By Gary Dutton
 
CLAREMONT, N.H. – Dave Greenslit put his month-long string of bridesmaid finishes behind him, the Superman blew out 40 candles to win his fifth event of the season, and a rookie moved to the top of his division’s points parade.

It all happened Friday, June 7, at Claremont Motorsports Park. On a night that featured lots of great last-lap passes, Brian Robie and Seth Melcher each took his second victory lap of the season, and Six-Shooter king Jeremy Blood, like Aaron Fellows, scored his fifth feature win in as many weeks.

Ben Poland grabbed the opening lead in the R.E. Hinkley Late Model Sportsman main event, bringing Ryan Bell and Robert Hagar with him, with Ricky Bly in hot pursuit. Bly roared up to third on lap five, then battling with Hagar and Aaron Fellows as Poland pulled away.
Bly dove low through turn one on the eleventh circuit, claiming the deuce spot and bringing Fellows with him. Fellows used the same spot four laps later to claim second, with Poland still 20 lengths ahead. By lap 23, the Croydon star was knocking at the door, again dropping low through one a lap later to take the lead and then drive away to earn his fifth victory in a row.

With Fellows celebrating his 40th birthday with another win, the 11-time track champ stayed perfect on the year. Poland finished his strong night’s work in second, with Bly close behind.

Brian Robie led all the way to score his second Pepsi Sportsman Modified feature in as many weeks. Matt Kimball was strong all night in the deuce spot, claiming the runner-up hardware by only a foot, as he held off an all-out last lap charge by points leader Todd Patnode.

Chris Riendeau, coming off his first win of the summer a week earlier, led the first ten go-rounds of the Casella Street Stock, holding off first Cody Schoolcraft and then Dave Greenslit until Greenslit inched past him on lap 11 after ten laps of wheel-to-wheel battle.
Greenslit, strong all season, would not be denied on this night, earning his first victory lap of the summer ahead of JImmy Renfrew Jr. and Riendeau. At press time, this finish was still unofficial.**

Jim Carley led the first 13 laps of the Pure Stock main event, losing a huge lead to a lap-seven caution and then watching Seth Melcher take control eight laps later. The pass of the night, though, belonged to Unity rookie Bruce Adams, whose last-lap pass netted him the runner-up finish and, with it, the divisional points lead. Carley, strong all night, came home third.

In the Six-Shooters, it was business as usual for hometown pilot Jeremy Blood, who took control on lap three and then drove away to stay undefeated in 2019 feature racing. Paul Colburn, who earlier won his heat race, took the checkers in second, and Chris Colburn earned the three-spot.

In a special Claremont Karting Series 25-lapper, 13-year-old Camryn Curtis of sleepy Baltimore, VT was anything but, racing under a blanket with Colton Martin to score the win in the caution-free event. Martin, 10, of Goshen, finished in his shadow to earn the runner-up hardware, and Branden Morrie, of Chester, VT, came home third.

Next Friday, June 14, the stars and cars of the Valenti Modified Racing Series will make their first of two ground-pounding stops this summer at Claremont Motorsports Park The New England Antique Racers will also be in action, along with five divisions of CMP weekly racing competition.
 
JUNE 7 FEATURE FINISHES:
LATE MODEL SPORTSMAN: Aaron Fellows, Ben Poland, Ricky Bly, Robert Hagar, Ryan Bell, Eric Martell, Mark Blair.
SPORTSMAN MODIFIED: Brian Robie, Matt Kimball, Todd Patnode, Dana Smith, Mike Smith, Dylan Bodreau, Alyssa Rivera, Kenny Thompson.
**STREET STOCK  (official): Dave Greenslit, Chris Riendeau, Max Dolliver, Russ Davis, Larry Riendeau, Robbie Streeter, Briana Akusis, Raven Streeter, Cody Schoolcraft.
PURE STOCK: Seth Melcher, Bruce Adams, Jim Carley, Chris Carver, Tom Englehart, Kyle Templeton, Ken LaFont, Bruce Cantara Jr., Erin Aiken.
SIX-SHOOTER: Jeremy Blood, Paul Colburn, Chris Colburn, Eric Lanou.

By Gary Dutton
 
CLAREMONT, N.H. – Veteran Modsman Brian Robie stormed to his first win of the season Friday, May 31, at Claremont Motorsports Park, as did Ascutney’s favorite racing animal, Chris “The Weasel” Riendeau.

Riendeau, the third-mile speedplant’s winningest driver a year ago, topped the Casella Street Stock feature, while Robie earned his victory lap by dominating the Pepsi Sportsman Modified main event.

