THURSDAY NIGHT HORNETS AND BUMBLE BEES presented by Steve Copp Construction
August 7th, 2008
By Ken Keating, Illusion Photography
Western Speedway hosted yet another interesting, and competitive night for the Hornet Thursday Night Thunder Series. The car count was up again to run three Trophy Dashes, ten Heat races, a B-Main for both rookies and experts, plus an A-Main and Feature races for both categories.
During the Bumblebee Trophy Dash, Carrie Shaw and Rose Root got together coming out of the fourth corner and Shaw went headfirst into the front stretch wall. She was taken by Provincial ambulance to hospital and she suffered a broken collarbone, ribs, and a concussion in the crash. She is a tough competitor, as she wants to race the next Thursday event but her new car also suffered major damage and may not be ready even if she could drive.
Sheldon Hovde got out fast in the rookie B-Main event and led for two laps before he got passed by Michael Hanson on lap three. Hanson led the rest of the way while LeRoy Williams took the second spot from Hovde on lap six and left Hovde running in third spot. The flag waved for Hanson however as he held off the competition and took the win. In the A-Main, Blair Davis and Alex Bingham shared the front row for the start of twenty laps of racing. Garrett Smith took the lead after only two laps but had to contend with not only lap traffic but a hard charging Mike McPeek. McPeek had to contend with Jake Spring during the latter laps as the leaders were trying to negotiate through the back markers. At one point, Smith built a pretty good lead but he too had to wind his way through traffic that allowed McPeek to mount a serious challenge. Smith did hold on to take the checkered flag with McPeek and Spring finishing second and third respectively.
Blair Davis and Alex Bingham shared the front row for the start of a twenty lap Main event for the rookies. Garrett Smith grabbed the lead after only two laps and started to build a comfortable lead. As he worked himself to the lap traffic he had to contend, with a hard charging Mike McPeek, who also had a challenge from Jake Spring who had caught up to the leaders in the later laps. Smith was able to hold off the competition and took the B-Main followed by McPeek and Spring.
Jessica Hall brought fourteen cars around to take the green flag in the B-Main for the Experts. Troy Tarbuck passed her after only two laps and led for the next twelve. Meanwhile Brent Smith worked his way to second spot on lap five. He kept the pressure on Tarbuck and passed for the lead with just five laps remaining. Behind him Hall, Tarbuck, and Shane Scott battled hard for the remaining positions. Hall finished in second with Scott coming home in third.
Rory Smith held the preferred starting spot for the start of thirty laps of racing in the final race of the night. With the drop of the green flag, Smith quickly moved to the lead. Darrel Midgley, Steve Copp, Darryl Cahill, Phil Calnan, Phil Lagan, and a host of other fast cars were buried deep in the field and would have to race fast and hard for a chance at the win. Jean-Luc Lagan fell into second spot while Daryn Cahill followed him in third. Cahill took over the second spot on lap nine pushing Lagan back to third. Meanwhile Darryl Cahill had moved through traffic and took over the third spot on lap twenty-one. Smith was able to hold off the field and took the win followed by Daryn and Darryl, the Cahill gang, who finished second and third respectively.
The next race for this series is set for August 14th as this series is running out of races for the 2008 season. They will be running once more on the big oval before the season ends for this very entertaining and competitive group.
FAST TIME: #14 Daryl Crocker 15:52
BUMBLE BEE DASH:
Rose Root; Lois Lagan; Cassandra Musfelt; Carrie Shaw
ROOKIE DASH:
Brandon Phillips; Mike McPeek; Garrett Smith; Tyler Woods
EXPERT DASH:
Trevor Bowers; Phil Lagan; Daryl Crocker; Phil Calnan
1st HEAT (BUMBLEBEES):
Rose Root; Lois Lagan; Cassandra Musfelt; Nora Knudsea
2nd HEAT (ROOKIES):
Mike Hanson; Leroy Williams; Tyler Clough; Cole Schuurman
3rd HEAT (ROOKIES):
Cody Loughran; Garrett Smith; Mike McPeek; Jordan Visco
4th HEAT (EXPERTS):
Jessica Hall; Brent Smith; Peter Gray-Owen; Troy Tarbuck
5th HEAT (EXPERTS):
Mike Melin; Shane Scott; Caleb Van Bree; Ian Gray-Owen
6th HEAT (EXPERTS):
Steve Copp; Daryl Cahill; Bill Peacey; Phil Calnan
7th HEAT:
Mike McPeek; Jake Spring; Jordan Visco; Tyler Clough
8th HEAT:
Garrett Smith; Reece Crocker; Garrett Bartlett; Tyler Woods
9th HEAT:
Daryn Cahill; Caleb Van Bree; Jean-Luc Lagan; Gord Wheeler
10th HEAT:
Steve Copp; Phil Calnan; Bill Peacey; Phil Lagan
B MAIN EVENT (ROOKIES):
Mike Hanson; Leroy Williams; Sheldon Hovde; Lucas Dashwood;
Lois Lagan
A MAIN EVENT (ROOKIES):
Garrett Smith; Mike McPeek; Rose Root; Jake Spring;
Garnet Bartlett
B MAIN EVENT (EXPERTS):
Brent Smith; Jessica Hall; Shane Scott; Troy Tarbuck;
Wayne Boyd
A MAIN EVENT (EXPERTS):
Rory Smith; Daryn Cahill; Daryl Cahill; Bill Peacey; Phil Lagan
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