With sunny skies and warm temperatures, Thursday was the picture-perfect night to get some Thunder racing in. The skies may have been clear, but thunder was in the forecast and it all kicked off with the 25-lap Beetle Bugs feature.
Ben Krauter took off with the early lead in the feature, but Alex Parechanian was on the move early. He was all over Dave Moreau for the runner-up spot on lap 8, advancing position just a few laps later on lap 11.
Week 1 and 2 race winner, Chris Case, was also charging through the field, advancing to fourth on lap 10 after starting at the rear of the field. He made his way to Dave Moreau’s outside on lap 13, advancing into third the following lap. By lap 17, there was a top-3 breakaway at the front of the field with just 8 laps to go. Ben Krauter sailed away with the victory, collecting his first victory of 2019 and snapping Chris Case’s winning streak. Alex Parechanian, Chris Case, Dave Moreau and Ray Phillips followed, rounding out the top five.
The Mad Bomber Junior Varsity division was up next with their 25-lap feature. The #5 of Richard Maynard went hard into the turn 2 sand pile on the initial lap, but was able to drive away as Tom Lovejoy, Jr. took off with the early lead. Jimmy Burnham and Cam Jones made hard contact on lap 2 in turn 2, leading to the first caution of the feature.
Garrett Lamb was on the move following the restart, breaking the top 5 on lap 3 and advancing to fourth the following lap. Derrick Burnham and Jimmy Burnham both went around on lap 5 in turn 2, leading to another caution.
Tom Lovejoy, Jr. pulled away with the lead once again on the restart as Cam Jones began his pursuit back to the front of the field, nearly splitting the field in half by lap 6. Scott Eck was on the move on lap 9, clearing Garrett Lamb for fourth and advancing to third the following lap. Garrett Lamb was all over Justin Gailloux for fourth on lap 12, advancing position the following lap. Jeff Martel was all over Justin Gailloux’s back bumper for fifth on lap 16, but Cam Jones was right there. Scott Eck was still on his pursuit to the front, clearing Joey Israelson for the runner-up spot on lap 17. Logan Caron blew up on lap 17, landing him in the dirt in turns 3 and 4. Jimmy Burnham and Derrick Burnham were also left spinning. The incident led to another caution.
The lap count advanced to lap 20 under yellow due to the extended cleanup efforts in turns 3&4. Tom Lovejoy, Jr. held the advantage again on the restart, pulling away from his competitors. Cam Jones and Garrett Lamb both went around on lap 23 in turn 4, leading to the race ending under yellow-checkered conditions. Tom Lovejoy, Jr. sailed away with his first victory of the 2019 race season. Scott Eck, Joey Israelson, Michael DeKoning and Dan Collins followed, rounding out the top five.
The Legends feature was next on the agenda, with Chris Burgess pulling away with the early lead. Week 1 and 2 winner, Austin Teras, was on the move in the early laps, breaking the top 5 on lap 4. By lap 10, there was a 4-car breakaway at the front of the field.
Tylar Braunschweig was all over Parker Varney for the runner-up spot on lap 12, clearing Varney for position that lap. But, Varney wasn’t backing down easy, making his way around Braunscweig again on lap 15. By lap 20, Chris Burgess had a sizable lead at the front of the field. He maintained his lead until the conclusion of the race, taking home his first feature victory of the 2019 season. Parker Varney, Tylar Braunschweig, Colby Meserve and Austin Teras rounded out the top five.
The Street Devils lap count was extended to 20 laps from their usual 15 for week 3. Shalene Gailloux took off with the early lead but came to a slow on the backstretch on lap 1, allowing Todd Sargent to take over the race lead. Gailloux came to a stop again on lap 2 in turn 3, leading to the first caution of the feature.
Todd Sargent and Rob Flaherty were head-to-head on the restart, battling it out for the top spot. Shalene Gailloux came to a slow again on lap 5 in turn 2, resulting in another caution.
Rob Flaherty took off with the lead on the restart. Ashley Nicholson took a spin on lap 7 in turn 2, but the field remained green. Blake Berry was all over Rob Flaherty for the lead on lap 8, making his way to Flaherty’s inside on lap 10 and advancing into the lead that lap. The #18 of Trevor Dore fell off-pace on lap 13, making the right-hand turn down to the pits. Paul Goodrich was all over Todd Sargent for third on lap 15, advancing position just two laps later. Blake Berry held off the competition, scoring his second feature victory of the 2019 season. Paul Goodrich, Rob Flaherty, Ashley Nicholson and Todd Sargent rounded out the top five.
The Mad Bomber Varsity division was next on the agenda with their 25-lap feature. Seth Leman and Jimmy Dean made contact on the initial lap on the restart, but the field remained green. There was chaos on lap 1 in turns 3&4 with the leaders going 3-wide for position. Betty Nelson, Kaitlynn Leavitt, Chris Burgess and Brian Darling were all caught up in the carnage, leading to an early-race caution.
Kris Knox took off with the lead on the restart as Brandon Johnson advanced into the runner-up spot. Mike Sanford was also on the move, advancing to third on lap 2. He was all over Brandon Johnson for the runner-up spot on lap 3, advancing into the spot just two laps later. Steve Taylor sent Andre Gailloux for a spin on lap 7 in turn 1, leading to another caution. The lap count advanced to lap 12 under caution.
Mike Sanford took a hard spin on lap 12 in turn 2, leading to another yellow. The lap count advanced another 6 laps to lap 18 under yellow. Mike Sanford took another spin on lap 18 in turn 2, which resulted in hard contact with the #9 of Mike Dearden. The incident led to another caution. Tom Lovejoy, Sr. headed down to the pits under yellow. Mike Sanford was miracuously able to drive away following the incident and rejoined the field.
Steve Benincasa, making his return to a race car after years out of the driver seat, was on the move in the closing laps, advancing to second over Brandon Johson on the restart. Matt Hodgdon held the lead in the closing laps of the feature, but Steve Benincasa pulled to his outside on the final lap, challenging him for the lead. Kris Knox took a wild spin coming to the checkered as Steve Benincasa and Matt Hodgdon continued to battle it out, with Benincasa edging him out by a nose.
Johnny Wolfe, Brandon Johnson and Kris Knox rounded out the top five, but Benincasa was disqualified from the race following post-race inspection. Following this revelation, Matt Hodgdon was awarded with the win and Johnny Wolfe, Brandon Johnson, Kris Knox and Betty Nelson rounded out the top five.
Dave Lamson took off with the early lead in the 25-lap Mighty Trucks feature. The top 3 of Dave Lamson, Jared Kimball and Keith Petrin were bumper-to-bumper at the front of the field on lap 3. Jared Kimball made his way to Dave Lamson’s inside on lap 6, advancing into the top spot that lap as Keith Petrin filed in behind him. Scott Pingree took a spin in front of the leaders on lap 14 in turn 3, resulting in Jared Kimball taking a hard spin into the dirt. The incident led to the first caution of the feature.
Jared Kimball and Keith Petrin were head-to-head for the lead on the restart. Drivers were 3-wide for third on the restart, with Jeff Gillette pulling away with the spot. There was a top-3 breakaway at the front of the field with just 5 laps to go. Keith Petrin made his way under Jared Kimball for the lead with 2 laps to go, advancing into the position coming out of turn 4. He took home the feature win, collecting his second consecutive feature victory in the division. Jeff Gillette, Jared Kimball, Dave Lamson and Will Potter followed, rounding out the top five.
Kaitlynn Leavitt took off with the early lead in the 20-lap Ladies League feature, which was the final feature of the night. Desiree Lachance made contact with Kiyah Gammon on lap 1 in turn 3, resulting in Gammon taking a spin. The incident lead to an early-race caution.
Holly Gain and Kaitlynn Leavitt were head-to-head for the lead on the restart, with Holly Gain clearing her for the top spot on lap 4. Taylor Graffam was all over Kaitlynn Leavitt for the runner-up spot on lap 5, clearing her that lap. Betty Nelson was also on the move mid-race, breaking the top 3 on lap 8. There was a top-2 breakaway at the halfway mark with Holly Gain and Taylor Graffam leading the charge. Laura McKeage was on the charge in the closing laps, advancing to fourth on lap 12. By lap 13, Taylor Graffam was all over Holly Gain for the lead. Holly Gain was able to hold her off, scoring her first career Ladies League victory after years of hard work, growth and determination. Taylor Graffam, Betty Nelson, Laura McKeage and Sara Libby rounded out the top five.
Week 3 of Thursday Thunder brought both first-time winners (in 2019 and ever) and repeat winners to Victory Lane. Now that the rainy days are behind us for now, the Thursday Thunder season is rolling on and grows more competitive with every passing week.
The racing action will continue this coming Thursday, August 1st at 7:00 pm. As always, adult admission is only $7 and kids 12 and under get free admission.
See you there!
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