Local stars ready for People’s United Bank 100; kids poster contest on tap
WEST HAVEN, Vt. – The cars and stars of the American-Canadian Tour are ready to invade Devil’s Bowl Speedway, but the home track favorites are waiting and primed for a 100-lap stock car battle. ACT, the northeast’s premier Late Model stock car series, returns for the annual People’s United Bank 100 on Saturday, June 4 at 6:00 p.m., and the region’s top drivers will face off against the local speedsters.
Among the drivers who will be representing the Devil’s Bowl Speedway “home” crowd from the weekly NASCAR Whelen All-American Series (NWAAS) Central Vermont Motorcycles Late Model division are Josh Masterson, Robert Bryant Jr., Seth Bridge, and Brent Dragon. Defending track champion Masterson has won the first two weekly events at Devil’s Bowl this season, and finished fourth in last year’s ACT People’s United Bank 100.
Bryant made an exciting back-to-front charge last Saturday to take runner-up honors, and Bridge – last year’s Most Improved Driver – finished a strong fourth. Dragon, a multi-time ACT winner, will be driving Chad White’s familiar No. 8 car in the event.
The ACT Late Model Tour will be represented by drivers from all six New England states and New York, with three young racers – Bobby Therrien, Emily Packard, and Brandon Atkins – enjoying a home-track advantage. Each is a past weekly competitor at Devil’s Bowl, and the trio has combined for seven Late Model victories at the Rutland County track; Therrien finished third in last weekend’s 40-lap NWAAS race in his first start of the year.
ACT hotshots Eddie MacDonald, Nick Sweet, Scott Payea, Wayne Helliwell Jr., Dillon Moltz, and Brad Babb will be drivers to watch. Sweet and Helliwell finished on the podium in the People’s United Bank 100 last year, and have each won three long-distance events at Devil’s Bowl. MacDonald and Payea each has an ACT win in 2016, Babb finished fifth at Devil’s Bowl one year ago, and Moltz was sixth in his first ACT start at the track last year.
Also in action on Saturday night are the NWAAS Bond Auto Parts Sportsman Modifieds, Rosen & Berger Renegades, and Portland Glass Mini Stocks, and the Thomas Dairy Kids Club Poster Drawing Contest for which kids of all ages are encouraged to create a poster of their favorite racecar driver. Special event general admission on Saturday is $20 for adults, $18 for seniors (62+) and students (13-17), and free for kids 12 and under.
Completing the weekend, Devil’s Bowl has added an event on its 3/10-mile Dirt Track for Sunday, June 5 at 6:00 p.m., as rainy weather has forced the cancellation of the first two dirt races of the season. Regular general admission on Sunday is $12 for adults, $10 for seniors and students, and free for kids.
Devil’s Bowl Speedway is located on Route 22A in West Haven, Vt., four miles north of Exit 2 off of U.S. Route 4 and just 20 minutes from Rutland, Vt. 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 and Instagram at @DevilsBowlSpeed; follow the action using the #DevilsBowl hashtag.
EXPECTED ENTRIES – People’s United Bank 100
American-Canadian Tour – Devil’s Bowl Speedway – West Haven, Vt.
Saturday, June 4, 2016
(# – denotes ACT rookie)
Car No. Driver Hometown
1VT # Devin O’Connell Madison, CT
3CT Robert Bryant, Jr. Brooklyn, CT
4NY Brandon Atkins Au Sable Forks, NY
5CT Dillon Moltz Waterford, CT
5VT Bobby Therrien Hinesburg, VT
8NY Brent Dragon Milton, VT
9ME Emily Packard East Montpelier, VT
9NH Kyle Welch Newport, NH
11NY Josh Masterson Bristol, VT
15NH Brad Babb Windham, ME
17MA Eddie MacDonald Rowley, MA
22RI # Mark Jenison Warwick, RI
26VT Seth Bridge Mendon, VT
27NH Wayne Helliwell, Jr. Dover, NH
28ME Rowland Robinson, Jr. Steuben, ME
30NH Rich Dubeau Lebanon, NH
31NH Luke Hinkley Claremont, NH
34NH Todd Davis Claremont, NH
37VT Scott Payea Milton, VT
40VT Nick Sweet Barre, VT
49NH Matt Anderson Franklin, NH
54VT Mike Ziter Barre, VT
58VT Jimmy Hebert Williamstown, VT
61NH # Ryan Olsen North Haverhill, NH
77MA Jimmy Linardy Somerville, MA
78NH Quinny Welch Lancaster, NH
82MA Mark Hudson Norton, MA
(Dave Dalesandro/RacersGuide.com photo)