PHOTO: Wayne Helliwell, Jr., takes advantage of final TD Bank 250 practice Sunday morning. Helliwell has been labeled one of the pre-race favorites for today’s 39th running of the 250. (T.J. Ingerson/VMM photo)
–by Ricky St. Clair
OXFORD, Maine — Wayne Helliwell Jr., is just trying to stay hopeful.
The Dover, N.H., standout and current point leader on the American-Canadian Tour (ACT) enters TD Bank 250 Sunday with a lot media spotlight at an Oxford Plains Speedway track touted as his “kryptonite.”
“It’s kind of an honor (being a pre-race favorite),” Helliwell said Saturday. “I don’t really know where they see it because we haven’t really had any success here. Hopefully they see something I don’t. If the luck is on our side, like it has been, we’ll have a good day.”
The Bernhardt Motorsports team elected to bring their Canaan Fair Speedway Late Model, intended for Helliwell’s run at a NASCAR Whelen All-American Series National Championship, as opposed to the ACT car primarily driven for extra-distance races.
“We did some testing a couple weeks ago with it and the Canaan car seemed to be just a tad bit better,” Helliwell said. “It seemed to be better on the long run, so that’s what we’re going to work with.”
The 2011 NASCAR New Hampshire State Champion rolls into the historic three-eighths mile track with a surge of momentum after collecting $4,400 in a Friday night Supermodified win at Lee USA Speedway.
“Overall, the whole season, whether it’s Lee, Canaan, the ACT Tour, everything has just been a confidence booster,” Helliwell said. “Hopefully that confidence will help us make the right adjustments on the car this weekend. In the big picture, I think we’ll be good.”
Helliwell along with a garage area filled with 67 other Late Model teams took advantage of Saturday’s practice session in preparation for Sunday’s 250.
“In comparison, I think we were one of the quicker cars even on old tires,” Helliwell said. “The car was good for couple laps on the bottom and then we moved to the top, and it’s just OK. We’re making small adjustments and making sure we don’t get dialed right out.”
Qualifying and tire management are the least of Helliwell’s worries. A pre-race draw held one hour prior to qualifying can make or break a driver’s day from the get-go.
“You get an up-front starting spot for the heat and you can get yourself in (the 250) and save all of your tires,” Helliwell said. “You don’t want to just burn all of your stuff up trying to get into the race. Hopefully we get qualified early and go from there.”
Helliwell and a cast of over 70 Late Model teams from New England, New York, and Canada will begin qualifying for the TD Bank 250 at 2 p.m.