Helliwell Holds off Field, Beats Rain for Devil’s Bowl Threepeat
Stone, Bushey, LaVair Grab Repeat Victories
WEST HAVEN, VT – American-Canadian Tour stock car driver Wayne Helliwell, Jr., captured a historic victory at Devil’s Bowl Speedway on Sunday, July 28, taking his third consecutive win at the West Haven, VT track in the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital 150 presented by Cat Country 105.3 FM. Todd Stone, rookie Brad Bushey, and Chris LaVair also picked up NASCAR Whelen All-American Series wins at the event.
Helliwell, of Dover, NH, outlasted a race-long fight with Ray Parent. The pair traded the lead eight times during the 150-lap race, which was halted twice for rain including for 23 minutes with 93 laps complete. After the race resumed, Parent, of Tiverton, RI, was running second with just four laps remaining when his engine sputtered, out of fuel. Helliwell pulled away for the win after the final restart to earn the two-race ACT sweep at Devil’s Bowl in 2013, having won the Spring Green 113 in May; he also won the Spring Green in 2012 to make it three-straight wins at the track.
Travis Stearns, a rookie from Auburn, ME, picked up where Parent left off, earning a career-best runner-up finish. Joey Polewarczyk, Jr., of Hudson, NH finished third, followed by Glen Luce of Turner, ME, and rookie Bobby Therrien of Hinesburg, VT, Ben Lynch of Huntersville, NC, and Jimmy Hebert of Williamstown, VT.
Rookie Josh Masterson of Bristol, VT, led the local Devil’s Bowl contingent in eighth place. Brent Dragon of Milton, VT was ninth, followed by another weekly Devil’s Bowl competitor, rookie Brandon Atkins of AuSable Forks, NY.
Todd Stone of Middlebury, VT dominated the 35-lap Bond Auto Parts Modified feature, cruising to his sixth victory of the year. Stone drove from 11th place to second, then capitalized on the race’s lone restart at lap nine to take the lead. Stone also won his qualifying heat and the bonus-points Sunoco Race Fuels Semi-Feature for a rare “triple crown” victory.
Joe Williams of Scotia, NY shrugged off a month of bad luck with a runner-up finish. Jessey Mueller of Olmstedville, NY won a spirited battle for third place after racing with Joey Roberts of Fletcher, VT for most of the event. Vince Quenneville, Jr., of Brandon, VT finished fifth behind Roberts. Kenny Tremont, Jr., Hunter Bates, Leon Gonyo, Ron Proctor, and Jeff Haskins completed the unofficial top ten.
Brad Bushey of Cambridge, VT posted the second Renegade win of his freshman season, taking the overall victory in a two-segment race. Bushey finished second in the first 12-lap segment and won the final 12-lap round for a low total score of three points. Fifteen year-old rookie Richard Lowrey, III, of Charlotte, VT, was a career-best second overall. Lowrey won the first segment and finished third in the second round for four points. Richie Turner of Fairfax, VT was third overall (five points), followed by Stephen Donahue of Graniteville, VT (10 points), and Ray Germain, Jr., of Bristol, VT (10 points).
Chris LaVair of Gabriels, NY took his second-straight win in the Central Vermont Motorcycles Mini Stock division, taking the 15-lap feature. John McCarron of Rensselaer, NY earned a season-best runner-up finish, with Mike Whalen, Jr., of Plattsburgh, NY third. Chuck Bradford of Addison, VT and Jake Noble of Benson, VT were next in line.
Devil’s Bowl Speedway is back in action on Friday, August 2 at 7:00pm with the second annual C.J. Richards Memorial 67 presented by Carrara Masonry & Concrete, the second round of the new Northern Modified Challenge Series. The event also includes twin 20-lap Late Model features and the Mini Stock division. Regular general admission is $12 for adults, $10 for seniors, and free for children 12 and under.
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.
UNOFFICIAL RESULTS – St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital 150 pres. by Cat Country 105.3
American-Canadian Tour
NASCAR Whelen All-American Series
Devil’s Bowl Speedway, West Haven, VT
Sunday, July 28, 2013
Pos.-(Start)-Driver-Hometown
(# – denotes rookie)
American-Canadian Tour Late Models (150 laps)
1. (1) Wayne Helliwell, Jr., Dover, NH
2. (5) # Travis Stearns, Auburn, ME
3. (11) Joey Polewarczyk, Jr., Hudson, NH
4. (3) Glen Luce, Turner, ME
5. (14) # Bobby Therrien, Hinesburg, VT
6. (6) Ben Lynch, Huntersville, NC
7. (4) Jimmy Hebert, Williamstown, VT
8. (8) # Josh Masterson, Bristol, VT
9. (12) Brent Dragon, Milton, VT
10. (19) # Brandon Atkins, AuSable Forks, NY
11. (13) # Emily Packard, East Montpelier, VT
12. (2) Ray Parent, Tiverton, RI
13. (7) Luke Hinkley, Claremont, NH
14. (20) Jamie Fisher, Shelburne, VT
15. (10) Todd Davis, Claremont, NH
16. (25) Chris Lacey, Burlington, VT
17. (16) Dan Petronis, II, Mechanicville, NY
18. (17) Sean Bodreau, Claremont, NH
19. (22) John Falconi, Oakham, MA
20. (21) Robert Bryant, Jr., Brooklyn, CT
21. (15) # Kyle Welch, Newport, NH
22. (24) Blair Bessett, Worcester, VT
23. (9) Rowland Robinson, Jr., Steuben, ME
24. (18) # Johnny Scarborough, Bomoseen, VT
25. (23) Hunter Bates, Middlebury, VT
Heat Winners: Wayne Helliwell, Jr., Josh Masterson, Joey Polewarczyk, Jr.
