Buffalo, NY: The Waterford Speedbowl has been very good to Chuck Hossfeld. So it comes as no surprise that he is excited for the return of the NASCAR Featherlite Modified Series to the Waterford, CT facility for the XTRA-MART 150 scheduled for this weekend.

"Last year, Waterford was a great track for the Mystic Missile Team," declared Hossfeld. "We earned a Bud Pole Award and finished sixth there in the spring. In the fall we turned it up a bit and came home with a win."

The Bud Pole to which Hossfeld refers was set one year ago this week in qualifying for last year's XTRA-MART 150. The lap of 13.630 seconds at an average speed of 99.046 MPH was good enough to set a new track qualifying record-one that still stands today.

If extra incentive were necessary this weekend, the 3/8-mile oval on Connecticut's shoreline is considered to be the "home" track of car owners Bob and Joan Garbarino. Hossfeld will try to duplicate his record setting run in Bud Pole qualifying scheduled for approximately 5:00 PM on Saturday, May 15, 2004. The main event is slated to go green later the same evening.

Early in the season, the Mystic Missile team led by Greg Schroder has been one of the hottest on the Tour. With a third-place finish along with the PowerAde "Power Move of the Race" Award in the season-opening Icebreaker at Thompson International Speedway followed by a 12th place finish and the distinction of leading the most laps at the Spring Sizzler at Stafford Motor Speedway two weeks ago, a win is just around the corner for Hossfeld and company.

The NASCAR Featherlite Modified Series returns to action at Waterford this weekend after taking a two-week hiatus. Over the short break, Hossfeld has been doing anything but taking it easy. The weekly road trip to Stafford Springs, CT from Buffalo, NY has been very rewarding for Hossfeld, who has earned a pair of top-three finishes in the ultra-competitive SK Modified® division aboard the RJR Enterprises #47 Wisk-Clorox Chevrolet including a second-place finish on April 30 and a third-place finish on May 7.

Staying close to home has been pretty rewarding for Hossfeld as well. "Hotshoe", as they call him in NY racing circles, backed up a second-place finish on Friday night with a big win on Saturday night. Hossfeld earned a hard-fought victory at Lancaster Motorsports Park to repeat as the Modified division Queen City Clash winner.

"It is very rewarding to win races," said Hossfeld, who acts as an owner/driver in the New York Modified ranks. "Winning in your own car gives you a different level of accomplishment. I have not stopped smiling yet."

Hossfeld will bring all that enthusiasm to the Waterford Speedbowl on May 15, 2004 for the XTRA-Mart 150.

For more information on the XTRA-MART 150 visit www.nascartouring.com. All the latest news on Chuck's exploits on the Tour, at Stafford Motor Speedway and at Lancaster Motorsports Park can be found on www.chuckhossfeld.com.

The action from Stafford Motor Speedway's April 30th event can be seen on NASCAR New England this Saturday night on WCTX Channel 59, Connecticut's UPN Station, at 11 PM and again on Sunday, May 16th. Tune in for a special feature on Hossfeld in the "Hart to Heart" segment. The action from Stafford Motor Speedway is aired weekly on NASCAR New England on WCTX.