Tremont Back in Victory Lane
WEST HAVEN, VT – So much for the bounty.
One week after having his winning streak broken, Ken Tremont Jr. returned to victory lane at Devil’s Bowl Speedway on Sunday night, holding off Todd Stone to pick up his seventh win of the season in the 30-lap 358 modified feature as Devil’s Bowl held its annual Judith L. Richards Memorial.
A week earlier, Stone had snapped Tremont’s winning streak, and picked up a $1,000 bounty that CVRA officials had put on Tremont’s head. The bounty was still at $500 on Sunday night, but Tremont got the better of the bounty hunters.
Two early cautions helped Vince Quenneville Jr. move from his eighth starting position into the lead and for a while, it looked like the former track champion might break his long winless streak.
But Tremont, who started12th, was on the move early, and was running fourth after just 10 laps. He moved into second on lap 19, and then used a restart on lap 22 to get the lead.
Stone worked his way around Quenneville for second on lap 26, but he could only chase Tremont across the finish line. Ron Proctor, who had started third, drove a consistent race and hit the finish line in the same position, with Don Mattison fourth and Don Scarborough fifth.
Quenneville ran into mechanical problems with three laps left and pulled out, putting him 17th in the official order of finish.
Adam Pierson jumped into an early lead and never gave it up, winning the 50-lap Vermont State Championship for budget sportsmen and walking off with $500 and a five-foot trophy. Pierson had started eighth in the huge 25-car field, but a caution on the first lap helped him move into the lead after just two laps.
In the early stages of the feature, Angela Hoard provided the pressure on the leader, and later, it was Gary Siemons, who had started 14th, who had the best shot at Pierson. But Pierson never relinquished the top spot, and came away with his second straight win, hitting the finish line over two seconds ahead of Siemons.
Completing the top five were Mike Visconti, Frank Hoard Jr., and Fred Proctor.
Cale Kneer recorded his third victory of the season in the 20-lap pro-street stock feature. Kneer, the defending track champion, moved into the lead on lap eight and then left Walt Brownell and Lori Cary to battle for second. Cary won that skirmish, moving around Brownell on the final lap to grab the runner-up spot. She was followed by Brownell, Jeff Martin and Fred Little.
D.J. Brundige drove to his second win of the season in the limited feature, snapping Bill Duprey’s four-race winning streak. Duprey was well on his way to a fifth straight win, setting the pace on the white flag lap, when contact was made with Francis Clark Jr. That allowed Clark to be the first car under the checkered flag, but he was then disqualified, giving the victory to Brundige. Kevin Elliot was second, and Andy Durie finished third.
There were no surprises in the mini-stock feature, as Tim Anagnos came away with his seventh victory of the campaign.
Only three Sundays of racing are left on the Devil’s Bowl calendar. All divisions will be in action on Aug. 26 when Devil’s Bowl holds its Salute to Veterans Night. Racing will begin at 7 p.m.
MODIFIEDS: KEN TREMONT JR., Todd Stone, Ron Proctor, Don Mattison, Don Scarborough, Gene Munger, Ray Hoard, Jim Ryan, Rob Langevin, Don Ackner, Richard Davis III, Kris Vernold, Tim Laduc, Todd Morey, Stan Lemiesz, George Foley, Vince Quenneville Jr., G.T. Morey, Frank Hoard Sr., Matt Depew, Gardner Stone, Scott Duell. DQ: Robert Allen.
BUDGET SPORTSMAN (50 LAPS): ADAM PIERSON, Gary Siemons, Mike Visconti, Frank Hoard Jr., Fred Proctor, Kale Groff, Angela Hoard, Jared McMahon, Jon Bates, Bill Cody, Shawn Pangman, Billy Lussier, Ron Casey, Bryan Davis, Tim Reed, Kris Bradbury, Frank Hoard III, Tom Lilly, Matthew Hyde, Rick LaMont, Paul Dunham Sr., Jimmy Duncan, Ken Towne, Mike Burto, Alex Bell.
PRO-STREET STOCKS: CALE KNEER, Lori Cary, Walt Brownell, Jeff Martin, Fred Little, Jeremie Younger, Mike Stebbins, Justin Perry, Chris Fitzgerald, Carl Vladyka, Ed Thompson, Chuck Towslee, Mike Bussino, Patrick McLaughlin, Jeff Washburn.
LIMITEDS: D.J. BRUNDIGE, Kevin Elliot, Andy Durie, Bill Vradenburg, Joe Ladd Jr., David Billings, Bill Duprey, Shannon Donnelly, Anthony Marro, Tim Brunelle, C.J. Vitagliano, Adam Forbes, Jeremy Jones, Bill Decker, Nick Lussier, Rich Holmes. DQ: Francis Clark Jr.
MINI/DUKE STOCKS: TIM ANAGNOS (6), Richard Edwards, Shane Marks (4), Cliff White (4), Jason Rheome (4), Chris Hutchinsons, Ron Zagata (6), Howard McEachron, Naomi Gould (Duke), Andy Smith (Duke), Jeremy Hayes (Duke), Bill Parker (Duke).
Sources: Devil’s Bowl Speedway