Jul 4, 2020 | Thunder Road, Vermont
Dragon Unstoppable at Aubuchon Hardware Holiday Spectacular
Streeter, Gray, and Davis Bank Independence Day Wins
Barre, VT – Two-time “King of the Road’ Scott Dragon of Milton put on a clinic en route to his first win of the year at Thunder Road’s Aubuchon Hardware Holiday Spectacular on Thursday, July 2. Dragon took the lead for good on lap six of the special Firecracker 54 Maplewood/Irving Oil Late Model feature and smoked the field from there for career win number 11 on the Barre high banks.
The veteran started on the pole after not even making it to qualifying the week before when he lost an engine in practice. However, it was outside polesitter Brendan Moodie of Wolcott putting his nose in front at the start. Moodie led the first five laps before Dragon got back around him for the top spot.
While Moodie was able to hang with Dragon for the following 10 circuits, “The Dragon Wagon” just got stronger as the caution-free race went on. While a battle raged behind him as Moodie eventually fell into the clutches of Matt White and Bobby Therrien, Dragon sailed into the holiday weekend like a jet plane. At one point, Dragon’s lead reached nearly half a lap before he tip-toed around some traffic near the end.
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Jun 30, 2020 | Thunder Road, Vermont
Thunder Road Approved for Limited Fan Attendance at July 2 Event
NSN to Continue Offering Pay-Per-View Broadcasts
Barre, VT – Thunder Road officials announced today that the track has received state approval to allow limited fan attendance at the Aubuchon Hardware Holiday Spectacular on Thursday, July 2. It will be the first event at the track with front gate attendance permitted since the beginning of the worldwide COVID-19 outbreak.
Per the terms of the agreement, Thunder Road’s seating area will be divided into different sections, with a limited amount of tickets sold per section. Fans are required to remain in the section they purchased ticket(s) for throughout the event.
Thunder Road season pass holders will be given priority for seating at this Thursday’s event and will continue to receive priority for as long as attendance restrictions are in place. Those who have not yet spoken with the track office must call (802) 244-6963 ext. 4 by end-of-day Tuesday to be guaranteed a seat.
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Jun 30, 2020 | Thunder Road, Vermont
Sicard Continues Tiger Dominance with Victory in Triple Crown Opener
N. Woodstock, NH – Barton, VT’s Shane Sicard showed once again why he’s the King of the Tigers at White Mountain Motorsports Park by winning the Jon Parks Tractor Triple Crown Series opener on Saturday, June 27. It was the second straight victory for Sicard in the Wells River Chevrolet Flying Tigers and kept him on top is his bid for a third straight division title.
Sicard actually crossed the line second in the 75-lap main event, hot on the heels of Graniteville, VT’s Stephen Donahue, who had gone wire-to-wire from the pole. However, Donahue was disqualified in post-race technical inspection for an illegal carburetor spacer, awarding another victory to the Barton veteran.
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Jun 27, 2020 | Thunder Road, Vermont
Demers Snags Lucky 13th Win on CCV Night
Barre, VT – Shelburne’s Trampas Demers continued his climb up the all-time winner’s list at Barre’s Thunder Road with his 13th career Maplewood/Irving Oil Late Model victory at Community College of Vermont Night on Thursday, June 25. Demers led much of the 50-lap event before inheriting the victory following post-race technical inspection.
The veteran had crossed the finish line second after defending track champion Jason Corliss got around Demers on a restart with 10 laps to go to take the checkered flag. However, both Corliss and apparent third-place finisher Eric Chase were disqualified after their cars measured too wide, handing the victory to Demers. The results remain unofficial pending an appeal.
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Jun 24, 2020 | Thunder Road, Vermont
Thunder Road Continues Early-Summer Drive on CCV Night
Barre, VT – The cars and stars of Barre’s Thunder Road return to the high banks this Thursday, June 25 for Community College of Vermont Night. After their extra-long off-season finally ended last week, teams are looking to get into their summer groove and see who the players will be in the 2020 championship chases.
Even with only one event in the books, there is plenty to talk about for fans of local racing. From Marcel J. Gravel’s yeoman effort to gut out a win with a failing power steering system to surprising results for several expected championship contenders, storylines are forming for the season ahead.
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Jun 22, 2020 | Thunder Road, Vermont
Gravel Dominates, Then Hangs on for Opening Night Victory
Barre, VT – Wolcott’s Marcel J. Gravel overcame both a late challenge from the defending champion and a very tired pair of arms to take the opening-night Maplewood/Irving Oil Late Model win at Barre’s Thunder Road on Thursday, June 18. Gravel pulled out to a big lead before holding off a late bid by Jason Corliss for his second career victory in the 50-lap feature as seen on Northeast Sports Network.
After starting on the outside pole, Gravel quickly darted to the lead over Westford’s Darrell Morin. As Morin and Christopher Pelkey engaged in a lengthy battle for second, Gravel left both in the dust, eventually pulling out to nearly a quarter-track lead.
But even as he walked away, it quickly became a challenging night of a different kind for Gravel. Around the 15-lap mark, the leader’s power steering began to malfunction, and eventually quit altogether. With the feature going caution-free, it became a race against fatigue for Gravel as much as it was a race against the field.
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