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Raabe Looking to Raise the Bar in Record Setting 2010 Season

Harvey Hubb - August 18, 2010

In any sport played, whether it’s the stick and ball sports, or auto racing, there are good days and bad days.  In racing there seems to be great days and horrible days.  Great when you win, not so stellar when you crash.   When you win, you get money (and in Modified Sportsman not a lot) but when you crash, you pay money and generally a lot more than you win.  Chris Raabe knows the cost of wrecking a racecar, as he has been involved in every aspect of his race team from day one when he first started racing cars at age 14.

“One thing my Dad and Big G told me when we started was that I had to learn every part of racing, including working on the car as much as everyone else and knowing the cost involved in operating a successful team. I have never just carried my helmet and driving suit to the track and raced”.

Having said that, Chris feels the pressure to drive to win and at the same time keep the car away from deliberate contact with the competition. However, racing for the win forces all drivers to make decisions that force very tight situations at times.  Making that point brings up the 01 team’s penalty last week at Brockville Speedway.  In the opinion of the race officials, Chris Raabe deliberately spun out Chris Herbison and gave him a Saturday night sitting in the penalty box. The local race fans have their opinion also and it makes for some very funny comments. That however, brings me to the point that Chris Raabe has had his share of “deliberate” hits and spinouts from the competition and “no” penalties were assessed… they were called “racing incidents”,  but when you are on top of the game, you are a target for everyone else.

The great thing that has happened with all this is that the phone has been ringing from race teams wanting Chris to drive for them next year and new sponsors coming on board for the rest of this year.  So thanks for all the publicity.  The Raabe race team will make an announcement right after Labor Day Weekend on their fall race intentions. We are all very excited about the fall and already have some great plans in place for the 2011 race season.

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Raabe Sets Sights on DIRTcar Record; Focused on Championship Run

Harvey Hubb - August 10, 2010

It’s a long racing weekend for the Raabe 01 race team and a long time DIRTcar record is on the line.  Thursday night is a special night of racing at the BOS with the late models coming in for a big payday race. Also on the schedule are the modified sportsman and the street stocks. Gates open at 5pm. Then it is on to Mohawk Raceway on Friday night, back to Brockville Saturday and Cornwall on Sunday night to wrap up the weekend.

With 23 wins in the books, the Raabe crew need just one win to tie the all time season wins record and two to break the record. Chris takes all this in stride with the same type of focus of a normal weekend of racing.

“We still have a lot of racing to go this year so its not like I have to get this done in one or two nights of racing”, Raabe says of the record. “Its going to be another nice thing to do but I am not going to take any extra chances just because it could mean a win or a second.  Racing so many nights in a row makes chassis and engine management a must. We can’t afford too many more wrecks this year.  Every time you do that you dig a deeper hole in points. What we need right now at this time of year are the best runs we can get for the next three weeks. There is plenty of time for the record”.

Mike Raabe concurs that the strategy for the next three weeks will be constant car management during race nights. “The tracks seem to be changing more during race nights this year for some reason. I don’t know if its because of weather or competition but it seems every night we are making major changes on the car between heat and feature races.  Last Saturday night we adjusted the car after the heat race and hot laps, but Chris said we went too far and the car was just too loose to gain more than a fourth place finish.  I guess we get it right more than wrong”, the senior Raabe says with a smile.

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Raabe On Record Shattering Pace

Harvey Hubb - August 4, 2010

The single season record for Modified Sportsman wins was set by Tim Hindley in 1996 with 24 wins. Chris Raabe has 22 wins with 2 full months of racing left in the 2010 season and unless disaster occurs looks to be a sure bet to break that record. The total number of wins recorded in a season for all DIRTcar racing was set in 1994 by Barefoot Bob McCreadie with 43 wins.  That is unbelievable.

When I talked to DIRTcar PR guy Tom Skibinski about McCreadie’s feat, he told me, “When I talked to Bob about that summer he just says they did nothing different and that it just seemed with every race, things fell their way”.

The Raabe team just keeps coming this year and with the heat of the summer here, it produces the type of tracks that the Raabe team live for, the dry slick track.

Mike Raabe sums it up best when I asked him about success on dry slick tracks,  “Chris is the reason we dominate on this type of track, with all his experience racing the go-karts on dry slick daytime tracks.  He knows how to control the car, but I’m not telling you how”, he laughs. With that laugh I know the question ends.

I remember talking to Brett Hearn a couple of years ago about driving on the dry slick and he told me only a handful of dirt drivers know how to win on that type of track. “Anyone can drive when the track is tacky and there is lots of grip, but managing the car on dry slick is when you take the horsepower out of the equation and it is just set up, tires and driver”.

I agree. I have watched dirt racing for over 40 years and I can tell you Brett Hearn is one of the best, if not the best dry slick driver in the world. (Opinions due vary)

This past weekend is a great example of how one team can make the best of track conditions with all 3 tracks turning to dry slick before the modified sportsman feature races. Winning all three tracks is the third time this year the 01 race team has come home after sweeping all the weekend events.

The win total is now 22, which was the final total two years ago when Chris won 6 titles and the first of two Mr. DIRTcar titles. When asked about this year as opposed to two years ago, Chris is quick to give credit to those around him, “I know I sound like a broken record, but my dad Mike, Greg and Chris Hale, who are there every week, Dave Brunet and Pete and Todd Raabe who are there part time all make a tremendous contribution to our success. This year we merged our racing team with John and Perry Francis and PJ Peters who have taken us to the next level where we needed to be. That combination launched us early this year and although we have had a few rough nights, they have given us what we needed to bounce back”.

The Raabe team is off again this weekend at all three tracks, Mohawk Friday night, Brockville Saturday and Cornwall Sunday.

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Raabe Goes Three for Three

Harvey Hubb - July 7, 2010

A couple of weeks ago, the 01 Chris Raabe race team had to rebound from a bad racing weekend where they ended up with two DNF (Did Not Finish) out of three runs. Like I said last time, instead of hanging their heads and giving up on themselves, they headed to the race shop with a new drive. Talk about turnaround… since that week of putting together an almost new racecar, they have yet of finish out of the winner’s circle.

The team has now won their last 5 races in a row including all three of their races this past weekend at Mohawk Friday night, Brockville Saturday and Cornwall on Sunday. In all, that makes 17 wins so far this year and there is still 4 months of racing to go. July and August will be the end of the “local” track point runs, but September and October will be the Mr. DIRTcar points run every weekend with the moody mile at Syracuse and culminating at Brockville speedway in late October.

Chris is ecstatic about the recent success of the team, “We have adjusted the car every night to get better as the night goes on this year. Dad and Greg have been making all the right calls for me and it just seems the car can go wherever I want it to in those vital last few laps of the feature races. What a team…they are making me look good out there, but I tell you, without a great handling car, you are not going to win, the competition is really good this summer”.

The weather was almost perfect this past weekend with all three tracks coming up dry and slick in the heat. Friday night at Mohawk the 01 car started sixth and moved to the lead by lap six. Raabe couldn’t pull away from Dylan Evoy as the 83 car was right on the bumper of Raabe for the remaining 15 laps and twice during the run got up beside the 01 but just couldn’t get by.

“Dylan had a good car Friday night and I saw him out of the corner of my eye twice and thought he was going to get me, but we held on for the win” said Chris after the race.

On Saturday night, Chris started the 01 car 12^th and fought his way to the front before several yellow flags allowed the Teenage Tornado to keep the leaders close. Kenny Polite and Chris Herbison made it very difficult for Raabe to get to the lead but finally with just four laps to go, Raabe went to the top of the track and the 01 stuck like glue and allowed Chris to move by Polite and Herbison for the fifth win of the year at the BOS.

On Sunday night, again it was tough slugging for the 01 car as Chris had to overcome some great racing from Randy Earl and Chris Herbison. Wolfe Island ’s Dillon Sallows lead most of the race until the top three local modified sportsman drivers put the pressure on with just a handful of laps to go. Chris got by Earl late in the race to win the Cornwall feature and his third feature win of the weekend.

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Raabe Rebounds From Bad Weekend

Harvey Hubb - June 21, 2010

Grandfather Hubb used to tell me all the time, “Harvey, show me a person who can get up off the mat, and I’ll show you a winner”. Of course he was referring to someone who had been down on their luck or had a run of bad things happen to them, but they don’t give up and keep going, working hard to turn things around and get things heading in the right direction again.  They would eventually regain all they lost… at least according to Gramps.

Well, I guess one could easily say that about the recent happenings with the Raabe 01 race team. Last weekend it all started with a mechanical failure at Mohawk International speedway on Friday night, causing a DNF (did not finish). Then on Saturday night they borrowed a car from Dillon Sallows, started deep in the field and got up to fourth place before getting a flat tire and had to start at the back again running back up to fourth at the end. 

Then on Sunday night at Cornwall for the second Mr. DIRTcar series race of the year, Chris was running up front getting ready to do battle for the lead when an encounter with Randy Earl put the 01 car in the wall and all but ended the evening for Raabe with a final finish of 20^th.

That kind of weekend would make any team head to the barn with their tails between their legs and put them into a downward spiral after such a great start to the 2010 season… but not this team! I am so proud to say how strong they have come back this past week. On Tuesday night at Can Am, it was the SUNY Canton Series race and the Raabe 01 team dominated the race from the pole to win their 11^th feature of the year. Then it was back to Mohawk International on Friday night and a second place finish to good friend and fellow competitor, Dylan Evoy and then on Saturday night it was back to Brockville with his own car and won handily from a 14^th place start picking up win number 12 after just 21 feature starts in 2010.

Chris had his take on the last two weeks for the team, “I can’t remember having a weekend of racing quite as bad as that one last weekend. We don’t have many mechanical problems and we were working on the car Saturday afternoon and it was raining so we thought it would be a rainout for last Saturday night so we didn’t hurry to get the repairs done and then when we realized we were gong to race in Brockville, we had the car all apart and I called Dillon Sallows who said he would lend me his car. If it wasn’t for the flat tire I think we could have won that race and then Sunday, we had a great car at Cornwall and I was just taking my time when we got taken out. On Tuesday at Can Am the car was probably the best I have ever had there, I could run anywhere and it turned on a dime, the guys really gave me a great car for the SUNY Canton win.

Raabe leads the Northeast dirt points and will continue to do so right to the end of the season because they only count your 12 best runs and with 12 wins, you just can’t beat perfect.

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Raabe Wins Mohawk and Brockville

Harvey Hubb - June 1, 2010

With the weather more like July than May, Chris Raabe is racing like the season is also in July. Take last season, the 01 race team started the season with only a couple of wins in the early going from April to late June, then July hit and in that month the familiar black, red and white 01 was taking its serious amount of black and white! In the end, Raabe had won 8 or 9 times in July and headed into August a top two track points standings, the Northeast points battle and was leading the Mr. DIRTcar sportsman series.

So what is the difference with this year? “It comes with experience”, says Mike Raabe, team co-crew chief. “We have 4 years of notes now, we have all worked together for the four years as a team and Chris is maturing behind the wheel and is like a computer in the seat when it comes to giving us the proper feedback”.

Greg Hale agrees with his co-crew chief, “My Chris (Crew member Chris Hale) and Chris Raabe do most of the work on the car during the week now, they have grown up together and have the car pretty well ready for each race night before we even get to the track. This year we have not had to make as many changes as we have in years gone by, but like Mike said, comes with the experience and the notes”.

That has given the Raabe 01 team a string of 4 wins in a row at the new Mohawk Speedway, 2 out of 3 nights at Brockville, 1 at Can Am, and 1 at Cornwall for a total of 8 wins in just 13 starts so far in 2010!

Raabe himself is expecting things to get tougher in the weeks ahead. “I can see that the competition is getting better as the weeks go on this season. We got a jump on the other teams with the shock rule change I think. Dad really studied the shock package this winter and we were ready to go at the first race with our new Genesis shock package. It has really helped me with the handling of the car. Like anything though, other teams catch on and you have to keep getting better week after week”.

The win Saturday night at Brockville came after a 19^th place start for the Teenage Tornado moving through traffic, showing a great deal of patience with each pass and moving from the bottom of the track to the top side for the final 3 passes to take his second checker flag of the year at the BOS.

“The boys were running low and I knew they were not going to let me get by down there, so I tried the top rail and the car stuck like glue for me! I don’t usually get that luxury at the BOS, but there was some moisture up top and the car was flying”.

This weekend it is back to the 3 night weekend with Mohawk Friday night, the BOS Saturday night and Rolling Wheels on Sunday night.

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Raabe Takes Commanding Lead Into June

Harvey Hubb - May 25, 2010

Looking at the Northeast DIRT point Championship that takes the best 12 races of the season into account, Chris Raabe and the 01 race team has a commanding 190-point lead.  It is only the end of month 2, but in years gone by, it has been in the middle to end of the season where the 01 team has made their run for the points title.

A humble Chris Raabe wants to put the strong start in perspective, "we have got off to an awesome start this year for sure, but after that hard hit at Cornwall 2 weeks ago, it sure makes me think about what could happen at any turn. Last week we had some major work to do on the car to get it ready for the weekend, but 2 wins and a third proved to us that we made the right changes".

Raabe's average finish this year so far is second or better and a 57% win percentage. The team now heads into the middle part of the season and will be brining out some of the newer equipment to get ready for the Mr. DIRTcar races this summer and then after Labor Day... the final run for the Mr. DIRTcar series really heats up and the team takes a back up car with them.

"We do have some choices this year because of our partnership with Perry and his team so we will be trying out some other chassis over the next few weeks", said team crew chief Mike Raabe. "Our primary car did take a major hit at Cornwall, but with the support of TEO and our own Greg Hale, we were able to put the chassis back together and it seems to be even better with our improvements. Chris really liked the way it handled last weekend so I am feeling pretty happy about that. This will let us do some experimenting over the next few weeks as we look for another chassis to use as our series back up car. Looking down the road, we are also looking forward to Syracuse this year, but that is a long way from here".

This weekend the 01 team heads off the Mohawk Speedway on Friday night where Chris is 3 for 3 and then Saturday night to Brockville. Sunday night will be an off night as Cornwall is not running sportsman.

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Raabe Loves the New Mohawk Speedway

Harvey Hubb - May 11, 2010

Not too often do you hear these words from a race driver the first time they hot lap at a new race track, “This place is awesome”. Those were the words from Chris Raabe after his very first hot lap session Friday night at Mohawk Speedway .

Raabe came in and told the 01 race team that the car was perfect and not to touch a thing. “I could run the track wide open from my first hot lap”.  In the eight lap heat race, Raabe started on the outside pole by virtue of the pick for starting positions and won the race going away.

With weather pending and a second 20 lap small block feature to go, Mohawk officials decided to shorten the sportsman race from 20 laps to 15. Raabe started the race on the pole and lead all the way from green to checkers. As the team was standing in victory lane for the victory photo, rain started to come down and that was the end of the season opener at Mohawk Speedway .

The only person on the 01 team that had experience racing at the old “Frogtown” track was co-crew chief Greg Hale. “Wow, what a difference they have made here. It was a very different place here in the past from all these changes I can tell you that. The lighting, the grandstands, boxes and pits area grandstands are all new. The track infield, lap counter and surface look new and the surface of the track tonight looked very fast during the first small block feature. I can’t wait to see what this track is like mid season, the pits should be full, it’s a great place to race now”, said Hale. Hale raced his pro stock for many years at the Frogtown track when following the pro stock series.

Saturday night racing at Fulton was rained out for the second week in a row, so the 01 race team headed home on Saturday morning after spending the night in the “Big G Mobile”. This weekend could be the first 3 nighter this season for the Raabe 01 team with Friday night at Mohawk, Saturday night the opener at Brockville speedway and Sunday’s opening night at Cornwall.

Chris is looking forward to getting back to Brockville and Cornwall. Cornwall will be a bonus on the DIRT schedule for the Teenage Tornado as he has raced there 3 times and won all 3 of the races there.

“Well, going back to Brockville will be fun for sure, but there is going to be some good competition there each week with the likes of Evoy, Pecore, Earl and Turner.  With Cornwall running several sportsman nights, I am looking forward to getting to as many as we can, I have had a lot of luck there so far and the track is fun to race on” said Raabe.

So far the 01 team is off to their very best start ever with 5 nights in, 2 wins and 3 seconds, it appears like this is going to be another great summer for Chris Raabe race team.

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A Pair of Second Place Finishes Leave Raabe Looking for More

Harvey Hubb - May 3, 2010

Chris Raabe will be searching for a new “nickname” at the end of this racing season as he will turn 20 in the off season and will no longer by eligible to be known as “the teenage tornado”.

How about… “Mr. Consistent”. I am sure Chris Raabe would like to be known as consistent for wins, but so far this season is seems second is where the 01 team ends up at the end of the feature races.

“We have had good cars in all our features so far this year”, says Mike Raabe co-crew chief with Greg Hale, “but we just can’t seem to seal the deal. Chris said our car at Rolling Wheels this weekend was close to perfect and we have adapted fairly well to our new Genesis shock package.”

