Milton’s Scott Payea and Hinesburg’s Bobby Therrien topped the practice charts at Barre’s Thunder Road Speedbowl on Saturday, April 29 as part of an open practice day for the American-Canadian Tour (ACT) Merchants Bank 150. Payea set the fast time in the opening practice session at 13.304 seconds. Therrien was right behind in the session at 13.369 seconds, and later ran a lap of 13.392 that led the final session.

The ACT Late Models had five practice sessions on the day with a different driver topping each session. Northfield’s Matt White paced the second practice session, while Fayston’s Brook Clark sat atop the third session. Eddie “The Outlaw” MacDonald of Rowley, Mass. paced the fourth session.

Thunder Road Speedbowl opens the doors for its 58th season of competition this Sunday, April 30 with the 19th Merchants Bank 150. The stars of the American-Canadian Tour (ACT) will take on the weekly Thunder Road Late Model standouts, while the Flying Tigers and Allen Lumber Street Stocks begin their 2017 championship battles. 

The event will be the first at the “Nation’s Site of Excitement” since former track champion Cris Michaud and local businessman Pat Malone officially purchased the speedway. Thunder Road had been run since 1982 by founder Ken Squier and partner Tom Curley, who are both members of the New England Auto Racing Hall of Fame.

The American-Canadian Tour (ACT) returns to Barre, Vt.’s Thunder Road Speedbowl this Sunday, April 30 for the 19th Merchants Bank 150. The event kicks off the 58th season of competition on the quarter-mile oval and is the first of two visits this year for the ACT Late Model Tour. 

A pair of multi-time Merchants Bank 150 winners will lead the charge into this year’s event. Three-time and defending event champion Nick Sweet of Barre will look to go back-to-back, while two-time event champion Scott Payea of Colchester is attempting to match Sweet in the record books.

The American-Canadian Tour (ACT) returns to Barre, Vt.’s Thunder Road Speedbowl this Sunday, April 30 for the 19th Merchants Bank 150. The event kicks off the 58th season of competition on the quarter-mile oval and is the first of two visits this year for the ACT Late Model Tour. 

A pair of multi-time Merchants Bank 150 winners will lead the charge into this year’s event. Three-time and defending event champion Nick Sweet of Barre will look to go back-to-back, while two-time event champion Scott Payea of Colchester is attempting to match Sweet in the record books.

Thunder Road officials have announced that the sale of Thunder Road Speedbowl to former racer Cris Michaud and local businessman Pat Malone has been completed. The duo has assumed day-to-day operations of the famed quarter-mile oval, which had been owned and operated since 1982 by Ken Squier and Tom Curley.

Happy Holidays!  It has been a while since I have written a Curley’s Corner to the ACT competitors and various interested people. There are lots of “off-season” rumors floating around, so I thought this would be a good time to let everyone know what is planned following the 2016 season.