Blake Turns Around Mid-Season Slump with Vermont Tire & Service Win
/Berlin’s Kasey Collins Takes First Street Stock Checkers
Barre, VT — After starting off with a heavy mist just after opening the pit gates for teams on Thursday, if you can believe it, as teams waited out the showers. After drying the track, the Thunder Road faithful again put on another stellar showcase of auto racing on the Barre highbanks, each vying for the FloRacing double purse on Vermont Tire & Service Night.
To kick-off the night Thomas Peck and Kasey Collins led down the rk Miles Street Stocks to the first green flag in feature racing action on Vermont Tire & Service Night. Collins took charge at the front of the pack with Jamie Davis running him down from a third-place starting spot. As laps wound down Davis began attempting to work the outside groove around Collins but couldn’t make a strong go of it as the two continued to stretch away from the rest of the field. While the battle continued through to the bitter end it would be Berlin’s Kasey Collins taking down his first career rk Miles Street Stock win with two-time track champion Jamie Davis and first-time podium finisher Parker Gagne rounding out the podium.
Young-guns Luke Peters and Cam Gadue brought the Lenny’s Shoe & Apparel Flying Tiger field to life for their 40-lap main event. Highgate’s Gadue took the lead in the high lane and began to run away from his competition before a lap nine melee in turn three saw Cooper French, Jason Pelkey and others fly across the corner and into the infield. Gadue would keep command under the return to green before the second caution at the halfway point as Jason Woodard’s blown tire sent him spinning off turn four.
While Gadue again led the charge, Brandon Gray set out on the outside lane and chased down the leader. Gray would pull outside Gadue to lead lap 33 at the line but their battle saw Kyle Streeter grow ever closer in third. Brandon Gray kept the pedal down and took his #00VT machine to Thunder Road victory lane for the second time this season with Cam Gadue and Kyle Streeter rounding out the top-three.
Rookie competitors Cody Schoolcraft and Justin Prescott began the Maplewood/Irving Oil Late Model showdown with Prescott getting the jump on the outside lane. Following Prescott’s outside groove power-move, Darrell Morin made his bid for second around Schoolcraft with Cody Blake and Brandon Lanphear in tow. Blake kept the momentum up in the early stages, enough to steal the lead away from Prescott on lap 15 in the bid for his first win of the season.
Meanwhile mid-pack, three-wide action in turn three just before the halfway point halted a strong run for Bobby Therrien on the outside lane as he attempted to move into the top-10 while point leader Nick Sweet pitted on lap 34 after slapping the backstretch wall and losing his rear axle in the process. Keeping it green all the way to the end, Cody Blake took down his first win of what has been a trying second-half to his 2023 season followed by Scott Dragon and Brandon Lanphear to round out the podium.
In the final feature event of the night, Brayden Murphy and Nick Copping brought out the fan-favorite Burnett Scrap Metals Road Warriors for their 20-lap nightcap. Murphy held the lead until lap 6 when Nate ‘Tater’ Brien overtook the greenhorn and set the pace out front. With Tater extending his lead and Murphy holding his own in second, Copping was dead-set on defending his third-place position over ‘Flyin’ Fred Fleury, Jason Kirby, Tyler Wheatley and Neal Foster. With laps winding down in the green-to-checkers event it would be Williamstown’s Nate Brien taking the win followed by a first-time podium for Brayden Murphy and Nick Copping rounding out the winner’s circle.
Thunder Road returns to racing action this Sunday night, August 20th for the rain-rescheduled Cody Chevrolet-Cadillac Night. Headlined by the championship round of the Myers Container Service Triple Crown Series with the Lenny’s Shoe & Apparel Flying Tigers going for 100-laps of heart-pounding action, the Maplewood/Irving Oil Late Models, rk Miles Street Stocks and Burnett Scrap Metals Road Warriors also return on Cody Chevrolet-Cadillac Night this Sunday, August 20th. Post Time is set for 7:00pm with adult general admission set at $15, children 12-6 for $5 and kids five and under are free! The Family Four Pack (two adults, two kids) is also available for $30.
For more information, contact the Thunder Road offices at (802) 244-6963, media@thunderroadvt.com, or visit www.thunderroadvt.com. You can also follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram at @ThunderRoadVT.
Thunder Road Int’l Speedbowl – Barre, VT
Vermont Tire & Service Night Feat. FloRacing Double Purse
Thursday, August 17, 2023
UNOFFICIAL RESULTS
Maplewood/Irving Oil Late Models – (50 Laps)
1. 99VT Cody Blake Barre, VT
2. 0VT Scott Dragon Milton, VT
3. 16VT Brandon Lanphear Morrisville, VT
4. 27VT Kyle Pembroke Montpelier, VT
5. 64VT Chris Pelkey Graniteville, VT
6. 04VT #Justin Prescott Milton, VT
7. 17VT Darrell Morin Westford, VT
8. 31VT Stephen Donahue Graniteville, VT
9. 86VT Marcel J. Gravel Wolcott, VT
10. 14VT* Bobby Therrien Hinesburg, VT
11. 18VT #Kaiden Fisher Shelburne, VT
12. 9VT Chip Grenier Orange , VT
13. 66VT Jason Corliss Barre, VT
14. 31KS #Cody Schoolcraft Claremont, NH
15. 38VT Tyler Cahoon Danville, VT
16. 01VT Stephen Martin Craftsbury Common, VT
17. 8VT Chris Roberts Washington, VT
18. 7VT Cooper Bouchard Hinesburg, VT
19. 4VT Scott Coburn Barre, VT
20. 55VT #Keegan Lamson Berlin, VT
21. 88VT Nick Sweet Williamstown, VT
DNS 60NH Derrick O'Donnell N. Haverhill, NH
*Sub Driver for Phil Scott
Lenny’s Shoe & Apparel Flying Tigers – (40 Laps)
1. 00VT Brandon Gray E. Thetford, VT
2. 23NY Cam Gadue Highgate, VT
3. 37VT Kyle Streeter Waterbury Ctr., VT
4. 07VT Sam Caron Milton, VT
5. 8NH Rich Lowrey South Hero, VT
6. 67VT Kevin Streeter Waitsfield, VT
7. 56VT Chris Laforest Barre, VT
8. 08VT Phil Potvin Underhill, VT
9. 90VT Cameron Ouellette Barre, VT
10. 3VT Michael MacAskill Williamstown, VT
11. 31VT Logan Powers Middlesex, VT
12. 64VT Jason Pelkey Barre, VT
13. 68VT Jason Woodard Waterbury Ctr., VT
14. 45VT Adam Maynard Milton, VT
15. 54VT Colin Cornell E. Burke, VT
16. 8VT Mike Billado Grand Isle, VT
17. 20VT Robert Gordon Milton, VT
18. 78VT #Tyler Pepin Barre, VT
19. 22VT Travis Patnoe Wolcott, VT
20. 26VT #Luke Peters Groton, VT
21. 13VT Ty Delphia Duxbury, VT
22. 4ME Cooper French Northfield, VT
DNS 33VT Matt Ballard Williamstown, VT
rk Miles Street Stocks – (25 Laps)
1. 98 Kasey Collins Berlin, VT
2. 43 Jamie Davis Johnson, VT
3. 55 Parker Gagne Fairfax, VT
4. 7 Kyle MacAskill Williamstown, VT
5. 16 Dean Switser, Jr. Waterford, VT
6. 68 Kyler Davis Berlin, VT
7. 48 Taylor Hoar South Hero, VT
8. 74 Tyler Whittemore Barre, VT
9. 0 James Dopp Northfield, VT
10. 08 #Ryan Foster Waterbury, VT
11. 71 Jesse Laquerre Berlin, VT
12. 04 Scott Weston Berlin, VT
13. 30* Jeffery Martin Barre, VT
14. 79 Juan 'Paco' Marshall Pittsfield, VT
15. 9 #Logan Farrell Barre, VT
16. 2 Haidyn Pearce Chelsea, VT
17. 5 Kyle Gravel Wolcott, VT
18. 34 Patrick Tibbetts Plainfield, VT
19. 24 Todd Raymo Swanton, VT
20. 3 Michael Gay S. Burlington, VT
21. 39 Derek Farnham Bethel, VT
22. 50 Eric MacLaughlin Milton, VT
23. 88 #Paul Rocheleau Georgia, VT
24. 96 Thomas Peck Waterbury, VT
25. 57 Trevor Jaques Milton, VT
DNS 1 #Shea Wheeler Waterbury, VT
*Sub Driver for Cam Powers
Burnett Scrap Metals Road Warriors – (20 Laps)
1. 16 Nate Brien Williamstown, VT
2. 33 Brayden Murphy Barre, VT
3. 50 Nick Copping Barre, VT
4. 99 Fred Fleury Graniteville, VT
5. 71 Jason Kirby Milton, VT
6. 31 Tyler Wheatley Brookfield, VT
7. 19 Neal Foster Moretown, VT
8. 75 Bert Duffy Milton, VT
9. 88 Frank Putney Graniteville, VT
10. 26 Corey Martin Northfield, VT
11. 42 Karsen Murphy Northfield, VT
12. 07 Benjamin Bushey Springfield, VT
13. 74 Keegan Tabor Williamstown, VT
14. 17 Brodie Frazier E. Montpelier, VT
15. 13 Kevin Wheatley Brookfield, VT
16. 43 Anderson Boyd Berlin, VT
17. 03 Robert Catchapaw Waterbury, VT
18. 83 Gavin Hodgdon Hyde Park, VT