Summer is in full swing in Coastal Maine, meaning that the excitement keeps coming at Wiscasset Speedway! The track returned to action on Saturday night, hosting a loaded Group 1 program that featured all weekly divisions plus the visiting Ladies Acceleration Tour, which is always a hit.
The racing action kicked off with the night’s Pepsi spotlight feature: an extended 30-lap race for the County Truss 4-Cylinder Pros. Although Rowdy Romano took off with the early advantage, he dropped out of line on lap 3, handing the lead over to Jay Plummer. Multi-time winner Chassidy Shorty pulled to his inside on lap 6, promptly taking over the lead as Max Parlin followed in succession. After a solid start to the day, Jay Plummer made an early exit on lap 17, making way for Dylan Anderson. The second half of the race was a battle of attrition as Anderson came to a slow on lap 20, making the dreaded right-hand turn to the pits. As the leaders pulled away, the battle for third began to heat up as the laps wound down. Chassidy Shorty sailed into another victory, followed by Max Parlin and Rowdy Romano, who beat out Sam Fogg for third.
The 40-lap T&L Automotive Pro Stock feature got off to a chaotic start as a pile-up collected Tiger Colby, Nick Hinkley and Dave Getchell. Logan Melcher and Andy Gilbert battled it out on the restart with Josh St. Clair nipping at their heels. Melcher reclaimed the top spot as Josh St. Clair took over second. St. Clair was all over the leader in the laps that followed, hungry for the top spot. While battling for position, Kelly Moore and Nick Hinkley made contact on lap 15, sending Hinkley for a spin. Logan Melcher and Josh St. Clair continued to battle it out on the restart. Melcher pulled ahead with the slight advantage, but St. Clair remained glued to his back bumper. Tiger Colby entered the picture on lap 25, breaking the top 3 before overtaking second from Josh St. Clair. Colby moved onto the leader, diving under Melcher with just 3 laps to go. Melcher was able to hold him off, securing his first victory with his own business (T&L Automotive) as the division’s title sponsor. Josh St. Clair rounded out the top 3.
While Dalaney Dunn topped the leaderboard in group time trials with the top lap of 19.243 seconds, it was Jody Rose who pulled out to the early lead in the 20-lap Ladies Acceleration Tour feature. Rose got bent out of shape on lap 2, catapulting Dalaney Dunn to the lead. Trouble was brewing for Rose, who went around in a single-car spin on lap 6. Dalaney Dunn maintained command on the restart while Jody Rose was on her redemption tour, re-entering the top 3 following her early-race struggles. Dunn stretched her lead to a full straightaway as the laps wound down, scoring a commanding victory as Ashleigh Morrill and Jody Rose completed the podium.
Drivers went 3-wide for position on the initial lap of the 30-lap Darling’s Brunswick Ford Super Street feature, resulting in a pile-up that collected Bubba Pelton, Andy Kaherl and others. Landon Tapley held the advantage over new points leader David Greenleaf on the restart, but Greenleaf pulled to his inside on lap 8, challenging for the top spot. After a clean back & forth battle, Greenleaf took sole possession of the lead on lap 15. Andy Kaherl was also on the move as the laps wound down, overtaking second with just 5 laps to go. He was unable to track down David Greenleaf, who took home his second win of the season. Landon Tapley followed, completing the top 3.
Donnie Fletcher pulled out to a measurable early lead in the 25-lap feature for the Maine Army National Guard Thunder 4 Minis. A gridlocked battle for second ensued behind him, with Ricky Austin breaking free with the spot. Austin continued his pursuit in the laps that followed, pulling to Fletcher’s door on lap 17. He made quick work of the leader, leaving Fletcher battling it out with Derek Cook for second. Cook got bent out of shape on lap 22 as Fletcher held onto the spot. Derek Cook dropped off the pace in the final laps of the race, handing third over to longtime competitor Jeff Farrington. Ricky Austin sailed into his second victory of the season, followed by Donnie Fletcher and Jeff Farrington.
There was a tight-knit battle for the early lead in the 30-lap Davis Erector Group 207 Crate Modified feature, with veteran Billy Dixon taking over the spot. Nick Hinkley was quick to his outside, overtaking the lead as defending champion Ryan Phillips and John Ricci followed in succession. John Ricci cleared Ryan Phillips for second on lap 10 and moved onto Nick Hinkley, powering to the lead on lap 13. Ricci held off the competition in the second half of the race, picking up the win while Nick Hinkley and Ryan Phillips completed the top 3.
Unfortunately, John Ricci was disqualified in post-race technical inspection due to a missing carb spacer on his 604 crate motor. Therefore, Nick Hinkley was deemed the official race winner following tech.
Overall, Saturday’s program was both exciting and clean, with more changeups in the point standings in numerous divisions and minimal cautions.
Team Wiscasset will keep the excitement coming as they host all Group 2 divisions plus the lightning-fast 350SMAC Tour on Saturday, July 18th.
The green flag flies at 5:00 pm and as always, adult general admission is just $5 while kids 6 and under get in for free.
Support your local short track and we’ll see you there!
Thank you to Jasen Dickey Photography for all featured photos this week, as well as our amazing website partner Kennebec Equipment Rental for their unwavering support.
