"Obviously, any time you get competitors out there with each other, we're going to be battling for bragging rights," says Andy Santerre, the defending Busch North Series champion from Cherryfield, Maine. "I think the team concept is going to bring our guys closer together. At that point, our season will be over and we can all go out there and be a team. If everyone wants to play as a team, it'll work out better for all of us.
"What we need to do is go over there and work together and help each other on setups. If one guy is real fast, we need to get together and try to make it a team effort. If I'm the fastest guy, I don't have a problem helping the other guys from the Busch North, so we have a good shot at winning. I'd like to help my fellow Busch North teams, so we can go out there and show them how strong our series is.
"The last 25 laps are individual, so hopefully one of us can win that, but I think we need to concentrate on helping each other and getting that team win."
Since that first season of regional racing in 1954, NASCAR racing at this level has certainly come a long way. At Irwindale Speedway in November, regional all-stars will step up to a new plateau in their racing pursuit to the top national divisions.
Editor's Note: Jeremy Davidson, NASCAR manager of communications, oversees public relations for the sanctioning body's regional touring divisions and the NASCAR Dodge Weekly Series.