PASS North Series: Reid Lanpher
Oxford Plains Speedway Race Report
OXFORD, Maine – Reid Lanpher of Manchester, Maine, was the unlucky recipient of poor track position throughout the day, and the 14-year-old failed to qualify for the PASS North Series Ripley & Fletcher Ford 150 at Oxford Plains Speedway in Oxford, Maine. Lanpher, who regularly drives a Late Model for JR Motorsports, was making his first career appearance at Oxford Plains and was working with veteran NASCAR K&N Pro Series East crew chief Andy Santerre for the first time. Though he did not make the 34-car starting field after starting last in both his first-round qualifier and his consolation-round race, Lanpher was pleased with the information he gained and encouraged by the fact that he only narrowly missed a qualifying spot.
WHO: Reid Lanpher, Manchester, Maine
TEAM: Team EJP No. 59 Eastern Township Docks/Mission Trailers Chevrolet
CREW CHIEF: Andy Santerre, Yarmouth, Maine
WHAT: PASS North Series Ripley & Fletcher Ford 150
WHERE: Oxford Plains Speedway, Oxford, Maine (.375-mile oval)
STARTED: DNQ
FINISHED: —
NEXT RACE: May 4, Southern Maine Chrysler Dodge Jeep 150, Beech Ridge Motor Speedway, Scarborough, Maine (.333-mile oval)
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REID, WHAT HAPPENED TODAY?
We were pretty good. We chased the track quite a bit once it heated up, and there were a lot of good cars here. We gained a ton today – we played around with a lot of stuff. We just had a bad draw. We started out back of the best heat out there, just stacked, with a lot of good drivers up there. We got up to sixth, but had more bad luck getting stuck outside (on a restart). We got freight-trained.
Then in the consi, we were fast. We started dead last but worked all the way up to sixth or seventh, and I was able to pass (multi-time series champion) Johnny Clark and those guys. Just being on the track with all those guys was really cool.
We showed some speed. I would have loved to get in and have a little better luck throughout the day, but the initial draw just really killed us all day. Other than that, we had a really successful day.
WHAT WERE THE POSITIVES FROM THE WEEKEND?
It was awesome working with Andy (Santerre). The knowledge on the crew today was unbelievable. We had some major brains turning there. We made some major gains. I made some gains driving – this series is all new to me, it was my first time on the track and my first time in this car in a year.
If you add up all the bad luck and this being my first time here, we still come out of the weekend better than some other guys did.
DO YOU FEEL YOU’LL BE BETTER PREPARED AT BEECH RIDGE IN TWO WEEKS?
Definitely. I know the track is fairly similar to here, and I’ll have to adapt some to what’s different there. But I think we’ll be pretty good. I’m going to go in there fairly confident.