BRADFORD -- Vermont's most famous racing family returns to Bear Ridge Speedway on Saturday night as the Dragons race on the dirt. Patriarchs Harmon "Beaver" Dragon, 69, and his brother, Bobby, 64, put their home town of Milton, Vt., on the stock car racing map as they won races from the 1960s to the 2000s. Their sons, Brent and Scott, are also successful racers, and will join their fathers at the Bradford quarter-mile for a family showdown.
Both members of the New England Auto Racing Hall of Fame, Beaver and Bobby Dragon racked up well over a dozen track and series championships, and have competed on superspeedways including Daytona, Charlotte and Darlington. Brent, Beaver's son, is a three-time Airborne Speedway champion and is among the all-time winners on the present-day American-Canadian Tour, and Bobby's son Scott is a three-time ACT winner currently competing with the Pro All Stars Series.
Bobby Dragon won last year's inaugural event, as Beaver and Brent played a last-lap game of bumper tag. Brent held his own ground in the regular 30-lap Sportsman Modified event that evening, though, finishing tenth in his first-ever dirt-track start.
"I plan to do a lot better this year in the main feature," Brent chuckled. "I was nervous about it last year having never raced dirt before, but I know what to do now."
Beaver and Bobby both raced on dirt tracks in Vermont and New York during the 1960s and '70s, but Bobby was still surprised to have won last year.
"It was a lot of fun, but it was a lot different from the asphalt I'd been used to running on. I think this year we've got to remind Beaver that the guys that own these cars have to race them after we're done and he shouldn't try to tear them all up like last year," Bobby laughed.
Bobby said that his son Scott, who will take part in the race for the first time this year, has designs of his own. "Scott's never been on a dirt track before, but he told us he's going to show us all how it's done out there."
Fairlee's Adam Pierson earned his first feature win of the season last week and leads the Sportsman Modified points after three events. Jack Cook of Moultonboro, N.H., sits second ten points back, with three-time defending champion Gary Siemons of Orford, N.H., third, twelve points behind Pierson. Melvin Pierson, Josh Harrington, and Jason Horniak pace the Sportsman Coupe division, and Will Hull leads Jeremy Hodge in the Limited Late Models.
Woodsville Guaranty Savings Bank presents the card at Bear Ridge Speedway at 6:00pm on Saturday.
Showing posts with label Brent Dragon. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Brent Dragon. Show all posts
Thursday, June 3, 2010
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
Brent Dragon Heads For Devil's Bowl
(From team press release)
MILTON -- Though the ACT Late Model Tour is slated for a break in the schedule this weekend, Brent Dragon will not be resting.
Dragon is entered in the Late Model 100 at the new-look Devil's Bowl Speedway in West Haven on Sunday, May 23. Qualifying gets underway at 2:00pm.
"It's a brand new asphalt track," said Dragon, who sits third in the ACT standings after two races. "It's a half-mile, and I really like the fast tracks like that."
Until this year, Devil's Bowl existed solely as a dirt track and Dragon had never raced there. To open its first season as an asphalt facility, the track is hosting an event for Thunder Road International Speedbowl's Late Model division on Sunday.
"I'm really looking forward to getting down there," Dragon said. "It's not very far from home, and I'm excited about seeing it."
MILTON -- Though the ACT Late Model Tour is slated for a break in the schedule this weekend, Brent Dragon will not be resting.
Dragon is entered in the Late Model 100 at the new-look Devil's Bowl Speedway in West Haven on Sunday, May 23. Qualifying gets underway at 2:00pm.
"It's a brand new asphalt track," said Dragon, who sits third in the ACT standings after two races. "It's a half-mile, and I really like the fast tracks like that."
Until this year, Devil's Bowl existed solely as a dirt track and Dragon had never raced there. To open its first season as an asphalt facility, the track is hosting an event for Thunder Road International Speedbowl's Late Model division on Sunday.
"I'm really looking forward to getting down there," Dragon said. "It's not very far from home, and I'm excited about seeing it."
Wednesday, May 12, 2010
Brent Dragon: ACT @ Oxford Plains Preview
(From team release)
Brent Dragon and the ACT Late Model Tour are ready for the second event of the season -- the WJAB 150 on Sunday, May 16, at Oxford Plains Speedway in Oxford, Maine. Three of the first four races on the ACT schedule have been rained out, including last week's event at Airborne Speedway in Plattsburgh, N.Y., where Dragon is a 3-time track champion. With more career ACT starts (175) than anyone in the tour's history, Dragon heads to Oxford where he's had some measure of success over the last couple of seasons. He won the pole for the prestigious TD Bank Oxford 250 last July -- leading nearly 100 laps in the event before finishing sixth -- and has finished in the top-10 in each of the last three 250s.
WHO: Brent Dragon, Milton, Vt.
TEAM: Beverage Mart/Furniture World of VT/Charlebois Freightliner/Newton Pellets No. 55 Chevrolet
BEST CAREER OXFORD PLAINS SPEEDWAY FINISH: 2nd (May 2001)
LAST FINISH AT OXFORD PLAINS SPEEDWAY: 9th (October 2009)
WHAT: ACT Late Model Tour WJAB 150
WHERE: Oxford Plains Speedway, Oxford, Maine (.375-mile oval)
WHEN: 2 p.m., Sunday, May 16 ACT Late Model Tour
LAST RACE: May 2, Merchants Bank 150, Thunder Road Int'l Speedbowl, Barre, Vt. (14th-place finish)
NEXT RACE: June 11, NH Governor's Cup 150, Lee USA Speedway, Lee, N.H.
POINTS POSITION: 13th
**********
BRENT, YOU'VE CHANGED YOUR TUNE ABOUT OXFORD PLAINS SPEEDWAY OVER THE LAST COUPLE OF YEARS. SEEMS YOU'VE GROWN TO LIKE THE PLACE.
In the last few years I have, yes. But before that, I could honestly have cared less -- it was probably the track we went to that I liked the least for a while. Since the the ACT cars have taken over the Oxford 250 (in 2007), we've done well. We've really started to run well there.
It's just so different from any other track that we go to.
WHAT WAS IT THAT FINALLY TURNED THINGS AROUND FOR YOU AT OXFORD?
How I learned it or found out about it was by following (2-time Oxford 250 champion Ben Rowe) a few years ago in practice. I just watched what he was doing and started to figure some things out. Since then, we've started to run well there.
The biggest thing about Oxford is just being smooth with the car. You don't even need a brake pedal in the car. At most places we race at, you use a lot of brake getting into the corner. There, you just kind of roll through the turn and get back on the throttle early. It gives you a really good drive off the corner.
WHAT'S BEEN THE BIGGEST CHALLENGE WITH THREE RAINOUTS IN THE FIRST FOUR WEEKS OF THE SEASON?
We went and tested before we had all this rain, and everyone knew what was going on. It went really smooth for us as a team at Thunder Road, but it sure would have been nice to get going and have some races.
Other than that, it's not that bad -- I mean, we know we're going to make all these races up eventually, anyway, and we'll just be ready for that when the time comes. We're going up to Oxford Saturday later in the day for practice, and then there will be a couple of practices on Sunday morning. We'll have plenty of time to work on things before the race.
Brent Dragon and the ACT Late Model Tour are ready for the second event of the season -- the WJAB 150 on Sunday, May 16, at Oxford Plains Speedway in Oxford, Maine. Three of the first four races on the ACT schedule have been rained out, including last week's event at Airborne Speedway in Plattsburgh, N.Y., where Dragon is a 3-time track champion. With more career ACT starts (175) than anyone in the tour's history, Dragon heads to Oxford where he's had some measure of success over the last couple of seasons. He won the pole for the prestigious TD Bank Oxford 250 last July -- leading nearly 100 laps in the event before finishing sixth -- and has finished in the top-10 in each of the last three 250s.
WHO: Brent Dragon, Milton, Vt.
TEAM: Beverage Mart/Furniture World of VT/Charlebois Freightliner/Newton Pellets No. 55 Chevrolet
BEST CAREER OXFORD PLAINS SPEEDWAY FINISH: 2nd (May 2001)
LAST FINISH AT OXFORD PLAINS SPEEDWAY: 9th (October 2009)
WHAT: ACT Late Model Tour WJAB 150
WHERE: Oxford Plains Speedway, Oxford, Maine (.375-mile oval)
WHEN: 2 p.m., Sunday, May 16 ACT Late Model Tour
LAST RACE: May 2, Merchants Bank 150, Thunder Road Int'l Speedbowl, Barre, Vt. (14th-place finish)
NEXT RACE: June 11, NH Governor's Cup 150, Lee USA Speedway, Lee, N.H.
POINTS POSITION: 13th
**********
BRENT, YOU'VE CHANGED YOUR TUNE ABOUT OXFORD PLAINS SPEEDWAY OVER THE LAST COUPLE OF YEARS. SEEMS YOU'VE GROWN TO LIKE THE PLACE.
In the last few years I have, yes. But before that, I could honestly have cared less -- it was probably the track we went to that I liked the least for a while. Since the the ACT cars have taken over the Oxford 250 (in 2007), we've done well. We've really started to run well there.
It's just so different from any other track that we go to.
WHAT WAS IT THAT FINALLY TURNED THINGS AROUND FOR YOU AT OXFORD?
How I learned it or found out about it was by following (2-time Oxford 250 champion Ben Rowe) a few years ago in practice. I just watched what he was doing and started to figure some things out. Since then, we've started to run well there.
The biggest thing about Oxford is just being smooth with the car. You don't even need a brake pedal in the car. At most places we race at, you use a lot of brake getting into the corner. There, you just kind of roll through the turn and get back on the throttle early. It gives you a really good drive off the corner.
WHAT'S BEEN THE BIGGEST CHALLENGE WITH THREE RAINOUTS IN THE FIRST FOUR WEEKS OF THE SEASON?
We went and tested before we had all this rain, and everyone knew what was going on. It went really smooth for us as a team at Thunder Road, but it sure would have been nice to get going and have some races.
Other than that, it's not that bad -- I mean, we know we're going to make all these races up eventually, anyway, and we'll just be ready for that when the time comes. We're going up to Oxford Saturday later in the day for practice, and then there will be a couple of practices on Sunday morning. We'll have plenty of time to work on things before the race.
Thursday, May 6, 2010
Dragon Headed "Home" to Airborne for Spring Green
PLATTSBURGH, N.Y. -- Milton, Vt., may be where Brent Dragon lives, but he says Airborne Speedway across Lake Champlain in Plattsburgh, N.Y., is home. The three-time champion of the historic facility is looking forward to returning there for Saturday's American-Canadian Tour Spring Green 100, perhaps more than any other event on the schedule.
"I consider Airborne my home track," Dragon said. "I always seem to do well there, and it's always been good to us."
"Well" may be a bit of an understatement. In addition to his Airborne weekly track championships in 1995, 1996, and 2000, Dragon has 11 total wins there including his pair of ACT Late Model Tour victories in 2004, the year he won both the Spring Green and Fall Foliage races. His legendary father, Harmon "Beaver" Dragon, and uncle Bobby combined for four championships there in the 1970s and '80s, and cousin Scott was dominant there in the late 1990s. Airborne Speedway belongs to the Dragon family as much as anyone.
"I was talking to someone the other day about Airborne, all the good times we've had over there. I remember how excited we always were waiting at the ferry boat every Saturday afternoon, or coming back home that night, and there are some stories I probably shouldn't tell from those nights," Brent laughed. "We have a lot of good memories from there, and we always knew where we were going to be every Saturday night rather than traveling all over with the Tour. I certainly miss that part of it."
Dragon did a pre-season test at Airborne Speedway in late April to get geared up for the Spring Green. The event, like Airborne itself, is steeped in the family's winning tradition: Beaver won it a record three times including the first race in 1974, and Bobby won in 1975. Tying the Spring Green even closer to the Dragons is the race's presenting sponsor, Milton-based Furniture World of Vermont, which has also sponsored Brent's cars for several years.
"We tested really well a few weeks ago. I was very happy with how it went," said Dragon, who finished inside the top-five in both ACT races at Airborne last year and led 56 laps of the Fall Foliage 300 in September. "We had a tough start to the year with a crash at Thunder Road last week, and we could use a win to bounce back from it. I'd like to do it at Airborne. We have a lot of family and friends that will be there, and I'm looking forward to going back this weekend."
"I consider Airborne my home track," Dragon said. "I always seem to do well there, and it's always been good to us."
"Well" may be a bit of an understatement. In addition to his Airborne weekly track championships in 1995, 1996, and 2000, Dragon has 11 total wins there including his pair of ACT Late Model Tour victories in 2004, the year he won both the Spring Green and Fall Foliage races. His legendary father, Harmon "Beaver" Dragon, and uncle Bobby combined for four championships there in the 1970s and '80s, and cousin Scott was dominant there in the late 1990s. Airborne Speedway belongs to the Dragon family as much as anyone.
"I was talking to someone the other day about Airborne, all the good times we've had over there. I remember how excited we always were waiting at the ferry boat every Saturday afternoon, or coming back home that night, and there are some stories I probably shouldn't tell from those nights," Brent laughed. "We have a lot of good memories from there, and we always knew where we were going to be every Saturday night rather than traveling all over with the Tour. I certainly miss that part of it."
Dragon did a pre-season test at Airborne Speedway in late April to get geared up for the Spring Green. The event, like Airborne itself, is steeped in the family's winning tradition: Beaver won it a record three times including the first race in 1974, and Bobby won in 1975. Tying the Spring Green even closer to the Dragons is the race's presenting sponsor, Milton-based Furniture World of Vermont, which has also sponsored Brent's cars for several years.
"We tested really well a few weeks ago. I was very happy with how it went," said Dragon, who finished inside the top-five in both ACT races at Airborne last year and led 56 laps of the Fall Foliage 300 in September. "We had a tough start to the year with a crash at Thunder Road last week, and we could use a win to bounce back from it. I'd like to do it at Airborne. We have a lot of family and friends that will be there, and I'm looking forward to going back this weekend."