On Friday night at Can Am Raabe started deep in the field in the 19^th spot. With just 25 laps to get to the front, Raabe worked the car through traffic to reach the second spot with about 10 laps still to go, but Tim Sears Jr. just had too much for the 01 car and when Raabe was just about to make his move on the leader with 5 to go… the caution came out.

“My car was fantastic on the long run and with 5 to go I was ready to take a run at the 83 when we were in lap traffic, then the caution came out. After the restart we just got too loose and I needed the lap traffic to make a move for the lead” said Raabe after the race.

It was a night off at Fulton Saturday night when heavy rains came just before hot laps and scratched the race card for the evening. It was a night off for the 01 team who enjoyed some down time with Christine Martin’s team and a BBQ, enjoying some great hospitality from Wayne and Chris Martin.

Sunday it was onto the track that the Raabe team has not had a lot of luck at over the years, Rolling Wheels. Sunday night turned out to be a much better night than before at the Wheels when Chris got to start third in the second heat.

“I caught a huge break going into turn one in the heat when the two leaders got hung up and I got by to take the lead, that put me on the outside pole for the feature.  The car was just about perfect for the Wheels, however once again we had to settle for second”.

The result was the same as Friday night when Sears hung on to win the 25-lap feature with Raabe finishing…. What else…. SECOND.

This weekend it is off to the all-new Mohawk Speedway for Friday night for opening night. Mike Raabe says it is going to be the Friday night home track for the Raabe Team, “Perry Francis is our partner in the dirt car this summer and this is his home track so we are going to support him and the Mohawk Speedway owners. They are being very good to us and it is the least we can do. The track has been upgraded and we hope to bring a lot of our fans with us to Mohawk each Friday night. We will have all of our new Chris Raabe souvenir shirts, hats and material here in a couple of weeks so you will be able to buy them from us at Mohawk and Brockville Speedways”.

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Raabe Wins first Race of the 2010 Season in the Pits

Harvey Hubb - April 26, 2010

Chris Raabe has won over 60 feature races since climbing into a modified racecar… but never in the pits.  It happened Friday night at Can Am Speedway when after finishing second to Jordon Bennett in the 20-lap feature event, Bennett was DQ’d for weighing in light.

“The boys gave me a great racecar tonight, but there just wasn’t even bite on the high side to complete the pass”, said Chris Raabe after the race. “The car with this new Genesis shock package is extremely stable compared to what we are used to running. Tonight was one groove, and up high there just wasn’t the moisture that we needed as I couldn’t get off the corner without wheel spin”.

Raabe jumped from his 4^th starting position to 2^nd right off the green flag but Bennett who started on the pole controlled the race for the entire 20 laps down low. Mike Raabe said the car looked good but he should have made one more change before the feature.

“Greg Hale and I discussed a shock adjustment just before the feature that would have given Chris some more bite off… but Chris was happy with the car in the heat and we choose not to make the change, but that’s the way it goes, most nights we do make that change and it’s the difference between first and second, tonight we’ll take the win anyway and be satisfied that we in the end had the best car”.

Chris is writing his final exam Monday to finish his first year at Queen’s University in Mechanical Engineering. After that, it’s racing fulltime for the rest of the spring and summer. Getting ready for the pavement races will be one of his first priorities over the next couple of weeks and with the organizing of an over the wall team, getting some new equipment for the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series races and practice session.

This coming weekend, the 01 team is going to take a circuit turn for the weekend, starting Friday at Can Am, then Fulton Saturday night and Rolling Wheels Sunday night. Big G will have the Raabe Race team “big ass camper” heading down Interstate-81 this weekend and high hopes for the continuation of a great start to the 2010 race season.

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Hitting the pavement

AUTO RACING: Napanee's Chris Raabe is ready to take the next step in his motorsport career

Posted By PATRICK KENNEDY, THE WHIG-STANDARD

Tuesday April 20th, 2010

Next week, racecar driver Chris Raabe, fresh off his first year in engineering at Queen's University, starts a summer job. He hops behind the wheel and goes about painting traffic lines at a blinding 3 km/h -- normal walking speed.

Come the weekend, however, behind the wheel in his part-time job, Raabe works and maneuvers at speeds 50, 60, even 70 times faster than the sloth-like, line-painting unit.

"The school year's almost over and it hasn't been too bad," said the Teenage Tornado who, at 19, will be in the market for a new nickname on his next birthday. "The good side: I get to go home, work on the car and get ready for the weekends."

It's a challenging campaign that awaits the Napanee product. For starters, Raabe defends two track titles (Can-Am Motorsports Park and Thunder Alley Speedpark) and two series championships. He paced the Dirt-car Sportsman class with 19 feature wins in 2009, becoming just the third driver (and youngest ever) to capture consecutive Mr. Dirt crowns.  Inside Track Magazine feted him with the Canadian Dirt Driver of the Year award.

And less one thinks last year's success was a fluke, a one-off, a touch of serendipity, here's his aggregate record over the past two seasons: 42 victories, five track and five series championships.

This summer Raabe will race on both dirt and pavement, with the emphasis squarely on the latter competitions.

He hopes to run in at least two of the 13 races on the NASCAR Canadian Tire series, the first taking place June 5 on the half-mile asphalt oval at Delaware Speedway outside London.

The pre-season target was to run in eight NASCAR races. That's still possible, though at an estimated $15,000 a pop Raabe could use a big-name sponsor.

"Pavement's the future, so we want to get Chris in as many (NASCAR) races as possible," said longtime supporter Garry McColman, whose sponsorship of Raabe began when the latter was a nine-year-old go-kart pilot.

McColman, who made Raabe a partner at age 14 and mentored him on the business side of the sport, relinquished his share of the dirt-car operation this year. Chris and his dad, Mike, have teamed with north country Modified mainstay Perry Francis while McColman, aka Big G to his listeners in radioland, continues to sponsor the pavement car along with local companies Len Corcoran Excavating and Kingston RV Centre.

"There's no other person in the world I'd rather be involved with than Chris," lauded Big G, who still handles marketing and promotion and personally chauffeurs Raabe to and from gigs in his 38-foot motor-home. "He's someone with a special gift, but he's also a guy who possesses strong morals and character and a ton of determination. He's the real deal, just a great, great kid and a very talented driver."

McColman speaks from firsthand knowledge. He's a fan first and foremost, a hopeless diehard who sees the racetrack in the same light Hugh Hefner sees his mansion: a place to indulge in one's preferred craving.

If Raabe is to pursue checkered flags on asphalt, he'll need serious sponsor backing. He can boost his chances of landing some with a strong showing in the upcoming NASCAR races.

"Some people who are interested in Chris will be on hand to watch him race," McColman added, referring to, among others, representatives from the "top three teams" in the country.

McColman, Raabe's financial drive train for the better part of a decade, estimated the annual operating budget for a Dirt car at $60,000 and nearly seven times that amount to run the NASCAR series.

Late last summer, Raabe moved out of the family home in Napanee and into a campus dormitory.

His absence left a void in the close-knit family, which includes twin 16-year-old sisters Jenna and Heather and parents Mike and Lana.

He did, however, leave behind something that would prove invaluable to the impressionable twins and a blessing in disguise for mom and dad -- a template for model behavior.

"Chris always set good examples for us," said Jenna, the oldest sister by four minutes. "He had the marks in school and he was competitive; that's definitely where my sister and I get it." (Like their brother, the twins are active. One plays soccer, the other rugby. Both play rep hockey).

Jenna said her brother's passion for racing is such that "he even dreams about it.

"He'll be dreaming and saying things like 'I'll pass him high on the outside and take him low.' It's hilarious," she said.

Have the demands of first-year university diminished his zeal for auto racing? Not in the least.

"He's still into it, big time," reported Jenna. "Dad picks him up every Friday and they go to the shop and work on the car."

Asked to trace his polite manner, pleasant demeanor and unwavering work ethic, Raabe blamed his folks.

"They're the best role models I know," he said. "They are nonsmokers, non-drinkers, and they taught their kids that school comes first before anything."

A dozen years after he took his first lap in a go-kart, Raabe's goal remains unchanged. He wants to drive professionally, become perhaps the first driver sporting a mechanical engineering degree.

"I'd love to drive for a living and hopefully use my degree as another part of the package that I bring to the table."

Photo Attachment:  Chris Raabe poses for a portrait outside his Queen's University dormitory Monday night. Raabe will race this Friday at the CAN AM Speedway in Lafargeville, NY.  (Photo by Andrew Reimer for The Whig Stand)

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Canada’s Largest Retailer of NASCAR Licensed Products to Roll Out Chris Raabe Souvenir Line in 2010

Bruce Sellars, owner of Red Beard’s Sports, and Chris Raabe Racing will unveil a new line of 01 race team products, in the coming weeks. Chris Raabe announced today that the team will be aggressively marketing the Chris Raabe brand along with his sponsors for both his dirt and pavement efforts.

Red Beard’s Sports has retail outlets in Barrie, Kingston, and Belleville, as well as having a mobile retail trailer which attends most NASCAR Canadian Tire Series races in both Ontario and Quebec. The Red Beard’s Sports stores will also sponsor the 01 dirt car and will have their mobile retail trailer at selected dirt races along with other promotional events, during the coming year.

“I am really excited about our new marketing program” announced Chris, “as most teams just have t-shirts available. We need to step our marketing up as we transition to the next level of the sport”.

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Black Rock Stop Kicks Off Mr. DIRTcar Sportsman Series On Saturday

April 10 date opens 2^nd straight title defense for reigning points king Chris Raabe

Weedsport, NY – April 7, 2010 - Only Russ Hefti has got it done in the past following the Sportsman trail while legendary drivers Brett Hearn, Jack Johnson, Bob McCreadie, Alan Johnson, Will Cagle and Danny Johnson have each pulled off the feat in Big-Block/Small-Block Modified racing over the last four decades.

And that is to earn Hoosier Tire-VP Racing Fuels Mr. DIRTcar Championships in consecutive years of open-wheel racing on the Northeastern circuit.

While Western New York full-fender standout Pete Stefanski has captured the past four Mr. DIRTcar Pro Stock titles, Canadian chauffeur Chris Raabe is on the verge of wearing the overall Sportsman crown for a third straight season. Something that has never been accomplished since the blueprints for DIRTcar Racing in the Northeast were first unveiled in 1976.

“Defending our title is obviously the ultimate goal, another 20 win season would be something nice to accomplish, too” remarked Raabe, as he prepared to open defense of his coveted championship this weekend in New York State . “We’ve managed to improve every year so at this stage we just don’t want to drop back.”

Raabe is back under the spotlight Saturday, April 10 when Black Rock Speedway hosts its traditional Mr. DIRTcar Series opener to kick off the 2010 Sportsman campaign. The popular Yates County 4/10-miler, located on Route 14A just outside the village of Dundee , N.Y., comes to life for round one of the 14-race tour with a $1,000 top prize waiting for the 30-lap feature winner.

Black Rock pit gates are slated to swing open at 9am followed by 9:15 inspection with practice beginning at 10:30 and the first qualifying heat taking the green flag at 1 o’clock. The main grandstands open for seating at 11 am.

Fresh off a five-win season of tour competition, Raabe is hoping for the same results in 2010. Yet new this year will be a joint effort with north country Modified mainstay Perry Francis, as former team owner Garry McColman recently turned over the operation to Chris and his father Mike in their record-setting pursuit.

“We’ve still got the same team intact and continue to do all the maintenance,” confirmed Raabe, 19, an honor student at Queen's University in Kingston , Ontario where he is taking courses toward a Mechanical Engineering degree. “Garry will still be marketing us and traveling to a lot of events, only we’re sharing all the bills with Perry now. We used to help Perry’s nephew racing go-carts and last year at Super DIRT Week put this deal together, but we’re always looking (sponsorship).”

Francis’ brand new two-tone C&B Enterprises #01 Teo Pro Car entry will also carry backing from Sunrise Racing and Genesis Racing Shocks as Raabe searches for valuable points on tour as well as running both Mohawk Int’l Raceway (Fri.) and Cornwall Motor Speedway (Sun.) on a weekly basis. Team Raabe’s proven black Teo mount from last year will be saved for Saturday shows throughout the summer at Brockville Ontario Speedway.

“We’ve never run Cornwall or Mohawk for points so this will be a new challenge,” noted Raabe, who closed out the ’09 campaign leading the DIRTcar Sportsman ranks with 19 feature wins while claiming track high-point crowns at Can-Am Motorsports Park and Thunder Alley Speedpark. The ‘Teenage Tornado’ from Napanee, Ont. currently stands 12^th all-time with 50 Sportsman wins, an even half-dozen tour triumphs scored the past two years. “I’m looking forward to getting back to Cornwall , its always been a favorite with the banking and multi-grooves.”

When Black Rock welcomes back the top DIRTcar Sportsman teams to wine country for the April opener, Raabe will looking to avenge past performances in the heart of the Finger Lakes Region. Failing to qualify in the 2008 tour lid-lifter, Raabe returned last spring and finished 9^th after being relegated to using his guaranteed status to fall into 27^th position on the 31-car starting grid.

“We’ve just never had any luck at Black Rock,” stated Raabe, who is ready to embark upon his sixth season in DIRTcar Northeast’s entry-level open-wheel class. He scored his first victory in 2005 at Brockville at the age of 14. “Poor draws, things breaking and having bad track position have all been factors in the outcome. The biggest thing is maintenance and we’ve worked hard over the winter so we’re looking forward to getting another chance.”

Also hungry to advance in his second opportunity traveling the Mr. DIRTcar Sportsman Series full-time will be 2009 runner-up Ryan Susice. The second-generation racer from Ransomville , NY . copped his inaugural series win last September at Canandaigua Speedway then returned to victory lane in October at both Fulton Speedway and Rolling Wheels Raceway during Super DIRT Week.

Joining Raabe and Susice on tour will be Top-5 runners from a year ago Justin Wright (4^th) and Dan Wiesner (5^th), both big movers in the final point standings. Piffard , N.Y. pilot Wright jumped five spots from the previous year with his first champ trail victory coming during the inaugural DIRTcar All-Star Weekend in July at Cayuga County fair Speedway . Central New Yorker Wiesner carved out fifth-place finishes in four tour events held at Canandaigua, Black Rock and Rolling Wheels Raceway Park to climb into fifth following a 12^th-place tally on the final points chart in ’08.

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Genesis Racing Shocks to Showcase Product with Raabe in 2010

With each passing year, the DIRTcar rule book continues to evolve in an effort to level the playing field for all competitors. With mandated sealed engines, spec tires, and templated bodies, only a few areas are left for teams to gain a competitive advantage. Recent changes to the shock rule have sent teams back to the drawing board for 2010.  

After considering all the options, the 01 team has decided that Genesis Racing Shocks could provide the best product under the new rules. “It might take us a couple of races for Chris to get the feel of the new shocks”, stated team member Chris Hale, “However, I am sure the team will adapt fairly quickly”. 

Part of the new deal with Genesis includes, the option for competitors to purchase any or all of the shocks off the 01, following the feature each and every night. “We have always felt that we had an advantage most nights on our shock valving, and now our competitors can buy not only shocks like ours, but actually the ones directly off our car”, said Chris Raabe. 

This will make for some pretty competitive racing at local tracks in the northeast, during the duration of the 2010 season.  

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Raabe Set to Attempt 3-PEAT on DIRTcar Sportsman Series.

By Harvey Hubb - April 1, 2010

Chris Raabe and the 01 DIRT race team are in the shop this week getting ready to start the road to what has never been done before in DIRTcar Racing. They are heading down the long DIRTcar series road for sportsman and an attempt to win a third Mr. DIRTcar series championship in a row. This is going to be a huge challenge for the 01 team, as every sportsman car is equipped with equal components that put all cars on a level racing field.

“Why I like sportsman is because our challenge each race is to adjust the car so that we have the edge over our competition. It always comes down to chassis and driver in sportsman and that is the challenge for us every night”, says Chris Raabe. “We have the same team coming back with us in 2010, we are all pumped up to bring our A-game back to the series”. 

The 01 race team will be using two completely different looking cars this season. Starting in Black Rock the 01 car will be the TEO pro car owned by Perry Francis and PJ Peters. The crew, as mentioned, will still be the same, but as the team races closer to home in Brockville and other series races that would be “home” tracks that Chris has run on in the past, the crew will use the same TEO Pro Car chassis that won them Mr. DIRTcar championship number 2 last year with all the familiar sponsors and colors.

“We bought all of the equipment from Garry McColman last fall as Big G wanted to retire as a team owner and we will campaign that equipment when we run at familiar tracks”, said Mike Raabe. “We have all the notes for that chassis on familiar tracks so it would be crazy not to go with a winning combination. When we race Friday nights at Mohawk International Speedway, our Friday night home track, we will use Perry’s car and both Chris and I will get used to the characteristics of that particular TEO chassis. As we head down the road this summer we will go with the car that Chris feels more comfortable in just like we have over the past several seasons”.

Meanwhile, back on the pavement scene, the team is still looking for sponsorship to compete in the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series.

