A look back at the SK Modified 100 portion of the annual Speedbowl.com 300 mid-season event at the Waterford Speedbowl held on June 30, 2012. Includes Sid roaming the pits earlier in the day, Pole Award ceremonies (Keith Rocco set fast time) and in-camera footage from the cars of race winner Tyler Chadwick, Keith Rocco, Tom Abele Jr, Kyle James and visiting WMT driver Doug Coby. Also features Webbycam footage from track official Eric Webster and some of the pit stops during the race.
The Pro All Stars Series (PASS) North season approaches the half way mark this Saturday July 7 at Scarborough Maine’s, Beech Ridge Motor Speedway and there are a few drivers with goose eggs in their win column that will look to The Ridge to change that statistic.
Topping that list is Lonnie Sommerville, defending race winner of the Southern Maine Motors.com 150. The New Brunswick racer sits fifth in the PASS point standings and finished second in the season opener so its clear he still has the touch for the Cusack family’s oval. Derek Ramstrom has been oh- so close to victory and he was on the podium last time out at the Ridge. DJ Shaw is right behind Ramstrom in the standings and Shaw is a winner in Beech Ridge Pro Series competition; he’s had numerous top fives when the PASS North show comes to town but a win would go a long way to put is 2012 season on track. (more…)
Horniak ends Coupe skid; Holcomb hangs on for USAC Midget win
Stock car racing champion Chris Donnelly became the first repeat winner of the season in the Bond Auto Parts DIRTcar Sportsman Modified division in the 99ROCK Weekly Racing Series on Bond Auto Parts Night at Bear Ridge Speedway on Saturday. Donnelly slipped into the annual Modified “Madness” event win with a strong car and a little luck in the race’s three 40-lap segments.
The Piermont, NH driver posted finishes of sixth and second in the first two rounds of the cumulatively-scored race, entering the final 40-lap leg with eight points and trailing Kevin Chaffee and Jason Gray. Fairlee, VT racer Chaffee won the first segment in a wildly competitive and caution-free run that saw five lead changes in heavy lapped traffic, then finished fourth in the second leg for five total points. Gray, of East Thetford, VT, was fifth in the first round, then dominated the second segment from the 14th starting position to win by nearly half a lap, totaling six points. (more…)
Barre, VT – In a night full of last lap surprises, Barre sensation Nick Sweet sent up championship fireworks of his own on his way to a hard fought win in Tuesday night’s (July 3) Northfield Savings Bank Holiday event at Thunder Road. Defending Thunder Road Champion Dave Pembroke chased Sweet to the line, and Milton’s Scott Payea was forced to settle for third in the closing laps.
Sweet started from the fifteenth position, and manipulated traffic masterfully on his way to the front of the pack. Sweet had reached second place just past the halfway mark, but Payea had extended a sizable lead searching for his first win of 2012. Sweet mercilessly closed the gap before catching him with 10 laps to go and charging to victory in the outside lane. Pembroke inched by Payea on the last lap to steal second, and Chip Grenier scored his first top five of the season with a fourth place finish. Trampas Demers, a feature winner already this season, came home fifth, three-time champion Phil Scott fought from 14th to sixth, and Brett Wheeler, Cody Blake, Jamie Fisher, and Brent Dragon rounded out the top ten.
With his win, Sweet breaks a streak of 19 different winners in 19 feature races in 2012 at Thunder Road. “Wow, that was a lot of fun to drive,” remarked Sweet. “We touched a bit there at the end, I think he just wanted our lane, but he drove a great race,” he finished with a smile.
THOMPSON, CT. The NASCAR Whelen All-American Series feature division, the Sunoco Modifieds, face their biggest challenge of the season this week at the Thompson International Speedway. Twin 30-lap feature events are on the schedule for these extra fast, open wheel race cars.
