PELHAM -- Police here are working with neighboring departments to identify three drivers who raced through town Monday on all-terrain vehicles, one of whom ran down police Lt. Joseph Roark while fleeing officers.

Roark, who suffered a minor shoulder injury when he was thrown into the air, said yesterday that investigators are hoping to get some leads that will help them track down the drivers, who were disguised by helmets, face plates and full body suits.

"We notified some area agencies and we're hoping to develop some information from that," he said.

Police first noticed the ATVs at the intersection of Route 38 and Old Bridge Street early Monday afternoon. When an officer attempted to stop them for illegally operating the ATVs in the street, they sped off.

It wasn't long before the trio was confronted by two more police cruisers on Marsh Road, not far from Pelham High School. But the drivers managed to race by the cruisers, police said.

Roark, who was directing traffic around a crew of Verizon workers, heard a call on his portable radio that the ATV riders were headed his way.

"I positioned my cruiser on the middle of Marsh Road and held the northbound traffic lane," he said. "These guys were operating very recklessly, going about 55 to 60 mph. I held the northbound traffic and signaled for them to stop and they slowed down and made a decision to blast by me."

The drivers were about 100 feet away. Two broke left around the cruiser and the third went to the right where the vehicle got hung up on a snowbank piled into the shoulder of the road.

Roark approached the third driver to arrest him, but when he got within about 5 feet, he said the driver jerked the handlebars to one side and charged him.

"He tried to snowplow the embankment and that didn't work," Roark said. "When I went over to approach him, he just gunned it and flipped me up and over. If I had expected that's how he'd react to me I would have engaged him, but it happened so fast."

The three drivers then sped down the length of Marsh Road toward Mammoth and Sherburne roads. The intersection borders Hudson, and Tyngsboro and Dracut, Mass. Police in all three communities were notified about the incident.

Roark said one of the men wore a camouflaged-style racing suit. The others wore dark-colored suits. The racing-style ATVs were dark as well.

While ATVs need to be registered with the state, the decal stuck on the vehicles is small. They carry no license plates.

If caught, the third driver could face a felony assault charge. Police hope tips from the public will lead to an arrest. Anyone with information about the drivers is urged to call (603) 635-2411