Thursday, April 22, 2010
Hoar, Cyr Ready to Finally Battle for ACT Title
BARRE -- Goliath meets Goliath at Thunder Road Int'l Speedbowl on Sunday. Williston's Brian Hoar and Milton's Jean-Paul Cyr -- the two all-time winningest drivers in American-Canadian Tour Late Model history -- will face each other head-to-head for the 2010 championship in the most anticipated matchup in recent memory.
***
TALE OF THE TAPE
Defending champion Hoar's 25 career wins top the all-time ACT Late Model Tour victory chart, while Cyr's 19 wins rank second. In 106 career starts, Hoar has 60 top-fives, 78 top-tens, and an average finish of 7.7. In 137 starts, Cyr has 60 top-fives, 86 top-tens, and a 9.3 average finish.
Hoar owns six ACT championships -- 1993, each year from 1997 to 2000, and 2009. Cyr's seven titles are an ACT record, having won in 1994, 1996, and each season from 2003 to 2007.
In addition to his ACT titles, Hoar was the track champion at both Airborne Speedway and Thunder Road Int'l Speedbowl in 1999, was that year's ACT Overall champion, was the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East Rookie of the Year in 2001, and won the 2006 New Hampshire Motor Speedway track championship.
Cyr won the Devil's Bowl Speedway championship in 1990 as a dirt track racer, won ACT's Am/Can Challenge title in 1996, is the reigning Thunder Road track champion, and is a successful off-road motorcycle racer, competing in the legendary Baja 1000 and Baja 500 events.
Hoar drove for his family-owned Goss Dodge team before joining Rick Paya's RPM Motorsports for the ACT championship last year. Paya was Cyr's crew chief from 2003-08, also serving as car owner the final two years. After a successful year driving for Joey and Jeff Laquerre, Cyr will race for veteran Gary Caron this season.
***
NEVER WORKED OUT
For one reason or another, Hoar and Cyr have raced the entire ACT schedule together just three times. As Cyr won championships in 1994 and 2007, Hoar endured tough seasons to finish a distant sixth each time. In 1996, the two entered the final event at Airborne Speedway in a tight battle with Dave Whitcomb. Hoar's car failed to come to life on the starting grid, though, and he was forced to watch from the sidelines.
"It's never really worked out," said Cyr. "The times he won it, I wasn't around. The times I've won it, Brian has either not been there or not been able to be up there with me."
Each driver won four consecutive ACT titles at different points, but each streak took place while the other was racing NASCAR. Hoar's 1993 and 2009 titles came when Cyr ran only weekly events at Airborne or Thunder Road.
"I think not being there at the same time as the other was good for our careers," said Hoar. "He made it look easy [in 2003-06], and I did in the '90s, but now there are a lot of new faces and it's going to be tougher. It's probably not realistic to think that we're going to be the only ones racing for the title, but it would be pretty cool."
And that championship in 1996? Cyr won by two points over Whitcomb. Hoar finished third on the trailer, 62 points back.
***
FAST FOES, FAST FRIENDS
"There are a lot of things that have to go just right for it to happen, and I'm hoping it happens," Hoar says of a potential championship showdown between he and Cyr. "We're at points in both of our careers where we've each won lots of races and championships. The only thing we really have left to do is to beat each other."
"If Brian wins the title this year, he'll tie my record [of seven ACT championships]," says Cyr. "I don't really want him to do that. If I'm able to pull it off and beat him, it will personally be one of the more rewarding championships I'll have had."
That intense focus should not draw bitter conclusions, though. While fierce competitors on the track, the two are close off the track; Cyr and Hoar go motorcycle riding, go-kart racing, and snowboarding together in the off-season. Cyr also remains close with Paya, speaking with him "at least once or twice a week."
Still, the drive to be the best racer is too great to ignore: "Jean is a great competitor and a great friend, but it would really suck to lose to him," Hoar says. "It would suck worse to lose to him than anyone else."
***
SOMEONE ELSE
Losing to someone else is a very real possibility for both drivers. Names dropped by Cyr and Hoar as potential race winners and title contenders included Scott Payea, Joey Polewarczyk, and part-timer Eric Williams, and both are concerned about Brent Dragon and John Donahue as championship spoilers.
Payea won the Spring Green 100 at Airborne and has finished second in each of the last three seasons, including to Cyr in 2007 and Hoar last year. He hopes that the potential battle between the two will work to his advantage.
"I'm sure it's going to weigh on Brian's mind and Jean's as well," Payea said. "That's fine with me. Let them have their own battle, and I'll go and try to steal the championship from both of them."
Dragon is also a three-time championship runner-up with nine career wins, including a score at Twin State Speedway last September and a pair of wins in Canada. Donahue won at White Mountain Motorsports Park in June and finished no worse than fourth in the final five championshp events of 2009, adding a win in the Milk Bowl and a fifth-place effort at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in the process. Polewarczyk and Williams each had a win at Oxford Plains Speedway, and Williams also won at Thunder Road.
The list of top conteders -- full-time or otherwise -- also includes Brad Leighton, Patrick Laperle, Randy Potter, Dave Pembroke, Cris Michaud, Glen Luce, Jamie Fisher, Nick Sweet, and ACT newcomers Aaron Fellows, Travis Adams, Bradley Babb, and Chris Riendeau.
***
ADVANTAGE?
Cyr and Paya's long association creates advantages for both teams. Having won five of his seven ACT titles with Paya as either crew chief, car owner, or both, Cyr feels he knows Paya well enough to have educated guesses for each strategic decision Paya may make, but understands that Paya knows most Cyr's tricks behind the wheel, too.
"Rick is very clever, very methodical. He brings a whole different dimension to the Tour because he eats, breathes, and sleeps racing," says Cyr. "I've never actually competed against him because I've always been with him. It's going to be fun if there are any races where [Hoar and I] really running at par with each other. Rick has an advantage knowing how I drive, but I know his strategies. If he one-ups me I'll be able to look back at it and I'll know why and how he did it, but I think I can call his bluff, too."
Hoar doesn't see the Cyr-Paya familiarity as a problem. "I know I'm with a great team," he said. "Rick has had two very different styles of driver in me and Jean, and he's had similar results with both of us. The team does a great job, so it's up to me to work my [butt] off behind the wheel."
Cyr thinks this will be his best shot at challenging Hoar head-on. "I know the equipment he's in is great, because I used to drive it," he said. "The equipment I'm in this year is pretty aged and it's been around the block a few times, but I'm really optimistic. We tested at Canaan and I'm really pleased with how it went. Keith [Williams] and Kyle [Caron] did an unbelievable job putting the car together. It's up to the standards I'm used to. I wouldn't be racing this car if I didn't believe it could win."
(PHOTOS: 1. Brian Hoar; 2. Jean-Paul Cyr; 3. Scott Payea. Photos by Justin St. Louis/VMM)
***
TALE OF THE TAPE
Defending champion Hoar's 25 career wins top the all-time ACT Late Model Tour victory chart, while Cyr's 19 wins rank second. In 106 career starts, Hoar has 60 top-fives, 78 top-tens, and an average finish of 7.7. In 137 starts, Cyr has 60 top-fives, 86 top-tens, and a 9.3 average finish.Hoar owns six ACT championships -- 1993, each year from 1997 to 2000, and 2009. Cyr's seven titles are an ACT record, having won in 1994, 1996, and each season from 2003 to 2007.
In addition to his ACT titles, Hoar was the track champion at both Airborne Speedway and Thunder Road Int'l Speedbowl in 1999, was that year's ACT Overall champion, was the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East Rookie of the Year in 2001, and won the 2006 New Hampshire Motor Speedway track championship.
Cyr won the Devil's Bowl Speedway championship in 1990 as a dirt track racer, won ACT's Am/Can Challenge title in 1996, is the reigning Thunder Road track champion, and is a successful off-road motorcycle racer, competing in the legendary Baja 1000 and Baja 500 events.
Hoar drove for his family-owned Goss Dodge team before joining Rick Paya's RPM Motorsports for the ACT championship last year. Paya was Cyr's crew chief from 2003-08, also serving as car owner the final two years. After a successful year driving for Joey and Jeff Laquerre, Cyr will race for veteran Gary Caron this season.
***
NEVER WORKED OUT
For one reason or another, Hoar and Cyr have raced the entire ACT schedule together just three times. As Cyr won championships in 1994 and 2007, Hoar endured tough seasons to finish a distant sixth each time. In 1996, the two entered the final event at Airborne Speedway in a tight battle with Dave Whitcomb. Hoar's car failed to come to life on the starting grid, though, and he was forced to watch from the sidelines.
"It's never really worked out," said Cyr. "The times he won it, I wasn't around. The times I've won it, Brian has either not been there or not been able to be up there with me."Each driver won four consecutive ACT titles at different points, but each streak took place while the other was racing NASCAR. Hoar's 1993 and 2009 titles came when Cyr ran only weekly events at Airborne or Thunder Road.
"I think not being there at the same time as the other was good for our careers," said Hoar. "He made it look easy [in 2003-06], and I did in the '90s, but now there are a lot of new faces and it's going to be tougher. It's probably not realistic to think that we're going to be the only ones racing for the title, but it would be pretty cool."
And that championship in 1996? Cyr won by two points over Whitcomb. Hoar finished third on the trailer, 62 points back.
***
FAST FOES, FAST FRIENDS
"There are a lot of things that have to go just right for it to happen, and I'm hoping it happens," Hoar says of a potential championship showdown between he and Cyr. "We're at points in both of our careers where we've each won lots of races and championships. The only thing we really have left to do is to beat each other."
"If Brian wins the title this year, he'll tie my record [of seven ACT championships]," says Cyr. "I don't really want him to do that. If I'm able to pull it off and beat him, it will personally be one of the more rewarding championships I'll have had."
That intense focus should not draw bitter conclusions, though. While fierce competitors on the track, the two are close off the track; Cyr and Hoar go motorcycle riding, go-kart racing, and snowboarding together in the off-season. Cyr also remains close with Paya, speaking with him "at least once or twice a week."
Still, the drive to be the best racer is too great to ignore: "Jean is a great competitor and a great friend, but it would really suck to lose to him," Hoar says. "It would suck worse to lose to him than anyone else."
***
SOMEONE ELSE
Losing to someone else is a very real possibility for both drivers. Names dropped by Cyr and Hoar as potential race winners and title contenders included Scott Payea, Joey Polewarczyk, and part-timer Eric Williams, and both are concerned about Brent Dragon and John Donahue as championship spoilers.
Payea won the Spring Green 100 at Airborne and has finished second in each of the last three seasons, including to Cyr in 2007 and Hoar last year. He hopes that the potential battle between the two will work to his advantage."I'm sure it's going to weigh on Brian's mind and Jean's as well," Payea said. "That's fine with me. Let them have their own battle, and I'll go and try to steal the championship from both of them."
Dragon is also a three-time championship runner-up with nine career wins, including a score at Twin State Speedway last September and a pair of wins in Canada. Donahue won at White Mountain Motorsports Park in June and finished no worse than fourth in the final five championshp events of 2009, adding a win in the Milk Bowl and a fifth-place effort at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in the process. Polewarczyk and Williams each had a win at Oxford Plains Speedway, and Williams also won at Thunder Road.
The list of top conteders -- full-time or otherwise -- also includes Brad Leighton, Patrick Laperle, Randy Potter, Dave Pembroke, Cris Michaud, Glen Luce, Jamie Fisher, Nick Sweet, and ACT newcomers Aaron Fellows, Travis Adams, Bradley Babb, and Chris Riendeau.
***
ADVANTAGE?
Cyr and Paya's long association creates advantages for both teams. Having won five of his seven ACT titles with Paya as either crew chief, car owner, or both, Cyr feels he knows Paya well enough to have educated guesses for each strategic decision Paya may make, but understands that Paya knows most Cyr's tricks behind the wheel, too.
"Rick is very clever, very methodical. He brings a whole different dimension to the Tour because he eats, breathes, and sleeps racing," says Cyr. "I've never actually competed against him because I've always been with him. It's going to be fun if there are any races where [Hoar and I] really running at par with each other. Rick has an advantage knowing how I drive, but I know his strategies. If he one-ups me I'll be able to look back at it and I'll know why and how he did it, but I think I can call his bluff, too."
Hoar doesn't see the Cyr-Paya familiarity as a problem. "I know I'm with a great team," he said. "Rick has had two very different styles of driver in me and Jean, and he's had similar results with both of us. The team does a great job, so it's up to me to work my [butt] off behind the wheel."
Cyr thinks this will be his best shot at challenging Hoar head-on. "I know the equipment he's in is great, because I used to drive it," he said. "The equipment I'm in this year is pretty aged and it's been around the block a few times, but I'm really optimistic. We tested at Canaan and I'm really pleased with how it went. Keith [Williams] and Kyle [Caron] did an unbelievable job putting the car together. It's up to the standards I'm used to. I wouldn't be racing this car if I didn't believe it could win."
(PHOTOS: 1. Brian Hoar; 2. Jean-Paul Cyr; 3. Scott Payea. Photos by Justin St. Louis/VMM)
Brent Dragon: ACT Albany-Saratoga Speedway Race Preview
(From team release)
Brent Dragon of Milton, Vt., opens the 2010 ACT Late Model Tour season in the Albany-Saratoga 100 at Albany-Saratoga Speedway in Malta, N.Y., on Sunday, April 25. The track was renovated from a dirt track in the offseason and made into a flat, .400-mile asphalt oval in time for this year, and this will be just the second event held at the new speedway. The originally scheduled season-opening NH Governor's Cup 150 at Lee USA Speedway in Lee, N.H., last week was postponed by weather. Dragon, who has competed in the series since its inception 18 years ago, will be making his 175th career ACT start. Though he's yet to win the championship, the 3-time Airborne Speedway track champion has finished second in the final ACT standings on three different occasions and owns nine career wins.
