The COVID-19 Pandemic impacted the ASRA 2020 campaign and continued to prevent us from returning to normalcy in the offseason. The yearly awards banquet typically held in February had to be cancelled. The board of directors did not want to prevent the association from recognizing its 2020 champion along with the rest of the top 10, so there was an effort to conduct a BBQ at the race track. On Saturday, May 22nd the over 80 supporters of the association gather in the pavilion at New England Dragway to put the final stamp on the 2020 season. The delays during the day pushed racing much later into the evening than anticipated but the patience of all involved was greatly appreciated.
The event was catered by The Smoke Shack which runs the concessions right at the truck. The BBQ spread received numerous compliments and the staff and ownership were very accommodating so please check them out when at the track. Dinner kicked off while racing was winding down and awards got underway once the day’s racing was completed. The 2020 race winners were recognized as Todd Bednaz, Dave Casey, Billy Pires, and Bob Broadbent were given trophies. George Mirza was also congratulated for his 2020 shoot-out win. The specialty awards were voted on using an electronic ballot via email due to the inability to meet in person at a rule’s meeting. The best appearing award went to Bob Vogel in his newly acquired K/SA 1981 Malibu that he redid during the offseason prior to 2020 and was very well deserving of the honor. The support person of the year went to Ann Bednaz who is always at the side of her husband Todd as he is competing for (and winning) championships. Lastly, the very respected Peter O’ Moran Sportsmanship Award was given to TJ Boucher who was recognized for his efforts in supporting the association as a Board of Director.
The event moved on to awarding the top 10 with plaques once again provided by the talented John Gray. This group consisted of Peter Foster, Dan Lynch, Bob Broadbent, Jim Whitehead, Billy Pires, Gregg Sutherland, George LaBelle, Dave Casey, Brandon Karaguezian, and the Champion Todd Bednaz. Todd gave a very heart felt speech giving special thanks to his Dad for being his mentor and for letting him “break a lot of parts along the way”. He thanked many of his other friends and supporters, along with the association itself for creating a great racing community. Todd gave a special thanks to his wife Ann for being his strongest supporter and giving him the confidence in racing that has resulted in a lot of success in recent years. Todd is a great representation of ASRA as he conducts himself with the upmost level of class and character. Congratulations again to Todd on a deserving championship.
The final point of the night was awarding the 50/50 raffle which was over $500 to the winner and many were excited to see one of the serving girls having the winning ticket. Plenty of bench racing and socializing ensued during a beautiful evening at the track. It was nice to put the final pin in the 2020 season and put the COVID riddled season behind us as we get into our 40th anniversary season in 2021.