Tue, 06/30/2015 - 11:33

Lisa Maguire

Jeff Burgess of Fairfield, winner of the 40-lap Prostock Race at Wiscasset Speedway on June 27. Courtesy of Peter Taylor

Wiscasset Speedway presented some action packed racing entertainment for the gathered fans June 27. Fans were not disappointed by the group one racing division which included the Thunder 4 Mini’s, Napa Super Streets, New England Four Cylinder Prostock, and the flex race of the week, which was the Amsoil Nelcar Legends.

First on the track were the spotlighted group of the evening, the Thunder 4 Mini’s in a 30-lap feature. Starting at the pole was the #54 of Noah Haggett. Beside him was the #74 of Aaron Sevigny. Behind him was Michael Golding of the #26. There was shuffling during the opening lap, with leader changes. By the conclusion of lap one, Curtis Anderson of the #04 was leading the pack. Sevigny was still holding second, and the #48 of Michael Harrison was in third.

There was a caution during lap three, and on the ensuing restart, Sevigny got a good jump off the start and took the lead. However, Sevigny began drifting back during lap four and Anderson moved into the lead.

The #5 of Ryan Chadwick had been moving up through traffic from his seventh place start, and took third during lap four. Chadwick advanced to second during lap six when he bumped Harrison and ran past him on the back stretch. Chadwick headed to the outside and pulled up along the side of Anderson to race for the lead during lap nine, but a caution was thrown during lap ten before he could complete a pass. When racing action resumed, Chadwick leaped to the lead and Anderson fell to second. The #113 of Cody Tribbet advanced to third. Tribbet was unable to hold his position however due to an unfortunate mechanical issue during lap thirteen. A caution was called, and during the caution, Tribbet headed for the pits.

When green flag racing resumed on the track, Chadwick bounded to the front. Behind him were Anderson and Harrison racing for second. The #91 of Jamie Heath took it three wide heading into turn one, sliding in between the pair. When the trio came out of turn two, there was contact on the back stretch, bringing out a red flag caution, with cars into the wall. The three cars all went to the pits, with only Anderson able to return to the track before caution end.

Lap thirteen began with a new running order on the track. Chadwick was in the lead. The #31 of Leandra Martin was in second. In third was the #74 of Sevigny. When racing began Martin got a good start and went to the lead, but Chadwick fought back and resumed first place the following lap.

During lap twenty-one Haggett began racing side by side with Sevigny for third, while up ahead Chadwick and Martin battled for the lead. During lap twenty-two Haggett got a car nose ahead of Sevigny on the outside and took the lead. The pair battled door to door until lap twenty-eight, when the #68 of Jeff Minchin Jr, joined the quest for third. Minchin took it three wide on the front stretch, but lost control going into turn one and crashed into the turn one wall.

The final restart of the race, during lap twenty-eight, saw Chadwick go to the lead, with Martin fighting for first beside him. Behind Haggett slipped back, and Sevigny claimed third. Chadwick made this his fifth win of the season, coming in just ahead of point leader Martin. Chadwick was second in points, just ten below Martin’s 244 points. In third place was Michael Harrison, fourteen points below Martin.

The Napa Super Streets provided a 25-lap show, and kept fans on the edge of their seats until the finish. Starting at the pole was the #12 of Dave Patten. In second was Brandon Sprague of the #23. Behind Patten was the #06 of Zac Poland. When the green flag came down over the track, Patten advanced up the track, Sprague fell back and Poland moved to second. The #1 of Adam Chadbourne raced to third. Poland passed Patten on the inside during lap two and took the lead. Behind, Chadbourne looked ahead for his chance to progress up the track, and during lap three, moved to the inside and passed Patten for second. Patten then fell to forth as Mark Lucas of the #5 passed on the inside for third.

