April Preston

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

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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 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 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.
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Contact: Diane Ingerson Email: neantiqueracers@gmail.com

Annual Members Meeting Info

Attention Members!!
Mark your calendars for our Annual Members meeting being held at the Danti Club in West Springfield Ma on Sunday February 26th starting at noon.
We will be having a catered hot lunch.
Due to the high cost of everything, we are asking that you RSVP by Saturday February 18th to neantiqueracers@gmail.com so that we can ensure we have enough for everyone, but not too much that it ends up getting wasted. We will also be asking for a minimum $10.00 per person donation to help defer the costs of the meal, and there will be a cash bar available.
We hope to see a strong count of members, it has been a while! The Board of Directors had their meeting this past Sunday, January 29th, and have a lot to report out.
So again, please RSVP by Saturday February 18th to neantiqueracers@gmail.com if you are able to attend.

Don’t forget to renew your membership!

As you know we are a nonprofit organization and rely on you for your annual membership to help keep our club alive, this is our forty second year and we are looking forward to the continued dedication to the preservation of the fellowship and nostalgia of automobile racing by all of you; lest we forget the efforts that went into the making of this great sport.Without your membership we would not be able to continue with our Creed. If you haven’t renewed why not do so today. If you know of someone who you think would be an added asset get them to sign up today. If you are a hall of Fame member and wish to help us continue, please consider completing the membership form with a donation. No amount is too small, and every donation is sincerely appreciated. While most of the information you can glean from the NEAR organization is available on social media, and our newsletters, without your memberships and donations we would not be able to maintain our social media presence or produce our newsletters, etc. $25.00 is a very reasonable expense in today’s economy, you would be hard pressed to bring a family of four to a track in your area for that amount! So please take a moment renew your membership, sign up someone new, and help us all to ensure that New England Antique Auto Racers continue on for another forty years! It is not too early to get in your 2023 membership renewal. The form is two sided, please complete both sides!If you can’t download the form, please reach out to me and I will send you one in the mail. Thank youApril May Preston-Elms Treasurer

http://near1.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/NEAR-Membership-Form.pdf

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2022 Hall of Fame Special Award Winners

Our 5th “Special Award” winner for the Frank Maratta Award, for outstanding contributions to auto racing in New England. Your 2022 award winner Ric Mariscal
Ric Mariscal has always been a racer. Besides his own short career and helping with NEAR, Ric loved the history and memorabilia side of racing. Ric has been the curator of the ProNyne Motorsports Museum in Pawtucket, R.I. for many years. To step inside reveals everything from historic cars to uniforms, trophies, pictures, anything from the last 60 years. To think that he has done all of this in his own building and from the donations of others through the years is amazing. Ric has a small team of dedicated folks that help make this feat doable. Ric, a NEAR Hall of Famer, truly is the driving force behind the effort. He is very deserving of this award today.

Our condolences go out to Jeannine for the loss of her husband, NEAR member Gene Gosselin taken from us last month.

Eugene A. “Gene” Gosselin 79, of North Smithfield, died December 6, 2022 in the Philip Hulitar Inpatient Center, Providence. He was the husband of Jeannine (Cardin) Gosselin, whom he fondly referred to as his angel in life. They were married Septmeber 5, 1964 in St. Ann’s Church, Woonsocket. Born in Woonsocket, he was the son of the late Alphonse and Sophie (Petrosky) Gosselin. He lived in North Smithfield his entire life.

Gene was a 1960 graduate of Mt. St. Charles Academy, and a 1962 graduate of Johnson & Wales School of Business. He worked as an accountant, and spent the latter part of his career as the CFO of MJ Enterprises, Johnston, retiring in 2005. Eugene served in the RI Army National Guard for six years. He was an avid hunter and fisherman, and lifetime member of the Woonsocket Sportsman’s Club. A racing enthusiast, he was a member of the New England Antique Racers. Gene was a former coach for the North Smithfield Youth Hockey Association.

Besides his wife, Jeannine, he leaves their children, Bruce Gosselin of North Smithfield, Pamela Smith of Cape Coral, FL, Dwayne Gosselin of Napa Valley, CA, and Keith Gosselin of Weston, FL; nine grandchildren; six great grandchildren. He was predeceased by his grandson, Brandon Gosselin.

Memorial contributions may be made to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, 501 St. Jude Place, Memphis, TN 38105.
 

Our condolences go out to Dave Baribeault, our HoF ceremony MC, for the loss of his mother last November.

THERESE BARIBEAULT OBITUARY

Therese G. “Terry” Baribeault, 90, wife of the late Ernest Baribeault, passed away Wednesday, November 30, 2022 after a long battle with cancer. Born and raised in Woonsocket, R.I., on April 20, 1932, she was the daughter of the late Alfonse and Florence Bourgeois. She spent most of her life in Meriden.

Therese was employed by International Silver, Aero Gasket Corporation, Greenbackers Restaurant, and Hunter’s Ambulance. She loved all auto racing especially NASCAR and watching races at Stafford Motor Speedway and Waterford Speedbowl. She especially enjoyed watching her sons racing the 1/4 midgets and playing Dek-Hockey. Terry also enjoyed watching horse racing at Saratoga Raceway, going to Foxwoods Casino, hockey, and was an avid Yankee fan.

She is survived by her two sons, Dave and his partner Sharon-Lee Augur and Billy and his partner Karen Harris. She is also survived by many nieces and many nephews. Therese is the last of her 11 siblings: Peggy, Florence, Luella, Marjorie, Albert, Walter, Judy, Barbara, Connie, and George.
Memorial contributions may be made to Hope After Loss, 900 Chapel Street, 10th Floor, New Haven, CT 06510. For online condolences, please visit jferryfh.com.