OXFORD, Maine – Reid Lanpher and Curtis Gerry prevailed in a pair of caution-free, 50-lap super late model main events Saturday afternoon at Oxford Plains Speedway.
Lanpher dominated the first race from his front row starting position, his fastest lap a quarter-second better than his nearest rival in the non-stop affair. Gerry, after starting fourth, was 2.714-seconds behind Lanpher, with polesitter Ryan Deane earning third-place hardware.
Ryan Robbins, who lined up in seventh spot, earned the first of his two top five finishes on the afternoon with a fourth-place run. T.J. Brackett rounded out the top five.
Gerry started third in the second race and outran nine-time track champion Jeff Taylor to the checkered flag in a much closer, and still caution-free event for the speedy top class at the historic Route 26 oval track. Taylor, an infrequent entrant in recent years at the track he once dominated, kept things close, finishing less than a half-second behind Gerry in the second super late model 50-lapper.
Deane nailed down his second third-place finish of the day, just ahead of a fast-closing Lanpher, who turned in the fastest lap of the race after starting from 12th position. Tenth-starting Robbins made a late move into fifth spot, his second top five finish of the afternoon.
Defending Allen’s Coffee Flavored Brandy Street Stock track champion Matt Dufault started his title defense off in style, using the outside groove liberally to win the season-opening, 30-lap main event aboard an aging Rodney Williams Camaro.
Patrick Thorne had his best run since joining the class, chasing the champ under the checkered flag, with Kurt Hewinsthird across the finish line.
Hometown Oxford racer Skip Stanley claimed his first win in the Street Stock finale, battling Jon Brill for the top spot early, then outrunning defending champion Dufault to the checkered flag in the second 30-lap race.
Defending Bandits division champion Dustin Salley emerged triumphantly from the first race in his class this year. Shaun Hinkley, another former champion in the class, was the best of the rest in the 20-lap test. Chad Wills, Travis Verrill and Tyler Green rounded out the top-five.
Hinkley prevailed in round two, outrunning Rob Crepeau to the checkered flag. Green, returning after a year’s absence, claimed third-place hardware.
Larry Lizotte took top honors in the first of two 20-lap races for the Figure 8 competitors. Lizotte outgunned race-long leader Dale Lawrence on a restart and held off Kyle Glover after Lawrence spun. Charlie Hall was third, followed by Eric Hodgkins and Lawrence.
Lawrence made no mistakes in round two, outrunning Lizotte to victory lane. Glover ended up third to earn his second trophy of the afternoon.
The second-year Rookie class for young racers saw Brady Childs win twice in a pair of good battles against Owen Stuart. Sophie Green picked up the third-place trophy in the first race, with Maddy Herrick third in the second event.