Thanks for a great Opening Night
We would like to take this opportunity to thank all the racers and fans for a great opening night. While the weather wasn’t quite what we were hoping for, we still had a good turnout and saw lots of smiling faces throughout the night.
We didn’t get all of the Feature Races in last night, but the Heats were full of excitement with some multi-lap-door-to-door racing in several classes as the drivers got to use more of the track because of the new asphalt and run both high and low lines safely around the oval.
After the races, Doug Mould (#27 Mini Stock) was heard saying that his car loves the new surface. This was clearly seen in his domination of the Mini-Stock heats and Feature races. Mike Oakley was the winner of the second heat race. Looks like the Stittsville Trailer Mini-Stock division is going to be very competitive this season.
Kevin Foisy picked up where he left off in 2009 winning the first Legends heat of the night. However, in the second heat when he, Chad Windsor, and Dave Riopelle went three wide into turn one on the green flag lap, Chad and Kevin touched tires and spun out on the back stretch. gathering up and not brining out the caution these two drivers drove their hearts out getting back to the front but the laps ran out and they could not catch Dave Riopelle. These drivers are going to put on an amazing show next week if they continue racing this hard in the Lentech Motorsports Legends class.
Quincy Roberts picked up his first win of the season in the 4-fun division. He looked very strong and with the features rained out the other drivers will have a week to prepare to chase him down.
Greg Ogilvie the 2009 track champion was also very strong on the night. He was being chased all night by Todd Musker in the #53 car. It is great to see that 53 car back on the track. Lets see who can knock Greg off his winning ways. Jessica Pasinetti also made her Thunder Car debut. Fresh off her tv appearance on A-Channel she showed that she will be a contender in the 53 Colours Thunder car class this season.
The Drummond's Gas Late Model division put on some great door to door racing in both heats. Justin Holtom picked up the win in the first heat in dominating fashion as he out paced the field by several car lengths. The second heat had the Napa sponsored #31 of Spencer MacPherson returning to victory lane after a year long absence from Capital City Speedway. It was great to see that car back on the track as our Late Model car count continues to grow.
The bandelero also made its debut at the speedway. Piloted by Connor Gow the son of Legends driver Todd Gow that car was turning great lap times as he demonstrated a car we are looking to introduce in later years. There was also plenty of hype around the small race car built by the same builders of the legends car. Several racers in the pit area expressed a huge interest in this car for their kids to start racing. Looks like there could be a great feeder program for our younger racers.
Points will be posted on the Website later this weekend.
Waiver Forms - to sign, or not to sign
Last night several people were asking whether it’s necessary to sign a waiver each week and we said we would confirm with the insurance company. We called them Thursday morning and they have instructed us as follows:
- season pass holders are able to sign once for the entire season, as long as they sign a release that shows they are doing this with their acceptance.
- all others are to sign a waiver each week, writing the arm-band number in the “duties” column.
They also informed us that waivers for minors are to be filled out each week.
Next Week's payouts - 50% increase
The CapCity management team have discussed Wednesday's feature rain-outs and have decided to increase the purses for the following week by 50%. This means that next week’s feature payouts will be 1½ times the regular nightly payout. For the laps that had Lap Sponsorships, the full $10 payments to the lap-leaders will carry forward to the following week as well.
Since the Mini-Stock class completed their Feature Race on May 26th, they will receive regular payouts on June 2nd. Late Models, Legends and Thunder Cars will receive increased payouts.
NOTES:
- These rules only apply to those drivers who were present and racing on the rain-out night. (ie: if you did not have your car there last night, you will receive a regular payout).
- These rules will not apply to Saturday events because those already have Sunday rain-dates scheduled.
- If the race night is called before 4 heat races have been completed, it is considered a Total Rain Out and the increased-payout situation will not apply.
New Lap Sponsor - from the grandstands
Liz Dorning, well known around the track as our 50/50 ticket sales person, bumped into the folks from Hopperz Paintball last night in the grandstands and they handed her a cheque for sponsoring Lap 22 of the Late Model feature races for the season. Welcome, and thank you!
Our lap sponsor boards will be updated in the coming weeks with the names of the sponsors that have signed up so far.
Our New Announcer - Cory Bicker
You may have noticed a new voice coming over the speakers last night, calling all the races. We’d like to introduce you to Corey Bicker – the 2010 CapCity Announcer. Corey is a recent graduate from Algonquin College’s Radio Broadcasting program and has been calling hockey games for several years. He’s used to a fast-paced environment and is looking forward to learning all of the drivers’ names to help promote them and their sponsors.
