May 11, 2019

Thunder Mountain Speedway, Center Lisle, NY – On this sunny Saturday afternoon Thunder Mountain swung the gates open to a packed house.  It was a near capacity crowd in the grandstands and 167 cars packed the pit area. Drivers greeted fans with a mix and mingle on the midway, allowing them to meet their favorite drivers.

When the green flag flew, the racing got intense with some three and sometimes four wide racing, last lap passes and just flat out great racing.  The first feature of the night brought out the young guns, the rookie sportsmen.  This class puts on one heck of show weekly. Matt Meade took the lead early and checked out on the field for his ever feature win in impressive fashion. I can see Matt moving up to the crate class before long.  

The lightning fast 600cc modifieds followed. These drivers put on a super show for the fans.  It was a three-car battle for the lead with Chris Jordan coming out on top and going on to win over Tom Shiner and the impressive youngster, Jared Green.  Mike Wilcha and Tyler Bartik rounded out the top five.

Two veterans brought the stout field of crates to the green flag.  Dale Welty and Pat Jordan battled side by side for the lead.  The action was starting heat up as Kenny Hammond, Jimmy Zacharias and Tommy Collins battled their way towards the front with some of the best side by side racing action you will see anywhere in the country.   Former track champion Jimmy Zacharias came out on top followed by Kenny Hammond for second.  Week one winner Tommy Collins crossed the line in third followed by Will Eastman and Dale Welty to round out the top five.

Mike Bowman and Ryan Jordan had the fans on their feet as they battled high and low throughout the race with Bowman taking command.   Jordan stayed on his bumper waiting for a chance to pounce.  As the two were setting sail, it was a hornet’s nest behind them.  Action was hot and heavy between Jeremy Smith, Shaun Walker, Alan Barker, Mike Colsten, Brandon Walters and young gun Shayne Spoonhower who joined the party.  The group swapped positions every lap using every inch of the ultra-smooth speedway. Late in the race, Jordan made his move to the topside of track and went on to score his first victory of the season.

Butch Green showed he has not lost his dominant ways in the street stock class as he took the potent Jack Holcomb ride to victory lane.  Gene Sharpsteen chased Butch across the line for second and Mike Wilbur, Doug Stack and Doug Polhamus rounded out the top five.

The open sportsmen made their way to the track and it was Tommy Eiklor and Chance Spoonhower pacing the field.  When the green dropped, Spoonhower launched out to an early lead.  Speedster Dennis Clapperton was charging through the field and chasing down the 34 of Spoonhower when late in the race he tangled with a lap car ending his night and handing second place to Chris Jordan.  The young talented Bailey Boyd crossed the line in third with Tommy Eiklor and Joe McCabe rounding out the top five.  Spoonhower pulled out a back-to-back feature win and looks very impressive to start the season. 

Brad Smith has had his share of bad luck on the mountain but not on this night.  He dominated the race from the drop of the green flag picking up his first win of the season at Thunder Mountain.  Tyler Stoddard, Keith Lamphere, Jake Maynard and Ray McClure rounded out the top five.

Tres Palmer, Rich Wagner and Joe Lane put on a show in the wide open 4 cylinder class as they battled all race long crossing the finish line three wide with Tres Palmer squeaking out an exciting win over Wagner.  Joe Lane, Evan Wright and Tim Bush rounded out the top five.

Ending notes – We would like to thank all the amazing drivers and fans for making Thunder Mountain Speedway the place to be on Saturday nights.

Upcoming shows:

This Saturday night, May 18, we will feature the ultra-fast Lucas Oil Empire Super Sprints.  The weather is set to be beautiful.  Don’t miss this show!  In addition, the Modifieds, Street Stocks, Crate Sportsman, Rookie Sportsman, 4cyl Stock and 600cc Modifieds will be on tap. 
IMCA Modifieds and Open Sportsman will be off for this show.

Memorial Day Weekend

Saturday, May 25 – Open Sportsman, 602 Crate Sportsman, Street Stock, Rookie/Budget Sportsman, IMCA-Modified, 600cc Modified, Four Cylinder; MODIFIEDS Open Practice/$500 Dash for Cash  

Sunday, May 26 – Lightning on the Mountain featuring the Short Track Super Series. Big block/small block Modifieds, STSS Crate 602 Sportsman, Street Stock Chad Sindoni Memorial.