BARRE, VT – The winners of the annual Lenny’s Shoe & Apparel “Hottest Shoe” Awards for stock car racers at Barre’s Thunder Road have been decided. Braintree’s Kip Stockwell (American-Canadian Tour Late Model), hometown driver Nick Sweet (NAPA Tiger Sportsman), and Hinesburg youngster Bobby Therrien (Allen Lumber Street Stock) each posted to most feature event wins in their respective divisions in 2007, and have earned bonus checks from Lenny’s Shoe & Apparel, to be given at the annual ACT/Thunder Road Awards Banquet in January.
Stockwell posted three 50-lap victories in his first full season of racing at Thunder Road since 1997 in the ACT Late Model division. Stockwell took his first win of the year on Pepsi Fireworks Night in July, earning a $150 Lenny’s “Hot Shoe Challenge” bonus. He took the Lenny’s “Double Dip” bonus of $75 for his second win of the season on Calkins Portables/Pelletier Quick Lube Night in August, and locked in his third win on NAPA/Make-A-Wish Night the following week. Stockwell’s “Hottest Shoe” bonus will be $500.
Other ACT Late Model drivers collecting bonuses from Lenny’s Shoe & Apparel in 2007 were Scott Payea, Joey Becker, Dennis and Trampas Demers, Marcel Gravel, Eric Williams, Phil Scott, Dwayne Lanphear, John Donahue, and Patrick Laperle, as well as 2007 Thunder Road Rookie of the Year Chip Grenier and the “King of the Road,” Track Champion Dave Pembroke.
Sweet entered the Chittenden Milk Bowl on Sept. 30 in a four-way tie with Joey Laquerre, Scott Coburn, and Matt White. Each of the NAPA Tiger Sportsman drivers had won two prior feature events, but Sweet’s Milk Bowl victory clinched the Lenny’s “Hottest Shoe” bonus of $250. He also locked up the Thunder Road Championship with the victory. Other drivers taking $100 Lenny’s “Hot Shoe Challenge” bonuses included Tom Therrien, Brendan Moodie, David Finck, Chris Chambers, rookies Joel Hodgdon, Kyle Tatro, and Shawn Sicard, and championship runner-up Craig Bushey.
Allen Lumber Street Stock Champion and Rookie of the Year Bobby Therrien set a freshman record at six feature wins, including the 30-lap finale at the Chittenden Milk Bowl, and earned the $100 Lenny’s “Hottest Shoe” award for his division. The 20 year-old was joined during the season as a $50 Lenny’s “Hot Shoe Challenge” bonus winner by Bruce Melendy, Mike Martin, Chad Stewart, David Greenslit, Tommy Smith, David Allen, Mike Ziter, Tim Campbell, Lloyd Blakely, and Michael Moore.
Visit Lenny’s Shoe & Apparel in four convenient locations: Barre, Williston, St. Albans, or online at
www.lennyshoe.com. For more information on Thunder Road, call (802) 244-6963 or visit
www.thunderroadspeedbowl.com.