On the same five-division card, Pure Stock ace Kyle Templeton used his second feature win in as many weeks to move atop his division’s point standings, while both R.E. Hinkley Late Model Sportsman ace Aaron Fellows and Six-Shooter Jeremy Blood won for the fourth event in a row, Blood staying perfect on the young season by also topping his fourth qualifying race.

In the Modified main, Brian Robie and Dana Smith led the field to the green, with Robie quickly pouncing on the lead and then dashing off to score his first win of the season as he set a blistering pace over the final all-green 39 laps.
Smith, a two-time track champion, was strong all night in second, holding off hard-charging Todd Patnode to earn the deuce hardware. Patnode’s third-place run kept the Swanzey star atop the point standings.

Robert Hagar, fresh off a dominating heat race win, fired to the opening lead in the Late Model Sportsman main, with Aaron Fellows – from row two, powering past Ryan Bell to claim the deuce spot a lap later.

By lap three, Hagar, Fellows, and Ricky Bly ran nose-to-tail, maintaining that order until Fellows dove low through the east end of the track to take command on lap16. Once in front, the Croydon Comet never looked back, finding a fast rhythm as he rocketed off to his fourth win in as many weeks.

Hagar, strong all night, used his runner-up finish to move to second in the point standings, with Bly claiming the night’s three-spot. Ben Poland, who entered the night second in points, fell victim to someone else’s early-race jingle, finished eighth.

Starting Chris Riendeau up front in the Street Stock feature hardly seemed fair to the rest of the field but, after suffering numerous early season woes, the Ascutney star took full advantage of his new-found Friday fortunes to lead all the way en route to his first win of the summer.

Hometown hot shoe Dave Greenslit won an early-race battle with Max Doliver for the deuce spot and then steadily reeled Riendeau in to set up the best finish of the night. By lap 28, Greenslit was knocking, but Riendeau wasn’t opening the door.

They touched, gently, as they rode the bottom of turn three for the final time, with Greenslit coming up short by less than a carlength of victory. Points leader Jimmy Renfrew was third on the night, staying ahead of Greenslit in the points parade. Doliver came home fourth, and Larry Riendeau came all the way from row six to claim the five spot.

Like Riendeau, Pure Stock strongman Kyle Templeton had struggled in early season action. After winning a week ago, the hometown hot shoe proved that his week-three run was no fluke, leading all the way to top Friday’s 20-lapper by a landslide.

Newport’s Jim Carley, strong all night, earned the best-of-the-rest award, holding off rookie powerhouse Bruce Adams for second. Templeton’s heat and feature race wins moved him atop the leader board in the points chase.

In the Six-Shooters, it was all Jeremy Blood again. The hometown racer easily won both his heat and feature to remain perfect on the year. Chris Colburn was second, and Paul Colburn third.

Next Friday, June 7, Claremont Motorsports Park returns to action with a five-division card of racing at the Twin State Valley’s center of speed. The competitors of the Claremont Karting Series will also be on hand to participate in an exhibition event.
 
SPORTSMAN MODIFIEDS: Brian Robie, Dana Smith, Todd Patnode, Scott MacMichael, Craig Smith, Dylan Bodreau, Alyssa Rivera, Kenny Thompson.
LATE MODEL SPORTSMEN: Aaron Fellows, Robert Hagar, Ricky Bly, Ryan Bell, Tyler Lescord, Mark Blair, Eric Martell, Ben Poland.
STREET STOCKS: Chris Riendeau, Dave Greenslit, Jimmy Renfrew, Max Doliver, Larry Riendeau, Briana Akusis, Robbie Streeter, Cody Schoolcraft, Raven Streeter, Travis Cass, Jeremy Whitcomb.
PURE STOCKS: Kyle Templeton, Jim Carley, Bruce Adams, Seth Melcher, Chris Carver, Dick Streeter.
SIX-SHOOTERS: Jeremy Blood, Chris Colburn, Paul Colburn.
 

By Gary Dutton
          
CLAREMONT, N.H. – Late Model Sportsman star Aaron Fellows and Six-shooter Jeremy Blood both stayed undefeated on the young season Sunday, May 26, at Claremont Motorsports Park, but it was Keystone State rocketman Matt Hirschman that hit the ball out of the park at the Thrasher Road speedplant.
           
The second-generation Modified star led the final 37 laps of the 100-lap Tri-Track Open Modified Series main event to earn the $7,000 winner’s purse, taking the checkers a dozen lengths ahead of Nutmeg State hot shoe Les Hinckley, the winner of many prior feature victories at the Claremont third-mile.
           
