Bridge takes provisional Late Model championship
(From track press release)
WEST HAVEN — Robert Bryant Jr. and Zach Wood stole the show on Saturday, August 26, at The Asphalt Track at Devil’s Bowl Speedway. Each driver won a pair of races during the annual “Double Stack” Night presented by Sugar & Spice Restaurant, featuring double features for all four divisions on the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series. Other drivers taking wins included Ron Proctor, Vince Quenneville Jr., Dylan Rabtoy, and Jim McKiernan.
Bryant’s double scores came in twin 25-lap races for the Driven Transport Late Model division. The Brooklyn, Conn., veteran completed the turnaround of his hard-luck season by dominating the opening race, then working past rookie Dylan Payea in the nightcap for the sweep. Seth Bridge of Mendon, Vt., finished second in the first race ahead of Evan Hallstrom, and Payea took the runner-up spot over Hallstrom in the second race.
Bridge earned the provisional track championship for the Late Model division – his first – pending the season finale on Saturday, September 2. It was announced in the driver’s meeting earlier prior to the event that the Late Model race on September 2 has been adjusted to 67 laps and $1,000 to win, and that it will carry 50 participation points toward the championship for all drivers who compete; Bridge will only need to compete in the event to officially lock up the title. Fifteen year-old Hallstrom, of Northfield, Vt., will be the Rookie of the Year so long as he attends the finale.
Ron Proctor of Charlton, N.Y., and Vince Quenneville Jr. of Brandon, Vt., split the twin 20s for the O’Reilly Auto Parts Sportsman Modified division. Proctor battled brake problems but held on for his fifth win of the season in the opening race; Joey Roberts and Quenneville completed the podium finishers. In the second race, Quenneville dominated for his fourth win, beating Mike Wells and Proctor to the line.
Entering the season finale next Saturday, Quenneville maintains a slim eight-point lead on Proctor for the final Sportsman Modified Asphalt Track championship at Devil’s Bowl.
The Rosen & Berger Auto Recyclers Super Stock division continued its trend of putting on exciting racing with a pair of 20-lap races. Dylan Rabtoy of Swanton, Vt., came from eighth place at the start in the first race to take his fourth win of the year, beating Jim McKiernan, Scott FitzGerald, R.J. Germain, and Jared Blake. In the second race, McKiernan crossed the finish line first ahead of Rabtoy, Germain, Blake, and Brett Wood.
The results of the second Super Stock feature race are unofficial pending post-race technical inspection. Any penalties will be announced soon.
Georgia, Vt., racer Zach Wood won both 15-lap races for the Portland Glass Mini Stock division, doing so in very different fashions; Wood started on the pole position in the first feature and drove away to a dominant score, beating Andrew FitzGerald, Shawn Moquin, Cam Gadue, and Roo Forrest. In the second race, rookie Mike Preston was way ahead before breaking his right-front suspension with six laps left, allowing Wood to overcome a 10th-place starting spot, capitalize after the restart, and grab his second win of the night. Gadue, Moquin, FitzGerald, and Johnny Bruno rounded out the top five finishers.
Unofficially, Milton, Vt., rookie Moquin stretched his lead in the championship standings out to 37 points entering the season finale. Fellow rookie Gadue moved up to second place in the standings after previous title contender Forrest struggled in the second feature race.
Sugar & Spice presented the sixth annual “Great North American Pancake Eating Championship” during intermission, and inaugural winner Allen Jones of Rutland reclaimed his title by eating 10-and-a-half full-size pancakes in five minutes. He defeated four-time champion Malcolm Woodward and Henry Stone for the crown. The Junior Division has its first-ever repeat champion, as 11 year-old Timothy Whitney Jr. of Cornwall, Vt., set a new record by devouring six pancakes.
Devil’s Bowl Speedway will run its final event ever on the half-mile Asphalt Track on Saturday, September 2 at 2:00 p.m., with a huge event presented by Carrara Masonry & Concrete. All four divisions will officially crown their final champions, with many other events on the card including the Bandit Youth and Ladies Mini Stock divisions, mechanic races, non-winner shootouts, and a final sendoff party with a bonfire, pig roast, music and fireworks. Further details will be announced soon.
Devil’s Bowl Speedway is located on Route 22A in West Haven, Vt., four miles north of U.S. Route 4, Exit 2. For more information, visit www.DevilsBowlSpeedwayVT.com or call (802) 265-3112. Devil’s Bowl Speedway is on Facebook at @DevilsBowlSpeedway and on Twitter, Instagram, and Snapchat at @DevilsBowlSpeed; follow the action using the hashtag #DevilsBowl.
UNOFFICIAL RESULTS — Sugar & Spice “Double Stack” Night
NASCAR Whelen All-American Series
Devil’s Bowl Speedway, West Haven, Vt.
Saturday, August 26, 2017
Pos.-Driver-Hometown
(# — denotes rookie)
Driven Transport Late Models #1 (25 laps)
1. Robert Bryant Jr., Brooklyn, Conn.
2. Seth Bridge, Mendon
3. # Evan Hallstrom, Northfield
Driven Transport Late Models #2 (25 laps)
1. Robert Bryant Jr., Brooklyn, Conn.
2. # Dylan Payea, Henniker, N.H.
3. # Evan Hallstrom, Northfield
O’Reilly Auto Parts Sportsman Modifieds #1 (20 laps)
1. Ron Proctor, Charlton, N.Y.
2. Joey Roberts, Fletcher
3. Vince Quenneville Jr., Brandon
O’Reilly Auto Parts Sportsman Modifieds #2 (20 laps)
1. Vince Quenneville Jr., Brandon
2. Mike Wells, West Chazy, N.Y.
3. Ron Proctor, Charlton, N.Y.
Rosen & Berger Auto Recyclers Super Stocks #1 (20 laps)
1. Dylan Rabtoy, Swanton
2. Jim McKiernan, Moriah Center, N.Y.
3. Scott FitzGerald, West Rutland
4. R.J. Germain, Bristol
5. Jared Blake, North Hero
Rosen & Berger Auto Recyclers Super Stocks #2 (20 laps)
1. Jim McKiernan, Moriah Center, N.Y.
2. Dylan Rabtoy, Swanton
3. R.J. Germain, Bristol
4. Jared Blake, North Hero
5. # Brett Wood, Georgia
Portland Glass Mini Stocks #1 (15 laps)
1. Zach Wood, Georgia
2. Andrew FitzGerald, West Rutland
3. # Shawn Moquin, Milton
4. # Cam Gadue, Highgate
5. Roo Forrest, West Rutland
Portland Glass Mini Stocks #2 (15 laps)
1. Zach Wood, Georgia
2. # Cam Gadue, Highgate
3. Shawn Moquin, Milton
4. Andrew FitzGerald, West Rutland
5. # Johnny Bruno, Castleton
PHOTO: Third-place Evan Hallstrom (left), Driven Transport Late Model Feature #1 winner Robert Bryant Jr. (center), and runner-up Seth Bridge (right) in Sugar & Spice Victory Lane at Devil’s Bowl Speedway. (Barry Snelling/Devil’s Bowl Speedway photo)