“We have some sponsor money in for a couple of races and we are still hopeful of a full sponsorship deal coming together but we have just not had the enough exposure on pavement yet to prove that Chris can be as successful on the black top as he has been on dirt”, said Garry McColman, team marketing manager. “ There are teams and sponsors that are looking for some new young talent, and we know that Chris is on their radar but we have just not made that transition yet, but it will come. I have said this many times over the past 10 years, Chris Raabe is a very gifted and talented racecar driver that brings the “whole” package to the sport. Whoever picks him up will be the winner in the long run for sure”.

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Raabe and the 01 Team Unveil a New Look for 2010

By Harvey Hubb - March 1 6, 2010

The wrapping came off the 01 Teo Pro car this weekend in Syracuse, and it’s a brand new look! Chris and Mike Raabe made the announcement this weekend of a merger between three front running and championship race teams.

“With our pavement plans intact for the upcoming 2010 season it was time to announce our dirt plans”, said Chris Raabe. “ We have merged our efforts with Perry Francis Racing who has fielded front running small block and big block race cars for the elite of the modified racers in the North Country and continues to race himself.  The 01 team has also partnered with PJ Peters Racing who has helped field the car of Mr. DIRTcar pro-stock driver Pete Stefanski. This merger will include us joining the other 2 teams for the season and we will bring the current 01 team with us to the table. Greg and Chris Hale, Dave Brunet, and Dave and Christine Andrew have been with us for our Mr. DIRTcar championships and will continue on with us. Garry McColman, who has been our car owner since go-kart days, will also continue to manage my goals for the future”.  Raabe will remain with his familiar number 01 with permission of former car owner Garry McColman.

“I think this is a win win situation for the 01 team, Perry and PJ”, said McColman. “Perry and PJ bring the sponsors and equipment while the 01 team brings a proven championship team to the table. I know Mike and Chris will supply tech support to Perry with his car and the 01 team will have the budget to attempt to run for a third Mr. DIRTcar sportsman title.

As far as the 01 pavement car is concerned, the team is still looking for sponsorship for as many races as they can run in the Canadian Tire NASCAR series. They have a couple of races planned for this year and will run more if the budget allows. “Right now it is testing with the series at Delaware in May and onto some Ontario races during the June and July months”, said Chris Raabe. “We need some more sponsorship money to run additional races on the pavement”.

In the meantime the plan will be to run Friday nights at Mohawk International Raceway, Saturday nights at Brockville, and a few Sunday races at Cornwall with the dirt car when not running pavement. If the pavement budget does not come together for more NCTS races after August, Raabe intends to run the dirtcar sportsman series again this year as well as Syracuse. “The new team wants to take a run at Syracuse this year, in the past we have had to be very conservative on the moody mile”, said Chris Raabe. “Last year we were ready to run Syracuse but because we had a full point’s series race later that night and I was leading the series, I had to take the green and park the car… it was very frustrating for the team”. The new 01 team will have a Syracuse car ready to go this October and Chris will be there to compete for the win.

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The 01 Team is Back From Canadian Motorsports Expo

By Harvey Hubb - January 30, 2010

Last weekend was a big one for the Chris Raabe race team.  From set up on Thursday and the Canadian Motorsports Expo show Friday to Sunday, to re-set up at Kingston RV on Monday, there was a lot of work and not much rest and relaxation, but according to Chris Raabe, it was well worth it.

“Our goal was to get some much needed awareness for our race program in Toronto at the Motorsports Expo and that is what I know we got.  A lot of the current NASCAR Canadian Tire Series drivers came to our booth and said they are looking forward to having us in the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series.  We learned a lot from both the NASCAR series tech guys and the series head man in Brad Moran. They encouraged us to get our team and cars together in time for the series test day in May and that will let us and them know each other in person”.

The team booth was one of the best at the show with Dave and Donny Raabe doing the design and graphics on all the aspects of the booth.  It looked fantastic (check out pictures).

Also, Chris was honored Saturday night with the Inside Track Magazine “Canadian Dirt Driver of the year for 2009”.  Chris beat out Mr. Small Block Pete Bicknell in the voting 41% to 24%.  It was the icing on the cake for “The Teenage Tornado” for 2009 after setting more records for becoming the youngest DIRTcar driver to ever win back-to-back Mr. DIRTcar championships and 10 overall championships in just 2 years.

After packing the dirt and pavement cars up in Toronto, they were brought back to Kingston and put on display at Kingston RV in the cul-de-sac on O’Connor Drive.  You can visit the cars there for the next couple of weeks. Check out the pictures from Toronto.

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Post Season Banquets Honor Raabe for his 2009 Racing Accomplishments

Craig Revelle - Finish Line Web Design

November 29, 2009

It was just over a month ago that the final checkered flag waived on the 2009 racing season, and as Chris climbed out of his Scott Industrial Services, Kingston RV, Tyroute Telus, Corcoran Excavating, McColman Media, Kwik Load Products, Canadian Tire Cataraqui, Kingston Hyundai, Word for the World Ministries, Aaron’s Sales & Leasing, Endura Paints, Brunet Plumbing, Waste Management and Finish Line Web Design sponsored TEO car on Saturday, October 24th at Black Rock Speedway in Dundee, New York he was announced as Mr. DIRTcar Champion for the second year in a row.

The formal awards ceremonies that comes with winning Mr. DIRTcar, as well as the Can Am, and Thunder Alley Championships were held throughout the month of November.  The Turning Stone Casino was the first stop, on Saturday, November 14th as Chris and the entire team were honored for their back to back Mr. DIRTcar Sportsman championship.  DIRTcar racing CEO Brian Carter was in attendance, as they honored each DIRTcar champion in the top divisions of DIRTcar racing.  Raabe was also honored as DIRTcar Northeast Champion.

"Winning these awards mean a lot to me, but I really could not do it without my team.  We all work really well together, and I would not be able to accomplish any of it without them", states a modest Raabe after picking up the Mr. DIRTcar Championship trophy.  

The awards banquets did not stop there, as the following Saturday, the Can Am Motorsports Park and Thunder Alley Speed Park teamed up for their annual awards ceremony held at the Bonnie Castle resort in Alexandria Bay, New York.  Chris was again honored as Thunder Alley Speed Park track champion for the second year in a row, as well as notching his first ever championship crown at the Can Am Motorsports Park.  Chris ended the season with 8 victories at Can Am, as well as another 7 at Thunder Alley.

"Its a team effort", says Raabe again, referring to the 01 Big G Racing team that is lead by car owner Garry McColman, crew chief and father, Mike Raabe, Greg and Chris Hale, Dave Brunet, Eric Orozco, and Dave and Christine Andrew as well as Todd, Peter, Dave and Don Raabe that offer their help whenever possible.

The 2009 season is now in the books.  The team will now focus their efforts on the 2010 season, as they try and secure sponsorship on both the pavement car, as well as the DIRTcar.

For information on Chris Raabe and the 01 team throughout the off season, keep checking www.chrisraabe.com

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Raabe and the 01 Team Set for DIRTcar Awards Banquet

Harvey Hubb - Big G Racing Correspondent

November 11, 2009

It is off to the Mr. DIRTcar awards night gala Saturday night at the Turning Stone Casino in Verona, New York.  The Raabe race team got their TEO racecar all shined up and ready for its appearance as the front and center guest at the banquet table.

The full team will be there for the celebration and not only will Chris be the youngest winner again this year, but the only Canadian to pick up the “Golden Eagle” that represents the Mr. DIRTcar Championship. This year seemed to go by in a blur, as it just seems like yesterday that the Raabe team was setting the 2009 race goals for dirt and pavement schedules.

It has been well documented that the team was disappointed that no sponsor for the pavement schedule came to the table to enable Chris to jump up to the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series, but that meant the dirt schedule was revamped by late June and the decision was made to keep running the Mr. DIRT series for this year.

Two pavement race dates were chosen at Flamboro Speedway in Hamilton and Delaware Speedway in London Ontario. Both races were in the very competitive Lucas Cup Sportsman Series, and both events featured twin 50 lap races with qualifying set by time trials. The Raabe pavement car was purchased from Canadian stockcar legend Peter Gibbons by three of the Raabe race team sponsors, Garry McColman (also the dirt car owner), Dan and Debbie Corcoran and Dave and Christine Andrew. Without sponsorship the team still managed to field a very competitive car at both events. Qualifying 9^th and finishing 5^th and 9^th in the two events at Flamboro. At Delaware Chris qualified 5^th out of 24 cars, started the first feature 6^th… passed for the lead on lap 13 and lead the race up to 4 laps to go before being “taken out” and was done for the night. It was definitely a fantastic outing by a rookie team and driver up against some of the best teams in Canada.

That experience gave the Raabe team even more confidence for the dirt program and the Mr. DIRT series was then the main focus. One thing is for sure, the competition in 2009 was very stiff with the likes of Ryan Susice chasing the Raabe team every race and challenging them to get the 01 car ready for every event.  In the end, it was a year that finished with the results that in the beginning were thought to be impossible to repeat.  In two years the team recorded 42 wins, 10 Championships, and is the youngest back-to-back Mr. DIRT ever. Let the Champagne flow on Saturday night boys, as you all deserve it!

Photo #1 courtesy of Alex and Helen Bruce - 2008 Awards Banquet.

Photo #2 courtesy of Christine Andrew - Flamboro Speedway 2009

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Raabe Earns Back to Back Mr. DIRTcar Championships

Harvey Hubb - Big G Racing Correspondent

October 27, 2009

It is Back to Back for the 01 Chris Raabe race team.  Saturday’s race at Black Rock Speedway in Dundee, New York turned out to be a continuation of bad luck at that oval. Last year it was the only race in the series that the Raabe team failed to make the starting field for the first race in the 2008 Mr. DIRT series. A blown radiator hose in the consi put Chris and the team in the stands to watch the feature.

This year in the first race of the season for the series, rain delayed the race from Friday to Sunday and again the Raabe team had a bad start to the series after making the feature, blew a tire and broke the starter during the feature and fought back to finish an amazing 9^th. 

This Saturday, once again Chris and the team did not have one of their stellar days at the Rock. “We had a good car, but drew bad and the track was again very rough like it was in the spring”, said Chris Raabe, “I finished 5th in the heat, went to the consi and led it for the first 8 laps and then cut down my back left tire.  I knew I had a guaranteed start so I just came out and ran a couple of hot laps to make sure the car was going to be OK for the feature”.

In the feature, Raabe started dead last. (30^th position), He just avoided two bad wrecks and ran his own race once he got inside the top twenty knowing that was all it was going to take to win the Mr. DIRTcar modified sportsman Championship for a second year in a row.

“I saw that Ryan (Susice) went off for a flat tire so he was also having some bad luck and there was no reason for me to push any harder and possibly get in some kind of trouble. This is a big team effort for us to win back to back and I can’t say enough about the guys that have got us here. My Dad Mike, Greg and Chris Hale, and Dave Brunet have been the guys who have been here every night this year and in the shop during the week… a lot of volunteer hours for sure. Eric Orozco, who travels from the Albany, New York area every weekend to help us out.  My uncles, Todd, Peter, Don and Dave have all contributed again this year. Big G, Garry McColman for pulling this all together and bringing us people like Dave and Christine Andrew owners of Kingston RV, who have become much more than just sponsors for us.  We appreciate them much more than they will ever know for what they do for us, and of course all the sponsors on the car who have been with us since the beginning, George Scott, owner of Scott’s Environmental Group, Sean Lloyd, owner of the Telus offices in Eastern Ontario, Dan Corcoran, owner of Len Corcoran Excavating, Scott Sly, owner of Kingston Hyundai, The Smith’s who own Kwik Load products, where we work on the car in their shop,  The Derbyshire family who own Cataraqui Canadian Tire and Aaron’s in Belleville, Don and Dave Raabe from King Donny Graphics and Craig Revelle owner of Finish Line Web Design”.

With Chris finishing the last race of the season in 16^th spot and Ryan Suscie finishing 10^th, Chris wins the Championship by more that 30 points.

Chris last year became the youngest Mr. DIRT in the 34-year history of Dirt Motorsports.  With this win he now becomes the youngest “BACK TO BACK” winner in history.

Photo courtesy of Rick Young

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Raabe and Team Set to Repeat as MR. DIRTcar Champions

Harvey Hubb - Big G Racing Correspondent

October 19, 2009

If there was one day in the 2009 racing year that could have been called a “make it or break it” day for the 01 Raabe race team it was Saturday at Brockville Speedway. It was the second last Mr. DIRTcar series race for the Modified Sportsman and the Raabe team was only 37 points in the lead. The team left the Raabe house in Napanee in plenty of time to get to the track early to secure a good spot in the Brockville Ontario Speedway’s pits, but just west of Kingston on the 401, plans changed dramatically. 

For the second time this race season their tow vehicle broke down. Sitting along side the highway, watching the competing race haulers from the west drive by and “waive”, the boys had to make some changes, like taking the primary car from the race hauler and the backup car from the second trailer, driving them out unto the busy highway and switching a lot of tires and parts that would be needed in Brockville.

Team owner Garry McColman was called at home and with next-door neighbor and team member Dave Brunet, they jumped into action.

“I called Dave who had got to bed at 3am, after going to Syracuse to watch his daughters boyfriend play hockey for the AHL Crunch hockey team, I had got to bed at 2:30am after DJ’ing a wedding dance with my son Tim, so we were not going to leave for the track until noon.  However, we had to get the hauler to Brockville with the Mr. DIRTcar championship on the line.  Dave called Tom Veldman who works at the Kwik Load systems where the racecars are worked on.  Tom has a truck that can tow our hauler and within an hour and a half, with quick action from Jack’s Towing and Tom Veldman, Dave and I were on our way to the track”, said Garry McColman.

From a rough start to the day, it would end to be a fantastic finish when Chris set fast time in time trials, finished second in his heat race and in the re-draw for starting positions in the 50 lap feature, he started 4^th.

Chris was quick to jump into 2^nd spot to Brockville’s Dylan Evoy and chased his good friend for about 7 laps until getting by on the start of a re-start.

“I think Dylan just drove into one a little too hard and we came together with him getting sideways and luckily for me, getting by on the outside” said Raabe after the race.  From that point on it was a two car race with Chris leading the rest of the race and fellow series point chaser Justin Wright about 7 or 8 car lengths behind.

The team got lots of help Saturday at Brockville, in all there were 6 Raabe’s in the Raabe pit. Mike and Chris along with uncle’s Todd and Peter and great uncle’s Dave and Don.

With the win Raabe now leads the Mr. DIRTcar series by 57 points and only one race to go on Saturday at Black Rock Speedway. The race is an afternoon event starting at 1pm.

“Well, all we have to do is finish in the top 20 and we win the series, or Ryan Susice has to win and we have to finish last for Ryan to beat us, but racing being racing, anything can happen”, said Garry McColman.

With that in mind, team Raabe will prepare the way they have for every other race this year. Mike Raabe says of the coming race, “We are taking both cars and will set them both up with our notes from previous Black Rock races and the team will give Chris a car to win with. We don’t go to the track to finish second”.

With the win on Saturday, Chris Raabe has 20 wins again this year… that’s 42 wins in two years.  Getting ready for Saturday, team owner McColman has his own thoughts, “I can’t go on Saturday as I am working, but I will make sure we have 2 pull vehicles, spare tires for the trucks and trailers and the team CAA card to leave with the boys, we have to get to the track to win this thing”.

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Raabe Dominates In Sportsman Series Championship Run At Brockville

Brockville , ONT – October 17, 2009 – By Tom Skibinski, DIRTcar Racing Northeast PR Director

*Rick Young Photo Attachment

Reigning Hoosier Tire-VP Racing Fuels Mr. DIRTcar Sportsman points king Chris Raabe returned to Brockville Ontario Speedway after a year absence wasting little time reminding the opposition why he was the 2008 track champion.

The ‘Teenage Tornado’ set fast time in Xtreme Lubricants Time Trials then come feature time shot by front row starter Dylan Evoy on a lap eight restart and led the remainder of the way to take top honors in the first-ever DIRTcar Northeast Fall Nationals Championship pocketing $1,000 for the 50-lap victory.

“This is real big for us considering the tight points race and being able to take advantage of a track we’ve had quite a bit of success at,” remarked Raabe, 18, following his 20^th win of the season and tour-high fifth triumph on the ’09 short-track campaign. “Ryan’s been hot lately and I wanted a win bad to build my own momentum. I know going back to Black Rock next week anything can happen.”

Napanee, Ont. standout Raabe put himself in prime position to repeat as overall Mr. DIRTcar champion for a second straight season, opening up a 3.2-second victory margin over runner-up Justin Wright, with last Saturday’s Super DIRT Week winner Matt Billings, hometown favorite Randy Earl and closest title contender Ryan Susice from Ransomville, N.Y. scattered around the track.

A year away from the signature track outside the City of the Thousand Islands did little to foster a lapse in memory for Raabe, who also steered owner Gary McColman’s no. 01 Scott’s Industrial Services-TyRoute Communication/TEO entry to win in Brockville ’s Sportsman Series showdown in July of ’08.

