Glen Ridge winner ready for biggest Sportsman race in North America
WEST HAVEN, Vt. – Brendan Gibbons has filed the first official entry for the Interstate All Battery Center Vermont 200 at Devil’s Bowl Speedway. The Scotia, N.Y., racer is prepared to take on a stacked field in what has quickly become the biggest Sportsman Modified dirt track race in North America, and will be one of many invaders chasing the $7,500 winner’s purse on Sunday, September 6.
Gibbons ranks among the top 10 DIRTcar Sportsman drivers at Glen Ridge Motorsports Park in Fultonville, N.Y., and he picked up the first win of his career there on July 19; he also won twice in the track’s Limited Sportsman division in 2019, and is a frequent competitor at the nearby Fonda Speedway.
Gibbons has entered his own No. B24 Bicknell chassis into the Vermont 200, carrying sponsorship from Jim Passino Trucking, Fastenal, Hunt’s Machine, Hometown Pub & Grub, Tom Schaeffer’s RV Super Store, and Fossil State Winery. The Labor Day event will be his first visit to Devil’s Bowl Speedway as a competitor.
While the Vermont 200 has two days of on-track action on September 5-6, it remains a one-day race for the Sportsman Modified division on Sunday. Drivers will draw at random for heat race starting positions, followed by consolation races and a last-chance “B-Feature.” Two provisionals will be available for full-time “100%” Devil’s Bowl competitors, and guaranteed starting positions are reserved for the winners of “Win & You’re In!” feature races for Devil’s Bowl’s Pepsi Sportsman Modified division on Saturday, August 29, and for the O’Reilly Auto Parts Limited Sportsman division at the Vermont 200 Saturday show.
Sportsman Modified teams are welcome, though not required, to compete in the Saturday program as well, which features the annual “Ron Casey Memorial” Non-Winners Race and an open practice session. Along with those options and the Limited Sportsman “Win & You’re In!” race, the Pro Stock, Super Stock, Mini Stock, and Friend Construction 500cc Mini Sprint divisions will be on the card. The Pro Stocks will determine their 2020 Devil’s Bowl champion, and the Mini Sprints will run the first half of a two-day, two-segment weekend race.
On Sunday, the winged-and-wicked-fast Sprint Cars of New England tour will return to join the Sportsman Modifieds and the second segment for the Mini Sprints. The Vermont 200 Weekend event is once again presented by Interstate All Battery Center of Rutland, Vt.
Rocky Warner and Brett Hearn pocketed the two largest Sportsman Modified purses in Northeastern dirt racing history at the first two editions of the Vermont 200, winning $14,490 and $13,100, respectively. While the 2020 purse has been reduced slightly due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the winner is still guaranteed a minimum of $7,500 with the last-place finisher taking $300, and more than $5,000 in lap leader bonuses will be up for grabs. Fifty-eight drivers attempted to qualify for the race in 2019, and 56 cars tried their hand in 2018.
CLICK HERE FOR VERMONT 200 ENTRY FORM
A limited number of Grandstand and Infield Drive-In tickets will soon be available for spectators. Tickets will sold online in advance at https://buytickets.at/devilsbowlspeedway (processing fees apply), or at the speedway on race night until the maximum pandemic-restricted capacity is reached.
Devil’s Bowl Speedway is located on Route 22A in West Haven, Vt., four miles north of U.S. Route 4, Exit 2, 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, Instagram, and Snapchat at @DevilsBowlSpeed; follow the action using the #DevilsBowl hashtag.
(Photo by Jeff Karabin/JB Photography)