Cory will be bringing driver profile sheets next week for drivers to fill out. It is important for him and your advertisers to have these filled in as soon as possible.
Ken Baird - Shaving his head to raise money for Cancer
Ken Baird, driver of the #2 Late Model car, has been growing his hair and beard for over a year now, with the intention of raising money for cancer research. Almost everyone has been touched by this terrible disease, whether it’s personally, a friend, or a relative, and Ken has decided to “grow” the extra mile. Ken is growing his hair so that an 8-inch ponytail can be cut off and donated for a Cancer patient's wig. After that, once $2000 is raised, he will shave his head and then for an additional $1000 shave his beard. He already has donations starting to come in but has quite a way to go to reach his goal. The hope is that by mid-June he will have the ponytail cut and his head shaved during intermission at the track.
June 12th - Draw for I-pod and PS3
Yes, you read that right! At intermission on Saturday June 12th we’ll be doing draws for a PS3 and an iPod. Tickets will be sold for $3 each for the PS3, and $1 each for the iPod.
Nightly Schedule - no more changes
There was a mistake made last night to change from our originally posted schedule to allow a driver to get back together after a crash in hot laps. Immediately after making the decision I realized that we should not have done this. We will no longer make changes to the nightly program and I apologize for the mistake made last night.
A-Channel News at the track - Tuesday 11-2
The A-Channel news team will be at Capital City Speedway on Tuesday, May 25th from 11am-2pm to do some filming to help promote our Opening Night. They will air the filmed segment during Wednesday’s Morning Show. If you are available to bring your car(s) out, please email Jeremy to confirm … the more we have on the track, the more exciting and “live” it will look for TV and the better the segment will look on Wednesday morning. This is a great opportunity to get some media coverage for your sponsors, too!
We are also trying to coordinate it as a “media day” and are looking to invite some local newspaper reporters to the track – Ottawa Citizen and EMC to start. If you have a connection with someone in that field, please ask them to contact Jeremy and coordinate some time at the track next week.
Lentech Motorsports - Legends Dealer and Class Sponsor
Capital City Speedway is pleased to announce that Lentech Motorsports will be the Legends Class Sponsor.
Lentech Motorsports have been awarded the Legends dealership for this area from U.S Legends Cars International. With this appointment, Lentech Motorsports can now offer their Legends clients a full range of services. As you may be aware, Lentech is currently the certified engine rebuilder for this area for U.S Legends, and now with the dealer announcement have become your one-stop shop for all your Legend and Bandolero needs.
Many of you may notice a name change from the former Lentech Auto Performance to Lentech Motorsports which, according to Len, better reflects the broader base of motorsports enthusiasts the company is heading towards. Len’s reasoning goes on further to say “The new economy poses a greater challenge than ever to become involved in motorsports and enthusiasts are going to be looking at a broader and more affordable range of motorsports beyond automotive to fill their passions”
Lentech Motorsports have stated that they will have a stocked parts trailer at every race this year so they can supply the Legends racers with parts as required. Lentech Motorsports has already begun the process to expand their showroom to accommodate this new entity and look forward to the grand opening sometime in the fall.
Lentech is also taking orders at this time for new Federal tires. So if you need new tires, please give Lentech a call and get your order in today.
Lentech Motorsports offers other performance ideas as well as a dyno service. It may be time to bring in your race car and see if it is running the best it can. For a full range of services please visit lentechautomatics.com
More Print Media Coverage - CAA Magazine, Inside Track
The Summer 2010 edition of the CAA Members Magasine has Capital City Speedway listed as a place to satisfy members’ need for speed. “If roaring engines and burning rubber get your adrenaline flowing, a day at one of these local race tracks will inject some high-speed excitement into your summer.” They mention Brockville’s dirt racing on Saturday nights, Capital City’s Wednesday night short track asphalt program, Cornwall Dirt racing on Saturdays, and a couple of drag-racing events. There is also a short article on Calabogie’s road course. Racing in the Ottawa region is certainly catching on!!
CapCity’s newest ¼-page advertisement, “New Asphalt, New Walls, New Management, A Brand New Capital City Speedway, come back and see us again … for the first time!” is in the 2010 Canadian Racing Guide, a special insert in the latest edition of Inside Track.
