BROCKVILLE, ON – On Friday night, the 16th annual DIRT Outlaw Apparel Fall Nationals came to life at Brockville Ontario Speedway, with picture perfect weather, a packed pit area and a full grandstand. Well over 100 cars were ready for battle across five divisions and the racing action was something to remember.
The Ogilvie’s Triple Crown Series for the 358 Modifieds saw a tight battle, with Steve Bernier and Ryan Arbuthnot separated by just eight points for the championship. At the start of the 50-lap feature, Kalen Draper, who had been fast all night, moved in front and drove away, with Lance Willix and Chris Raabe charging after the youngster in the opening laps.
The track was quick on this night and Draper showed how fast he was by driving away from the field until a yellow flew for a minor spin on Lap 14. On the restart, Willix used the outside lane to take the lead and it appeared that he was the car to beat, with Draper and Raabe running in the top-three. The championship battle was close on track, with Bernier running in fourth, while Arbuthnot was right on his back bumper (more on this battle later on).
Up front, Willix was fast, even in lapped traffic, and it appeared that he was on his way to his first Brockville Modified win. But on Lap 38, the caution flew again, setting up one more chance for Draper. On the final restart, Draper was able to get by Willix and drive away to his third career DIRTCar 358 Modified win and first in the Ogilvie’s Series.
While Draper had no issues on the last lap, Willix and Arbuthnot came together, in turn three, while battling for second, resulting in heavy front-end damage for Arbuthnot. Behind him, Ogilvie’s title rival Bernier blew a motor in turn three, while running seventh. With all the traffic behind him, Bernier got several unintentional pushes and was barely able to cross the line in 11th.
After the wild finish and the effort to make it to the line, Bernier was crowned the 2024 Ogilvie’s Series champion. The top-five saw Kalen Draper with the win, followed by Willix, Raabe, Mat Williamson and Johnathon Ferguson.
The Sportsman portion of the Ogilvie’s Triple Crown had Bobby Herrington, Shane Pecore and Gavin Eisele separated by eight points in the battle for the championship. At the start of the 40-lap feature, Dan Ferguson jumped out in front, with Tristan Ladouceur and Dylan Kirkland close behind. On Lap 3, Ladouceur charged to the top spot, bringing Pecore to the runner-up position, as the top-two put on a spirited battle for the lead in the early laps.
Behind them, title contenders Herrington and Eisele were looking to charge forward. Herrington got to third by Lap 15, while Eisele was trapped in the back portion of the top-ten, running in the eighth spot, and had some work to do to catch the leaders. Up front, Ladouceur and Pecore entered heavy traffic, which brought Herrington and Kirkland into the mix, starting a great four-car battle for the lead.
On Lap 30, Ladouceur was able to break free of the lapped cars, with Herrington moving to second around Pecore, followed by Kirkland and Jessica Power. Ladouceur and Herrington pulled away and started to put on a great side-by-side battle for the lead, with Ladouceur in control on Lap 37. Next lap, the yellow came out, setting up a great finish once again. When the green flew, Ladouceur stuck with the top lane, as Herrington found some bite on the bottom, pulling even with the leader in turn three and four.
On the final lap, Herrington was able to slide in front of Ladouceur and take the lead. Ladouceur gave it one last shot in turn three, but in the end, Herrington marched on to his sixth win of the season at Brockville, seventh Ogilvie’s Series win, third Brockville Fall Nationals triumph and a third-straight Ogilvie’s Triple Crown Series championship. Mohawk track champion Ladouceur finished a hard-fought second, with Pecore, Kirkland and Bryan Preville completing the top-five.
The 25-lap Street Stock feature was just as exciting, with Dakota Sharp taking the lead from the pole, while Todd Raabe and Tyler French stayed close behind. The top-three were running strong but Sharp was well out front and appeared like he was going to walk away with the win.
A couple of early race yellows brought the field together for a restart; this allowed Doug O’Blenis to take over the lead, with Sharp and French right there to challenge. On Lap 14, O’Blenis and Sharp made slight contact, allowing French to move from third to first and appear like he was on his way to victory. On Lap 18, Sharp was able to get back by on the high side, in turn two, and pull away. From there, Sharp made it look easy, scoring his first Fall Nationals win in his event debut. French, O’Blenis, Cory White and Mike Schonauer completed the top-five.
The Eastern Ontario Vintage Stock Car Club 50/60 division took to the speedway next. Jeff Cledgett led early over Chris Wilson and Greg Hale. Wilson was running strong and took the lead on Lap 7 of the 20-lap contest, bringing Hale to second. Over the final laps, Wilson held a slight lead, but series points leader Hale was looking to the high side and searching for his fifth win. On this night, Wilson held on for his second series win of the year, both coming at Brockville. Hale crossed the line in second, with Jens Mortensen, Cledgett and Dexter Billings rounding out the top-five.
In the Eastern Ontario Vintage Stock Car Club 70/80 division, Ian Gordon and Pete Stapper traded the lead in the first four laps, putting on a great show for the fans. On Lap 6, Gavin Riddell made his way to the top spot and began to pull away. Matt Barbour was also on the move, taking second as he tried his best to run down the leader. Riddell had a strong car and was able to put several car lengths between himself and the rest of the field; in the end, Riddell notched his first Fall Nationals win over Barbour, Stapper, Gordon and series points leader Randy Gaudet.
- By Tim Baltz
