Lovejoy Captures A Surprise Wildcat 50 Win At Beech Ridge

Column By: AMY HARROP / RPW – SCARBOROUGH, ME – As dark skies loomed overhead, fans remained confident that the weather would hold off for one of Beech Ridge’s biggest nights of the season. The weather God was on Scarborough’s side tonight, allowing for a full night of racing to go off without a hitch — as far as the weather goes, that is.

The Pro Series were the first on track tonight for their qualifying heats. In the first qualifying heat was the low-point cars, followed by the high-point cars in the second heat. Evan Beaulieu and Nick Cusack led the field to green in their heat, followed by David Oliver, Dan Winter and Brandon Barker. Nick Cusack quickly pulled away from the field, but the #21 of David Oliver went around in turn 2 on lap 1, drawing out the caution. Cusack immediately pulled away at the restart once again, but “Naughty 40” of Dan McKeage was on the move — making his way up from 7th to 2nd in just 6 short laps. Although McKeage was in hot pursuit, Cusack was able to pull away with the heat victory. Corey Bubar and Garrett Hall were on the front row for the next qualifying heat, followed by John Peters, Gary Smith and Mike Rowe. Garrett Hall made a pass to the outside of Bubar for the top spot on the first lap, pulling away from the field. But, Reid Lanpher was making his way through the field, breaking into the top 5 on lap 5 after a wild pass to the inside of Gary Smith and Mike Rowe. Hall took home the heat win, followed by Corey Bubar, John Peters, Reid Lanpher and Mike Rowe.

The Wildcat division took to the stage next for their qualifying heats. The lineups for these heats were decided by random draw, unlike those of the Pro Series. Travis Burrows started in the top spot for heat #1, followed by Dave Cameron, Zach Nicholson, Chaz Briggs and Kristina Nadeau. Dave Cameron found his way to the outside of Travis Burrows in turn 4 on lap 1, securing himself the top spot. As Dave Cameron continued to lead, Adam Lovejoy turned heads as he broke the top 4 in the first five laps. Wildcat newcomer Zach Nicholson also showed strength as he cleared Travis Burrows for the runner-up spot on lap 6. Dave Cameron went on to win the heat, followed by Zach Nicholson, Adam Lovejoy, Travis Burrows and Chaz Briggs. Last week’s Wildcat feature winner Travis Lovejoy drew the top spot for the next qualifying heat, followed by Zach Bowie, Dan Bean, Joe Morse and Ray Letellier. Zach Bowie and Dan Bean are both Oxford Plains natives and not Beech Ridge regulars. After a re-do of the initial restart, Zach Bowie pulled alongside Travis Lovejoy’s car, leaving the two fighting for the top spot. Bowie finally cleared Lovejoy on lap 7 in turn 4. Lovejoy was still at his heels, but Bowie managed to pull of the heat win. He was followed by Travis Lovejoy, Tyler King, Dan Bean and Ray Letellier.

The Sport Series division took to the track next to qualify for the Sport Series 100, which is the longest race of the season for the division. Clyde Hennessey and Matt Dow started on the front row for heat #1, followed by Herrick, Campbell and Gherardi. Clyde Hennessey pulled away from the field and never looked back, but Sally Gherardi and Nick Campbell had the crowd’s attention throughout the entire heat as they battled side by side for position. Campbell held off Sally by a nose for the 4th place spot. Clyde Hennessey captured the pole position for the feature, followed by Dow, Herrick, Campbell and Gherardi. Dalton Gagnon made his return to Beech Ridge in the next qualifying heat, starting on the front row. Following him were Reggie Leeman, Mike St. Pierre, Terry Merrill and Richard Pelton. Reggie Leeman took the top spot as Gagnon fell to the third spot behind Terry Merrill. Charlie Sanborn notably had a fast car in the heat, making his way up from the very back of the pack to finish 6th. Reggie Leeman pulled away with the heat victory, followed by Terry Merrill, Dalton Gagnon, Richard Pelton, Mike St. Pierre and Charlie Sanborn.

Now that the fields were set, it was time for the Pro Series drivers to take to the track for their 40-lap feature. Nick Cusack and Dan McKeage started on the front row, followed by Dan Winter, Jacob Dore and Evan Beaulieu. After the initial start was waved off, Cusack led the first lap. But, McKeage was at his bumper, hungry for the top spot. Garrett Hall was making moves further back in the pack, passing Evan Beaulieu on lap 7 for a spot in the top five. Lanpher was also in hot pursuit of the front of the pack, pushing Evan Beaulieu to the outside on lap 9 for position. Lanpher broke the top 5 on lap 21 after making a pass to the inside of Dan Winter in turn 3. Hall and Lanpher were both on the move, making their way through the pack. Hall made his way into second place after passing Dan McKeage on the outside on lap 23. Lanpher found himself in a 3-way battle for the 4th spot on lap 27 with Jacob Dore and Curt Gerry, eventually capturing the spot. After a turn 4 pass on lap 29, Garrett Hall secured the top spot. Dan McKeage went around in turns 3 & 4 on lap 31, drawing out a late-race caution. Cusack pulled away from the field at the restart, but Hall was in hot pursuit. Hall eventually passed Cusack in turn 3 on lap 35, but Reid Lanpher took no time in finding his bumper. The two cars were nose-to-nose on lap 28 with just two laps to go. This led to a 3-wide finish between Hall, Lanpher and Curt Gerry. Hall took home the win, followed by Lanpher, Gerry, Rowe and Cusack. In Victory Lane, Garrett Hall praised his friends and family for all of their support. Speaking of his car, he said, “We’ve been working hard to make it as good was the #7 and #59 — we’re getting there.” Garrett also spoke about how he’s racing at Speedway 95 on Sunday, searching for a second weekend victory.

