Claremont
Who knows when the fire is going to go out for Johnson, but he is just a pup compared with a 64-year-old racer who is mixing it up with the young guns every Friday night at Claremont Speedway.
Lenny Silver, who won two Late Model track championships at Claremont back in the days when cars were built from stock, is back in the saddle driving in the Super Street division in a car owned by Harold “Pee Wee” Mathieson Jr.
When Silver won his first championship in 1991, he was driving an off-the-street Chevrolet Camaro with a cage in it. He won again in 2000 and stopped racing after the 2006 season, when things got a bit unpleasant with the track ownership of the time.
The speedway has gained new owners since then, one reason Silver chose to come back.
“I didn’t want to end my racing career that way,” he said.
Silver got the racing itch when his father, Jack, brought him to Claremont Speedway when he was 14 or 15. He first started driving in 1979 and now, 38 years later, Silver still gets excited when the green flag drops.
Silver admitted leaving racing left a void in his life. “I’m really competitive,” said the Newport High School graduate, who also is a bowler and golfer, and was a shortstop for Newport’s Miller Real Estate when there was a highly competitive modified softball league in the area.
Racing, however, remains a first love.
“I wanted to get back in the car,” he said.
The 2000 season was Silver’s best, thanks the car he drove for Woodstock’s Bill Bomhower. Silver took the checkered flag seven times in 15 Claremont races.
This season has been kind of a struggle, however, as his car hasn’t been in peak condition yet. Rain also has washed out three Friday night shows.
“I’ve only raced three times,” said Silver, who was 13th in points entering the weekend in a division that has 27 cars.
The flame certainly continues to burn for Silver, who recently retired after working for nearly 40 years at Sturm, Ruger and now works part-time for NAPA Auto Parts.
“Oh yeah, racing is kind of an addiction,” said Silver, who believes he’s the oldest driver at Claremont, being two years up on 62-year-old Modified veteran Dwight Jarvis, of Ascutney. “The sport still gets my blood boiling.”
However, Silver’s prime concern now is getting his car all tuned up. The driver, said Mike Richarson, a member of his pit crew, “works countless hours on it.”
“We’re struggling right now,” Silver said. “Lost an engine the second week and lost a couple more weeks trying to figure things out. We’re just missing something.”
Like most drivers and owners, Silver likes the Claremont facility, where his 355-cubic-inch engine can get him near to 80 miles per hour in the corners.
“It’s flat and wide,” Silver said. “It’s a beautiful facility.”
Silver also likes the rule that allows owners to buy only one tire a week.
“Some guys would try and buy three or four a week,” he said, adding that the tires cost about $125 and the winner’s purse is about $700. “Racing can get really expensive. The tire rule makes sense.”
Silver has been around long enough to know that the division he’s in has its share of devotees. He also understands that when the likes of Jack Bateman, Peter Daniels and Bruce Batchelder were wheeling their Modifieds around Claremont Speedway, the stands were full. They aren’t as full now, but are improving, Silver said, especially when the Modifieds are on the card.
“Modifieds draw the people,” said Silver. “They surely do.”