This weekend at Georgian Downs Raceway, just south of Barrie, Ontario off Highway 400, the Canadian Snocross Racing Association (CSRA) takes to the track for its second scheduled event of the 2018 racing season. (UPDATE: CSRA has rescheduled the Royal Distributing Cup National Snowcross Race at Georgian Downs, to take place on February 24-25.)
The Royal Distributing Cup has become a popular stop on the tour operated by Ken and Lisa Avann; the longest continuously operating snocross sanctioning body in North America.
Operated by the Avanns since 1994, the series is into its 24th season and consistently attracts more than 300 paid rider memberships across its range of divisions, from the Mini 120s up to the Pro level.
The biggest news for the CSRA this season is the dropping of the Pro Open Mod class to try and save race teams the cost of buying and operating another sled.
Going forward, the Pro (Stock) class will be the featured event of the weekend. The overall season points champion in Pro will drive home a 2018 Chevrolet 2500 HD Duramax Diesel truck for a year, courtesy of Mike Jackson GM in Collingwood, Ontario.
Although Yamaha doesn’t build a limited build sled for Pro – as do Skidoo, Arctic Cat, and Polaris – they do support the new Snow Bike program which returns this year after a very successful debut in 2017.
Yamaha also supports the ‘Learn to Ride’ program at every event, where aspiring young racers can learn to safely ride on Mini 120s and the new Sno-Scoot.
For more info about the CSRA, visit www.Snowcross.com. See bottom for their 2018 schedule.
UPDATE:
PHOTO: (L to R): Carl Blight (Executive Director), Ron Shilling (Fabricator) and Richard Greenfield (Director) of the OSOR, while at the Toronto Snowmobile Show last fall.
And while the days of full grandstands and ice oval races every winter weekend – at a different town or city around Ontario are long gone – there is hope for the future.
Carl Blight (37) of Sterling, Ontario was too young to participate during the ‘glory days’ of oval racing. But with Valcourt, QC and Eganville, ON the only remaining races left in eastern Canada… something had to be done to save the sport.
With help from fellow vintage racers Rick Greenfield, Mark Reoch and Keith Smith, a new group known as the Ontario Snowmobile Oval Racing (OSOR) was formed in 2016 to sanction and promote amateur and vintage oval racing.
While last year was supposed to be the group’s debut season, with two events scheduled, the weather didn’t cooperate and only one day of racing took place. That happened in Minden, Ontario before the temperatures took off and ruined the track there, and later, in Brighton, Ontario.
Fast forward to the present and things appear to be looking up for the young tour as they have a full schedule of races planned including the long (40+years) running Castle Building Products Bonnechere Cup in Eganville.
The group’s popularity is growing by “leaps and bounds” as they now have over 2,500 Facebook group members from across Canada, the U.S., and even Europe. The link to their group is: www.facebook.com/groups/OntarioSnowmobileOvalRacers/
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CSRA 2018 SCHEDULE
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