Brown and Gray are Colors of the Day at Legion Speedway Opener; Sunn and Donnelly Join Them in Victory Lane
WENTWORTH, NH – With Red, White and Blue on display for the Memorial Day Weekend opener at the newly refurbished Legion Speedway, Street Stock racer Mark Brown of Rumney joined Mini Sprint ace Brian Gray of Meredith along with Outlaw Mini Stock alumnus Josh Sunn of White River, Jct., VT and multi time Modified champ Chris Donnelly of Piermont in victory lane. A good crowd was on hand to watch the Sunday twilight event, which was sponsored by S.K. Bean’s Enfield Garage.
Brown had no trouble handling the short field in the Street Stock feature. He was able to fend off the advances of J.P. Vaillancourt, who fought an ill handing car for much of the race. Marc Jenot was third and James Travis, who towed all the way in from Shapleigh, ME was fourth.
In the early stages of the Papa Z’s 600cc Mini Sprint feature, Gray had his hands full with Rick Crooker knocking at the door. Crooker’s steed lacked Gray’s speed, however, and the distance between first and second increased as the race wore on. Luke Greenwood started fifth and advanced as far as third before retiring to the pits with a mechanical issue. Spencer Allen followed Gray and Crooker across the line. On Saturday, Allen had graduated from Kimball Union Academy in Meriden; he’s headed for the motorsports program at the University of Northwestern Ohio in the fall.
After scoring a dominating win in a Modified at Bear Ridge Speedway on Saturday night, Sunn returned to his Mini Stock roots to accomplish the same feat on Sunday evening at Legion Speedway. It was Mini Stock win number 86 for Sunn, who was piloting the ride usually driven by Danny Doyle. It was a peat and repeat event as second place finisher Rob Gioia had won in the Fast Four division at Bear Ridge on Saturday. Gioia’s teammate Andy Johnson capitalized on a well-timed caution flag to pit for a tire change and charge from the tail end of the field to finish third.
With only his wife Julie and their lovable basset hound for a crew, Donnelly drove a Tim Tucker owned car to a convincing victory in the Forward’s Garage Modifieds feature. Trevor Rocke raced from sixth to claim the runner-up spot while Travis Shinn charged from the tail end to finish third, after having been involved in an early race accident.
“This is the first time I’ve raced a Modified all year,” Donnelly said. “I came to support track owner Si Allen and promoters Wally and Janine Browne and to thank them for all the work they’ve done here at Legion Speedway along with Dan Bowne. They’ve put down a lot of new clay and, sure, there will be some issues with the surface while it gets worked in, but I’ve been coming here for years and the track has never had this much clay on it; they’ll get it right. I just can’t wait to come here with a Sprint Car because I know that the Sprint Cars will be quicker than quick.”
Twilight Sunday racing continues at the Legion Speedway this Sunday with a show sponsored by Al Crossman Trucking and Eastman’s Trophies. The action begins with hot laps at 4:15 pm and the first green flag at 5:00 for the Forward’s Garage Modifieds, the Papa Z’s Mini Sprints, the Street Stocks and the Outlaw Mini Stocks.
Adult admission is only $10, with Juniors and Seniors at $8.00. Kids 11 and under are free with an accompanying paid admission and money saving Family Pack is just $25. Parking is always free. Picturesquely placed in the Connecticut River Valley between the Green Mountains to the west and the White Mountains to the east, Legion Speedway is located on NH Route 25 at the Rumney/Wentworth town line and is easily reached via either I-93 or I-91.
Forward’s Garage Modified Feature: 1. Chris Donnelly, 2. Trevor Rocke, 3. Travis Shinn, 4. Jason Sanville, 5. Todd Petschke, 6. Allan Hammond, 7. Mark Williams, 8. David Heath, 9. Toby Stark, 10. Chad Turk, 11. Evan Kingsbury, 12. Jeff Elliot, 13 Fred Fecteau, 14. Corey Swinson, 15. Troy Comeau.
Papa Z’s Mini Sprint Feature: 1. Brian Gray, 2. Rich Crooker, 3. Spencer Allen, 4. Christine Boesch, 5. Dale Shallow, 6. Luke Greenwood, 7. Jamie Glidden, 8. Scott Preston, 9. Frankie Sweeney.
Street Stock Feature: 1. Mark Brown, 2. JP Vaillancourt, 3. Marc Jenot, 4. James Travis.
Outlaw Mini Stock Feature: 1. Josh Sunn, 2. Rob Gioia, 3. Alan Johnson, 4. Tony Shaw, 5. Chris Cole, 6. Derek Durkey, 7. James Davis, 8. Dave Durkey, 9. Dennis Thoroughgood.
Sources: Mark McKeon/Legion Speedway PR