WHAT TO WATCH FOR: DIRTcar 358 Modified Series Heads to Airborne For Battle of Plattsburgh
COLUMN BY: Mike Warren – DIRTCAR NORTHEAST – PLATTSBURGH, NY – A return to the banks of Lake Champlain awaits the DIRTcar 358 Modified Series, as it prepares for its lone stop at Airborne Park Speedway.
Drivers will duel in the Battle of Plattsburgh, a 75-lap Feature paying $5,000-to-win.
Joining the top 358 drivers in the Northeast are the DIRTcar Sportsman Series East Region, along with the track’s Renegade, Mini Stock, and Limited Sportsman divisions.
For more on the DIRTcar Northeast, follow the DIRTcar Northeast Facebook page.
Here’s a look at what to watch for at Airborne:
Separated By 2: After two DIRTcar 358 Modified Series races this season, Mike Mahaney and Alex Payne sit atop the standings, with Mahaney ahead by two points.
Both drivers earned top-five finishes at Lebanon Valley Speedway and Devils Bowl Speedway and aim to keep that momentum during the Series’ lone May race.
Mahaney, from Elizabethtown, NY, races weekly at Airborne and is a former track champion, earning those honors in 2004. “Smooth Shoe” has won eight Features at the track and finished third in the track’s latest event last week.
Payne, meanwhile, has only made one start at the track. The Hopewell, NY driver finished third during a visit in 2024.
Getting Out of the Hole: Following a 29th-place finish at Lebanon Valley, Mat Williamson rebounded with a win at Devil’s Bowl Speedway last month, starting a climb to a potential third Series title.
The St. Catharines, ON driver enters Airborne fifth in the Series standings, 36 points behind Mahaney.
Williamson has found success at Airborne in the past, winning last year’s Battle of Plattsburgh. In four starts at the track, he has a win, two top fives, and three top 10s. A win this week would be his 22nd career Series triumph.
Northway Momentum: Airborne has run two 358 Modified Features so far this season, and two different drivers have taken the checkered flag.
Felix Roy, the 2024 Series champion, won the Leon Gonyo Memorial to open the track’s season, and backed it up with a second-place finish last week. The Napierville, QC driver is also the defending track champion at Airborne and has seven career Feature wins there.
The other winner was Carey Terrance, who scored his first win at the track last Thursday. The Hogansburg, NY, driver is a four-time 358 Modified Series winner, with his last victory coming in 2018 at Autodrome Granby.
Joining them on Thursday will be Chris Raabe, who has more wins at Airborne than any other driver in the field. Raabe, a two-time Series champion, has 17 victories at the “Big A,” and aims to add a second Series podium finish this season after finishing second at Lebanon Valley.
Raabe enters the weekend third in points, 22 points behind Mahaney.
2026 DIRTcar 358 Modified Series Schedule
Saturday, April 18/Lebanon Valley Speedway/West Lebanon, NY- Andy Bachetti
Saturday, April 25/Devil’s Bowl Speedway/West Haven, VT- Mat Williamson
Thursday, May 14/Airborne Park Speedway/Plattsburgh, NY
Sunday, June 7/Glen Ridge Motorsports Park/Fultonville, NY
Tuesday, June 30/Weedsport Speedway/Weedsport, NY
Wednesday, July 1/Can-Am Speedway/LaFargeville, NY
Wednesday, July 15/Utica-Rome Speedway/Vernon, NY
Sunday, Aug. 2/Cornwall Motor Speedway/Long Sault, ON
Tuesday, Aug. 25/Ransomville Speedway/Ransomville, NY
Friday, Sept. 11/Can-Am Speedway/LaFargeville, NY
Friday, Sept. 18/Mohawk International Raceway/Akwesasne, NY
Friday, Sept. 25/Albany-Saratoga Speedway/Malta, NY
Friday, Oct. 9/Oswego Speedway/Oswego, NY
Saturday, Oct. 17/Brockville Ontario Speedway/Brockville, ON
