Looking Back: 5 Memorable White Mountain Events of 2021

John Raper

Before we officially reach the year 2022, White Mountain Motorsports Park is taking a look back on five of the most memorable events in 2021. Every event at White Mountain is memorable in some way, but these in particular really stood out to us. We hope you enjoy the trip down memory lane with us. And let us know: what were your favorite events of 2021?

(NOTE: Events are listed in chronological order.)

June 26, 2021: Weekly Event & NELCAR

The final event of June had something for everyone at White Mountain. In the 50-lap Foley Oil & Propane Late Model feature, it was an invader conquering the field, as Stark, NH’s Jamie Swallow Jr. thundered from 16th on the starting grid to take victory. As Swallow was working his way through the field, Stacy Cahoon, Alby Ovitt, Jimmy Renfrew Jr., and Mike Bailey were going toe-to-toe at the front. From laps 10 to 40, the quartet were never more than a few feet apart. But Swallow inserted himself into the picture with less than 20 laps to go. On a lap-37 restart, Swallow shot from fourth to second on the outside. Then after a yellow for fluid with nine laps remaining, Cahoon choose the inside groove, and Swallow rode the high line to the win. Cahoon dogged Swallow the rest of the way before settling for second followed by Ovitt.

The Woodsville Guaranty Savings Bank Strictly Stock Mini feature rivaled the Late Models as the race of the night. Hometown rookie Donnie Baumgardner got the lead early with teenager Tyler Thompson hot on his tail the entire 25-lap distance. Thompson got alongside Baumgardner in the final laps, but it was Baumgardner barely beating him out by 0.037 seconds. Donnie’s daughter Jillian sandwiched Thompson on the podium for good measure while Luke Shannon drove up to fourth after an early spin. We also had Logan Farnsworth beating out a four-car tango for his first Dads 4 By Tool & Supply Kids Division victory, Jason Woodard winning his third straight Wells River Chevrolet Flying Tiger feature, and Luke LeBrun showing why he’s the king of the GoMotorsportsShop.com NELCAR Legends Tour.

July 10, 2021: C&S Auto Parts Midseason Championships

On the surface, there might have been more thrilling races this year than the Midseason Championships. But you can’t deny just how big a role they played in the season overall. Jeff Marshall entered the night having failed to finish the previous two features, which put him in danger of falling out of the title chase. He seemed to be in trouble early in the 60-lap Foley Oil & Propane Late Model feature as well after getting shuffled from third back to seventh. But Marshall recovered; got the jump over Mike Bailey on a lap-31 restart; then withstood the pressure from Bailey, Alby Ovitt, and Jimmy Renfrew Jr. for a much-needed victory — with an engine that expired just after crossing the finish line. That was the start of a second half that saw Marshall win two other races and post seven total top-4 finishes.

In the Wells River Chevrolet Flying Tigers, Jason Woodard picked up his fourth straight win — but the way he did it was unprecedented. After two Monza-style segments and 60 laps of racing, there was a three-way tie for the overall win between Woodard, his son Tanner, and defending championship Shane Sicard. Jason was awarded the victory because he had the best finish of the three in the final segment, with Sicard second and Tanner Woodard third.

The Woodsville Guaranty Savings Bank Strictly Stock Mini’s saw Luke Shannon make another statement, driving from 11th to 1st in just 15 laps. That gave the 15-year-old his fifth win of the season and made the title his to lose. Jason Wyman took advantage of a late caution in the Arnolds Wayside Diner Dwarf Cars to erase Colby Bourgeois’ huge lead and get his first win of the year. And in the Dads 4 By Tool & Supply Kids Division, McKenna Merchant showed she would be one to watch going forward, simply outrunning Thomas Smithers VI to get the victory.

July 31, 2021: ACT Midsummer Classic 250

Where do we start with this one? Five months later, people are still talking about the finish of the Midsummer Classic 250, where Jason Corliss edged D.J. Shaw while running the last four laps with his hood on his windshield. But the 246 laps before that were unforgettable, too. Nick Sweet dominated the first half of the race before a lap-123 caution led to the first round of pit stops for fresh tires. Several drivers, including Sweet, decided to stay out — and Jeff Marshall continued to stay out after a lap-139 yellow. The mid-stage racing was remarkable with Marshall passing D.J. Shaw for the lead on two separate restarts before Shaw would take the lead back once he got some heat in his tires.

Corliss and Sweet eventually got back to Shaw’s tail, and on a restart with 30 laps to go, Sweet attempted a three-wide move to take the lead. After a full lap in formation, Sweet spun in turn three, getting the car going with no caution. When Corliss came to lap Sweet a few circuits later, they made some contact that let Shaw get back in front. Corliss retook the lead on the restart with four laps to go and seemed home-free. But the earlier contact had sheared multiple hood pins on his car, and with four laps to go, the rest gave way. Driving nearly blind, Corliss held the bottom while Shaw got alongside to lead laps 248 and 249. All the while, the side-by-side racing had allowed Tom Carey III — who had started the race dead last — to get into the mix. Entered turn three for the final time, Corliss and Shaw made contact, and Corliss surged ahead to win the $10,000 check by 0.065 seconds with Carey right on their bumpers.

