News

The Holiday Season is upon us, and it is a time to reflect on the past year and to look forward to what lays ahead. This past year has seen some significant changes for our museum. The most obvious is the name change. We are now the New England Racing Museum. This change better reflects our mission. While the words are different, our commitment to preserving the rich racing history in and around New England is ever stronger and even more keen. I really like the new name and graphic, I hope you do too.

The other big change is our founder and leader for so many years has retired as museum president. Dick Berggren has stepped away from being president to enjoy some well-deserved time off from day-to-day operations. Do not fear though, Dick will still be working on securing long term funding for our work. I am humbled and fortunate to have been elected to continue to “carry the torch” for our museum work. Thank you, Dick, for taking this incredible facility from idea to reality.

This past year also saw a return to full operation after a tumultuous time in our world. Our Executive Director, Tom Netishen, put together a lot of great events that brought so many people to our museum. The New England Racers Reunion kicked off the 2022 racing season and the car shows were very successful too. The NASCAR cup weekend was well attended this year and was our best yet. Finally, our annual Legend’s Day event was a big hit. I can’t recall ever seeing so many happy smiles in one place as I did that afternoon. From the social hour to the great buffet and topping it all off with a rousing exchange of memories from the Busch North racing days, a good time was had by all. Through all the year, many new visitors experienced New England racing history this year. I am sure many more will enjoy our museum in the new year.

I close with a thought about our future. We are hard at work to secure funding and present programs so our racing history will be preserved for years to come. We welcome new members, encourage continued membership and work with our volunteer staff to keep our museum vibrant and interesting. Thank you for your interest and care to preserve the thrill of racing past and present here in New England.

Bob Bianchi, President
New England Racing Museum