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Action at White Mountain Motorsports Park. (ACT Media Photo)

Gray Continues Flying Tiger Dominance, Rookie Cornell Gets First Late Model Win

NORTH WOODSTOCK, N.H. — Following the biggest weekend of the year for White Mountain Motorsports Park, the White Mountain faithful returned to their favorite summer hangout for a make-up event following Mother Nature’s intense rainfall this summer.

The Dad’s 4 By Tool & Supply Kids Division kicked off the Saturday night action as Madison Potter had the ride of her career, leading the frey until a lap 11 caution for the stalled Colton Williams allowed officials to spot a flat right-front developing, sending the young Marshfield, Vt., driver pit-side for repairs. The restart green switched the youth division into a chase after Hayden Bushey in the final circuits. Bushey would nab career win number three in the division followed by Chloe Doyle and Khloe Goodbout in a pair of first podiums for the season.

While Scott Senecal brought the Woodsville Guaranty Savings Bank Strictly Minis to green, it was outside polesitter Landyn O’Donnell who jumped to the early lead in their 25-lap main event. O’Donnell ran with a growing lead as things got hairy in the second half of the field as a turn 1 rolling roadblock ruined the night for Kyler Davis, Jason Goodbout and Jack Hayes. With the race staying green, O’Donnell’s competition began knocking on his back door as Todd Derrington, Tyler Thompson and Patrick Switser drew ever closer with each lap. The time never came with a smooth and steady Landyn O’Donnell collecting his first career Strictly Mini victory followed by Derrington and Thompson at the line.

The Wayne’s Market Dwarf Cars got off to a wild start as a turn two melee saw substitute driver Colby Bourgeois flip side-for-side, end over end caught up with Ethan Tyrell, Ryan Ware and Dave Gyger caught in the flash accident. On the restart, Chad Dufour launched to lead the pack with a mirror full of Jason Wyman. The last thing Dufour wanted to see was the yellow flag on lap 17 for a spinning Chris King in turn 2 leading to a final face-off with Jeff Ainsworth. Chad Dufour would hold on to take his first win of the season followed by Ainsworth and Jason Wyman on the podium.

The Fisher Auto Parts Flying Tigers were next to take on the White Mountain highbanks, 24 strong for the second round of the Central Asphalt Paving Triple Crown. With a plus-five in ACT Plus/Minus handicap procedures, Brandon Gray led the field off with Logan Powers and Sam Caron hot on his heels. Gray would continue to grow his lead amidst lap traffic, leaving Powers, Caron, Cam Gadue and Brad Bushey in the dust before the lap 48 caution for the spinning Joey Laquerre on the frontstretch re-racked the field.

The restart did little to extinguish the flame, with Gray launching from his competition but hope prevailed for Caron and Gadue with a spinning Mike Clark in turn 2. Try as he might, with foot to the firewall Caron would be relegated to second place by a five-car-length margin to winner Brandon Gray with Cam Gadue holding off Logan Powers and Brendan Moodie to take third.

After polesitter Normand Raymond laid out a smoke screen to take him out of contention in the Ammonoosuc Asphalt Mini Late Models, Cameron Sontag took off with the lead in their 40-lap main. Blistering speeds saw Sontag control the pack with Garrett LaBounty growing ever closer in second. The best battle on the track was between former champion Nick Anderson and leading rookie Chris Moulton for third with the veteran eventually taking the position. LaBounty would motor around Sontag to lead lap 10 with Anderson sneaking underneath for second. Leaving no meat on the bone, Nick Anderson would swoop around LaBounty with 12 laps remaining and take his second win of the season in the green-to-checkers event followed by Garrett LaBounty and Nick Miller in victory lane.

Veterans Mike Jurkowski and Stacy Cahoon brought the Foley Oil & Propane Late Models to point for the final feature event of the evening. Cahoon would lead the early circuits as the field filed in for the 50-lap march to the checkers. The best battle in the field would find Oren Remick outside of Jaden Perry in the bare-knuckle fight for fourth with Remick prevailing on the preferred, outside groove. By the halfway point, rookie Colin Cornell began chasing down six-time track champion Cahoon with John Donahue and Ben Belanger battling for third eight-car lengths back.

Cornell stalked Cahoon by less than a hood-length lap after lap in the veteran’s tire tracks but with laps winding down the pressure steamed up. The boiler remained unexploded until tech with apparent winner Stacy Cahoon found it too wide in post-race technical inspection. Cahoon amicably gave the win to rookie Colin Cornell with a hard-charging Ben Belanger taking second and Cody LeBlanc in third.