects with the Sports Car Club of America (SCCA). Later (in 1988) Jim became CEO and General Manager of Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin where he stayed until retirement in 2000. Jim was active in the Rotary Club for over 25 years, serving as President in Salisbury, CT and named a Paul Harris Fellow in 1985. In both Connecticut and Wisconsin, he served as President or Member of the Board of Directors in the Chamber of Commerce. In addition to Jim’s passions for Toni and vintage car racing, he also loved to fish and traveled the world to do so. Adventures included the Great Barrier Reef in Australia, the Pacific coast off Cabo San Lucas, the coast of Maui, the River Shannon in Ireland, Sail fishing off Palm Beach and many years in the Keys aboard his and his brother’s sport fisherman, “The Moonraker.” Jim was the personification of a man who lived the life he wanted to live. He lived large. He was a voracious reader, particularly of mysteries, loved good food and not so good wine, unless one considers Corbett Canyon box wine a “good chardonnay.” He is survived by his wife Toni Abercrombie Haynes, four children and nine grandchildren and brother, Alex. Rest in peace, Big Jim, we love you.
Posted online on March 03, 2023
Published in Times Herald
New England Antique Racers elects new slate of offers and first female President for 2023.
New England Antique Racers elects new slate of offers and first female President for 2023.
For Immediate Release NEAR-02272023-1
The New England Antique Racers (NEAR) held it’s annual membership meeting returning to the place just shy one week of 42 years ago where the very first public meeting was held at the Dante Club in West Springfield Ma. It felt good to “be home” with a strong attendance on hand despite mother nature trying to put a damper on the event.
New England Antique Racers was formed and incorporated in January 1981. Over the past forty plus years the following superstars have led this extraordinary club Buddy Krebs, Charlie Stebbins, John Georgiades, Al Fini, Pete Newsham, Doug Farrow, Bob Seller, Val LeSieur, Paul Masse, and Rich Goucher, making it one of a few clubs of this kind that has outlived its life expectancy, and shows no signs, of slowing down.
The purpose of the corporation is to encourage the restoration of antique race cars, display same at racetracks & sporting events, honor outstanding people in the field of automobile racing and develop & foster knowledge of the history of automobile racing in New England among interested individuals and groups as well as the general public. Club functions have included exhibitions at race tracks and auto shows, and the annual Hall of Fame ceremonies where over the past 25 over 200 people of racing significance have been inducted.
2023 sees some new names on the leadership team, and the Board of Directors and club are very enthusiastic about what lies ahead with this team at the helm. The slate of officers was voted in by show of hands and each vote a “landslide”.
Serving for her first term will be Janeen Wernecke as Treasurer. Janeen is a Pharmacist of over 20 years, and is an active member of NEAR, attending the car events at tracks in the area with her partner Jeremy Huntoon who drives one of the Butch Elms and Sting Vintage Race Cars, and she has been instrumental in assisting with the Hall of Fame ceremonies for the past 2 years.
Serving for her second term will be Diane Ingerson as Secretary Diane is an Inventory Control Specialist of over 25 years. She is an active member of NEAR, and heavily involved in antique race car restoration with her husband Scotti Ingerson, Sting Vintage Race Cars. She has also been instrumental in assisting with the Hall of Fame ceremonies for the past 2 years.
Serving for his first term will be Rich Goucher as Vice President, with Vice President Skip Matczak’s request to step down from an officer role of the club President Rich Goucher said he would like to step back to serve in that role. Rich has been a Fourslide Setup/Tool Repair at Century Spring for over 20 years. As President Rich Goucher has brought the club through some tough times, having kept it alive through the pandemic, picking up the pieces and ensuring we would still be here when the dust settled! Without his leadership we would not be here today!
Serving for her first term will be April May Preston-Elms as President, the first female President of NEAR.
April May has been serving as the Treasurer of NEAR since 2019. She is retired from the Federal Government having worked for 30 years as the Chief of Administration and Business Services, managing 5 National Park units in 4 different states. She is a former Vice President of David’s House a nonprofit in NH and President of a local Toast Masters Chapter in NH. She is co-owner/promoter of Bear Ridge Speedway with her husband CV Butch Elms. In 2020 she received the Northeast DIRTcar Outstanding Woman in Racing award. April May is an active member of NEAR, attending the car events at tracks in area with her husband Butch Elms and Sting Vintage Race Cars, racing vintage race cars. She has been heavily involved with the Hall of Fame ceremonies for the past two years.
During her acceptance speech April May conveyed “I am very humbled and honored to be given this opportunity to take on the lead of this great organization and look forward to working closely with the other officers, board members, committee chairs, and members as we keep this great club relevant and vibrant for decades to come.”
Don’t forget nominations are now being accepted for the 26th Hall of Fame induction ceremony to be held this year at the Log Cabin Delaney House in Holyoke Ma on Sunday November 5th. We are currently accepting nominations for this prestigious honor and look forward to another exemplary pool of applications for consideration to become one of the six individuals honored and added to the prestigious NEAR HoF roster along with two Veterans. Nominations can be mailed to NEAR, HoF Nominations P.O. Box 492 Bradford VT 05033.
The 2023 live events schedule has been set and will be posted on our social media.
-30-
Contact: Diane Ingerson Email: neantiqueracers@gmail.com