Jeff Burgess has picked the right time of the year to hit his stride and turn in his best racing of the season. The veteran racer from East Madison started mid pack for the 50 lap Clark's Car Crushing Prostock feature and picked his way to the front for his 3rd win of the season and second straight in Wiscasset's top division. With his recent hot streak, winning three of the last five races, Burgess cut point leader Randy Turner's advantage in half and now trails by just ten heading into the final points race on September 27th.
Both drivers are shooting for their first Wiscasset track championship. The win highlighted a full card of racing action Saturday night at "Maine's Center of Speed". Other winners included Appleton's Darren Ripley in the Smith Construction Late Models; Kevin Douglass of Sidney in the Unicel / Budweiser Super Streets; Steve Peirpont of Cushing in the Keystone Automotive Strictly Streets; Pete McCollet of Readfield in the Aable Autoparts Mini Stocks; and Chris Doucette in the White & Bradstreet Mini Trucks. Dale Cullivan and Chuck Lachance lined up on the front row to lead the field of twenty drivers to the green flag for Saturday night's main event. Lachance took the lead on lap one and held it through a pair of early cautions while others including Burgess and Turner moved up through the field into contention. As Lachance, John Phippen and Ryan Deane were lined up nose to tail on the inside lane Burgess, who started tenth, moved up the outside and took over second by lap twelve. Six laps later Burgess drove around Lachance and into the lead. Lachance then faded back out of contention as Phippen and Deane continued their heated battle for 2nd. Five cautions through the second half of the race would bunch up the field and bring two new drivers into the picture. Turner who started at the back of the field in 20th and Chuck Colby who started beside him in 19th moved up into the top five and into contention. While Turner couldn't get any higher than 5th, Colby's car got stronger late in the race and he drove around Phippen and Dean into second by lap 43. He was not able to catch Burgess however and chased the winner across the line just two car lengths behind. Deane picked up a strong 3rd place finish and Phippen settled for 4th. Defending champ Scott Moore made it by Turner to finish 5th. Heading into the division's final points battle on Saturday September 27th, Turner leads Burgess by just 10 points and Phippen by 20. Chuck Colby still has an outside shot as he moved within 40 points of Turner. The drivers will be shooting for the $10,000 championship payoff for winning Wiscasset Raceway's track championship.
WISCASSET RACEWAY PRESS RELEASE 9/14/08
In the 30 lap feature for the Smith Construction Late Model Sportsman division Appleton's Darren Ripley took advantage of a front row starting position and survived five cautions to post his 3rd win of 2008. Defending champ and current point leader Chris Thorne gave Ripley a run for the money but had to settle for 2nd. Thorne actually edged out Ripley for the lead by a bumper following a lap 18 restart, but that was the only time he was able to mount a serious challenge. Adam Chadbourne, the division's top rookie and Thorne's only competition left for the division title, battled the champ hard for position through the first half of the race but he lost his hold on a top three finish following a lap 20 restart. TJ Watson of Harpswell slipped under Chadbourne on lap 23 to take over the 3rd positition and he would hold that all the way to victory lane. Jimmy Childs started 10th and finished 4th with Chadbourne slipping to a 5th place finish. With just two points races left for the division Thorne stretched his lead over Chadbourne to 22 points heading into championship weekend. The Unicel Super Streets 25 lap feature had just one caution, but it took away what was shaping up to be one of the best races of the year. Front row starters Jeremy Glasier and Kevin Douglass raced side by side through the first 20 laps with the pair trading the lead back and forth in an exciting battle that looked like it would come down to the wire. As they were heading through turn three rookie Sulo Burbank was just ahead of the lead pair and in danger of going a lap down. Burbank would spin in turn four directly in front of the leaders sending cars scattering. Douglass was able to drive around the outside to hold the lead, but the traffic piled up on the inside lane taking out Glasier as well as the 3rd place car of Nate Weston and the 4th place car of point leader Allan Moeller. On the ensuing restart Douglass quickly disposed of teammate Mike Landry and went on to pick up his first career Super Street victory in his #18 Strictly Roofing sponsored Chevrolet. Landry settled for 2nd and Shawn Austin of Norridgewock finished 3rd, just beating out his brother RJ Austin and Josh Bailey for the final spot in victory lane. The Keystone Automotive Strictly Streets went 20 laps caution free with Cushing's Steve Peirpont holding off defending champ Maurice Young for his 2nd win of the year. It was Peirpont's first race back since rolling his car over under the flag stand three weeks earlier. Young would settle for the second place finish and extend his point lead in the process. Division runner-up Ed Peirpont finished 3rd with Ian Bresnahan and Bobby Mesimer filling out the top five. Young holds a comfortable 60 point advantage heading into the double header championship weekend as he shoots for his record 7th track championship. With the recent hot streak by the young drivers in the Aable Auto Parts Mini Stocks, Readfield's Pete McCollet and Richmond's Mike Dulaney stepped up to represent the "older" guys in the class. McCollet took the lead from Dulaney on lap three and never looked back on his way to his 4th win of the year. Dulaney held on for his best finish of the year and a second place trophy. Rookie Tom True of Wiscasset continued his latest run of strong finishes with a 3rd place run. Point leader Dylan Lancaster suffered a flat right front tire with two laps to go and dropped to a disappointing 13th place finish. He still maintains a strong hold on the top spot in the division with two races to go. Chris Doucette of Sebego continued his dominance of the White & Bradstreet Mini Trucks. He started 4th in the 15 lap feature and moved up to take the lead from Jason Giggey on lap 11. He would cruise to his division high 7th win of the year. Chad Binnette of Biddeford got by Giggey to take 2nd and Giggey settled for 3rd in the caution free race.
