Wed, 05/28/2014 - 15:02

This past Sunday, May 25, the Wiscasset Speedway held the Late Model Sportsman Coastal 200 presented by Jordan Lumber and Excavation Company.

The afternoon was bright and warm, and fans packed the bleachers to watch the show. The group-two divisions also raced on Sunday, including Strictly Streets, Thunder 4’s and Mini Trucks. The Amsoil Nelcar Legends also made their second appearance of the season at the speedway.

Twenty-five Late Model Sportsman competed in the Coastal 200. Starting at the pole was the #16 of Travis Stearns. Behind him were the #23 of Dave Farrington and the #27 of Wayne Helliwell. Off the start Farrington passed Stearns on the outside to claim first. Helliwell and Stearns battled Farrington for 20 laps, but Farrington was able to keep the lead.

There was a caution during lap 20. On the restart, Stearns passed Farrington on the inside of the backstretch and took first. Helliwell passed Farrington for second during lap 22. Jeff Burgess of the #X moved up the track and passed Farrington for third on the inside of the backstretch during lap 22. Then during the same lap, Burgess passed Helliwell for second on the outside of turn four. Helliwell fought back and the pair raced side by side for 14 laps, with Burgess just ahead by a nose, until a caution was called during lap 36. When racing action resumed, Burgess was passed by Helliwell and the #14 of Dave St. Clair.

Stearns maintained his lead until lap 61, when another caution was called. Helliwell passed Stearns on the restart and took third. Another caution was called during lap 61 but there was no leader change.

A caution in lap 62 caused a restart. Off the start the #30 of Ryan St. Clair passed Dave St. Clair for third. Burgess moved to the outside and raced Ryan St. Clair, looking for a pass. During lap 67, Burgess completed the pass taking third.

During lap 66, Stearns passed Helliwell for fist. However, lap 68 saw Stearns pass Helliwell for first once again, and a caution was then called. On the ensuing restart Helliwell once again took the lead. During lap 74 Stearns passed Helliwell on the inside of turn four and claimed the lead once again.

There was a caution during lap 75, but Stearns maintained his first place position. Burgess passed Helliwell for during lap 78 on the inside of turn two and claimed second. The #25 of Will Collins passed Helliwell on the inside of the backstretch during lap 78 to take third.

Stearns led until lap 94, when a caution was called. When action resumed on the track, the #26 of Andrew McLaughlin passed Collins on the outside of turn two going onto the backstretch. Collins fought back and took the position back during lap 95. Burgess passed Stearns on turn three of lap 95 and took the lead.

Lap 102 saw Stearns pass Burgess on the outside of turn two for the lead. A caution during lap 111 saw leader changes as cars headed to the pits. All cars had one mandatory pit stop. After the cars filtered off the track, Dave St. Clair had moved to first. The #33 of Josh St. Clair moved to second. The #28 of Jr. Robinson moved to third.

When action resumed, Josh St. Clair passed Dave St. Clair on the outside of the backstretch for first. There was a caution during lap 113. The ensuing restart saw Helliwell pass Robinson for third. Josh St. Clair was not able to get a good lead off the start and Dave St. Clair took the opportunity to pass Josh St. Clair on the inside of turn two. Helliwell followed the same line and passed Josh St. Clair on the inside of the back stretch. There was a caution during lap 119 when Josh St. Clair picked up debris from the race track. Josh St. Clair had to head for the pits, and ended up at the back of the pack. There was no leader change on the restart.

The #32 of Nick Jenkins passed Robinson on the outside of turn three for third. Jenkins looked for his opportunity to pass Helliwell for second. His chance came during lap 138 and he moved to the inside and passed Helliwell on the backstretch. Stearns had been making his way back up through the pack, and he moved up and followed Jenkins to pass Helliwell taking third. Stearns headed to the outside and passed Jenkins on the outside of turn three during lap 140. Then, during lap 142, Stearns headed to the outside and passed Dave St. Clair for the lead.

Stearns led until lap 155, when another caution was called. On the restart, Burgess passed Jenkins for third. Dave St. Clair passed Stearns on the inside of the back stretch for the lead. Dave St. Clair led for two laps, while Stearns raced to reclaim the lead. Stearns was able to pass Dave St. Clair during lap 157, and led once more. The next leader change was during lap 168. Burgess passed Dave St. Clair on the outside of turn two for second. Lap 174 saw Helliwell pass Dave St. Clair on the outside of the back stretch for third.

With only 25 laps left to go, Stearns was in the lead. Burgess was in second. In third was Helliwell. A caution was called during lap 194. On the restart, Burgess got loose, and slid down pit road. Burgess went to the back and Jenkins moved to third. When racing action resumed, Helliwell raced neck and neck with Stearns, each briefly moving ahead, going back and forth between race leaders.

Then, with just three laps remaining, the race leaders scraped and bumped together, spinning on the track. Both Stearns and Helliwell were sent to the back. Jenkins moved to first. Josh St. Clair, who had worked his way back up the pack, moved to second. McLaughlin moved to third. On the restart, Josh St. Clair pulled to lead on the outside, and passed Jenkins for first. When the checkered flags waved over the finish line, Josh St. Clair was in first. Jenkins placed second. McLaughlin took third.

“This win is thanks to my grandfather and grandmother, my mother, girlfriend, my Aunt Barbara, and the guys on my crew who have helped me every day,” Josh St. Clair said. “I would like to thank my sponsors, Dave’s World and N.F. Luce.

“We didn’t have the best car today, but we were there at the end.”

