Nestled in the hills of Barre, Vermont lies the quarter-mile, high-banked, asphalt speed bowl known only to fans as Thunder Road. 8,000 people gather every Thursday night to witness the best racing the state of Vermont has to offer. The roots of this iconic race track can be traced back to the one and only, Ken Squier.

In the third installment of Next Level with Ken Squier, host Andrew Kurland and Squier discuss the origins of Thunder Road, which first took shape when Squier was only in his mid-twenties. Squier discusses the post-war era and shares stories of soldiers returning home, who weren’t going to “fool around or fuss with anything that didn’t have teeth in it.”

These are the stories of the heroes and daredevils that made up the early days of short-track racing in Vermont and across the country. To race, you have to be daring, bold, and brave enough to die.