After the first round of Thursday Night competition was completed, the Beetle Bug Varsity drivers took to the track for their first feature of the night.
Jamie Heath took the early lead, but Jeff Walker wasn’t too far behind. Walker was on the move in the early stages of the race, making his way to the outside of Heath for the lead on lap 3. He later captured the lead on lap 5, pulling away from the competition. Walker began sailing away, but the competition caution came out on lap 11 to join the field back together.
Week 1 victor, Ben Krauter, came alive in the late stages of the race, making his way into the runner-up spot on the restart. Jeff Walker proved too strong for the rest of the leaders, sailing into his first victory of the 2018 season. Ben Krauter, Jamie Heath, Ed Johnson and Joshua Knoll followed, rounding out the top five.
Mike Ramsey took off with the early lead in the 25-lap Mad Bomber Varsity feature, but trouble wasn’t too far behind. Drivers were 3-4 wide on the initial start, leading to Todd Libby cutting down a tire and Seth Leeman ending up on the infield. As the track settled down a bit, Jason Gammon began his pursuit to the front, powering into the runner-up spot on lap 8.
By lap 16, Gammon was within two car lengths of Ramsey. On lap 23, he made an attempt to grab the lead, pulling to the outside of Ramsey and challenging him for the top spot. Ramsey was able to hold off Jason Gammon, taking home the victory. Chris Burgess, Chad Reynolds and Tom Lovejoy, Sr. followed, rounding out the top five.
After the race concluded, it was revealed that Ramsey was disqualified from the race due to failing inspection. The victory was then awarded to Jason Gammon and Brandon Johnson was awarded with a top-5 finish.
Keith Petrin took off like a bullet in the 15-lap Mighty Trucks feature, going from first to last in one single lap. Jared Kimball was also on the move early, quickly making his way into the runner-up spot. At the halfway mark, there was a 2-car breakaway at the front of the field. By lap 12, Kimball was all over Petrin for the lead. Petrin was able to hold him off, taking home his second consecutive victory. Jared Kimball, Kris Knox, Mark Grantham and Brad Weismann followed, rounding out the top five.
The first act of selflessness for the night occurred in the second Ladies League feature. After facing mechanical problems in the first feature, the Naughty Racing team let Betty Nelson pilot the #40 car in the second feature. This was a complete act of kindness, especially seeing that team owner Dan McKeage’s wife, Laura, is a fellow competitor in the division.
Mary Price took off with the early lead, but Betty Nelson was on the move in the early laps of the race. After starting in the rear of the field, Betty broke the top five on lap 5, later clearing Desiree LaChance for the runner-up spot on lap 7. She continued her pursuit to the front, quickly making her way around Mary Price for the top spot.
Laura McKeage and Holly Gain made contact on lap 8, resulting in McKeage taking a spin in turn 1. The field remained green as Laura attempted to catch back up to the leaders. By lap 15, Betty Nelson was leading by nearly an entire straightaway over the rest of the pack. Sara Libby took a spin on lap 16 in turn 4, but the field stayed green.
Jenna Webster made a late-race surge to the front in the closing laps of the race, stealing away the runner-up spot from Mary Price on the final lap of competition. Betty Nelson ran away with the victory, followed by Jenna Webster, Laura McKeage, Mary Price and Holly Gain.
Young gun Ivan Kaffel took off with the early lead in the 25-lap Legends feature. Kevin Girard was on fire early, making his way into the top 4 on lap 4. Charlie Buxton was looking for vengeance after his troubles in the first feature, making his way to the inside of Kaffel for the lead on lap 4. He captured the lead just one lap later, pulling away from the rest of the field.
Kevin Girard was still fixated on making his way to the front of the pack, powering into the top 3 on lap 6. He later captured the runner-up spot on lap 10, but, the #31 of Noah Korner stole the position from him just one lap later. Girard was then pushed to the outside line, resulting in the #19 losing a few spots on the track.
Austin Teras was on the move again in the second feature, making his way from the tail of the field to third place on lap 15. The #08 of Cory Hall went hard into the dirt in turn 1 on lap 18, leading to the first caution of the feature.
After having a strong showing in both feature races, Noah Korner took a hard spin in turn 3 on the restart, miraculously avoiding any contact as the field stayed green. Austin Teras made his way to the inside of Charlie Buxton for the lead on lap 22, fighting hard for the top spot. After losing the lead to Teras, Charlie Buxton and Kevin Girard both took spins in turn 4 on lap 22, leading to a late-race caution.
Teras wound up holding onto the lead, sailing into his second feature victory of the night. Parker Varney, Chris Burgess, Tylar Braunschweig and Matt Bourgoine followed, rounding out the top 5.
The second act of selflessness for the night came in the second Beetle Bug JV feature, when Stone Racing allowed Brandon Lizotte to pilot their #28 Beetle Bug car after Brandon faced mechanical issues with his #14 after the first feature.
Returning driver, Kara Krauter, took off with the early lead as Brandon Lizotte quickly made his way into the runner-up spot behind her. Chris Case was also on the move early, powering into the top 3 on lap 2. Robert Taylor took a spin on lap 2 in turn 3, leading to the first caution of the feature.
As Brandon Lizotte powered into the lead on the restart, Chris Case nearly lost control of his #45 Dream Machine, losing a handful of spots. Kara Krauter went hard into the dirt in turn 2 on lap 5, leading to the second caution of the feature.
After a solid performance in the first feature, Derek McKeen fell to the rear of the pack on the restart. Chris Case was on a roll again, sneaking back into the top 3 on lap 10. He continued his pursuit to the front, capturing the runner-up spot on lap 14. Darryl Quinlan had a right tire go down on lap 17, leading to him taking the #12 machine to the pits. Alex Parechanian took a spin in turn 4 on lap 17, leading to a late-race caution.
This led to a 3-lap shootout between good friends, Brandon Lizotte and Chris Case. Case was gaining ground on Lizotte on the final lap, but he was unable to seal the deal. Lizotte took home the victory in his makeshift #14 car, making it his first victory of the season. Chris Case, Max Dolliver, Robert Taylor and Derek McKeen followed, rounding out the top five.
The Mad Bomber Junior Varsity division was the final division of Double Features night, with front runner Cam Jones taking a spin on the initial lap as Dylan Shores took off with the early lead. Richard Bourgeois-Lang took a spin on the backstretch on lap 4 after making contact with the #25 of Jenna Webster, yet the field remained green.
Young gun, Devon McConologue, was on the move mid-race, making his way up to the fourth spot on lap 10 after starting the race at the tail-end of the field. Mike Sanford and race leader Dylan Shores made contact on lap 11 in turn 1, leading to Sanford taking over the lead. After winning the first feature of the night, Garrett Lamb was on the pursuit in the closing laps of the race, breaking into the top 5 on lap 15.
Mike Sanford was able to capture the victory as Garrett Lamb and Kyle Gailloux battled it out for the runner-up spot behind him. The two came to the finish line side-by-side, with Gailloux taking a spin on the front stretch as Garrett Lamb took home the spot. Justin Gailloux and Devon McConologue followed, rounding out the top five.
Thursday night at Beech Ridge Motor Speedway was an action-packed night of racing. It was really cool being able to see teams come together to help fellow competitors in times of need. It was even cooler to see these driver wind up with wins on Thursday Night.
Thursday night was just the beginning of a great season of Thursday Night Thunder. The thunder rolls on next Thursday, June 28th. Racing starts at 7:00 pm and adult admission is only $7. As always, children 12 and under get in free.
We hope to see you there!