“The track has been widened and some of the banking has been reduced but the Sportsman still have to roll the top to keep momentum,” noted Raabe, who took nine checkered flags last season at Brockville en route to the points crown. “It’s all relative once you get out there but it was really racy tonight and fun to get around.”

Raabe tucked in on the back bumper of Evoy and alongside Susice to start the 50-lap main event. Tour invader B.J. Willard began fifth on the 30-car grid and looped in turn four to stack up the trailing pack with Susice pushed back to 12^th during the first of five caution periods. When Chris Herbison got turned around navigating the first corner, Raabe took advantage on the ensuing restart to grab a lead he would never relinquish.

“I had a terrible push all day, just couldn’t get the car to turn,” said Susice, 19, despite rallying to score his ninth top-five finish including three feature wins behind the wheel of the potent  Investor's Service Company no. k38 Philpac Packaging/Bicknell mount. He’ll need some help from Raabe in next Saturday’s series season finale at Black Rock Speedway, now trailing his Canadian counterpart by 57 markers with a maximum 60 points available to gain in one event.

“I was driving the car a lot harder than I should’ve at the end just to get it to turn. That’s all I could do to keep up the second half of the race. But I’m not giving up yet, there’s still one more to go and I’ll give it my best shot,” added Susice, who earned his first track titles this season at Ransomville and Canandaigua speedways.

Luke Whitteker slowed on the back chute with a flat left rear tire on lap 14 to force out a yellow flag and Evoy spun while jockeying near the front on the following restart, with Raabe opening up a comfortable advantage back under green. Fifth-place runner Sheldon Hoogwerf slid low into the turn four uke tire to incur the final caution with Raabe outdistancing runner-up Wright by nearly a straightaway in the chase to the checkers.

Twenty-four cars finished the race with the first 16 completing the entire distance just as the sun began to set on very cool day north of the border.

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Raabe Leads DIRTcar Sportsman Points With Two Races Remaining

Harvey Hubb - Big G Racing Correspondent

October 13, 2009

The Raabe 01 race team had a very busy week last week getting ready for what was anticipated as the “make or break” weekend in the Mr. DIRTcar series.

Getting ready for Can Am on Wednesday night after racing Sunday at Fulton only gave the team two nights at the race shop. Added to that, they were getting the 06 backup car ready to go for the weekend where there was supposed to be 4 feature races in just 3 race days.

The first night at Can Am was rained out and cancelled early in the day on Wednesday, so that gave the team another night in the shop to change the set-up from Can Am to Rolling Wheels where the next two races where scheduled for Friday night.

On Thursday, it was off to Syracuse for the weekend with Dave and Christine Andrew from Kingston RV and Big G, Garry McColman taking their RV’s for the team to use as their weekend hotels. Then it was rain all day Friday and no races at Rolling Wheels.  The team then had to change the set-up back to a modified Syracuse mile set-up getting ready for practice and time trials for the Saturday afternoon’s race at the moody mile.

The team had made a decision two weeks before Syracuse to just take the green in the 30 lap race on the moody mile for the “show up” points. This decision came simply because of the rules that allow everyone who attempts to qualify for the race to get 100 points toward the Mr. DIRT series title. With only one primary car and one spare car and leading the series by just 57 points, it was decided not to change one of the cars over to a “Syracuse” car just for one race with 3 other “full point” races on the same weekend.

Team owner Garry McColman told the media on Saturday, “I agree there is a lot of hype for whoever wins at Syracuse and we would love for that to happen for us, but we only have two cars and with 3 other races scheduled over the 4 days and leading the series by just 57 points going into the weekend, we just could not justify giving up a car just for money and hype over the big picture which is the Mr. Dirt crown. We know what Chris Raabe is capable of, I don’t think he needs any extra hype” said McColman.

As it turned out, over 18 cars where tore up in the Syracuse race and then they all had to head over to Rolling Wheels where only one of the “series” races was held on Saturday night canceling two of the three scheduled events.

Chris Raabe was very disappointed with the weekend events. “I was looking forward to running the 3 series races this weekend and had we had planned for that. Taking the lap at Syracuse was hard for us as we did have all the parts and Syracuse body to run on the mile, but the decision we made was for the right reason. I was also happy to see Matt Billings win the race, they have had a great season and if he stays in Sportsman next year, I think he will be the guy to watch for a series win” said the Teenage Tornado.

The 01 team started the race Saturday night 7^th, but slipped back to 11^th early in the race, and then fought back to a very respectable 4^th after 30 green to checker laps and no cautions.

“We will take that finish here”, said Mike Raabe.  “Coming from Syracuse to here, changing gear and tires and then Chris ran hot laps and complained about the rear end. As it turned out we had to change a rear wheel bearing and axle and get him out for the feature and in doing so, I missed the set-up. Chris had to change his line in order to get back to the front and with running 30 laps and no cautions, we were too far behind to catch the leaders”.

Ryan Susice won the race so the Raabe team lost 15 points to Susice and now lead the series by just 38 points with two races to go.

This Saturday afternoon it’s a 2pm start at Brockville and then the following week it’s the last race of the year back where is all started this year at Black Rock NY.

Photo courtesy of Rick Young

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Raabe Set to Defend Mr. DIRTcar Sportsman Championship

Harvey Hubb - Big G Racing Correspondent

September 30, 2009

For the past 3 years, Fulton NY has been the setting for the final chapter of the Mr. DIRTcar series in all divisions of dirt racing in the Northeast. The VICTORIA weekend was the place where the “run for the roses” was the place that divided the top teams from those that would be racing for money only the rest of the way.

With just 6 races that count in the Mr. DIRTcar Modified Sportsman series and the opportunity for each team to throw out their worst 2 races in the series is very close and the competition between the top 4 teams is very tight.

There would have been 5 teams, but the unfortunate injury to Greg Panunte at Canandaigua has shortened the list to 4 teams. With the 01 team leading the way going into the final 6 races, it is Ryan Susice and Jipp Ortiz who have a shot at taking over the lead from Chris Raabe and winning the 20^th year of the Mr. DIRTcar Sportsman Championship. Justin Wright is an outside pick but has had some bad luck recently and unless his throw outs help drastically, he is a long shot at best.

The 01 team has had good run over the past couple of months. It seems that starting the year with the 06 TEO car and then switching to the 08 TEO chassis at the halfway point was the right way to go for the dirt season. The new chassis has worked flawlessly right out of the box for Team Raabe and Chris now likes the ride the new chassis is giving him.

“This car really surprised me the first night we pulled it into action. It is a lot stiffer than the old car and sits a lot different entering and exiting the corners, but I now like the feeling and think we have caught up with the characteristics of this car to make it faster”, said Chris Raabe.

Mike Raabe says of the new chassis, “Greg Hale and I have seen the difference in the chassis and the set up for this one is a lot different than the old TEO. I guess that comes from the fact the 06 TEO had over 140 race nights on it, but it was still working good, we just decided that we needed to get the new chassis in use to see what it was capable of in case we need it down the stretch.  We had planned to run it for 3 weeks while we stripped the 06 TEO down and let Greg go over the chassis and bring it up to new condition. Our plans changed when we won 5 of 6 features with the new chassis and Chris decided to stay with it”.

So it’s off to Fulton this weekend for the annual Fulton 200 weekend with a series race on Friday night (weather not looking good) and then its Super DIRT week with races on Wednesday night at Can Am, Friday night twin features at Rolling Wheels, and Saturday the Moody Mile at Syracuse.  After that is Brockville on Oct 17^th, and the final race of the year scheduled for Black Rock on Saturday, October 24^th.

***Photo Courtesy of Jay Fish

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Raabe Wins Cornwall Motor Speedway Season Finale

Cornwall, On – Sunday, September 20, 2009 – Martin Bélanger – The Cornwall Motor Speedway closed out the season with complete afternoon of racing with a Quebec-Ontario Showdown of 50 laps. The Pro-Stock class will have a 20-lap race with the Semi-Pro and Mini-Stock with 25-lap feature races. A demolition derby ended the afternoon sponsored by Moe`s Just Hockey.

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Raabe In Command With 4^th Mr. DIRTcar Sportsman Win At Genesee

Batavia , NY – September 19, 2009 – By Dave Medler, DIRTcar Racing Northeast Series Correspondent

It doesn’t matter on what side of the border "Teenage Tornado " Chris Raabe shows up on, he can find Victory Lane at just about any track.

Saturday night at the Genesee Speedway Raabe had a hard fought battle with Don Spatorico before finally grabbing the lead at the halfway point of the 30-lap feature. Once out front, the current Mr. DIRTcar points leader had to battle lapped traffic and hold off Spatorico for a five-car length win, his fourth win of the year, two in the United States and two in Canada for the Napanee, Ontario native.

Outside pole-sitter Spatorico outran Raabe to lead the opening circuit in the 30 lap Hoosier Tire-VP Racing Fuels Mr. DIRTcar Sportsman feature before the most serious incident occurred on lap two involving some of the tour’s heavy hitters.

Caught up in the turn one mishap were ’09 series race winners Ryan Susice, Jipp Ortiz and Justin Wright, along with Brandon Aradine. All cars were able to continue except for Ortiz, who captured Friday night ‘s tour finale at nearby Canandaigua Speedway.

On the ensuing restart Spatorico chose the outside lane and was able to bolt away from Raabe and the rest of the field to set the early pace. With five laps in the books, Spatorico held a three-car length advantage over Raabe while track points champion Brian Sage, who had already charged from 7^th starting spot into 3^rd, and second-generation pilot Rob Richmond Jr. joined the fray at the front of the pack.

A quick yellow flew on lap nine for an implement tire that found it’s way on the speedway in turn two.

When the green lights came back on, Spatorico moved to the top and Raabe used the extreme bottom, running nose-to-tail then side-by-side on the tight confines of the Genesee Speedway. Raabe grabbed the lead for the first time at the halfway point, with runner-up Spatorico followed by Richmond , Sage and Dave Marcuccilli in a distant third through fifth with 15 laps scored.

With 10 laps still  to go, Raabe opened up a five-car length margin over Spatorico as Richmond , Sage and Marcuccilli still showed in the top-five. With Raabe quickly approaching lapped traffic and a handful of laps to go, that gave Spatorico a chance to close in for one last shot at the win.

Yet Raabe was able to dispose of lapped cars at will and go on to post the five-car length victory in convincing fashion over Spatorico, Richmond , Sage and Marcuccilli. In the customary post-race inspection, both Sage and Marcuccilli were penalized their points and money after illegalities were determined with their distributors.

"It took us five hours to get here," said a smiling Raabe after getting out of his no. 01 Scott Industrial Services-Kingston RV Centre-Tyroute Communications/TEO Pro entry. "I was looking forward to coming to this place. Everyone was saying how rocky it was but I was excited to come here. It’s a bottom feeder track and that’s what I like. The track was really good."

Teams chasing points towards the overall Hoosier Tire-VP Racing Fuels Mr. DIRTcar 358-Modified Championship Series return to action next week as DIRTcar Racing Northeast charter member Rolling Wheels Raceway Park hosts round #13 of the 2009 tour on Saturday, September 26 as part of the 23^rd World Series Weekend.

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Teenagers Steal DIRTcar Sportsman Series Thunder at Humberstone

Pt. Colborne, ONT – September 13, 2009 – By Dave Sully, DIRTcar Racing Northeast Series Correspondent  

The DIRTcar Sportsman Series completed a three race, three night set on Sunday, September 13 at Humberstone Speedway after competing at Ransomville and Merrittville speedways on Friday and Saturday.

When the final checkered flag flew, 18 year-old defending overall Hoosier Tire-VP Racing Fuels Mr. DIRTcar Champion Chris Raabe, from Napanee, Ontario and 19 year-old Ransomville and Canandaigua speedways titlist Ryan Susice were the story of the Trevor Wilkins Memorial 50-lapper, as Raabe took a narrow win over his good friend.

The two started on the front row courtesy of the customary pre-race draw, with Susice holding the early advantage while Raabe was content to stalk his rival.  Susice retained the point through three of the six cautions periods, the most serious for a multi-car scrum on lap 12 when third-running Brad Rouse spun in turn one and collected a number of cars. All were able to return.

With more formidable foes moving into contention, notably Greg Panunte and Tyler McPherson, Raabe began to exert serious pressure on Susice, hounding him down low on laps 17-18 before slipping into the lead on the 19^th circuit

As the two broke away from the field, traffic entered the picture on lap 26 as Susice took advantage of contact between Raabe and Dave Dykstra to regain the top spot. That lead didn’t last long as Raabe retook the lead following a lap 27 caution, sweeping under Susice on lap 32 after hounding him lap after lap.

From there, Susice tried to mount a challenge on the outside as the two broke away from the field once again. A caution on lap 38 gave Susice one more chance to mount a challenge, but Raabe had the preferred line down low and Susice couldn’t make the outside work well enough.

At the line, it was Raabe by several car-lengths over Susice, followed by McPherson, Panunte, and Brandon Easey, who came from the rear after a penalty, to round out the top-five.

Of his battle with Susice, Raabe commented post-race, “It’s not always great to lead early on,  I just kind of sat there saving my tires. I made sure I didn’t lose touch with him, but I definitely could find out where he was weak. He was lipping up a bit in three and four. I was fortunate enough to get a few good runs and able to pounce there.”  As for the late push by Susice on the outside, he added, “I knew he was up there, Ryan’s certainly a high side guy. I was going to stay on the bottom there and try to wash up in the middle of the straightaway to take his line away a bit.”

Susice also commented on his battle up front with Raabe, “I was pretty good on the topside when I moved up there. What happened, when I was running the bottom, the car started to get a little push in the apex and I lost my forward bite.  I couldn’t keep in right on the rail like Chris, so I had to start floating around the top. I could get good momentum off of one and two, but just about everything I gained there, I’d lose in three and four. I was kind of hoping for lapped traffic there at the end to maybe have a chance to get back by him, but we’ll take a second any time we can get one.”

Sportsman Series action picks up next weekend with a big doubleheader slated in New York State ’s western corridor at Canandaigua Speedway on Friday, September 18 and continuing along Routes 5&20 until reaching Genesee Speedway for the Sept. 19 showdown.

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Wins Keep Coming for Raabe and the 01 Team

Craig Revelle – Finish Line Web Design

August 24, 2009

As the summer temperatures begin to rise, so does the win total for Chris Raabe and the 01 team.  With 13 wins on the season, and an impressive six consecutive victory lane appearances heading into the weekend, Raabe was looking to add to those impressive numbers, with a pair of SUNY Canton $1000 to win events at Can Am Motorsports Park, in Lafargeville, New York.

Friday night was a day of forecasted rain, but at race time, the sun was out, and the rain showers stayed to the south.  On the previous night tornado warnings were sent up over Southern Ontario, but on Friday night, the only tornado warnings in this area was that of the “teenage tornado”.  Chris went out and dominated his qualifying heat, placing him into the redraw for one of the top 9 starting spots.  The official team redraw specialist, Eric picked the number 3 out of the can, which placed Raabe on the inside of the second row to start the 25 lap main event.  Just a few laps in, Raabe took the lead, and never looked back, as he pocketed the $1000 from SUNY Canton.

On Saturday night, the 01 team unloaded their 2009 Scott Industrial Services, Kingston RV, Tyroute Telus, Corcoran Excavating, McColman Media, Kwik Load Products, Canadian Tire Cataraqui, Kingston Hyundai, Word for the World Ministries, Aaron’s Sales & Leasing, Endura Paints, Brunet Plumbing, Waste Management and Finish Line Web Design sponsored TEO car and finished second in the qualifying heat race, placing him back into the redraw once again, putting Eric back to work.  After picking the number five starting spot, Raabe quickly worked his magic, and took the lead just 7 laps into the 25 lap event.  Raabe continued to lead for the next 16 laps, until Matt Hulsizer made a late race pass, giving Raabe a 2^nd place finish, the worst finish for the team since a fourth place finish at Can Am in late July, a record that included six consecutive wins.

While the SUNY Canton races are extremely important, they don’t have any bearing on the overall track championship battle.  That battle will continue on Friday night at Can-Am as Chris tries to extend his slim four point lead over Matt Billings.  On Saturday night, racing resumes at the Thunder Alley Speed Park, where Raabe looks to clinch his second straight track championship.  Raabe currently lead Brandon Sweet by 54 points.  Both Can Am and Thunder Alley each have two races left to determine the track championship.

CONTEST:  Win a free Chris Raabe t-shirt by going to www.chrisraabe.com and clicking on the email link, or email your entry to crevelle@ripnet.com and put contest in the subject line.  You will be automatically entered to win a free Chris Raabe t-shirt and a signed photo.  The new t-shirts are available for purchase at the 01 team hauler for $25.

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Raabe Hits Championship Form in Late Season

By Harvey Hubb - August 18, 2009

Chris Raabe is on a roll. The 01 team has hit stride at just the right time of year for the 2009 racing season. As the local track championships and the Northeast points title come down to the final couple of weeks, the black Scott Industrial, Tellus Tyroute, Kingston RV, McColman Media 01 car is flying.