Grantham’s Mike Willis Jr., firing from row two, pounced on the lap-one lead in the big show, keeping Ron Silk in his shadow as the two major event winners from a season ago battled in Sunday’s big event. Silk, sailing from the outside lane, inched ahead at the stripe as lap 19 went into the books, still holding the point ahead of Willis and Todd Patnode as the race reached its halfway mark.    
           
A lap-56 looper brought out the fourth caution of the race, with Silk, Patnode and many other front runners heading pitside for fresh rubber, as Willis stayed out and reclaimed the lead
.
Hirschman was the first man back out with new Hoosiers, refiring three rows back, with Silk alongside. Silk’s charge back to the front was brief though, as he was nudged into the turn four wall on lap 62, then hurtling along the frontchute, collecting Brian Robie, Kirk Alexander, Joey Jarvis, and Patnode, with both Silk and Alexander done for the night when the smoke had cleared.

From there, it was all Hirschman. Hinckley was strong in second but, on this night, no match for Hirschman, taking the checkers in the runner-up spot, ahead of Ronnie Williams and Andy Jankowiak. Russ Hersey came back from early trouble to round out the top five.

In the LMS 35-lapper, Robert Hagar beat Aaron Fellows to the stripe to lead lap one, still holding the point when he looped out of the lead, with help, on lap three. That moved the 11-time-track champ to the point, where he quickly sped away, as the race looked to be over. Maybe not though.

With Fellows far, far ahead of Ben Poland as the white flag waved, his car disappeared in smoke as he sailed through turn two on the last go-round. His lead though, was vast enough to carry him to the R.E. Hinkley LMS checkers ahead of Poland, with Ricky Bly, Hagar, and Tyler Lescord completing the top five.

Two-time Street Stock winner Jimmy Renfrew fired quickly to the point in his 30-lapper, looking to stay undefeated on the young season. Teammate Alby Ovitt, though, had other ideas, riding under a blanket with Renfrew until rubbing past him along the backchute on lap 22.
Ovitt sailed under the flags three lengths ahead of Renfrew to score his first win of the season, with Max Doliver coming home third. Hometown hot shoes Dave Greenslit and Lenny Silver completed the top five.

Unity’s Bruce Adams, coming off an earlier heat race victory, led the first eight laps of the Pure Stock feature, with 2018 multi-feature winner Kyle Templeton then taking over and darting off to the checkers. Adams finished strong in the runner-up spot, with Jon Baker coming home third.

Jeremy Blood stayed undefeated in the Six-Shooters, winning both his third heat and third feature race. Paul Colburn was second, and Eric Lanou third.

This Friday, May 31, Claremont Motorsport Park returns to action with a five-division card of racing beginning at 7 p.m.
 
TRI-TRACK MOD TOP TEN: Matt Hirschman, Les Hinkley, Ronnie Williams, Andy Jankowiak, Russ Hersey, Matt Swanson, Anthony Sesely, Tommy Barrett, Calvin Carroll, Brian Robie.
LATE MODEL SPORTSMAN: Aaron Fellows, Ben Poland, Ricky Bly, Robert Hagar, Tyler Lescord.
STREET STOCK: Alby Ovitt, Jimmy Renfrew, Max Doliver, Dave Greenslit, Lenny Silver.
PURE STOCK: Kyle Templeton, Bruce Adams, Jon Baker, Chris Carver, Jim Carley.
SIX-SHOOTER: Jeremy Blood, Paul Colburn, Eric Lanou.
 

By Gary Dutton
Photos by Miss Em's Photography Adventures
 
CLAREMONT, N.H. – Aaron Fellows topped the 52-lap Dean Smith Memorial Late Model Sportsman main event Friday, May 17, at Claremont Motorsport Park, winning for the second time in as many 2019 events at the third-mile speedplant.
           
The Croydon Comet was one of four hot shoes staying perfect on the young season, as Todd Patnode made it two straight in the Sportsman Modifieds, Jimmy Renfrew Jr. ran away and hid to earn his second victory lap in the Street Stocks, and hometown pilot Jeremy Blood stayed undefeated in Six Shooter action.
           
Newport’s Jim Carley was a first time winner in the Pure Stocks, while Justin Harris won the 50-lap Red Neck Enduro nightcap event.
          
Ben Poland led the R.E. Hinkley Late Model Sportsman field to the green, holding the point for the first 15 go-rounds, with two-time defending track champ Ricky Bly running in his shadow. Fellows, charging from row four, reeled the lead pair in quickly, dropping Bly to third on lap 14 and then blasting low out of turn two to take command a lap later.
           
