By Tom Coughlin
If you plan on attending the Andy’s Speed Shop 2026 Racing Seminar that will be held next week on Friday & Saturday, January 9 & 10, you should have your payment in by the end of today. Next Friday, January 9 from 6:30 pm. until 9:00 pm. will be an advanced tire seminar with
Jay Castimore, who has over 30 plus years experience in the industry. Topics he will be discussing are Used tire prep: cleaning, re-sanding, re-siping, flipping. New tire prep: from start to finish of mounting and prepping. And the art of buying tires. On Saturday, Jay will discuss Tire note taking, tools to keep in the toolbox, why sand & sipe, groove, wrap. Plus a question & answer session.
On Saturday, January 10 the technical seminar will feature modified driver Matt Sheppard who has over 500 victories and is a Ten time Super DIRTcar Series champion and also has multiple Short Track Super Series championships. Sheppard along with Randy Williamson the owner of Bicknell Racing Products and technical support specialist will discuss car maintenance 101, preparing to scale, scaling setup, spring smashing in conjunction with scaling, and at the track changes. Shock specialist and owner of Fastline Performance Mike Walton will discuss Shock maintenance: washing, lubricating, week to week maintenance, when to rebuild and what to look for. Shock setup: valving, gas pressures, changes to do at and away from the track. plenty of give-a-ways, and more. The Racing Seminar will take place at Varin Enterprises at 212 Stoners Trail Road, Johnstown, N.Y. 12095. The seminar cost is $50 for just Friday night, $100 for just Saturday (includes lunch), and a combo deal of $125 for both events. Attendance
will be cut off at 200 participants. Seminar payments can be made by check, cash, or card. and are requested by today January 2. Andy's Speed Shop mailing address is 553 S. Comrie Avenue, Johnstown, N.Y. 12095. Telephone 518-762-1333.
There is a great opportunity available to get more involved in local motorsports. Mike Bruno who is the promoter at both Devil's Bowl Speedway in West Haven, Vermont and at Airborne Park Speedway in Plattsburgh, N.Y. is looking for a full time Marketing/Salesperson to cover both Devil's Bowl Speedway and Airborne Park Speedway as they progress into the future. This will also involve some behind the scenes work in the tracks office. If you or anyone you may know is
interested, please send Mike Bruno a private message on facebook or email at devilsbowlspeedway@gmail.com
As a reminder, Utica-Rome Speedway will host their 2025 Night of Champions awards banquet on Saturday, January 24, 2026 at The Haven in Chittenango, N.Y. Tickets are now on sale at www.uticaromespeedway.com at $45. All drivers, crew members, sponsors, and fans are invited to take part in a night of fun, recognition, and live entertainment. Cocktails at 4:00 pm., dinner at 5:00 pm., with awards presentation and band to follow. Dress code is business casual (no jeans). The complete form must be mailed or emailed to the address provided. Order deadline is January 17, 2026. payment will be accepted by check, cash or venmo. All tickets must be paid in advance, no tickets will be sold at the door. Tickets will be held at the door under the purchaser's name. No tickets will be mailed.
On a national level, on Thursday morning December 18 the racing community was stunned by the loss of former NASCAR Cup Series driver Greg Biffle and his family. Who were involved in an airplane accident in Statesville, North Carolina. Biffle drove for Jack Roush Racing and
was a former NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Rookie of the Year 1998, and champion 2000. He was also a NASCAR Busch Series/ Xfinity Series Rookie of the Year 2001 and champion 2002. He raced in the NASCAR Cup Series from 2003 through 2016, winning 19 races.
Maybe you have today off from work during the New Year holiday and with the children out of school. Chances are that you will be looking for something to do and visiting one or more of the great museums that we are lucky to have here in the great northeast might sound like a good idea. The Saratoga Automobile Museum at 110 Avenue of the Pines in Saratoga Springs is a good start. Their current main exhibit is Pontiac-the Dawn of Muscle. Their telephone number is 518-587-1935.
The Northeast Classic Car Museum has over 170 vehicles on display, plus 25 motorcycles and more at 24 Rexford Street in Norwich, N.Y 13815 and has a current exhibit focusing on Farm to Table highlighted by tractors and trucks. Their telephone number is 607-334-2886.The Motorcyclepedia Museum at 250 Lake Street in Newburgh, N.Y. 12550 has over 500 motorcycles on display and their telephone number is 845-569-9065. It is always best to call ahead to confirm days and hours of operation.There are more museums in the northeast, but these three are fairly close and do offer an impressive look back at various forms of history. Elevators are available at locations that may have displays on multiple floors.
With it being the Christmas season and New Year’s Day here. We need to be thankful for what we have and to wish for the best for those around us that are suffering with illnesses that we are not aware of.
It is so sad and unfortunate that cancer is so prevalent in this day and age. And I don’t mean to downplay any other health issues that may affect your loved ones. However that one evil disease seems to have no boundaries and many times no explanations as to who it affects. Anyway, I wish the best for your family members that they may overcome this and any other issues that may arise.
2025 was a rough year for so many and this week was no different. Sunday , the Gaston County, North Carolina home where Dennis Hamlin and Mary Lou Hamlin, the parents of NASCAR Cup Series driver Denny Hamlin, lived was destroyed in a fire. Officials stated that there were two people removed from the residence. Dennis Hamlin 75 did not survive his injuries and Mary Lou Hamlin 69 was critically injured.
On a more positive note, if you are having a fundraiser or any kind of a gathering for your racing family, please let me know and I will be sure to get the information out.
I reached out to Fonda Speedway promoter Brett Deyo on Monday and as far as he was concerned the Chill Factor was a 100 % go for yesterday to welcome the new year at the Track of Champions for the 75th. season. Hopefully you were able to take part as either a racer, crew
member, or fan.
I attended the calling hours for Albany-Saratoga Speedway manager/promoter Lyle DeVore two weeks ago. To honor Lyle there were two pieces of track preparation equipment set-up out front of the funeral home in Saratoga. One being a water truck and the other being a grader. Lyle spent countless hours in the driver's seat of both, as he worked to provide drivers and fans with the best racing surface possible every week during the racing season for many years. Unfortunately, I was very disappointed and surprised by the people who did not show up to pay their respects to Lyle and his family for everything that they have brought to the racing community over the years.
I hope that you had a Merry Christmas and that you have a Happy New Year.
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