Tom DiMaggio, known throughout the racing community by his nickname Sid, is a native of Waterford, CT, and has been around the short tracks of southern New England his whole life. In 2005, he began a detailed research of the Waterford Speedbowl’s statistical history. All of his research is available online at www.speedbowlhistory.com. He remains the track’s active historian. He is also webmaster and active historian for the New England Auto Racers and a member of their Hall of Fame selection committee.
DiMaggio earned his degree in TV Video & Radio Production from the New England Institute of Technology. In October 2008, he formed Vault Productions and filmed the season-ending Finale Weekend event at Waterford. The film was later shown in a non-competitive category at the Silk City Film Festival in 2009. It was the first of many video projects he’s created w/ his crew ever since, including: Sid’s View, The Speedbowl Doc Series, The On Board Series, The Show, A Day at the Races, NLARO On The Road and Inside the Vault with several more still in development.
His contributions to racing have been recognized as 2007 Fan of the Year at the Speedway Expo in Springfield, MA and Best Social Media in 2013 by speed51.com. He was also awarded the John Wentworth Good Sport Award for unselfish dedication to sports in the community by the Connecticut Sports Writers Alliance in 2013.
DiMaggio strives to maintain a diverse group of talented people on his crew. He is the executive-producer & editor for all Vault Production video projects and the star (via his grandstand commentary) of the Sid’s View series and host & graphics switcher of the Sid’s View Podcast since it debuted in early 2024.
Remy LaRocca joined us in 2022 as a camera operator. She’s usually the one behind the lens following around Sid while the crew is setting up all the cameras. During the features, she coordinates the team as they manage all the cams, and also begins the file transfers that ensure the Sid’s View videos get onto the channel as quick as possible.
In 2024, Remy became the co-producer of the Sid’s View Podcast and host of the Weekly Update segment. She also handles all the video switching during the weekly live shows. Her infectious laugh and great sense of humor has been a valuable asset to the podcast crew and a big hit with our viewers.
Remy is an accomplished photographer who also works in the Stafford Speedway media department handling social media on race night and is part of the Vault Production team that produces social media content for the Monaco Modified Tri-Track Series.
Rob Hahn joined the Sid’s View team in 2023 as a GoPro guru and moved up to main cameraman for the 2024 season. Rob also became co-producer of the Sid’s View Podcast in 2024 and host of the weekly Popcorn Stat Chat discussion session. Rob is a self-proclaimed NASCAR geek, who religiously watches the Cup series every week.
Rob also works at Stafford Speedway as part of the broadcast production team handling everything from graphics to video switching and is part of the Vault Production team that produces social media content for the Monaco Modified Tri-Track Series.
Bonssa Tufa came to the local racing scene in the summer of 2019 and has quickly become a master of producing content. He directs the Friday night broadcasts of Stafford Speedway’s events, which are live-streamed n Flo-racing. He also produces endless content both on race day and during the off-season for the legendary 1/2 mile track. In 2021, Bonssa produced an amazing documentary on Ted Christopher for SMS’s YouTube channel. He freelances on the Sid’s View team as a cameraman during our shoots at the Waterford Speedbowl.
Our man Phil DaCosta is an amazing drone technician who joined the Vault Crew in 2022 for our Sid’s View shoots. Phil has years experience flying high-speed action drones and is FAA Certified. His amazing talents have significantly upgraded the quality of our production. Phil also helps with other miscellaneous stuff behind the scenes and is always willing to trying something new or work on a new project.
Preston Fort and Chris Burton were the guys who provide the hustle in the pits necessary to manage all the on-board cameras we utilize during a Sid’s View shoot. They all joined the crew during the 2023 season and quickly got into the groove during what is usually a hectic night behind the scenes around the pit area for the crew. Without their tireless efforts on race day, we wouldn’t be able to manage all the different cameras we bring to the track on race day.
Young Mason Silva, son of former Mini Stock Champion Tommy Silva, started watching the races in the stands with Sid & co early in the 2022 season. His contributions as another fan’s perspective have made for great content. And as the production has become more elaborate and requires more of Sid’s attention while shooting, Mason has kept his attention on the track and helps commentate on what’s happening at the track in that youthful excitement that is such a great part of the short track experience. Mason, who is a racer himself, has even helped with some camera work in the pits and is a great addition to our crew when he’s not getting it done behind the wheel.
Special thanks to Shawn Waddell, owner of Waddell Communications and the leading Racing Electronics dealer in the country. Shawn teamed up with the Vault Crew as a sponsor in 2016 for Sid’s View & The Speedbowl Doc Series in 2016. In 2018, Waddell & Sid teamed up to produce The On Board Series at Stafford Speedway. They still produce this series occasionally at various short tracks. Waddell was also part of the production team for The Show. He remains a primary sponsor who supports almost all the different series the Vault Crew produces for their Sid’s View YouTube channel. Shawn continually helps expand our audio capabilities while on location at the tracks.
Jesse Gleason & Brent Gleason were the original tandem behind the Sid when the crew first began creating content. Both have also been successful racers at Thompson Speedway, where Brent still competes regularly. They host their popular Making Laps Podcast which includes in-depth recaps of all the southern New England oval tracks. Brent also has his own YouTube channel that focuses on his race team. Over the years, the brothers have contributed to a majority of the series on our Sid’s View channel from 2010-2022.
Phil Jacques joined the Vault Crew as an on-board camera specialist in the middle of the 2012 season and remained through 2015. Also a former winner at Thompson Speedway, Phil relocated to Florida where he still races at the tracks down there and also co-hosts the Making Laps podcast with the Gleason Brothers remotely from his home in Florida. The trio remain an important part to the success of the Sid’s View channel with their tireless efforts behind the scenes, especially during the first 6 seasons of creating content.
Sid’s View has become such an elaborate production once it returned in the 2020’s that our crew expands by a few with each passing season. Others who’ve contributed to capturing footage for our flagship series include Heather McGrath, Jason McGrath, Nicole LaRose, Daniel Eugene, Chris Burton, Sean Foster, Kenny Stuart, Tiesha DiMaggio, Nick Teto, Eric Webster, Ricky Holmgren, Justin Girard, Keith Conley, Eric Gleason, Ryan Cochrane and the Speedbowl Wrecker Crew. Other who’ve also helped behind the scenes include Bob Lucas, Mitch Bombard, Tom Capuano, Geoff Weber and several of the race teams throughout the pits.
WATCH OUR VIDEO RETROSPECTIVE
Celebrating our humble beginnings in 2008 through to the 200th video on our YouTube channel in May 2013, this retrospective looks behind the scenes filming Sid’s View with Tom DiMaggio, Jesse Gleason, Brent Gleason, Phil Jacques, Tiesha DiMaggio, Eric Webster and Ryan Cochrane.
The theme used for “Sid’s View” since season 4 (2012) is the original song “Traveling Home” written & performed by John Fries (pronounced “freeze”), a local recording artist who resides in Waterford, CT. He also provided the instrumental bass groove theme used in season 1 and 2 (2010-2011). For more info on John’s music, visit his website www.johnfriesmusic.com. You can also find John Fries on iTunes and Spotify.