Bly grabbed the deuce on lap 18, running a distance second to Fellows until coasting to a stop atop turn four on lap 35. Not done yet, the Sunapee speedster put together some fast pit work and a fortuitous caution flag on lap 33 to knife back through the field and earn the runner-up hardware behind Fellows. Bob Hagar’s solid outing netted him the three-spot, Solomon Brow came home fourth, and Poland was fifth under the checkers.
           
Joel Monahan and Dana Smith race glued together for the first 17 circuits of the Pepsi Sportsman Modified main, with Smith – a two-time speedway champ – beginning to find some breathing room until the caution waved for a routine looper on lap 23. The ensuing restart brought Monahan back to his door, and Patnode into the mix.
           
Patnode would claim the deuce two laps later, keeping Smith in his sights until a lap-34 caution gave him one last chance at the point, with the Swanzey hot shoe jumping all over his newfound fortune to speed off to his second victory of the summer. Unity’s Mark Hayward, strong all night, charged ahead for second, Scott MacMichael came home third, with Smith and Matt Kimball rounding out the top five.
           
Casella Street Stock strongman Dave Greenslit led the first nine circuits of his 30-lapper, with Jimmy Renfrew Jr. draped all over him but, once Renfrew had rocketed low through turn three to take command, he simply drove away to earn the Friday night victory by a country mile. Chris Riendeau – he of the 11 feature wins a summer ago – got up for second, with Greenslit, Max Doliver, and Joe Tetreault completing the top five.
           
Seth Melcher won the first of two Pure Stock features, a 20-lap completion of an event halted by rain two weeks earlier. Erin Aiken was second, Chris Conroy third, with Tim St. John and Jim Carley completing the top five.
           
In the nightcap, when the tech line shuffle had been danced, Carley won his first of the year. Unity’s Bruce Adams was second, followed by Kyle Templeton, Chris Carver, and Sammy Silver.
           
Jeremy Blood topped the Six Shooters, with Paul Colburn the runner-up and Eric Lanou third, a duplication of their heat race finish.
           
In the Red Neck Enduro 50-lapper, Justin Harris – firing from row two, led all the way to score a dominating victory. Leon Keniston was the deuce man, with Tyson Hayes coming home third in the green-only event.
           
Next Sunday, May 26, Claremont Motorsport Park will host one of northern New England’s biggest racing events of the season, as the storied Tri-Track Modified Series invades the Thrasher Road speedplant for 100 ground-pounding laps of excitement. More than 30 of the region’s top open-wheel teams will be on hand to vie for the $7,000 winner’s purse.
           
Because of the preparation necessary to host this spectacular Memorial Day weekend event, there will be no racing Friday, May 24 at the CMP oval.  The Mod Squad will be supported by a full card of  Motorsport Park weekly racing series events. Post time Sunday is 5 p.m.

 ​If the R.E. Hinkley Super Streets 2018 race campaign were written into a non-fiction story, it would be called, “Tale of Two Seasons” and how the story’s protagonist, Ricky Bly, fought a rough start to his year and came back to win his 2nd consecutive track championship by only 7 points over Dylan Bodreau. With a division full of talent and healthy car counts, Bly’s average finish over the first half of the season was 5.3 until his first win on July 13. From that point on, his average finish was 2.6 including his four feature wins, eight podiums and ten top 5’s during that 11-race span.
 
The division saw nine different feature winners of which five were repeat winners. 12 different drivers won a heat race and 16 led a feature lap. The R.E. Hinkley Supers are one of the most competitive divisions in all of New England and came right down to the last lap of the last race.
 
21 feature events
31 different competitors
9 different feature winners
16 different feature lap leaders
12 different heat race winners

Final Point Standings

Pos         Car         Driver                                   Points  
1              28           Ricky Bly                               911
2              24           Dylan Bodreau                  904        
3              00           Ben Poland                         826
4              23           Craig Smith                         756
5              6              Mark McClay                      746
6              49           Alex Poisson                      714        
7              15           Tyler Lescord                     657        
8              8              Ken Fowler                         631        
9              60           Tyler Searles                      594        
10           51           Joe Brown                           474        
 
The Top 3's

Most Races 
21 – Ricky Bly, Dylan Bodreau, Ben Poland, Craig Smith, Alex Poisson, Tyler Lescord, Tyler Searles

Most Feature Wins
5 - Aaron Fellows (29NH)
4 – Ricky Bly (28)
3 – Dylan Bodreau (24) and Mark McClay (6)

Feature Laps Led
189 – Aaron Fellows (29NH)
128 – Ben Poland (00)
84 – Joe Brown (51)

Heat Race Wins
9 – Ben Poland (00)
7 – Dylan Bodreau (24)
5 – Joe Brown (51)

