OHSWEKEN, Ont. – August 19, 2017 – Ohsweken Speedway’s pit area was jammed with 148 cars for the busiest night of the year so far on Kids Race for the Canadian National Autism Foundation and Autograph Night presented by Jibs Action Sports on Friday. The Race of Champions Sportsman tour was in action for their second appearance at Ohsweken for a rescheduled event that was originally slated for June 23. The rained-out features from August 11 for the Kool Kidz-Corr/Pak 360 Sprint Cars and Middleport Mechanical Thunder Stocks were also on the schedule.
When the dust settled, it was Chad Chavalier who held off Brad Rouse to win the Race of Champions Sportsman Feature. Cory Turner and Mitch Brown visited Lucas Oil Victory Lane for the Kool Kidz-Corr/Pak 360 Sprints Cars while Dave Bailey and Ryan Dinning won the Middleport Mechanical Thunder Stock Features. Josh Shantz won with the Strickland’s GMC Crate Sprint Cars, Jon Janssens scored the HRW Automotive Mini Stock victory and Gillian Hils was the Gale’s Auto Aftermarket Bomber winner.
KOOL KIDZ/CORR-PAK 360 SPRINT CARS
The Kool Kidz-Corr/Pak 360 Sprint Cars were busy with a pair of Features on tap. The Renway Energy August 11 make-up feature was the second Feature of the night and saw Cory Turner and Dylan Westbrook lead the field to the green flag. Westbrook grabbed the early advantage over Turner, but was slowed by a lap two caution when Jamie Turner spun in turn four.
Westbrook regained his advantage on the restart and pulled away to a two-second advantage on lap seven. Westbrook was in top form and looked as though he was on his way to extending his point lead until the car went up in smoke on lap 13 right in front of Cory Turner, who had to swerve to miss the No.47x on the front straightaway. On the ensuing restart, Turner fended off Jim Huppunen’s attack and led the final seven laps to score his first career Feature win at Ohsweken.
The regularly scheduled Kool Kidz-Corr/Pak 360 Sprint Car Feature presented by Jibs Action Sports saw four outside invaders drop in to Ohsweken for a pre-Canadian Sprint Car Nationals tune-up. Bryan Howland, Joe Trenca, Chuck Hebing and Kelly Hebing were all in attendance to take-on Ohsweken’s best.
Trenca held the pole for the 20-lap main event, but it was outside polesitter Mitch Brown who staked claim to the early lead. Behind Brown, third-starting Howland challenged Trenca for second on lap five and used a slide job off turn four to take the spot. Trenca had front end problems immediately after and retired to the pit area, which promoted Westbrook to third.
At the halfway mark, Westbrook experienced motor problems for the second time on the night and slowed off turn four. He was unable to continue. Howland took advantage of the track position on the restart and used another slide job off turn four to take the lead from Brown. Howland then checked out from Brown by a full straightaway before hitting slower traffic on lap 17. It didn’t slow Howland’s No.51 at all and he took the white flag with a convincing advantage over Brown.
However, the victory was not in the cards for Howland. His car slowed in turns one and two with drivetrain issues, ending his night. It setup a one-lap dash with Brown and Chuck Hebing nose-to-tail on the restart. Brown led off turn two and Hebing through a massive slide job in turn four to try and steal the win. Brown, however, was able to turn back underneath Hebing and win a drag race to the line by 0.133 seconds. Cory Turner, Jim Huppunen and Jake Brown completed the top-five.
Howland and Westbrook were the heat race winners. Howland was also the Ackland Insurance Top Gun award winner as the driver who earned the most passing points in heat race competition.
RACE OF CHAMPIONS SPORTSMAN TOUR
The Race of Champions Sportsman Feature started with Chris Watters and Chad Chevalier on the front row. Chevalier claimed an early advantage with a run through the middle groove of the racetrack, but it was third-starting Brad Rouse who kept him close. Rouse nosed under chevalier in turn three and took the lead on lap four.
Rouse then opened his advantage to over a second by lap 10 of the 30-lap Feature. It was erased, however, by a caution on lap 11 when James Michael Friesen spun in turn two. On the restart, Rouse and Chevalier raced side-by-side. Rouse used the shorter bottom lane to hold the advantage.
