BARRE — It wasn’t necessarily a matter of being in the right place at the right time for Joey Becker at Thunder Road on Thursday. He knew he was getting to the front.
The Jeffersonville veteran won a fifty-lap, survival-of-the-fittest Late Model event, withstanding six restarts as the leader and holding on for his first victory since May 2007.
Becker’s No. 16 Richard Green Trucking Ford started sixth on the 23-car grid and made a spectacular three-wide pass for the lead underneath Grant Folsom and Cody Blake on lap 27. Becker then shrugged off repeated outside-lane attempts at the lead by Phil Scott and Nick Sweet, using quick restarts and a clean inside groove to his advantage.
“Our car has been spectacular on the bottom. We can run probably lower than anybody else here and still make the corner,” said Becker. “I knew that when [Folsom and Blake] left me enough room that I could drive by them clean. I didn’t have to rough them up on the way by them, and we didn’t so much as trade paint on the way by.
“I’ve done it before, just never for the win.”
Scott and Sweet traded second and third place on three consecutive restarts, with Scott, a candidate for Lieutenant Governor of Vermont, taking second for the final go with eight laps remaining. Scott held on in the outside but wasn’t able to pass Becker. He edged Sweet at the finish line for the runner-up position.
“I think the car was getting a little bit better toward the end but it was going to take a long time to catch Joey,” said Scott. “Joey had a great car tonight, he deserved to win and you can’t take anything from him. With Nick and I it just depended on who was on the top and who was on the bottom. The outside groove was a little tough tonight.”
Rich Lowrey finished fourth behind Sweet, with Cris Michaud fifth. Eric Chase finished a season-best sixth ahead of point leader Dave Pembroke, who, after a crash on lap 28, drove from 19th place to finish seventh. Matt White, Jay Laquerre, and Brooks Clark completed the top ten. Becker was tenth different winner in as many races.
Matt Potter of Marshfield turned his tough season around by winning an entertaining 35-lap Tiger Sportsman event after a race-long battle with rookie Jason Allen. Allen, of Barre, lead the first 29 laps under constant pressure from Potter and Bobby Therrien, but was unable to hold off Potter’s No. 23 Tuck’s Repair/Hess Used Cars Chevrolet after a late restart.
“That was awesome. I’ve been waiting all year. I’ve had a good car and been waiting for the good luck to come,” said Potter. “It was fun. [Allen] is a great kid and a great racer.”
After falling behind momentarily, Allen pulled even with Potter over the final three laps.
“I learned a lot of patience tonight,” Allen said. “When you race with good people, you learn a lot. I’ve got to thank Potter and Therrien both, they helped me up there by giving lifts and giving room.”
Therrien, of Hinesburg, finished third, followed by Jimmy Hebert and Troy Gray.
Williamstown racer Mike MacAskill earned his second-straight Street Stock win and third of the season, beating Travis Hull, Garry Bashaw, Ron Gabaree, and Greg Adams, Jr. Brock Parrott, also of Williamstown, was named the Junkyard Warrior winner after apparent first-place finisher Kevin Wheatley was disqualified in post-race inspection. Fred Schroeder and Kevin Dodge completed the Warrior podium.
Dave Pembroke’s Late Model team won the annual “Port-A-Potty Grand Prix” event.
UNOFFICIAL RESULTS — WDEV Radio/Calkins Portable Toilets Night
Thunder Road Int’l Speedbowl, Barre, Vt.
Thursday, July 29, 2010
(Pos.-Driver-Hometown)
# – denotes rookie
ACT Late Model (50 laps)
1. Joey Becker, Jeffersonville
2. Phil Scott, Montpelier
3. Nick Sweet, Barre
4. Rich Lowrey, Charlotte
5. Cris Michaud, Northfield
6. Eric Chase, Burlington
7. Dave Pembroke, Middlesex
8. Matt White, Northfield
9. Jay Laquerrre, East Montpelier
10. Brooks Clark, Fayston
Bond Auto Tiger Sportsman (35 laps)
1. Matt Potter, Marshfield
2. # Jason Allen, Barre
3. Bobby Therrien, Hinesburg
4. Jimmy Hebert, Williamstown
5. Troy Gray, Fairlee
6. Mike Ziter, Williamstown
7. David Finck, Barre
8. Derrick O’Donnell, Bradford
9. George May, Barre
10. Joe Steffen, Essex Junction
Allen Lumber Street Stock/Junkyard Warrior (25 laps)
1. Mike MacAskill, Williamstown (SS)
2. Travis Hull, Graniteville (SS)
3. Garry Bashaw, Lincoln (SS)
4. Ron Gabaree, Barre (SS)
5. Greg Adams, Jr., Hardwick (SS)
12. Brock Parrott, Williamstown (JW)
14. Fred Schroeder, Bristol (JW)
22. Kevin Dodge, Barre (JW)
DQ — Kevin Wheatley, Williamstown (JW)