Consi Winner: Jimmy Hebert
Bond Auto Parts Modified Feature (35 laps)
1. (11) Todd Stone, Middlebury, VT
2. (3) Joe Williams, Scotia, NY
3. (9) Jessey Mueller, Olmstedville, NY
4. (7) Joey Roberts, Fletcher, VT
5. (5) Vince Quenneville, Jr., Brandon, VT
6. (15) Kenny Tremont, Jr., West Sand Lake, NY
7. (10) Hunter Bates, Middlebury, VT
8. (8) Leon Gonyo, Chazy, NY
9. (6) Ron Proctor, Charlton, NY
10. (4) Jeff Haskins, Wells, VT
11. (14) Travis Bruno, Morrisonville, NY
12. (18) # Jamie LaFountain, Plattsburgh, NY
13. (13) James Introne, Sr., Hartford, NY
14. (16) Jim Introne, Jr., Queensbury, NY
15. (17) # Bruce Schwab, Jr., Whitehall, NY
16. (12) Milo Campbell, Bennington, VT
17. (1) Cody Sargen, Greenfield Center, NY
18. (2) Dave Snow, Brandon, VT
Heat Winners: Dave Snow, Joe Williams, Todd Stone
Sunoco Race Fuels Semi-Feature Winner: Todd Stone
Renegade Feature (12 laps x 2)
1. (6) # Brad Bushey, Cambridge, VT – 3 points
2. (2) # Richard Lowrey, III, Charlotte, VT – 4 points
3. (7) Richie Turner, Fairfax, VT – 5 points
4. (3) # Stephen Donahue, Graniteville, VT – 10 points
5. (1) # Ray Germain, Jr., Bristol, VT – 10 points
6. (8) Robert Gordon, Milton, VT – 12 points
7. (5) Jimmy Bushey, Mooers Forks, NY – 14 points
8. (4) Ray Benoit, Milton, VT – 15 points
9. (9) Randy Howard, Georgia, VT – 17 points
Segment Winners: Richard Lowrey, III, Brad Bushey
Central Vermont Motorcycles Mini Stock Feature (15 laps)
1. (6) Chris LaVair, Gabriels, NY
2. (2) John McCarron, Rensselaer, NY
3. (8) Mike Whalen, Jr., Plattsburgh, NY
4. (9) # Chuck Bradford, Addison, VT
5. (10) Jake Noble, Benson, VT
6. (4) Garry Bashaw, Lincoln, VT
7. (5) Shane Doran, Benson, VT
8. (7) Bobby LaVair, Gabriels, NY
9. (3) Matt Monaghan, Colchester, VT
10. (14) Harold LaVair, Jr., Gabriels, NY
11. (1) # Lance Masterson, Lincoln, VT
12. (13) # Scott FitzGerald, West Rutland, VT
13. (11) Kyle Watrous, Bomoseen, VT
14. (12) # Kyle Sorensen, Ballston Spa, NY
Heat Winners: Jake Noble, Chris LaVair
Sources: Justin St. Louis/Devil’s Bowl Speedway PR
Wayne Helliwell, Jr. (center) made it three consecutive ACT Late Model Tour wins at Devil’s Bowl Speedway on Sunday, taking the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital 150 presented by Cat Country 105.3. Travis Stearns (right) was a career-best second, with Joey Polewarczyk, Jr. (left) third. (MemorEvents photo)
PHOTO: Todd Stone made it a half-dozen for the season when he won the St. Jude/Cat Country event for the Bond Auto Parts Modified division. (MemorEvents photo)
PHOTO: Rookies swept the top-two spots in the Renegade division, with Brad Bushey (center) picking up the win and 15 year-old Richard Lowrey, III (left) in second. Richie Turner (right) finished third. (MemorEvents photo)
PHOTO: Chris LaVair (center) made it two-in-a-row in the Central Vermont Motorcycles Mini Stock feature, with John McCarron (right) second and “Flying” Mike Whalen, Jr. (left) in third. (MemorEvents photo)