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Gentlemen, Start Your Engines With the sun shining brightly in the sky and the air filled with the sounds of roaring engines and the smells of gasoline and burning rubber, the 2004 season kicked off at New Brunswick International Speedway on Sunday afternoon. A crowd of over 2000 was in attendance as 15 Streetstocks, 23 Sportsman and 17 Prostocks vied for their first victories of the young season. The caliber of racing was in mid season form as few drivers displayed any rust from the long Canadian winter. Everywhere, from the pits to the grandstands, the excitement raged as battle after battle took place on the asphalt, as if the season hung in the balance. The first winner of the day was Peter Gaddess from Minto, NB who battled the "old man of racing", Smokin' Joe Albert, from wire to wire to claim the Streetstock victory. The lead changed several times throughout the event but Gaddess was not to be denied. In Sportsman class, Mike Banks proved to be too much for the rest of the 22 car feature although Glen Nott and Wade Harris pushed him all the way to the checkered flag. Glen Nott had previously battled Banks in a qualifying heat and defeated him but Banks nosed him out in the feature. Brian McNaughton, from Coverdale, just outside Moncton, was the season's first casualty, blowing his transmission in the first heat of the day. The Prostock feature was wild from start to finish as several spectacular spins and accidents reduced the field from 17 to 9 by mid race. Kevin Moore won in a close finish with Glen Rasmussin as Dodge let everyone know they were indeed a force to be reckoned with in 2004. Shawn Tucker, a stong contender on the Carquest Prostock Tour, has agreed to drive the Ben Graham machine at NBIS whenever he can this year, as Ben Graham recovers from a serious accident last October on the highway. Graham is making good progress and hopes to be piloting the 54 machine himself before the season closes this fall. This gesture by Tucker displays the spirit of the racing community to help each other in time of trouble. This week, the action shifts to Shediac's Centre for Speed, as another track shakes off the rust from old man winter. Action starts Sunday at 2pm. With the addition of Frank Fraser Sr. to the staff in Shediac, things should get very interesting very quickly |