Powershift Performance

Bandits raced at Greenville-Pickens Speedway in Easley, SC on Saturday, June 10th. At this track fans not only filled the stands, but surrounded the entire track, parking their vehicles near the fence to watch the races.

The weekend started on a somber note. The mother of Crew Chief Matt Kuhn passed away late Friday afternoon. While not physically present at the race, Matt continued to direct many of the pit activities by phone as friends tried to fill in for him. Mike dedicated his win to the memory of Patricia Kuhn.

winners

Heat 1 started with substitute driver Bob Boileau (#00/#6) on the pole ahead of his son Tommy (#16). #16 quickly moved to the front and stayed there. Ball's #17 moved up to 2nd, but rookie #00 held on for 3rd.

88-Mike started in 6th place for Heat 2 beside Rude's #14. Twins Tyler (#54) and Trevor (#63) started on the front row while their Dad, Craig, brought up the rear in his blue #55. Contact with debris on the track in the first lap as trucks went three wide in turns 1 and 2. #14 went to the front under caution, but was sent back for the restart. #63 and #88 rubbed during a pass, but both held on with #14 leading, then #88, then, #63. #55 was following them until he hit the wall with #54 right behind him. Morgan's #88 challenged Rude's #14 on the restart with #14 holding the lead and #88 finishing in 2nd.

Challenge 1 started with #14 and #16 in front and finished with a win for #14, followed by #16. #54 spun out in the last lap with no hits.

In Challenge 2 #88 and #17 started on the front row. #17 had the better start and took the lead. #88 stayed with him and challenged every way possible. Both lapped #7. Morgan took 2nd.

The 25-lap A-Main Race started with the first eight positions inverted. This placed Morgan in 6th for the start. #54 went into the wall in the second lap requiring a restart. Morgan passed #3 for 5th place, then passed #00 for 4th place. Meanwhile #14 and #17 were moving up. #14 passed #88 and #88 passed #27. #17 tried to overtake #88 but lost steering after bumping #88 and stopped on the track. #17 limped off the track, done for the night. After the restart #88 managed to pass #01 and #14 for 2nd place. #14 and #01 bumped and a caution was called for debris on the track. #14 went into the pits and had his back bumper pulled off his tires. This put him in the back of the pack for the restart. #88 managed to get the jump on #16, pulled into 1st place in lap 14 and led the field for the final eleven laps! Mike Morgan won the trophy and the $10,000 check.

Videos: YouTube Live Stream, Facebook Live Stream, Transportation Nation Tribute, Tommy passes Bob Boileau, highlights with music, 88Mike hit by brothers

Finish Order

Finish order for each race by truck number:

Heat 1: 16 > 17 > 00 > 01> 3 > 27 > 4

Heat 2: 14 > 88 > 54 > 63 > 26 > 7 > 55 (DNF)

Challenge 1: 14 > 16 > 3 > 27 > 4 > 63 > 54

Challenge 2: 17 > 88 > 01 > 00 > 26 > 7

A-Main Race: 88 > 16 > 14 > 3 > 01 > 00 > 27 > 4 > 63 > 26 > 7 >17 (DNF) > 54 (DNF) > 55 (DNS)

Points Standing

Morgan is now a solid 2nd in points behind Rude and ahead of Ball.

Truck #	Driver	Points This Race	Cumulative Points
14	Ricky Rude	415.0	2030.5
88	Mike Morgan	413.5	1895.0
17	Justin Ball	274.0	1815.5
16	Tommy Boileau	393.0	1742.5
01	Chris Kikelhan	323.0	1629.0
3	Allen Boles	336.0	1505.5