by Jay | Oct 31, 2012 | ACT, Thunder Road, Touring Series News, Vermont
Two-time Thunder Road Champion Dave Pembroke earned his second Milk Bowl victory this past weekend in the 50th Annual People’s United Bank Milk Bowl, picking up a check worth over $14,000. The victory was well worth the wait for the family-run team.
“I’m psyched,” Pembroke told the media after the race. “No one else can win it. It will be 50 years before they have another anniversary one. It’s pretty cool to me.”
On Sunday (October 28), Pembroke filled the final slot on the face of the granite stone that marks 50 years of Milk Bowl Champions. It is his second appearance on the stone, but the last slot is particularly special.
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by Jay | Oct 30, 2012 | ACT, Media, New England, Photos, Thunder Road, Vermont
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by Jay | Oct 29, 2012 | ACT, New England, Thunder Road, Touring Series News, Vermont
Therrien, Pilotte Claim 2012 Championships
Barre, VT – Two-time Thunder Road Champion Dave Pembroke persisted through a wild 50th Milk Bowl to kiss the cow on a payday worth over $10,000 for the second time in his career. Eight-time ACT Champion Brian Hoar came up just short through a day of major adversity to finish second, and Maine’s Glen Luce earned third overall. 2012 ACT Champion Wayne Helliwell, Jr. battled to fourth, and 7-time ACT Champion Jean Paul Cyr rounded out the top five.
The day began with second place starter Brian Hoar blowing an engine in practice, with a new engine arriving from his Georgia, VT shop 45 minutes before the drop of the green. The RPM team changed the motor, and sent Hoar out just as the field fired for the pace laps to make the start. Hoar and Pembroke battled side-by-side for the first ten laps, before Hoar soared to the lead and began to slice through lap traffic. Just as Hoar began lapping the middle of the field, a nasty wreck involving ACT Champion Helliwell and others, developed directly in front of Hoar, but he slipped through the carnage to retain the lead. Hoar cruised to the segment win with Pembroke, 2012 King of the Road Nick Sweet, and multi-time Thunder Road Champion Cris Michaud on his heels.
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by Jay | Oct 25, 2012 | ACT, Thunder Road, Touring Series News, Vermont
After two attempts at the 50th Annual People’s United Bank Milk Bowl, racers and fans have received word of a good forecast for this Sunday, October 28th to run the $160,000 event. With championship titles across the region completed, American Canadian Tour Late Models will take the gloves off one last time in 2012.
Two-time Thunder Road Champion Dave Pembroke will take another shot at starting from the pole, with 8-time ACT Champion Brian Hoar as his dancing partner in second. 2012 King of the Road Nick Sweet will take his shot at the 50th Milk Bowl from the third starting position, followed by Fort Kent, ME’s Austin Theriault and multi-time Thunder Road Champion Cris Michaud. The odds favor the top five to have the best shot at long-time Promoter Tom Curley’s Challenge: $50,000 to anyone who can win all three segments. When the first 50-lap segment ends, only one driver will have a shot at the feat, with two 75-lap features left to get the job done.
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by Jay | Oct 18, 2012 | ACT, New England, Thunder Road, Touring Series News, Vermont
By Lou Modestino
At the recent NASCAR weekend at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, we had an interesting interview with Ken Squier. He’s now the retired CBS NASCAR booth anchor who helped to NASCAR from a cult sport into main stream from 1978 until he retired not that long ago. Though he still gets a TV gig, now and then, from Fox and the Speed Channel. He’s now in his late 70’s.
Along with his long time partner Tom Curley, they still operate the renowned Thunder Road International Speedway in Barre, VT as well as the American Canadian Tour in the northeastern USA and American Canadian tour in eastern Canada. Not to mention his numerous radio station holdings know as “Radio Vermont”.
On NHMS “We’ve been here with our series for four years. This year we got a lot more Canadian drivers and their fans.” On Thunder
Road, “We’re doing OK not great, though. It’s due to the economy compounded by the rainouts,” he said. This year T’ Road’s marquee race The Milk Bowl also got hit with two rainouts and the track is going to announce a rescheduled date later this week.
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by Jay | Oct 15, 2012 | Thunder Road, Vermont
A third attempt at the $160,000 50th Annual People’s United Bank Milk Bowl will be run at Barre, VT’s Thunder Road on Sunday, October 28th with a post time of 1pm. The three-segment race has qualified 30 cars, of the 51 who attempted, for what is considered the “Toughest Short Track Race in America.”
Long-time Promoter Tom Curley was careful in choosing the day for the biggest race in Vermont’s history, as many of ACT’s leading drivers will participate in Lee USA Speedway’s OctoberFest event this coming weekend. “We certainly do not want to conflict with one of the best facilities on our Tour, so we chose to run on Sunday, October 28,” said Curley.
Along with the Milk Bowl will be a $20,000 Late Model Reserve Feature, as well as Mini Milk Bowls for the Bond Auto Tiger Sportsmen and Allen Lumber Street Stocks to decide their track championship battles.
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