Bikes, Lights, and Dirt. An Exciting Combination at Thunderbowl

TT motorcycles took to the track at Thunderbowl Speedway in Mound House last Friday night. There were more than 70 entries, although some drivers doubled or tripled up, running in more than one category.

Young Lucas Jones made a shambles of the 50cc class for children. He won two of the three heats and narrowly missed overtaking Geiger McElroy for the victory in the third after a spill on the first lap left him nearly a full lap behind. McElroy was second in overall points and Kyle Swann was third. Don Wilcox finished fourth in his first outing.

Lucas Jones also won the 80cc kids' class. James Estes was second after the points were tallied, Tyler Pfeifer third and Meghan Young fourth.

Walter Herring took the win in the under 200cc Novice class, with Zach Dalman taking the runner-up spot.

The Beginner 250 class saw a similar situation, with just two riders completing all three heats. James Swain, who dominated all three races, took first and Susan Brown's perseverance paid off with a second place finish.

Lucas Jones returned to mix it up in the Adult 50cc races, handily winning all three. He had a bit of a weight advantage over Jesse Reid, Marshall Brun, and Paul Mudd, who finished second through fourth respectively and appeared to be having the most fun of anyone out there.

John Hay was victorious in the 250 Expert/Intermediate division. Mark Hodges finished second after the rest of the field dropped out of the third heat.

One of the largest fields was the Open Novice/Beginner Adult class, with 12 bikes listed and eight finishing all three heats. James Swain took his second trophy home in this division, while James Estes took his second runner-up finish. Gilbert Chick was third and Robert Kramer fourth.

Rod Townson put together the best three finishes in the Intermediate Open division to take the win. Allen Sine finished second with Jim Young third and Wesley Herring fourth. No other riders ran all three heats.

Fourteen riders participated in the Open Expert division, making it extremely crowded in the first turn. When the dust settled after the third go-round, Kenn Brown was the victor, with a fast Tim Nobles second. Rod Townson had to settle for third in this class, with Paul Zig taking fourth spot.

There were also lots of bikes in the Open Veterans class. Greg Burns had the best set of finishes to take the win. John Roberts was second, followed by Darrol Brown and Allen Sine in third and fourth, respectively.

The Vintage class was arguably the noisiest of the night, and all six entrants finished all three heats. Dave Walden got the nod for first place, followed by Lane Allen in second and Bill Lampson in third. Despite winning the first two heats, Jim Rubsam had problems in the third, dropping his finishing position to fourth.

The final race of the night was for quads, and they put on an exciting show. Marv Wright took the win, but the competition was close and fierce between Wright and second-place finisher Brian Starbuck. Robert Kramer, doubling on a bike and a quad, finished third ahead of Mike McCutcheon.

The organizers have announced a practice night on Monday, June 30, and the next race will take place on Friday, July 11 and the third and final race of the series on Friday, July 25. Call Jack Morgan at 378-2342 or 883-9662 for more information.