Division titles were on the line last Saturday night at Wiscasset Speedway, and the champs rose to the occasion. Point leaders Adam Chadbourne of the NAPA Super Street division, Nick Hinkley of the Late Model Sportsman class, Ryan Chadwick of the Thunder 4 division, and Jerry McKenna of the Mini Trucks were all on hand to defend their lead and to bring the championship home. The weather was warm and pleasant. The crowd cheered on their favorite drivers and watched as three of the four point leaders won their division races. Wrapping up the night was a one hundred lap Enduro.
The spotlighted race of the week was a thirty-five lap NAPA Super Street feature. Heading into the last point race, Adam Chadbourne of the #1 had only a six point lead over James Osmond of the #05. Prior to race time Osmond said, “Chadbourne has dominated in this division, and his car is fast today. I would need to beat him by four positions for me to win the championship. We will have to see what happens.”
Chadbourne said, “I think if the car stays together we will be all set and win this championship. If we win the championship we will deserve it, because no crew has worked harder than mine keeping this car together all season.”
When the cars hit the track, the #2 of Josh Bailey was on the pole. Behind him were the #88 of Jamie Norton and the #05 of James Osmond. When green flag racing began, Osmond passed Norton for second. However, Chadbourne, who started in fifth, began weaving through traffic, and during lap one passed both Norton and Osmond for second. Chadbourne advanced up the track and raced Bailey for the lead, and by lap two, Chadbourne was leading the race.
The #38 of Ricky Burgess headed to the outside and passed Osmond for third during lap four. Burgess continued his march up the track, and during lap five passed Bailey for second. There was a caution during lap nineteen when Norton spun on the track. Chadbourne pulled away on the restart. Chadbourne’s car liked the fresh air and he gained a commanding lead. During lap twenty-two Burgess spun on the track. Bailey moved to second place, and Osmond to third.
Osmond moved to the outside and raced door to door with Bailey, looking to progress up the track. When taking the outside line was unsuccessful, Osmond went to the bottom of the track, but Bailey held him off to the finish. Chadbourne took the win and clinched the point championship for the NAPA Super Street division. Chadbourne’s season included nine top five finishes. Bailey placed second. Osmond rounded out the top three in third.
Chadbourne said, “This has been the longest season I have ever had. We are on our fifth motor- three motors blew up, I borrowed one, and there is the motor I have in now. We had to replace the entire front end, even the rear end. The car was totally rebuilt this season. We deserved this win, there is no crew who deserves it more than us. The blow-ups, the roll over- no crew has worked so hard. A big thanks to all my crew: Dale, Sherry, Barney, Don, Pete, Bob, Bobby, Charlie, Ken, Randy and Rob. I also need to thank all their spouses. Thank you to my sponsors: NAPA of Bath and Wiscasset, Sidework Construction, and Stone Surface Cabinets and Countertops.”
Osmond said, “I am happy with my season. I’ve had three wins and I am happy with second. I would like to thank my sponsors Paul Garber Construction, Red’s Eats, and Drummond Automotive Equipment Service.”
A fifteen lap Mini Truck feature concluded the point race for the season. Heading into the race, Jerry McKenna of the #12 had a ninety point lead over his nearest competitor, the #17 of Matt Weil. McKenna showed the crowd exactly how he won the championship, moving from his next to last starting place to the lead by lap four. Weil, who started on the pole fell back to second, and the #1 of Matt Curtis moved to third. McKenna sped up the track and gained a five truck length lead.
Curtis and Weil raced head to head during the remaining laps for second. McKenna took home the win, and the point championship in the Mini Truck division. McKenna’s record for the season included eleven top five finishes. Curtis placed second. Weil placed third.
McKenna said, “Feels great knowing I am walking away point champion. We’ve had a great season. Credit goes to Ryan, Colton, Brian, and Hooter. Without them we wouldn’t be here. We can’t complain because we have only had one wreck this year at Wiscasset, and we were able to repair it. I still finished the race in the top three. We also won the Championship in the truck division at Oxford Plains Speedway. This has been a great season! Thanks to Rick Farrar as the truck came from him.”
A quick and exciting twenty lap Thunder 4 race was next on the agenda. Coming into Saturday’s race, Ryan Chadwick of the #5 was point leader with over a one hundred point lead over his nearest competitor, Cody Tribbet. Chadwick was walking way with the championship regardless of race outcome.
Starting on the pole was the #55X of Craig Pyy. Behind him was the #113 of Nate Tribbet and the #31 of Leandra Martin. Right off the start, Nate Tribbet took the lead.
