PHOTO: Rookie Derrick O’Donnell (#60) and Nick Sweet (#88) sit 1-2 in Vermont State Late Model Championship Series standings entering Friday’s People’s United Bank 100 at Devil’s Bowl Speedway. (Leif Tillotson photo)
People’s United Bank 100 on tap Friday
WEST HAVEN, VT – Devil’s Bowl Speedway is preparing for one of the highlight events of the summer stock car racing season, as the Vermont State Late Model Championship Series heads to the fast half-mile track for the People’s United Bank 100 on Friday, June 7 at 7:00pm. The event is the second round of the four-race championship.
The Vermont State Late Model Championship Series opened at Thunder Road International Speedbowl in Barre, VT with the Mekkelsen RV Memorial Day Classic 100 on May 27. Rookie Derrick O’Donnell of North Haverhill, NH pulled off a major upset to defeat hometown driver Nick Sweet, who won both Vermont State races at the track in 2012, and finds himself leading the standings. Sweet and Trampas Demers of South Burlington, VT are next in line, followed by Glen Luce of Turner, ME and Chip Grenier of Graniteville, VT.
The People’s United Bank 100 at Devil’s Bowl Speedway is expected to continue a recent string of exciting Late Model races at the track. Photo finishes have been the standard for the division lately; dating back to the Vermont State Late Model Championship Series finale on Vermont 200 Weekend in September 2012, each of the last three races has been decided by less than one-tenth of a second. The quality of racing in the division has improved steadily since the beginning of the 2012 season, and a talented batch of locally-based racers is ready to challenge the invading Thunder Road stars.
Craig Bushey of Fairfax, VT and Brent Dragon of Milton, VT scored Vermont State victories at Devil’s Bowl last summer. Both are expected to return for the People’s United Bank 100, as are defending Vermont State Champion Dave Pembroke of Middlesex, VT, Thunder Road podium finishers O’Donnell, Sweet, and Demers, and Devil’s Bowl stars Kevin Elliott of Rutland, VT, Chris Bergeron of Claremont, NH, Dan Petronis of Mechanicville, NY, and Robert Bryant of Brooklyn, CT.
The NASCAR Whelen All-American Series Bond Auto Parts Modifieds, Renegades, and Central Vermont Motorcycles Mini Stocks will also be on hand for the People’s United Bank 100, along with the popular and unpredictable Spectator Races for street-legal vehicles. General admission is $15 for adults, $13 for seniors, and free for children 12 and under. Racing begins at 7:00pm on Friday, June 7.
Devil’s Bowl Speedway is located on Route 22A in West Haven, VT, four miles north of Exit 2 on U.S. Route 4. For more information, visit www.devilsbowlspeedwayvt.com or call (802) 265-3112. Devil’s Bowl Speedway is on Facebook at facebook.com/DevilsBowlSpeedway and on Twitter at @DevilsBowlSpeed.