TCM Three Stars + Weekend Agenda – August 12th, 2016

Better late than never, right?

Our Thursday special moves to Friday morning this week but still offers the same excitement to go with your morning coffee!

Last weekend, three tracks got racing cards in while three lost their events due to rain. This week in the TCM Three Stars, we offer a star to a driver who has returned to victory lane after a rocky last month, a promoter/racer who is trying to make racing work in his backyard and our first repeat TCM Three Star of the year, which is hard to believe seeing we are in Weekend 12 of the season.

Here are your TCM Three Stars of the week!

Feature Photo/Richard Drake photos by McCarthy Photographic/Hilary Langfrey.

THIRD STAR

Brad Melendy of Gander, NL

Brad Melendy is one of a handful of drivers that manages a race track along with trying to balance a racing career. Melendy’s challenge is that the race track he manages, the tight confines of Thunder Valley Speedway, is a good four hour haul from St. John’s (located just outside of Grand Falls), where a concentration of the Newfoundland stock car racing teams are located within earshot of.

While finding car count and trying to rebuild a brand of a race track that sat idle in 2015 is one thing, trying to fight weather is another kettle of fish.

Melendy went forward with last weekend’s racing card with a threat of rain throughout the day but a pocket in the afternoon to try and get the show in. The location of the track gives weather similar to what we would see at Petty International Raceway or Speedway 660 on the mainland, where the forecast of rain a few miles up the road sometimes doesn’t roll into the track.

Unfortunately, the window closed in and it poured at the track, forcing the cancellation of the race.

The efforts by Brad Melendy and his staff to get racing back to where it was in years past in Bishop’s Falls is enough to earn him a TCM Three Star nod for the week!

SECOND STAR

Darrell Ford of Oyster Bed Bridge, PE

It has been an up and down month for Darrell Ford, but the roller coaster has hit a peak with a win last Saturday night in the Late Model Super Series 75 at Oyster Bed Speedway.

Ford was involved in an incident with another car at the beginning of July that, in the end, saw emotion get the best of Ford. The #35 was parked for the rest of the night on July 2nd and would ultimately sit out the next week too.

Last Saturday, he put that behind him as he stood in victory lane with the checkered flag in hand.

It was a great night overall for Ford, finishing third in the heat, second in the semi and besting Troy Burke and defending division champion Matt Palmer for the win in the 75-lap feature.

After the month he has had and to get his on track performance back on the rails, Darrell Ford takes the TCM Second Star for the week!

FIRST STAR

“Rational” Richard Drake of Halifax, NS

**Repeat Star – Second TCM Three Star selection of 2016**

“Rational” Richard Drake went from a nearly being piled in deep to the “big one” last Friday during the Toursec Lightning feature to winning his fourth feature of the year in the class and fourth in the last five races.

Out of the final corner coming to complete the second lap of the Lightning race at Scotia Speedworld last Friday night, the top two made contact, sending them up the track. The hole was occupied by two other cars, making the situation up front four wide. When the two cars on the top side untangled from each other and migrated back to the low line, which had been occupied, all heck broke loose.

In total, 18 car started the race. By Lap Two, seven cars made it to the backstraight to collect the red flag.

One of those was “Rational” Richard Drake, but it wasn’t without an amazing piece of driving to pile on the brakes and crank it left to avoid the calamity.

How close did he come? Take a look at this.

Drake went on to take the lead of the race by the sixth circuit and pulled away to take away his fourth checkered flag of the year. He sits third in the standings, 13 points out of Deven Smith for the championship spot with just over a month to go in the season. If Drake does win the championship, he can look back at this video and thank his lucky stars.

For his miss of a wreck and a hit of a fourth win of the season in the Toursec Lightning class at Scotia Speedworld, “Rational” Richard Drake earns his second TCM Three Star selection of the year!

WEEKEND AGENDA

The Weekend Agenda takes a bit of a different look this year, but will give you a quick glance at the basics. If a track is racing, you’ll see the track name and location in green and if a track is not running an event on a weekend, their name and location will be red. The line proceeding will display the divisions running on the weekend and a start time, or a date of when the next event is at the track.

NOVA SCOTIA

Cape Breton Miners Memorial Speedway in Sydney: OFF – Next Race on Saturday, August 27th

Lake Doucette Motor Speedway in Salmon River (outside of Digby): OFF – Next Race on Sunday, August 21st

Riverside International Speedway in James River: OFF – Next Race on Friday, August 19th

Scotia Speedworld in Enfield: Affordable Fuels Sportsman 100 on Friday, August 12th @ 7pm; Toursec Lightning, Coors Light Trucks, Hydraulics Plus Bandoleros, Affordable Fuels Sportsman
17th Annual Atlantic Cat 250 on Saturday, August 13th @ 5pm; Parts for Trucks Pro Stock Tour, Upper Clements Parks Maritime League of Legends, Toursec Thunder

Valley Raceway in Kingston: Point Racing on Sunday, August 14th @ 1pm; V8, Four Cylinder, Unlimited

NEW BRUNSWICK

Petty International Raceway in River Glade: OFF – Next Event on Friday, August 26th and Saturday, August 27th

Shediac CENTRE For Speed in Grand-Barachois: OFF – Next Event on Saturday, September 10th

Speedway 660 in Geary: Sharp Shooter 40 on Saturday, August 14th @ 6:30pm; Re/Max Group Four Pro Stocks, Martin’s Home Heating Sportsman, DMR Auto Street Stock, Fredericton Gun Shop Sharp Shooters

Speedway Miramichi in Miramichi: Day of 8s benefiting Children’s Wish on Saturday, August 14th @ 5:30pm; Demolition (including Figure 8 Finale), Mini Stocks, Street Stocks, Bandolero, Atlantic Modifieds.

PRINCE EDWARD ISLAND

Oyster Bed Speedway in Oyster Bed Bridge: Outlaw Super Series 30 + Enduro on Saturday, August 13th @ 6pm; Late Models, Street Stocks, Mini Outlaw, Mini Four Fun, Enduro, Mini Cup

NEWFOUNDLAND

Eastbound Park in Avondale: Madjack 75 on Sunday, August 14th @ 2pm NT; NAPA Auto Parts Sportsman, Atlantic Dodge Dealers Hobby Stock, Islander RV Bandolero, Hanlon Realty US Legends

Thunder Valley Speedway in Bishop’s Falls: OFF – Next Event on Sunday, August 21st

TCM Coverage Schedule – Weekend 13 of 2016

Friday, August 12th – Affordable Fuels 100 – Scotia Speedworld (NS) – 7pm AT (TCM Race #31 of 2016)

Saturday, August 13th – Atlantic Cat 250 – Scotia Speedworld (NS) – 5pm AT (TCM Race #32 of 2016)

 

**Schedule Subject to Change Without Notice