Chris Raabe is very happy with his new TEO ride, “the car is holding the track and I am able to run high and low. Friday night at Can Am the high side was the way to go and then Saturday night at the Alley, I felt real comfortable running the low groove”, said the Teenage Tornado of his back-to-back wins for the second week in row.

Friday night proved to be a very long race for the 01 car as several bad wrecks caused long delays in the feature race. Raabe started the race 15^th and worked his way up through the field and luckily avoided all the carnage.

“The track was fast and there was a lot of close racing going on Friday night”, sais Raabe, “I could see ahead that some things were going to happen so I stayed ran the high groove to make sure that I had a chance to miss the wrecks”.  Raabe got the lead from Luke Whitaker in the 38 car and never was challenged after that. The win made for win number 12 and secured the maximum amount of points for the Northeast points championship as they take your 12 best points races.

On Saturday night it was back to Thunder Alley where the 01 car had graced the winners circle for the past 3 weeks in a row. Saturday night Raabe started the feature race 9^th and unlike Friday night and the past Saturday night, the high groove was the way to go, Raabe turned the 01 car down to the bottom of the track and found the necessary racing room to take the lead and go on to win his 4^th in a row and 13^th win of the year.

This coming weekend it is off to Can Am both Friday and Saturday night for the SUNY Canton series races. Both nights will feature $1,000 to win but the local track points will be put on hold for a week. The last night of points for Thunder Alley is on August 29^th, while the final night of points for Can Am is on Sept 4^th.

Read all about the 01 pavement team here.

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Busy Weekend for Raabe and Crew

By Harvey Hubb - August 3, 2009

The 01 race team are probably sleeping today, (Monday, August 3, 2009) as I write this update… as a matter of fact, when I get done this I too will hit the hay…. All I can say about traveling with the 01 crew this weekend is WOW WHAT A WEEKEND!!!!

Lets start with Thursday night at the Kwik Load Shop on 38 highway… the full crew of Chris and Mike Raabe, Greg and Chris Hale, Dave Brunet and Garry McColman along with some new volunteers this week… Mark and Tyler Hollingsworth….were going over last minute things for the weekend that they all had been anticipating for many months… the weekend that the team make a huge transition from dirt racers to pavement. With McColman going over the last minute things that had to happen for the dirt races on Friday and Saturday nights at Can Am and Thunder Alley, then heading to the shop after the feature at Thunder Alley to do last minute prep on the pavement 01 car.

They would have to unload the hauler of all dirt related items and re-load the same hauler with the brand new pavement equipment. “I didn’t think there would be much difference”, said McColman during the hour meeting at the shop, “ but as Mike and Greg pointed out to me… even the jacks and tire equipment is all different for the new venture. “When I see the documentaries about the NASCAR guys coming back from one track only to unload and re-load their haulers… I know get the reason why”. The team all agreed on what job each would do, and what the schedule would be for leaving. McColman then left to meet with the 01 pavement co-owners Dave and Christine Andrew to discuss the Sunday trip to Flamboro race track.

On Friday, the weekend began with the first night of racing at Can Am speedway. The car was again a little off with Chris having an issue with not being able to turn in the middle of the corners. “It was a good car for the most part”, said Raabe after the 25 lap feature, “but I had to lift in the middle of the corners tonight and I was losing some momentum, so I just couldn’t run wide open all the way and that’s what it takes to win at Can Am”. The 01 team settled for a 4^th place finish on Friday night.

Saturday night turned out a lot better for Chris and the 01 team with their 3^rd win in a row at Thunder Alley. “The boys gave me another awesome car tonight, it was on a rail again and it seems that here at the Alley we seem to pull it all together”. Raabe picked up his 9^th win of the year and the points lead grew even bigger over Brandon Sweet who had an unfortunate wreck going into turn one and had to climb out of his 24 car and was done for the night.

“Now that I am going to be missing some Saturday night here at Thunder Alley for the pavement series, I am sure Brandon should be able to win the championship here as both of us are the cars to beat each week” said Raabe.

This weekend it will be Friday night at Can Am and then off to Ottawa’s Capital City Speedway for Saturday night’s Lucas Oil Sportsman twin 50’s.

Friday night…. Another hauler change for the 01 boys!!

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Raabe Has Another Good Weekend

By Harvey Hubb - July 29, 2009

The 01 team of Chris Raabe had a great points weekend at both Can Am Speedway and Thunder Alley Speedway.  Friday night the team started the night with a very tight racecar and made several changes to try and free the car up for Chris to be able to compete in the 25-lap feature.

To explain some technical terms for those of you who don’t know, when the car is “tight” it means that the front of the car does not turn the way the driver wants it to going into the corner so Chris would have to lift of the gas peddle in order for the car to turn.  When he does that the car slows down and therefore can’t get the momentum off the corner and down the straightaway.  After several changes the car did start to turn better but did not have enough to get to the front after starting 12^th.

“The guys made the car better with the changes during the night, but I still couldn’t get a good run off of corner 2 and was losing a lot of speed down the back strait”, said Chris Raabe after the race. The 01 car ended up 6^th as the point race tightens up at Can Am heading into the final month of the season.

At Thunder Alley Saturday night where the track is a lot smaller, it was a completely different story for the 01 team.  I think the word “dominate” would be the one to use for Saturday night. Raabe had a different story about Saturday night.

“Wow, we had the best car of the season tonight”, said Raabe after the race, “This car was so fast right from hot laps tonight, I could drive it anywhere on the track and it responded to me, man what a car, I wish it was like this every race night”.

Crew chief Mike Raabe said that they ran several laps after Friday night at Can Am and found some problems with the 01 chassis. “We found some stress problems on the chassis during our runs after the races Friday night at Can Am and went over the whole chassis on Saturday morning at the shop.  There we found some more and Greg Hale worked his magic to fix the problem.

“We were surprised at the breaks we found”, said Greg Hale, “These stress points do make a difference in the chassis when it comes to trying to find out why the car is not responding to the changes we make for Chris, but Saturday night with all the stress points fixed, it showed us that even though the car has over 150 race nights on it, we can still dial it in. I think you will see that we will get the 01 car faster in the weeks ahead.  I think we have had this problem since the start of the season”.

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Raabe and the 01 Race Team Turning the Corner

By Harvey Hubb - July 21, 2009

With Friday night rained out at Can Am, the 01 race team set their sights on the all star event at Cayuga County Fairground on Saturday night. The bad luck of the draw continued with team owner Garry McColman picking the very last number to pick from, putting Chris out last for the hot laps, time trials and qualifying heat.  Then when the heat results got inverted the 01 team started the Mr. DIRT series 30 lap feature 12th. Raabe quickly moved the 01 car up into 10th on lap 4 and then with a very slick track to run on started to move toward the front. The end result was moving to 6th with 4 laps to go but a caution came out on lap 26 and that cooled down the tires and on the restart with Raabe taking the inside line and Jipp Ortiz on the high side, the 0 car of Ortiz just got by the 01 car on the final lap and took away the 6th spot.  The finish however turned out to be a good one for Raabe who added another 12 points to his Mr. DIRTcar Series lead when Sammy Reakes finished 11th. 

"This was a good run for the 01 team under the circumstances", said Mike Raabe, crew chief. "Now we head to Canandaigua on Tuesday night and see what that brings us. We have run pretty good there in the past but still have not come away with a win".

The 01 team will then begin their focus on the pavement car for the first OSS series race in Hamilton over the Civic holiday weekend. Its a Sunday night race on August 2nd. The OSS has registered Raabe with the 01 number for a new team ownership of Garry McColman, Dan and Debbie Corcoran and Dave and Christine Andrew. The new pavement 01 car will be on display this weekend at Kingston RV on O'Connor Drive in Kingston.

Harvey Hubb

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Raabe and the 01 Race Team Turning the Corner

By Garry McColman - July 14, 2009

The 09 race season got off to a slow points start for the 01 race team in early April. Now that the dog days of summer are starting, the team is starting to turn the corner and get Chris back into the winners circle! “We just didn’t get the same breaks this year to start that we did last year”, said team owner Garry McColman. “Its not that we were doing anything different, but last year if we had a tire going down it happened after the race, or got good starting draws on the nights we were drawing for qualifying starting positions, or the tracks  seem to come to us during the night with the changes we were making… this year we have been not getting the same breaks. The guys have not let that bother them however and we all knew and still believe we have the winning combination to be there when the fat lady sings” said McColman.

This past weekend was a good example. Friday night at Can Am speedway the team struggled to get the Raabe TEO to a 4^th place finish in the first feature that had 14 laps to go from a rain out 2 weeks ago. The team then changed just about everything but the driver, and it proved to be the right thing to do…they got the car to where Chris went out for the heat race and won by a half a straightaway. He then went out and won his 7^th feature of the year.

 “I can’t believe the changes we made to the car between the first feature and the heat race. The difference was night and day… and then the track came to us during the feature race… the more we ran the better the car got. This is going to be a big stretch for us in the next couple of weeks as we are in some pretty tight point battles and the DIRTcar series races at Weedsport and Canandaigua” said Raabe.

This weekend the Raabe team will race Friday night at Can Am and Saturday night in Weedsport during the first every All-star weekend. Then they head to Canandaigua for a rare Tuesday night DIRTcar series race. Chris Raabe said it best… this next two weeks will be very important for the 01 race team who have taken slim leads in all their point battles, first at Can Am… Thunder Alley… Northeast Dirt and the Mr. DIRTcar series. Raabe leads the modified sportsman world with 7 wins this year and leads the DIRTcar series with 2 wins out of 4 races. Hopefully lady luck is starting to smile on the 01 team!

The 01 pavement team is at the Stouffville, Ontario headquarters of Peter Gibbons racing for the first part of this week getting the new pavement car outfitted with everything needed to compete in the Ontario Sportsman Series (OSS) races starting on August 2^nd at Flamboro Speedway in Hamilton. The OSS race this past Saturday night in Peterborough was rained out so the 01 team did not miss what would have been their pavement debut.  “We will be ready to go August 2^nd for sure”, says Chris Raabe. “I like the car and feel so comfortable in it but getting the two extra weeks is gong to help us get ready for Hamilton”.

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Raabe Doubles Up In 2009 DIRTcar Sportsman Championship At Cornwall

*Rick Young Photo Attachment

Cornwall , ONT – July 5, 2009 – By Tom Skibinski , DIRTcar Racing Northeast PR Director

Around this same time last year Chris Raabe was celebrating his first career feature race victory in the Mr. DIRTcar Sportsman Championship Series. Three months later he was officially crowned Mr. DIRTcar Champion at the age of 17.

Only four shows have reached the record book this season, and now Raabe, a seasoned veteran of the weekly open-wheel wars, has already captured his second checkered flag on tour and his latest triumph Sunday in the Benson Auto Parts 50 at Cornwall elevated him back into familiar territory --- first-place in the latest Mr. DIRTcar point standings.

The ‘Teenage Tornado’ settled into the top-three by the halfway mark, moved in to shadow leader Guy Ouellette with 30 laps scored, then dove under the fast Frenchman to forge the only lead change with 13 laps still remaining. A late race scare in traffic nearly thwarted Raabe’s best effort, yet the talented traveler from Napanee , Ontario held on for a three car-length margin over hard-charging Brandon Sweet in the tour’s first trip to Cornwall since 1996.

“Hats off to everyone here (on the team), they’re the real winners. I just get in the car and drive it, not a whole lot to it,” downplayed Raabe, the modest teenager who is now staring history right in the eye with a second-straight Mr. DIRTcar title clearly in sight. “The guys worked really hard on the car, we were a little bit off at the start but got better as the night went on.”

Qualifying fifth fastest in time trials to help sort out the 30-car field, Raabe finished second in his heat behind Sweet before drawing sixth to start outside row three and right alongside Sweet in the 50-lap finale.

Ouellette grabbed the pole in his own pre-race pick and shot out early before the first yellow waved just as the opening circuit ended. When the dust finally cleared, Canadian chauffeur Sheldon Hoogwerf and Central New Yorker Eric Giguere were among the casualties although each were able to rejoin the rear without losing a lap.

Ouellette jumped out front back under green flag conditions and was chased by Western New York invader Jipp Ortiz, fresh off his win the night before stateside at Can-Am Motorsports Park in LaFargeville. Raabe stormed into third with a handful of laps complete, although he traded spots with fourth-place runner Shane Pecore to leave him just ahead of Sweet while fast time trailer Sammy Reakes IV crept up to challenge in the early stages.

Quebecois driver Steve Bernier had slowed in turn four to force a second caution period on lap seven, and it wasn’t until fellow Canadian Todd Ferguson looped his mount exiting turn three that yellow lights would fall again on lap 21.

The top-five positions remained intact at the halfway mark forcing the nearest challengers to zero in on the #07 of Ouellette, #0 of Oritz and #01 of Raabe as the tight quarter-miler blackened with each passing lap. Raabe finally overtook Ortiz for second on lap 28, yet three yellows in three laps only delayed his rise to the front as Ouellette made his car as wide as can be knowing a change was about to come.

Pulling up to the leader’s bumper seemingly lap after lap, Raabe finally made it alongside Ouellette on the back chute, then pulled off a perfect slide for life exiting turn four before emerging as the new front-runner with three miles of racing still to go. Knowing Raabe had found the hot set-up with laps clicking off at a 15-second clip, Sweet followed suit and bullied his way into second with eight laps left and 23 cars riding around to contend with.

Raabe suddenly drew a gasp from the capacity crowd as he made contact with American Mark Chiddy on the front straightway attempting to put him a lap down just as the white flag was in the air. Raabe slowed his Scott Industrial Services no. 01 Kingston RV Centre-Tyroute Communications/TEO machine sideways for a brief moment, regrouping just in time to shut the door on a fast-closing Sweet en route to his sixth DIRTcar win of the season.

“I was off that (front) wall more times than I could count, we’re gonna have to start putting on a heavier right side bar, that’s for sure,” smiled Raabe, who retook the series points from sixth-place finisher Reakes by a count of 307-301 through the initial four tour events.

“The track was a little choppy at the start of the night, but everyone here working on it did a great job getting it back into shape. It was real racy, certainly had lots of bite through the middle and was just a good track tonight,” noted Raabe, whose first series win this year came at Can-Am in April, with Black Rock (9^th) and Brewerton (21^st) his only other finishes in tour competition.

While Raabe visited victory lane at Cornwall last season, Sweet was just as excited with his runner-up tally as it highlighted his first-ever trip to Ron Morin’s plush facility as well as his initial top-five feature race run on tour this year.

“Its definitely awesome to come out here for the first time and run this good,” remarked Sweet, who finished 18^th in the final overall 2008 Mr. DIRTcar title hunt. “But first off, I want to congratulate Chris, he’s a good runner and we’ve been running with him since go-karts.”

“I’d also like to thank all my sponsors, its been a great year so far, hopefully we can keep it going,” added Sweet, who has registered four feature wins in ’09 aboard the no. 24 Clarence Henry Coach-Powis Excavating/Bicknell entry, split evenly between Can-Am and Thunder Alley Speedpark at two apiece.

On this day a member of the touring trio comprised of top Frenchmen representing autodromes Granby and Drummond, Ouellette was in line for his first win of the season until Raabe forced the St-Hyacinthe, Quebec driver out of his groove before crossing the line in the show position. A climb up the victory lane podium was met by track PR master Brian Mulligan, who served as translator for Ouellette in his first-ever post-race appearance trackside.

“This is my first time to Cornwall and I really enjoyed the experience,” opened Ouellette after keeping his R Tuning-J.Anctil Rona/TEO mount at the head of the class all night until developing a push as the laps dwindled. “I’d like to thank all the spectators for coming out to support this event. It was a real pleasure to run with guys the caliber of Chris and Brandon, hopefully I’ll get to do it again sometime very soon.”

The Mr. DIRTcar Sportsman Series takes nearly a two-week break before getting the green light for round number five at Cayuga County Fair Speedway on Saturday, July 18 as part of DIRTcar All-Star Weekend, July 17-19.

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Raabe wins Mr. DIRTcar Series Race at Cornwall

Craig Revelle - Finish Line Web Design  

July 6, 2009

With a busy weekend scheduled, Chris Raabe and the 01 team left Napanee, Ontario and made the 3-hour drive to Rolling Wheels Raceway Park in Elbridge, New York.  The race was to be the first of 4 nights of Mr. DIRTcar series racing, a series in which 18-year driver known as the “Teenage Tornado” is the defending champion.  As the pits started to fill up, a 5 o’clock downpour ended the night early.  With the night wide open, the 01 team decided to take in some bowling, an activity that has become quite popular when weather keeps the team off the track.  This time the team was joined by fellow DIRTcar Sportsman competitor Ryan Susice.

Friday night stayed dry, and the 01 team began the evening with the second fastest time in their time trial group.  When the heat races began Raabe once again finished second, making his way into the redraw for the first 12 starting spots in the feature.  Raabe drew number 2 in the redraw, placing him on the outside of the front row for the 40-lap feature.  While staying in the top 5 over the first half of the race, a tire began to slowly deflate on the 2006 Scott Industrial Services, Kingston RV, Tyroute Telus, Corcoran Excavating, McColman Media, Kwik Load Products, Canadian Tire Cataraqui, Kingston Hyundai, Word for the World Ministries, Aaron’s Sales & Leasing, Endura Paints, Brunet Plumbing, Waste Management and Finish Line Web Design sponsored TEO car and just a few laps later, the team was put to work changing the tire.  They returned to the track and finished with a disappointing 21^st place finish.

