OXFORD, Maine - Eleven years had elapsed since Bill Sprague's only
Oxford Plains Speedway feature win prior to Wednesday night.
His next two victories unfolded in the space of less than an hour.
Sprague, who made his debut in the Oxford Acceleration Series less
than a month ago, backed up his Chimney Tech Outlaw win early in the
evening with a Macdonald Motors Runnin' Rebel triumph.
"I called Jeff Hebert a few weeks ago and asked if I could use his
(Rebel) car, because he wasn't driving it this year and I wanted to
get some racing in," said Sprague. "And now he's back with another
car."
In addition to his hot streak in the #85 Rebel, including two previous
runner-up finishes, Sprague has also been strong in the #65 Outlaw.
Sprague's previous win at Oxford came in the Allen's Coffee Flavored
Brandy Strictly Stock division in 1997. He also competed in the
Limited Sportsman class.
"Lucky for me, I was a given a chance to drive that car, also,"
Sprague said of the eight-cylinder ride. "This is awesome."
Sprague snagged the lead from Caesar Morgan on lap 11 of the Outlaw
encounter, then held off the spirited challenge of second-place Tom
Averill and John Leonard in third.
John Spencer Jr. and Chris Coolidge completed the top five.
Jonah Farrington and Ryan Philbrick led the third of four Rebel
features before Sprague seized command.
Fast-closing John Childs applied the pressure over the closing
circuits but settled for second. Philbrick held on for the third-place
trophy. Brian Nason's dismissal at the technical inspection shack
moved James Wood to fourth and Jay Dufour to fifth.
Eleven features were contested Wednesday, including the final three
make-up events from TD Banknorth 250 Weekend Presented By New England
Dodge Dealers. Two of the held-over races were Rebel events, with
another for the Call of the Wild RV Sport Trucks.
Three drivers clinched division championships with a week to spare.
Jake Burns has successfully defended his Call of the Wild RV Center
Sport Truck championship. Dottie Patria (Allen's Coffee Flavored
Brandy Ladies) and Jason Hannigan (Goulet Home Inspections Renegade)
sewed up the first titles of their career.
The chase in Chimney Tech Outlaw and Macdonald Motors Runnin' Rebels
will go down to the wire, with multiple drivers in contention for both
when the checkered flag flies at 6:30 p.m. next Wednesday, August 27.
The father-son tandem of David and Josh Childs maintained their
scorching late-season pace. David captured his seventh Outlaw win and
eighth overall at the speedway this season, while Josh extended his
Rebel winning streak to an amazing four with his seventh win.
Gregg Norton snapped Josh Childs' run by one spot in the high-point
Rebel nightcap. Cole Flagg also picked up a Rebel checkered flag.
Nik Coates notched his fifth Outlaw victory of the year between
Sprague and David Childs' conquests.
Opie Allard backed up his first career Truck win last week with a
second straight score. Ryan Farrar registered his first win of the
campaign in the second go-round for the pickups.
Vanna Brackett matched her successor as division champ, Patria, with
her sixth Ladies victory of the summer.
David Childs stormed to victory lane not long after watching Josh
continue his stunning August surge. Thom Bell set the pace for nine
laps before Childs took charge.
"I had to keep up with the kid and get my seventh," Childs said. "The
only way to the front is the outside unless you want to race dirty,
and I'm not like that."
Childs started seventh in the 19-car field. For the second week in a
row, 60 Outlaws were divided into three feature events.
Tyler Belanger hovered within four car lengths but couldn't erase
Childs' lead in the closing stages. Jerry Goss, Bell and Bubba Collins
completed the top five.
Ron Abbott Jr. will enter the championship event as the point leader
after crossing the stripe sixth ahead of closest rivals Addison Bowie
and Jim Drake.
Coates chased down Fred Clavet and completed his winning move to the
outside with seven laps remaining in the 'B' Outlaw feature.
"He raced me really clean. I've got to remember to thank him when I
get to tech," Coates said. "Five wins is the best season I've ever
had. Even though it's the worst points season I've ever had, I guess I
can't complain."