WHO: Brent Dragon, Milton, Vt.
TEAM: Beverage Mart/Furniture World of VT/Charlebois Freightliner/Newton Pellets No. 55 Chevrolet
BEST CAREER ALBANY-SARATOGA SPEEDWAY FINISH: N/A
LAST RACE AT ALBANY-SARATOGA SPEEDWAY: 2010 event is first ACT event at track
WHAT: ACT Late Model Tour Albany-Saratoga 100
WHERE: Albany-Saratoga Speedway, Malta, N.Y. (.400-mile oval)
WHEN: 1 p.m., Sunday, April 25
ACT Late Model Tour
LAST RACE: N/A
NEXT RACE: Sunday, May 2, Thunder Road International Speedbowl, Barre, Vt.
**********
BRENT, WHAT DO YOU KNOW ABOUT THE NEW ALBANY-SARATOGA SPEEDWAY?
Zero. I probably went there with my dad back years ago, but I don't remember the place at all. I really look forward to going, because it's one place I haven't raced at yet.
It's flat. Oxford (Plains Speedway) is as flat as anywhere we go; I don't really know of any flatter track than Oxford that I've raced on. I like flat tracks now -- but if you'd asked me five years ago, I would have said no. I've learned how to drive them a little bit differently.
You don't use hardly any brakes at all. I really am the kind of driver that wants to go as hard as I can into the corners and then get the car to turn and go again, but I've learned not every place works like that. I was following (Ben Rowe) in practice up to Oxford four or five years ago, and I realized what he was doing. That made a huge difference for me.
HOW DO YOU APPROACH RACING ON A TRACK YOU'VE NEVER RACED ON?
We've got an idea of what it looks like and what we'll go with for a setup. I'm glad we'll have a few hours of practice on Saturday to kind of figure things out. The gears are the biggest thing, probably, that you'll want to get right.
I like going to new tracks, so I like going to the races where it's new for everybody else, too. I think trying to figure them out is the challenge, and it's a challenge that I like.
IS IT HARD TO GET GEARED UP FOR THE 'SEASON OPENER' AFTER LAST WEEK'S RAIN OUT AT LEE USA SPEEDWAY?
No, not at all. We're pretty excited. We had everybody here at the shop again (on Tuesday) night, and we went through the car.
When the weather forecast looked as bad as it did (for Lee), I was glad they called it. When they called it on Friday, it saved us a lot of money in terms of travel and food.
We're just approaching this week like it's the first race of the year. It's like I told my guys, "Hey, we're still tied for the points lead. We came out of the box just like we wanted to, you know? We didn't get off to a slow start."
Brent Dragon of Milton, Vt., opens the 2010 ACT Late Model Tour season in the Albany-Saratoga 100 at Albany-Saratoga Speedway in Malta, N.Y., on Sunday, April 25. The track was renovated from a dirt track in the offseason and made into a flat, .400-mile asphalt oval in time for this year, and this will be just the second event held at the new speedway. The originally scheduled season-opening NH Governor's Cup 150 at Lee USA Speedway in Lee, N.H., last week was postponed by weather. Dragon, who has competed in the series since its inception 18 years ago, will be making his 175th career ACT start. Though he's yet to win the championship, the 3-time Airborne Speedway track champion has finished second in the final ACT standings on three different occasions and owns nine career wins.
WHO: Brent Dragon, Milton, Vt.
TEAM: Beverage Mart/Furniture World of VT/Charlebois Freightliner/Newton Pellets No. 55 Chevrolet
BEST CAREER ALBANY-SARATOGA SPEEDWAY FINISH: N/A
LAST RACE AT ALBANY-SARATOGA SPEEDWAY: 2010 event is first ACT event at track
WHAT: ACT Late Model Tour Albany-Saratoga 100
WHERE: Albany-Saratoga Speedway, Malta, N.Y. (.400-mile oval)
WHEN: 1 p.m., Sunday, April 25
ACT Late Model Tour
LAST RACE: N/A
NEXT RACE: Sunday, May 2, Thunder Road International Speedbowl, Barre, Vt.
**********
BRENT, WHAT DO YOU KNOW ABOUT THE NEW ALBANY-SARATOGA SPEEDWAY?
Zero. I probably went there with my dad back years ago, but I don't remember the place at all. I really look forward to going, because it's one place I haven't raced at yet.
It's flat. Oxford (Plains Speedway) is as flat as anywhere we go; I don't really know of any flatter track than Oxford that I've raced on. I like flat tracks now -- but if you'd asked me five years ago, I would have said no. I've learned how to drive them a little bit differently.
You don't use hardly any brakes at all. I really am the kind of driver that wants to go as hard as I can into the corners and then get the car to turn and go again, but I've learned not every place works like that. I was following (Ben Rowe) in practice up to Oxford four or five years ago, and I realized what he was doing. That made a huge difference for me.
HOW DO YOU APPROACH RACING ON A TRACK YOU'VE NEVER RACED ON?
We've got an idea of what it looks like and what we'll go with for a setup. I'm glad we'll have a few hours of practice on Saturday to kind of figure things out. The gears are the biggest thing, probably, that you'll want to get right.
I like going to new tracks, so I like going to the races where it's new for everybody else, too. I think trying to figure them out is the challenge, and it's a challenge that I like.
IS IT HARD TO GET GEARED UP FOR THE 'SEASON OPENER' AFTER LAST WEEK'S RAIN OUT AT LEE USA SPEEDWAY?
No, not at all. We're pretty excited. We had everybody here at the shop again (on Tuesday) night, and we went through the car.
When the weather forecast looked as bad as it did (for Lee), I was glad they called it. When they called it on Friday, it saved us a lot of money in terms of travel and food.
We're just approaching this week like it's the first race of the year. It's like I told my guys, "Hey, we're still tied for the points lead. We came out of the box just like we wanted to, you know? We didn't get off to a slow start."
Thursday, April 1, 2010
YEAR OF THE DRAGON: Brent Dragon Sets Sights on First ACT Championship
(From team press release)
MILTON, Vt. -- The goal is simple for a driver who carries a surname synonymous with stock car racing in the region. Brent Dragon wants to win the ACT Late Model Tour championship in 2010.
"It's been that way for the last 25 years it seems," Dragon said recently.
This year, though, there is even more optimism coming from the Dragon race shop than in offseasons past. For starters, Dragon finished the 2009 season as one of the hottest Late Model drivers in New England, winning three times after June 1 and finishing fifth in the final ACT standings.
Dragon, who has been on the tour since its inception 18 years ago, has three times been the ACT bridesmaid. He's started more ACT races than any driver in history and owns nine career victories on tour. The son of Beaver Dragon and nephew of Bobby Dragon, Brent believes that last year's strong finish could lead to this year finally being his year.
"This will be the first year in about six years that we haven't started with a new car," Dragon said. "We were really good from about midseason on last year, and we have our notes to go back to this year."
Those notes should translate into a stout race car. With a chance to win both the Oxford 250 at Oxford Plains Speedway and the prestigious Milk Bowl at Thunder Road International Speedbowl, as well as being one of the first invitees to the inaugural ACT Invitational at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in September, Dragon was among Late Model racing's elite performers a year ago.
To help his No. 55 team clear the hurdle and finish the job with more wins and that elusive championship, Dragon's employed the help of noted northeast crew member Buster Bean. Though it's not full-time help at the shop, Dragon believes delegating responsibility to crew members other than just himself will pay off.
"We already have a good tire guy in Steve More, too, so Steve's moved into the crew chief role for us now," Dragon said. "Buster's going to work with us and help us on that end if we have questions.
"I used to do everything myself, but it's just gotten to a point where it's harder to do that. It started to work better with Steve taking over some of that responsibility last year. We're looking forward to having Buster now and Steve as the crew chief and then all of the same guys back again on the crew."
Dragon plans to run the complete 14-race ACT schedule, as well as open Late Model events like the Oxford 250 and the Milk Bowl, as well as the Showdown at Chaudiere (Que.) 200 and the ACT Invitational at NHMS. Toss in select ACT Castrol Series races north of the border, and Dragon expects a busy summer to top out with 22-24 races.
But the most important of the races on such a tight schedule are the first ones. The ACT Late Model Tour features five races in less than a month's time from April 18-May 16.
"You've absolutely got to start the year off right," said Dragon, a three-time Late Model champion at the old Airborne Speedway. "We always seem to start off slow, and it always seemed to be because we were starting off the year with a new car -- and you've really got to start off those first two or three races really good.
"I haven't. I haven't done that for years. We always seem to get going later in the year -- but hopefully because we finished so strong last year and we're bringing back the same car with all those notes to work from, we should be pretty close (to a winning setup) when we get to the track."
Get off on the right foot, and Dragon could finally hoist that ACT championship trophy high overhead.
(Photo by Leif Tillotson)
MILTON, Vt. -- The goal is simple for a driver who carries a surname synonymous with stock car racing in the region. Brent Dragon wants to win the ACT Late Model Tour championship in 2010."It's been that way for the last 25 years it seems," Dragon said recently.
This year, though, there is even more optimism coming from the Dragon race shop than in offseasons past. For starters, Dragon finished the 2009 season as one of the hottest Late Model drivers in New England, winning three times after June 1 and finishing fifth in the final ACT standings.
Dragon, who has been on the tour since its inception 18 years ago, has three times been the ACT bridesmaid. He's started more ACT races than any driver in history and owns nine career victories on tour. The son of Beaver Dragon and nephew of Bobby Dragon, Brent believes that last year's strong finish could lead to this year finally being his year.
"This will be the first year in about six years that we haven't started with a new car," Dragon said. "We were really good from about midseason on last year, and we have our notes to go back to this year."
Those notes should translate into a stout race car. With a chance to win both the Oxford 250 at Oxford Plains Speedway and the prestigious Milk Bowl at Thunder Road International Speedbowl, as well as being one of the first invitees to the inaugural ACT Invitational at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in September, Dragon was among Late Model racing's elite performers a year ago.
To help his No. 55 team clear the hurdle and finish the job with more wins and that elusive championship, Dragon's employed the help of noted northeast crew member Buster Bean. Though it's not full-time help at the shop, Dragon believes delegating responsibility to crew members other than just himself will pay off.
"We already have a good tire guy in Steve More, too, so Steve's moved into the crew chief role for us now," Dragon said. "Buster's going to work with us and help us on that end if we have questions.
"I used to do everything myself, but it's just gotten to a point where it's harder to do that. It started to work better with Steve taking over some of that responsibility last year. We're looking forward to having Buster now and Steve as the crew chief and then all of the same guys back again on the crew."
Dragon plans to run the complete 14-race ACT schedule, as well as open Late Model events like the Oxford 250 and the Milk Bowl, as well as the Showdown at Chaudiere (Que.) 200 and the ACT Invitational at NHMS. Toss in select ACT Castrol Series races north of the border, and Dragon expects a busy summer to top out with 22-24 races.
But the most important of the races on such a tight schedule are the first ones. The ACT Late Model Tour features five races in less than a month's time from April 18-May 16.
"You've absolutely got to start the year off right," said Dragon, a three-time Late Model champion at the old Airborne Speedway. "We always seem to start off slow, and it always seemed to be because we were starting off the year with a new car -- and you've really got to start off those first two or three races really good.
"I haven't. I haven't done that for years. We always seem to get going later in the year -- but hopefully because we finished so strong last year and we're bringing back the same car with all those notes to work from, we should be pretty close (to a winning setup) when we get to the track."
Get off on the right foot, and Dragon could finally hoist that ACT championship trophy high overhead.
(Photo by Leif Tillotson)
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
THE LOVE OF THE GAME
Junior Johnson was famous for saying, "If you want to make a small fortune in racing, start with a big one." There's only one reason we sacrifice our time, energy, money, and at times even our family lives, to stay in racing.
The love of the game.
