BRADFORD, VT -Nikki Ouellette out-ran a strong field of Xtreme Dirt Midget Association midgets at Bear Ridge Speedway on Saturday August 19 to take her first win in the series.
Tom Chaffee grabbed the lead from the outside pole and led the first four laps of the feature. John Forlano then took over the point before Ouellette got by on lap six. As the laps ticked off, Ouellette stretched out her lead to about ten car lengths when the caution flew on lap 18 for a spin by Wayne Koehler in turn three. Ouellette took off once the green flag dropped to restart the race, but a second caution flag slowed the field with two laps to go. Chris Murray went by Justin Sheridan for second on the restart and gained on Ouellette over the final two laps but fell short by less than a car length at the finish. Sheridan held on for third with Brandon Piastka fourth and Seth Carlson fifth. Daniel Piastka charged from 14th to 6th in feature. Mike Netishen, Will Hull, Forlano and Ethan Durocher rounded out the top ten.
Since her first start in a midget race car a little over a year ago, Ouellette has made steady progress and it culminated in victory lane Saturday night. “It was a great race, and I had a really strong car. The adjustments we made were perfect and allowed me to put the car anywhere I wanted and run consistent laps. I’d like to thank my dad (Ken), Charlie Gunther, Skip Matczak, Seals-It and the entire Seals-It team, the DMA and everyone that has helped us along the way.”
Both heat race went green to checker with Manny Dias and Brandon Piastka taking the wins.
The Xtreme Dirt Midget Association’s next race is Saturday Sept. 2 at Bear Ridge Speedway, Bradford, VT.
Feature (25 laps): 1. Nikki Ouellette, 2. Chris Murray, 3. Justin Sheridan, 4. Brandon Piastka, 5. Seth Carlson, 6. Daniel Piastka, 7. Mike Netishen, 8. Will Hull, 9. John Forlano, 10. Ethan Durocher, 11. Wayne Koehler, 12. Manny Dias, 13. Jeff Horn, 14. Tom Chaffee, 15. Keith Brown
Lap leaders: 1-4 Tom Chaffee, 5 John Forlano, 6-25 Nikki Ouellette