Reminder - Raceivers are Mandatory
All racers are required to have functioning Raceivers for all practice and race nights. Many racers are familiar with them already, but for those that are not, this one-way radio allows the Race Director to communicate to the racers to let them know (among other things) when to double-up for the starting grid, when/where there is a caution, and to let slower cars know when the leaders are coming. If you do not already have one, please call Kenyon’s Racing Products or Lentech Motorsports. Raceivers use AAA batteries.
Track Safety - Spectators in the Pits
You’ve probably heard it before and we’ll say it again – part of the track’s insurance coverage and safety requirements require a minimum of 3-feet between any fence and spectator. This is a preventive measure for spectator safety in case any debris comes up off the track. We know the current layout of the pits makes getting up to the pit grandstands a bit of a headache for some teams, but please help us to keep everyone safe. Track officials will be monitoring the people who do not adhere to this request and will report back to track management; if those people are associated with a particular race team, that team’s driver will be parked for at least 1 night and no points or payouts will be awarded. Yes, we are using a firm hand, and we hope you understand why and will help us police the situation. Having a safe race track means more fun for everyone.
This has also been mentioned at a couple of meetings – the pavement in the pit area is for race cars and clean up vehicles to get to/from the track quickly and safely. We know walking on gravel isn’t easy, but, particularly during the races, please be wary of the vehicles around you – it’s very likely there will be vehicles rushing to get back to the track and we don’t want anyone to get hurt – or be the result of another driver incurring a greater loss to their vehicle because the track clean-up (race recovery) crew are unable to get to them in time.
Hinton Automotive and West Carleton Automotive - sign on
Hinton Automotive have once again put their support behind Capital City Speedway. Their motto, “continuing to earn your trust”, is easily visible in the faith their customers have in the work that they do. They have been serving the greater Ottawa area since 2001, with 25 years experience in the automotive repair industry. Their customers have been telling their friends & co-workers, perhaps like you, if they want quality repairs from a company that provides personal service, then Hinton’s are the people to see. They are partnering with West Carleton Automotive in a new joint location in Stittsville. The new facility will house a brand new chassis dyno and be the specialty shop for Hinton’s performance customers. The second section of the new location will house West Carleton Automotive’s new state of the art engine building facility.
Hinton Automotive have signed on to be the title sponsor on our second night of racing, June 2, and are inviting all of their customers to bring out their custom built cars to put on display and exhibition before the races and at intermission. Look for the new sign on the backstretch of the speedway highlighting the new partnership between these two great automotive shops.
Facility Improvements - Water treatment for Washrooms
If anyone is involved with or has a connection to a company that provides water treatment services, please put them in touch with Jeremy. We are looking for an economical way to eliminate the sulphur odour in the bathrooms.
Canadian Tire Displays - success
Despite the rain, several race teams put their cars on display for Capital City Speedway. There was a lot of interest in the cars as well as the changes and upgrades at the track. We’ll see many new and returning fans thanks to the teams who had their cars on display at the Canadian Tire stores in Carleton Place (Darryl Gow, Kyle Baker), Smith Falls (Mike Madore), and Perth (Tim Dorning, Jeremy Coulter, Mike Oakley).
There were almost 1000 schedules handed out during the 5 hours. It was great to see the fan support in the region on the rise.
Open Practice - May 24
This is the Monday of the Victoria Day long weekend, but is the first day that cars will be permitted on the new asphalt. Gates open at 11am, practice will run from 12:30 to 8pm. $20 per car (unlimited crew members). Safety crews will be on-hand. Cars will run together, by class. We will also be allowing new tires, contrary to the rumour mill. If you do not read it here consider it untrue. It is also the final day to get Membership Forms (click here) handed in to qualify for points on opening night.
Legends - Federal Tires Permitted
The new Federal tire has been confirmed as available in Canada. As such, Legends drivers may run either BFGoodrich or Federal tires. Per the INEX rulebook, there must be a matched-set of 4 on the car. Drivers are not permitted to run 2 BFG and 2 Federal – they must be all 4 BFG or all 4 Federal.
Snap-On Tools - Huge prize for drivers
Snap-On Tools has long been the industry leader for commercial grade tools. They have been involved with Capital City Speedway in different ways over the past few years. Well, they have really stepped up for the 2010 race season. They were so excited to hear of the upgrades being done at the speedway they are going to be the title right advertiser to our Season ending show on Saturday September 18th.