After a long drive home through the early hours of Saturday morning, the team returned to Napanee.  After a few hours sleep, the crew began to prepare the car the next round of the Mr. DIRTcar series, at the Brockville Ontario Speedway.  Due to the heavy rain that fell in Eastern Ontario on Friday night, the track had made the decision to cancel the race around noon, giving the team plenty of time to make it to the Can Am Motorsports Park.  Rain also played havoc at Can Am, but after a couple of hours delay, the track crew worked the track back into shape providing competitors with a very fast track.  During the 25-lap feature, while running in the top 5, Raabe broke a right rear torsion bar, and was unable to finish.

Cornwall Motor Speedway was the next stop on the tour, and a beautiful summer day blessed the immaculate Cornwall facility.  Raabe finished second in his qualifying group and again in the heat race, once again placing him into the redraw for the feature event.  This time the redraw was for the first 8 starting positions, and Raabe drew the 6^th position, placing him on the outside of row three for the 50 lap feature.  Once the feature started, Raabe methodically worked his way up to the front and avoiding lapped traffic in the process.  With just 20 laps to go Raabe moved into second, and began to plot his attack on the race leader.  The “Teenage Tornado” made the winning move just a few laps later, and then drove to the win, his second on the Mr. DIRTcar tour in 2009.  Raabe now resumes the series points lead with just a six point lead over second place Sammy Reakes IV.

“Hats off to everyone here (on the team), they’re the real winners. I just get in the car and drive it, not a whole lot to it,” says a modest Raabe after the win. “The guys worked really hard on the car, we were a little bit off at the start but got better as the night went on.”

Next week, 01 team will head to Can Am Motorsports Park on Friday night.  14 laps are remaining in the feature event from June 26^th, followed by the regular 25-lap feature.  On Saturday, the team will debut their newly acquired pavement car at the Peterborough Speedway in the Ontario Sportsman Division.  Twin 50 lap features will be on the card, giving Raabe valuable seat time in the McColman Media, Kingston RV, Corcoran Excavating sponsored car.

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Four Nights of DIRTcar Series Racing On Tap for Chris Raabe

Craig Revelle - Finish Line Web Design  

June 30, 2009

The “Teenage Tornado” will be in full force this weekend, with Four consecutive nights of Mr. DIRTcar series racing, beginning on Thursday, July 2^nd at the Rolling Wheels Raceway in Elbridge, New York.  From there, the series will shift northeast to the Brewerton Speedway, just north of Syracuse on Friday, July 3^rd.  On Saturday, July 4^th, Raabe will make his season debut at the Brockville Ontario Speedway, where he is the defending winner of the Mr. DIRTcar Sportsman series race, and also reigning track champion.  The weekend will wrap up on Sunday July 5^th, for the inaugural stop on the series at the Cornwall Speedway.

Last weekend, on Friday night at the Can Am Motorsports Park, after an hour and a half delay due to rain, Raabe finished fourth in his qualifying heat, and lined up 12^th in the 25-lap feature event.  As the race started, a light rain began to fall over the Speedway, and after just 11 laps of racing, track officials were forced to postpone the remaining laps until Friday night, July 10^th.

Saturday night, at the Thunder Alley Speed Park, Raabe took the lead on lap nine and never looked back as he drove his 2006 Scott Industrial Services, Kingston RV, Tyroute Telus, Corcoran Excavating, McColman Media, Kwik Load Products, Canadian Tire Cataraqui, Kingston Hyundai, Word for the World Ministries, Aaron’s Sales & Leasing, Endura Paints, Brunet Plumbing, Waste Management and Finish Line Web Design sponsored TEO car to victory lane for the third time in 2009 at Thunder Alley, and fifth time overall in 2009.  With the win, Raabe now moves into the points lead.

After this week, and the four nights of Mr. DIRTcar tour racing, the 01 team will then shift its focus to the newly acquired asphalt car.  The first race on the schedule for Raabe will be Saturday, July 11^th at the Peterborough Speedway in Peterborough, Ontario.  Chris will be making his debut in the Ontario Sportsman Series, and they will be running twin 50 lap features.  More details can be found at www.peterboroughspeedway.com.

Depending on sponsorship, the team hopes to run at least two more races with the Ontario Sportsman Series and then the final two events in the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series.  Those events are September 12^th, at the Barrie Speedway in Barrie, Ontario and September 26^th at Kawartha Speedway, near Peterborough, Ontario. 

The team would like to thank its sponsors, fans and friends for their support throughout the 2009 season.  Due to the economy, and lack of funding, we haven’t been able to run as many pavement races as we had originally planned, but we now have the car, and are very excited about the coming weeks.

The Chris Raabe t-shirts will be available shortly.  Last week, there was a mix up at the printer, which delayed the process another week.  Once they are done, they will be available for purchase at the team hauler on race night, as well as chrisraabe.com.

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Raabe and 01 Team Prepare for Busy Summer

Craig Revelle - Finish Line Web Design  

June 24, 2009

The summer is here, and things are starting to get busy in Chris Raabe’s Kingston, Ontario based shop at the Kwik Load Products building.  A three race in four nights schedule faced the team this past weekend with a stop at Can Am Motorsports Park in Lafargeville, New York on Friday and Monday evening, and a Saturday night stop at the Thunder Alley Speed Park in Evans Mills, New York.

Friday night, Raabe finished in fourth place in his qualifying heat race, and rolled of the starting grid for the feature event in 13^th place.  As in previous weeks, Raabe started working his way towards the leaders in the early stages of the 25-lap feature.  Raabe worked his way to 5^th place when the checkered flag flew, his third consecutive top 5 finish at the fast half-mile track.

Saturday, the team was ready for the Thunder Alley Speed Park, their weekly home for the 2009 racing season.  Mother Nature dictated the outcome on this night, as a persistent rain forced the track officials to cancel for the night.

With the rainout leaving the 2006 Scott Industrial Services, Kingston RV, Tyroute Telus, Corcoran Excavating, McColman Media, Kwik Load Products, Canadian Tire Cataraqui, Kingston Hyundai, Word for the World Ministries, Aaron’s Sales & Leasing, Endura Paints, Brunet Plumbing, Waste Management and Finish Line Web Design sponsored TEO car parked for the night, the team decided to use their night off for a little team bonding, and the 01 crew took in a night of bowling in Kingston. 

Monday night, the extended racing weekend continued, as the Sportsman cars were a part of one of the biggest shows ever at the Can Am Motorsports Park.  The World of Outlaw Late Models were on hand for their inaugural trip to Lafargeville.  Luck of the draw determined starting positions for the Sportsman qualifying heats.  Unfortunately, luck was not on his side, and Raabe started his qualifying race in 10^th place, but quickly worked his way up to 4^th at the finish. 

Raabe started the main event in 17^th place, and began working his way up through the impressive field of cars.  After working his way into the top 10, a questionable call put the 01 car back further in the pack, after the track officials determined that Raabe jumped the previous restart.  An ill handling car, and the aforementioned penalty left the 01 team with a 15^th place finish.

The coming weeks will be even busier for the “Teenage Tornado”.  This weekend the team will make their regular stops at Can Am and Thunder Alley, and then the Mr. DIRTcar series will hit high gear, with 4 straight nights of series racing.  Thursday night, July 2, Elbridge, New York’s Rolling Wheels Race will host the Sportsman cars, and then the series moves to Brewerton Speedway on Friday, July 3^rd. then they pack up and head north to Brockville on Saturday July 4th, and Cornwall Motor Speedway on Sunday, July 5^th.

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Rain Showers Stop “Teenage Tornado” at Thunder Alley

Craig Revelle - Finish Line Web Design  

June 14, 2009

Earlier in the week, it appeared as though Mother Nature was going to be kind to Chris Raabe and 01 team, as nothing but sunshine was to be served up over the Can Am Motorsports Park, and Thunder Alley Speed Park. Little did we know, as the weekend drew closer, the once prominent forecast for Saturday evening started to turn for the worse.

Friday evening at the Can Am Motorsports Park in Lafargeville, New York, the team unloaded their 2006 Scott Industrial Services, Kingston RV, Tyroute Telus, Corcoran Excavating, McColman Media, Kwik Load Products, Canadian Tire Cataraqui, Kingston Hyundai, Word for the World Ministries, Aaron’s Sales & Leasing, Endura Paints, Brunet Plumbing, Waste Management and Finish Line Web Design sponsored TEO car and struggled early on.  Chris could not hold the car on the preferred bottom groove during his qualifying heat and finished in 7^th place.

“We are making a lot of changes to the car here, and hopefully we can make it better for the feature”, say Raabe, as the crew thrashes away changing many components of the car in between the heat race and the feature.

Once the feature started, it was very soon detected that the changes they made to the car were in the right direction.  Raabe rolled off the starting grid in the 17^th position and patiently picked of his competition one by one.  At the end of the 25-lap event, Raabe posted a 5th place finish, his 5th top 5 finish of the season at Can Am Motorsports Park.

On Saturday morning, the great debate was on.  Many fans of the 01 team were hoping to make their first trip to the Brockville Ontario Speedway for 2009, as they were hosting a 40-lap Lucas Oil Series event, a series in which Raabe is the reigning champion.  However, a decision was made to head to Thunder Alley instead, a decision that was spoiled by an evening rain shower that forced track officials to cancel their program for the night.

This coming weekend will be a busy one for the BIG G Motorsports team.  It will start off the weekly events on Friday at the Can Am Motorsports Park in Lafargeville, New York followed by a Saturday evening stop at Thunder Alley Speed Park in Evans Mills, New York, and then on Monday, the 01 team will be a part of one of the biggest nights in the history of Can Am Motorsports Park, as the Sportsman division will be on the schedule that features the maiden trip by the World of Outlaw Late Models.

There are a lot of exciting things happening behind the scenes, and car owner Garry McColman will be issuing a statement about their pavement racing plans in the very near future.

Photo Courtesy of Rebecca Eisele- Turn 4 Photos

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Raabe Returns to Victory Lane at Thunder Alley

Craig Revelle - Finish Line Web Design  

June 7, 2009

This past weekend Chris Raabe and the 01 racing team invaded the Can Am Motorsports Park in Lafargeville, New York on Friday evening, and then the Thunder Alley Speed Park in Evans Mills, New York on Saturday night.  After a pair of unusually frustrating weekends for the “Teenage Tornado” all eyes were on the 18-year-old superstar, and everyone that has seen Raabe behind the wheel of a racecar was anticipating another win to break the early season slump.

On Friday night, the team was very fast right from the beginning of the night as Chris put his Scott Industrial Services, Kingston RV, Tyroute Telus, Corcoran Excavating, McColman Media, Kwik Load Products, Canadian Tire Cataraqui, Kingston Hyundai, Word for the World Ministries, Aaron’s Sales & Leasing, Endura Paints, Brunet Plumbing, Waste Management and Finish Line Web Design sponsored TEO car in third place during the pre race practice session.

When the qualifying races took to the track, once again, Raabe had his car dialed in, as he used the inside lane to pass Christine Martin on lap 5 and cruised to victory.  The team’s focus now shifted to the 25-lap Sportsman feature event,

“The car was a little bit loose in the heat race. The team is making some changes, and we are going to try and tighten it up for the feature.  Every time we come here its like running a series race, because everyone is so competitive”, says Raabe, referring to the incredible field of cars that calls Can-Am Motorsports Park home on Friday nights.

The Sportsman feature was a marathon of sorts, and it took several attempts to get the race underway.  It took nearly 25 minutes to run the first 5 laps due to several caution flags, including one in turn 4 that would send several cars to the pit area for the night.  When the racing resumed, Raabe quickly made his way through the field and got to 4^th place once the checkered flag finally fell.

On Saturday night, the team headed to Thunder Alley, and once again proved they are the team to beat, as they blew past the race leader on a restart just prior to the halfway point of the race.  Chris made a brilliant move putting the car to the outside and driving around the current points leader heading into the evening’s program.

The win marked the 4^th victory of the season for the Napanee, Ontario racer, as he looks to regain the championship form of the 2008 season, where he went on to win 3 track championships, 2 regional championships as well as the overall Mr. DIRTcar Sportsman crown.

Next weekend, the 01 team will once again be in competition at the Can Am Motorsports Park on Friday night, and then the weekly Saturday evening stop at Thunder Alley.

For those of you that have spent some time over at chrisraabe.com over the past week, you will have noticed a major change to the look of the website.  Over the next few weeks, Donald Raabe from King Donnie’s Graphics, and Finish Line Web Design will be working together to finish restructuring the current website.  We will have a section for the DIRT program, as well as an entire section of the website dedicated to our soon to be announced pavement program.

Photo Courtesy of Rebecca Eisele- Turn 4 Photos

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Raabe Finishes Second at Thunder Alley; Can Am Rained Out

Craig Revelle - Finish Line Web Design  

June 1, 2009

Once again this weekend, Chris Raabe and the 01 racing team battled Mother Nature on Friday evening, as week-long rain showers forced the Can-Am Motorsports Park to cancel their racing program.  For the third time in the month of May, the weather played a leading role in the outcome of the evening.

With Can-Am being cancelled, the team regrouped in their Kingston, Ontario based shop and began to prepare the car for Saturday night’s events at the Thunder Alley Speed Park, in Evans Mills, New York.

At Thunder Alley, Raabe rolled off the starting grid in 13^th place, and quickly worked his way towards the front of the pack.  After a hard fought battle, Raabe just didn’t have enough time to wheel his Scott Industrial Services, Kingston RV, Tyroute Telus, Corcoran Excavating, McColman Media, Kwik Load Products, Canadian Tire Cataraqui, Kingston Hyundai, Word for the World Ministries, Aaron’s Sales & Leasing, Endura Paints, Brunet Plumbing, Waste Management and Finish Line Web Design sponsored TEO car past race winner Brandon Sweet.  Raabe finished the race in second place.

The focus now turns to next weekend and a return visit to the Can Am Motorsports Park on Friday night, and then back to Thunder Alley Speed Park on Saturday night.

Behind the scenes, everyone on the 01 racing team is working hard trying to regain last year’s magic.  As the team works on the cars, we are also working on the website, trying to build something that everyone will enjoy.  As you may have seen over the past few days on www.chrisraabe.com, we have been making changes to the front page of the website.  More changes will follow in the coming days.

As for the pavement program, there will be an announcement soon from team owner Garry McColman regarding the teams plans for this season.

Photo Courtesy of Rebecca Eisele- Turn 4 Photos

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Raabe Remains Consistent With a Pair of Top 5 Finishes

Craig Revelle - Finish Line Web Design  

May 19, 2009

This past weekend, Chris Raabe and the 01 team had a schedule that consisted of double features at the Can-Am Motorsports Park in Lafargeville, New York on Friday night, as well as the regularly scheduled event on Saturday at the Thunder Alley Speed Park in Evans Mills, New York.

The first feature on Friday night at Can-Am was the remaining 20 laps of last Friday night’s feature that was postponed due to rain.  5 laps were completed before the skies opened up and the rain forced the night to be over.  Chris restarted the race in 5^th place, and quickly moved his way into 3rd.  A tacky, but extremely rough racetrack made things difficult to maneuver, and by the end of the event, Chris finished in 4^th place.

The feature for Friday evening proved to be a little better, as Chris moved from his 13^th place starting position, and once again quickly worked his way towards the front of the pack.  The track crew did a great job in grooming the track prior to the night’s feature races, and was much smoother than the earlier feature race.  When the checkered flag fell Chris had climbed all the way up to the 3rd position. 

With Friday night’s program in the books, the 01 team headed back to their Kingston, Ontario based shop and prepared for Saturday night’s racing at the Thunder Alley Speed Park.  Unfortunatley, Mother Nature had different plans, as a steady morning and afternoon rain forced the track officials to cancel the night’s racing activities.

The attention now turns to this coming weekend, as the 01 team will prepare the Scott Industrial Services, Kingston RV, Tyroute Telus, Corcoran Excavating, McColman Media, Kwik Load Products, Canadian Tire Cataraqui, Kingston Hyundai, Word for the World Ministries, Aaron’s Sales & Leasing, Endura Paints, Brunet Plumbing, Waste Management and Finish Line Web Design sponsored TEO car for another race at the Can-Am Motorsports Park.  The team will race Can-Am on both Friday night, as well as Saturday night, as the Thunder Alley track takes a scheduled hiatus.  Saturday will be the kick-off to the SUNY Canton Series for the Sportsman cars.

As we get through the month of May, we want to remind all of the fans and friends of the 01 team that our new team apparel will be arriving shortly.  You can stop by the 01 trailer and make your purchase, or you can purchase them online at www.chrisraabe.com

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Mother Nature Keeps Raabe out of Victory Lane

Craig Revelle - Finish Line Web Design  

May 11, 2009

The “Teenage Tornado” Started Friday night’s feature at the Can Am Motorsports Park in 13^th place and quickly showed his strength as he moved up to 6^th on the first lap.  Unfortunatley, a multi car crash in turn 2 on the first lap brought out the caution, and while the mangled cars were being hauled back to the pit area, light rain began to fall over the speedway.