***
"The choice was to stay at home in the cold and snow in Vermont, or come to Florida and race, so what the hell?" --Peter Jarvis at New Smyrna Speedway "For me it's a learning-charge-your-battery-focus-on-Thunder-Road-race-the-Baja-and-not-get-killed-type of year." --Jean-Paul Cyr, looking forward to his 2009 season
"I don't race to prove things, I race because I like to race." --Eric Williams
"It was a long haul, but I got to skip school so it was worth it." --17 year-old Joey Doiron on testing on a Wednesday afternoon at Thunder Road
"It's all about wins, because it won't be long that I won't be doing this anymore." --Brad Leighton"Who's Quinny?" --Eddie MacDonald, after an entertaining battle with Quinny Welch at Lee USA Speedway
"As long as everybody's having a good time, it's all good." --Modified Racing Series founder Jack Bateman
"We come down here every year to the first big race, we pull in with our little hauler and trailer. Some of these rigs I could park my hauler and truck inside their rig and still have a picnic underneath it, you know? And you stand there and you look around and you almost say, 'Man, what am I doing? This is crazy.' " --Eric Williams on operating a winning ACT race team with a shoestring budget
"When I was paving it, I threw some money on the track before the roller came through so I can say I've got a couple dollars in it." --Airborne Speedway champion Bucko Branham, who was on the construction team that gave the track a $300,000 facelift in April
"Not many people would give a kid a dirt Modified and say, 'Here, have at it.' " --Jason Gray
"We thought we were headed to Waterford, and we ended up winning at Ste-Croix." --Brent Dragon "I'm gonna have to fly like the wind. Literally." --Eric Chase, on catching a flight from Concord, N.H., to Berlin, Vt., after qualifying a NASCAR Camping World Series East car at New Hampshire Motor Speedway on Thursday afternoon and getting to Thunder Road in time to race that evening
"Dale kept telling me, 'Slow down, slow down, slow down, save your tires,' and I said, 'How slow do you want me to go? I'm not even driving hard enough to use my brakes!' " --John Donahue after blistering an ACT field at White Mountain Motorsports Park
"ACT called asking me to run Beech Ridge, and I called them back and I said, 'You know something, I have a hard time pulling a dime out of my pocket to race on Thursday nights.' " --Doug Murphy "If there wasn't no Saturday night racing, there wouldn't be no Sunday racing." --Seven-time NASCAR champion "King" Richard Petty on the importance of short track racing as it relates to the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series
"We were at the shop, heck, I was going home before them and I usually don't do that. I'm usually one of the last guys there, and I was like, 'Guys, I gotta go to work in the morning,' and they would just stay down there." --Nick Sweet on the dedication of his crew
"I've got a Formula 1 game for my PlayStation, but that's it. I drove around the track in a street car for the first time, and that track is so narrow the Formula 1 guys that raced there must be crazy." --Patrick Laperle on making his road course debut in the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve
"This is just for fun." --Chris Donnelly
"We're a family-run team and that's what makes it fun. We stay close as a family, and it's even fun sometimes when you're fighting. It's like a woman, you've got to fight 'em every once in a while. It wouldn't be real if you weren't fighting, right?" --Nick Sweet
"He along with his whole team always represented to me exactly why I have stayed in this business for so long. If I could have 30 Mark Lambertons on the road each week, I would keep doing this until I either dropped dead or became so senile that they threw me out." --ACT president Tom Curley, upon the news that Mark Lamberton would return to regular competition "I'm hoping they'll think I'm Jeff Taylor and they'll cheer for me." --Nick Sweet at Oxford Plains Speedway, referencing the paint scheme on his car honoring nine-time OPS champion Taylor
"Honest to God, if I could run with those guys every week, I'd come up here and run every single week." --Wayne Helliwell, Jr. on racing against Quinny Welch and Randy Potter
"You get butterflies when you turn off the road here into New Hampshire and come through the tunnel." --Scott Payea on racing at New Hampshire Motor Speedway
"You couldn't ask for a better guy." --Crew chief Jeff Laquerre on his driver, Jean-Paul Cyr
"I couldn't be more pleased with the way Scott races people. He's very smart and doesn't abuse his equipment. Some guys, like Brad Leighton and Patrick Laperle, those guys will risk it all to win. He's not that type of driver." --Brian Hoar on Scott Payea "The reality is that the chemistry with me and this team is there. I've had more fun racing this year than ever before, and that's whether we're at the track, or in the trailer on the way to a race, or on Tuesday nights when we're all in the shop together working on the car. I actually look forward to Tuesday nights more than anything." --Brain Hoar on his RPM Motorsports team
"I'm 38 years old and I still get all excited when I see these (NASCAR) guys race at this track. And in about an hour I get to be one of the guys racing here." --Dave Pembroke at NHMS
"I appreciate short track racing and haven't forgotten where I learned the sport from the grassroots up." --NHMS vice president Jerry Gappens
Sunday, January 3, 2010
A LOOK BACK: ACT Fall Foliage 300
The ACT Late Model Tour's Fall Foliage 300 at Airborne Speedway in Plattsburgh, N.Y. was a historic event. Until that point, the longest race the series had ever run was 200 laps on a 4/10-mile track. Not only that, Airborne's newly redesigned corners allowed for some great side-by-side racing, producing a single-event record-tying 19 lead changes for the Tour.
The following video is Vermont Motorsports Magazine's recap of the race, won in impressive fashion by Patrick Laperle.
(All video/photo content by Justin St. Louis/VMM)
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
Thunder Road Late Models to Open New Era at Devil's Bowl
From Thunder Road press release
WEST HAVEN -- The American-Canadian Tour Late Models from Thunder Road will open the newly paved Devil’s Bowl Speedway in West Haven on Sunday, May 23, 2010. Track promoter Jerry Richards said, “This is going to be a great way to bring the new asphalt to life at Devil’s Bowl. It has been over 30 years since the track was asphalt, but we think having Thunder Road’s Late Models on the ½-mile will certainly give our fans at 'The Bowl' a great opening event.”
Thunder Road Late Models will be joined by some of the regular ACT Late Model Tour teams for this grand opening of the original Champlain Valley Racing Association track, which was founded by legendary promoter C.J. Richards.
“When we learned that 'The Bowl' was being returned to asphalt we really wanted our teams to be a part of it," said Tom Curley, the President of ACT and managing partner of Thunder Road. "Most of the Thunder Road Late Models have raced various tracks on the ACT, and this just seemed like a great fit. We have no races scheduled at Thunder Road from May 2 until Memorial Day weekend, so I am sure there will be great support from the Late Model teams.
“I am sure there will be a number of teams from Chittenden County and central Vermont who will want to give Devil’s Bowl a try, and this change the CVRA is going through is something ACT wants to support.” The sister track of Devil’s Bowl, Albany-Saratoga Speedway in Malta, N.Y., will host an ACT Late Model Tour event on April 25th at the newly paved 4/10-mile speedplant.
Some of the expected entrants to the Devil's Bowl event include reigning Thunder Road champion Jean-Paul Cyr, a former champion at Devil’s Bowl, three-time Thunder Road champion Cris Michaud, and ACT star Brent Dragon.
“I think this is really great,” Dragon said. “My father and uncle were both a part of the five-track Northern NASCAR circuit back in the mid-‘70s, and I am really excited that we have a 'long track' back in Vermont."
WEST HAVEN -- The American-Canadian Tour Late Models from Thunder Road will open the newly paved Devil’s Bowl Speedway in West Haven on Sunday, May 23, 2010. Track promoter Jerry Richards said, “This is going to be a great way to bring the new asphalt to life at Devil’s Bowl. It has been over 30 years since the track was asphalt, but we think having Thunder Road’s Late Models on the ½-mile will certainly give our fans at 'The Bowl' a great opening event.”
Thunder Road Late Models will be joined by some of the regular ACT Late Model Tour teams for this grand opening of the original Champlain Valley Racing Association track, which was founded by legendary promoter C.J. Richards.
“When we learned that 'The Bowl' was being returned to asphalt we really wanted our teams to be a part of it," said Tom Curley, the President of ACT and managing partner of Thunder Road. "Most of the Thunder Road Late Models have raced various tracks on the ACT, and this just seemed like a great fit. We have no races scheduled at Thunder Road from May 2 until Memorial Day weekend, so I am sure there will be great support from the Late Model teams.
“I am sure there will be a number of teams from Chittenden County and central Vermont who will want to give Devil’s Bowl a try, and this change the CVRA is going through is something ACT wants to support.” The sister track of Devil’s Bowl, Albany-Saratoga Speedway in Malta, N.Y., will host an ACT Late Model Tour event on April 25th at the newly paved 4/10-mile speedplant.
Some of the expected entrants to the Devil's Bowl event include reigning Thunder Road champion Jean-Paul Cyr, a former champion at Devil’s Bowl, three-time Thunder Road champion Cris Michaud, and ACT star Brent Dragon.
“I think this is really great,” Dragon said. “My father and uncle were both a part of the five-track Northern NASCAR circuit back in the mid-‘70s, and I am really excited that we have a 'long track' back in Vermont."
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
Donahue Spars With Dragon at Milk Bowl
Chittenden Bank Milk Bowl coverage presented by RPM Racing Engines
John Donahue and Patrick Laperle weren't racing for the win at Thunder Road Int'l Speedbowl's Labor Day Classic last month, but they were definitely the show to watch all day. At Sunday's Milk Bowl at the Barre track, Donahue found a new boxing partner in Brent Dragon. But the stakes were much higher this time.
Donahue and Dragon were head-and-shoulders above the rest of the Milk Bowl field on Sunday, and entered the third and final 50-lap segment racing each other for the overall victory in Vermont's biggest annual race and a $10,000 top prize. Dragon, the 2006 Milk Bowl winner, held a razor-thin, one-point advantage over Donahue, and the two raced each other exactly as if that was the case.
By virtue of their ninth- and tenth-place finishes in the second leg of the race and the traditional full-field inversion between segments, they found themselves starting the final round in the 21st and 22nd positions and needing to move forward quickly. Making daring moves in traffic -- including a four-lap stretch where either Donahue, Dragon, or both was racing three-wide on Thunder Road's narrow surface -- eventually push came to shove.
And both drivers shoved. Dragon put his nose under Donahue and Glen Luce on lap 17 to complete a three-wide pass, one that Donahue wasn't fond of.
"I don't like being put three-wide, but this is the third segment, this is the Milk Bowl," Donahue said. "I said, 'Alright, my car is good enough, I can put you three-wide.' So I did."
And he did. On the next lap, with Dragon now on the outside lane, Donahue stuck his nose in an opening in the middle lane. Dragon, as a result, was briefly knocked off the track, and, he says, out of contention for the win.
"When I got ran off the backstretch there, it knocked the rear end out and instantly I knew it, I could feel it," Dragon said. "It just made the car so loose, and I was done. I was along for the ride at that point." Dragon acknowledged that his driving style at the Milk Bowl was out of character for the usually smooth, calculated racer. "We wanted it bad. We wanted to win it and that's what you've got to do in the Milk Bowl. That's just part of the deal. I wanted to win."
Dragon said he was surprised by Donahue's move, and although he understood that the lure of a Milk Bowl win fuels drivers to race harder, losing the race that way was hard to take.
"Yeah, a little bit. I didn't expect John to run me like that," he said. "I mean, I probably do in the Milk Bowl, [but] I had him pinned behind a car on the backstretch and I was in good shape, I would have gained a couple spots right there, and he just ran me off the backstretch. I can't believe I didn't crash, I got that far out into the dirt. That's the worst part of it."
Donahue saw the move as an eye-for-an-eye situation. "He says I cut him off. Whatever," said Donahue. "He put me three-wide. You know, what comes around, goes around. He might be mad.
"I mean, this is the Milk Bowl, this happens once a year. I don't know how else to put it. I wanted it more than he did. I got rough. I usually don't drive like that, but this is a once-in-a-lifetime deal."
While winning that first Milk Bowl may be something a driver only gets to do once, Dragon said experiencing Donahue's tactics was not. And it's not something he'll likely forget as the American-Canadian Tour season comes to a close at Oxford Plains Speedway next Sunday.
"No, it's the second time it's happened this year [with Donahue]," Dragon said. "I'll be good with it, and I'll keep it in my memory bank. That's part of the deal.
"We'll see what happens next week."
John Donahue and Patrick Laperle weren't racing for the win at Thunder Road Int'l Speedbowl's Labor Day Classic last month, but they were definitely the show to watch all day. At Sunday's Milk Bowl at the Barre track, Donahue found a new boxing partner in Brent Dragon. But the stakes were much higher this time.Donahue and Dragon were head-and-shoulders above the rest of the Milk Bowl field on Sunday, and entered the third and final 50-lap segment racing each other for the overall victory in Vermont's biggest annual race and a $10,000 top prize. Dragon, the 2006 Milk Bowl winner, held a razor-thin, one-point advantage over Donahue, and the two raced each other exactly as if that was the case.
By virtue of their ninth- and tenth-place finishes in the second leg of the race and the traditional full-field inversion between segments, they found themselves starting the final round in the 21st and 22nd positions and needing to move forward quickly. Making daring moves in traffic -- including a four-lap stretch where either Donahue, Dragon, or both was racing three-wide on Thunder Road's narrow surface -- eventually push came to shove.
And both drivers shoved. Dragon put his nose under Donahue and Glen Luce on lap 17 to complete a three-wide pass, one that Donahue wasn't fond of."I don't like being put three-wide, but this is the third segment, this is the Milk Bowl," Donahue said. "I said, 'Alright, my car is good enough, I can put you three-wide.' So I did."
And he did. On the next lap, with Dragon now on the outside lane, Donahue stuck his nose in an opening in the middle lane. Dragon, as a result, was briefly knocked off the track, and, he says, out of contention for the win.
"When I got ran off the backstretch there, it knocked the rear end out and instantly I knew it, I could feel it," Dragon said. "It just made the car so loose, and I was done. I was along for the ride at that point." Dragon acknowledged that his driving style at the Milk Bowl was out of character for the usually smooth, calculated racer. "We wanted it bad. We wanted to win it and that's what you've got to do in the Milk Bowl. That's just part of the deal. I wanted to win."
Dragon said he was surprised by Donahue's move, and although he understood that the lure of a Milk Bowl win fuels drivers to race harder, losing the race that way was hard to take."Yeah, a little bit. I didn't expect John to run me like that," he said. "I mean, I probably do in the Milk Bowl, [but] I had him pinned behind a car on the backstretch and I was in good shape, I would have gained a couple spots right there, and he just ran me off the backstretch. I can't believe I didn't crash, I got that far out into the dirt. That's the worst part of it."
Donahue saw the move as an eye-for-an-eye situation. "He says I cut him off. Whatever," said Donahue. "He put me three-wide. You know, what comes around, goes around. He might be mad.
"I mean, this is the Milk Bowl, this happens once a year. I don't know how else to put it. I wanted it more than he did. I got rough. I usually don't drive like that, but this is a once-in-a-lifetime deal."
While winning that first Milk Bowl may be something a driver only gets to do once, Dragon said experiencing Donahue's tactics was not. And it's not something he'll likely forget as the American-Canadian Tour season comes to a close at Oxford Plains Speedway next Sunday.
"No, it's the second time it's happened this year [with Donahue]," Dragon said. "I'll be good with it, and I'll keep it in my memory bank. That's part of the deal.
"We'll see what happens next week."