Starting in sixteenth place was the #28 of Dan Trask. Trask was moving fast up the track, and by lap six, he was in the top five. Trask passed Martin for third on the outside of turn three during lap twelve. Trask looked for his chance to take second. His opportunity came during lap sixteen, and he passed Pyy on the inside of turn three. Starting in fourteenth position was point leader Chadwick. During lap nineteen, Chadwick passed Pyy for third.
Nate Tribbet drove his Main Street Fuel car under the checkered for the win. “We have been working all year to try and get him (Ryan Chadwick) and take a win,” said Tribbet.
Trask placed second. Chadwick took third. Nate Tribbet and Cody Tribbet were the only drivers in the Thunder 4 class to take a win besides Chadwick. Chadwick claimed eleven top three wins this season. Chadwick was declared point champion in the Thunder 4 division.
Chadwick said, “I was ready for this season to be over, but it has been a good season. I have eleven top three wins this season. I want to thank Shawn for all the effort. He has been the one to help me all year. I have had a trouble free season, although we did scramble this week to replace the transmission. I want to thank my sponsors Hammond Mechanical, D&S Excavation, and Bayside Plumbing and Heating. I’d also like to thank all my fans who come each race to cheer me on. It made my season complete.”
The last point race of the season for the Late Model Sportsman was action-packed. Nick Hinkley started the race fifty-six points ahead of his closest competitor, Ryan St Clair. However, St Clair had a family obligation and could not attend the last point race of the season.
Starting on the pole was the #34 of Tyler Robbins. Behind him were the #15 of Hinkley and the #04 of Allen Moeller Sr. When the green flag flew over the track, Hinkley got a good start and passed Robbins for the lead. During lap two, the #25 of Will Collins headed inside and passed Moeller for third.
A caution was called during lap nineteen when the #12 of Dave Patten spun on the track. Collins took a pit stop, and the #17 of Chris Thorne advanced to third. When racing action resumed on the track, Thorne passed Robbins on the inside of turn two for second. During lap twenty, Moeller passed Robbins for third.
There was a caution during lap twenty-nine. Thorne headed to the pits. Moeller advanced to second and the #7 of Steve Reno moved to third. Thorne was back on the track by the end of the caution. Reno passed Moeller on the inside of the back stretch during lap thirty for second. Thorne, who had started at the back in fifteenth place after his pit stop, proved himself to be a force on the track, and had worked himself back into the top five by lap forty. During lap forty-six, Thorne passed Moeller for third on the outside of turn three. By lap fifty-one, Thorne was racing door to door with Reno for second. During lap fifty-two Thorne passed Reno and took second place.
There was a caution when Reno went sideways and spun on the track during lap fifty-four. The #32 of Nick Jenkins advanced to third. During lap fifty-nine Jenkins passed Thorne on the back stretch for second. Race leaders remained constant until race conclusion. Hinkley finished his season as point champion for the Late Model Sportsman division. Hinkley’s season included seven wins in the top five. Jenkins placed second. Thorne finished in third.
Hinkley said, “This was a great race. I was worried when I saw Jenkins and Thorne coming up behind me. But we took the win and the championship. I’d like to thank Ideal Portable Toilet’s first. If not for them, I wouldn’t be here. They have provided a lot of materials for the car. I also want to thank the Galley Restaurant, Greg’s Used Cars, Home Seafood Market, Morin Power, and Distance Racing. It was frustrating how we racked up the wins at the beginning of the season, and then struggled both in Late Models and the Prostock divisions I raced. We hadn’t taken a win in seven weeks. Between mechanical problems and wrecks it has been a tough season. But, even with all of that, it has been a good season too. Hopefully next year I will have two cars, one for each division, and it will not be as much work for my crew. I need to thank all my crew: my father, Jason, Joey, Willy, Colton, Brent, Craig, Brandon, Keith, and Allen.”
Wrapping up the evening’s races was a one hundred lap Enduro. Thirty-four cars competed, and there was a rolling start. Taking the lead at the start was the #1C of Adam Chadbourne. The #98 of Kamren Knowles was a close second, and the 55X of Mike Marshall was in third.
As the race progressed, Chadbourne, Knowles, and Marshall were joined by the #77 of Zach Emerson. At the half-way point of the race, Zach Emerson took the lead. Marshall was in second, and the #11 of Johnathan Emerson was in third. During lap sixty. Knowles began having mechanical problems which would plague him for the remainder of the race, and he dropped out of the top five, and the #99X of Craig Landry advanced into the top five. Marshall also left the track, and the #55 of Mike Snyder advanced.
Zach Emerson was in first with twenty laps left to go. In second was Snyder. Third place was held by Johnathan Emerson, but his car was losing power as the race went on. In forth was Chadbourn. Rounding out the top five was the #17 of Dan Wade.