|
|
|
|
|
RACE NEWS 2019 |
 |
||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||
| COVER SHOT: 'THE BEAST FROM THE EAST" WILL BE BURNING UP THE LUSKVILLE DRAGWAY | ||||||||||||||
 PIT
BITS AUG 26/19*No time to rest just yet as we are back home from the North and now we head into the next big weekend at Luskville Dragway, as we present the final Napa Money Tour, and the Night of Fire Jet Car Show at Luskville Dragway this weekend. Its been non stop since the middle of July and its been very rewarding to know we got it done, could not have with out the great people we have with us, Diane, Derek, Troy, Mike, Jenny, Meagan, Steve, Aidan, Chris, Phil, Pat and all those who pitched in to help. You have to be there too understand, our racers helping Derek and the boys set up and tear down at the airport races, once you see this you can fully understand why we call this our "Big Family". So after this weekend we have the Lewis Gagnon Racers Appreciation weekend and then we can take a bit of a breather before the final road trip to I-Car and the last Super Tour Race of 2019. It wont be long before we will be talking about the end of the season and the banquet, remember back and the retched start we had to the summer, for the most part it turned around pretty well. *This race has 100 stories is pretty much the case for this event as well, first of all their was the tower on the wrong side to start things off, which was and had to be moved. Their was the Lewis Gagne story, broke his dragster, decided to run his dads truck in street WON, Mike Ogilvie offered Vicki's car to Lewis and he took it to the finals were he lost to Kyle Jessup. The J&S Best appearing car award went to Albert and Cathy Guillmette who have one of the slickest Willy's coupe's around. |
||||||||||||||
THE FIRST
ANNUAL CHAPLE AU
GOLD RUSH NATIONALS AUG: 26/19Arriving in Chapleau on Wednesday there was plenty of stares as we rolled through town too the local legion where we were to hold a drivers school for newbies on Wednesday night. After all this was the first ever drag race in this town so some of the racers who have been to other events thought it would be a good idea to give the new racers some info on the do's and don'ts. Thursday arrived and it was time to start setting up, access to the airport had been restricted to 12 pm so the morning was a long wait as we sat anxiously by to get in and start turning the airport into a race track. This set up was much like the Wawa, where strictly volunteers , including those from Elliott Lake and Wawa and a number of racers would be doing it all. What took place next was pretty incredible as over 100 volunteers took part in the construction of the race track, from overheads, to tower, to VIP Grand Stand, to barriers and beer tent, but by the end of the day the airport looked very much like a drag strip. Before we go in further I would like to point out that unlike all of the municipalities we have dealt with over the years where support was 100 percent, the committee in Chapleau was met with constant backlash and restrictions from two municipal higher ups who tried constantly to come up with some phony reason that the race could not go forward. Hats off to Richard Bignucolo and his crew who never gave up and jumped over every constant hurtle that was thrown at them. Municipal workers should be working for the good of the community and if not, should not be paid by taxpayers dollars. On the other hand there is also so many good news stories that we would rather focus on them, like the owner of the Home Hardware store in town who closed his doors on Saturday, gave all of his employees the day off WITH PAY, if they went and volunteered 4 hours at the races, one of most class acts I have ever seen.
 the race track. But then a snag,
all of our events are run from one side of the track, so when the wiring had
been configured at Port a Tree for our airport races it was meant for the track
to run one way, everything was backwards. SO we had to switch the control tower
to the other side which was no easy task, but it was done very very smoothly and
with only a 30 minute delay in the start of time trials. So with one day under our belts work began early Saturday Moring to get things in shape for the Saturday Portion of the race. As the day rolled 
on you could see the veteran drivers making changes to their cars to accommodate
the track, one of those was Kyle Jessup who switched to a high gear only power
glide, to cut the power on the staring line, and it worked as he made his way
all the way to the finals where he met Ed Loftstrom who was having the race day
of his life. Ed from Sault St. Marie was a double entree who wound up running
him self in the Semis and then Kyle in the finals. With both drivers having a
handle on the track it shaped up to be a good final, however a
 red
light start by Ed gave Kyle the day one win. The Semi Pro winner was Rick
Legross from Wawa who beat Brian Parker from British Columbia. Mike Labelle who
is a regular on the circuit was the %1000. Street Winner with Cody Newman taking
second in his Dads mint 65 Mustang. The Jr. winners where Teagan Britton in Jr.
