by Jay | May 2, 2016 | ACT, New, Thunder Road, Touring Series News, Vermont
Rescheduled for Sunday May 8
Waterbury, VT –The dismal forecast for Sunday May 1 has forced Thunder Road Speedbowl to postpone the Merchants Bank 150. The race has been rescheduled for Sunday May 8, post time set for 2:00pm.
More than 40 ACT Late Model teams were expected to try and qualify including defending 2015 ACT Champion Wayne Helliwell Jr. of Dover, NH, along with 2015 Merchants Bank champion Brad Babb and multi-feature winner Nick Sweet.
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by Jay | Apr 27, 2016 | ACT, Lee USA, New, New Hampshire, Touring Series News
photo by RPM 360
After posting the fastest time in practice on Saturday, Eddie MacDonald hoped to repeat his 2014 win in this year’s American Canadian Tour Exit Realty Governor’s Cup 150 at Lee USA Speedway on Sunday. When the checkered flag waved Eddie Mac crossed the stripe for a frustrating eighth place finish.
“We made an adjustment late Saturday that really helped us in the short run but killed us in the long run,” said the driver of the Exit Realty/Hancock Electric Chevy. “The car was pretty fast on Saturday and we thought the change would help the car in the late stages of the race but it didn’t turn out that way. It was pretty frustrating knowing I didn’t have the car to win it. With all our family and friends here, it would have been great to win it on our home track.”
Eddie Mac posted a plus one in his qualifying heat to start 13th in the 32 car field scheduled to go 150 laps around the 3/8ths of a mile oval owned and operated by Eddie’s parents Judy and Red MacDonald who are celebrating their thirtieth year operating the track. The American Canadian Tour’s Governor’s Cup had to be rescheduled from an earlier date due to weather concerns. When the green flag finally dropped to open the Lee USA season, Eddie Mac was comfortable riding the Freddie Peterson owned #17 near the middle of the pack to conserve tires. ACT rules do not allow teams to change tires unless damaged.
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by Jay | Apr 27, 2016 | ACT, Lee USA, New, New Hampshire, Touring Series News
photo by Rich Hayes
Lee, NH – Lee USA Speedway swung open the gates Sunday afternoon to drop the green flag on the 2016 season with the annual running of the New Hampshire Governor’s Cup 150 American Canadian Tour (ACT) Late Model event. The traditional season-opener also featured the NEMST Mini Stocks and Northeast Classic Lites doing battle at “New Hampshire‘s Center of Speed“.
Many special guests were on hand for the season-opening activities, including New Hampshire’s Governor Maggie Hassan, and legendary local rocker Charlie Farren, who sang the national anthem before the afternoon’s main event.
The Northeast Mini Stock Tour got the honor of being the first feature that took to the fast 3/8th’s mile for the new season, with Zach Audet claiming a convincing victory in the 50-lap feature event. 2014 Lee USA Late Model Sportsman champ Niko Maniatis came up just short for the second straight year scoring runner-up ahead of Haywood Herriot.
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by Jay | Apr 25, 2016 | ACT, New, Touring Series News
Payea Captures First Win of the 2016 ACT Season
Waterbury, VT – Milton, VT’s Scott Payea took the lead for the second time of then afternoon on lap 117 and never looked back winning the NH Governor’s Cup 150 at Lee USA Speedway.
Payea drove a smart and patient race from his third starting spot, running upfront all day, the leading laps 49-54 and saving his tires for the late run sprint to the finish. Defending race winner and 2015 ACT Champion Wayne Helliwell Jr., raced to a second place finish coming from the 9th starting spot with Rhode Island’s Ray Parent ending a strong weekend in third. St-Albert, Quebec’s Alex Labbe finished fourth with Quinny Welch of Lancaster, NH rounding out the top 5. Nineteen year-old Emily Packard raced to a sixth place finish with last weeks Oxford 100 winner Bobby Therrien finishing seventh. The “outlaw” Eddie MacDonald was eighth with Kyle Welch and Brad Babb rounding out the top ten.
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by Jay | Apr 21, 2016 | ACT, Lee USA, New, New Hampshire, Touring Series News
Therrien Leads Charge into Lee USA Speedway. (Heather Aube photo)
Waterbury, VT – After a convincing victory at Oxford Plains Speedway last Sunday, Bobby Therrien is looking to continue his hot start as American-Canadian Tour (ACT) takes the green flag this Sunday, April 24 at Lee USA Speedway with the annual New Hampshire Governor’s Cup 150. The NH Governor’s Cup, which was postponed due to weather in early April to start 2016 racing season, has been the traditional ACT opener since 2008, and with 12 different winners in the previous 13 ACT Late Model Tour events at the 1/3-mile speedway, the stage is set for another unpredictable and exciting event.
Four of the last six NH Governor’s Cup winners – Miles Chipman (2010), Jimmy Hebert (2013), Eddie MacDonald (2014), and Wayne Helliwell, Jr. (2015) – have entered the event. Each hopes to become just the second repeat ACT Late Model winner at Lee.
The four will have plenty of challengers trying to add their names to the Lee USA record books. Colchester, VT’s Scott Payea now pilots the RPM Motorsports car that Brian Hoar drove to back-to-back NH Governor’s Cup wins in 2011 and 2012. Windham, ME’s Brad Babb was the runner-up in the 2015 Governor’s Cup and hopes to do one spot better in 2016. Kyle Welch and Rich Dubeau also turned in impressive performances at Lee in 2015 and could challenge for the win.
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by Jay | Apr 19, 2016 | ACT, Maine, New, Oxford Plains Speedway, Touring Series News
Emily Packard Finishes 13th in ACT Season Opener
EAST MONTPELIER, Vt. – Emily Packard piloted her 9x Northstar Fireworks/Packard Fuels car across the finish line in the thirteenth position in the thrilling 2016 American Canadian Tour season opener at Oxford Plains Speedway on Sunday. “I was in seventh place when the last caution came out,” said the 19 year old, “but we were the eighteenth car in line when we took that final restart. Unfortunately, the ACT rules don’t have the lap cars drop back, and there were just a lot of lap cars between me and the leaders. There was really nowhere for me to go, I was stuck in the middle, and we ended up thirteenth. We had a much better car than our finish reflects, and I am confident with how good the car will be for the remaining races.”
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