Moving up from his ninth place start was the #85 of Kenny Harrison. Harrison passed Lucas on the inside of turn three for third, taking third. Harrison then had to hold of Lucas and the #2 of Josh Bailey to keep his position. Lap fourteen saw Lucas once again take third. There was a caution during lap twenty-two when Bailey spun on the track and went onto the infield. He headed to the pits with a flat, but was able to make it back onto the track before the caution ended. On the ensuing restart, Chadbourne shot to the lead, but Poland and Harrison were involved in a caution. Poland spun on the track and the result was a jumble on the track with multiple cars involved. A red flag caution was called while drivers were checked on and the debris was cleared. All drivers were okay.

There was a new running order for the lap twenty-two restart. Chadbourne was still in the lead, but Sprague moved to second, and Bailey moved to third. Sprague fell off the pace on the restart. Harrison shot from the back of the pack to second on an inside line. Bailey had third. The trio was in close contention as they sped around the track. Then Harrison moved up the track on the last lap, pushing Chadbourne to the very top of the track. Bailey had an opening down low, and he took it. The cars went three wide, roaring around the track. Bailey went to the lead, taking the checkered. Harrison finished second. Chadbourne placed third.

Bailey was current point leader with 240 points. Chadbourne was right behind him, only twelve down, with 228 points. In third was the #02 of Jason Curtis with 192 points.

The flex race of the week was a 25-lap Amsoil Nelcar Legends feature. This was the Amsoil Nelcar Legends fifth visit to Wiscasset Speedway this season. Kevin Girard of the #19 scored his fourth win this Saturday, and Mathew Bourgoine of the #38 has won once. The Legends provide a high-speed, high-excitement racing experience for the fans.

Starting at the pole was the #00 of Philip Brackett. Beside him was Alan Smith of the #33. Behind Brackett was the #10 of Ed Getty. When the green flag flew over the track, the cars accelerated quickly, but it was not until lap six that there was a leader change in the top three. Smith passed Brackett on turn three to take the lead, then during the same lap the #399 of Bob Weymouth passed Getty for third. Weymouth then got caught in some traffic and Getty was able to reclaim his spot. However, during lap ten Weymouth went to the inside of turn two and passed Getty once again for third.

The #19 of Kevin Girard had been weaving through lap traffic from his sixteenth place start. During lap eleven, Girard passed Weymouth for third on the inside of the front stretch. Girard continued his advance up the track and passed Brackett on the outside of the front stretch the following lap for second. Following Girard up through the pack was the #38 of Mathew Bourgoine. Bourgoine passed Brackett on the outside of the backstretch to claim third.

Girard looked ahead for his opportunity to take the lead. His chance came during lap eighteen when he passed Smith on the outside of turn three for first. Then, during lap twenty-three, while racing for position, Smith and Bourgoine made contact on the track coming out of turn three. A caution was called and both Smith and Bourgoine went to the back of the pack. Girard still had the lead, but Weymouth moved to second place and Brackett advanced to third. Race leaders remained constant until race conclusion with Girard claiming his forth Wiscasset Speedway win. Weymouth finished second. Rounding out the top three was Brackett in third.

The next crowd pleaser was a 25-lap New England Four Cylinder Prostock feature. Starting at the pole was the #9X of Brooke Knowles. Beside her in the second place starting position was the # 42 of Mike Kibbin. In third was Tyler Bailey of the #15. When racing action began on the track Bailey passed Kibbin for second on the back stretch. During lap two, the #0 of Alex Waltz passed Kibbin on the outside for third. Waltz looked ahead for a chance to advance up the track. During lap four Waltz found his chance and headed to the inside, passing both Bailey and Brooke Knowles. Bailey followed Waltz and took second, and Brooke Knowles moved to third.

Moving up from his tenth place start was Kamren Knowles of the #98. Kamren Knowles took and inside line and passed Brooke Knowles for third during lap five for third. Knowles stayed down low and passed Bailey on turn three to claim second.

