Greenbrier Raceway's 31st Annual
THUNDERJET CHALLENGE Race
Report (Scroll to
bottom of page
for race score card and photos)
April 5,
2025 – Gentleman, start your engines. A total of 14
drivers were on hand for Greenbrier Raceway’s 31st
Annual THUNDERJET CHALLENGE. Many who
have followed this race will be familiar with the TJC race
format… there would be 2 rounds of qualifying… The top 6 from
round 1 would go into the Main, and the 2 top racers from round
2 qualifying (or “Second Chance” qualifying) would fill out the
8 driver Main ("A" & "B"). Again, the reason for an 2 part
main (instead of a final 4) would be to have extra drivers on
hand for Marshaling the Main as many drivers often cut out and
leave the race once qualifying was over.
Round 1 Qualifying (5 minutes per lane)
First
round of qualifying would be Chris Mathewson, Deric Durbin, Joe
Saccomanno, and Larry Weaver. Larry would grab a slight lead
with 23 laps over Chris’s 22 in the first five (minutes). The
next couple heats would be tight with everyone racing 21 – 23
laps. However, Larry would rip out 26 laps on the final heat,
putting him currently on top.
Round 2 Qualifying (5 minutes per lane)
With
14 drivers, Round 2 and 3 would require sit out positions. Round
2 would be Bernie Bartella, John Durbin, Dave Failing, Bob
Dickinson, and John Peckham as the first sit out. It was no
surprise that Dave would run 27 laps in the first heat, with Bob
right on his heals with a 26. With everyone else running
basically a repeat of round 1, Dave and Bob would battle it out
to the very end… Dave with a 109 to Bobs 100.
Round 3 Qualifying (5 minutes per lane)
Round 3 of
Qualifying had Rick Kibler, Ron Petterson, Roger Townsey, and
Gary G. on the line, with Ralph Thieleman as sit out. Laps
looked like much of the same until Roger laid down a 26 on
yellow to put him on top of round 3.
With the first round of qualifying done, the Main started
to fill out… Dave Failing, Bob Dickinson, John Durbin, Larry
Weaver, Roger Townsey, and Ron Petterson.
“Second
Chance” Qualifying (5 minutes per lane)
With the top 6 drivers in place for the Main, it was time
to do it again. All remaining drivers would race (qualify) for
the remaining 2 positions for an 8 car field in the Main.
A little over 45 minutes later, with Qualifying complete, Chris
Mathewson and Deric Durbin would emerge as the last 2 racers
for the Main.It
was now break time, time for Lunch (actually, closer
to Supper), and to hand out Door Prizes supplied by our
Generous Sponsors.
After break, it was
about that time we were notified a few racers had to leave
(personal)… including the top 2 qualifiers… Dave and Bob.
With a hole in the roster,
the next best qualifiers… John Peckham and Joe Saccomanno were
thrown into the mix.
“A”
MAIN (20 minutes per lane)
First up for the grueling 20 minutes per lane heats would
be John Durbin, Larry Weaver, Roger Townsey, and Ron Peterson.
Larry and Roger were out to show they meant business as they ran
104 and 105 laps (respectively) on the first run.
As the race continued, Larry had a few problems on the
blue lane (97) but picked up a couple extra laps on yellow
(107). Roger held in the 100+ range but ended 5 laps short - 408
to Larry’s 413. (Remember, only 5 laps separate drivers after 1
hour 20 minutes of racing).
“B”
MAIN (20 minutes per lane)
The last race of the day would be John Peckham, Joe
Saccomanno, Deric Durbin, and Chris Mathewson. Heat 1 had John
and Joe going at it (99 to 98). However, in heat 2 John’s Jag
sounded a bit funny. With a quick shot of oil John was back on
the track, but not for long, his Jag suddenly stopped and
squealed like a banshee. Everyone was talking a spun crown gear.
John removed the body and everything looked good. Next, John put
the car on the raceway supplied test track, still squealing.
Figuring with nothing to loose (and the car was already apart)
John put some oil on the motor gear plate. That was it!!! The
Jag was put back together and racing but lost about 7 laps.
In the end, it was Larry Weaver taking the win for
Greenbrier's 31st annual THUNDERJET CHALLENGE,
Roger Townsey would take second, and John Peckham a surprising 3rd
place.
Greenbrier
Raceway Park would like to thank everyone involved in
Greenbrier's 31stAnnual THUNDERJET
CHALLENGE, and a special thanks to all our Sponsors for
helping support the hobby, and really for making Greenbrier's
THUNDERJET CHALLENGE the success it has been !!!
Welcome to
Greenbrier Raceway
The quiet before the
storm... or should I say THUNDER !!!
9:30am and pits are almost
full...
Joe Saccomanno is open for
business.
The drivers
Lounge is open.
Nice to watch the race on the Big Screen during 'off
times'...
... or stream the race
on your own device. As race time grew near, all
cars are collecter for Pre-tech
Once cars pass preliminary pre-tech, cars are
marked.
This year a white dot is used.
Field of 14 Vintage Thunder Jets.
It's time to go RACING !!!
And there off.
Before the Main, it was time
to
grab a bite and hand out Door Prizes, including...
(see complete list of Sponsors at
bottom of page)
It's RACE TIME !!!
"A" Main line-up
"B" Main
line-up
2025 TJC Trophy
Larry Weaver's Winning Ferrari
Top 3 Winning Thunder Jets
Top 3 Winning Drivers
Greenbrier Raceway Park would
like to thank everyone involved in Greenbrier's 31stAnnual THUNDERJET
CHALLENGE, and a special thanks to all our Sponsors for
helping support the hobby... You really are the ones that make
Greenbrier's THUNDERJET CHALLENGE the success it has
been !!!
Once again, Greenbrier Raceway would like to
thank all involved in making Greenbrier's 31st
Annual THUNDERJET CHALLENGE the success it was, and a special
thanks to this years FEATURED sponsors for their generous
donations:
