With sunny skies and temperatures rising above 70 degrees, Saturday was a beautiful day for racing in Scarborough, Maine and Beech Ridge Motor Speedway was the host. The day’s events kicked off with a full Thunder program, starting with the Beetle Bugs.
Darryl Quinlan took off with the early lead in the 25-lap feature, but Brandon Lizotte was on the move behind him. Lizotte was at Quinlan’s door by lap 3, hungry for the top spot.
Week 2 winner, Ed Johnson, was also on the move early, advancing to fourth on lap 3 after starting at the tail-end of the field. Johnson continued his pursuit to the front on lap 5, challenging Adam Warnock for third. Johnson completed the pass as Dustin Salley followed in succession. Salley later took over Johnson for third.
After battling it out for a handful of laps, Brandon Lizotte overtook Darryl Quinlan for the lead on lap 8. Dustin Salley was all over Darryl Quinlan for the runner-up spot on lap 9, winning the battle for the position as Brandon Lizotte began to take off at the front of the pack.
Darryl Quinlan and Ed Johnson went door to door for third in the closing laps, with Johnson overtaking Quinlan for the spot on lap 16. Dustin Salley was all over Brandon Lizotte’s back bumper with 3 laps to go, but Lizotte was able to hold him off, securing the feature victory. Ed Johnson, Darryl Quinlan and Adam Warnock rounded out the top five.
The Mad Bomber JV division followed with their 25-lap feature. The feature began with melee as drivers bunched up mid-pack, resulting in an early caution. David Bouchard was among the victims and was towed off-track following the incident.
Seth Drown took off with the lead on the restart, but Alex Smith was quick to steal it away. Josh Hodgdon was also on the move early, advancing to third on lap 3. He found his way to Seth Drown’s door the following lap, challenging for the runner-up spot. Tyler Lerman, Taylor Graffam and others collided on lap 4 in turn 2, resulting in another caution.
Alex Smith took off with the lead once again on the restart as Josh Hodgdon advanced into the runner-up spot. Joey Israelson was at Hodgdon’s door on lap 8, challenging for position before he pulled off-track just a few laps later. After a strong showing all race, Seth Drown also retired to the pits on lap 10.
Josh Hodgdon was at Alex Smith’s door by lap 11, challenging him for the top spot. Trouble was brewing behind the leaders as Tony Gibbons took a spin on lap 11 in turn 2, resulting in a mid-race caution.
Alex Smith and Josh Hodgdon went head to head for the lead on the restart with Brandon Williams right on their heels. Hodgdon pulled away with the advantage on lap 20 and never looked back, capturing yet another feature victory. Alex Smith and Brandon Williams rounded out the top 3.
The Mighty Trucks followed, with Jeff Gillette, Jr. taking off with the early lead in the 25-lap feature. Keith Petrin was on the move early, challenging Derrick Drown for third on lap 4. The two drivers took Brad Weismann 3-wide for the runner up spot the following lap. Weismann lost the battle, dropping to fourth as Petrin and Drown continued to battle it out.
Keith Petrin finally cleared Derrick Drown for the runner-up spot on lap 8 and continued his pursuit to the front just 3 laps later as he overtook Jeff Gillette, Jr. for the top spot. It was a battle of the Gillette’s on lap 12 as the father-son duo went head to head for the runner-up spot. Gillette, Sr. won the battle as Keith Petrin began to slowly pull away from the field.
Dave Lamson joined the battle for the podium on lap 15, challenging Derrick Drown for third. Lamson took over the spot briefly, but Drown was quick to steal it away once again. The #77 machine took a spin on the backstretch on lap 20, resulting in a late-race caution.
Keith Petrin and Jeff Gillette, Sr. went door-to-door for the lead on the restart. Keith Petrin pulled ahead with the advantage on the final lap, securing the feature victory. Derrick Drown, Dave Lamson and Jeff Gillette, Jr. rounded out the top five.
The Mad Bomber division rounded out the Thunder events with their 25-lap feature race. Drew Morse and Richard Bourgeois went head to head for the early lead in the feature, with Morse pulling away with the advantage on lap 2. Dean Hanscom was also on the move early, advancing to fourth on lap 4.
Jason Gammon, pulling double-duty in the Mad Bomber and Wildcats divisions, was at Hanscom’s door on lap 5, overtaking Hanscom for fourth. Gammon was at Brandon Johnson’s door just two laps later, briefly taking over third from Johnson before blowing a tire and retiring to the pits.
Brandon Johnson tracked down Richard Bourgeois in the closing laps, at Bourgeois’ door for the runner-up spot on lap 18. Johnson pulled away with the advantage on lap 20, then setting his sights on Morse at the top of the leaderboard.
Richard Bourgeois and Kris Knox went door to door for third on the final lap, with Bourgeois beating Knox to the line as Drew Morse secured his second feature victory of the 2021 season.
The Thunder program surely brought excitement to Beech Ridge on Saturday as we saw two repeat winners in Victory Lane as well as two winners from past seasons.
One Thunder driver has already broken the mold in 2021 with their first feature victory. It’ll be interesting to see which other drivers can follow in her footsteps and which drivers will continue to pick up continued wins as the season rolls on.
The 2021 season continues on next Saturday, May 22nd. Feature racing begins at 4:00pm and kids of ALL AGES are now allowed in the pits. As always, grandstand admission is just $12 for adults and FREE for kids 12 & under.
Continue chasing the checkered and support your local short tracks. I hope to see you soon!