Best Average Finish (10 races or more)
3.90 – Ricky Bly (28)
4.43 – Dylan Bodreau (24)
6.43 – Ben Poland (00) and Craig Smith (23)

Podium Finishes
11 – Ricky Bly (28) and Dylan Bodreau (24)
9 – Craig Smith (23)

Top 5's 
19 – Dylan Bodreau (24)
16 – Ricky Bly (28)
12 – Craig Smith (23)

Top 10's
20 – Ricky Bly (28)
19 – Dylan Bodreau (24)
18 – Alex Poisson (49)

The highly anticipated 2018 race season for the Pepsi Street Stocks lived up to the pre-season hype with the championship being decided on the very last lap on the very last race. Even though Ascutney’s Chris “Weasel” Riendeau carried the checkers for a speedway-best 11th feature victory, eventual champion Bryan Town stayed right behind Riendeau and finished second to win the championship, this time by only 2 points. Town’s 13 heat race wins were the difference to securing his second-career championship. Town also recorded five feature wins (and very well could have been seven), 17 top 5’s and 21 top 10’s.

So let's earn some more #StreetStockSmarts with #ClaremontCalculations.

21 feature events
21 different competitors
5 different feature winners
10 different feature lap leaders
8 different heat race winners

Final Point Standings

Pos         Car         Driver                                   Points  
1              11           Bryan Town                        1015      
2              64           Chris Riendeau                  1013      
3              9              Lenny Silver                        961        
4              20           David Greenslit                 934        
5              55           Robbie Streeter                  820
6              02           Briana Akusis                     739        
7              39           Kenny Thompson            712        
8              95           Chris Colburn                     659                        
9              8              Nick Little                            428                        
10           21           Mike Salois                         368        

The Top 3's

Most Races 
21 – Bryan Town (11), Chris Riendeau (64), Lenny Silver (9), David Greenslit (20), Robbie Streeter (55)

Most Feature Wins
11- Chris Riendeau (64)
5 – Bryan Town (11)
3 – David Greenslit (20)

Feature Laps Led
172 – Bryan Town (11)
156 – Chris Riendeau (64)
80 – Chris Colburn (95)

Heat Race Wins
13 – Bryan Town (11)
4 – Colburn (95), Greenslit(20), Riendeau (64)

Best Average Finish (10 races or more)
2.95 – Chris Riendeau (64)
3.19 – Bryan Town (11)
3.76 – Lenny Silver (9)

Podium Finishes
14 – Chris Riendeau (64)
13 – Bryan Town (11)
12 – Lenny Silver (9)

Top 5's 
18 – Chris Riendeau (64)
17 – Town (11), Silver (9), Greenslit (20)

Top 10's
21 – Bryan Town (11), Chris Riendeau (64), Robbie Streeter (55)
20 – Silver (9) and Greenslit (20)
 

With 20 races on the schedule including three extra distance affairs, the T-Bird Mini Mart Wildcats division saw Zachary Lyn repeat as the division champion. With his seven feature wins, 15 podium finishes, and 18 Top 10's, Lyn was able to secure his second title by 88 points over Rookie of the Year Kyle Templeton. 

The division saw eight different feature winners as well with four of those being their first career win. Also, of the top 10 point finishers, four of those drivers were rookies. So let's get a little wild with #ClaremontCalculations.

20 feature events
30 different competitors
8 different feature winners
13 different feature lap leaders
11 different heat race winners

Final Point Standings

Pos Car Driver      Points
1 33 Zach Lyn                         963
2 67 Kyle Templeton (R) 875
3 3 Kyle Currier                 774
4 52 Raven Streeter (R)  738
5 88 Chris Carver             631
6 92 Jim Carley                 610
7 51 Victor Branch                 531
8 50 Jonathan Alden (R) 522
9 83 Haydon Grenier (R 451
10 26 Seth Melcher                 423

The Top 3's

Most Races 
20 - Zach Lyn (33), Raven Streeter (52), and Chris Carver (88)

Most Feature Wins
7 - Zach Lyn (33)
4 - Kyle Templeton (67)
3 - Josh Rondeau (23)

Feature Laps Led
136 - Zach Lyn (33)
99 - Kyle Templeton (67)
88 - Josh Rondeau (23)

Heat Race Wins
12 - Zach Lyn (33)
6 - Kyle Templeton (67)
4 - Josh Rondeau (23) and Jonathan Alden (50)

Best Average Finish (10 races or more)
2.89 - Kyle Templeton (67)
3.55 - Zach Lyn (33)
4.80 - Seth Melcher (26)

Podium Finishes
15 - Zach Lyn (33) and Kyle Templeton (67)
4 - Kyle Currier (3) and Haydon Grenier (83)

Top 5's 
16 - Zach Lyn (33) and Kyle Templeton (67)
9 - Kyle Currier (3)

Top 10's
18 - Zach Lyn (33) and Kyle Templeton (67)
17 - Kyle Currier (3) and Raven Streeter (52)

By Gary Dutton

CLAREMONT, N.H.- Claremont Speedway opened its doors to the 2018 season on a chilly May 4 night with Aaron Fellows, Super Street,; Chris Riendeau, Street Stock; and Josh Rondeau, Wildcat, each earning a stop in Daddy’s Pizza Victory Lane.