The Wildcat division took to the track next for their big feature race — the Wildcat 50. Dave Cameron and Travis Lovejoy started on the front row, followed by Zach Nicholson, Tyler King and Adam Lovejoy. Zachary Bowie, who had scored a heat win, was forced to start at the back of the pack after failing his initial pre-race inspection. Dave Cameron led the first lap, but Travis Lovejoy was in hot pursuit. Travis nearly went around on lap 2 in turn 1 but managed to save his car, staying on the track surface. His big brother Adam fell back a few spots after making contact with the #04 of Bowie on lap 11. Travis Burrows went around in turn 4 on lap 16, drawing out the caution. Dave Cameron and Travis Lovejoy were neck & neck at the restart, but Travis Lovejoy managed to pull away with the top spot this time around. Tyler King was at his heels, eventually stealing the top spot on lap 19. Zachary Bowie also made his way around Travis Lovejoy on lap 20, securing the 2 Beech Ridge newcomers the top 2 spots on the track. Adam Lovejoy found his way back into the top 5 on lap 35 after making a turn 2 pass on the #21 of Zach Nicholson. Tyler King was lapping cars by lap 44, maintaining a 3-4 car length lead over Zach Bowie. King took home the heat victory, followed by Zachary Bowie, Travis Lovejoy, Adam Lovejoy and Zach Nicholson. After the night of competition concluded, it was revealed that Tyler King and Zachary Bowie were disqualified from both the race and from receiving their winning titles. In a shocking twist of events, Travis Lovejoy was granted the Wildcat 50 victory, followed by his big brother Adam Lovejoy, Zach Nicholson and Dave Cameron. This was the second 1-2 finish for the Lovejoy brothers in two consecutive weeks, giving the brothers a lot to be proud of, even under the given circumstances.

The night concluded with the Sport Series division and their 100-lap feature. Clyde Hennessey led the field to green, followed by Reggie Leeman, Matt Dow and Terry Merrill. Hennessey pulled away from the field quickly, but drama was brewing in the kettle. After making contact with the #1 of Charlie Sanborn in turns 1 & 2 on lap 14, Nick Campbell took a wild spin. Phil Pinkham was also collected in the on-track incident. After the initial restart was waved off, Ryan Villacci ended up going around after some on-track confusion. Alex Lacognata also received some hood damage from the field piling up after the restart was waved off. Sally Gherardi was making her way through the field quickly, finding her way around the #71 machine for the second spot on lap 20. On lap 25, Frank Wear and Charlie Sanborn made contact, also collecting the #89 Ryan Phillips machine in the midst of things. Clyde Hennessey pulled away from the field once again at the restart, but Sally was at his heels. Charlie Sanborn found his way into the top 5 after passing Matt Dow to the inside on lap 68. By lap 75, he had found his way up to the fourth spot. Hennessey and Gherardi were pulling away from the rest of the pack, lapping the tail-end of the field by lap 70. As the field met 15 to go, fireworks began going off in the distance over the main grandstands, setting the mood for an exciting finish. Hennessey maintained a 2-car length lead over Gherardi coming into the 90-lap mark. Gherardi shocked everyone as she suddenly pulled off of the track on lap 95, surrendering her second place position that she had held for nearly the entire race. Lap 96 was home to more on-track drama as Nick Campbell went into Charlie Sanborn’s #1 machine — which was likely a reaction to their previous on-track incident. Sanborn managed to save his car from tragedy, holding onto the third spot. Clyde Hennessey went on to win the feature, followed by Terry Merrill, Charlie Sanborn, Richard Pelton and Matt Dow. Hennessey is the first driver since Morse to go back-to-back with Sport Series 100 victories. He led every lap all night, displaying pure dominance. Even with his dominating performance, Hennessey didn’t have all that much to say in Victory Lane. He simply thanked his family and friends and said “I’m blessed.” when asked about how he felt by his success’ tonight.

Although the weather went off without a hitch, some on-track drama provided pure entertainment for all spectators at Beech Ridge Motor Speedway this weekend. The Lovejoy family continues to display dominance in the Wildcat division, while other drivers in different divisions are continuously showcasing their strength and improvement, one week at a time.

Join us next Saturday, June 24th, for the Pro Series 125! Racing starts at 7:00 pm.