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| Windham Auto Racer Rusty Poland competes at Oxford Plains Speedway and Beech Ridge Motor Speedway in a super late model Chevy with a distance racing chassis built by Jeff Taylor. Poland owns the racecar with his father, Wayne Poland. SUBMITTED PHOTO |
The thrill of competition and taking the
checkered flag are what continue to motivate Windham auto racer Rusty Poland.
From as far back as he can remember, Poland,
who turns 26 next week, has yearned to race and improve his skills on the
track. Starting out in go-karts as a child and moving up to 250-lap stock car
races, Poland has become a name well-known to racing fans in Maine through the
years.
“My grandfather Chummy Brown started racing at
Beech Ridge Motor Speedway in Scarborough on Day 1 and never looked back from
there,” Poland said. “He still works on my racecar to this day almost daily at
the young age of 82.”
Poland’s
fans have cheered as he’s won national and divisional championships from
Maine to Florida in go-karts, then moved up to compete in full-body
racecars and won races in the sport series division and pass races in the
sportsman division at Beech Ridge Motor Speedway. His top mark to date in the
super late model division has been a second-place finish in a race at Oxford
Plains Speedway, but he’s also optimistic about his chances this year.
“I’m working really hard
to earn it, but hopefully we can finally make it happen this season,” Poland
said.
During his racing career,
he’s captured the World Karting Association National Championship, four WKA
divisional championships and was honored as the 2013 PASS Sportsman Rookie of
the Year.
On June 28 Poland was 12th
overall out of 34 cars entered in a 150-lap pass tour race at Oxford and his
goal remains to get better every time out on the track.
His #44 super late model
Chevy is a distance racing chassis built by Jeff Taylor, who Poland describes
as one of the best chassis builders in the northeastern United States.
Additional parts for Poland’s racecar are maintained and installed by him and
his crew and he co-owns the car along with his father, Wayne Poland.
“This season we will be
traveling to a couple tracks in New Hampshire to race as well,” Poland said. “A
normal race for us is 50 laps and then we run a couple of the bigger shows that
are 150 laps and last year we competed in the famous Oxford 250 which was 250
laps.”
In Poland’s opinion, the
best thing about racing is all of it.
“I love everything about
it. It’s brought me close with so many friends,” he said. “I consider them
family and how much of a family sport it is for myself. My grandfather, my mom,
my dad, my aunts, my uncles, and my cousins all support me and come to almost
every race and always try and help in any way possible. It’s extremely humbling
to have the support group that I have and I’m extremely blessed.”
According to Poland,
a 2012 graduate of Windham High School, the most challenging aspect of racing is
the constant fight to do better each time out on the racetrack.
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| Windham Auto Racer Rusty Poland, right, has been racing for much of his life with the encouragement of his father, Wayne Poland, left. Poland's grandfather, Chummy Brown, 82, used to race in Scarborough and still helps out by working on Poland's car to this very day. SUBMITTED PHOTO |
He said that the worst
part of racing to him is the money involved to stay competitive.
“Not so much the dollar
bills themselves, but everything takes money,” Poland said. “Something breaks
and it has to be replaced and fixed, you crash it’s going to cost you more
money to buy new parts. A lot of teams put so much into it and to see stuff
like that happen is a real reality check and bummer for anyone.”
When he’s not racing,
Poland works for Casella Waste Systems in the maintenance department as a
diesel truck technician.
He’s also a Maine
certified welder and has done a lot of welding and truck body rebuilds. In the
little free time he does have, he enjoys snowmobiling, dirt biking and anything
that has a motor involved with it.
Poland says he owes a
great deal to his sponsors, who have allowed him to pursue his dreams.
“I have some awesome
sponsors and I would never be close to where I am today without them,” he said.
“I have Derek Kneeland Racing who is actually my cousin and a NASCAR spotter
for Kyle Larson. We have Casella Waste Systems who has sponsored me since the
very first season and also my mother father and myself are employees there.”
Other sponsors of Poland
are Morrell’s Excavation and Septic, Bonang Concrete LLC, Timmons Machine and
Ty-gar Machine in Windham, Kruzecks Garage, Maine-ly batteries and his friends
and family also chip in and give him tire money and such when they are able to
do so.
As far as his future is
concerned, Poland said that he’s realistic, realizing how difficult it is to
compete in NASCAR races.
“But I would love to be
able to get a ride driving someone else’s racecar and being able to do some
pass tour races and things like that would be my top of the line deal that I’d
love to see in the future,” he said.
His advice for those
considering a racing career is to not ever give up on your dreams.
“If it’s worth everything
you put into it, keep the drive and determination to get better, fight through
the hard times and enjoy the good times,” Poland said. “Racing is a roller
coaster of emotions, but with the right attitude you’ll get through it. And
most importantly, surround yourself with good people and good things will
happen. Never lose respect or thankfulness of the people that give up time to
help you follow your dreams. It takes an army to run a race team.” <