Clavet continued his skein of top-five finishes in second, followed
closely by Tim Hatch. John Patria and Kevin Lawrence gave chase.
Josh Childs' rally from 13th starting position in the Rebel 'A' makeup
ended with a lap 10 pass of Derek Cook for the lead.
"I got through a couple of wrecks where I don't know how I did it,"
said the high school student, who has won an astonishing 10 times over
the last 14 months.
Ben Krauter hopped into dad Martin's #82, started next-to-last and
wound up second. Troy Jordan was third, followed by Kyle Hewins in a
ride borrowed from Doug Degroat due to his own transmission troubles.
Archie Watt Jr. rounded out the lead quintet.
Cook's disqualification in the Rebel finale meant that the driver with
the most wins in series history officially ended the current hottest
driver's winning streak. Gregg Norton picked up his third victory of
the season and 22nd overall.
Childs, Hewins, Jamie Leavitt and Watt were next in line. Childs
unofficially leads Norton by two points and Hewins by 12 entering next
week's pivotal event. It would be the first OPS full-season
championship for any of the three drivers.
Flagg landed the lead from Bob Danforth in the Rebel opener and
breezed to the second win of his career.
"We've done nothing but fight the car all year long," said Flagg, who
led the final 11 laps. "Then as soon as we got it good, we got caught
up in another wreck and basically had to start over."
All was well this time around for Flagg, who held off Jeff Beaule on a
restart with three laps to go. Wood was third, with rookies Josh Brown
and Tyler Smith in tow.
Some drivers take years to notch their first win and need no time at
all to quickly pick up the second. Allard, last year's Lampron Energy
Rookie of the Year in Truck, showed the benefit of that confidence by
making it two straight in the 20-lap opener.
Farrar closed to Allard's tailgate in traffic as the white flag
appeared, but Allard held him off for the second straight week.
"Ryan was a lot faster than I was, but we managed to get out front
first," Allard said. "I made a mistake there and almost let him
underneath me."
Ten-time winner Burns was third ahead of top rookie Spurling and Devon Smith.
Marvin Hamilton's post-race DQ made a winner of Farrar for the first
time this season. Tom Libby advanced to a career-best second, and
Allard made it the first top three of the year without Burns in the
mix.
The champion rallied to fourth without the benefit of a caution after
a lap 1 spin. however. Spurling was fifth.
Brackett snuck past Debbie Marston on lap 9 and continued her
late-season push with another Ladies win.
"They were doing a little bit of wrecking around me," said Brackett.
"I don't know what happened."
Patria's drive to second was enough to secure the championship.
Kimberly Sessions, Cathy Manchester and Marston completed the paying
positions.
Reigning champion Heath stopped Hannigan's three-race Renegade winning
streak with his fifth win -- 18th in the last two seasons.
"With any luck, we'll be moving up to Outlaw next year if my wife will
let me," Heath said.
Phil Knowlton's car ran afoul of the tech inspectors, putting Craig
Bartlett a career-best second and Hannigan third. Mark Turner edged
Gerard Cote in a tough scrap for fourth.
OPS returns to action at 6:30 p.m. Saturday with Time Warner
Cable/99.9 The Wolf Fan Appreciation Night. Seven divisions will
compete on the card, with an autograph session, giveaways galore and
$5 adult admission prices (juniors free) part of the late-summer
celebration.
CHIMNEY TECH OUTLAW #1 (20 laps): 1. Bill Sprague, Minot; 2. Tom
Averill, Peru; 3. John Leonard, Oxford; 4. John Spencer Jr., Auburn;
5. Chris Coolidge, Norway; 6. Scott Veinott, Sabattus; 7. Dottie
Patria, Turner; 8. Mike Haynes, Livermore Falls; 9. Charlie Webster,
Auburn; 10. Maurice Martel Jr., Sabattus; 11. Travis Bennett,
Harrison; 12. Phil Knowlton, Poland; 13. Matt Weeks, Greene; 14. Matt
Kiley, Oxford; 15. Walter Connell II, Norway; 16. Bruce Robertson,
Leeds; 17. Caesar Morgan, Woodstock; 18. Ryan Robbins, Dixfield; 19.
