The 2022 season continues to roll on at Wiscasset Speedway as the racing action continues to heat up! The Group #1 divisions returned to the speedway on Saturday, May 21st for a full night of racing action which included the T&L Automotive Enduro Series.
WRITTEN BY: AMY HARROP – CHASING THE CHECKERED
The Norm’s Used Cars Pro Stocks were the spotlight division of the night with a 50-lap race to kick off an exciting night of feature racing. 2021 Pro Stock champion, Josh St. Clair, won his heat race and started on the front row for the feature. St. Clair got an early jump on his competitors, but Kevin Douglass (week 1 & 2 winner) was quickly coming through the field, maneuvering through traffic after starting from the tail-end of the pack. A late-race caution on lap 39 brought the field back together for a final 11 lap shootout. Kevin Douglass was hard-charging in the closing laps, pulling to St. Clair’s door with 5 laps to go. The two drivers remained neck and neck for the remainder of the feature and even made slight contact coming through the final turn, resulting in St. Clair sliding through the infield grass as he crossed the finish line. St. Clair miracuously held onto it, picking up his first Pro Stock victory (5th of the season overall) of the 2022 season. Kevin Douglass and Steven Chicoine (1st podium finish of the season) rounded out the top 3.
Dustin Salley took off with the early lead in the 25-lap Sweatt’s Concrete Thunder 4 Mini feature. But, David Cook was also on a mission, making his way from 18th to 2nd in just 6 laps. Cook dove to the inside of Dustin Salley on lap 6, swiftly taking over the lead. Week 1 winner Zach Audet took over the runner-up spot on lap 14 and set his sights on David Cook, attempting to reel in the leader. David Cook managed to hold Zach Audet off through the closing laps of the feature, picking up his second victory of the 2022 season. Dustin Salley followed, rounding out the podium.
Division rookie, Alex Smith, held the early advantage over his competitors in the 30-lap Market 27 Super Streets feature. He held strong through lap 7, where Michael Harrison took over the top spot. It was an uphill battle for Harrison, who fought to fend off both PJ Merrill and Tiger Colby. A late-race caution on lap 18 brought the field back together and brought opportunity for Tiger Colby, who powered into the lead on the restart. A slew of cautions in the coming laps made for a lot of stop & go for the leaders, but Tiger Colby powered through and held off his competitors, picking up his first career victory in the Super Streets. PJ Merrill and Matt Beers rounded out the top 3.
The Brackett’s Market 4-Cylinder Pro division rounded out the points racing program with a final 25-lap feature. Garrit McKee, Jr. took off with the early lead in the feature while his competitors battled it out 3-wide for the runner-up spot. Sylas Ripley came out of the battle victorious, taking over second before quickly overtaking McKee, Jr. for the top spot. A mid-race incident on lap 13 involving heavy hitters Garrit McKee, Jr., Josh Hall and Callahan Cox brought the field back together for a 12-lap drag race to the finish. Ben Burgess was quickly reeling in Sylas Ripley in the closing laps and even made his way to Ripley’s door on the final lap. Burgess was unable to close the deal, as he went for a spin on the backstretch. Sylas Ripley maintained his advantage through the final 2 turns, picking up his first career victory at Wiscasset Speedway at just 12 years old. Ripley happily celebrated with his friends and family in Victory Lane, a group that included his Dad, Darrin Ripley. The Ripley family is synonymous with Wiscasset Speedway and Sylas Ripley sure is doing his family justice at such a young age! Garrit McKee, Jr. (1st career podium finish) and Josh Hall finished out the top 3.
The night concluded with the T&L Automotive Enduro Series, where 33 Enduro cars rolled out for an exciting 100 lap feature. Mike Landry of Madison took home the top spot, completing all 100 laps. Martin Emerson and Jeff Read rounded out the top 3 and were also the only other drivers to successfully complete all 100 laps.
The excitement continues as we roll into Memorial Day weekend, where Wiscasset Speedway is hosting the Coastal Cruise-In and Fun Day on Saturday, May 28th (10 am – 3 pm) followed by the annual Coastal 200 on Sunday, May 29th (2:00 pm). Please join us for 2 days of fun and can’t-miss racing action! As always, grandstand admission is just $5 for adults and free for kids 6 and under!
For more track information, please visit http://www.wiscassetspeedway.