Scott Bachand: The Incredible 42-Year Journey to Victory Lane

The path may have not been direct, but after 42 years, Scott Bachand finally reached victory lane. His unlikely journey in the sport started at age 12, when he watched cars cross the U.S.-Canadian border to race. From there, he secretly built a race car at age 14, a legendary car owner gave him a chance, raced in what’s now the ARCA Menards Series East, and now competes in mini sprints on dirt.

Early Road to an Unlikely Career

“Those stock cars coming across the border caught my eye,” Scott said. “I didn’t come from a racing family, but I wanted to race because as a small child I watched racing at a go-kart track in Highgate Springs, Vermont, where I lived.”

Scott Bachand, then a newspaper boy, saved every quarter, every tip he made. When he was 14, he had amassed $50, enough to buy a street stock with a blown motor.

“I had my cousin buy it for me — the racer wouldn’t sell it to me because I was 14,” said Scott. “The next thing I needed was parts.”

Scott searched a phone book and found a C.A. Crouch in St. Albans, Vermont.

“I called, and Clarence Crouch answered the phone,” Scott said. “He asked what I was looking for. I gave him my list. He had everything I needed.”

Scott peddled his bicycle 12 miles to Clarence’s shop.

“Clarence rolled out from under a car, saw me standing there with a bike,” said Scott. “‘Who the heck are you?’ he asked. I told him I was the guy who called for parts. He took me to the parts room, made a pile, and said put your bike on my truck. He drove me back to the farm where my car was.”

Sadly, A Seat Opens Up

Bachand ripped up the cornfield with his newly-found street stock.

“That didn’t go well,” Scott said. “My parents didn’t want me to race. So, I peddled back to Crouch’s and helped out in the shop.”

On a sad day at the shop, Clarence told Scott that his youngest son, Ricky, 16, lost his life in a car crash on I-89. Ricky had just turned old enough to race. Clarence had Tom Glaser drive Ricky’s car to two wins in 1984, one at Catamount Stadium and the other at Aroostook County Speedway (now called Spud Speedway).

Months passed and Scott continued toiling over race cars. One day, Clarence pointed to Ricky’s late model.

“He told me that car was going to be my ride,” said Scott. “My first race was at Catamount Stadium. I was young and cocky. I said those guys in the late models looked slow. When I got on the track, they went by me like I was parked. I was humbled.”

Scott continued to race for Clarence. When the American Canadian Tour began, Scott followed that circuit, racing until Clarence passed away in 1988.

Racing on a Shoestring Budget

“I had no money, no sponsors, no family backing,” Scott said. “But I still found a way to race.”

In 1990, his fortunes turned. A driver turned left in front of his motorcycle on the street.

“I was out of commission until 1991,” said Scott. “When the insurance settled, I had a fist full of money. I did what a racer does. I bought a Busch North car that Patty Moise had driven.”

He didn’t stop buying cars, there, though. He bought on of Ward Burton’s cars in 1995. When Andy Santerre rolled his car at Watkins Glen, Scott offered him his ride for the next race at Jennerstown.

“Andy almost won in my car,” Scott said. “Then I got the idea to rent my car out and use the money to keep myself in racing. I was always a mid-pack guy. I started toward the rear and took whatever the night gave me. My mantra was that I got to watch racing from the best seat in the house.”

Scott Bachand Leaves NASCAR

“NASCAR required four sticker tires in tech in the late 1990s,” Scott said. “That was the end of it — I did not have the financial backing to continue. [Racers such as] Robbie Crouch, Jamie Aube, Kelly Moore, and Dale Shaw would feed me their low-lap tires — that is how I survived.”

Dale Shaw eventually gave Scott sticker tires to just have him make the show.

“I never made a pit stop when I was racing unless I had a flat,” Bachand said.

With his NASCAR dreams dried up, Scott Bachand started building a late model.

“The guy who ordered it, gave it back to me,” said Scott. “Then I raced local late model tracks [and] also helped racers anywhere, from local street stockers to Busch North teams. I worked for Steve Hibbard, setting up the cars for Mike Stefanik, Tom Rosati, Robbie Crouch and Steve Park. I was spinning wrenches for the heavy hitters, and yearning for some seat time.”

Discovering a New World

“Ten years ago, my son Ben wanted to go racing,” Scott said. “He was in karts, and then he discovered Granite State Micro Sprints that raced on dirt at Bear Ridge and Legion speedways. I went with him to those tracks and there were teams asking for help.”

Scott liked what he saw with micros.

“On the track, you could move around if your car wasn’t right,” said Scott. “More importantly, everybody in the pits took care of everyone who was racing — whether you had money or no money. That was lost in asphalt racing and still seems to be lost.”

Ben put his father in his seat for a mechanic’s race.

“It lit a flame that was almost extinguished,” Scott said. “I could afford to race, be good at it, and be challenged by the car to find speed. When he stepped back, I drove his car up to five years ago. Then, I got my own car.”

Scott debuted a new car in 2024, with an RTS chassis and a Kawasaki Ninja EX500 engine.

“It’s solidly a top-five car,” said Scott. “It gave me everything a big car did but was affordable.”

Finally, Victory Lane

Scott’s first win didn’t come handed to him. He started ninth in the mini sprint feature at Devil’s Bowl Speedway. Scott made a bold move on lap 5 to get the lead.

“I made the mistake of looking back to see Ray Hanson running second,” Scott said. “The guy has 30 wins. I saw him, and then I saw two lapped cars side by side in front of me going into turn three. There was a gap between them … I slowed for s split second and then shot for the middle. I took a chance and had the lead all by myself coming out of four.”

From there, he led until the end. Scott admitted tears had welled up in his eyes.

“I never experienced winning before — I did not know how it feels to win,” said Scott. “I did not want to be that guy who cries in victory lane.”

After the checkers waved, Ray gave Scott a congratulatory shot in the rear on the backstretch. Scott then accidentally hit the kill switch.

“I did not know what to think — no gauges were lighting up — then I realized what happened,” Scott said. “Kind of embarrassing, kind of being too excited in the moment.”

The win energized Scott Bachand. After all, he had waited for years for that moment.

“I’m on two days of no sleep because of that win,” said Scott. “I don’t know if I could ever sleep again. I’m on cloud nine — I saw the sun come up again today after a night of pings, texts, and calls on my cell phone. The whole thing is so humbling and cool that so many people reached out because I won my first race after 42 years of trying.”