With valuable points awarded in each of the two feature races, current track points leader, Ryan Preece, will look to extend his eight points advantage over Ted Christopher. Kerry Malone, Shawn Thibeault and John Catania are also in the points hunt as the track approaches the half way mark in this year’s race season.
Preece has visited victory lane three times this year with Christopher just one win behind. Keith Rocco and Woody Pitkat have also scored 2012 wins in this very competitive division. Drivers like Kerry Malone, John Catania and rookie Shawn Thibeault have also shown that they have race cars more than capable of claiming a win.
In addition to the exciting twin 30-lap features for the Sunoco Modifieds, fans will enjoy a midway display of Antique race cars along with some old time on-track activity from the antique racers on hand. It will be a trip down memory lane for many and a wonderful way for youngsters to learn a little about the history of stock car racing in New England.
Young stock car driver Hunter Bates used a combination of good equipment and good timing to win the Bond Auto Parts Modified portion of the Coca-Cola Firecracker Twin 44s at Devil’s Bowl Speedway on Wednesday, July 4. The Middlebury, VT racer started fourth on the 17-car grid and had a dominant car, leading by nearly half a lap at one point, but heavy rains began to fall at lap 25.
With the race official at the halfway mark three laps earlier, Bates pulled his No. 69 Windy Hollow Homes/Donnelly Construction-sponsored Bicknell car into victory lane under a soggy checkered flag, securing his first NASCAR Whelen All-American Series victory of the year one day after his 17th birthday. (more…)
Mulkern Racing: PASS North Series
Beech Ridge Motor Speedway Race Preview
THE STORY
FALMOUTH, Maine – Scott Mulkern of Falmouth, Maine, will make his third start of the PASS North Series season in the SouthernMaineMotors.com 150 at Beech Ridge Motor Speedway on Saturday, July 7. Mulkern’s No. 84 SouthernMaineMotors.com/Community Pharmacies Dodge will be part of a two-car effort at the organization’s home track, with full-time driver Lonnie Sommerville also entered in the No. 48 A.E. McKay Builders Chevrolet. Mulkern finished eighth in his most recent outing at Autodrome Chaudiere in Quebec on June 23, just over a month after an accident ended his day early in the PASS season opener at Beech Ridge in May. (more…)
East Montpelier’s Jay Laquerre took the 50-lap late model feature by storm on his way to his second win of 2012 on Thursday night (July 5) at Thunder Road sponsored by Charter Communications. He was followed by a late-charging “Hurricane” Jamie Fisher, and early leader Ricky Roberts.
Roberts looked to be on his way to victory while leading the first twenty laps of the race, but daring to drive on the high line was Laquerre, who swung high and wide near the top of the track to pass Roberts for the lead and never looked back. He developed a sizable lead over Roberts, who in the closing laps lost second to a fast closing Fisher on the outside groove, but the former champion ran out of laps trying to catch Laquerre. Brett Wheeler and Cody Blake chased the trio to the line in fourth and fifth. Point leader Nick Sweet flexed muscle starting fifteenth and extending his points lead once again with a sixth place finish. Mike Bailey, Cris Michaud, defending champion Dave Pembroke, and Brooks Clark rounded out the top ten. (more…)
Brad Keselowski Racing development driver Austin Theriault finished fourth in the 29th annual World Crown 300 at Gresham Motorsports Park in Jefferson, Ga., on Wednesday, July 4. The finish marked a career-best in a Super Late Model for Theriault, who finished third in the first 150-lap segment and second in the second 100-lap segment en route to the Top-5 finish.
“Coming home in the Top-5 was a great rebound from the last time we were here,” said Theriault, who made his BKR debut in the 2011 World Crown 300 last November. “We got turned on Lap 18 last time. We finally finished a World Crown 300, and finally finished a race here. (more…)
The Pro All Stars Series (PASS) North season approaches the half way mark this Saturday July 7 at Scarborough Maine’s, Beech Ridge Motor Speedway and there are a few drivers with goose eggs in their win column that will look to The Ridge to change that statistic.