While none of the trio would hoist a championship trophy 21 weeks later, all three would be back in the winner’s circle again, Ascutney’s Riendeau scoring an astonishing 11 feature wins before all was said and done. Fellows, despite running only an abbreviated schedule for the Richardson Racing team, would lead his division with five feature victories.

The third-mile oval staged an improbable table-running season of 21 completed events in 21 weeks, twice using its new next-day rain date policy and once running double R.E. Hinkley Super Street features when late-show showers forced the night’s final feature to be postponed. After losing seven events to rain a season earlier, the 21/21 campaign was refreshing.

Pepsi Street Stocker Bryan Town, the division’s king a decade earlier won on week two, as did Mark McClay in the Super Streets and Rondeau, again, in the Wild Cats. The speedbowl’s defending 2017 champs had yet to get untracked.

Zach Lyn, the defending Wildcat king, scored his first victory of the summer on week four. Ricky Bly, who’d earned his career-first Super Street championship in 2017 had yet to tame his new ride, while it’s notable that Dylan Bodreau – wheeling Bly’s champ car from the previous summer – would take his first of three victory laps on week seven.

Bly finally put it all together on week 11, topping the Mike Richardson Memorial segment race and, although it was a non-points event, the Sunapee speedster showed all on hand that the king was back. At the half-season mark, Town and Riendeau were firmly locked in a battle for the crown vacated by Tyler Janovsky last September. It was an epic back-and-forth that would continue until the final lap of the season.

When the 20th event of the season was completed on September 21, Lyn – with six feature wins under his belt – had already clinched his second consecutive T-Bird Mini Mart Wildcat championship. Bly and Town held slim leads in their respective points chases, with both Bodreau and Riendeau hoping for big things in the season’s 21st and final night of racing.

Both would score feature wins in the finale, but Bly and Town each earned runner-up trophies to end their hard-fought campaigns as track champions.

Bly earned his second title by a slim, 911-904, margin when 21 weeks of racing had been completed. Town’s 2018 championship summer was even more of a nail biter, as the hometown pilot edged Riendeau by only two markers, 1,015-1,013. Had he dropped a single position in any of the season’s 21 feature races, he and Riendeau would have ended the summer tied.

Bly, Town, and Lyn will each celebrate their championship season when the third-mile speedplant holds its annual awards banquet. Feted as Rookies of The Year will be Matt Sonnhalter, Super Street; Robbie Streeter, Street Stock; and Kyle Templeton, Wild Cat. Templeton, a four-time 2018 feature winner, finished second to Lyn in the points parade.

Other significant feature winners during the 2018 speedway season included Grantham’s Mike Willis Jr., who won a 100-lap Tri-Track Modified Series event in late May, Nutmeg State open-wheel star Ronnie Silk, the winner of two extra distance, big money Modified shows, Maniac Jacob Dore, victorious in the Granite State Pro Stock Series biggie, and Emerson Cayer, who pocketed more than $3,000 for his win in the NEMST Four-Cylinder Nationals race in September.

Another notable September achievement was the presentation of $2,000 to the Friends of Norris Cotton Cancer Center from the Claremont Speedway family, an annual endeavor of the third-mile oval’s management, competitors, and fans. 
 
2018 CLAREMONT SPEEDWAY FEATURE WINNERS:
SUPER STREET: Aaron Fellows (5), Ricky Bly (4), Dylan Bodreau (3), Mark McClay (3), Ben Poland (2), Hayden Scott, Joe Brown, Craig Smith, Ryan Bell.
STREET STOCK: Chris Riendeau (11), Bryan Town (6), Dave Greenslit (2), Lenny Silver, Kenny Thompson Jr.
WILDCAT: Zach Lyn (7), *Kyle Templeton (4), Josh Rondeau (3), Kodi Sabins (2), Kyle Buck, *Victor Branch, *Jon Alden, *Cody Schoolcraft. * Denotes rookie driver.
2018 FINAL TOP TENS:
SUPER STREET: Ricky Bly, Dylan Bodreau, Ben Poland, Craig Smith, Mark McClay, Alex Poisson, Tyler Lescord, Ken Fowler, Tyler Searles, Joe Brown.
STREET STOCK: Bryan Town, Chris Riendeau, Lenny Silver, Dave Greenslit, Robbie Streeter, Briana Akusis, Kenny Thompson Jr., Chris Colburn, Nick Little, Mike Salois.
WILDCAT: Zach Lyn, Kyle Templeton, Kyle Currier, Raven Streeter, Chris Carver, Jim Carley, Victor Branch, Jon Alden, Haydon Grenier, Seth Melcher. 

