Auto-racing Massachusetts teen enjoys championship season on track

WHATELY, Mass. (AP) — Climbing the ranks in sports can be difficult for anyone, let alone a teenager.

For Joel Monahan, it almost seems as though his auto-racing success has come almost too quickly at times — not that he’s complaining.

Monahan, from Whately, continued his rise through classes at Monadnock Speedway in Winchester, New Hampshire, and drove his No. 03 Monahan Trucking Chevrolet to four race victories and eventually the Super Stock Division points championship.

“It was crazy,” Monahan said of the title. “It came down to the last race with four points separating three of us.”

Monahan, who turned 19 Thursday, has made the gradual ascension from Young Guns as a 15-year-old to Mini Stock and now to Super Stock in just four seasons. He’s also expanded his racing to Stafford Motor Speedway in Stafford Springs, Connecticut, and even took the wheel in an event at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, annually the home of two NASCAR Sprint Cup races.

Racing is a big part of Monahan’s family. Father Brenden is his crew chief and scheduler (“My dad is pretty much in charge of everything,” said Joel with a laugh), brother Kyle is also on the pit crew, and Uncle Terry is the spotter. Jim Brow and Deryk Baker are also pit-crew members.

It’s also a family affair off the track. Among the fannies in the seats at most races are mother Susan, grandparents Judy and Rex Slocum (who he calls, “my biggest fans”). Other relatives and many close friends also make the journey.

“I get a lot of support and they try to make it to most of the big races. That helps for sure,” he said. “My grandma and grandpa plan their vacations around my schedule.”

Monahan was first exposed to the sport when Judy and Rex took their then-7-year-old grandson to Thompson (Connecticut) Speedway Motorsports.

“I went to quite a few races with my grandma and grandpa,” he recalled.

Once he reached 15, it was time to see what he was made of, and success quickly came with a rise through the respective classes.

In 2015, he earned Rookie of the Year in the Super Stock division at Monadnock, and garnered the same honor in the Late Model division at Stafford before winning the Super Stock championship this past season at Monadnock.

“Once I raced in Mini Stocks and was really doing good, I jumped out of that quick and went to Super Stock,” said Monahan. “I don’t think you can be too successful. It’s more fun, obviously, than anything else.”

His biggest event to date came on Sept. 24, when he competed in eighth-annual Bond Auto American-Canadian Tour (ACT) Invitational at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. Monahan said the Late Model cars used in that race “were like high-tech Pro Stocks with better shocks and motor.”

Monahan was invited to try out for the race and ran the third-fastest qualifying time, earning his invite. He wound up starting 39th in the 50-lap blind draw event but worked his way up 22 spots top finish 17th in the 43-car field after climbing as high as 12th. He also won the race’s Hard Charge Award for passing more competitors than all but the winner.

“I was happy with even finishing the race,” said Monahan. “When you’re going 140-150 (mph) the backstretch, drafting comes into play. From where I started, it turned out pretty good. It was crazy, but it was awesome.”

Monahan identifies his racing strength as his ability to get through traffic as quickly as possible. He didn’t pinpoint a weakness, except to say, “I just try to improve on everything I do every week. Even the things I’m good at I’m not the best at doing, so I try to improve every week.”

He briefly touched upon the “ugly” side of racing, one that seems to occur all too often in NASCAR and other elite levels of the sport. Monahan said 2016 was pretty calm for him, but there are occasional issues with other drivers.

“The way I look at it is this: If you race me clean, I’ll race you clean,” he said. “It’s mostly clean racing at Monadnock. You’re gonna have problems at any race track, and you’re always gonna have that one guy who’s a jerk, but it was a good year for me in that regard. I was pretty friendly with everybody.

“I’ve seen bits and pieces of the ugly side of racing, but I’ve never had anything serious happen,” he added. “I don’t like to have enemies, especially racing for points and trying to win. It’s not worth the headaches.”

Monahan is already looking forward to the 2017 season, which is scheduled to begin in April. He said he’s planning to run the full season in Super Stock and Sportsman Modified at Monadnock, and likely run a light schedule in the Late Model class at Stafford (similar to Monadnock Super Stock).

“I think I’m definitely making progress,” he said. “Winning a championship is as successful as you can get, but I tried not to think about that all year, or think about the pressure. I always try to stay even-keeled. I don’t like to think that it (success) surprises me, but I’m pleased that I’ve had the success I’ve had.”

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Information from: The (Greenfield, Mass.) Recorder, http://www.recorder.com