There are some details to still work out but there is also going to be a Snap-On tool box given the the winner of the 100 Lap Late Model race. More details will be shared once things are finalized.
Kenyon's - back at Capital City Speedway
Kenyon Racing Products in Kemptville have been with the track for almost 30 years. They have provided service and support to our local racers and are doing so again this year. With the economy on the rebound and a great racing season ahead, Kenyon's have put their support with Capital City Speedway, and the speedway with them. Look for Kenyon's at the track each week with tires available to be purchased right at the speedway.
For all of your racing needs visit them at www.kenyonracing.com
Green Tech Ag & Turf - signs on
Green Tech Ag & Turf are you local John Deere dealer. With two locations, one in Winchester and the other in Richmond, they can fulfill all of your John Deere needs. They will be moving their Richmond location to Stittsville in the fall, right up the road from the speedway.
With that move, they have decided to put their support behind Capital City Speedway. You can visit them at www.greentech.ca
Old Speedway Photos - still needed
We are still looking for some photos of the speedway over the years. We are looking to put together some photos through the decades at the speedway. If you have any at all please email jeremy@jmmotorsports.ca
Tomlinson pavers go 3 wide into turn one
Tomlinson ran pavers 3-wide around the track (staggered), followed by 3 rolling machines to flatten the seams together as the over-900 tonnes of asphalt were laid down. The result is a constant, smooth surface with no seams. The Tomlinson teams started at 10am and finished at 3pm. Several crewmen attested that this was the first time they’ve paved a race track and they were excited for the experience.
As we’ve mentioned before, we are letting the asphalt cure for 3 weeks before allowing any vehicles on it. The Drummonds have made a huge investment in this project and we want to make sure nothing interferes with it setting properly. NOTE: Any drivers or crew members who are discovered to have been on the track before open practice on May 24th will be parked for the first 4 races.
PAINTING: Many volunteers came out on Wednesday to help paint the grand stands. The volunteers came and went through the day, but there were 5 or 6 people helping throughout the day (from 10am to 8pm). The teams stopped painting only because it started to rain. Big THANK YOU to everyone – there were a lot of man-hours of labour put into those grandstands and the results show it. Thank you for helping us make our track a great success!
The Ottawa Citizen signs on with Capital City Speedway
The Ottawa Citizen has been the premier source for National and Local news for many years in Ottawa. They have now put their support behind Capital City Speedway. Look for ads for the speedway at www.ottawacitizen.com and in the paper as well.
The Ottawa Citizen will be presenting our opening night at the races and have also provided our print schedules.
May 8th Cars will be on display at Canadian Tire
Several teams have stepped up and agreed to put their cars on display at various Canadian Tire stores to help promote the track. Printed schedules are now available and will be provided to hand out to customers. The weather doesn’t look great, but we appreciate any time you can spend out there for us. Reminder: anyone with their car on display for this event will receive free entry to open practice on May 24th ($20/car value).
Pre-Season Tech Day (rain date May 16)
We’re hoping Mother Nature will cooperate with us this weekend for our scheduled pre-season tech day on May 9 (12-5pm), however if the weather is unfavorable, it will be post-poned to Sunday May 16.
Legends Tires
600Racing / INEX have signed a deal with Federal for tires – they are replacing the BFGoodrich tire that has been run for many years. The new tire is touted as being faster and having more grip, which, combined with the new track surface, is bound to make racing even more exciting than it is today. The new tire is not yet available in Canada. As such, we are aligning with other tracks in our decision to NOT allow Federal tires until such time as they are available for purchase in Canada. We hope this will be in the next couple of weeks and will keep the Legends drivers apprised of changes.
Thunder Car tires
The new Towel City tires to be used by Thunder cars has been received in Ottawa. Orders for tires are to be coordinated through Kenyon’s
Old Speedway Photos
We are looking for photos of the track “back in the day”. If you have any photos of past races / racers, please email them to Jeremy Coulter.
Capital City Speedway on Race Time Radio
Jeremy Coulter, our General Manager, was interviewed on Monday night’s airing of Race Time Radio. A replay of his interview is available at the below link (about half-way through):
http://www.racetimeradio.com/RaceTimeRadio_Official_Web_Site/170th-RTRBroadcasts-_Canadian_R.html