Laird action heating up on the track

Action on the track at Laird International Raceway was eventful on Thursday night.

An Australian Pursuit opened the night and Rod Bolduc capped the night off with an impressive run to the Late Model feature win, a win he wrapped up in a borrowed car.

Cory Furkey drove his way to the first victory of the night as he won an Australian Pursuit that saw fast-qualifier Michael Gold battle his way up but come up short in the end.

Furkey also won the first Late Model heat race beating out Dennis Varcoe and Rick Leonard. Bolduc found himself getting into a groove as he then proceeded to win the second heat race.

In the Late Model feature Bolduc blew a tire midway through the 25-lap race but returned at the back of the pack. The veteran driver, who was driving a car owned by Laird owner Donnie Varcoe, proceeded to weave his way through the pack and earn the feature win.

Fans got a look at a former Factory Stock champion as Dave Slingsby returned Thursday night and proved that he has not missed a beat.

After Dick Wellwood win the first Factory Stock heat race over John Hamilton and Bill See, Slingsby narrowly missed winning heat two as Chuck Fawcett took the win before using a great start to win the feature over Fawcett and Wellwood.

The Modified Division saw just three cars finish the first heat race as Jordan Sims took the first points of the night in the division. Jerry Artuso held off charges from Lorne Ebare and Sims to take the second heat and he managed to cruise to the feature win while Sims took a second place finish.

Cody McLean and Mike Baraluk took centre stage in the 18-car Stock Four field. McLean took top spot over Baraluk in the first heat while Baraluk drove to victories in the second heat and the feature race with McLean earning third in the second heat and a second place finish in the feature. Donny Mergeart took second spot in the second Stock Four heat.

Of note, Tyler Parsons, who finished second in the Stock Four points race to Gord Hunt last season, expects to have his regular ride running in the next few weeks. The second-year Stock Four driver has been running his backup car since the start of the season and has been adjusting to the handling of the new ride. Parsons did comment Thursday that once his main car is ready, he will field offers for his current car.