Chad White, Mexico; 20. Rodney Englehaupt, Oxford; 21. Richard
Kyllonen, Oxford.
CHIMNEY TECH OUTLAW #2 (20 laps): 1. Nik Coates, Lisbon; 2. Fred
Clavet, Buckfield; 3. Tim Hatch, Standish; 4. John Patria, Turner; 5.
Kevin Lawrence, South Paris; 6. Josh Paradis, Sumner; 7. Jim Archer,
Chesterville; 8. Jay Wilkins, Gray; 9. Gordon Bell, Auburn; 10. Randy
Robitaille, Norway; 11. Shannon Judd, Jay; 12. David Brown, Gray; 13.
Jeremy Leavitt, Poland; 14. Mike Blash, Oxford; 15. Kevin Leighton,
Minot; 16. Jonathan Baldwin, Auburn; 17. Justin Vining, Peru; 18. Ron
Parker, New Gloucester; 19. Carey Robertson, Leeds; 20. Sue Veinott,
Sabattus.
CHIMNEY TECH OUTLAW #3 (20 laps): 1. David Childs, Oxford; 2. Tyler
Belanger, Buckfield; 3. Jerry Goss, Mechanic Falls; 4. Thom Bell,
Minot; 5. Bubba Collins, New Gloucester; 6. Ron Abbott Jr., Sabattus;
7. Dan Brown, Peru; 8. Rick Spaulding, Lewiston; 9. Steve Moon, Gray;
10. Keith Landry, Oxford; 11. Guy Childs Sr., Turner; 12. Addison
Bowie, Mechanic Falls; 13. Jim Drake, Hebron; 14. Tina Titus, Lisbon
Falls; 15. Steve Brill, Bridgton; 16. Bob Ferguson, New Gloucester;
17. Jerry Freve, Buckfield; 18. Zach Bowie, Mechanic Falls; 19. Gerry
Richard, Leeds.
MACDONALD MOTORS RUNNIN' REBEL #1 (makeup from July 18, 20 laps): 1.
Cole Flagg, Livermore; 2. Jeff Beaule, Lewiston; 3. James Wood, New
Gloucester; 4. Josh Brown, Conway, N.H.; 5. Tyler Smith, Oxford; 6.
Nate Dubuc, Lewiston; 7. Bob Danforth, Stoneham; 8. Cody Smith,
Oxford; 9. Michael Carver, Durham; 10. Zach Audet, Chesterville; 11.
Ken Whittemore, Greene; 12. Don Smith, Oxford; 13. Dwayne White,
Livermore; 14. Gerard Cote, Oxford; 15. James Record, Oxford; 16.
Dustin Couture, Auburn.
MACDONALD MOTORS RUNNIN' REBEL #2 (makeup from July 18, 20 laps): 1.
Josh Childs, Oxford; 2. Ben Krauter, Raymond; 3. Troy Jordan, Turner;
4. Kyle Hewins, Leeds; 5. Archie Watt Jr., Auburn; 6. Calvin Rose Jr.,
Turner; 7. Gregg Norton, Lewiston; 8. Jamie Leavitt, Minot; 9. Jason
Berry, Turner; 10. Matt Dufault, Turner; 11. Brandon Munroe, New
Gloucester; 12. Logan Melcher, Livermore Falls; 13. Charlie Webster,
Auburn; 14. Mike Ward, Harrison; 15. Ryan Hewins, Leeds; 16. Craig
Farrington, Hebron; 17. Scott Farrington, Minot; 18. John Childs,
Leeds; 19. Brady Romano, Livermore Falls. DQ: Derek Cook, Livermore
Falls.
