Griffith Wins Father’s Day PASS 150 at Speedway 95

HERMON, ME – Reigning Pro All Stars Series Super Late Model National Champion Derek Griffith of Hudson, New Hampshire nailed down his second PASS North victory of the season on Father’s Day afternoon in the Hopkins Milling & Paving PASS 150 at Speedway 95 in Hermon, Maine. 

For Griffith it was his second win at the tricky, banked short track located just outside of Bangor.  Griffith now has four straight podium finishes in PASS competition at Maine’s Family Fun Track.  He got the lead away from hometown Hermon racer, and Richmond Raceway PASS Commonwealth Classic winner Mike Hopkins.

The local favorite was just breaking in a new racecar and while it looked exceptionally quick early on it was no match for Griffith and the LCM Motorsports 12 after the 22-year-old Granite Stater had worked his way into second position after starting the race from 11^th spot.

Nick Sweet of Barre, Vermont earned runner-up honors in his first-ever visit to the tricky track and gave some credit to veteran Steuben, Maine Late Model racer Rowland ‘JR’ Robinson.  Sweet and Hopkins seemed to battle for the balance of the race after Griffith took command for good.  Hopkins was the third-place finisher.

Championship points leader Garrett Hall aided his title hopes slightly with a fine fourth-place performance.  Six-time PASS North Super Late Model Champion Johnny Clark of Farmingdale filled out the top-five rundown.

Sixth-place finisher Travis Benjamin of Belfast was the only other driver to complete all 150 green flag laps.  Defending PASS North SLM Champion DJ Shaw of Center Conway, New Hampshire was seventh, followed by his protégé and next door neighbor, Gabe Brown.  Vermont’s Bobby Therrien finished in ninth position, just ahead of Ellsworth’s Wyatt Alexander.

In addition to added Father’s Day happiness, there were several team members with Griffith’s ride celebrating birthdays at Speedway 95 on Sunday.

Kate Re, a 15-year-old Fryeburg Academy sophomore from Lovell, made daddy Rick Re awful proud on Father’s Day, racing to her second career PASS Mod win, and first this season.  Kate led all 40 laps but it certainly was not without challenge, most notably from Tyler King, in just his second PASS Mod race.

King spent, at least, the final one-third of the race in the outside groove trying to get around Re, but she held her line and fended off the Livermore native, now calling Gray home.  It was King’s first Father’s Day as a parent and both Papa Scott and Grandpa Joe King are instrumental in the family-based team. 

Lebanon’s Mike Carignan grabbed the third-place trophy, making the three-hour ride home to almost-New Hampshire more tolerable.  The top-five was filled out by the two most recent winners on the tour entering the afternoon’s action, Spencer Morse of Waterford and Freeport’s Jariet Harrison.

Re’s victory was tremendously popular with the large crowd on hand for the Pro All Stars Series racing program.

Kyle Hewins of Leeds cruised to victory lane in a 50-lap Honey Badger Bar & Grill Street Stock Series main event, posting his first victory of the season in the class in impressive fashion.  Hewins Battled older brother Kurt up front for a spell and also swapped the lead with another Leeds native, Billy Childs, Jr.

Childs finished second in the 50-lap race, and took over the championship lead after two of the seven races scheduled this season for the Honey Badger Series.  David Whittier of Oxford claimed the third-place trophy, followed by Buxton’s Danny Wear and Anthony Constantino of Sumner.

The Pro All Stars Series Super Late Models next see action at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon for the New England Short Track Showdown, scheduled for Sunday, June 23.  Qualifying races will be held on Saturday afternoon, June 22.  The next event for PASS Mods is scheduled for Sunday, June 30 in conjunction with the annual PASS Open non-points 100-lapper for Super Late Models.  The Honey Badger Street Stock Series is also scheduled for that day.  For more information visit proallstarsseries.com, oxfordplains.com or call (207) 539-8865.  Oxford Plains Speedway is located at 877 Main Street (State Route 26) in Oxford, Maine.

Hopkins Milling & Paving Super Late Model (150 laps) 1 12 Derek Griffith, Hudson, NH; 2 40 Nick Sweet, Barre, VT; 3 15 Mike Hopkins, Hermon, ME; 4 94 Garrett Hall, Scarborough, ME; 5 54 Johnny Clark, Farmingdale, ME; 6 7 Travis Benjamin, Belfast, ME; 7 60 DJ Shaw, Center Conway, NH; 8 47 Gabe Brown, Center Conway, NH; 9 5 Bobby Therrien, Hinesburg, VT; 10 96 Wyatt Alexander, Ellsworth, ME; 11 32 Nick Jenkins, Brownville, ME; 12 75 Gary Smith, Bangor, ME; 13 39 Scott Chubbuck, Wiscasset, ME; 14 4 Ben Rowe, Turner, ME; 15 01 Andy Saunders, Ellsworth, ME; DNS 90 Craig Weinstein, East Walpole, MA.

PASS Mods (40 laps) 1 10 Kate Re, Lovell, ME; 2 11 Tyler King, Gray, ME; 3 21 Mike Carignan, Lebanon, ME; 4 34 Spencer Morse, Waterford, ME; 5 85 Jariet Harrison, Freeport, ME; 6 16 Patrick Sullivan, Poland, ME; 7 64 Matty Sanborn, Windham, ME; 8 48 Brian Treadwell, Hancock, ME; 9 35 Kristina Nadeau, Buxton, ME; 10 18 Justin Larsen, Peru, ME; 11 2 Randy Sanborn, West Baldwin, ME; 12 7 Spencer Vaughn, Canton, ME; 13 15 Wayne Allard, Stetson, ME.

Honey Badger Bar & Grill Street Stock Series (50 laps) 1 51 Kyle Hewins, Oxford, ME; 2 1 Billy Childs, Jr., Leeds, ME; 3 58 David Whittier, Oxford, ME; 4 20 Dann Wear, Buxton, ME; 5 14 Anthony Constantino, Sumner, ME; 6 55 Kurt Hewins, Leeds, ME; 7 4 Jordan Russell, Norway, ME; 8 85 Kenny Harrison, Durham, ME; 9 2x Gary Babineau. Hollis Center, ME; 10 36 Nate Leavitt, Buxton, ME; 11 29 Chris King, Burnham, ME; 12 34 Matt Dufault, Turner, ME; 13 99 George Haskell, Casco, ME; 14 09 Ryan Ripley, Rockland, ME; 15 67 Michael Haynes, Livermore Falls, ME; 16 2 Ajay Cates, Lyman, ME; 17 52 Mike Thayer, Hermon, ME.

Source – track communications