Going down to Florida Speedweeks last month was a good chance for Donny Lia and his #18 LMI team to escape the Northeastern winter and get a little bit of racing under their belts. It was a successful trip for them. They raced for eight nights and won the biggest event of the week, the Richie Evans Memorial 100.
The problem is, Lia and his team are now back up North and their next race won’t be until April 10th when the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour opens its season with the “Icebreaker” at Thompson International Speedway (CT). That is enough time for everyone involved in racing – drivers, fans and crew members to go stir crazy.
To pass the time until then, all three groups of racing enthusiasts will get the chance to assemble in West Springfield,
Massachusetts, this weekend for the annual Racearama Racing and Trade Show. Lia will be at the show to meet fans, sign autographs and display his #18 Modified as a guest of New Hampshire International Speedway.
“It’s a real honor that Fred Neergaard and the people at NHIS have called us because they wanted our car in their booth,” said Lia. “Everyone at the track, all the way up to the Bahre family, is so into the NASCAR Modifieds. They love them and treat us so well. The track gave us a championship point fund, a nice banquet and they want to have a Modified sitting right in their booth for this show. I really appreciate the fact that they value us so much.”
Donny performed very well at NHIS this past year. (Hodge Photo)
Lia was a natural pick for the NHIS booth since the young New York driver finished third in the NHIS track championship standings for the Modifieds in 2004.
The chance to meet fans and be around racecars while there is still snow on the ground is a positive for Lia.
“It’s still another month until we race, so it’s a really nice time to see the fans and everyone from the Tour,” said Lia. “I met a lot of nice
fans at Racerama last year. Then, over the course of the season, we bumped into a few of them. It’s always great to meet the fans and it’s really cool when you remember them and talk to them again over the course of the year.”
The racer in Lia also likes going to the show.
“There is a lot of cool stuff to see,” said Lia. “It’s fun to look around, see all the new cars and talk to all the people we haven’t seen since the end of the season. I think it will be a lot of fun.”
Lia will have good company at the show. Also representing the Modifieds in the NHIS booth will be the #00 Whelen car driven by another Long Islander, Steve Park. The NASCAR Busch North Series will be represented by the cars of Dale Quarterley, Mike Stefanik and Charles Lewandoski.
Racearama runs from Friday, March 4th, through Sunday, March 6th, in the Better Living Center at the Eastern States Exposition in West Springfield, Mass. Show hours are from 5:00 pm to 10:00 pm on Friday, March 4th; 10:00 am to 8:00 pm on Saturday, March 5th; and 11:00 am to 5:00 pm on Sunday, March 6th.
In 2005, Lia and the LMI team will return to action on the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour. For more information on Donny and the team, please contact Matthew Dillner at (704) 231-7613 and be sure to visit DonnyLia.com.
