Vermont Milk Bowl Full of Prestige for Drivers

The 55th Vermont Milk Bowl presented by Northfield Saving Bank is just days away at Barre’s Thunder Road. The latest edition of the historic event will come to the starting grid at 1:00pm on Sunday, October 1, capping what will be an action-packed weekend featuring the best Late Model racers and teams in the region.

Excitement has been building all month for the historic event that dates back to 1962. With its unique three-segment format and storied tradition, the Milk Bowl has taken on a special significance to the teams that compete in it, and dozens of top drivers will be looking to join the exclusive fraternity of winners or add another entry into the record books.

“The Milk Bowl is the most prestigious race for me,” defending Milk Bowl Champion Nick Sweet of Barre said. “I know there are guys that aspire to bigger and better things, but I’m telling you, this hometown race is the biggest thing in my racing career. So I can’t wait for this weekend. It’s going to be hard to top what I’ve accomplished the last couple years, but hopefully we can go out there and do well. Ultimately, the key is to have fun. I don’t know the cow’s name this year, but I’d really like to meet her!”

“The Milk Bowl is ‘The Big One’ at Thunder Road,” 2016 “King of the Road” Scott Dragon of Milton added. “My father (Bobby) has won it, my cousin (Brent) has won it, and my uncle (Beaver) even won it, so it would be nice to be able to win it as well – especially being that we’re run at Thunder Road the last several years and the place really means something to me now. It would be really cool and would mean a lot to say you’ve won it.”

Sweet and Dragon will be among the many top drivers at Thunder Road this weekend looking to became the latest Milk Bowl winner. Along with Sweet, fellow three-time winners Patrick Laperle of St-Denis, Qué. and Kevin Lepage of Shelburne will also be gunning for a record-tying fourth Milk Bowl win. Dragon will be joined by Thunder Road stars such as recently-crowned “King of the Road” Bobby Therrien of Hinesburg, Barre’s Jason Corliss and Cody Blake, and South Burlington’s Trampas Demers.

Outsiders and regional racers who will be seeking the 55th Vermont Milk Bowl win include current American-Canadian Tour (ACT) point leader Scott Payea of Milton, multi-time ACT winner Dillon Moltz of Waterford, Conn., two-time Devil’s Bowl Speedway Champion Josh Masterson of Charlotte and new White Mountain Motorsports Park Champion Quinny Welch of Groveton, N.H. Current Serié ACT Champion Jonathan Bouvrette of Blainville, Qué. and 2014 Serié ACT Champion Alex Labbé of St. Albert, Qué. join Laperle in representing the Canadian province.

The weekend begins on Friday, September 30 with an optional practice day for the Thunder Road Late Models, Lenny’s Shoe & Apparel Flying Tigers, and Allen Lumber Street Stocks from 1:00pm to 5:00pm, followed by the Junior Champ Karting Series season finale. Booth Bros./ H.P. Hood Milk Bowl Qualifying Day on Saturday, September 30 at 1:00pm will feature time trials and “Triple 50” qualifying races to help set the Milk Bowl starting field. The Flying Tigers, Street Stocks, and New England Dwarf Cars will have time trials and Segment 1 of their two-segment “Mini Milk Bowls” while the Burnett Scrap Metals Road will have a Saturday-only event.

Sunday’s action will begin at 12:15pm with the Last Chance “B” Feature to complete the Milk Bowl starting grid. Opening ceremonies for the 55th Vermont Milk Bowl presented by Northfield Savings Bank begin at 1:00pm. The Flying Tigers, Street Stocks, and Dwarf Cars will run Segment 2 of their Mini Milk Bowls on Sunday.

Adult admission for the 55th Vermont Milk Bowl is $30 for a two-day ticket or $10 for Saturday only with kids age 12 and under admitted free both days. The front gates will open at 10:00am and the pit gates will open at 8:00am on both Saturday and Sunday.