(PHOTOS: 1. Brent Dragon (#55) gets underneath John Donahue (#26) and Glen Luce (#7); 2. Donahue repays the favor with Dragon outside and Eric Chase (#40) and Joey Becker (#16) down low. Photos by Leif Tillotson)
Monday, October 5, 2009
Donahue in Good Company with Milk Bowl Win
Chittenden Bank Milk Bowl coverage presented by RPM Racing Engines
BARRE -- Three years ago, John Donahue's name was often little more than a footnote in American-Canadian Tour race finishes or year-end point standings. And three short years later, the Graniteville driver has firmly established himself as a driver that will be remembered long after his final lap.
With a win in the 47th running of the Chittenden Bank Milk Bowl at Thunder Road Int'l Speedbowl, Donahue became just the tenth driver in history to win each of the track's "big three" events -- he won the Memorial Day Classic in 2008, the Labor Day Classic, the site of his first ACT Late Model Tour win, in 2007, and now Sunday's Milk Bowl. The victory means his name will be now etched in all three granite monuments at the Barre track honoring past winners of the events, alongside pioneers Larry Demar and Russell Ingerson, Hall of Famers Jean-Paul Cabana, Bobby Dragon, Dave Dion, and Robbie Crouch, and modern-day heroes Jean-Paul Cyr, Dave Pembroke, and Brent Dragon.
It's something Donahue spent a lot of time thinking about, too.
"This'll put the third one on there now," Donahue said after his Milk Bowl victory. "[It means] a lot. A month ago, Tom (Curley, ACT president) brought us all up there, the drivers, and I'm looking on down through and I'm on two of [the monuments], and I said, 'Boy, I'd really like to be on that Milk Bowl one, that way my name is on all three of them.' I've been thinking about it since then."
And perhaps appropriately, it was one of those names already carved into each piece of the rock -- Milton's Brent Dragon -- that Donahue had to outduel to win the Milk Bowl.
Dragon won the opening 50-lap round of the three-segment, cumulatively scored race, with Donahue third. Donahue finished ninth in the middle leg, one spot better than Dragon, and trailed Dragon by one point entering the final 50 laps. And that's when Donahue turned up the wick.
Both drivers raced three-wide through traffic, along with Scott Payea, Brian Hoar, and Brad Leighton, who each would be within striking distance under the right circumstances, near the one-third mark of the final segment. Dragon and Donahue traded jabs on the track, knowing their mid-pack battle was almost certainly for the overall victory.
Dragon pushed three-wide under Donahue and Glen Luce on lap 17, then swapped lanes on the next lap. Donahue seized the opportunity, returning the three-wide favor. In the intense action, Dragon's car was shoved momentarily off the backstretch, while Donahue was able to squeeze by. Two laps later, Payea spun off the track with Dave Whitcomb and Eric Chase to bring out the caution flag.
Donahue and Dragon realigned in 13th and 14th for the restart on lap 20, which proved to be the decisive moment of the race. Traffic in Donahue's inside lane moved faster than Dragon's high side group, and Donahue picked his way through the field to finish fifth in the segment. But Dragon, his car knocked out of alignment from the contact on lap 18, was only able to muster a tenth-place finish in segment. With the final tally added up, Donahue's 17 segment points secured him his first Milk Bowl win, four points better than Dragon's 21, and nine better than Eric Williams of Hyde Park.
Donahue began his career as a Flying Tiger/Sportsman racer at Thunder Road in the mid-nineties, winning more than his share of races and championships, but had little in the way of headline-grabbing success in the top-tier Late Model class -- and certainly with the touring ACT division -- until recently. His Milk Bowl victory and planting the traditional kiss on a "trophy queen" cow, he says, is the crowning achievement of his racing career.
"It's right at the top. I've had a lot of good races, I won a [Labor Day] 200 here, but this is different," he said. "You've got three different segments, you stop, you have to think about it, re-do your car. This is one I've been wanting for a long time. I'm just going to soak this one in and be happy."
Williams' third-place finish went virtually unnoticed, overshadowed by the Donahue-Dragon saga, but his segment finishes of seventh, fifteenth, and fourth were good enough for the podium spot. Joey Polewarczyk, Jr. of Hudson, N.H. (28 points) and Brian Hoar of Williston (29 points) finished fourth and fifth overall. The top-ten was completed by Dave Pembroke, Jamie Fisher, Nick Sweet, Joey Laquerre, and Chip Grenier. Track champion Jean-Paul Cyr, who won the third segment finished 11th overall, while second-segment winner Wayne Helliwell, Jr. finished 18th overall in his first start at Thunder Road.
***
Eighteen year-old Jimmy Hebert of Williamstown became the youngest driver in history to win a championship in Thunder Road's famed Tiger Sportsman division on Sunday, taking a four-point victory over Tony Rossi of Barre. Hebert overcame a tense moment on lap 17 of the 50-lap finale when hard contact with Mark Barnier cut Hebert's left-rear tire, sending him into a spin down the frontstretch. After pitting under the caution period, Hebert recovered for a 13th-place finish.
"It's ten times better that I ever thought it would be," said Hebert. "Ever since I was little, I dreamed of this. I never thought I would race at 16, say nothing about winning a championship at 18. The first year we really struggled and everybody seemed discouraged, but last year we put together some good runs. This year we worked on consistency and it really paid off for us."
Shawn Fleury of Middlesex took the lead from upstart Jason Corliss on lap 28, then cruised to his second win of the season. Mike Ziter followed Fleury past Corliss, but was penalized with under ten laps remaining for spinning a lapped car off the backstretch. Ziter was placed last in the 28-car field. Danville driver Corliss, the 2008 Street Stock champion making only his fourth appearance in the Tiger Sportsman division, finished second officially, with Bradford's Derrick O'Donnell third, Rossi fourth, and Bobby Therrien of Hinesburg in fifth.
Pete Ainsworth, who entered the final weekend with an eight-point lead in the division, failed to qualify for the main event. He slumped to a fourth-place championship finish behind Hebert, Rossi, and Brendan Moodie.
Tommy "Thunder" Smith of Williamstown moved into sole possession of first-place all-time in the Street Stock division with his 20th career win, his third of the season. Mike Martin of Craftsbury Common was the runner-up, with rookie Danny Doyle of Hancock third, Garry Bashaw of Lincoln fourth, and Randolph's Markus Farnham fifth. Veteran driver Gary Mullen of Tunbridge captured his first championship with a ninth-place finish, beating Martin for the title by 26 points.
Like Ainsworth, Junkyard Warrior point leader Donny Yates of North Montpelier failed to qualify for the Milk Bowl finale, but was still able to clinch his division's championship on the strength of six wins during the season. Ken Christman of Cabot took his third victory, over Keith Fortier of Hinesburg, Kevin Streeter of Waitsfield, Northfield's John Prentice, and Tommy Elwood of Morrisville.
UNOFFICIAL RESULTS -- 47th Annual Chittenden Bank Milk Bowl
Thunder Road Int'l Speedbowl, Barre, Vt.
Sunday, October 4, 2009
Pos.-Driver-Hometown-(Segment Finishes/Total Score)
1. John Donahue, Graniteville (3+9+5=17)
2. Brent Dragon, Milton (1+10+10=21)
3. Eric Williams, Hyde Park (7+15+4=26)
4. Joey Polewarczyk, Jr., Hudson, N.H. (4+22+2=28)
5. Brian Hoar, Williston (16+4+9=29)
6. Dave Pembroke, Middlesex (5+19+7=31)
7. Jamie Fisher, Shelburne (10+13+8=31)
8. Nick Sweet, Barre (2+17+12=31)
9. Joey Laquerre, East Montpelier (11+8+15=34)
10. Chip Grenier, Graniteville (9+25+3=37)
11. Jean-Paul Cyr, Milton (8+29+1=38)
12. Phil Scott, Montpelier (6+27+6=39)
13. Scott Payea, Milton (12+5+23=40)
14. Brad Leighton, Center Harbor, N.H. (13+6+22=41)
15. Tyler Cahoon, St. Johnsbury (22+2+20=44)
16. Glen Luce, Turner, Me. (18+16+11=45)
17. Tony Andrews, Northfield (24+3+18=45)
18. Wayne Helliwell, Jr., Dracut, Mass. (27+1+19=47)
19. Joey Doiron, Berwick, Me. (14+7+26=47)
20. Quinny Welch, Lancaster, N.H. (21+12+17=50)
21. Matt White, Northfield (15+28+16=59)
22. Chad Wheeler, Waterbury Center (19+30+13=62)
23. Mark Hayward, Unity, N.H. (25+11+27=63)
24. Mike Olsen, North Haverhill, N.H. (17+18+28=63)
25. Eric Chase, Milton (20+14+29=63)
26. Joey Becker, Jeffersonville (23+21+21=65)
27. Pete Potvin, III, Graniteville (28+24+14=66)
28. Rich Lowrey, Charlotte (26+20+25=71)
29. Mike Bailey, South Barre (30+23+24=77)
30. Dave Whitcomb, Essex Junction (29+26+30=85)
NAPA Tiger Sportsman (# - denotes rookie)
1. Shawn Fleury, Middlesex
2. #Jason Corliss, Danville
3. Derrick O'Donnell, Bradford
4. Tony Rossi, Barre
5. Bobby Therrien, Hinesburg
6. Ray Stearns, East Corinth
7. Brendan Moodie, North Wolcott
8. Tommy Therrien, Hinesburg
9. Josh Demers, Middlesex
10. Lance Allen, Barre
Allen Lumber Street Stock/Power Shift Online Junkyard Warrior (# - denotes rookie)
Pos.-Driver-Hometown (# - denotes rookie)
1. Tommy Smith, Williamstown (SS)
2. Mike Martin, Craftsbury Common (SS)
3. #Danny Doyle, Hancock (SS)
4. Garry Bashaw, Lincoln (SS)
5. Markus Farnham, Randolph (SS)
20. Ken Christman, Cabot (JW)
21. Keith Fortier, Hinesburg (JW)
22. Kevin Streeter, Waitsfield (JW)
23. John Prentice, Northfield (JW)
24. Tommy Elwood, Morrisville (JW)
BARRE -- Three years ago, John Donahue's name was often little more than a footnote in American-Canadian Tour race finishes or year-end point standings. And three short years later, the Graniteville driver has firmly established himself as a driver that will be remembered long after his final lap. With a win in the 47th running of the Chittenden Bank Milk Bowl at Thunder Road Int'l Speedbowl, Donahue became just the tenth driver in history to win each of the track's "big three" events -- he won the Memorial Day Classic in 2008, the Labor Day Classic, the site of his first ACT Late Model Tour win, in 2007, and now Sunday's Milk Bowl. The victory means his name will be now etched in all three granite monuments at the Barre track honoring past winners of the events, alongside pioneers Larry Demar and Russell Ingerson, Hall of Famers Jean-Paul Cabana, Bobby Dragon, Dave Dion, and Robbie Crouch, and modern-day heroes Jean-Paul Cyr, Dave Pembroke, and Brent Dragon.
It's something Donahue spent a lot of time thinking about, too.
"This'll put the third one on there now," Donahue said after his Milk Bowl victory. "[It means] a lot. A month ago, Tom (Curley, ACT president) brought us all up there, the drivers, and I'm looking on down through and I'm on two of [the monuments], and I said, 'Boy, I'd really like to be on that Milk Bowl one, that way my name is on all three of them.' I've been thinking about it since then." And perhaps appropriately, it was one of those names already carved into each piece of the rock -- Milton's Brent Dragon -- that Donahue had to outduel to win the Milk Bowl.
Dragon won the opening 50-lap round of the three-segment, cumulatively scored race, with Donahue third. Donahue finished ninth in the middle leg, one spot better than Dragon, and trailed Dragon by one point entering the final 50 laps. And that's when Donahue turned up the wick.
Both drivers raced three-wide through traffic, along with Scott Payea, Brian Hoar, and Brad Leighton, who each would be within striking distance under the right circumstances, near the one-third mark of the final segment. Dragon and Donahue traded jabs on the track, knowing their mid-pack battle was almost certainly for the overall victory.
Dragon pushed three-wide under Donahue and Glen Luce on lap 17, then swapped lanes on the next lap. Donahue seized the opportunity, returning the three-wide favor. In the intense action, Dragon's car was shoved momentarily off the backstretch, while Donahue was able to squeeze by. Two laps later, Payea spun off the track with Dave Whitcomb and Eric Chase to bring out the caution flag.
Donahue and Dragon realigned in 13th and 14th for the restart on lap 20, which proved to be the decisive moment of the race. Traffic in Donahue's inside lane moved faster than Dragon's high side group, and Donahue picked his way through the field to finish fifth in the segment. But Dragon, his car knocked out of alignment from the contact on lap 18, was only able to muster a tenth-place finish in segment. With the final tally added up, Donahue's 17 segment points secured him his first Milk Bowl win, four points better than Dragon's 21, and nine better than Eric Williams of Hyde Park.
Donahue began his career as a Flying Tiger/Sportsman racer at Thunder Road in the mid-nineties, winning more than his share of races and championships, but had little in the way of headline-grabbing success in the top-tier Late Model class -- and certainly with the touring ACT division -- until recently. His Milk Bowl victory and planting the traditional kiss on a "trophy queen" cow, he says, is the crowning achievement of his racing career. "It's right at the top. I've had a lot of good races, I won a [Labor Day] 200 here, but this is different," he said. "You've got three different segments, you stop, you have to think about it, re-do your car. This is one I've been wanting for a long time. I'm just going to soak this one in and be happy."
Williams' third-place finish went virtually unnoticed, overshadowed by the Donahue-Dragon saga, but his segment finishes of seventh, fifteenth, and fourth were good enough for the podium spot. Joey Polewarczyk, Jr. of Hudson, N.H. (28 points) and Brian Hoar of Williston (29 points) finished fourth and fifth overall. The top-ten was completed by Dave Pembroke, Jamie Fisher, Nick Sweet, Joey Laquerre, and Chip Grenier. Track champion Jean-Paul Cyr, who won the third segment finished 11th overall, while second-segment winner Wayne Helliwell, Jr. finished 18th overall in his first start at Thunder Road.
