(Oxford ME) They each did it their way and they each made it work.
Skip Tripp had the fast car and the ability to get around cars.
Will Dunphy envisioned chaos on the track and stayed back waiting for his chance.
Skip Tripp won his third straight Outlaws feature on Saturday night at Oxford Plains Speedway.
Skip started in the back because of his successes in the previous weeks. It didn’t matter.
Within two laps, in both the 8-lap heat and the 20-lap feature, Skip had used the outside lane to pass the field. Once there, he didn’t look back.
“Everything went our way,” said Skip afterwards. “We were pretty hooked up. It was kind of easy tonight.”
Will Dunphy finished second.
Will also started in the back because of previous successes. Unlike Skip, however, Will was content to stay there for a while.
“I hung back because I knew things were going to happen,” explained Will. “I could tell the way drivers were acting at the get-go.”
“Some want to get to the top by Lap 2,” he added. “They need to calm down and realize that there are twenty laps.”
Corey Morgan got spun and his car was totaled early in the Outlaws feature.
“A car getting totaled takes the fun out of it for me,” said Will. “There were way too many cars wrecked tonight. There is no need for it. There are not enough of us out there for that to happen.”
The spin below in the feature gave Will (#4) his chance to move from the back to the front around the involved cars and he did:
Skip Tripp: “We’re just playing with this thing now until we get to Street Stocks for something else. We’re just getting back into rhythm. We’ve been out of it for so long. The car is for my cousin. I set it to her liking but it’s too loose now for her. We need to change it. We’ll tighten it up and hopefully she’ll have the same success.”
Will Dunphy: “Tripp’s car is definitely fast. It wasn’t that fast before but maybe a lot of experience has something to do with the way it’s now going for them. There was too much rubber on the track today from the Super Late Models. It was super icy. I couldn’t stay up there very long. This is my second year with the Outlaws. I was told to move up from the Cruiser Class. It’s been a fun venture so far.”
This was the fifth week of Outlaws’ racing.
Skip Tripp’s lowest finish so far has been third.
Will Dunphy has been either first or second during the past four weeks.
Matt Veinott earned third today. His highest previous finish had been fifth.
Combining two days of racing with fireworks brought out a good crowd. The weather was ideal too.
Yes, I gave the Bandits coverage last year. Their demise set me searching for another group to cover. The Outlaws have a small roster….less confusion initially for me. I’ll see what I can do over the next three months. There will be pictures and interviews.
(The pictures should enlarge if you click on them.)
McClelland Miscellanea 