For the first time ever, the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour will race at Barre, Vermont’s Thunder Road International Speedbowl on Saturday, June 12, 2027. NASCAR’s oldest touring division will make its first appearance at the Nation’s Site of Excitement for a rare Saturday night showdown at The Road!
The Modifieds are no strangers to the longtime fans of Thunder Road, making their first appearance back in 1965. That fateful season saw the powerful overhead-cammed engines of New York modified invaders like Ernie Reid and Dick Nephew, Montreal’s André Manny and a young Quebec dairyman named Jean-Paul Cabana put the flathead Fords of ‘The Bethlehem Bombshell’ Ron Marvin, ‘The Wild Child’ Russ Ingerson and Harold ‘Hardluck’ Hanaford to shame.
The Modifieds later called the often-lamented Catamount Stadium their Green Mountain State home with many Vermont visits between 1967 and 1985. In fact, the Vermont Lottery Governor’s Cup was a Tour-type Modified event for three years with Rene Charland, André Manny and Bugsy Stevens taking the checkers. Harmon ‘Beaver’ Dragon remains the only driver to ever beat the powerful Modified teams with the-little-flathead-that-could at Catamount on June 4, 1967.
The Tour-type Modifieds returned to Thunder Road in 2008 with seven events since producing winners such as Kirk Alexander, Steven Masse, Chase Dowling, Ronnie Williams, Stephen Kopcik and Austin Beers. 2027 will write a new chapter in the history books with the first-ever visit for the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour, the first visit for a NASCAR Touring Series since 2003.
“We’re thrilled to host the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour at Thunder Road,” said managing partner Cris Michaud. “Our fans have been asking for years to make this happen, we’re looking forward to making this one of our biggest events of the 2027 season.”
More information regarding the special NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour visit on Saturday, June 12, 2027 will be released in the near future. The 2026 season has officially wrapped up at Thunder Road with officials already hard at work on the 2027 schedule of events. Updated rulebooks, schedule and 2027 Season Passes are set to be released around Thanksgiving.