OHSWEKEN, Ont. – June 9, 2017 – A total of 127 drivers signed in for competition at Ohsweken Speedway on Rochester Knighthawks and McDonald’s of Paris and Brantford night. The Patriot Sprint Tour versus the Kool Kidz-Corr/Pak 360 Sprint Cars headlined the show and Dylan Westbrook went to victory lane. Aaron Turkey, Ryan Dinning, Dave Crumbie and Gillian Hils also went to Lucas Oil Victory Lane
KOOL KIDZ/CORR-PAK 360 SPRINT CARS
Mitch Brown and Dylan Westbrook brought the field to the green flag for the 25-lap main event. Westbrook used the outside lane against the cushion to jump to an early lead. Fourth-starting Bryan Howland also used the outside lane to quickly jump ahead to second.
The only caution of the race came on lap six when Stan Zanchin spun his No.27z in the middle of turn two, which erased Westbrook’s 1.1-second advantage. On the restart, Westbrook’s slow pace managed to keep Howland at bay while Jared Zimbardi jumped past Brown into third.
Westbrook continued to lead at the halfway mark on lap 13, but one lap later bobbled in turn three, which allowed Howland to draw to his back bumper as the top pair worked into traffic. Howland made several advances to try and take the lead from Westbrook, but couldn’t gain enough momentum to try a slide job. Westbrook held the top lane and drove to his first career Patriot Sprint Tour win over Howland and Zimbardi. It was also Westbrook’s fifth career win at Ohsweken.
“We got a really good starting spot,” Westbrook said. “We tightened up the car a bunch and then got a good start and got out front. After the caution, it seemed (Howland) and (Zimbardi) were right behind me, so I knew I had to pick it up a little bit. I kept running my line, got around some lapped traffic and ended up getting the win.”
Westbrook’s win snapped a three-race win streak in the event for Zimbardi. Brown, Howland and Glenn Styres won qualifying heats while Jake Brown won the Evingham Excavation Dash.
STRICKLAND’S GMC CRATE SPRINT CARS
Jesse Costa and Jerry Hill brought the full 20-car field to the green flag for the 20-lap Strickland’s GMC Crate Sprint Car 20-lap feature. Hill led the opening two laps before the first caution of the race waved. Hill held the lead, but couldn’t maintain it on the next restart at lap three when his teammate Shone Evans drove to the front in his No.87x.
The race struggled to stay at speed with a flurry of cautions through the middle of the race, but Evans distanced himself from the field during a green flag run from lap six to lap 10. However, Evans was forced to deal with Aaron Turkey on a lap 13 restart. Turkey ran the outside lane and used his momentum off turn four to take the lead on lap 14. Turkey battled with Evans until the No.87x rolled on his side at lap 16 following contact with Holly Porter in turn two.
The final restart of the race came on lap 17 when Josh Shantz tried to become the fourth leader of the race. Shantz through a perfect slide job on Turkey in turns one and two on lap 18 to take the lead for about 30 feet at the exit of turn two. Turkey, however, turned back underneath Shantz and drove away to his first victory since 2015.
“It did really feel good to be back on the high side and actually have full power and be able to put it where I wanted it,” Turkey said. “The front end started to push a little bit, so I was dragging the brake trying to get it to turn, but it was rotating really nicely (through the corner).”
Mike Thorne, Jesse Costa and Shantz won the Crate Sprint Car qualifying heats and Conor Mahoney won the B-Main.
MIDDLEPORT MECHANICAL THUNDER STOCKS
Kacey Huffman and Logan Shwedyk brought the field to the green flag for the 20-lap Middleport Mechanical Thunder Stock feature. Shwedyk jumped to an early lead, but had his advantage erased on lap two by the first of two red flags when Rob Hoskins No.37x rolled upside down on the frontstretch with Jim Lampman’s No.28 coming to rest on top. Both drivers were okay and Lampman was able to continue.
On the ensuing restart, Ryan Dinning was the big mover, racing past Shwedyk to the lead after starting 12th. Dinning grew his lead to a half straightaway over Shawn Chenoweth’s No.89c at the halfway mark, but a lap 13 caution took it away. It took three tries to restart the race after Nick Liverance rolled his No.911L on the frontstretch to bring out a second red flag.