MACDONALD MOTORS RUNNIN' REBEL #3 (20 laps): 1. Bill Sprague, Minot;
2. John Childs, Leeds; 3. Ryan Philbrick, Greenwood; 4. James Wood,
New Gloucester; 5. Jay Dufour, Lewiston; 6. Josh Brown, Conway, N.H.;
7. Gerard Cote, Oxford; 8. Everett Danforth, Stoneham; 9. Michael
Carver, Durham; 10. James Record, Oxford; 11. Jonah Farrington,
Hebron; 12. Cody Smith, Oxford; 13. Tyler Smith, Oxford; 14. Ken
Whittemore, Greene; 15. Don Smith, Oxford; 16. Dwayne White,
Livermore; 17. Gary Chiasson, Peru; 18. Chris Giguere, Minot; 19. Josh
Lovell, West Paris; 20. Nate Dubuc, Lewiston; 21. Ryan Hewins, Leeds;
22. Ellery Phillips, Auburn. DQ: Brian Nason, Lewiston.
MACDONALD MOTORS RUNNIN' REBEL #4 (20 laps): 1. Gregg Norton,
Lewiston; 2. Josh Childs, Oxford; 3. Kyle Hewins, Leeds; 4. Jamie
Leavitt, Minot; 5. Archie Watt Jr., Auburn; 6. Jason Berry, Turner; 7.
Matt Dufault, Turner; 8. Ben Krauter, Raymond; 9. Zach Audet,
Chesterville; 10. Calvin Rose Jr., Turner; 11. Charlie Webster,
Auburn; 12. Craig Farrington, Hebron; 13. James Wood, New Gloucester;
14. Errol Smith, Stow; 15. Mike Ward, Harrison; 16. Jeff Hebert,
Auburn; 17. Troy Jordan, Turner; 18. Jeff Beaule, Lewiston; 19. Cole
Flagg, Livermore; 20. Brady Romano, Livermore Falls; 21. Brandon
Munroe, New Gloucester.
CALL OF THE WILD RV CENTER SPORT TRUCK #1 (makeup from July 18, 20
laps): 1. Opie Allard, Harpswell; 2. Ryan Farrar, Oxford; 3. Jake
Burns, Gray; 4. Ross Spurling, New Gloucester; 5. Devon Smith, Norway;
6. Tom LIbby, Gorham; 7. Jeff Schmidt, Mechanic Falls; 8. Doug
Stevens, West Sumner; 9. Herb Farrar, Sumner; 10. Corey Williams,
Sumner. DQ: John Lizotte, Mechanic Falls.
CALL OF THE WILD RV CENTER SPORT TRUCK #2 (20 laps): 1. Ryan Farrar,
Oxford; 2. Tom Libby, Gorham; 3. Opie Allard, Harpswell; 4. Jake
Burns, Gray; 5. Ross Spurling, New Gloucester; 6. John Lizotte,
Mechanic Falls; 7. Jeff Schmidt, Mechanic Falls; 8. Devon Smith,
Norway; 9. John Pinkham, Auburn; 10. Corey Williams, Sumner; 11. Doug
Stevens, West Sumner; 12. Herb Farrar, Sumner; 13. Steve Anderson,
Bethel. DQ: Marvin Hamilton, New Gloucester.
ALLEN'S COFFEE FLAVORED BRANDY LADIES (20 laps): 1. Vanna Brackett,
Buckfield; 2. Dottie Patria, Turner; 3. Kimberly Sessions, Auburn; 4.
Cathy Manchester, Gray; 5. Debbie Marston, Hartford; 6. Lisa Brooks,
Auburn; 7. Missy Blash, Oxford; 8. Lisa Vining, Turner; 9. Shannon
Wheeler, Auburn; 10. Sue Veinott, Sabattus; 11. Kristen Brown, Gray;
12. Annie Chartier, Mexico.
GOULET HOME INSPECTIONS RENEGADE (20 laps): 1. Jamie Heath, Waterford;
2. Craig Bartlett, Waterford; 3. Jason Hannigan, Greene; 4. Mark
Turner, Norway; 5. Gerard Cote, Oxford; 6. Joe Morey, Lisbon; 7.
Robert Lowe, Auburn; 8. Dan Ellis, Brunswick. DQ: Phil Knowlton,
Poland.
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