The flex race of the week was a 25 lap Amsoil Nelcar Legends feature. This was the second appearance of the Legends cars at Wiscasset this season. Starting at the pole was the #10 of Ed Getty. Behind him were the #8 of Matt Chagnot and the #16 of Eric Williams. Off the start, the #96 of Wyatt Alexander moved to the outside and passed Williams for third. Then Alexander passed Chagnot for second when he passed on the outside of turn two during lap one. The #38 of reigning points champ, Mathew Bourgoine passed Chagnot for third, during lap two.

Lap five saw Alexander pass Getty for first place. Bourgoine passed Getty during lap eight on the outside of turn three. Getty fought back and the pair battled for second for two laps. Bourgoine completed the pass during lap 10 and took second. The #399 of Bob Weymouth passed Getty on the outside of turn two coming onto the backstretch during lap eighteen and claimed third. Bourgoine moved to the inside and passed Alexander on the backstretch during lap 18 and took first. Alexander moved his Speedway Sports Park Legends car back up the track and passed Bourgoine on the outside of turn one for first during lap 19. Bourgoine fought back and the following lap saw him passing Alexander once again on the inside of turn one to reclaim the lead.

There was a caution during lap 22 when the #33 of Alan Smith passed Weymouth on the inside of the backstretch, but when the duo rounded turn three they made contact and went off the track. The #70 of Tylar Braunschweig moved to third. Race leaders remained constant until race conclusion. Bourgoine placed first. Alexander took second. Braunschweig rounded out the top three in third.

“It feels good to be point leader,” Bourgoine said, who has been Amsoil Nelcar Legend Champion for two years. “Today will be the third race in a row I have won. If we can keep this car in one piece, we will have a good season. I would like to thank Corinna Auto Body and Realty of Maine for their sponsorship. If I can have another good year, I may win Champ for third year in a row.”

An action packed Strictly Street feature was next on the agenda. Starting at the pole was the #24 of Jonathan Emerson. Behind him were the #32 of Tasha Dyer and the #55 of Mike Marshall. When the green flag flew at the start, Jonathan Emerson and Dyer raced for the lead. Behind them, the #36 of Richard Spaulding passed Marshall for third. Then, during lap four, Dyer moved to the inside and passed Jonathan Emerson on the inside of the backstretch for first.

A caution was called during lap six when Spaulding and Jonathan Emerson made contact and spun on the track. They were sent to the back of the pack. Dyer was still in first place. Marshall moved to second, and the #26 of Corey Morgan moved to third. When racing resumed, Morgan passed Marshall for second on the inside of turn three. Lap seven saw the #23 of Zach Emerson pass Marshall on the inside for third place. Spaulding’s car hit the wall during lap 10, and a caution was called.

When racing action resumed, the race leaders Dyer, Morgan, and Zack Emerson raced furiously for the lead. During lap 15, they go three wide on the track coming out of turn four: Zach Emerson on the inside, Dyer in the middle, and Morgan on the outside. Zach Emerson emerged from the group as leader, Morgan moved to second, and Dyer in third. Race leaders remained constant until race conclusion. Zach Emerson placed first. Morgan took second. Dyer placed third.

Racing together, in a 20 lap feature, were the Thunder 4’s and the Mini Trucks. Starting at the pole in the Mini Truck feature was the #17 of Matt Weil. Behind him were the #12 of Jerry McKenna and the #22 of Jeff Schmidt. Off the start McKenna took first. During lap two the #0 of Kris Knox passed Schmidt to claim third. Lap eleven saw Knox pass Weil on the inside of turn one for second.

Lap 16 Knox spun on the track bringing out a caution. Weil moved to second and the #55 of Larry Marshall moved to third. The #86 of Richard Sirois passed Marshall during lap 17. Race leaders remained constant until the end of the race. McKenna finished first. Weil took second. Sirois placed third.

“It was a lot of fun,” McKenna said. “I want to thank the guys who work on my truck, I couldn’t be here without them. Brian Farrar, Rick Farrar, Dave Gammon, Raymond White and Colton Gammon. I would also like to thank my sponsor, Farrar Logging.”

Twelve Thunder 4 cars competed in a 20 lap race. On the pole was the #31 of Leandra Martin. Behind her was the #1 of Jeff Davis and the #33 of Trey Brown. Brown passed Davis during lap one for second. The #13 of Cody Tribbet passed Davis for third during lap two. Tribbet moved to the outside during lap three and passed Brown for second. The #5 of Ryan Chadwick passed Brown during lap four to claim third.

Tribbet was looking for his chance to pass Martin for first. His chance came during lap six when he passed Martin on the inside of turn four for first. Chadwick followed Tribbet, passing Martin on the inside for second. Chadwick moved up the track racing Tribbet for first. Then during lap 10, Chadwick headed inside and passed Tribbet on turn four for the lead.

A caution during lap sixteen resulted in a restart. Off the start, Tribbet passed Chadwick for first. The #11 of Kevin Sherman passed Martin for third on the outside of turn two during lap 17.

Tribbet placed first. Chadwick took second. Rounding out the top three was Sherman.

Wiscasset Speedway resumes racing action on May 31 with its group one line up of divisions: Napa Super Street, Prostock, Outlaw Mini, and New England 4 Cylinder Prostocks. The flex event of the week is a modified exhibition. Details are available on the website. Pit gates open at 2 p.m. Grandstand gates open at 4 p.m. Racing begins at 6 p.m. Admission is $5 for adults and children aged seven and older. Kids six and under are free. Pit admission is $20. Wiscasset Speedway is located on West Alna Road in Wiscasset. For more information, visit www.wiscassetspeedway.com.

WISCASSET SPEEDWAY UNOFFICIAL FINISH MAY 25, 2014

LATE MODEL SPORTSMAN COASTAL 200 (200 LAPS)