The North East Mini Stock Tour made its debut at Maine’s Toughest Oval, Unity Raceway on Saturday night. Rhode Island native and tour veteran Roger Ducharme survived the caution filled event to bring home his first NEMST victory.

The heat races went off without a hitch with Tim Boyle and Zach Audet taking home the wins. 22 cars were in the pits for the main event of 50 laps. The action started off well with a lot of slicing and dicing for position. On lap 6 the first caution came out for a spin involving Greg Cummings and Keith Ogden. Throughout the next 30 laps the event would be slowed a few more times for minor spins. The show of the night was put on by NEMST defending champion Emerson Cayer who started dead last and climbed his way to the front not once, not twice, but three different times.

All the beating and banging came to a head on lap 39 when the 10 of Reggie Bickford lost an engine going into turn 1. With the field running two wide in a tight formation behind him, mayhem let loose. Bickford went careening into the turn 1 dirt banking through the oil taking Turner, Lancaster, True, Boyle, Norris, and Cayer with him. The wreck took out most of the top 10 cars and some of the very fast race front runners.

After the brief red flag for cleanup the NEMST took back to the track to finish out the event. With Calvin Rose leading Roger Ducharme made an impressive pass and held the lead for the remaining laps. Unity local Steve Wilson made the pass for second in the battered 92 car but Calvin Rose held on for third making his 2nd podium appearance in as many NEMST starts.

1.       34           Roger Ducharme

2.       92           Steve Wilson

3.       81           Calvin Rose

4.       0              Steve Heath

5.       07           Derrick Terrill

6.       1              Dylan Lancaster

7.       09X         Keith Ogden     

8.       18           Tim Collins

9.       2              Greg Cummings

10.   99           Brad Norris

11.   88           Emerson Cayer

12.   10           Reggie Bickford

13.   09           Joe Turner

14.   12           Thomas True

15.   90           Tim Boyle

16.   84           Bob Grady

17.   46           John Fortin

18.   19           Zach Audet

19.   20           Pete McCollett

20.   84X         Jeff Minchin

21.   59           Shadow Folsom

DNS 6            Kevin Douglass