Wiscasset Raceway has a scheduled weekend off and then will return to action for a double header championship weekend September 27th and 28th. On Saturday the 27th, the green flag drops at 5:00pm with regular action in all six weekly racing series divisions. The show will be highlighted by a 50 lap main event and final points race for the Clark's Car Crushing Prostocks. Sunday September 28th will get underway at 2:00pm with all six weekly divisions in action once again. The Prostocks will have center stage with a 100 lap main event and the other five divisions will have their final points races. For more information call the Wiscasset Raceway office at (207) 882-4271 or check the track website at www.wiscassetraceway.info.
OFFICIAL FINISH 9/13/08
CLARK'S CAR CRUSHING PROSTOCKS (50 LAPS)
1. Jeff Burgess – E. Madison; 2. Chuck Colby – Wiscasset; 3. Ryan Deane – Winterport; 4. John Phippen – Bar Harbor; 5. Scott Moore – Anson; 6. Randy Turner – Freedom; 7. Gary Smith – Bangor; 8. Chuck Lachance – Cushing; 9. Chris Staples – Brunswick; 10. Tim Turner – Freedom; 11. Matt Lee – Albion; 12. Bryan Robbins- Montville; 13. Charlie Colby – Edgecomb; 14. Dylan Turner – Freedom; 15. Gary Norris Jr – West Gardiner; 16. Dave Farrington Jr – Jay; 17. Jesse Smith – Bangor; 18. Gene Hatch – Winthrop; 19. Dale Cullivan – Palermo; 20. Ricky Morse – St Albans
SMITH CONSTRUCTION LATE MODEL SPORTSMAN (30 LAPS )
1. Darren Ripley – Appleton; 2. Chris Thorne – Sidney; 3. TJ Watson – Harpswell; 4. Jimmy Childs – Mechanic Falls; 5. Adam Chadbourne – Woolwich; 6. Peter Oakes- Boothbay; 7. Tyler Robbins – Montville; 8. Jason Witts – Dixmont; 9. Will Collins – Appleton; 10. Erik Nash – Richmond; 11. Nick Reno – West Bath; 12. Bill Pinkham – Wiscasset; 13. Mike Orr – Wiscasset; 14. Danny Smart – Buxton; 15. Scott Pooler – Vassalboro; 16. Richard Jordan – Kingfield; 17. Duane Love – West Gardiner; 18. Ajay Piccard – Palmyra; 19. Nick Hinkley – Wiscasset; 20. Dan Trask – Chelsea
UNICEL / BUDWEISER SUPER STREETS (25 LAPS)
1. Kevin Douglass – Sidney; 2. Mike Landry – Oakland; 3. Shawn Austin – Norridgewock; 4. RJ Austin – Smithfield; 5. Josh Bailey – Wiscasset; 6. Kurt Hewins – Leeds; 7. Allan Moeller – Dresden; 8. Nate Weston – Madison; 9. James Osmond – Wiscasset; 10. Frank Brown – Pittston; 11. Jeremy Glasier – Appleton; 12. Sulo Burbank – Gorham; 13. Gene Hatch – Winthrop
KEYSTONE AUTOMOTIVE STRICTLY STREETS (20 LAPS)
1. Steve Peirpont – Cushing; 2. Maurice Young – Windsor; 3. Ed Peirpont – Jefferson; 4. Ian Bresnahan – Bath; 5. Bobby Mesimer – Wiscasset; 6. Nate Yeaton – Bath; 7. Jamie Henderson – Litchfield; 8. Lyman McKeage – Gorham; 9. Mike St Germain – Auburn; 10. Russ Anderson – Portsmouth, NH; 11. Todd Rollins- St Albans; 12. Neil Greenleaf – Wiscasset; 13. Matt Stuart – Pittston
AABLE AUTO PARTS MINI STOCKS (20 LAPS)
1. Pete McCollet – Readfield; 2. Mike Dulaney – Richmond; 3. Tom True – Wiscasset; 4. Ryan Ripley – Thomaston; 5. Ed Sleeper- Vassalboro; 6. Mac Hannan Jr – Union; 7. Shawn Kimball – Pittston; 8. Natasha Dyer – Arrowsic; 9. John Smith – Augusta 10. Ken Edgecomb – Readfield; 11. Richard Jackson – Hudson; 12. Carol Wilson – Chelsea; 13. Dylan Lancaster – Skowhegan; 14. Greg Cummings – Augusta; 15. David Hinkley – Pittston; 16. Mika Wilson – Chelsea; 17. Shelby Kimball – Cornville; 18. Tim Collins – Farmingdale; 19. Alex Cromwell – Woolwich; 20. Mike Chapman – Pittsfield; 21. Chelsea Young – Winterport; 22. Alica Goodwin – Waterville; 23. Henry Benoit – Portsmouth, NH; 24. Ryan Hayes – Jefferson;
WHITE & BRADSTREET MINI TRUCKS (15 LAPS)
1. Chris Doucette – Sebego; 2. Chad Binnette – Biddeford; 3. Jason Giggey – Unity; 4. Russ Anderson – Portsmouth, NH; 5. James Swan III – Clinton; 6. Rick Sirois – Norridgewock; 7. Don Giggey – Athens; 8. Josh Kauffman – Unity; 9. Rick Fountain – Rochester, NH; 10. Kevin Oliver – Gray; 11. Josh Harjula – Boothbay; 12. Mike Anderson – Portsmouth, NH; 13. Jessica Norris – Portsmouth, NH