There was a caution during lap eleven, and the resulting restart saw Kamren Knowles take the lead. However, Waltz fought back, and got under Kamren Knowles and took the lead back. Then, Brooke Knowles spun on the track bringing out a caution. The #27 of Jacob Hendsbee advanced to third. The restart saw Hendsbee on the inside pass Kamren Knowles for second. Craig Dunn of the #8 followed Hendsbee and passed Kamren Knowles for third.

Kamren Knowles, current point leader in the division, rallied and passed Dunn on the inside during lap thirteen for third. There was a caution during lap twenty-one. On the restart, Hendsbee got a good jump off the start, but Waltz was quickly able to resume the lead. During lap twenty-three Kamren Knowles passed Hendsbee on the inside of the back stretch for second. Race leaders remained the same until the race concluded.

Waltz took home his first New England Four Cylinder Prostock win of the season. Kamren Knowles placed second. Hendsbee finished in third. Hendsbee was second in points coming into Saturday’s race, thirty-two points below Kamren Knowles. Third in points was John Shorey, who did not race Saturday night.

A 40-lap Prostock event concluded the evening. Like the races preceding it, this feature was a nail-biter for the fans, filled with leader changes and action on the track. As of press time, the results of the Prostock race are unofficial, pending further review.

Starting at the pole was Mike Moody of the #1M. Beside him was Maggie Ferland of the #77. In third was Ellsworth’s Wyatt Alexander driving the #96. When the cars roared off the start, Ferland went loose and Alexander passed her for second. Alexander advanced up the track and raced for the lead with Moody. The #32 of Mike Orr began racing Ferland for third. The #09 of Justin Drake joined in the battle for third, and got under Ferland and made contact coming out of turn one and a jumble on the track resulted. The #1 of Jeff Burgess, and the #05 of James Osmond were also collected and both went into the turn one wall. A red flag caution was thrown so the drivers could be checked and the debris cleaned up. All drivers were okay. Ferland and Drake went to the back of the pack. Both Burgess and Osmond went to the pits but were able to return to the track before caution end.

The restart had a new running order. Moody was still in first. Alexander was in second. Orr was in third. Before the lap was completed, Alexander passed Moody on the back stretch for the lead. Orr then passed Moody during lap one for second. There was another caution during lap three when Ferland hit the wall. Yet another caution was called during lap four when the #19 of John Rideout made heavy contact with Osmond. Rideout was towed off the track with serious body damage to his car. Osmond made it back onto the track before caution’s end.

When green flag racing resumed on the track, the #99 of Ajay Picard passed Moody off the start for third. Picard headed inside and passed Orr during lap eight for second. Moving up from his ninth place start was Andy Saunders of the #01. During lap eleven, Saunders passed Orr for third. Then, during lap twenty-one Ferland and the #31 of Casey Nash made contact coming out of turn one, and Nash went into the infield. The yellow was thrown again. The restart saw some racing action, but a red flag caution was called when Orr, Ferland, the #15X of Scott Chubbuck, and Moody all got into it on turn three. Officials declared that the next flag, checkered or caution, would end the race.

When racing action resumed on the track during the lap twenty-two restart the racing order was Alexander in first, Saunders in second, and Burgess in third. Saunders and Alexander raced door-to-door, Saunders was in the lead by less than a second. For seven laps the pair fought for the lead when suddenly the pair made contact coming out of turn three, bringing out a caution, and ending the race. Saunders went sideways. Alexander swerves and slows. Burgess surged ahead over the finish line in first for the win. The #05R of Philip Richardson finished second. Third over the line was Chubbuck, placing third.

Burgess was point leader going into Saturday’s race, with 266 points. In second was Saunders with 256, only ten points down. Osmond held third place with 250 points.

Wiscasset Speedway resumes racing action, Saturday, July 4, 2015 with its group two lineup of divisions: Late Model Sportsman, Strictly Street, Outlaw Mini, and Modfieds. Next week the flex race of the week is the Amsoil Nelcar Legends. The Wiscasset Speedway website is packed with information, including schedule of events, division rosters and rules, race results, and driver profiles. Head on over to take a look.