Thunder Road International SpeedBowl
Not to be confused with the Waterford Speedbowl in Waterford, Connecticut.
Thunder Road International Speedbowl, more commonly known as Thunder Road, is a high-banked, paved short track speedway located just outside the limits of the city of Barre. The track was founded by Ken Squier 1960 and sold by Squier and co-owner Tom Curley in the spring of 2017 to former Thunder Road track champion Cris Michaud and local businessman Pat Malone. Currently, Thunder Road hosts four weekly divisions: Late Models, Tiger Sportsman, Street Stocks, and Road Warriors. The track is known for hosting its weekly races on Thursday night, rather than Saturday, as nearly all other short tracks do.
In the past, Thunder Road had hosted 22 races of NASCAR North Tour between 1979 and 1985 and also hosted 7 races of the NASCAR Busch North Series, a feeder series of NASCAR, between 1997 and 2003.
Currently, the track hosts regional touring series including the American Canadian Tour, the Pro All Stars Series and the New England Antique Racers. On June 28, 2007, NASCAR driver Kenny Wallace raced at Thunder Road. Ken Schrader, another NASCAR driver, had raced once at Thunder Road each of the two years prior to Wallace's visit.
Thunder Road has hosted the "Milk Bowl" Late Model race since 1962. It is the season finale each fall, and consists of three 50-lap segments, with cumulative scoring and full-field inversions between segments. The driver with the highest combined total of finishes in the three segments is declared the winner, receives a loving cup full of milk as the trophy, and is expected to kiss a cow in Victory Circle.
In 2009, as part of its 50th Season in operation, Thunder Road was visited by NASCAR legends Richard Petty and Bobby Allison. Current NASCAR drivers Tony Stewart, Clint Bowyer and David Ragan raced there at different events during the season as well.
Past track champions (King of the Road)
The title of King of the Road is given to the highest points winner of the top weekly division at Thunder Road. While the other divisions have their respective champions, King of the Road is the most coveted title at Thunder Road. There have been fifty-five Kings of the Road; the one female driver who won the track championship, Tracie Bellerose, was christened the 2000 Queen of the Road. Vermont's governor since 2017, Phil Scott, is a longtime participant in Thunder Road's Late Model series, and is a three-time King of the Road.| Year | Driver | Hometown | Division |
| 1960 | Ronnie Marvin | Bethlehem, NH | Sportsman Coupe |
| 1961 | Roy "Pappy" Forsythe | Keene, NH | Sportsman Coupe |
| 1962 | Lee Ingerson | Jefferson, NH | Sportsman Coupe |
| 1963 | Lee Ingerson | Jefferson, NH | Sportsman Coupe |
| 1964 | Harold "Hardluck" Hanaford | Plymouth, NH | Sportsman Coupe |
| 1965 | Harold "Hardluck" Hanaford | Plymouth, NH | Sportsman Coupe |
| 1966 | Larry Demar | Harwick, VT | Flying Tiger |
| 1967 | Larry Demar | Harwick, VT | Flying Tiger |
| 1968 | Tom Tiller | Essex Jct., VT | Flying Tiger |
| 1969 | Clement "Desperate" Despault | Waterbury, VT | Flying Tiger |
| 1970 | Bobby Giroux | South Burlington, VT | Limited Sportsman |
| 1971 | Jean-Paul Cabana | Sherrington, QC | Late Model Sportsman |
| 1972 | Bobby Giroux | South Burlington, VT | Late Model Sportsman |
| 1973 | Bobby Dragon | Milton, VT | Late Model Sportsman |
| 1974 | Joey Kourafas | Sharon, MA | Late Model Sportsman |
| 1975 | Dave Dion | Hudson, NH | Late Model Sportsman |
| 1976 | Bobby Dragon | Milton, VT | Late Model Sportsman |
| 1977 | Dave Dion | Hudson, VT | Late Model Sportsman |
| 1978 | Stanley "Stub" Fadden | North Haverhill, NH | Late Model Sportsman |
| 1979 | Stanley "Stub" Fadden | North Haverhill, NH | Late Model Sportsman |
| 1980 | Jean-Paul Cabana | Sherrington, QC | Late Model Sportsman |
| 1981 | -Track Closed- | ||
| 1982 | Joey Laquerre | East Montpelier, VT | Flying Tiger |
| 1983 | Clement "Desperate" Despault | Waterbury, VT | Flying Tiger |
| 1984 | Larry Caron | Williston, VT | Flying Tiger |
| 1985 | Chuck Beede | Williamstown, VT | Flying Tiger |
| 1986 | Norm Andrews | Northfield, VT | Flying Tiger |
| 1987 | Dan Beede | Williamstown, VT | Flying Tiger |
| 1988 | Ron Lamell, Jr | Essex Jct., VT | Flying Tiger |
| 1989 | Greg "Burger" Blake | East Barre, VT | Flying Tiger |
| 1990 | Joey Laquerre, Jr. | East Montpelier, VT | Flying Tiger |
| 1991 | Dwayne Lanphear | Morrisville, VT | Flying Tiger |
| 1992 | Chuck Beede | Williamstown, VT | Late Model |
| 1993 | Chuck Beede | Williamstown, VT | Late Model |
| 1994 | Chuck Beede | Williamstown, VT | Late Model |
| 1995 | Dave Whitcomb | Essex Jct., VT | Late Model |
| 1996 | Phil Scott | Middlesex, VT | Late Model |
| 1997 | Pete Fecteau | Morrisville, VT | Late Model |
| 1998 | Phil Scott | Middlesex, VT | Late Model |
| 1999 | Brian Hoar | Williston, VT | Late Model |
| 2000 | Tracie Bellerose | Gorham, NH | Late Model |
| 2001 | Cris Michaud | Northfield, VT | Late Model |
| 2002 | Phil Scott | Middlesex, VT | Late Model |
| 2003 | Jamie Fisher | Shelburne, VT | Late Model |
| 2004 | Cris Michaud | Williamstown, VT | Late Model |
| 2005 | Cris Michaud | Williamstown, VT | Late Model |
| 2006 | Chad Wheeler | Waterbury Ctr., VT | Late Model |
| 2007 | Dave Pembroke | Montpelier, VT | Late Model |
| 2008 | Eric Williams | Hyde Park, VT | Late Model |
| 2009 | Jean-Paul Cyr | Milton, VT | Late Model |
| 2010 | Nick Sweet | Barre, VT | Late Model |
| 2011 | Dave Pembroke | Montpelier, VT | Late Model |
| 2012 | Nick Sweet | Barre, VT | Late Model |
| 2013 | Derrick O'Donnell | North Haverhill, NH | Late Model |
| 2014 | Derrick O'Donnell | North Haverhill, NH | Late Model |
| 2015 | Derrick O'Donnell | North Haverhill, NH | Late Model |
| 2016 | Scott Dragon | Milton, VT | Late Model |
| 2017 | Bobby Therrien | Hinesburg, VT | Late Model |
| 2018 | Scott Dragon | Milton, VT | Late Model |
| 2019 | Jason Corliss | Barre, VT | Late Model |