"The 250" - The TD Banknorth 250 - is a cruel and tough event for even the best of competitors. For the 33rd running of the 250, fortune did not smile upon the Johnny Clark Motorsports entries of Ricky Craven and Johnny.

In his #54, Johnny had posted top times in the practice sessions and with a draw of #5 was looking forward to a great heat finish and a top starting postion. In Heat  #1 Johnny made some inside bold moves right from the drop of the green and moved right up. However, Johnny's finish was disallowed during tech inspection over a matter of leaning on the car before it went through the scaling and measurements process.

This put the #54 at the back of Consi #1. Johnny could only move up to 7th spot when the top three could transfer to the 250. In the 31 car Last Chance Race Johnny fought up to fourth, but only the winner of that race moved into the 250. So Johnny's run for 2006 was tragically over and done with.

Ricky in the #25 faced a seperate string of misadventures without a much better ending. Ricky had worked his up from the back of Heat #2 into a tranfer position and then was caught up in a multi-car tangle in turn two that resulted in a last place finish for that heat.

A 9th place finish in Consi #1 was followed by a 22nd in the Last Chance Race as the #25 slowed with a clutch problem.

However Ricky, along with NASCAR Cups racers Denny Hamlin and J.J. Yeley were awarded provisional starting spots as the final three cars on the grid.
In the 250, Ricky was first caught up in a multi-car incident that left the #25 with left side body damage. Then at about lap 100, the clutch started to give out again and Ricky brought the #25 into the infield to retire it.

OXFORD, Maine - Ricky Craven has carried the colors of Budweiser, DuPont, Kodiak and Tide on his race cars. He is one of a select group of drivers to win a major event in all three of NASCAR's national touring divisions. Racing has both rewarded him financially and broken his bones over two decades of touring across the continent.

Still, if you ask him to recount some of his greatest disappointments behind the wheel of a stock car, Craven won't waste many words before telling the tale of the Sunday evening that would've, could've and should've been: The TD Banknorth 250 at Oxford Plains Speedway in 1989.

Craven was still a mop-topped, red-headed relative newcomer to the New England racing scene. While OPS, the 250 and most of the racing world were in the palm of NASCAR's hand at the time, Craven campaigned primarily under the auspices of Tom Curley and the rival American-Canadian Tour.

"We built a car with E.J. Prescott specifically for this race," Craven recalled Monday during a lunch break from his first on-track appearance at OPS in more than 14 years. "We lost the engine in practice, started last in the non-qualifiers' race, won the non-qualifiers' race, then came all the way up through the field in the feature. And just as we were taking the lead we were black-flagged for a piece of the bumper dragging off the car."

Two years later, Craven dominated a star-studded 250 field and set the tone for his NASCAR success. But think of it this way: If you're a Boston Red Sox fan, did 2004 really, truly, honestly make you forget about Bill Buckner and 1986?

No chance.

"You can make the argument that we were the outsider and maybe we felt that we weren't given a chance to win. Did I think that at the time? You bet I did!" Craven said. "That's the race that nobody really remembers us almost winning, but other than 1991, it's the one I remember the most."

Craven and Johnny Clark Motorsports tested the No. 25 and No. 54 cars Monday at OPS in a session that was briefly opened to selected members of the Maine print and visual media.

While the Newburgh native regaled the press with tales of catching brook with his son on Moosehead Lake, Craven squeezed in a few reminders that he hopes Sunday's race won't be another 'one that got away.'

"When I look at the guys who are 20, 22, 24 years old, even at 40, I can match their level of talent," Craven said. "I know that I can. I've won in Trucks, Busch and Cup. You don't do that by mistake. For me to want to race, I've got to be excited about it. I've got to feel that excitement, that sense of reward. This race offers that."

Believe it or not, there is a learning curve.

Craven hasn't turned left on the historic, 3/8-mile oval since unsuccessfully defending his TD Banknorth 250 title in 1992. Pro Stocks are nothing like the heavier Busch cars he drove back then.

"It was easier my first time at Daytona than coming here 15 years later and slowing down," Craven said with a laugh.

He doesn't consider himself a pre-race favorite on Sunday. That honor might go to Cassius Clark, a successor to Craven in the EJP colors who is on a similar hot streak to Craven's amazing summer of 1991.

Then there is Craven's teammate, Johnny Clark, who finished second in the race last July.

And let's not forget three-time race champions Mike Rowe and Dave Dion. Craven didn't let them go unremembered after his most recent NASCAR triumph in the Craftsman Truck Series at Martinsville, Va., last fall.

"I was standing in victory lane after the truck race, they said it was a victory for the veterans, to which I responded, "Listen, I grew up watching Mike Rowe and Dave Dion and they both won big races this summer at Oxford Plains Speedway. They're veterans. I'm in my prime years," Craven said.

"Mike Rowe, Dave Dion, Stan Meserve ... those guys are legends to me. They're what I wanted to be when I was growing up, and they're still racing!"

Rowe and Dion were in the field along with Jeff Gordon, Bobby Labonte and Jeff Burton when Craven achieved his breakthrough victory 15 summers ago.

"It was a Busch race. We were on our way to winning 10 races and winning the (NASCAR Busch North Series) championship, and at that point my confidence was just sky high," said Craven. "I was thinking, bring 'em on. I think we led 190 laps. At that time, I was counting the laps, because I needed the money."

Craven said his best memories of the TD Banknorth 250 came before he was old enough to drive a car.

