Points and Pride at Stake in Thunder Road Labor Day Classic
Barre, VT – Thunder Road will crown its division champions this Sunday, September 6 at the 37th Labor Day Classic 200 this Sunday. The oldest event in Thunder Road’s history doubles as the final point-counting event of the 2015 season for Thunder Road Late Models, Bond Auto Tiger Sportsmen, and Allen Lumber Street Stocks, leaving much on the line this Sunday.
The Labor Day Classic, which dates back to 1960, is the longest and most prestigious event of the weekly season for the Thunder Road Late Models. Many drivers will be looking for their first entry on one of the granite monuments that stand at Thunder Road for winners of the Labor Day Classic, Memorial Day Classic, and Vermont Milk Bowl.
“It’d be cool to get up on one of those granite monuments,” Barre’s Cody Blake said. “The goal for our team is to get on one of the stones, and third place last year just didn’t satisfy me.”
N; Haverhill’s Derrick O’Donnell won last Thursday’s Late Model event to build an insurmountable point lead and clinch his third consecutive “King of the Road”. O’Donnell’s car was subject to a complete teardown following the event with the car’s engine, shocks, transmission, and MSD ignition box sent to facilities throughout the United States for independent analysis. The rear end was disassembled on site for inspection. All parts were found to be in compliance with ACT rules.
While O’Donnell will now seek his first Labor Day Classic win with no additional pressure, plenty is still at stake for the rest of the Late Model field. Two-time and defending Labor Day Classic Champion Nick Sweet of Barre enters the event tied for second in points with Blake. 2007 Labor Day winner John Donahue sits 22 points behind Sweet and Blake, with Scott Dragon another five points back. The battle for the rest of the top-10 is up for grabs as well, with 59 points separating sixth-place Jason Corliss from 12th-place Brett Gervais.
“Anything can really happen – we can end up between second and fifth,” Blake said. “But I’m not going to worry about that; I just want to win the race, and the points will take care of themselves from there.”
The Bond Auto Tiger Sportsmen and Allen Lumber Street Stock championships will also be decided on Sunday. In the Tiger Sportsmen, Wolcott’s Brendan Moodie holds an 11-point lead over Waterbury Center’s Jason Woodard. Moodie is seeking his first championship after multiple runner-up finishes while Woodard aims for a second straight title. Christopher Pelkey and Dylan Payea sit 37 and 39 points behind Moodie and are mathematically in contention.
Wolcott’s Jamie Davis is in the catbird seat in the Street Stocks, holding a 36-point lead over Hardwick’s Jaden Perry after Perry was involved in an early incident last Thursday. Marcel J. Gravel is 56 points behind Davis in third. Tyler Austin and Alan Maynard complete the top-five.
The 37th Coca-Cola Labor Day Classic 200 is this Sunday, September 6 at 1:30pm. The Thunder Road Late Models will go 200 green-flag laps with the Bond Auto Tiger Sportsmen and Allen Lumber Street Stocks also in action. Admission is $25 for adults and free for kids 12 and under.
For more information contact the Thunder Road offices at 802.244.6963, media@acttour.com, or visit www.thunderroadspeedbowl.com.
Sources: Michael Stridsberg/Thunder Road PR