Youth was unable to overcome experience in the Casella Waste Management Mother’s Day 100 at Barre’s Thunder Road International Speedbowl on Sunday afternoon. Hometown driver Nick Sweet, 21, led the first 58 laps from his outside pole starting position and looked to take his second NAPA Tiger Sportsman win of the season, but veteran Joey Laquerre of East Montpelier had other plans. Laquerre, 64, and a winner at Thunder Road in five different decades, moved underneath Sweet to take the lead on the 59th circuit and drove to the victory.
But it wasn’t that easy.
Laquerre and Sweet put on a close-quarters, crowd-rousing battle for the win for the remainder of the race, and nearly crashed on the final lap. Sweet made contact with Laquerre’s rear bumper entering Turn 3 on the last lap, sending Laquerre into a slide. As Sweet slowed to allow Laquerre to regroup, third-place man Craig Bushey of Cambridge squeezed into the fray. Laquerre, Bushey, and Sweet finished the race side-by-side in tight formation, bringing the Thunder Road faithful to their feet in a chorus of cheers.
“That was a dramatic ending,” said Laquerre in victory lane, “but I’m glad I won.” Laquerre won the Casella Waste Management 100 in 2006 as well.
“I wasn’t going to wreck (Joey), I just wanted him to know I was there,” said a disappointed Sweet.
“That was wild,” said a surprised Bushey, who had been running solidly in third place, but many car-lengths behind the leaders. “I still don’t really know what happened.” Brendan Moodie of North Wolcott finished fourth. Brian Delphia won a tight battle for fifth with Duxbury neighbor
Kris Grout. Grout finished sixth ahead of Matt Potter, Mark Barnier, Chris Chambers, and Pete Ainsworth, unofficially. Joey Becker scored his third career victory in a 50-lap Late Model division battle worthy of its own headlines. The Jeffersonville driver grabbed the lead from Mike Bailey on a lap 8 restart, and survived another restart near the halfway mark to secure his win in his Richard Green Trucking Ford Taurus. Rich Lowrey of Charlotte made an impressive drive from 15th on the grid to finish in second place after passing early frontrunners Bailey and Trampas Demers.
Dave Whitcomb of Essex Jct. and Eric Williams of Hyde Park turned in a sensational performance of their own, racing side-by-side for nearly 30 laps for the third position. Williams, on the inside lane, nipped Whitcomb at
the finish line by about a half car-length. Dave Pembroke of Montpelier finished fifth. Bailey, Cris Michaud, rookie Chip Grenier, John Donahue, and Jamie Fisher rounded out the unofficial top ten in order.
Rookie Bobby Therrien of Hinesburg scored his first career win in the Allen Lumber Street Stock feature. Therrien held off a hard-charging Jason Corliss of Plainfield and Tommy “Thunder” Smith of Williamstown for the victory.
Lloyd Blakely and Gary Mullen rounded out the top five finishers. Bunker Hodgdon of Wolcott won the Power Shift Online Junkyard Warrior main event over Brett Pierce and David Whitcomb of Elmore. Linda Godfrey of Essex Jct. was the winner of the special “Mama’s Race” for race fan mothers. Godfrey drove the #57 Junkyard Warrior normally driven by Mark LaFleche for the victory. Lynn St. Louis of St. Albans and Kim Hart
of Barre finished second and third, respectively. Thunder Road’s 48th season of exciting stock car racing action continues with the Mekkelsen RV Memorial Day Classic 100 for the headline Late Model division on Sunday, May 27. Green flag racing is scheduled to begin at 1:30pm. For more information, call (802) 244-6963, or visit www.thunderroadspeedbowl.com.
UNOFFICIAL FINISH: Casella Waste Management Mother’s Day 100
Thunder Road Int’l Speedbowl, Barre, VT – May 13, 2007
NAPA Tiger Sportsmen (100 laps)
1. Joey Laquerre, East Montpelier
2. Craig Bushey, Cambridge
3. Nick Sweet, Barre
4. Brendan Moodie, North Wolcott
5. Brian Delphia, Duxbury
6. Kris Grout, Duxbury
7. Matt Potter, Plainfield
8. Mark Barnier, Essex Jct.
9. Chris Chambers, Brookfield
10. Pete Ainsworth, Jr., Middlesex
11. Chris Gendreau, N. Middlesex
12. Jeff French, Northfield
13. Kyle Tatro, Hyde Park
14. David Finck, Barre
15. #Tim Potter, Plainfield
16. #Derrick O’Donnell, Bradford
17. Rick Garand, Middlesex
18. Doug Crowningshield, Barre
19. Scott Coburn, Barre
20. #Joel Hodgdon, Crafstbury
21. Chuck Beede, Williamstown
22. Tom Therrien, Hinesburg
23. #Shawn Sicard, Barre
24. Shannon Tomasovich, Milton
25. #Eric Badore, Georgia
26. Joe Steffen, Essex Jct.
27. Matt White, Northfield
28. Justin Hart, Williamstown
29. Kevin Campbell, Fairfax
30. #Travis Ingerson, Lisbon, NH
ACT Late Models (50 laps)
1. Joey Becker, Jeffersonville
2. Rich Lowrey, Charlotte
3. Eric Williams, Hyde Park
4. Dave Whitcomb, Essex Jct.
5. Dave Pembroke, Montpelier
6. Mike Bailey, Barre
7. Cris Michaud, Williamstown
8. #Chip Grenier, Northfield
9. John Donahue, Graniteville
10. Jamie Fisher, Shelburne
Allen Lumber Street Stocks (25 laps)
1. #Bobby Therrien, Hinesburg
2. Jason Corliss, Plainfield
3. Tommy Smith, Williamstown
4. Lloyd Blakely, Barre
5. Gary Mullen, Tunbridge
Power Shift Online Junkyard Warriors
1. Bunker Hodgdon, Wolcott
2. Brett Pierce, Montpelier
3. David Whitcomb, Elmore
4. Jeff Martin, Jr., Moretown
5. James Dopp, Barre