The main event was so good that it overshadowed some fantastic racing in the support divisions. After months of coming close, Ryan Ware finally got his first Wells River Chevrolet Flying Tiger win, taking the lead from Matt Potter at the halfway mark and beating out point leader Jason Woodard. Jillian Baumgardner won her first Woodsville Guaranty Savings Bank Strictly Stock Mini feature by holding off Nick Pilotte, Luke Shannon, and Todd Derrington in a six-lap dash to the finish. And Thomas Smithers VI drove through the pack to win the Dads 4 By Tool & Supply Kids Division feature while McKenna Merchant beat Owen Rogers by half an inch for second. It was a night we’d put up against any in North America as the race of the year.

August 14, 2021: J.P. Sicard Triple Crown Series Triple Crown #2

The Wells River Chevrolet Flying Tigers were the headliners on this night — but it was the Foley Oil & Propane Late Models that ended up stealing the show. With 13 laps remaining in their 50-lap feature, Jerry Lesage and Mike Jurkowski had left the field behind. Both were looking to turn around tough years. Lesage had missed the first half of the season due to health problems, while Jurkowski had been White Mountain’s ultimate hard-luck driver in his return to competition after several years off. In fact, one week, a leaf spring had even broken on Jurkowski’s trailer.

That alone had made the first 37 circuits a feel-good story. But a caution for a spin by Jon Savage ultimately shot the race into the stratosphere. Jeff Marshall made a three-wide move on the restart to get inside Jurkowski for second as Lesage pulled away. Jurkowski held his ground until a four-car backstretch crash set up a six-lap shootout. Lesage again rolled off the inside, and with three laps to go, Marshall was looking inside him for the lead. But Jurkowski took out a season’s worth of frustration during those three circuits, flying back up the outside and stealing the checkered flag from Lesage in the final corner.

This isn’t to say the Tiger Triple Crown feature was a bad race by any means. In fact, the first 40 laps of their 75-lap feature was some of the best action around. Kyle Streeter got the early break before Brandon Gray ran him down with 18 complete. As they dueled side-by-side a few laps later, contact sent Gray spinning around and changed the complexion of the race. Bryan Wall and Ryan Ware then put on a terrific battle for 12 laps before Shane Sicard took over, getting the lead from Wall on a lap-37 restart and cruising to the victory.

The Wicked Good Vintage Racing Association made their first White Mountain visit on August 14. While the Early Late Models saw Chris Olgivy dominate the field, the Outlaw feature was a barnburner, with Doug Laleme and Scott Tucker going at it for the entire 20-lap distance. After several lead changes, Tucker got the top spot for good with two laps to go. The evening also included Jillian Baumgardner getting her second Woodsville Guaranty Savings Bank Strictly Stock Mini win of the season — with Mike Smith recovering from two trips into the tire barriers during qualifying to finish second — and Thomas Smithers VI getting win number six of the year in the Dads 4 By Tool & Supply Kids Division.

September 25, 2021: R&R Race Parts NH Street Stock Open

While both days of Fall Foliage Weekend were great — see www.acttour.com for more about Sunday’s Fall Foliage 200 — the Saturday portion is our choice for this list. The R&R Race Parts Street Stock Open came to White Mountain for the first time with 42 cars gunning for 30 starting spots in the Fall Foliage 100. Things got intense right away with side-by-side, no-holds-barred qualifying action that included several big crashes and even one car catching fire.

The action continued into the feature, with Flying Tiger racer Mike Martin having an early dogfight with Kris Watson for the lead. Jimmy Renfrew Jr. then began his march, coming from 18th on the starting grid to take the lead from Watson with 47 complete. Watson wasn’t done, though, and at one point, he and Renfrew swapped the lead on four consecutive laps. After Renfrew had pulled away, lapped traffic gave Watson one more shot with 15 laps to go, but a three-wide move ended with Watson having to make a huge save off turn four just to keep second. Just when Renfrew looked like he had it made, though, smoke started coming out of his car with three laps to go. Renfrew had just enough to hang on for the win and more than $6,000 in purse and lap money.

Saturday also saw drama in the Woodsville Guaranty Savings Bank Strictly Stock Mini season finale. Luke Shannon entered the night with a seemingly solid 20-point lead over Tyler Thompson. But after Thompson gained four points in qualifying, Shannon got caught up in a hard crash with six laps complete. Shannon’s car sustained significant damage, but a long caution for clean-up helped him get back for the restart. As Thompson was holding off Donnie Baumgardner for the victory, Shannon was trying desperately to work his way back through the field. He eventually got back up to seventh, giving him the title by four points. The final Saturday night of the season also saw Tommy Smithers outlast Jason Wyman to win the Arnolds Wayside Diner Dwarf Car championship while Smithers’ teammate Bobby Brown took the feature victory. McKenna Merchant capped a breakout season in the Dads 4 By Tool & Supply Kids Division with her fourth win after dodging a multi-vehicle pileup on the opening lap.