***
Eighteen year-old Jimmy Hebert of Williamstown became the youngest driver in history to win a championship in Thunder Road's famed Tiger Sportsman division on Sunday, taking a four-point victory over Tony Rossi of Barre. Hebert overcame a tense moment on lap 17 of the 50-lap finale when hard contact with Mark Barnier cut Hebert's left-rear tire, sending him into a spin down the frontstretch. After pitting under the caution period, Hebert recovered for a 13th-place finish. "It's ten times better that I ever thought it would be," said Hebert. "Ever since I was little, I dreamed of this. I never thought I would race at 16, say nothing about winning a championship at 18. The first year we really struggled and everybody seemed discouraged, but last year we put together some good runs. This year we worked on consistency and it really paid off for us."
Shawn Fleury of Middlesex took the lead from upstart Jason Corliss on lap 28, then cruised to his second win of the season. Mike Ziter followed Fleury past Corliss, but was penalized with under ten laps remaining for spinning a lapped car off the backstretch. Ziter was placed last in the 28-car field. Danville driver Corliss, the 2008 Street Stock champion making only his fourth appearance in the Tiger Sportsman division, finished second officially, with Bradford's Derrick O'Donnell third, Rossi fourth, and Bobby Therrien of Hinesburg in fifth.
Pete Ainsworth, who entered the final weekend with an eight-point lead in the division, failed to qualify for the main event. He slumped to a fourth-place championship finish behind Hebert, Rossi, and Brendan Moodie.
Tommy "Thunder" Smith of Williamstown moved into sole possession of first-place all-time in the Street Stock division with his 20th career win, his third of the season. Mike Martin of Craftsbury Common was the runner-up, with rookie Danny Doyle of Hancock third, Garry Bashaw of Lincoln fourth, and Randolph's Markus Farnham fifth. Veteran driver Gary Mullen of Tunbridge captured his first championship with a ninth-place finish, beating Martin for the title by 26 points. Like Ainsworth, Junkyard Warrior point leader Donny Yates of North Montpelier failed to qualify for the Milk Bowl finale, but was still able to clinch his division's championship on the strength of six wins during the season. Ken Christman of Cabot took his third victory, over Keith Fortier of Hinesburg, Kevin Streeter of Waitsfield, Northfield's John Prentice, and Tommy Elwood of Morrisville.
UNOFFICIAL RESULTS -- 47th Annual Chittenden Bank Milk Bowl
Thunder Road Int'l Speedbowl, Barre, Vt.
Sunday, October 4, 2009
Pos.-Driver-Hometown-(Segment Finishes/Total Score)
1. John Donahue, Graniteville (3+9+5=17)
2. Brent Dragon, Milton (1+10+10=21)
3. Eric Williams, Hyde Park (7+15+4=26)
4. Joey Polewarczyk, Jr., Hudson, N.H. (4+22+2=28)
5. Brian Hoar, Williston (16+4+9=29)
6. Dave Pembroke, Middlesex (5+19+7=31)
7. Jamie Fisher, Shelburne (10+13+8=31)
8. Nick Sweet, Barre (2+17+12=31)
9. Joey Laquerre, East Montpelier (11+8+15=34)
10. Chip Grenier, Graniteville (9+25+3=37)
11. Jean-Paul Cyr, Milton (8+29+1=38)
12. Phil Scott, Montpelier (6+27+6=39)
13. Scott Payea, Milton (12+5+23=40)
14. Brad Leighton, Center Harbor, N.H. (13+6+22=41)
15. Tyler Cahoon, St. Johnsbury (22+2+20=44)
16. Glen Luce, Turner, Me. (18+16+11=45)
17. Tony Andrews, Northfield (24+3+18=45)
18. Wayne Helliwell, Jr., Dracut, Mass. (27+1+19=47)
19. Joey Doiron, Berwick, Me. (14+7+26=47)
20. Quinny Welch, Lancaster, N.H. (21+12+17=50)
21. Matt White, Northfield (15+28+16=59)
22. Chad Wheeler, Waterbury Center (19+30+13=62)
23. Mark Hayward, Unity, N.H. (25+11+27=63)
24. Mike Olsen, North Haverhill, N.H. (17+18+28=63)
25. Eric Chase, Milton (20+14+29=63)
26. Joey Becker, Jeffersonville (23+21+21=65)
27. Pete Potvin, III, Graniteville (28+24+14=66)
28. Rich Lowrey, Charlotte (26+20+25=71)
29. Mike Bailey, South Barre (30+23+24=77)
30. Dave Whitcomb, Essex Junction (29+26+30=85)
NAPA Tiger Sportsman (# - denotes rookie)
1. Shawn Fleury, Middlesex
2. #Jason Corliss, Danville
3. Derrick O'Donnell, Bradford
4. Tony Rossi, Barre
5. Bobby Therrien, Hinesburg
6. Ray Stearns, East Corinth
7. Brendan Moodie, North Wolcott
8. Tommy Therrien, Hinesburg
9. Josh Demers, Middlesex
10. Lance Allen, Barre
Allen Lumber Street Stock/Power Shift Online Junkyard Warrior (# - denotes rookie)
Pos.-Driver-Hometown (# - denotes rookie)
1. Tommy Smith, Williamstown (SS)
2. Mike Martin, Craftsbury Common (SS)
3. #Danny Doyle, Hancock (SS)
4. Garry Bashaw, Lincoln (SS)
5. Markus Farnham, Randolph (SS)
20. Ken Christman, Cabot (JW)
21. Keith Fortier, Hinesburg (JW)
22. Kevin Streeter, Waitsfield (JW)
23. John Prentice, Northfield (JW)
24. Tommy Elwood, Morrisville (JW)
(PHOTOS: 1. John Donahue hoists the Milk Bowl trophy after his first win in the classic event; 2. Donahue smooches Larolupine, the Milk Bowl trophy queen, as Governor Jim Douglas looks on; 3. Tiger Sportsman champion Jimmy Hebert; 4. Street Stock champion Gary Mullen. Photos by Justin St. Louis/VMM)
Monday, September 14, 2009
Laperle's Unplanned Pit Strategy Leads to Foliage Win
Fall Foliage 300 weekend coverage by Vermont Motorsports Magazine
PLATTSBURGH, N.Y. -- The Fall Foliage 300 was sponsored by Akwesasne Mohawk Casino, and appropriately, Patrick Laperle made a huge gamble.
The St-Denis, Qué. driver started Sunday's ACT Late Model Tour event at Airborne Speedway from the pole position by virtue of earning a '+9' handicap in qualifying, then volleyed for the lead throughout the event with Donald Theetge, Karl Allard, Brent Dragon, and Brian Hoar.
Theetge and Laperle, the top-two point men in the battle for the Canadian-based ACT Castrol Series championship, made contact in Turn 4 on lap 15, spinning Theetge around and effectively out of contention. Allard and Laperle battled hard for the lead for the next 135 laps through three caution periods, one of which saw Dragon and Hoar pit for right-side tires and fuel on lap 123.
Laperle took a risk during a lap 151 caution by staying out on the speedway as Allard pitted. Laperle also stayed out during two more quick cautions on laps 153 and 158; it proved to be maybe the biggest gamble of his career.
As Allard pitted on lap 151, Dragon lined up second to set up a battle with Laperle for the lead. The two diced for the top spot for nearly 100 laps, including an unexpected stretch of 90 green flag laps, one that Laperle would have pitted during had there been a caution flag.
As the laps clicked away, Laperle's tires began to wear out and his fuel burned off. Dragon pinned Laperle behind the lapped car of Pete Potvin to take the lead on lap 221, and Brian Hoar drove past Laperle on the inside lane on lap 237 to take second place. But Laperle caught a lucky break as Dave Whitcomb spun exiting Turn 4 on lap 248, bringing out the caution flag and allowing Laperle to head to pit road. As he pulled off the race track, the car sputtered, and the engine was silent as Laperle entered his pit stall, starved of fuel.
But a quick stop for right-side tires and gas got Laperle back out onto the track where he lined up seventh among lead-lap cars, 14th in track position. In eight short laps, Laperle sliced through the traffic into fourth place before the tenth and final caution flew on lap 256. Two laps later, Laperle was in the lead, blowing past Scott Payea, Dragon, and Hoar. ACT Late Model Tour point leader Hoar was able to keep pace with Laperle during the closing laps, and had a brief chance to take over on la 284 in lapped traffic, but Laperle held on for the win. Hoar was second with Dragon third.
"Really, man, on the backstretch when I came to the pit road, [the engine was sputtering] 'bang, bang,' like that, and I said, 'No, no, no!'" explained Laperle. "So I pressed on the gas pedal in the turn on pit road, then I pushed in the clutch and put it neutral. When I got to my pit, [the engine] was stopped. I was like 'Come on, start!'"
Eric Laperle, Patrick's crew chief and twin brother, said they had hoped to make their pit stop earlier than lap 248. "That was not the plan at all," he said. "That was scary."
Patrick Laperle said he was more confident in the car as the race went on and he kept the same pace as others, like Allard at mid-race, and Dragon near the finish, slowed down. "I saw Karl Allard was going pretty good, and I was like, 'Okay, Karl, go out and burn your tires.' He was going hard and was sideways all the time. At the beginning [my] car was not good, but in the middle of the race when there was less gas in the gas tank the car seemed to be much better, so I let them burn their tires and when I pit we put some [new] tires on and it was good. In like 12 laps we started at the rear and got to the front."
Hoar and Dragon said they knew they were sitting ducks when Laperle came to pit road late in the race. "Yeah, oh yeah, we knew," said Hoar. "The second he came down pit road, we were like, 'Crap, we're done, we're toast, this is going to be ugly.' We knew right away what he was doing as soon as he didn't come down with everybody else, or when he didn't come down with the 48 (Allard). If it worked out for him, it was the best pit strategy to have. Trust me we had that [in mind], that was Plan A. But Plan A didn't work with that long stretch of green (from lap 32-123), the caution didn't fall where we needed it to fall. So we had to go to Plan B, which was to pit basically in the middle of the race when everybody else did."
"He pulled up beside me when he was going in the pits and he gave me the thumbs up because we raced so clean, and that was awesome," said Dragon, "but when he pitted I knew if he came back with those two tires, it would be like us [after we pitted on lap 123]. It wasn't five laps and we were back to the front. He did what he had to do."
Unofficially, there were 19 lead changes in the race. John Donahue finished in fourth place with Payea fifth. The top ten was completed by Chip Grenier, Theetge, Sylvain Lacombe, Craig Bushey, and Glen Luce. Allard fell out of the race with a broken rear end on lap 213, finishing 22nd. Laperle's win was his first ACT Late Model Tour victory of the year, and Hoar stretched his lead over Payea to 28 points with one event remaining at Oxford Plains Speedway on October 11.
UNOFFICIAL RESULTS -- Akwesasne Mohawk Casino Fall Foliage 300
ACT Late Model Tour -- Airborne Speedway, Plattsburgh, N.Y.
Sunday, Sept. 13, 2009
Pos.-Driver-Hometown (# - indicates rookie)
1. Patrick Laperle, St-Denis-sur-Richelieu, Qué.
2. Brian Hoar, Williston
3. Brent Dragon, Milton
4. John Donahue, Graniteville
5. Soctt Payea, Milton
6. Chip Grenier, Graniteville
7. Donald Theetge, Boischatel, Qué.
8. Sylvain Lacombe, Terrebonne, Qué.
9. Craig Bushey, Cambridge
10. Glen Luce, Turner, Me.
11. Trampas Demers, South Burlington
12. #Joey Doiron, Berwick, Me.
13. Mark Lamberton, Mooers Forks, N.Y.
14. Stépahne Descoste, Oka, Qué.
15. Pete Potvin, III, Graniteville
16. Ricky Rolfe, Albany Twp., Me.
17. Dave Whitcomb, Essex Junction
18. Steve Fisher, Shelburne
19. David Michaud, Blainville, Qué.
20. Joey Polewarczyk, Jr., Hudson, N.H.
21. Eric Williams, Hyde Park
22. Karl Allard, St-Félicien, Qué.
23. Sam Caron, Colchester
24. #Dylan Smith, Randolph
25. Tyler Cahoon, St. Johnsbury
26. Dave Paya, Milton
27. Randy Potter, Groveton, N.H.
28. Martin Lacombe, Terrebonne, Qué.
29. Joe Tetreault, Enfield, N.H.
30. Jamie Fisher, Shelburne
31. Brad Leighton, Center Harbor, N.H.
32. Joey Laquerre, East Montpelier
33. Derek Lynch, Warkworth, Ont.
34. Daniel Descoste, St-Joseph-du-Lac, Qué.
35. Dave Wilcox, Fairfield
36. Eric Chase, Milton
PLATTSBURGH, N.Y. -- The Fall Foliage 300 was sponsored by Akwesasne Mohawk Casino, and appropriately, Patrick Laperle made a huge gamble.The St-Denis, Qué. driver started Sunday's ACT Late Model Tour event at Airborne Speedway from the pole position by virtue of earning a '+9' handicap in qualifying, then volleyed for the lead throughout the event with Donald Theetge, Karl Allard, Brent Dragon, and Brian Hoar.
Theetge and Laperle, the top-two point men in the battle for the Canadian-based ACT Castrol Series championship, made contact in Turn 4 on lap 15, spinning Theetge around and effectively out of contention. Allard and Laperle battled hard for the lead for the next 135 laps through three caution periods, one of which saw Dragon and Hoar pit for right-side tires and fuel on lap 123.
Laperle took a risk during a lap 151 caution by staying out on the speedway as Allard pitted. Laperle also stayed out during two more quick cautions on laps 153 and 158; it proved to be maybe the biggest gamble of his career.
As Allard pitted on lap 151, Dragon lined up second to set up a battle with Laperle for the lead. The two diced for the top spot for nearly 100 laps, including an unexpected stretch of 90 green flag laps, one that Laperle would have pitted during had there been a caution flag.
As the laps clicked away, Laperle's tires began to wear out and his fuel burned off. Dragon pinned Laperle behind the lapped car of Pete Potvin to take the lead on lap 221, and Brian Hoar drove past Laperle on the inside lane on lap 237 to take second place. But Laperle caught a lucky break as Dave Whitcomb spun exiting Turn 4 on lap 248, bringing out the caution flag and allowing Laperle to head to pit road. As he pulled off the race track, the car sputtered, and the engine was silent as Laperle entered his pit stall, starved of fuel.
But a quick stop for right-side tires and gas got Laperle back out onto the track where he lined up seventh among lead-lap cars, 14th in track position. In eight short laps, Laperle sliced through the traffic into fourth place before the tenth and final caution flew on lap 256. Two laps later, Laperle was in the lead, blowing past Scott Payea, Dragon, and Hoar. ACT Late Model Tour point leader Hoar was able to keep pace with Laperle during the closing laps, and had a brief chance to take over on la 284 in lapped traffic, but Laperle held on for the win. Hoar was second with Dragon third.
"Really, man, on the backstretch when I came to the pit road, [the engine was sputtering] 'bang, bang,' like that, and I said, 'No, no, no!'" explained Laperle. "So I pressed on the gas pedal in the turn on pit road, then I pushed in the clutch and put it neutral. When I got to my pit, [the engine] was stopped. I was like 'Come on, start!'"
Eric Laperle, Patrick's crew chief and twin brother, said they had hoped to make their pit stop earlier than lap 248. "That was not the plan at all," he said. "That was scary."
Patrick Laperle said he was more confident in the car as the race went on and he kept the same pace as others, like Allard at mid-race, and Dragon near the finish, slowed down. "I saw Karl Allard was going pretty good, and I was like, 'Okay, Karl, go out and burn your tires.' He was going hard and was sideways all the time. At the beginning [my] car was not good, but in the middle of the race when there was less gas in the gas tank the car seemed to be much better, so I let them burn their tires and when I pit we put some [new] tires on and it was good. In like 12 laps we started at the rear and got to the front."
Hoar and Dragon said they knew they were sitting ducks when Laperle came to pit road late in the race. "Yeah, oh yeah, we knew," said Hoar. "The second he came down pit road, we were like, 'Crap, we're done, we're toast, this is going to be ugly.' We knew right away what he was doing as soon as he didn't come down with everybody else, or when he didn't come down with the 48 (Allard). If it worked out for him, it was the best pit strategy to have. Trust me we had that [in mind], that was Plan A. But Plan A didn't work with that long stretch of green (from lap 32-123), the caution didn't fall where we needed it to fall. So we had to go to Plan B, which was to pit basically in the middle of the race when everybody else did."
"He pulled up beside me when he was going in the pits and he gave me the thumbs up because we raced so clean, and that was awesome," said Dragon, "but when he pitted I knew if he came back with those two tires, it would be like us [after we pitted on lap 123]. It wasn't five laps and we were back to the front. He did what he had to do."
Unofficially, there were 19 lead changes in the race. John Donahue finished in fourth place with Payea fifth. The top ten was completed by Chip Grenier, Theetge, Sylvain Lacombe, Craig Bushey, and Glen Luce. Allard fell out of the race with a broken rear end on lap 213, finishing 22nd. Laperle's win was his first ACT Late Model Tour victory of the year, and Hoar stretched his lead over Payea to 28 points with one event remaining at Oxford Plains Speedway on October 11.
UNOFFICIAL RESULTS -- Akwesasne Mohawk Casino Fall Foliage 300
ACT Late Model Tour -- Airborne Speedway, Plattsburgh, N.Y.
Sunday, Sept. 13, 2009
Pos.-Driver-Hometown (# - indicates rookie)
1. Patrick Laperle, St-Denis-sur-Richelieu, Qué.
2. Brian Hoar, Williston
3. Brent Dragon, Milton
4. John Donahue, Graniteville
5. Soctt Payea, Milton
6. Chip Grenier, Graniteville
7. Donald Theetge, Boischatel, Qué.
8. Sylvain Lacombe, Terrebonne, Qué.
9. Craig Bushey, Cambridge
10. Glen Luce, Turner, Me.
11. Trampas Demers, South Burlington
12. #Joey Doiron, Berwick, Me.
13. Mark Lamberton, Mooers Forks, N.Y.
14. Stépahne Descoste, Oka, Qué.
15. Pete Potvin, III, Graniteville
16. Ricky Rolfe, Albany Twp., Me.
17. Dave Whitcomb, Essex Junction
18. Steve Fisher, Shelburne
19. David Michaud, Blainville, Qué.
20. Joey Polewarczyk, Jr., Hudson, N.H.
21. Eric Williams, Hyde Park
22. Karl Allard, St-Félicien, Qué.
23. Sam Caron, Colchester
24. #Dylan Smith, Randolph
25. Tyler Cahoon, St. Johnsbury
26. Dave Paya, Milton
27. Randy Potter, Groveton, N.H.
28. Martin Lacombe, Terrebonne, Qué.
29. Joe Tetreault, Enfield, N.H.
30. Jamie Fisher, Shelburne
31. Brad Leighton, Center Harbor, N.H.
32. Joey Laquerre, East Montpelier
33. Derek Lynch, Warkworth, Ont.
34. Daniel Descoste, St-Joseph-du-Lac, Qué.
35. Dave Wilcox, Fairfield
36. Eric Chase, Milton
VIDEO: Laperle's Impressive Foliage Drive
Fall Foliage 300 weekend coverage by Vermont Motorsports Magazine
Patrick Laperle won the ACT Late Model Tour Akwesasne Mohawk Casino Fall Foliage 300 at Airborne Speedway in Plattsburgh, N.Y. on Sunday afternoon, using an exciting -- if somewhat unplanned -- pit strategy to take his third career Foliage victory. VMM will have full recaps of the Fall Foliage 300 on Monday. This series of videos highlights the St-Denis, Qué. driver's impressive outing.
The first clip shows Laperle (#91) battling for the lead with countryman Karl Allard (#48) just before the halfway point of the race, with Brent Dragon (#55) and Brian Hoar (#37) enjoying a tight battle for third place. And no, these aren't pace laps, the racing was side-by-side for much of the day.
The second clip shows Laperle's pit stop for fuel and right-side tires under caution on lap 248, dropping him from third place to seventh, the final car on the lead lap at the time. Laperle nearly fell victim to several long green-flag runs that emtpied his gas tank; as Laperle pulled alongside the pace car before entering the pits, the car began to sputter. As he arrived at his pit stall, Laperle's car was silent, out of fuel.
The final clip shows Laperle blasting by Hoar and Dragon to get back into the lead on lap 258, just ten laps after pitting, and only two laps after a restart that lined him up fourth behind Hoar, Dragon, and Scott Payea (#89). He went on to beat Hoar for the win. Dragon finished third, John Donahue fourth, and Payea fifth.
(Videos by Justin St. Louis/VMM)
Saturday, September 5, 2009
Scott Wrecks, Dragon Wins at Twin State
CLAREMONT, N.H. -- It's been eight years, 11 months, and four days since Phil Scott won an ACT Late Model Tour race. And unfortunately for Scott, that time will extend for at least one more day. The Vermont State Senator and former ACT champion was practically a shoo-in to end the dry spell at Twin State Speedway in Claremont, N.H. on Friday night before a pair of late-race incidents, both involving number-four point driver Randy Potter, effectively ended Scott's night.Scott led every step of the Twin State 100 from the pole position, navigating lapped traffic with ease, before a lap 70 caution brought second-place runner Brent Dragon to Scott's tail for a restart. The yellow caution flag flew for Guy Caron, who after some tight, sometimes physical racing with Potter, was dumped off the backstretch by Potter by into the infield.
With Dragon pressuring Scott for the lead a dozen laps later, Potter spun just before Turn 1, coming to rest with the front half of his car on the racing surface. Potter got his stalled car refired in time to move out of the way as the leaders approched, but in a brief instant, the yellow flag flew just as Potter inexplicably drove out onto the track directly into their path. Scott jammed on his brakes and drove to the high side in an attempt to avoid, but collided hard with Potter and spun into the wall; Dragon got by unscathed on the inside.
Despite heavy cosmetic damage, Scott refired his car on his own, but was placed at the rear of the field for the restart with Potter. It was then smooth sailing for Dragon, who held off John Donahue through that restart and another final one on lap 93 for the win.
Scott was obviously disappointed with the wreck. "I guess I could have paid attention [to what Potter was doing] more. I saw him coming out, I just thought he was going to stay there," Scott said. "I did what I thought was right, and usually a car that's spun on the inside usually comes down and stays low, it doesn't cross the track. I don't know if he didn't see how quickly we were coming."Potter left the pit area almost immediately after the race concluded and was unavailable for comment.
Scott was also frustrated with the call made by race director Tom Curley to place him at the rear of the field for the lap 82 restart, thinking that the caution flag flew for Potter before the accident. Scott fell off the pace at the restart until debris cleared itself away from the right-front tire of his car under the green flag. "As it turned out, I don't know as we could have held on to the lead anyhow, but I wasn't happy with [the call]," Scott said. "But you know, you make the calls as you see them, and obviously [Curley] was throwing the yellow for [Potter]. And [Curley] was letting some cars spin and stay there [until they refired during other incidents in the race], so it's not like it was anything directed at me, but sometimes, you know, it's tough to take."
Prior to the lap 82 wreck, Dragon had several chances to force his way into the lead past Scott, both on the inside and outside lanes. In fact, Dragon was just under Scott's car at the time of the accident.
"I think I could have beat Phil. We were pressuring him pretty good, and it's too bad he got wrecked," Dragon said. "He was so tight in the middle of the corner, and I could have drove up underneath him. Even on the straightaway there was a couple times I had my nose in there. And I had him outside, too, but I really wanted to go underneath him and just beat him on the straightaway nice and clean, because I knew once I got all the way beside he'd just let me go. It would have been interesting, it would have been fun."
Scott saw it differently, thinking he had the car to beat. "I was just being very, very careful trying to protect the bottom when we had that restart [on lap 70] with the lapped car on the outside," he said. "I didn't want to slip up into him and I didn't want to have Brent dive underneath me, so I was just biding my time a little bit, protecting the bottom. Once I got out and started hitting my marks again, I don't know as Brent could have caught us. We had a very stout car. We'll try [Sunday at Thunder Road] to go out and win that race."
For Dragon, the win was his third of 2009, but his first victory of the year on the ACT Late Model Tour. He won a pair of events in Canada prior to the Twin State 100 -- the Coors Light 200 Showdown all-star event at Autodrome Chaudière last Sunday, and a Série ACT-Castrol event at Riverside Speedway in Ste-Croix, Qué. in June. Dragon joked that he was relieved to finally be able to put an end to the season-long ribbing he's taken from friends and competitors that he couldn't win a race in the United States.
"This is our first win in the States this year, so I guess I can be a U.S. citizen again," Dragon laughed. "Everybody's been beating on me about being a Canadian all year."
ACT Late Model Tour point leader Scott Payea had a quiet, but impressive drive from 19th starting position to finish in third place. The finish was his sixth third-place effort of the year, coupled with a win at Airborne Speedway in May. Rookie Joey Doiron, 17, finished an ACT career-best fourth, with Brian Hoar, Payea's chief rival for the championship, in fifth place. Daniel Descoste finished a career-best sixth, in front of Joey Polewarczyk, Jr., Ben Rowe, and Twin State Speedway regulars Aaron Fellows and Dallas Trombley.
Unofficially, Payea maintained a narrow five-point lead over Hoar entering Sunday's Bond Auto Labor Day Classic 200 at Thunder Road in Barre.
UNOFFICIAL RESULTS -- Twin State 100
ACT Late Model Tour -- Twin State Speedway, Claremont, N.H.
Friday, Sept. 4, 2009
Pos.-Driver-Hometown (# - indicates rookie)
1. Brent Dragon, Milton
2. John Donahue, Graniteville
3. Scott Payea, Milton
4. #Joey Doiron, Berwick, Me.
5. Brian Hoar, Williston
6. Daniel Descoste, St-Joseph-du-Lac, Qué.
7. Joey Polewarczyk, Jr., Hudson, N.H.
8. Ben Rowe, Turner, Me.
9. Aaron Fellows, Croydon, N.H.
10. Dallas Trombley, Rutland
11. Stéphane Descoste, Oka, Qué.
12. Randy Potter, Groveton, N.H.
13. Darrell Keane, Springfield, Mass.
14. Phil Scott, Montpelier
15. Chris Riendeau, Ascutney
16. Tyler Cahoon, St. Johnsbury
17. Jamie Fisher, Shelburne
18. Todd Davis, Claremont, N.H.
19. Pete Potvin, III, Graniteville
20. Marc Palmisano, Hadley, Mass.
21. Chip Grenier, Graniteville
22. Bryan Town, Charlestown, N.H.
23. Chris Bergeron, Claremont, N.H.
24. Mark Hayward, Unity, N.H.
25. Punky Caron, Goshen, N.H.
26. Guy Caron, Lempster, N.H.
27. Eric Williams, Hyde Park
28. Dennis Stange, Athol, Mass.
29. Ricky Rolfe, Albany Twp., Me.
30. Glen Luce, Turner, Me.
(PHOTOS: 1. Bretn Dragon waves to the crowd after his victory in the Twin State 100; 2. Phil Scott's car became a mangled mess after a lap 82 crash while Scott was leading. Photos by Justin St. Louis/VMM)
Monday, August 31, 2009
Dragon Wins ACT Showdown at Chaudière
VALLÉE-JONCTION, Qué. -- Brent Dragon of Milton won the second annual Coors Light 200 Showdown at Chaudière, a non-points all-star event for top U.S.- and Canadian-based ACT teams, on Sunday.ACT Late Model Tour point leader Scott Payea, also of Milton, and top Série ACT-Castrol driver Karl Allard of St-Félicien, Qué. traded the lead several times over the first 91 laps before Dragon took command. Dragon led the final 109 laps, and led the U.S. group to its second "team" victory in the two years of the event.