When the race got back to speed, Dave Bailey drove from fourth to second to battle Dinning for the lead. Dinning, however, was the class of the field and held off Bailey for his first victory of the season.
“All I knew of that race was that I just wanted to get out of there,” Dinning said. “I didn’t want to be anywhere near Bailey when he caught up to me. I knew he was coming.”
Bryce Richardson, Dinning and Bailey won the Thunder Stock qualifying heats.
HRW AUTOMOTIVE MINI STOCKS
Dave Goodacre and Martin Schroeder started on the front row for the 15-lap HRW Automotive Mini Stock Feature. Schroeder took an early lead ahead of Dave Crumbie and Jeremy May, but was reeled in by a lap three caution. The restart gave Crumbie the track position he needed to track down Schroeder.
At the lap eight halfway mark, Crumbie took to the inside line to battle Schroeder for the lead as the two driver battled side-by-side for the top spot. Crumbie edged ahead by a nose to lead lap nine, but only pulled away by a car length. Over the final three laps, Crumbie distanced himself from Schroeder, who was left to battle point leader Mark Bazuin for second. Crumbie drove away to his first career victory on dirt and at Ohsweken over Bazuin and Schroeder.
Schroeder, Rob Twitchett and Bazuin won qualifying heats while Jon Janssens won the B-Main.
GALE’S AUTO AFTERMARKET BOMBERS
Cody Sommerville and Zach Buchwald started on the front row for the Gale’s Auto Aftermarket Bomber feature. Sommerville jumped out to the early lead ahead of third-starting Alex Maas. However, it was the 10th starter, Gillian Hils who used the outside lane to roll to the second spot on lap four. Hils then used the same top groove to drive past Sommerville for the lead on lap five.
Hils had to work for the win as a pair of cautions on lap eight and lap 11 gave the rest of the field a chance to steal back the top spot, but Hils was too strong and drove away to her first victory of the season ahead of Maas and Paul Longboat.
Lucas Smith and Alex Maas won the qualifying heats.
UP NEXT AT OHSWEKEN SPEEDWAY
Ohsweken Speedway returns to action on Friday, June 16 for Wall of Fame and Kids Race for Canadian National Autism Foundation night presented by Core-Mark International. Jim Cochrane, Clinton Geoffrey Kruchka, Gale Hill, Tom Huppunen and Adam Ross will be inducted into Ohsweken’s Wall o Fame. All five Ohsweken weekly divisions are in action as well as the Pro 4 Trucks. Race time is 7:30pm. Adult admission is just $14. Additional event information is available at www.ohswekenspeedway.com.
–Kool Kidz-Corr/Pak 360 Sprint Cars (20 Laps)
– Strickland’s GMC Crate Sprint Cars (20 Laps)
– Middleport Mechanical Thunder Stocks (20 Laps)
– HRW Automotive Mini Stocks (15 Laps)
– Gale’s Auto Aftermarket Bombers (12 Laps)
– Pro 4 Trucks (15 Laps)
Tickets Available Now
Advanced reserved seating tickets are on sale now for all of Ohsweken Speedway’s 2017 major events, including the Northern Summer Nationals on July 24 and the World of Outlaws Craftsman® Sprint Car Series Six Nations Showdown on July 25 both featuring Kyle Larson and Rico Abreu, the Triple Crown Showdown featuring Super DIRTcar Series Big-Block Modifieds on August 24, 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 the Rochester Knighthawks Lacrosse Club: A charter member of the National Lacrosse League, the Rochester Knighthawks lacrosse club is owned by Arrow Express Sports. For more information on the Rochester Knighthawks, visit www.Knighthawks.com.
About McDonald’s Restaurants of Brantford & Paris: McDonald’s restaurants have served the world some of its favourite food since 1955. McDonald’s is more than just your local restaurant. They’re hardworking small businessmen and women, students working part-time, seniors getting the most out of life, and volunteers lending time to make a difference in the communities they live and work in. McDonald’s locations in Brantford include 73 King George Road, 27 Stanley Street, 300 King George Road, and 299 Wayne Gretzky Parkway, while they’re also in Paris at 307 Grand River Street North. Grab a bite to eat on the way to the races, or visit the drive-thru on your way home. Visit www.McDonalds.ca for more information.
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 PARTNERS
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.
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