Weekly Racing Series
Race Wrap & Full Results

June 20/21th: Live 105 Night / Lockhart Truck Center

DARTMOUTH DODGE SPORTSMAN
In a classic battle for the ages, it was Harry Ross White of Noel Road emerging as the winner in an extended 50-lap Dartmouth Dodge Sportsman Series race Friday night.

HOSS and his #18 Archibald Drilling and Blasting Chevrolet had to hold off a charge from Phil Barkhouse Jr (Hammonds Plains) on a restart within ten laps to go to capture his first win of 2014. Barkhouse ran the outside line for five laps of White before settling in behind the #18 for the final few laps of the event. Barkhouse kept White honest to the line as he shadowed the #18 to the finish line.

Chris Dingle (Elmsdale) rebounded from an accident the week before by finishing a stout third, over sophomore DJ Casey (Prospect Road) and Larry Fisher (Porter’s Lake), who also recovered from a wreck the week prior to come home with a top five run.

Dartmouth Dodge Sportsman veteran Fred Schofield (Windsor) led the most laps in the race, taking the advantage early in the race but faded to ninth at the finish. The winner from the previous week and reigning class champion in Darren Wallage (Oakfield) finished sixth after a trio of close calls throughout the event kept him on his toes. Championship hopefuls Tony Leonard (Halifax, mechanical issue) and Aaron Boutilier (Porter’s Lake, accident) struggled throughout the feature and finished 14th and 17th, respectively on the field. Wade Slauenwhite (Beaverbank) did not start the evening due to a blown transmission in practice.

Heat wins went to part-time drivers Barkhouse and Russell Smith Jr (Lakeside).


STRICTLY HYDRAULICS LEGENDS
Let’s call a spade a spade, Cole Butcher (Porter’s Lake) walked all over the Strictly Hydraulics Legend car field on Friday night.

Butcher collected his third feature win of the season in an extended 50-lap feature on Live 105 Night. Butcher turned up the wick on a long green flag run of over 30 laps, putting all but six cars one lap down in the 14 car field before a wreck with three laps to go involving Jeff Cruickshank (Hantsport), Danny Harvey (Lantz) and Emily Meehan (Rawdon) closed up the field. On the final restart, Butcher was lights out, holding off Shelburne’s Paul Golden and Cruickshank for the win. Jeff Atkinson (Port LaTour) took home fourth with Meehan fifth.

Of note, Cole’s father Darrin Butcher made his first stock car start in 17 years on Friday night, finishing seventh on the night. Nicholas Naugle (Dartmouth) and Joey Lawson (Porter’s Lake) got tangled up on Lap 14 of the feature, ending the night of Lawson and putting Naugle 33 laps down before he could get back out on track.

Heat wins went to Andrew Warren (White’s Lake) and Cole Butcher.


HYDRAULICS PLUS BANDOLEROS
In their first extended feature since the class was introduced in 2006, it was one of the series veterans who ended up in victory lane.

For the second consecutive week, Cole Tanner (Shubenacadie) ended up with the checkered flag on his #33 Sheehy Enterprises/Eastern Drainage Bandolero car. Tanner had the competition of Braden Langille (Shubenacadie) and reigning champion Adam Meehan (Rawdon) joining him on the podium as the two chased the #33 in the waning laps of the feature. Sophomore Wyatt McCulloch (Stewiacke) came home in fourth with Megan Parrott (Beaverbank) taking fifth place in her #10 car.

The race was scarred with caution flags throughout the 25-lap event, including rookies Nathan Langille (Coldbrook) and Austin MacDonald (Pictou) coming into contact with each other prior to the halfway point in the race. Laps later, a rivalry boiled over between then point leader Luke Ettinger (Kennetcook) and Cory Hall (Jolicure, NB) resulting in the two youngsters being parked for the remainder of the night.

Parrott and Braden Langille began the evening by taking their eight lap heat races.


LIGHTNING
You’ll always remember your first win. If you are Bedford’s Steve Matthews, it came in one of the biggest Lightning car features in the last ten years at Scotia Speedworld.

Matthews, a rookie in the Four Cylinder class, wasted little time putting his #198 Fast Eddie Racewear Dodge Neon to the front in the 25-lap feature and pulled away from his competition over the caution free affair to take the win. Deven Smith (Lakeside) came home second after having to battle “Rational” Richard Patrick (Halifax) for the spot at the end of the race. Darrell Sullivan (Harrietsfield) and last week’s feature winner Scott Thibodeau (Williamswood) completed the top five.

Week one winner Mike Brown (Urbania) barely missed out on a top five run, finishing sixth in an intense finish for the top five feature spots. Brown, Thibodeau and Patrick each entered tied for the point lead after two races with Patrick edging out the other two to take the advantage after Saturday.

Richie Moore (Elmsdale), who was back in the seat of the #153 after his brother Terry drove it on June 13th, took one of the two heat race wins on the afternoon. Taking the first heat race on the afternoon was Chevy MacDonald (Stewiacke).


COORS LIGHT TRUCKS
When Halifax’s Jim MacMillan shows up to the track with his #22 Seascapes/Darkhorse Auto Haulers Dodge in the Coors Light Truck division, he is always a threat to win.

He fully backed it up Saturday in front of the big crowd on the undercard for the Lockhart Truck Center 150.

The competition up front was intense, but it was MacMillan who crossed the stripe first to take his first Coors Light Truck victory of the season. The victory for the veteran of the Speedworld comes one week following “The Legend” Cy Harvey going to Victory Lane in the division.

Closely behind MacMillan at the line on Saturday at the end of 25 caution free laps were two drivers who experienced motor related issues the week prior. Two-time Coors Light Truck champion Dan Smith (Lower Sackville) and Jason Fenton (Eastern Passage) both bounced back to finish second and third, respectively, on Saturday. Harvey of Elmsdale and rookie Matt Vaughan of Lake Fletcher rounded out the top five.

A dozen Coors Light Trucks made up the field on Saturday evening, with Smith and MacMillan each taking heat race victories.


THUNDER
Drew MacEachern of Dartmouth has seen many changes in the Thunder class over recent years. “The Ironman” has not missed a race in ten years and while there have been some memorable moments over his career, none will top Saturday’s dominating win on the undercard for the Lockhart Truck Center 150.

“This is my biggest win,” MacEachern exclaimed after climbing from his #13 Parkway Construction Honda. MacEachern set sail after starting up front and led all 25 caution free laps of the Thunder car feature.  Dave Matthews (Kennetcook) wrestled himself away from what was the hotly contested battle behind him in the late laps of the race to finish second.

Defending division champion Matthew Warren (White’s Lake) finished third, edging out JR Lawson (Shubenacadie) by less than a car length at the line. Tim Webster (Beaverbank) was also a part of the third place battle to the finish but had to settle for fifth at the checkered flag.

After struggling with his car on Opening Day, Kyle Gammon (Middle Sackville) appeared to have his problems fixed aboard his #98 car until gremlins returned late in the feature which relegated him to 17th at the finish. The race also saw the season debuts in the class for the likes of Lawson, Ross Harvie (Kennetcook), John MacLennan (Truro) and Richard Ramsay (Halifax).

Heat race winners were MacEachern and Matthews.