EDMONTON, AB – The Northern Provincial Pipelines Late Model Series competed at Castrol Raceway’s biggest oval race of the season on the weekend.  More than 15,000 race fans packed the stands for The Boston Pizza Oil City Cup.  The race featured the NPP Series and the World of Outlaw Sprint Car Series.  Friday night would see Kevin Clark run a perfect night grabbing maximum points.  The Altario, Alberta driver would win his heat race and then go on and win the Feature event.  Bruce Broughton, who also won his heat race, would lead 16 of the 20 laps in the Feature.  However a rare driving error late in the race denied the Spruce Grove competitor the opportunity for a perfect race night and his second Feature win of the season.  Broughton would get out of shape in turn 2 on Lap 18 and would end up losing six positions.  The miscue handed Clark the lead and the eventual victory.  This would be the third consecutive trip to victory lane for the familiar blue and silver #5 Clark Construction Dodge.  Three-time NPP Series Champion Trevor Emond drove the same car to back to back victories at Rocky Mountain Raceway south of Calgary August 2nd and 3rd while Clark attended a family reunion.  Edson Alberta’s Dwight Kennedy finished second in his Lucas Oil #81 Dodge Friday night.  Southern Alberta’s Brian McCaughan (Okotok’s) placed third in his #42 avenuebuilt.com Chevrolet.

Kennedy and McCaughan entered Friday night’s race separated by just 18 points in the standings.  McCaughan’s lead in the NPP Championship chase would shrink to just 10 points over Kennedy heading into Saturday nights event.

It was a rough start for three NPP Series drivers in Heat race action
Saturday night in Edmonton.  On lap two, Kevin Clark struck the spinning #8 Dodge of Pat Fines head-on.  Fines’ was able to drive his car to the pits to begin major repair work but Clark’s race car would have to be towed from the track.  The winner of Friday nights Feature suffered severe front end damage to his race car and would be done for the night.  This would be the first time this season that Clark has missed a Feature event due to mechanical problems.  Current Series point leader Brian McCaughan would lose a fuel pump in his heat race and had to be pushed into the pits.  With his DNF in the heat, McCaughan would start the Feature from near the back of the pack.  Bruce Broughton and Rod Wilde would win their respective heat races Saturday night.

Dwight Kennedy would win the 20 lap Feature event in his #81 Lucas Oil Dodge.  It would be the Edson Alberta driver’s first win since June 29th.  Kennedy would also get back the NPP Series point lead he lost to McCaughan on August 2nd.  Making it to the podium the hard way Saturday night was Sidney BC’s Darrell Midgley and Okotoks Brian McCaughan.  Midgley started the Feature in the 17th position and placed second.  This was Midgley’s best finish in a NPP Feature since placing second back on July 12th.  McCaughan started in the 15th spot and finished third.  McCaughan has now finished 3rd in a NPP Feature four-times this season.

A historic race is next on the schedule.  For the first time in its 8 year history, the Northern Provincial Pipelines Late Model Series will race in the United States.  The NPP Series will headline race action at Grays Harbor Raceway in Elma Washington Saturday evening August 30th.  On Monday September 1st, the NPP Series will once again be the support class for the World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series.  This will also mark the first time in NPP Series history that a scheduled race event takes place on a Monday.

NPP PIT BITS
– after failing to crack the top 5 in four consecutive Features (three eighth place finishes and a sixth) Kennedy now has a third a second and a win in his last three Features events.
– Kennedy and Brian McCaughan finished on the podium both nights.
– mechanical woes continue for Arvid Fonstad.  A spectacular fire erupted underneath the Chemserve #2 Dodge during Friday nights Feature. Fonstad was uninjured in the blaze.
– Calgary’s Blair Snow, filling in for his father Dan, ran his first ever race on dirt on the weekend.  Snow finished a respectable 13th in the Feature Saturday night gaining six positions from his starting spot.
– the #46 All Weather Windows Dodge suffered major mechanical problems both nights in Edmonton.  Friday night (broken axle) Saturday (blown motor).  After several weeks away from NPP Series competition (Dirt modified schedule), defending champion Jason Beaulieu is expected to be back to compete in Elma,Washington.