OXFORD – Like father, like son.

During his formative years, Scott Dragon of Milton, Vt., spent numerous weekends in the Oxford Plains Speedway grandstands watching his father, Bobby, run away with eight Oxford Open Series victories.

Saturday night was Scott’s turn. The 29-year-old won the American-Canadian Dodge Late Model Sportsman Tour New England Dodge Dealers 100 from the pole, with reigning series champion Phil Scott rarely farther than two or three car lengths deep in his rear-view mirror.

“The car was perfect. What a great race. Phil never laid a bumper on me all night,” said Dragon. “I would have understood. Racing is about being pushy sometimes.”

Dragon encountered five restarts – four with Scott to his outside and one against OPS standout Shawn Martin of Turner. Scott nosed in front on lap 30, but Dragon led for the balance. Neither driver could mount a challenge in the high groove, and Scott’s final bid on lap 91 was brief.

“He did what he was supposed to do. He didn’t give up the bottom,” said Scott, “and I couldn’t get around him on the outside.”

“The bottom was the fast groove tonight,” added Dragon.

Martin ran as high as second before finishing a strong third, leading three OPS regulars in the top 10.

Vermonters Joey Laquerre and Pete Fecteau were fourth and fifth. Last-place Dave Pembroke rallied to sixth, followed by Todd Stone, Buddy Leavitt, John Donahue and Patrick Laperle, the winner of the previous ACT Dodge Tour race at OPS on July 12.

“We love racing against the ACT cars. It’s great to have this many cars and this kind of competition,” Martin said. “I raced my butt off. The car was just a little tight at the end.”

Alan Wilson, Tommy Ricker, Mark Bowie, Skip Tripp and Ralph Felker prevailed in supporting feature action.

While the tractor and utility trucks cleaned up a multi-car mess on the backstretch with five laps to go in the Pro Stock feature, fifth-place Wilson had ample time to assess the situation immediately through his windshield. Two rows ahead to the inside, he saw Zach Emerson, a hungry driver without a top-division victory in six years of trying. To the outside rode 19-year-old Jeremie Whorff, a raw newcomer who has gained plenty of speed in his rookie campaign but been involved in several grinding crashes.

Wilson, an unassuming Hebron resident in his 27th season of competition at the track, didn’t need one of the track workers to hand him a message in a bottle through the driver’s side window wth instructions on the best course of action.

“I was looking to hang back,” said Wilson. “I expected trouble. It just didn’t come in the form I expected.”

Whorff faded in the outside groove. Emerson’s car took a hard shot in the left rear from new runner-up Scott King. Wilson maintained the safe, low line, led the final four laps and snagged his second 35-lap victory of the season.

King, whose bid for the win went by the wayside when he was forced to back off after the contact to avoid a wreck with Emerson, held on for second. Mickey Green shuffled ahead from seventh to third in the final exchange, followed by Andy Shaw – who spun to avoid the lap 30 melee and was restored to his spot in the lineup – and Tommy Tompkins.

As for the would-be, first-time winners, Whorff did not finish, while Emerson faded to 15th, the next-to-last car on the lead lap.

The victory turned around an uncharacteristically poor season for Wilson, although he joined Jeff Taylor and Frank Snow as the lone repeat Pro Stock winners. Wilson’s 49th career checkered flag tied him with Leland Kangas for ninth on OPS’ all-time list.

Ricker overcame Steve Bennett Sr. on a restart with three laps to go for his second Limited Sportsman win of the season, in his firstt start since a July 3 crash left him with cracked ribs and a broken foot.

“Steve was tough. I saw Carey (Martin), Kenny (Harrison) and those guys back there, and I knew it was either get him on the restart or go backwards,” Ricker said.

He pulled off the power move, leaving Bennett to fend off Harrison for second. Martin and Doug Poland completed the top five.

Bowie struck a blow for family honor by winning the Strictly Stock ‘A’ scramble. The victory was the third in his years of racing at OPS, while his wife, Stephanie, has 14 checkered flags in a shorter stint in the Big Apple Summer Series.

“Nyah, nyah, nyah, nyah. I got one, Steph,” said Bowie. “I love my wife. We have a lot of fun with this.”

Steve Page closed to Bowie’s back bumper but settled for second in the caution-free race. Peter Hafford, Bob Crocker and Kurt Hewins followed.

Tripp led only the final lap of the Strictly Stock ‘B’ feature. Leader Keith Stuart departed for the pit area, bowing out of an aborted restart after Guy Childs’ car rolled into its side to bring out the red flag on lap 19. That moved up the inside line per speedway rules, and third-place Tripp used that privilege to hold off Sumner Sessions, Joe Turner, Dale Brackett and Ray Pillsbury in a furious, one-lap dash.

Felker made a bold outside move around Craig Moore with eight laps remaining in the 20-lap Mini Stock sprint. Then he held off a late charge from Bill Thibeault by less than a car length to capture his second four-cylinder event in three weeks. Jimmy Childs, Craig Moore and Danny Morris finished third through fifth, respectively.

koakes@sunjournal.com

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