Another caution on lap 18 for a stopped Jay Mallory changed the story of the race. Chevalier again raced alongside Rouse on the restart and on lap 20 when Rouse bobbled through the bumps on the bottom of turn one, Chevalier pulled away to a car-length lead. Rouse continuously tried to use the bottom lane to retake the lead, including on the final restart at lap 24, but couldn’t get it done as Chevalier’s momentum through the middle groove of the track carried him to the victory.
Justin Sharp’s late race surge took him from a top-five finish to a spot on the podium as he took third after starting 16th. Cody McPherson and Darrell Farraway rounded out the top-five. Friesen and Mallory set quick time in their respective heat groups while also picking up the heat race win.
STRICKLAND’S GMC CRATE SPRINT CARS
Josh Shantz was the dominant man in the Strickland’s GMC Crate Sprint Car Feature. Shantz started outside the third row, but pounded through the highest lane to race into second behind Holly Porter on the opening lap.
On the second circuit, Shantz drove past Porter to the lead. The caution flag waved on four different occasions, including for point leader Mack DeMan who suffered a broken rim on lap six and major rear-end issues on lap 14.
Shantz couldn’t be touched on any restart, leaving Mike Thorne and Ryan Hunsinger to battle for second. Thorne came out on top while Hunsinger took third ahead of Aaron Turkey and Shone Evans, who completed the top-five. Jesse McDonald, Thorne, DeMan and Shantz were all heat race winners. Steven Beckett and Conor Mahoney earned B-Main wins to transfer to the Feature with teenage rookies Josh Hansen and Liam Martin.
MIDDLEPORT MECHANICAL THUNDER STOCKS
The night started with the Middleport Mechanical Thunder Stock’s August 11 make-up Feature and a front row composed of Kevin Pauls and Bryce Richardson. Richardson claimed an early lead and paced the opening four laps, but Jim Lampman quickly reeled in the No.11r and took the lead on lap five. However, all eyes were on the Burger Barn No.56 of Dereck Lemyre who raced from 18th in to the top-five. Lemyre ran the extreme outside lane and was able to take the lead from Lampman on lap 8.
Lemyre checked out from the rest of the field and was cruising on his way to a victory with a convincing half straightaway advantage following a lap 13 restart, but the car suffered terminal mechanical problems on lap 16. With Lemyre retired to the pit area, the point leader Dave Bailey assumed the lead and could not be touched over the final four laps as he claimed victory over Jason Lungaro and Ken Sargent.
In the regularly scheduled Feature, Ryan Dinning took full advantage of a top-10 starting spot after a flat tire derailed his efforts in the earlier Feature. Dinning drove from seventh to the lead on the opening lap and never looked back. He led all 20 laps of the non-stop Feature to score the win by a convincing 6.878 seconds margin of victory. Sargent earned the runner-up spot for his second podium finish of the night while Bailey rounded out the podium.
Dinning, Lungaro and Ryan Beagle claimed heat race wins.
HRW AUTOMOTIVE MINI STOCKS
The HRW Automotive Mini Stocks were the final Feature to hit the track for a 15-lap Feature. Davey Boughton drove from fifth to lead the opening lap, but Jason Dixon paced the field on lap two. Third-starting Kyle Wert stayed in the mix as well and challenged for the lead by running the high outside lane. He claimed the point on lap five and paced a tight battle up front until lap nine when Mark Bazuin took the top spot.
After a lap nine caution, Wert retook the lead, but was quickly under siege from B-Main winner Bobby Tolton and Brandon Janssens who were battling for second. It evolved into a three-wide battle for the lead with Wert out front until Janssens took the top spot for the final two laps and held off Tolton on the final corner for the win while Wert settled for third.
Martin Schroeder, Jonathan Ayrton and Bazuin were heat race winners while Tolton won the B-Main.
GALE’S AUTO AFTERMARKET BOMBERS
Jake Maas took an early lead in the Gale’s Auto Aftermarket Bomber Feature after starting outside the front row and built sizeable lead. Eight-starting Gillian HIls was quickly on the move through and raced into second before taking the lead from Maas with a pass in turn three on lap five.
A lap seven restart slowed Hils, but didn’t stop her from dominating the rest of the race as she pulled away to the victory over Maas and Paul Longboat. Zach Buchwald and Dustin Longboat completed the top-five.
UP NEXT AT OHSWEKEN SPEEDWAY
Ohsweken Speedway wraps-up the month of August with two big events next week on back-to-back nights. On Thursday, August 24 it’s the Triple Crown Showdown featuring the Super DIRTcar Series Big-Block Modifieds. The Kool Kidz-Corr/Pak 360 Sprint Cars and Go Nuclear Late Model Series is also on the card. Advanced reserved tickets and camping are available online at https://ohswekenspeedway.ticketforce.com.
Then, on Friday, August 25, Ohsweken will be back in action with $5 Fan Appreciation Friday Night Excitement featuring a special Topless Open Late Model event, the Strickland’s GMC Crate Sprint Cars, a 50-lap, $2000 Gale’s Auto Aftermarket challenge for the Middleport Mechanical Thunder Stocks, HRW Automotive Mini Stocks and Gale’s Auto Aftermarket Bombers. Race time for both events is 7:30pm. For addition event information, including ticket prices and gate times, visit www.ohswekenspeedway.com.
Tickets Available Now!
Advanced reserved seating tickets are on sale now for all of Ohsweken Speedway’s 2017 major events, including the Triple Crown Showdown featuring Super DIRTcar Series Big-Block Modifieds on August 24, Meet and Greet with Tanner Fox on September 8 and the 13th annual Canadian Sprint Car Nationals on September 15-16 are on sale now! Visit www.ohswekenspeedway.ticketforce.com or call 519-717-0023 to order and for more information. For the full 2017 schedule of events, click here.
About Jibs Action Sports: Jibs Action Sports opened in 2010 to supply customers with a great choice of freestyle skate park equiment. Jibs is now one of Canada’s best suppliers of BMX bikes, freestyle scooters, and skateboards. Visit Jibs Action Sports at 425 Guelph Line in Burlington, 2107 Highway 7, Unit 8 in Vaughan and 1822 Whites Road North in Pickering or shop from the comfort of home at www.jibsactionsports.com.
About Kids Race: Kids Race is an action-packed race series covering 7 tracks across 2 provinces held each year in support of The Canadian National Autism Foundation. Kids Race was established in 2010 as an idea to create a new platform for autism research and awareness. Shortly after speaking with and working alongside track owners, officials, drivers, crews and fans a common bond was formed. We realized that passion, dedication, family and the love of what we doing was something shared by everyone involved in the races. The races only happen once a year, but the work done for autism is a year-round process. For more information, visit www.kidsrace.ca.
About Canadian National Austim Foundation: The Canadian National Autism Foundation was formed in June 2000 by parents of children with autism. The foundation is completely run and administrated by unpaid volunteers. The objectives of the Canadian National Autism Foundation are charitable. The Canadian National Autism Foundation has been formed to provide funding for educating the general public and professionals, providing information and resources to families of people with autism, providing funding for Canadian based research and development, and promoting national autism awareness. For more information visit www.cnaf.net.
About Ohsweken Speedway: Founded in 1996, Ohsweken Speedway is a motorsports complex which includes a 3/8 (0.375) mile clay oval track. The facility is owned by the Styres family, and located in the village of Ohsweken, Ontario, Canada. Ohsweken’s weekly Friday night racing program runs from May to September each year, featuring 360 Sprint Cars, Crate Sprint Cars, Thunder Stocks, Mini Stocks, and Bombers, while the season finishes each year with the annual Canadian Sprint Car Nationals. Ohsweken Speedway also hosts weekly Micro Sprint racing on Thursday nights, and has been a yearly stop on the World of Outlaws Sprint Car series schedule since 2007.
OHSWEKEN SPEEDWAY MEDIA
Website: www.OhswekenSpeedway.com
Facebook: www.Facebook.com/OHSWEKENSPEEDWAY
Twitter: @OhswekenSpdway
Instagram: www.Instagram.com/OhswekenSpeedway
YouTube: www.YouTube.com/user/OhswekenSpdway
Ohsweken Speedway thanks the following partners for their support in 2017: Arrow Express, Kool Kidz Ice & Water, Corr/Pak Merchandising Inc., Renway Energy, Case IH O’Neil’s Farm Equipment, Hoosier Tire Canada, EPIC Racewear, McDonald’s Restaurants of Paris & Brantford, Ackland Insurance, Strickland’s GMC, Lucas Oil, Burger Barn, Pinty’s Delicious Foods, Creative Edge Signs & Graphics, Insta-Insulation, Middleport Mechanical, HRW Automotive, and Gale’s Auto Aftermarket.
Discussion about this post