"I think of Bob Pressley dominating in 1978. Or the year before that when he didn't win," Craven said. "This race in a lot of ways captures the essence of motor sports, because the fastest car doesn't always win. Sometimes the fastest car is the most exciting. But in 1977, I watched Don Biederman win, and I'm sure 90 percent of the people in the grandstands said, 'What?' "

Between 60 and 80 of the premier late model drivers in the region will take their shot at Craven and fellow NASCAR personalities Kyle Busch, Denny Hamlin and J.J. Yeley on Sunday, perhaps becoming the next long shot to emerge as a household name.

Tickets are available but going quickly. Call the Speedway box office now at (207) 539-8865 to reserve your seat. Qualifying begins Sunday at 2 p.m.

The TD Banknorth 250 is the final installment of a three-day race weekend, all presented by New England Dodge Dealers. Friday and Saturday night action begins at 6:30 p.m. For a weekend schedule, click here.

Between now and the day of the 33rd annual race, raffle tickets will be sold at the speedway for $5 each. The winner of the drawing later this summer will receive the helmet that Craven wears during TD Banknorth 250 weekend presented by New England Dodge Dealers. 

The helmet raffle is an outreach of the Oxford Plains Speedway Charitable Foundation, which makes contributions to local non-profit organizations each year through the Speedway's 50-50 program. Proceeds from the raffle will go to the Ricky Craven Snowmobile Ride For Charity. Held each winter in Greenville, Maine, the ride has raised more than $1.1 million in its first nine years. 

"We hope this announcement builds on the excitement of four elite drivers coming to the TD Banknorth 250," said Bill Ryan, president of OPS and founder of the Charitable Foundation. "Ricky is one the most popular drivers ever in Maine, and the work that his snowmobile ride does is phenomenal. This is an opportunity for our fans to take a chance on winning a one-of-a-kind souvenir and support several important charities in the process." 

A former NASCAR Nextel Cup Rookie of the Year and a two-time race winner  in stock car racing's premier series, Craven is one of four drivers with Cup ties entered in this year's TD Banknorth 250, joining Kyle Busch, Denny Hamlin and J.J. Yeley. 

Craven captured the nation's richest single-day short track race in 1991. His bid for a second TD Banknorth 250 victory will take place behind the wheel of a car furnished by Johnny Clark Motorsports. 

The 10th annual Ricky Craven Snowmobile Ride For Charity is scheduled for January 2007. Sponsors include Arctic Cat, VIP Parts, Tires and Service, Procter & Gamble and Wal-Mart. Among the past beneficiaries are Children's Miracle Network, Give Kids the World, Make-A-Wish, the National Marrow Donor Program and the Travis Roy Foundation. 

For more information about the ride, go to www.rickycraven.com. 

TD Banknorth 250 tickets are priced at $50, $40 and $30. A seating chart is available online a For more information about specific seat availability or to purchase tickets, please stop by the Speedway office on Route 26 or call (207) 539-8865 between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday.

LEWISTON, Maine - VIP Parts, Tires & Service, New England's largest independently owned automotive parts, tires and service accessories retailer signed a contract with Johnny Clark Motorsports that will make VIP the primary sponsor of Ricky Craven's #25 Chevy Monte Carlo for the 33rd annual TD Banknorth 250 at Oxford Plains Speedway.

Craven says he is happy to be home and working with VIP and the Clark family and participating in the TD Banknorth 250.

"I couldn't be more excited. As a child this race consumed me. It was the biggest event in Maine and New England and an outing that as a family was always the summer's highlight," Craven said. "I was fortunate to realize my dream in winning the 18th 250 in 1991 which really was my first big career win."

VIP President and CEO John Quirk said, "VIP is proud to be a part of bringing Ricky Craven back to Maine for the TD Banknorth 250. Race fans across New England have waited a long time to see Ricky race at Oxford Plains again. Together with Johnny Clark Motorsports, we are hoping to help Ricky recapture the title for the second time in his career." 

"It is great to be coming home and getting back to my roots," said Craven "I have had so much support from the folks here in Maine over the years that I really wanted to run this race for them; to show my gratitude and appreciation."

Team owner, driver, and second place finisher in last years 250, Johnny Clark commented, "We feel like we have already hit the jackpot. It's a great honor to have Ricky driving one of my cars as a teammate, and to have the support of VIP behind us, it's awesome! 

"I'd love nothing more than to finish first and second in the 250", Clark said, adding with a laugh, "me first and Ricky second."

Craven and Clark became acquainted when Clark participated in the Discovery Channel's Driver X program in 2005 with Roush Racing. 

"It meant so much to have Ricky as a mentor during the program, he taught me a lot, showed me how to get around Darlington, and introduced me to the world of NASCAR. It was by far the greatest time of my life," Clark said.

VIP Parts Tires & Service will be the primary sponsor on both Craven and Clark's cars for the TD Banknorth 250 on Sunday, July 30 and will then be an associate sponsor on Clark's #54 Chevy Monte Carlo for the duration of the 2006 race season.

3/31 - Posted on Jayski.com
"Ricky Craven will hop into a Johnny Clark Motorsports car this summer, returning to his roots with the 34th running of the prestigious TD Banknorth 250 at Oxford Plains Speedway. It will mark the first time Craven races in his home state since 1992. "I'm really excited about this," said the 39-year-old Craven, who has no other racing on his calendar this year. "This race has been such a big part of my life. I sat in the grandstands and watched it in the '70s, and I fulfilled a dream when I won it in 1991." Though no concrete plans have been laid out, Clark and Craven expect to test the car on a couple of occasions before the race weekend. Even then, Craven will be in attendance all weekend to participate in the numerous practice sessions for the 250."

from the Kennebec Journal - MaineToday.com Story HERE

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