The race did get restarted, all but briefly before the skies opened up for good, forcing the remainder of the 25-lap feature to be run this coming Friday night.  The feature will run at the start of the night, prior to the regular scheduled events.  5 laps of the race are in the books.

On Saturday evening, the plan for Chris Raabe and the 01 team was to head to the Thunder Alley Speed Park in Evans Mills, New York.  The Scott Industrial Services, Kingston RV, Tyroute Telus, Corcoran Excavating, McColman Media, Kwik Load Products, Canadian Tire Cataraqui, Kingston Hyundai, Word for the World Ministries, Aaron’s Sales & Leasing, Endura Paints, Brunet Plumbing, Waste Management and Finish Line Web Design sponsored TEO car was ready to go, but Mother Nature once again had her own agenda, as heavy rains swept through the area forcing the track to cancel the racing for the evening.

Next up for Raabe team will be the double features at Can-Am on Friday evening, first completing the postponed feature from last week before tackling the regular scheduled program.

On Saturday evening, the team will head up the road to the Thunder Alley Speed Park in hopes of capturing another victory at the tight bullring located just outside the gates of the Fort Drum Army base.

Team owner Garry McColman is busy behind the scenes this week, and will have more information about the team’s NASCAR Canadian Tire Series plans for 2009. 

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Raabe Scores Third Win of The Season

Craig Revelle - Finish Line Web Design  

May 6, 2009

Sometimes racing can be like a roller coaster ride, filled with ups and downs, twists and turns as we go through the duration of the ride.  This past weekend, the ride lasted 3 days, and saw many twists and turns in the road as the weekend progressed.

The weekend started of on Friday evening at the Can-Am Motorsports Park in Lafargeville, New York, just minutes from the 1000 Islands Border Crossing. 

Raabe started from the 24^th starting position, but swiftly moved his Scott Industrial Services, Kingston RV, Tyroute Telus, Corcoran Excavating, McColman Media, Kwik Load Products, Canadian Tire Cataraqui, Kingston Hyundai, Word for the World Ministries, Aaron’s Sales & Leasing, Endura Paints, Brunet Plumbing, Waste Management and Finish Line Web Design sponsored TEO car up through the field at a blistering pace.  Through the halfway point of the event, Raabe positioned himself into the top 5.  An unfortunate caution slowed the pace in the closing laps, allowing the field to realign itself for the final shootout.  As the race resumed, The 01 car fought hard for a top 5, but on the final lap, contact with another car locked up the steering, and sent the car spinning towards the infield.

“We made contact with another car and the steering just locked up”, says Raabe.  “It broke a tooth off inside of the steering rack, and once it locks up, I am just along for the ride”.

On Saturday evening, the team headed to the Thunder Alley Speed Park in Evans Mills, New York.  The track is located just outside the Fort Drum Army base, and is just a few miles up the road from it’s sister track, Can-Am.

Raabe started the race in 13^th place, and once again wasted no time making his way towards the front of the field.  Raabe took the lead on lap 19 and held on to win his first of the season at Thunder Alley, and third victory in total for the Napanee, Ontario driver know as the “Teenage Tornado”.

“This is a great way for the team to bounce back.  We were not very good in the heat race, but we made some changes, and got a lot more forward bite for the feature”, says the 18 year old superstar.

On Sunday afternoon, the team headed to Elbridge, New York, and the Rolling Wheels Raceway.  Rolling Wheels is 40 minutes west of Syracuse, and is arguably one of the most challenging tracks on the DIRTcar circuit.

“The track is good shape tonight”, says Raabe.  “There is a lot of tough competition here, and it is tough to win”.

It was a tough night for the Raabe team, fighting an ill-handling racecar the entire night, as well as battling track position, and a fiercely competitive field of cars.  Raabe started the race from last place, and finished 25^th.

This coming weekend, the 01 team will be back at Can-Am and Thunder Alley as they look for a smoother ride throughout the weekend.

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Raabe Looks for Can-Am "Hat Trick"

Harvey Hub – Big G Racing Correspondent  

April 29, 2009

It was another great team effort this weekend for the Scott Environmental Group, Kingston RV, TellusTyroute 01 racecar.

The team was off to Can Am on Friday night, and a good draw from team owner Garry McColman put Chris on the outside pole for his heat race. He quickly passed Matt Billings to lead all 8 laps and qualify to start 3^rd in the 20-lap feature.

The Modified Sportsman division is going to be a very competitive division all year with all the new teams that have been showing up at every event the 01 car has been to so far this season. Friday night saw 42 teams going for 32 feature starting positions. This is just fantastic for the future of dirt racing and in my opinion will only make the run for the various championships wide open to many teams.

Chris took the lead in turn one as the front-runners pushed up the track and the 01 car stuck to the bottom. By lap 11 Chris had a 3 second lead but the first of 5 cautions fell and that closed up the field. The next caution by lap 14 brought the fastest two cars to Chris right up behind him and it was a close race from there to the checker flag as the 83 car of Tim Sears Jr. out of Fulton, New York tried Chris on the inside of 3 and 4 two laps in a row.  On the last lap Sears got into the 01 car hard, just about dumping Chris coming off turn 4 but the Teenage Tornado held on and took his second checkered flag of the season in just 4 outings.

Saturday night a bad draw put the 01 car near the back of his heat race and a 3^rd place finish put the 01 car starting the feature 9^th. Thunder Alley was a fast track on Saturday night and Chris moved up through the field and into 2^nd place with 12 laps to go.  Brandon Sweet had a fast car Saturday night and held the 01 car off.   Lap traffic caused Chris to make a decision to go high or low to pass, and he took the outside and when the lap car moved up into Chris… the Bennett 06 car who was very fast on Saturday night slipped under Chris to take second, and that’s how the race finished with Brandon Sweet winning his first race of the year.

Congrats to Brandon, Brian and the Sweet’s crew, but don’t get too used to it boys… hahahahaha.

Chris and Brandon have been battling for wins for many years dating back to Can Am go-kart days.  They are a good bunch to race with.

This weekend it’s a three-night weekend, Friday night at Can Am, Saturday night at Thunder Alley in Evan’s Mills and Sunday night at Rolling Wheels in Elbridge, N.Y.

The team started to get the 01 car to get a handle on Rolling Wheels by the end of last year, winning the track title. However, the team has yet to win at the big 5/8’s mile track.  This weekend will be a challenge as always at “the Wheels”. Chris likes the track as speeds hit just over 110 mph but with the crate motor, it is imperative to get a good starting position in the feature.

For all Chris Raabe fans, the team will have their new 2009 t-shirts and other souvenirs for sale late in May.  You will be able to order here at chrisraabe.com or pick them up at the track.

Finally, we will have some news coming in the next 2 weeks on the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series from the Gibbons/Raabe race team. The schedule has been changed for Chris and they will be making that announcement by the 15^th of May.

See you at the races.

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Raabe Rolls To North Country Sportsman Series Win At Can-Am

*Rebecca Eisele Photo Attachment

LaFargeville, NY – April 17, 2009 – By Martin Belanger and Jim Clarke, DIRTcar Racing Northeast Series Correspondents

Can-Am Motorsports Park was the stop for round two of the 2009 Hoosier Tire-VP Racing Fuels Mr. DIRTcar Sportsman Championship Series. After 49 drivers signed in at Black Rock Speedway for the series oepner, a total of 61 cars rolled into the pits on Friday. All the top names of the Sportsman tour were present to do battle on the fast half-mile speedway located in LaFargeville, New York.

Ally Amell and Justin Wright led the 32-car field in the 30-lap main event although it was 2008 Mr. DIRTcar Champion Chris Raabe who took the lead with a great pass down low from his third starting spot. A quick yellow for debris on the track slowed the field with just one lap in, yet Raabe got a good jump on the ensuing restart with Wright in second and Dave Marcuccilli in third.

While Raabe was alone in front, Marcuccilli was putting pressure on Wright with five laps in the books. Brandon Sweet was also with this group trying to make a move for third as Matt Hulsizer and Jipp Ortiz battled for fifth. Raabe had opened nearly a full stretch lead when a three-car crash came in turn three on lap nine to bring out the second caution of the feature. On the restart, Raabe was still the frontrunner with Jordan Bennett challenging Hulsizer for fifth spot.

On lap 12, a car stopped in turn four brought the field back together with Raabe still leading while Brockville, Ontario teen Matt Billings had already moved up to fourth spot after starting seventh. At the halfway point, just three laps later, the top-five included Raabe, Wright, Marcuccilli, Billings and Hulsizer.

Black Rock’s recent tour winner and early points leader Sammy Reakes IV brought out the caution after suffering a right rear flat with 15 laps to go, and frontrunner Ortiz retired to the pits on the same caution. Raabe built himself another comfortable lead as some great fights for position were occurring at the back of the field.

With 10 laps to go, Raabe had a opened up a 1.0-second lead over Wright, while Hulsizer and Billings diced lap after lap for fourth. Hulsizer claimed the spot as the yellow came out in turn turn on lap 24. As the race resumed, Raabe was still the leader with Wright and Marcuccilli running in spots two and three.

The last yellow flag flew on lap 29 to give the pack one last shot at the defending champion, but as starter Matt Burdick displayed the white and green flags together, the ‘Teenage Tornado’ held his line the final circuit to win his first feature of the season. The Napanee, Ontario driver was followed by Wright, Marcuccilli, Hulsizer and Matt Billings in the front-five.

“The track get slick but the track was great tonight, kudos to the Can-Am organization,” remarked Raabe, who led all 30 laps to score his second tour triumph, his first registered last summer at Brockville Ontario Speedway. “I always liked running on dirt and this win confirms it.”

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Raabe and Team Go Rockin and Bowling at Black Rock

Harvey Hub – Big G Racing Correspondent

April 7, 2009

After the 01 Modified pilot Chris Raabe washed the dust and dirt out of his eyes in the pits after the Black Rock 75 lap feature race this past Sunday, he quickly thanked his crew for a first class job of getting him a top ten for a race that claimed so many victims.

“This was by far the hardest race day I have had since we started car racing”, said the young Teenage Tornado. “Our day started so bad with a sick engine. I had the pedal to the floor during the hot laps, time trials and heat race and had no power what so ever”, continued Raabe.

“After searching for the engine problem the crew found a bad distributor module and that brought the engine back to life for the consi. I told them after finishing third that we had a good car for the feature and we should be able to get a top ten to save the day, but I had no idea what was ahead of me out there.  The track was so bad and the dust got in my eyes even though I have a dust free helmet and neck dust cover, I could hardly see for the last ten laps”.

The young defending champion was quick to give the crew the credit for the finish.

I have a tremendous crew, they bailed me out for sure. Greg Hale our engine expert called the module and he was right.  Chris Hale, Dave Brunet, Dylan Evoy and my dad Mike got me back out after changing a tire and having to push the car to start after the starter failed”.

It was a long day for all teams at Black Rock as only 13 of the 31 starters took the checker flag.  Team owner Garry McColman told me after the race that Sunday’s result is what wins or loses a Championship.

“These guys are a fantastic team, each know their jobs and work so well together and on Sunday after what I would call a track we as race teams should not have to race on,  it was clearly a whole team effort that got us the top ten.  Chris drove the wheels off the car for the last 25 laps and gained us another 10 spots.”

On a lighter note, the team had to spend Friday night and all day Saturday in the hotel waiting for the Sunday race. McColman and the old guys, Brunet and Hale Sr. challenged the young guns to a bowling competition, and the old guys kicked their butts. 

Now it’s on to Can Am for the second of 21 Mr. DIRTcar events on April 17^th.  The entire top Modified Sportsman teams will be at Can Am so it should be a great challenge for the 01 team.

Harvey Hub  

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Raabe Fast in Second Hickory Test Session

Harvey Hub – Big G Racing Correspondent

March 24, 2009

The Raabe/Gibbons race team had a very busy week in Mooresville NC this past week but it turned out to be the best week yet.  Peter Gibbons had the team changing the chassis of two of the cars that will be used this year on the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series to conform to rule changes. They also had Mike Raabe spend a day at a high profile engine shop to observe one of the best in the business put engines together and test the results on the dyno.

“This was a new experience for me as I have never been involved in the engine side of racing and with our dirt program and the crate engine, you don’t have to do anything anyway”, said Mike Raabe, “but to see what one the best NASCAR builders is doing to get horsepower was really an education”.

Of course Raabe wouldn’t tell your humble reporter who the engine builder was or at what shop, but my source tells me it was one of the ford shops. The team did not get out on the track on Wednesday because of weather but on Friday ran a whole day at Hickory Speedway with the late model cars that were testing for their season opener next week.

“Chris had a really good day today”, said Peter Gibbons on Friday night from his shop in Mooresville. “We hit the set up early for him and he was running with the late models even though they are 400 pounds lighter than our car. I saw a big improvement from our January test from both Chris and the team. They worked so well together and I think we need another 3 or 4 test sessions and I am confident we are going to run with the best in the NCTS”.

When I finally caught up with Chris he was back home in Napanee on Sunday night. I asked him how he felt about the test especially running with lots of other cars on the track with him. “Peter thought they were going to be a lot faster than us because of horsepower and weight, but the team gave me a good set up and the car rotated a lot better at this session than in January”, Chris said. “We put a test motor in the car earlier in the week that is not quite as strong as a race day motor so I was surprised that I could run with the top late models that were there testing with us. Our times were better than January and the changes that were made during the day all went in the right direction so I was very happy with how the car felt. There is no doubt that we will need some more seat time, this is a very big jump into a series that has a lot of experienced teams but with Peter’s team and his experience guiding us, I know we will improve with every time on the track”.

The next challenge comes fast for the Raabe 01 DIRT team as they get a new car ready for the first Mr. DIRTcar series race of the year on April 4^th at Black Rock in southern New York State. The car is being put together at their race shop in the Kwik Load building on highway 38 north of Kingston.

They will also have their Mr. DIRTcar Championship Car on display at the Frontenac Mall from Wednesday to Saturday this week (March 26^th-28^th). Chris and the team will be there on Saturday from 1-4pm. Drop in and say hi, he will have lots of 2008 Championship cards to sign and give out to all race fans.

Harvey Hub

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Raabe to spend “March Break” in NASCAR country

Harvey Hub – Big G Racing Correspondent

March 10, 2009

Less than a month and counting to the beginning of the 2009 racing season for the Chris Raabe 01 team. Both Big G racing dirt cars are in the Kwik Load Products shop on 38 highway completely apart and ready to go back together and set up for the first Mr. DIRTcar series race at Black Rock NY on April 4^th.

Chris will start the season with the brand new 2009 TEO chassis and use his trusty but updated 2006 championship chassis as the backup for this season.

“Big G made us put the for sale sign on the 06 chassis mid season last year, but I kept winning with it so he tore them off after the series race in Brockville and let me pick which car I would drive on any given night”, said Chris Raabe.

“This year I have told the boys to get the new 09’ chassis ready to start the season, but if I don’t feel right with it, I can go back to the 06 TEO even though we have completely re-done the car from stem to stern”.

The 01 race team are discussing where they will race on the weekends they race dirt, right now they are leaning toward Friday night at Can Am and Saturday night at Thunder Alley in Evans Mills.

Garry McColman the 01 team owners says of the decision, “I think we should race where the money is because we are not going to be running for points this year if all goes well in the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series. Chris likes both Brockville and Thunder Alley, but frankly for me the car owner, Thunder Alley is a lot easier on equipment and with the American dollar strength, it’s a no-brainer for us to race there on Saturday night.  We will race at Brockville on off night at Thunder Alley and at the Series race there. There is also the possibility that I will put a big block in the 06 near the end of the year and let Chris drive in some “special” events to see how he likes that. But that will be up to him, our focus right now is getting a sponsor for the NCTS with Peter Gibbons”.

The Raabe NCTS team will head to Mooresville this weekend for another week of testing at Hickory Speedway. Peter Gibbons told me that he intends to get the Raabe team a lot of work in the shop in Mooresville during the week with a very “big name” from a sprint cup team. Then the boys will head to Hickory with that person for a full day of set up lessons. This will be a huge learning curve for the team but Mike Raabe says they are up for the challenge.

“This team has risen to every challenge we have faced over the past 4 years and this is just moving us to the next level again. I am very confident we will come away from our second stint in North Carolina even more prepared for what is ahead of us in the NCTS. The chassis actually is not as sophisticated as the dirt chassis so that is a good thing. At the end of the day, Chris will be the one who feeds us with the information that we need to make the car faster just as he has done at all other levels of racing”.

The team heading to Mooresville will consist of the Raabe team and the Canadian Gibbons team for their first time of working together on the cars that will start the season back in Canada on May 23^rd in Quebec.

