Helliwell, Kuhn Among Invaders Looking to Take Vermont Governor's Cup Home

Barre, VT — Two of the biggest stars in Northeast Late Model racing have thrown their hat into the ring for the Vermont Governor’s Cup 150. Dover, NH’s Wayne Helliwell, Jr. and E. Bridgewater, MA’s Ryan Kuhn have confirmed they’ll be making the trip north this Thursday, July 16 to take on the locals in the 41st running of the historic event.

For Helliwell, it will be both a return to a track where he’s had success and a new adventure rolled into one. The three-time American-Canadian Tour (ACT) Champion won the 2014 Community Bank N.A. 150 and is gearing up for the 22nd edition of the event that was recently announced for Sunday, July 26. However, Helliwell and his Bruce Bernhardt–owned team have not run an event at Thunder Road since the track was repaved in 2017.

As such, getting up to speed at the track will be crucial for the current number-two point driver in the ACT ranks. When confirming their intention to run the Governor’s Cup, Bernhardt noted that, “if we’re going to win the ACT championship this year, we’re going to have to go through Thunder Road”, which led to their decision to take on the Vermont Governor’s Cup.

Kuhn, meanwhile, has made a name for himself throughout New England over the past two years. After winning the 2018 Seekonk Speedway Late Model championship, the now-19-year-old jumped to the American-Canadian Tour (ACT) in 2019, winning the Rookie of the Year Award and finishing third in points. This year, he ranks fifth in the ACT standings and also posted a top-5 finish in a Pro All Stars Series Super Late Model event at White Mountain Motorsports Park.

Kuhn now heads to Thunder Road looking to snatch the Vermont Governor’s Cup away from the locals while also gaining knowledge for later in the season. With two visits coming this year for the ACT Late Model Tour, the Governor’s Cup, presents an opportunity to prepare for when ACT championship points are on the line.

“We’ve been changing up the setup and playing around with what we have in the car a lot,” Kuhn noted. “We’re going to go there Thursday with something completely different this weekend and hope it works. Hopefully we can run up front and get the tires right. We seem to struggle with the tires — the right-side tires throw us in another direction, and hopefully we can figure it out this week.”

A non-Vermonter winning the Governor’s Cup would hardly be new. In fact, 17 of the previous 40 winners came from outside the Green Mountain State. The list includes four-time winner Robbie Crouch of Tampa, FL, three-time winner Dave Dion of Hudson, NH, and Quebec natives Jean-Paul Cabana and Andre Manny.

However, the state of Vermont is on a 10-year winning streak since Hudson, NH’s Joey Polewarczyk captured the 2009 Governor’s Cup. Helliwell won the New Hampshire Governor’s Cup last year at Thunder Road’s sister track White Mountain Motorsports Park, giving him the chance to hold the Governor’s Cup crown in two states simultaneously.

Meanwhile, should Kuhn find his way to the front, it would continue an upwards trend for him at the notoriously tough quarter-mile oval. After failing to qualify in his first two Thunder Road trips, Kuhn stepped up to a 12th-place finish in last year’s Labor Day Classic. Along the way, he’s gained an appreciation for the “Nation’s Site of Excitement”, and is optimistic about a good run

“I like how the groove changes there,” Kuhn said of Thunder Road. “It seems like, after a long run, the outside really starts to work in, and it’s really fast at the end of the race. I wouldn’t say it’s the preferred groove, but it gets a lot easier to pass on the outside as the race progresses.”

“Hopefully we can be up front and maybe have a shot to win,” Kuhn concluded.” I guess we’re going to really find out on Thursday what we’ve got.”

Helliwell and Kuhn are among several invaders looking to outrun the weekly heroes of the Maplewood/Irving Oil Late Models. Defending Governor’s Cup winner Brook Clark, multi-time Thunder Road winner Chip Grenier, and ACT regular Reilly Lanphear have confirmed their plains to race on Thursday. Cody Blake, another former Governor’s Cup winner, is expected to make his season debut.

They’ll have their hands full with two-time Governor’s Cup winner Scott Dragon, defending “King of the Road” Jason Corliss, 2017 Governor’s Cup winner Trampas Demers, and many others. Point leader Marcel J. Gravel, 2017 “King of the Road” Bobby Therrien, and 2016 Memorial Day Classic winner Tyler Cahoon could also be among the frontrunners.

Qualifying for the Vermont Governor’s Cup at Thunder Road begins at 6:30pm this Thursday, July 16. The Maplewood/Irving Oil Late Models go 150 laps in their longest weekly event of the season. A full card is also scheduled for the Lenny’s Shoe & Apparel Flying Tigers, Allen Lumber Street Stocks, and Burnett Scrap Metals Road Warriors.

Limited fan attendance is permitted with advance ticket sales only at www.happsnow.com/event/Thunder-Road-Speedbowl. Admission is $20 for adults, $5 for kids ages 6-12, and free for kids ages five and under. A $20 pay-per-view broadcast will also be available on the Northeast Sports Network at www.NSNsports.net/sponsors/racing.