Woody Pitkat Added To Lineup For Monaco Modified Tri-Track Series At Thunder Road

When the Monaco Modified Tri-Track Series announced last year that the series would run a 2022 event at Thunder Road International Speedway it piqued the interest of Tour Type Modified veteran Woody Pitkat.

The problem was, Pitkat couldn’t find a ride for the race.

“I’ve always been one of those guys that likes to try something new, new tracks and stuff,” Pitkat said. “When the opportunity was on the table I definitely wanted to go but I just couldn’t find anybody that wanted to go. Everybody knows this weekend is tough. There were supposed to be three [Tour Type Modified] races in three different states in three days. But with the rainout [at Claremont Speedway] the opportunity came and that’s great for me.”

Pitkat had been scheduled to run tonight in a Tour Type Modified open event at Claremont (N.H.) Speedway for team owner Stan Mertz. With that event now postponed due to weather, it opened the chance for Mertz and Pitkat to head to Vermont.

Pitkat confirmed Friday morning that he is now entered for Sunday’s 100-lap, $10,000 to win Monaco Modified Tri-Track Series event at Thunder Road. The event is part of the track’s 59th Mekkelsen RV Memorial Day Classic racing card. It will be the first Tour Type Modified event at Thunder Road since 2010.

Pitkat is one of 27 drivers on the expected entry list for the division’s first visit to the historic quarter-mile bullring in Barre, VT.

“I’ve never been to the place,” Pitkat said. “I think it’s cool. I guess some people say don’t go there, they wreck race cars there and other people say it’s a pretty cool place. I watched the last ACT Late Model race there and it looks pretty cool. I watched Ryan [Preece] when he ran there [in a Late Model event in 2021] and that was cool. And just the area looks really cool. That calendar I got from Nicole LaRose, the picture there, up in the hills, it just looks badass. I don’t know, I could hate the place.”

Thunder Road is co-owned by Cris Michaud, who also co-owns the American-Canadian Tour and is the co-promoter of oval track racing at Thompson Speedway. Pitkat has run selected ACT events over the past few seasons and also runs regularly at Thompson.

“I like [Cris] Michaud,” Pitkat said. “When I started running around the ACT Late Model side of things I got a little relationship with Cris and I really like to try to support him as much as I can because he’s doing a lot of really good stuff for racing around here.”