By Gary Dutton
 
CLAREMONT, N.H. – There was no fire, but plenty of smoke Friday, as three 2018 champions and the track’s only 11-time winner performed celebratory victory donuts as Claremont Speedway host its final event of the season.
           
Ricky Bly is king of the R.E. Hinkley Super Streets for the second summer in a row, as the 37-year-old Sunapee star tamed a car that began the season with a thud, turning it into a championship ride that he guided to four feature wins this summer.
           
Zach Lyn, like Bly, earned back-to-back titles, his scored in the T-Bird Mini Mart Wildcats. The 28-year-old hometown hot shoe turned the trick with seven 2018 feature wins.
           
Pepsi Street Stocker Bryan Town is also a two-time champion, adding his 2018 title to another won in 2007. Town tallied six feature wins and topped a dozen heat races to edge 11-time feature winner Chris Riendeau 1,015-1,013 for this year’s crown.
           
All’s Bell the ends Bell. Well, almost.
           
Mark Blair, Alex Poisson, and Ryan Bell hit the stripe three across as lap one of the R.E. Hinkley Super Street 40-lapper went in the books. Bell then took charge, bringing Kenny Fowler and Dylan Bodreau with him.
           
Bodreau got up for second a lap later, trying to somehow overcome the 11-point deficit he carried behind Ricky Bly into the season finale. Mark McClay dropped Bodreau to third on lap 17, with Bly still further back but marching methodically toward the front.
           
Bell and McClay battled tooth and nail over the next 20-plus laps, the latter inching ahead on occasion only to see Bell do the same over and over. But the classic battle ended with the checkers almost in sight as Bell’s second victory of the summer was denied in a cloud of tire smoke when the leader spun with plenty of help in turn two.
           
Bodreau, third when it all broke lose, charged past the looping Bell to claim his third victory of 2018, but Bly made a quick evasive move to come home second, claiming his second championship seven points ahead of the night’s feature winner.
           
Ben Poland, strong all night, earned the third-place hardware, Solomon Brow was fourth, Jack McClay gained 11 positions to finish fifth. Bell, who appeared headed for victory for most of the race, finished tenth.
Pepsi Street Stock star Chris Riendeau had two goals in mind when the night’s 25-lap feature began; somehow erasing the six-point lead that Bryan Town carried into the season’s final event and, if possible, earn his track-high 11th stop of the summer in Daddy’s Pizza Victory Lane. He accomplished only the latter.
           
Town, firing from up front, led the first 11 go-rounds, then putting up little fight as Riendeau sped past him through turn three as the race neared its halfway point. Once in front, the Ascutney pilot drove away, winning in a landslide but coming up two markers shy of the championship.
           
Town’s runner-up finish netted him his second track championship, the first earned more than a decade earlier. His teammate Dave Greenslit completed his strong night’s work in third, Lenny Silver was fourth, and ROY Robbie Streeter dashed under the flags in fifth.
           
Birthday boy Chris Carver led the T-Bird Mini Mart Wildcats to their feature green, but this one was all Zach Lyn. The 2017 and 2018 divisional champion – he’d clinched his current title a week earlier – led all the way en route to his seventh win of the summer.
           
Super rookie Kyle Templeton got up for second on lap six but on this night had to be content with the runner-up finish. Templeton also finish the season second to Lyn in the points parade.
 
Rookie Haydon Grenier was solid in third, fellow first year man Raven Streeter powered to fourth, and Seth Melcher came home fifth.
           
Friday night’s Championship Night event concluded the 2018 racing season at Claremont Speedway. The season was comprised of 21 events run on 21 consecutive weekends, with the speedway’s next-night rain date policy utilized twice to complete the campaign without the cancellation of any event.
           
The speedway’s annual awards banquet is still ahead. For information, please visit www.claremontspeedway.net or the track’s Facebook page.
 
CLAREMONT SPEEDWAY SEPT. 28 TOP TENS:
SUPER STREET: Dylan Bodreau, Ricky Bly, Ben Poland, Solomon Brow, Jack McClay, Ken Fowler, Tyler Lescord, Alex Poisson, Tyler Searles, Ryan Bell.
STREET STOCK: Chris Riendeau, Bryan Town, Dave Greenslit, Lenny Silver, Robbie Streeter, Jeff Morse, Mike Burke, Nick Little, Mike Salois, Chris Emerson.
WILDCAT: Zach Lyn, Kyle Templeton, Haydon Grenier, Raven Streeter, Seth Melcher, Kyle Currier, Chris Carver, Jim Carley, Cody Schoolcraft.
 

By Gary Dutton
 
CLAREMONT, N.H. – High schooler Cody Schoolcraft scored his first career feature win Friday, September 21, night at Claremont Speedway.

Super Street star Ben Poland took his second victory lap this year, and it was business as usual for Chris Riendeau, who rocketed to his track-high tenth win to close to within six points of title-points-leading Bryan Town entering the season finale.

Friday’s event at the Thrasher Road speedplant was the third-mile oval’s 20th consecutive race meet without rain stoppage this summer. When it was concluded, one divisional championship had been decided but two were left very much up for grabs entering its Championship Night event.

T-Bird Mini Mart Wild Cat ace Zach Lyn had a forgettable night, struggling to a tenth-place finish, but all wasn’t bad for the Claremont star, whose night’s work netted him his second consecutive championship in the four-cylinder division.

R.E. Hinkley Super Streeter Dylan Bodreau’s runner-up finish brought him to within 11 points of Ricky Bly in their championship battle, and Riendeau’s Pepsi Street Stock victory brought him to within a half dozen markers of points leader Bryan Town, who earned runner-up honors in Friday’s 25-lap feature.

Pole sitter Tyler Lescord set a fast pace the first eight go-rounds of the Super Street main event, giving way to Ben Poland on a restart caused when points leader Ricky Bly looped in turn four, compliments of a friend, to bring out the race’s first caution.

Dylan Bodreau followed Poland forward, then racing under a blanket with him most of the way to earn the runner-up finish. Magic Mark McClay, strong all night, claimed the three spot, just ahead of his brother Jack, while Bly rocketed back through the field to claim fifth, losing six points to Bodreau but still going home atop the leader board in quest of his second speedway crown.

Riendeau inched past Briana Akusis to grab the lap one lead in the Street Stock main, then left the field in his dust as he made his tenth stop of the season in Daddy’s Pizza victory lane. His gains were minimal, though, as top points man Bryan Town held the deuce the final 24 go-rounds.

While Riendeau’s victory came easily, Town’s runner-up finish was anything but. Fellow hometown hot shoe Lenny Silver was glued to Town’s bumper most of way, with Town earning the valuable two extra championship points as Silver took the checkers in his shadow.
Dave Greenslit, victorious a week earlier, came home fourth in Friday’s Street Stock main event, and Canaan’s Robbie Streeter was fifth under the checkers.

Rookie Cody Schoolcraft, who started this season in the grandstands, completed his fast learning curve Friday, leading all the way and winning by a country mile to become the eighth different Wild Cat winner this summer, the fourth rookie pilot to turn the trick.

Points king Zach Lyn rode in second the first five laps but abruptly slowed on lap six, staying trackside another five go-rounds before dropping out, his second championship already assured. Rookie Hayden Grenier got up for second on lap 17 but on this night would have needed binoculars to see the speedy Schoolcraft’s back bumper.

Kyle Templeton ran third the last six laps and will finish his impressive rookie campaign second to Lyn in points. With the all-rookie trio of Schoolcraft, Grenier and Templeton making up the top three, Seth Melcher was fourth, and Kyle Currier came home fifth.
           
Next Friday, September 28, Claremont Speedway will close out its very successful 2018 racing season when it hosts its 21st and final event of the summer, Championship Night. That event will be rain-dated until Saturday if necessary.
 
CLAREMONT SPEEDWAY SEPT. 21 TOP TENS:
SUPER STOCK: Ben Poland, Dylan Bodreau, Mark McClay, Jack McClay, Ricky Bly, Alex Poisson, Allen Fellows, Tyler Searles, Ken Fowler, Tyler Lescord.
STREET STOCK: Chris Riendeau, Bryan Town, Lenny Silver, Dave Greenslit, Robbie Streeter, Briana Akusis, Lucas Wheeler, Travis Cass.
WILD CAT: Cody Schoolcraft, Haydon Grenier, Kyle Templeton, Seth Melcher, Kyle Currier, Raven Streeter, Steve Morris, Jim Carley, Chris Carver, Zach Lyn.