Donahue Wins Fastest ACT Race in History at Thunder Road
American-Canadian Tour Late Model Championship stock car driver John Donahue of Graniteville, VT won the fastest race in series history at Barre, VT’s Thunder Road Int’l Speedbowl on Sunday, taking the 46th Annual Mekkelsen RV Memorial Day Classic in 28 minutes and 16 seconds. Donahue’s #26 National Guard Ford Fusion started fourth on the 30-car grid and came to life just before the halfway point. Donahue grabbed the lead after an outside pass of polesitter Eric Williams on lap 47, then survived the race’s lone restart on lap 70 to earn the win.
“I owe this one to my crew and Jeff Laquerre,” said Donahue in victory lane. “They made this car perfect today.”
ACT Late Model Tour point leader Scott Payea of Milton, VT earned his fourth top-five finish in five races with a runner-up effort. Payea waged a 30-lap side-by-side battle with Williams following the lap 70 restart, and took the position by a fender at the finish line. Williams, of Hyde Park, VT, finished third over Montreal’s Patrick Laperle and Montpelier, VT driver Phil Scott.
Rookie Nick Sweet of Barre, VT earned his second-straight top-ten with a sixth-place finish. Three-time Thunder Road Champion Cris Michaud of Northfield, VT finished seventh. Pete Potvin, III, of Graniteville, VT and Northfield, VT rookie Matt White each posted career-best finishes in eighth and ninth, respectively. Another rookie, Ricky Wolf, Jr. of Northwood, NH, rounded out the unofficial top ten.
The ACT Late Model Tour is back in action at Waterford Speedbowl on the Connecticut shoreline, Saturday, June 7. For more information, call (802) 244-6963 or visit www.acttour.com.
UNOFFICIAL FINISH – 46th Annual Mekkelsen RV Memorial Day Classic
ACT Late Model Tour – Thunder Road Int’l Speedbowl – Barre, VT
Sunday, May 25, 2008
(# – denotes rookie)
Pos.-Driver-Hometown
1. John Donahue, Graniteville, VT
2. Scott Payea, Milton, VT
3. Eric Williams, Hyde Park, VT
4. Patrick Laperle, St-Denis-sur-Richelieu, QC
5. Phil Scott, Montpelier, VT
6. # Nick Sweet, Barre, VT
7. Cris Michaud, Northfield, VT
8. Pete Potvin, III, Graniteville, VT
9. # Matt White, Northfield, VT
10. # Ricky Wolf, Jr., Northwood, NH
11. Donald Theetge, Boischatel, QC
12. Shawn Fleury, Middlesex, VT
13. Jean-Paul Cyr, Milton, VT
14. Joe Becker, Jeffersonville, VT
15. Robbie Crouch, Tampa, FL
16. Chip Grenier, Graniteville, VT
17. Glen Luce, Turner, ME
18. Brent Dragon, Milton, VT
19. Dave Pembroke, Middlesex, VT
20. Joey Polewarczyk, Jr., Hudson, NH
21. Randy Potter, Groveton, NH
22. # Jonathan Urlin, London, ON
23. Trampas Demers, South Burlington, VT
24. Scott Dragon, Milton, VT
25. Eric Chase, Milton, VT
26. Joey Laquerre, East Montpelier, VT
27. Jamie Fisher, Shelburne, VT
28. Ryan Nolin, Georgia, VT
29. Roger Brown, II, Lancaster, NH
30. Bobby Dragon, Milton, VT
Sources: Justin St. Louis/ACT LM Tour PR