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Eddie MacDonald Named 2009 Busch Sport Scene Driver of the Year
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Eddie
MacDonald participated in the 11th Annual Busch Sport
Scene Ride for Charity on February 6th, just one week
after earning a top ten finish in the NASCAR Toyota All
Star Showdown in Irwindale, California. Eddie made the
trek to Rangeley, ME to support the annual charity event
that has raised over $100,000 in the past eleven years. The event has also become the occasion to announce the Busch Sport Scene annual awards. Busch Sport Scene publisher George Campbell announced the magazine's Driver of the Year and Fans Favorite award winners for the 2009 season. Eddie was honored as the winner of both awards this year, becoming one of the few to have ever won both awards in one year. The Driver of the Year award is chosen by the Busch Sport Scene staff members. Staff members are asked to nominate their top three choices for the award, in order of first to third. The first place driver receives three points, the second place driver earns two points while the third place person gets a single point. The driver with the most points is named the Busch Sport Scene Driver of the Year. Eddie had one of the most amazing years on the racetrack, by any driver from the northeast in recent memory. As a full time competitor on the NASCAR Camping World Series in 2009, Eddie finished runner-up for the series championship, falling just 34 points behind series champion Ryan Truex, who drives for the Michael Waltrip Racing team. Eddie notched ten top tens and a pair of pole awards in his best career season in the CWS. Eddie also won the 2009 Track Championship at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. Driving the No. 71 NEMO/Grimm Construction Chevrolet, Eddie finished sixth in the Heluva Good! 125 in June and won the second Heluva Good! 125 in September, which led to his second consecutive NHMS Track Championship. Making Eddie's 2009 season even more remarkable is the other races he ran outside of the NASCAR Camping World Series. Eddie also raced a NASCAR modified car at New Hampshire Motor Speedway and a super late model in the Pro All Stars Series. But his most impressive performances of the 2009 season came in a late model stock car. Eddie won the prestigious TD Banknorth 250 at Oxford Plains Speedway with his late model in July. He then followed that up with an amazing win in the American Canadian Tour's Inaugural ACT Invitational at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in September - on the same weekend as he won the NASCAR CWSE Race at NHMS!
Eddie was presented the Driver of the Year package that featured a $1000 gift Certificate from Bo Built Race Car Bodies. bo Built has sponsored the award for several years now. Bo & Sally Galloway of Bo Built Race Car Bodies provide the best bodies for many of the premiere race teams in the region. Based out of Weare, NH, some of Bo Built's winning clients include 2008 NASCAR Camping World Series Champion Matt Kobyluck and Two-Time New Hampshire Motor Speedway Champion Eddie MacDonald. Bo supplies stock car bodies for four of the top ten finishing teams in the 2010 Toyota All Star Showdown, including the winning team, Fadden Racing!
Get-Etched again provided the winners plaque, a beautiful granite etched plaque honoring the annual award winner. They also included a gift certificate for Get Etched products. Previous Driver of the Year winners include Brad Leighton, Andy Santerre, Mike Olsen, Joey Logano and last year's winner, Matt Kobyluck. "I'm especially happy to have Eddie win the Annual Busch Sport Scene Driver of the Year award," Busch Sport Scene publisher George Campbell said. "Eddie is such a talented driver and had an incredible year, he really earned this award, he had one of the most memorable seasons of a New Englander in recent history."
Brian Hoar was named runner up this year after his great year, which he capped off by winning his sixth American Canadian Tour Championship. His first win of the 2009 season, and 24th of his ACT career, came when the ACT Tour made it's return to Beech Ridge Motor Speedway in Scarborough, Maine last July. He followed that race up with another win, this time at Waterford Speedbowl in Connecticut. After presenting MacDonald with the Driver of the Year award, next up was the Busch Sport Scene Fans Favorite Driver award. This award is voted on by the readers of Busch Sport Scene and the popular motorsports website, neracing.com The readers are asked to send in the name of their favorite driver through the month of December. They are asked to name the driver they most like to watch and follow when they attend races. "We received a long list of drivers names this year," Campbell said. "Each week received a variety of names. But as the names added up, one drivers name kept coming in with strong consistancy. It seemed as though for every new drivers name we received, we received another vote for Eddie MacDonald. by the time voting closed, Eddie had nearly a 2 to 1 landslide win this year." Eddie was presented his award and a package that included a binder full of photos from the 2009 season provided by professional photographer Norm Marx.
Coverage of last years event:
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Last Updated on 02/16/10
By George Campbell or Greg Fish
Email: neracing@neracing.com
