Preston Peltier loaded up the No. 48 Super Late Model and hauled 1,500 miles from Colorado to North Carolina this week for the 13th Annual Easter Bunny 150. The long haul proved to be worth the effort Saturday night when he won his fifth career Easter Bunny 150 at Hickory Motor Speedway (NC).
Peltier set fast time with a new track record during Pro All Stars Series (PASS) qualifying and started 10th after a redraw. He patiently worked his way towards the front of the field before eventually taking the lead from Tate Fogleman on a lap 68 restart. From there, Peltier fended off Richard Childress Racing NASCAR XFINITY Series racer Shane Lee on a pair of late-race restarts to score the victory.
“I’ve got to thank Ed, Dave and Eddie Vecchiarelli. They own this thing and they put it together with Roger Newton,” Peltier said in victory lane. “I thought that we messed up just a little bit because (the car) would kind of hop, the back of the car, and I could feel it using that right rear. I was worried about it. This place was just incredible; I’ve never felt it have this much grip before.”
Lee, who had not raced a Super Late Model in two years, challenged Peltier on a few occasions but came up short at the end of 150 laps.
“Jamie Yelton and all of those guys at Fathead Racing gave me a pretty awesome car,” Lee stated. “I think we had him on the entry to the center, but center off we just couldn’t make it up with how much drive off he had. We got together a little bit there, he cut across me and we both got sideways and both got it straightened back up. It just sort of stayed that gap the rest of the time.
“First time in a Super Late Model in two years, coming out second isn’t too bad.”
2017 PASS MegaMeltdown winner Brandon Setzer finished third, 2014 Easter Bunny 150 winner DJ Shaw was fourth and veteran Jeff Fultz completed the top five.
At the end of the night on Saturday, Peltier came out on top of a field of 40 PASS Super Late Models. Knowing the strength of the competition he was up against, Peltier believes that the win was a special one.
“The first one I won was pretty special, it was a really stout field. This one right here, this field tonight reminds me of that race,” he stated.”
Adding even more meaning to his win on Saturday, the Easter Bunny 150 win was Peltier’s first victory since the birth of his daughter Jocelyn. He’s looking forward to handing her the Easter Bunny that comes along with his winner’s trophy.
“She’s going to be eight weeks old Monday and this is special.”
Race fans can find on-demand Trackside Now coverage of Saturday’s Easter Bunny 150 by clicking here.
An on-demand replay of Saturday's live broadcast on Speed51.com will be available soon.
-By Brandon Paul, Speed51.com Editor – Twitter: @Brandon_Paul51
-Photo credit: Speed51.com
PASS Easter Bunny 150 Unofficial Results
Hickory Motor Speedway (NC) – March 31, 2018
1 48 Preston Peltier
2 00L Shane Lee
3 6 Brandon Setzer
4 60 DJ Shaw
5 54x Jeff Fultz
6 94 Garrett Hall
7 54 Matt Craig
8 12g Derek Griffith
9 22 Trevor Noles
10 4n Ben Rowe
11 8f Tate Fogleman
12 24j JP Josiasse
13 2b Gabe Brown
14 00k Bryan Kruczek
15 16me Travis Stearns
16 2 Lonnie Sommerville
17 98 Jody Measmer
18 01 Sammy Gooden
19 08 Nicholas Naugle
20 76 Jerick Johnson
21 35 Derek Ramstrom
22 78 Corey Heim
23 15 Roy Hayes III
24 03 Joe Squeglia Jr.
25 45 Kodie Conner
26 71f Harold Fair Jr
27 7c Tyler Church
28 49 Jeff Batten
29 96 Wyatt Alexander
30 2t Gracie Trotter
31 00 Jimmy Renfrew
32 26 Bubba Pollard
(10)
