CARQUEST Pro Stock Tour Media Day

Halifax, NS (May 16, 2007) – The weather was cold and wet, not your typical racing weather, but the media, sponsors and teams turned out to preview the 2007 CARQUEST Pro Stock Tour racing season. Everyone gathered inside a huge tent, including the cars, for the presentation of the 2007 season.

The 2007 CARQUEST Pro Stock Tour season will build on the success we had in 2006. Car counts remained strong in 2006, with 47 teams competing in our events. We averaged 30 cars per event and had 23 full-time teams travel with the Tour. Our expectation is that our car numbers will be similar to 2006 this year and the racing action as strong or stronger than 2006, where we saw eight different winners in 11 races.

In 2007, the CARQUEST Pro Stock Tour will present 10 events on the four major stock car tracks in the Maritimes. Two events will be held at New Brunswick International Speedway, Geary, NB; two at Raceway Park, Oyster Bed Bridge, PE; three at the completely new Riverside Speedway, James River, NS  and three here at Scotia Speedworld, Halifax, NS.

John Flemming (Halifax, NS), the defending champion, is taking a non-committal approach in 2007. He will be racing in the CARQUEST Pro Stock Tour, but the actual number of  races is not known at this point. We hope John chooses to race the entire season with us.

Challenging Flemming for the Champions Title will be past champions Rollie MacDonald (Pictou, NS), Wayne Smith (Timberlea, NS) and Shawn Tucker (Fredericton, NB). Add top ten point getters from last year, Brad Mann (Glen Livet, NB), Kent Vincent (Crapaud, PE), Stacey Clements (five Island Lake, NS), 2005 Rookie of the Year Shawn Turple (Enfield, NS), Greg Proude (North Wiltshire, PE) and Chris Hughes (Winsloe, PE), and you have a potent line-up.

Veteran Mike MacKenzie (Dartmouth, NS) leads Tour regulars back for another season. Joining him are Darren Vanderaa (Winsloe, PE), Kris Fournier (Charlottetown, PE), Daryl Mahar (Hubley, NS), Russell Smith (Lakeside, NS), Dale Holmes (West Covehead, PE), Mike Stevens (Riverview, NB), Sandy Livingston (Springhill, NS), Roger Crane (Montague, PE), Tim Rogers (Upper Coverdale, NB), Stephen Brown (Harrietsfield, NS), Donald Chisholm (Antigonish, NS) and George Koszkulics (New Glasgow, NB).

Rookies joining the CARQUEST Pro Stock Tour for 2007 are longtime NB driver Lonnie Sommerville (Saint John, NB), Modified driver Jonathan Hicken (Brudenell, PE), Pro Stock drivers Wayne Chase (Lake George, NB) & Al Snelgrove (Moncton, NB) and Legend Car driver Gary Bursey (Moncton, NB).

2007 is the year that Maritime stock car legend Frank Fraser (Shubenacadie, NS) returns to the driver’s seat in a Pro Stock. He is adopting a plan similar to Rollie MacDonald’s, where he will run three or four races and then evaluate his situation. Fans are excited to hear of Frank’s return to the racing scene and we welcome him to the CARQUEST Pro Stock Tour.

Our good friends at CARQUEST lead our sponsors again for 2007, continuing as the Tour presenting sponsor. Drivers will be competing throughout the year for a portion of the $50,000 in year-end prize money, with the 2007 Champion receiving $10,000. We appreciate their continued support of the Tour.

We are pleased to announce that Parts For Trucks is sponsoring four CARQUEST Tour events again in 2007:

• June 16 at New Brunswick International Speedway
• June 30 at Raceway Park
• August 4 at Riverside Speedway
• September 8 at Scotia Speedworld

In addition, Parts For Trucks is sponsoring a series within a series. The top three drivers, who accumulate the most points in all four Parts For Trucks events, will receive a bonus award at the year-end banquet.

We are also pleased to announce the return of Pioneer Coal and The Antigonish Mall as race sponsors. Pioneer Coal is the race sponsor for the first race at the re-built Riverside Speedway in James River, NS on June 9, while the Antigonish Mall is sponsoring the third race at Riverside Speedway on August 18.

We are exited to announce Lucas Oil’s involvement with the CARQUEST Pro Stock Tour. Lucas Oil is the “official” oil of the Tour and in addition, they are the sponsors of two races at Scotia Speedworld – May 26 and July 7. We welcome Lucas Oil to our racing family.

Forbes Chev Olds, a long time supporter, continue to provide us with our good-looking pace car.

Motor Mart once again is the supplier of the Official Service Vehicle for the CARQUEST Pro Stock Tour.

EIT Race Radios returns as the Rookie of the Year sponsor. A cash award will be paid to the highest finishing rookie driver at each event. The rookie driver who is highest in points also receives a cash award at the year-end banquet.

Atlantic Tiltload Ltd presents the Time Trials, the first segment to our racing day.  The driver, who records the fastest time during Time Trials, receives a bonus award.

Urquhart MacDonald & Associates are sponsoring of the B Feature Winner award again in 2007. The driver who wins the B Feature at each event receives a bonus award.

The following vendors supply product and/or cash to eligible drivers:

• Aero Race Wheels
• AFCO Shocks
• ARP Racing Bodies
• Five Star Racing Bodies
• Leaf Driving Suits
• R&D Performance

Drivers on-hand with their cars were Smith, Fraser, Turple and Maher. MacKenzie was also in attendance, but without his car.

With nearly 4,000 locations in North America, CARQUEST Auto Parts supplies the professional automotive service repair industry as well as do-it-yourselfers with replacement parts, tools and equipment.

The CARQUEST Pro Stock Tour is operated by Maritime Pro Stock Tour Limited and features an 11-race series at different tracks in the three Maritime Provinces. Top drivers from all three provinces compete. For more information on the CARQUEST Pro Stock Tour please visit MaritimeProStockTour.com or call our admin office Monday to Friday at (902) 481-2531.

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NOTE to editors: CARQUEST, in all CAPS, is a registered trademark and should always appear in capital letters.