Nine years after winning the track championship at Thunder Mountain Speedway, Mike Mahaney can add another milestone to his resume.
He has the opportunity to be the first Super DIRTcar Series winner in track history when the Series debuts at the Center Lisle, NY track on Monday, May 27, for Thunder on the Mountain.
Since Mahaney won the track championship at the Center Lisle, NY facility, the track has changed its weekly Modified program. Despite his experience, it’s the first time he’ll race there in a Big Block Modified and on Hoosier tires.
“I think Thunder Mountain is a unique track that’s very different from what we see on the Super DIRTcar Series,” Mahaney said. “They have switched to Hoosiers. Back when I was champion, it was on American Racers and sail panels, so it’ll be interesting for me to go there for the first time with Big Block windows.
“I think the car is going to have a different balance and respond differently, but it’s good to have knowledge of the surface and how the track races.”
Monday’s race at Thunder Mountain isn’t just a return to a place Mahaney’s been successful. The track is also close to King Ferry, NY, where he grew up working on his dad Jim’s cars. Racing near his hometown, Mahaney said he’s excited for the weekend.
“Now that I’m up in the Adirondacks, I don’t get back home where I grew up a lot,” Mahaney said. “It’ll be nice to go home and see my family and some of my friends, get to race for them, and be around them a bit in the pit area. It’ll give me a bit of a boost.”
So far in 2024, Mahaney has one win at Grandview Speedway. However, he’s been fighting for wins weekly at his home tracks. He said he hopes that momentum gives him another boost starting at the next Super DIRTcar Series event at Weedsport Speedway.
“I’ll be interested to see how the stuff we’ve learned racing on Friday nights at [Albany-Saratoga Speedway] applies to the shows at Weedsport and Thunder Mountain,” Mahaney said. “It feels like we’ve been struggling there, but the competition is really good on Friday nights. I wonder if maybe it’s just that, and maybe when we get to a track I’m really comfortable with, like Weedsport, maybe the car will respond really well.”
The Series debut at Thunder Mountain comes at the end of seven races in six nights for Mahaney, which includes Big Block and 358 Modified racing at Albany-Saratoga Speedway on Friday.
Mahaney quickly credited his team, allowing the George Huttig-owned #35 to be a threat wherever they go.
“(Rich, Brian, Art, and Lance) busted their tails all weekend to get everything ready. It was quite impressive. Art was fixing everything in the shop, Brian was putting together a lot of new things on a new car we’re putting together. Lance has every tire done that we own, so we could be ready to burn some rubber.
“It’s good to have guys that help us week in and week out and put a good effort in because there’s no way we could race that much without them.”
Mahaney and his crew are aiming for another Thunder Mountain milestone when the Super DIRTcar Series makes its debut on Monday, May 27, for Thunder on the Mountain. Before that, the Series stops at Weedsport Speedway on Sunday, May 26, for the Heroes Remembered 100.
If you can’t make it to the track, you can watch all of the Super DIRTcar Series action on DIRTVision, either online or with the DIRTVision app.
