This past week, many tracks throughout New England hosted their last point races of the 2018 season.
Lee USA Speedway was among those tracks, where new champions were crowned in each weekly division.
The night began with a make-up feature in the Street Stock division, where the dominant driver in 2018, Alby Ovitt, took home his ninth feature win of the 2018 season. Patrick Tanguay and Travis Hollins rounded out the top 3.
The #22 of Adam Knowles took the early lead in the 30-lap Ironmen feature.
Kaycie Kustra took a spin on lap 7, leading to the first caution of the feature.
At the halfway point of the race, Christin Destefano was all over Adam Knowles for the lead in the #67 machine.
The #9 of Brandon Mailhot blew a right front tire on lap 19, retiring to the pits that lap.
Tire troubles continued throughout the course of the race, with the #36 of Randy Washburn losing his right front on lap 23.
The #8 of Jamie Holland fell victim to a bum tire on the final lap of the feature, losing a spot to points leader, Brian Destefano.
Adam Knowles held off Christin Destefano for the lead, taking home the feature victory.
Brian Destefano, Greg Brannan and Jamie Holland rounded out the top five.
With 3 wins and 11 top-5 finishes, Brian Destefano took home the championship in the division. Christin Destefano, Adam Knowles, Jamie Holland and Brandon Mailhot rounded out the top 5 in points.
Drivers were 3-wide for the early lead in the 25-lap Pure Stocks heat, with the #82 of Jake Michaud pulling away with the top spot.
The #6 of Tyler Mailhot was on the move, stealing away the lead on lap 9.
It was smooth sailing from there for Mailhot, who took home the feature victory.
With 4 wins and 11 top-5 finishes, Rob Carleton took home the championship in the division. Jake Michaud, Tyler Mailhot, Jaden Curtis and Jess Michaud rounded out the top five in points.
Travis Hollins lost power on the first lap of the 15-lap street stock shootout, leaving Alby Ovitt chasing down Patrick Tanguay for the lead.
After reeling the #79 in, Ovitt pulled to Tanguay’s outside on lap 11, challenging him for the top spot.
The two drivers remained head-to-head throughout the entire race, with the drivers coming out of turn 4 side-by-side on the final lap.
Tanguay managed to edge Ovitt out at the start-finish line by .002 seconds, taking home the feature victory.
After a completely dominant season with 10 wins and 12 top-5 finishes, Alby Ovitt was crowned the 2018 champion in the division. Patrick Tanguay, Travis Hollins, A.J. Panesitti and Boe Green rounded out the top-5 in points.
The 35-lap Late Model Sportsmen race was the final feature of the night, with 11 cars taking the green flag.
The feature was off to a slow start with a big pile-up in turn 2 on the initial lap of the race. Drivers involved included Mike Marshall, Frankie Eldredge, Dylan Bilodeau and Mike Nicholson.
The #99 of Kris Miller took off with the lead on the restart, pulling away from the competition.
After getting caught up in a mess earlier in the feature, Frankie Eldredge fought his way back through the field, breaking the top 4 on lap 5. By lap 8, Eldredge was back in the top 3.
The #53 of Tyler Fiscus pulled an aggressive move on lap 13 in turn 3, making contact with the #21 of Zach Nicholson. The two drivers were beatin’ and bangin’ through the turn until Fiscus took a spin on the front stretch.
The incident between the two drivers led to the second caution of the feature.
Tyler Fiscus made contact with Mike Nicholson on the restart, sending Nicholson for a spin in the #63N machine. Due to this incident, the initial restart was called off.
Fiscus came to a slow on the restart, heading to the pits as Frankie Eldredge took over the track lead.
Zach Nicholson came to a slow on lap 23, heading to the pits. He returned to the track with just one lap to spare in the feature, determined to finish the season by crossing the finish line in his beat-up #21 machine.
Frankie Eldredge took home the feature win, making it his 8th feature victory of the 2018 season. In addition to his 8 wins, Frankie concluded his season with 12 top-5 finishes and 14 top-10 finishes, becoming the division champion.
George Helliwell, Bryan Kruczek, Bill Helliwell and Kris Miller rounded out the top-5 in points.
Chasing the Checkered partner and division rookie, Zach Nicholson, took home an impressive 6th place points finish in the division. His first full-time season in a new division had its up’s and down’s, but the 17-year-old ended up finishing the season with 4 top-5 finishes and 11 top-5 finishes.
Lee USA Speedway began the season under new ownership, but managed to make so many new improvements to the track in 2018, maximizing the fan experience.
The 2018 Championship Night went off without a hitch or any hiccups, ending the season on a (very) optimistic note.
The 2018 regular season may be over at the track, but there is still Oktoberfest weekend remaining on October 6th and 7th.
In addition to Oktoberfest, there are still many great racing events remaining in 2018 at different short tracks throughout New England.
Get out there and venture to a local short track near you!
Here’s to 2019 and the racing memories that are yet to come to life at Lee USA Speedway!
Thank you again to Drown Excavation and Four Season Synthetic for their endless support for Chasing the Checkered. Contact Drown Excavation for all of your demolition and excavation needs and Four Season Synthetic for all of your oil, lube and filter needs!
