September 7, 2003

Little king of the mountain

WEST HAVEN, VT. –  For most of the year, Fred Little has played the role of car owner. But on Sunday night, he showed he hasn’t forgotten how to race, either.

Back behind the wheel of his own car that rookie Lori Cary piloted throughout the 2003 season, Little drove to an impressive win in the 20-lap pro-street stock feature that was the highlight of the annual Mountain Man 100 at Devil‘s Bowl Speedway.

Little has been in the car twice this season, and both times, he came away with a victory. He subbed for Cary on the night of Aug. 17, and also won that race.

On Sunday night, he beat Carl Vladyka by 0.480 seconds to get the win. Both Vladyka and Robert Langevin took turns leading the race early, but neither one had the power to hold off Little and his Chevy specengine-powered car.

Langevin was third, with Denny Martin fourth and Ed Thompson fifth.

Billy Lussier took advantage of some racing luck to record his third win of the season in the 15-lap hobby stock feature. Albany-Saratoga Speedway point leader Mike Tholin dominated the early part of the race, but suffered a flat tire on lap 10, giving the lead to Lussier, who held off rookie Chris Cary to get the victory. Cary, who has been running in the cruiser division all year, made a good impression in the hobby stock class in the old Lori Cary No. 96.

Scott Fowler finished third, followed by David Knowlton Jr. And Dave Knowlton.

The Coupes made their first appearance at Devil’s Bowl in 15 years, with Tyler Rich coming away with a popular victory. Louis Caldwell finished second, with Josh Harrington third. Race director Bruce Richards said that the Coupes were so well received that he’ll be running them once a month during the 2004 campaign at the Bowl.

The cruisers were also in action Sunday, with Ron Zagata posting his sixth victory of the season. The night ended with the Mountain Man 100 enduro, won by Dennis Joslin.

Fans at the Bowl also got a little preview of the spectacular Run What Ya Brung show, which will be held on Sunday night. The hybrid modifieds of Gene Munger, Ronnie Johnson and Tim Laduc took to the track for some testing, with Munger turning a lap of 17.273 seconds (104.209 mph) in his small block, while Johnson was just a tick behind him in the Fonda Speedway big block car.

The Run What Ya Brung, a 50-lap event which will pay $5,000 to win, will highlight the final night of the 2003 season at the Bowl. All other divisions will be action for the annual Vermont State Dirt Track Championships. Racing will begin at 6 p.m.

PRO-STREET STOCKS: FRED LITTLE, Carl Vladyka, Robert Langevin, Denny Martin, Ed Thompson, Bernie Companion, Mike Duncan, Randy Brownell, Dave Woods, Mike Bussino, Jonah Rule.

HOBBY STOCKS: BILLY LUSSIER, Chris Cary, Scott Fowler, David Knowlton, Dave Knowlton, Russ Farr, Shannon Donnelly, Tony Condon, Joey Trudeau, Al Gregware, Mike Tholin, Jared McMahon, Adam Forbes, Bill Burlingame.

CRUISERS: RON ZAGATA, Jason Bishop, Thomas Welch, John Sullivan, Robert Cole, Dwight Cram, Vince Greene, Harold Clothier.