That’s about it for now, but before I sign off, I have to congratulate Chris on his exciting news about his scholarship from Queen’s University. The Chernoff scholarship is awarded to just 8 people a year out of hundreds of young people so this is as big an accomplishment as winning the Mr. DIRTcar title in my books. It shows me how well rounded this young man is and how focused he is to achieve the highest degree of accomplishment as possible.  I also congratulate his mother and father, Lana and Mike for a job well done. 

I will report to you in two weeks on the Mooresville results.

Harvey Hub.

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Dirt Sportsman Modified Driver Wins 60k And Counting

A recent Kingston Whig article announced that Chris Raabe had won one of the highest awards offered by Canadian universities.  Queens University located in Kingston, Ontario, Canada has used the 60k Chernoff Award along with several other cash awards to sweeten the deal in attracting the young scholar to their engineering program.  Correspondence from Queens indicated that Raabe had attained academic marks which were among the best in the country.  Several other major universities were in the bidding, and offered to match the Queens deal.  Chris has confirmed that he will be accepting the Queens offer and will join 13 000 students while pursuing his BSC in engineering starting September 2009.  Raabe will continue racing a full schedule this year, including a partial NASCAR Canadian Tire Series tour starting in May.  As well as a full schedule behind the wheel of his 01 TEO Pro Car.

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Raabe Set to Resume Testing in North Carolina Next Month

By Harvey Hub – BIG G Racing Correspondent

February 18, 2009

Its been a very slow racing month for your humble reporter so I decided not to bore you with some story about other kinds of racing like NASCAR or DIRT racing in Australia. I do get a lot of news reports from all the racing press lists that I am on, but I read and take only what concerns those of us that I think it affects.

So lets get to the news that affects us here at Chrisraabe.com. First, I got the 2009 NASCAR Canadian Tire series schedule. What a surprise to see no race at the historic Cayuga Speedway this year! There has to be a story there and your racing scribe will attempt to find out what happened. Then they have added a race in Saskatchewan on the western swing this summer. An addition is to Delaware speedway in London, Ontario. Delaware was a regular stop on the old CASCAR schedule so it will be good to get back there. The first race will be at Autodrome St. Eustashe in Quebec May 23rd . There will be 13races on  the Canadian Tire 2009 schedule. We will put the schedule here on the web site. Lets hope Garry McColman can get a major sponsor for the Peter Gibbons/Chris Raabe team to run the entire series.

Chris and Mike will be heading back down to Mooresville for another test session during the March break with Peter Gibbons. They have the both race cars that Chris will begin the NCTS with there and a lot of work has to be done on the cars to conform with the new rules put in place for the 2009 race season.

On the DIRT front, Chris and the 01 team will take their “old faithful” TEO chassis to the first series race at Black Rock speedway on April 4^th. It is the first Mr. DIRTcar sportsman race of the year. After that the 01 team is on a wait and see as to what class they will be racing in for the remaining months in the summer. A lot will be determined over the next month and a half. The way the year has started in racing at all levels, plans are very late in getting together. The economic state of Canada and the US is making everything change from what is the norm these days.

And, last but not least is the fantastic news that Chris Raabe has earned the highest scholastic scholarship that Queen’s University offers. He will begin his first year at Queen’s in September as an honor student in Mechanical Engineering. Congratulations Chris, just another reason to believe that this young man has all the tools to become whatever he sets his mind to!

We are are very proud of you Jr.

Harvey Hub

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Raabe Gears Up for Exciting 2009 Racing Season

Harvey Hub - Big G Racing Correspondent

January 23, 2009

This is a January update on the Chris Raabe race team. The team has started the month running and setting goals for the 2009 racing season.

First, it was off to North Carolina for a meeting and testing session with Peter Gibbons and his team both from Canada and North Carolina. Peter had two of his 3 team members come to Mooresville for the meetings and car set-up with Chris and Mike Raabe. Although I was not in attendance, I understand that all six team members got along fantastic and worked many hours together setting the car up for the Monday test session at Hickory Speedway. The coming together of past and future took place over the weekend with meetings, lunches and then at night, sitting around the camp fire swapping many race stories.  Mike Raabe says that it was one of the most enjoyable times he, Chris and Big G have enjoyed in their many years together.

The trip was made a lot easier with Dave and Christine Andrew of Kingston RV supplying 3 motor homes for the team to stay in right at the Gibbons race shop. Dave Andrew had attended an RV auction the week before and bought two motor homes to drive back to Kingston. So it worked out perfect as the Raabe team flew down to Charlotte and drove motor homes back. Christine Andrew was again the ‘hostess with the mostess’, with breakfast every morning and having husband Dave be the “official” BBQ man for the evening dinner.

Peter and Denise Gibbons were very impressed with the organization of the Raabe team. According to Mike Raabe, the test went off without a hitch and both teams worked well together. Mike said of the test day, “The Gibbons team worked with us to set the car up for Hickory, and Chris and I learned a ton in the two days in the shop. Then at the track we had to do it all with just Peter, Dave Andrew and myself on the pit crew, Big G on the radio as the Gibbons crew had to go back to Canada. Chris did very well for the first day in the car, we made a few changes to the chassis but we didn’t have all the tools and things like shocks and tires to change that would have made a bigger difference”.

The crew came home on Friday with a re-newed attitude toward the series due to start in late May. The one area where Chris Raabe is going to have work very hard on over the next several weeks will be the road course races. Chris has no experience in road racing and will have to do many hours of practice. The good news for the Raabe team is that they have a first class road racer on their team. Dan Corcoran. Dan has been with the Raabe team since the first car race as a major sponsor and has agreed to be Chris’s instructor at Shanonville and Mosport in the spring.

Dan has been racing his Pontiac Firebird and his Corvette in the “One Lap of America” and on road courses in Canada and the states for over 10 years. He will be a fantastic teacher for Chris. Peter will also have Chris down to Mooresville again and do testing on both oval and road coarse tracks.

Last weekend, Chris, Mike, Greg Hale and Big G went to the Canadian Motorsports Expo in Toronto. Norris MacDonald of the Toronto Star interviewed Chris as well as two of the racing radio shows. He also spent some time with Kerry Micks who for many years has been a front runner in the series.  Kerry had some good advice for Chris and talked a lot about the need for some new young  blood in the series.

Big G is still looking for sponsors for the team to run the entire series in 2009, “it’s not as easy as it once was”, says McColman, “but we have a very professional proposal going to many potential companies over the next several weeks and all we can do is not give up our goals of running the entire series with the Gibbons and Raabe teams coming together”.

Watch for Chris jogging around Napanee, Peter Gibbons told him he had to “get in shape” for driving 200 laps in the heat of the summer, rather than just 25 laps on a short track on a Saturday night. Chris has started a very structured fitness program to make sure he is in the best of condition. No more Big G bacon breakfasts.

Chris is currently writing exams at Napanee secondary school and beginning in February will begin in final high school term finishing up in June. He continues to score in the high 90’s for an average and intends on graduating with an honors degree.

So that’s it for the Hub report for January.  Dirt Track Digest is currently accepting votes for several different categories.  Chris has been nominated in several areas including Driver of the Year.  In order to vote, go to dirttrackdigest.com and register on the message forum.  So don’t forget to vote for Chris Raabe.  Thanks for coming to chrisraabe.com.  Just think, we have now gone over 10,000 hits in just 6 months.  Thank you for your support, and we will talk to you in February, and don’t forget to get your valentine some LOVE on the 14^th

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Raabe Learns the Tricks of the Trade at Legendary Short Track

By Jim Clarke, Clarke Motorsports Communications

January 8, 2009

His name may be missing from the daily attendance sheets at Napanee and District Secondary School , but Chris Raabe is still ‘going to school’.  Less than a month after being tabbed to take over the seat of the Gibbons Motorsports #1 Chevrolet on the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series the ‘Teenage Tornado’ has been working under the watchful eye of veteran driver/team owner Peter Gibbons at Hickory Motor Speedway, the ‘Birthplace of the NASCAR Stars’.  Garry McColman, team owner of Raabe’s championship winning DIRTcar sportsman-modified ride and his father, Mike Raabe have accompanied the 17 year-old speedster to North Carolina for the sessions with Gibbons and his crew. 

“The first couple of days were spent in the garage, getting Chris fitted in the car, talking about how the car handles and working on set-ups”, says McColman.  “Monday (January 5^th) we got on the racetrack and turned some laps in the car.  Peter is amazed at how quickly Chris has picked-up the feel of the car.  We knew heading into the test that our driver is very talented behind the wheel and has a ton of chassis knowledge for someone his age.  It will certainly accelerate his learning curve”.  

Gibbons’ beaming smile tells it all.  He’s very pleased with the progress his young prodigy has shown.  “He listens. He learns. The car goes faster. Chris is like a sponge”, says the former NASCAR Sprint Cup driver.  “So much of what we do at this level is based on communication.  Telling the crew chief how the car feels and what its doing plays a huge role in being effective on raceday.  He’s used to 25 or 50 lap races, while most of our events are 200 laps or more.  In just our brief sessions so far, I’m confident that Chris has the abilities to work well with the team and communicate the changes we’ll need to get our car to the front”.

The Gibbons Motorsports team logged some valuable track time early in the week, but some heavy rains forecast for the Hickory , North Carolina area may shift the scene to classroom for additional racing education to round-out the week.

Chris Raabe enjoyed a record-setting 2008 season, recording a feature win stat of almost 50%.  He also earned track championships in DIRTcar racing’s sportsman modified division at Brockville Ontario Speedway, Thunder Alley Speed Park and Rolling Wheels Raceway.  At 17 years of age, the Napanee, Ontario resident became the youngest driver to earn a Mr. DIRTcar championship title in the sanctioning body’s history. 

Peter Gibbons spent more than 20 years as an owner-driver in NASCAR’s top touring series including what is now Sprint Cup, the Nationwide Tour and the former sportsman tour.  He also made selected starts in the ARCA Re/Max Series.  The native of Stouffville , Ontario ran his final event as a driver in the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series Saturday, September 27^th at Kawartha Speedway.

Raabe is scheduled to make selected starts in the Gibbons Motorsports Chevrolet Monte Carlo during the 2009 NASCAR Canadian Tire Series Tour.

Photo attachments:  (supplied by team)  

Chris Raabe tests the Gibbons Motorsports NASCAR Canadian Tire Series Chevrolet Monte Carlo at Hickory Motor Speedway.

Prepared by: Jim Clarke – Clarke Motorsports Communications

clarkemotorsports@hotmail.com

613.968.6410  /  613.922.0654

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Raabe is off to North Carolina to begin NASCAR testing

Harvey Hub – Big G Racing Correspondent

December 31, 2008

Here we go, the new year and the 2009 racing season will begin for the Chris Raabe racing team on Saturday, January 3^rd. Chris, Mike and Big G will arrive in Charlotte Friday, January 2^nd flying in from Kingston, Ontario.  The team will head right to the Mooresville race shop of Peter Gibbons to be fitted for the new race seat in the Gibbons #1 car.

The weekend will be spent getting Chris comfortable in the car and Mike and Peter will be discussing the plan of attack to get the new team ready for the first NASCAR Canadian Tire Race in late May at Cayuga Speedway, near Hamilton, Ontario.

Chris is not showing a lot of external excitement at this point, but my bet after watching people in this sport for so many years is that he is busting on the inside to get to that first race. Getting to know Chris over this past summer I can also predict that between January 3^rd and that first race in May, he will do everything his mentor, Peter Gibbons will teach him to do in this new type of race car and on a different racing surface.

Peter has mentioned in some of the announcement interviews what he liked about Chris after that first meeting was that he reminded him of what he was like at that age in his racing experience. Gibbons is quick to tell you that he basically did it himself in the early years, building his motors, chassis and body. He drove the truck and made all the shop repairs to get ready for the next race. Peter liked the fact that Chris Raabe is generally the first person at the shop at night and the last to leave after making sure that everyone who has worked on the car has done their job to his satisfaction as the wheel man.

Big G has told me over the past several months that it has been interesting to watch Chris come from basically conferring with his dad about how the go-kart and then the race car was handling and watching Mike and the crew make the changes to getting out of the car conferring with Mike and then jumping in with the team to make the changes.

“Chris at 9 years old would get out of his go-kart and grab a different set of gears and hand then to his dad to change from his heat race to his feature race.  This would happen almost every night, even though he had won the heat race”.

“Mike would get a good laugh out of Chris for never being satisfied with the way the kart was handling and always guessing the way the track would be changing for the feature race” says Big G.  Then, after a feature win by the young Raabe, he would complain all the way home to his dad about how they could have made the kart better.

If I were a betting man, (and I am not) I would bet that Chris, Mike and Peter Gibbons are going to be a winning combination a lot sooner than most people expect.  They will start this coming year prepared to run up front.  The boys will be taking some pictures/video of Chris’ historic trip and we promise to get them on chrisraabe.com as soon as possible.

In the meantime, the team would like to wish a HAPPY NEW YEAR everyone.  Please don’t drink and drive and I will update the website as soon as the boys come home from Charlotte on January 12^th.

Harvey Hubb

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The 01 Racing Team Reveals the “Inside Scoop”

By Harvey Hub – BIG G Racing Correspondent

December 19, 2008

Well, a lot has happened over the past week in the 01 team pits. Your humble reporter was pushed aside…run off the track sort of speak for the very big news about moving Chris Raabe to the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series with the legendary Peter Gibbons Motorsports.   Like most of you, good ole Harvey was kept in the back of the hauler, and away from the big news, not hearing about the signing until most of you did last Thursday right here on chrisraabe.com.

After all the news media got all the information directly from Peter Gibbons and Chris Raabe, and it has been reported on radio, TV and newspaper, and after Chris did all the interviews with the race reporters, your humble scribe finally sat down with Chris Raabe and asked him about how this all came about. Here is the inside scoop, for your eyes only, exclusively on chrisraabe.com.

In June of last summer, Big G set up a meeting with the local owners of the Cataraqui Canadian Tire store, Elwin Derbyshire and his family about introducing Chris, Mike and himself to the Canadian Tire racing group at head office in Toronto. In early July, a representative from Canadian Tire racing came to Kingston to meet with Chris, Mike and Big G.

“We had a very good meeting with Canadian Tire on that day with the Derbyshire family and the head office person”, says Chris of that first meeting. “They made it very clear that Peter Gibbons was their person to sponsor in the series for as long as he wanted to be and that we would have to talk with him about getting me a ride in the series”.

The Raabe team then apparently just went back to their racing program and didn’t attempt to call the Gibbons team just then. In late July, Big G called Peter Gibbons and had a chat with him about Chris and the series. Peter told Big G that Canadian Tire had mentioned the young hot shoe to him but he had no plans to meet with them just then.

In August, the Gibbons camp then contacted the Raabe’s for a meeting at their shop in Stouffville Ontario.

“That meeting went really well” says Chris Raabe, “Peter started by telling us he had decided to get out of the seat at the end of the season, but that he did not know what he was going to do with the team, but by the end of the day and hearing what my dad and Big G had to say to him about bringing a team to the program, he started to ask some questions about what we thought we could do”.

The team left the Gibbons shop that day with no idea of the future, but did feel they had a good meeting with Peter and were convinced that Gibbons Motorsports had the expertise and equipment to get Chris into the winners circle in the NCTS series.

There was little contact over the next few weeks as Chris and the team were starting to climb to the top of the Mr. DIRT Modified Sportsman series.  Local track championships, the Lucas Oil series and the regional points series. As history has already proven, the team won them all.  After the last race of the season, McColman had a few more conversations with the Gibbons team but nothing happened until last week when Peter Gibbons called McColman to say that he and Denise wanted to talk about putting Chris in the seat of the #1 car for the NCTS.

Chris, Mike and Big G, met at the McColman ranch and had a long conversation with Peter Gibbons and they all came to an agreement on the deal on December 8^th. 

Chris is off to Charlotte on January 2^nd for a week of testing with his new mentor, Peter Gibbons at the historic Hickory Motor Speedway. The team will work with Gibbons Motorsports all winter to get Chris up to speed with the larger, heavier and more powerful car so that he is ready to go in the first race of the year scheduled for late May at Cayuga speedway near Hamilton, Ontario. This is going to be the biggest challenge in the young career of the “Teenage Tornado”, but if history means anything, Chris Raabe is up for the challenge.

“My biggest goal right now is getting all the experience and coaching I can from Mr. Gibbons, who is someone I have looked up to for many years, after all he is a legend in Canadian stock car racing”, Raabe says of his new mentor. “I need to prove to him and everyone else he didn’t make a mistake in choosing me to step into his seat”. 

As far as the rest of the team is concerned, father Mike and Big G say they are along for the ride. Mike says of his son, “Chris has always loved a challenge and I am very confident that being given this opportunity with Gibbons Motorsports he will do just fine”.

So that’s it for the Hub update this week, I hope you enjoyed reading the “real” story on chrisraabe.com.  I will not be with Chris, Mike and Big G in North Carolina simply because I am broke and Big G is too cheap to take me with them, so it’s back to the hauler I go.  However, they will send me a report and pictures for the first of the year edition of the update.   Until then… Merry Christmas to you all, and I hope you all have a very prosperous New Year.

Harvey Hub

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