Turner capitalizes on restart, wins Unity pro stock feature

UNITY ? Freedom’s Randy Turner spent most of the 50-lap pro stock feature in third place watching Brunswick’s Scott Chubbuck and Unity’s Ralph Nason battle it out for the lead.

But when Nason tried to cut down in front of Chubbuck and wound up being spun by Chubbuck, that gave Turner the opportunity he needed and he capitalized on the restart to get past Chubbuck and take the checkered flag.

“After they got by me and pulled away, I thought we were going to be the third-place car,” said Turner who added that he knew he would have only one chance to pass Chubbuck and that would be on the restart as he started on the outside of the front row as Nason was sent to the back of the pack..

“I guess we capitalized. I was able to pinch him down in the middle of the turn,” said the 24-year-old Turner, the defending pro stocks points champion at Unity Raceway.

“Once his right front tire was by my driver’s side door, I thought we could keep him there until the end.”

“My car got real tight or I could have held Randy off. I probably could have run him up the track but be races me clean and I race him clean. He’s a good competitor,” said Chubbuck who added that the contact with Nason couldn’t have been avoided.

“He wanted me out there [in the outside groove], then he wanted me in here [inside groove],” said Chubbuck. “I drove up [next] to his door and then he started down. We made contact, he went around and, luckily, I didn’t.”

“That’s racing but someday the shoe will be on the other foot. He wasn’t up to my door. He hit me in the left rear corner,” said Nason, who finished sixth.

Bangor’s Gary Smith finished third thanks to a late pit stop.

“We made one too many chances before the race because of the cold weather and the car was too loose. So we went in with 12 or 15 laps to go, put some wedge into it and that made all the difference in the world.”

Fairfield’s Jeff Burgess and Albion’s Matt Lee rounded out the top five.

In the 35-lap super sportsman feature, the first in the Triple Crown series, Chelsea’s Dan Trask survived eight cautions, six in a four-lap span and one with just five laps remaining, to post his first-ever win in this class. He had previously run in the super street division.

He passed Sidney’s Chris Thorne on lap 22 and held off Fairfield’s Joe Ritchey on the lap 30 restart.

“I really didn’t want to start on the inside lane. I wanted the preferred outside lane. But we did it. The car was a little loose on the inside but once the tires cooled down, it seemed to go a little bit better,” said the 25-year-old Trask who considered all the restarts to be “nerve-wracking.”

Ritchey said, “I knew he was loose and I was going to try to let him go and try to get down. But it took me a lap to get down. There was a guy on the inside. But it was a good start to the year.”

China Village’s Brad Bellows was third with Thorne and Seth Raven of Waldo completing the top five.

In the super street class, Anson’s Mark Dodge cruised to an impressive victory and credited his crew and friends with making it possible.

“If it wasn’t for them, I wouldn’t even be racing. They came up with the money for my motor. When I got here, I didn’t have money for tires and they paid for my tires,” said the 31-year-old Dodge. “I can’t say enough about them.”

Nineteen-year-old Shawn Austin of Skowhegan finished second representing his best ever finish in four years of racing.

Nate Weston of Madison was third in a car he borrowed from Augusta’s Cory Poulin.

“I’m running for points this year and he isn’t and he was nice enough to let me borrow it. I was just going to run one lap for the points but the car ran so well, I couldn’t bring myself to come in. I went from last to third,” said Weston.

Mickey Landry Jr. of Anson and Palmyra’s A.J. Pickard were fourth and fifth.

In the other feature races, Rome’s Seth Wills captured the mini-stocks by three car-lengths over Reggie Bickford of Oakland. Carl McAlpine of Burnham was third with Derrick Terrill of Plymouth and Frank Moulton of Unity completing the top five.

Eddie Drake of Vassalboro won the pro-four by 30 car-lengths over Judd Derbyshire of Mount Vernon and Paul Shorette II of Winslow. Glenburn’s Joe Allard and Danforth’s Josh Frye were fourth and fifth. In the mini-trucks, Justin Drake of Dover-Foxcroft took the checkered flag. He was five car-lengths better than Darren Doucette of Sidney and James Towers or Rumford wound up third followed by North Vassalboro’s Eric Carnegie and Waterville’s Chad Elkins.