Oxford, ME:  Once again, until the waning laps of an event, Sean Caisse of Pelham, NH thought he had a top-five finish well in hand.  The teenager sat solidly in fifth position aboard his A-1 Landscaping Chevrolet until being involved in an incident on lap 139 of the 150-lap event.  His final finishing position in the Fisher Snow Plows 150 for the NASCAR Busch North Series at Oxford Plains Speedway reads 17^th.  It was the fourth time this season that Caisse has been running inside the top five only to be knocked out of contention. 

 

“I am terribly frustrated,” said a dejected Caisse.  “This entire team works incredibly hard to run competitively every week.  And every week we are competitive until we find ourselves in the wrong place at the wrong time.” 

 

The day started out well for Caisse and his Motion Racing team, who were debuting a new car to their program.  His lap times in practice had Caisse fifth on the speed chart.  He backed that up with a time trial run in Bud Pole qualifying that placed him sixth on the starting grid.  During the event Caisse fell as far back as thirteenth at one point but rallied back and ran the majority of the race in the fifth spot. 

 

“It was not an easy race,” continued Caisse.  “It is typical of racing on a bullring.  We got knocked around a little bit, just like everyone else, but I had a good car tonight.  I know that we would have had a top finish and a good point night.”  

 

With only eleven laps remaining in the event, Brian Hoar, who had been locked in a heated battle for position with Brad Leighton, took an aggressive posture entering the corner and made contact with the rear of Caisse’s machine.  The contact sent Caisse spinning.  All three cars were ultimately involved in the incident.  Caisse lost a lap before being able to right his racecar.  In the end, Caisse had to settle for 17^th in the finishing order. 

 

“We are all trying to stay positive,” said Caisse after the race, “but it is difficult when the finishes just don’t reflect how good we are running.  If someone was to look at the stats alone they would not get a true picture of how well we have been doing.” 

 

The true picture shows a rookie driver and a young team that are working hard, putting together good runs, and are knocking on the door of victory lane.

 

“We will put what happened here and at Motor Mile behind us,” concluded Caisse, “and give it everything we have at New Hampshire.” 

 

At Motor Mile Speedway two weeks ago, while leading the race Caisse slid in fluid on the race track and made hard contact with the outside wall.  Caisse’s primary car had sustained extensive damage.  The Motion Racing Team enlisted the help of long-time car owner Bob Nolet for the event at Oxford.

 

“I have to extend my appreciation to Bob Nolet for letting me drive his car here tonight and to his team for all their help.  Bob and the guys helped prepare the race and where here at the track lending a hand,” said Caisse.  “They all came through for us in a big way.  The A-1 Landscaping #5 was worked extremely well here.”

 

The Caisse Family has reached an agreement with Nolet.  The Monte Carlo that had previously been driven by Ted Christopher is now the newest in the Motion Racing stables.  Look for Caisse aboard the white #5 at Thompson on October 8, 2005. 

 

The next event for the Busch North Series is the Sylvania 125 at New Hampshire International Speedway on September 16, 2005. Caisse, who will be back to school at New Hampshire Technical Institute, will use the time-off to balance schoolwork and preparation for the upcoming event in Loudon.

 

For a complete look at the 2005 season and the career of Sean Caisse log on to www.seancaisse.com.