Payea finished second, with Randy Potter of Groveton, N.H. third. Castrol point leader Donald Theetge of Boischatel, Qué. was the top Canadian in fourth place, while Graniteville's Pete Potvin, III had a career day with a fifth-place showing.
The Showdown was originally scheduled for Saturday, but was pushed back by rain to Sunday afternoon.
UNOFFICIAL RESULTS -- Coors Light 200 Showdown at Chaudière
Autodrome Chaudière, Vallée-Jonction, Qué.
Sunday, August 30, 2009
Pos.-Driver-Hometown-(Team)
1. Brent Dragon, Milton (USA)
2. Scott Payea, Milton (USA)
3. Randy Potter, Groveton, N.H. (USA)
3. Randy Potter, Groveton, N.H. (USA)
4. Donald Theetge, Boischatel, Qué. (CAN)
5. Pete Potvin, III, Graniteville (USA)
6. Brian Hoar, Williston (USA)
7. Karl Allard, St-Félicien, Qué. (CAN)
8. Jean-François Déry, Québec, Qué. (CAN)
9. Joey Doiron, Berwick, Me. (USA)
10. Chip Grenier, Graniteville (USA)
11. Patrick Cliche, St-Jean-de-Chrysostome, Qué. (CAN)
12. Jacques Poulin, East-Broughton, Qué. (CAN)
13. Yvon Bédard, St-Nicolas, Qué. (CAN)
14. Dany Ouellet, La Pocatière, Qué. (CAN)
15. Brooks Clark, Fayston (USA)
16. Ricky Rolfe, Albany Twp., Me. (USA)
17. Patrick Laperle, St-Denis-sur-Richelieu, Qué. (CAN)
18. Claude Leclerc, Lanoraie, Qué. (CAN)
19. John Donahue, Graniteville (USA)
20. Alexandre Gingras, Québec, Qué. (CAN)
21. Patrick Hamel, St-Édouard-de-Lotbinière, Qué. (CAN)
22. Joey Polewarczyk, Jr., Hudson, N.H. (USA)
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
ACT Drivers Headed to Devil's Bowl
WEST HAVEN -- Four ACT Late Model drivers are going to race dirty on Sunday. For real.Devil's Bowl Speedway in West Haven has announced that asphalt racers Jean-Paul Cyr, Brent Dragon, Cris Michaud, and Dave Whitcomb will take part in a special race using CVRA Brudget Sportsman cars on Sunday, Aug. 2.
Cyr is a seven-time ACT Late Model Tour champion, and is the current point leader at Thunder Road in Barre. Dragon currently ranks sixth in ACT points with a win in ACT Castrol Series competition this season, while Northfield racer Michaud won at Thunder Road last Thursday. Whitcomb, of Essex Junction, is a former Thunder Road, Airborne Speedway, and ACT champion.
Cyr and Dragon, both of Milton, might have a bit of an unfair advantage over Michaud and Whitcomb, however; Cyr was the 1990 Pro Stock champion on the Devil's Bowl dirt, and Dragon got his first taste of dirt racing at Bradford's Bear Ridge Speedway earlier this year behind the wheel of a car that C.V. Elms has won twice at Devil's Bowl with in 2009.
"They just want to come in and have some fun," said CVRA/Devil's Bowl Speedway promoter Bruce Richards. "Devil's Bowl has an asphalt history, and Cyr even raced here for a while, so it should be fun to see how they do."
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Donahue Makes It Look Easy At White Mountain
NORTH WOODSTOCK, N.H. -- It might be in the best interest of the American-Canadian Tour's roster of drivers to consider John Donahue a major threat from now on. The Graniteville driver obliterated the competition at the ACT Late Model Tour's 150-lap event at White Mountain Motorsports Park on Saturday night, leading every lap on his way to his first win of the year and securing a spot in the ACT Invitational at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in September. Donahue made it look easy.
"That's good from my point of view," Donahue said in victory lane.
Donahue was clearly the class of the field throughout the event, scoring a "+7" handicap in his heat race to earn the pole position. From there, he led every lap and lapped all but the top-ten of the race's 30 starters. At times, he led eventual runner-up Brent Dragon by as much as a quarter of a lap, even while running in thick lapped traffic.
With former champion driver and crew chief Dale Shaw turning the wrenches on his car at White Mountain, Donahue said he was asked during the race to slow his pace and not use his National Guard #26 Ford up. "It seemed like the more I drove it, the better the came became. Dale kept telling me, 'Slow down, slow down, slow down, save your tires,' and I said, 'How slow do you want me to go? I'm not even [driving hard enough to] use my brakes!' I was just drifting into the corner and drifting out of the corner and kept pulling away. It was [easy] for me."
Donahue's dominance throughout the race was certainly the shining moment of his season, but a runner-up finish at Oxford Plains Speedway last month and top-ten results at Lee USA Speedway and Thunder Road indicate that his Kendall Roberts-owned team may have the pieces in place for a run at the ACT Late Model Tour title. And, of course, they're headed to Loudon, N.H. for the Invitational.
"I've been waiting for that," said a relieved Donahue. "I tried to keep it in the back of my mind, and I wasn't thinking about that all season, just trying to get top-fives and top-tens and try to keep my points up. We've been trying to safe all year and be smart.
"To come out of here with a win today... it's just a perfect day. To me, [qualifying for the Invitational] means a lot. I just can't wait to get on that track, it's going to be really exciting."
Dragon, of Milton, finished second after being involved in an early crash. Despite suffering some damage to the suspension, Dragon's car was the fastest one on the track, save for Donahue, and finished a full straightaway ahead of Barre's Nick Sweet and Eric Williams of Hyde Park. Sweet, who ran in third place for most of the race, held off a late charge from Williams to finish on the podium spot. Ben Rowe of Turner, Me. rounded out the top-five after starting 26th; Rowe had to qualify through the last-chance 'B' feature before posting his best ACT finish of the season.
The unofficial top-ten was completed in order by Scott Payea, Cris Michaud, Tyler Cahoon in an ACT career-best eighth place, Brad Leighton, who came from the back of the field twice, and Pete Potvin, III.
Several early incidents took a handful of front-running drivers out of contention, including Joey Becker, Aaron Ricker, and Brian Hoar. Jamie Fisher's car shut down on lap 137 after running inside the top-five for most of the race. Point leader Joey Polewarczyk, Jr. was never a factor in the race and finished 12th, unofficially.
UNOFFICIAL RESULTS -- White Mountain 150
ACT Late Model Tour, White Mountain Motorsports Park, North Woodstock, N.H.
Saturday, June 27, 2009
Pos.-(Start)-Driver-Hometown
1. (1) John Donahue, Graniteville
2. (6) Brent Dragon, Milton
3. (5) Nick Sweet, Barre
4. (10) Eric Williams, Hyde Park
5. (26) Ben Rowe, Turner, Me.
6. (24) Scott Payea, Milton
7. (14) Cris Michaud, Northfield
8. (25) Tyler Cahoon, St. Johnsbury
9. (17) Brad Leighton, Center Harbor, N.H.
10. (9) Pete Potvin, III, Graniteville
(Photo by Justin St. Louis/VMM)
Sunday, June 21, 2009
Worth The Trip: Dragon Wins at Ste-Croix
STE-CROIX, Qué. -- "I guess it was worth the trip," laughed June Dragon, as her husband, Brent, strapped the tool box down in their race hauler in the pit area just past midnight. They woke up Saturday morning expecting a late night after a race four-and-a-half hours away. Hopefully, the adrenaline of the year's first victory will carry them well over Interstate 89 to the Milton exit, and a few minutes later, home. And they'll arrive at about the same time they expected to, early Sunday morning, even a few hours after this story is published. Yes, it'll be a long ride.But, contrary to the plan in the morning, it'll be long ride south.
As the Dragons sat at the rest area in Milton on Saturday morning, they waited for word from Waterford, Connecticut; with their ACT Late Model ready to go for the final three-quarters of the Nutmeg State 100, rained out a week ago and rescheduled for Saturday, the weather forecast again looked bleak for the southern New England oval. When the official call came at 8:30am, the team had a decision to make. Turns out, it was the best one they made all year.
"We were sitting there waiting, and I said, 'Well, what do you want to do?'" said Brent Dragon. "Waterford was rained out again, and we were already loaded and ready to race. So we went to Ste-Croix."
Ste-Croix, as in, Ste-Croix, Québec, the same four-and-a-half hours away as Waterford Speedbowl, but north into Canada rather than south to the shores of the Atlantic. The Série ACT-Castrol was running its fifth race of the season at Riverside Speedway, the newly renamed 5/8-mile oval on the scenic banks of the St. Lawrence River, just southwest of Québec City. The race was, like Waterford's, a qualifying event for the ACT Invitational at New Hampshire Motor Speedway later in the summer, and Dragon had won an ACT Late Model Tour event at Riverside in 2003, a week before winning, ironically enough, at Waterford Speedbowl.
"The car unloaded great off the trailer, it was really fast," said Dragon. "We started tenth in the heat and finished third, and I think with two more laps I would have won. We decided to come up to work on the car and we found some stuff, so it was a good night."
"Good" might be a bit of an understatement; Dragon lined up 12th out of 31 starters for the Riverside 100, and by lap 23 was in the lead on the tricky, paperclip-shaped track. He was challenged by Donald Theetge and Sylvain Lacombe -- two of the very best at the track, each with a mountain of victories there in ACT Late Model Tour, Castrol Series, ADL Series, and open competition -- and held on to not only win the race and the invitation to NHMS, but to also become the first American driver to win in Castrol competition since the series' inception in 2005.
"It's just one of those deals, I guess. We thought we were headed to Waterford, and we ended up winning at Ste-Croix," laughed Dragon. "Yeah, it was a good night.
"It's still a long trip home, but it was worth it."
(Photo by Justin St. Louis/VMM)
Saturday, June 20, 2009
Brent Dragon Becomes First American Castrol Series Winner
Milton racer scores at Riverside Speedway
STE-CROIX, Qué. -- Brent Dragon made a little history on Saturday night by becoming the first American driver to earn a Série ACT-Castrol victory, taking down the Riverside 100 at Riverside Speedway near Québec City.
Dragon, of Milton, won an ACT Late Model Tour event at the 5/8-mile oval formerly known as Circuit Ste-Croix, in 2003. His victory on Saturday makes him the tenth qualifier for the inaugural ACT Invitational at the 1-mile New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon, N.H. this September.
Twenty year-old Patrick Hamel of St-Édouard-de-Lotbinière, Qué., the 2008 Castrol Rookie of the Year, finished a career-best second, with Terrebonne, Qué. veteran Martin Lacombe third. Sylvain Lacombe and Éric St-Gelais were fourth and fifth, respectively.
Trampas Demers finished sixth, unofficially; the South Burlington driver wrecked hard on the final lap en route to finishing fifth at Thunder Road in Barre on Friday night.
UNOFFICIAL RESULTS -- Riverside 100
Série ACT-Castrol -- Riverside Speedway, Ste-Croix, Qué.
Saturday, June 20, 2009
Pos.-Driver-Hometown (# - denotes rookie)
1. Brent Dragon, Milton
2. Patrick Hamel, St-Édouard-de-Lotbinière, Qué.
3. Martin Lacombe, Terrebonne, Qué.
4. Sylvain Lacombe, Terrebonne, Qué.
5. Éric St-Gelais, St-Nicolas, Qué.
6. Trampas Demers, South Burlington
7. Jean-François Déry, Québec, Qué.
8. Patrick Laperle, St-Denis-sur-Richelieu, Qué.
9. Donald Theetge, Boischatel, Qué.
10. #Pierre-Luc Ouellette, Terrebonne, Qué.
STE-CROIX, Qué. -- Brent Dragon made a little history on Saturday night by becoming the first American driver to earn a Série ACT-Castrol victory, taking down the Riverside 100 at Riverside Speedway near Québec City.Dragon, of Milton, won an ACT Late Model Tour event at the 5/8-mile oval formerly known as Circuit Ste-Croix, in 2003. His victory on Saturday makes him the tenth qualifier for the inaugural ACT Invitational at the 1-mile New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon, N.H. this September.
Twenty year-old Patrick Hamel of St-Édouard-de-Lotbinière, Qué., the 2008 Castrol Rookie of the Year, finished a career-best second, with Terrebonne, Qué. veteran Martin Lacombe third. Sylvain Lacombe and Éric St-Gelais were fourth and fifth, respectively.
Trampas Demers finished sixth, unofficially; the South Burlington driver wrecked hard on the final lap en route to finishing fifth at Thunder Road in Barre on Friday night.
UNOFFICIAL RESULTS -- Riverside 100
Série ACT-Castrol -- Riverside Speedway, Ste-Croix, Qué.
Saturday, June 20, 2009
Pos.-Driver-Hometown (# - denotes rookie)
1. Brent Dragon, Milton
2. Patrick Hamel, St-Édouard-de-Lotbinière, Qué.
3. Martin Lacombe, Terrebonne, Qué.
4. Sylvain Lacombe, Terrebonne, Qué.
5. Éric St-Gelais, St-Nicolas, Qué.
6. Trampas Demers, South Burlington
7. Jean-François Déry, Québec, Qué.
8. Patrick Laperle, St-Denis-sur-Richelieu, Qué.
9. Donald Theetge, Boischatel, Qué.
10. #Pierre-Luc Ouellette, Terrebonne, Qué.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
