Eagle Times Staff
BARRE, Vt. — Wrecks, wins, thrills, heartbreaks and the weekly adrenaline of a full season at the Nation’s Site of Excitement has all come down to this. The 2024 track championship season at Barre’s Thunder Road International Speedbowl comes to a close this Friday, Sept. 13 with Lenny’s Shoe & Apparel Championship Night. All three track champions will be crowned to cap off the point chase in season 65 for Thunder Road with everyone getting their final tune-up prior to October’s Vermont Milk Bowl.
The King of the Road track championship battle was nearly clinched last time out but the field has one more chance to dethrone would-be King Kaiden Fisher. Fisher has had one of the most impressive sophomore years the Maplefield/Irving Late Model division has ever seen. The 16-year-old from Shelburne has taken two wins on the Barre highbanks this year and only finished outside the top-10 one time this season with a 12th-place run in the Memorial Day Classic. Only two other drivers have a mathematical chance at the championship, former Kings Christopher Pelkey and Scott Dragon. Another score to be settled is the current tie for fourth overall between Nick Sweet and Brandon Lanphear with one last chance to set the final tally on Friday.
East Thetford’s Brandon Gray clinched the Lenny’s Shoe & Apparel Flying Tiger track championship last Friday but one final prize awaits this season. Gray surpassed Eric William’s historic 1994 run with a seventh win on the season last Friday and could further cement his place in the Thunder Road history books this time around. The rest of the field will also be digging deep with the rest of the top-10 easily able to shift positions while still looking for that final under-the-lights win before October’s Vermont Milk Bowl weekend.
The rk Miles Street Stocks have one final chance to knock Waterford’s Dean Switser Jr. off the top spot with their 30-lap championship event on Lenny’s Shoe & Apparel Friday night. Switser has stayed consistent enough to claim the top of the heap since mid-season but is still looking for his elusive first win of the season on Friday. Ryan Foster, Trevor Jaques and Zach Audet remain the only mathematical foes for Switser and it’s guaranteed that all three will do whatever necessary to make their way to the front.
The Burnett Scrap Metals Road Warriors do not race for points but look to race for the fun on Lenny’s Shoe & Apparel Championship night this Friday. Last week’s double features saw the ‘Frickin Chicken’ Brodie Frazier nab his second win of the season while Derrick Mann conquered the highbanks for his first career victory. The odds are nearly 50/50 this season between first-time winners and repeaters, it’s anyone’s game this Friday.
Thunder Road closes out the track championship season with Lenny’s Shoe & Apparel Championship Night on Friday, Sept. 13. The Maplefield/Irving Late Models, Lenny’s Shoe & Apparel Flying Tigers and rk Miles Street Stocks will officially close out the track championship chase alongside the fan-favorite Burnett Scrap Metals Road Warriors. Post Time is set for 7 p.m. with adult general admission available for $15, kids 12-6 for $5 and children 5 and under free. The Family Four Pack (two adults, two kids) is also available for $30.
For more information, contact the Thunder Road offices at 802-244-6963, [email protected] or visit thunderroadvt.com.