Dragster and Marek Santerre in Open. Yves Beaudry was the winner over Bernie
Laffin in the sled bike class and that wrapped up day one. The organizers much
like the other North Venues had a band for Saturday Night and it was well
attended much like Wawa. The Luskville Dragway regulars had a party of their own
you might say as a Pot Luck Dinner was organized by the ladies and to say it was
GREAT would be putting it lightly.Sunday, Sunday, Sunday and the wrap up day of the weekend, by now everyone was pretty worn out, but picked up enough steam to get er done and wrap it up, unlike Saturdays 3 time trials Sunday was kept to the traditional One shot deal before eliminations. So with Semi Pro going at 8 a.m. it was well before noon when eliminations got underway and for St. Thomas, Ontario's Bill Nolan the early start was good, not only was it good for going home, but going home with an extra $2000. in cash. Bill who has not been in a final of a Napa Tour Event in a while was the recipient of a red light start by Ashley Muttart giving Bill the big win. Super Pro was a hard go for everyone, as the green asphalt played havoc with everyone all weekend, everyone that is except for Kyle Jessup who back up his Saturday win with a second one on Sunday. The facility had a very old, coarse surface so the hopes for a good track never came to bear, but everyone was playing on the same rink. Kyle who has the high gear only power glide made the purchase pay for itself as he put a ton in his pocket this weekend. Kyle would meet and defeat Lewis Gagne who was using Vicki Ogilvie's car after breaking his. The sled bike class which was very competitive for the first go round at Chapleau saw Yves Beaudry not win the race but also earn enough money points to win the 1st Ever Triple Crown Championship, we will have more on that later this fall. The Street Gamblers race saw Super Pro racer Lewis Gagne take home the $1000. pot making for a pretty good weekend as well, even though he did break the motor in his dragster. So the North races are all over, but were not done as we head right back to Luskville Dragway for the 5th and final Napa Auto Parts Show Me the Money Race, and the second last Super Tour event this coming weekend, yep its been busy. Now a word a two about the Chapleau race, Richard Bignucolo and his family did an amazing job, continually have to battle the town CAO who did her best to not let the race happen, but know avail as this family dug in their heels and with the help of many made it happen. I don't think for a moment that the woman who tried her everything possible to stop the race from happening will give up, hell she made the silly comment of saying all the black marks should be removed from the asphalt. They say you cant fix stupid and that is pretty accurate, so I think there may be a battle, but what i can tell you is the Richard made it very clear that the race would continue. We will repost tonight with the accurate finish in the Triple Crown Series for the three Northern Races, we have learned very quickly that you should not hurry. |
||||||||||||||
|
PIT
BITS AUG 19/19 *On the road again, yep Honeywell Works weekend over and we are back on the  road for our final out of
town Napa Auto Parts Race in Chapleau, Ontario, which is our inaugural event as
well in this Northern town. As we have pointed out this is the busiest we have
ever been and we don't stop until after the Lewis Gagne appreciation weekend and
wall of fame day. We come right back from Chapleau and head into the long
weekend in Sept (August 30-31, Sept 1) and our last Napa Money Tour event. By
the way Chapleau has been working their tails off getting ready for the big go
#3 up North. A ton of paving has been done to make the race track surface as
good as any. Plenty of saw cutting and removal of old asphalt preceded the
laying of new stuff.*There have been certain moments in my career of running Luskville Dragway for 40 years that stand out very much in my mind. Having so many of the old timers back to the track will go down as one o  f the very best ever. Seeing and talking to some
that where my hero's when I first started going to Luskville Dragway as a
spectator, and later as a racer. Yes this weekend will be one that I remember
for a very long time, and thank you to everyone who helped make that happen.*The International Dyno Authority Outlaw Street Class has been taking a beating with breakage, but we do go forward and continue to grow. Attila Korosi came up the winner on the Saturday portion of the series, next race is Sept 7th. |
||||||||||||||
| 50th.
CELEBRATIONS/HONEYWELL WORKS WEEKEND A HUGE SUCCESS: AUG 19/19 Well the weather man has always got a say in what goes on at Luskville Dragway, and that was no different even though it was a very special weekend our anniversary celebrations. With people travelling from all across the country to be part of our 50th. we had high hopes the weather man would be on our side, but that was not the case and no sooner had we started time trials, the rain started to fall. But not even the wet stuff could dampen the spirits of all of those who came, as one familiar face after another would come by. Roger Laroche the original track manager for the first years of Luskville Dragway, Wayne Young from Young's Speed Shop, is just example of who came, it was the cream of the crop from the past 50 years. As well as many former advertisers workers, and racers many current advertisers who get a chance to come out did so for this special day. Now we did say it rained, but we didn't say we quit, as the ADM Motorsports boys and many volunteers we to town to dry the track and racing got back underway around 4:30. So now we where racing, cruise night cars where coming in, and on and on. But we put the Jr. Dragster Class to bed with Cole "Malcolm" Krottner taking his second win in his rookie season, as points leader Ryan Clarmo light up the red  light in the final. Semi
Pro boiled down too Kevin Morrow and Jim Hewitt to old veterans, and it was
Kevin Morrow who would ride out the weather and the long day and put the win
light on at 9:45. Super Pro was a big field with 26 entree's going to the start
line for the first round, but by 10 p.m. that night we where down to the two
drivers who are on a bit of a roll. Brandon Barker the winner of the Saturday 10
Grand and Ashley Ogilvie the winner of the $5000 on Sunday at the Napa Tour in
Wawa would meet up in the finals. Once again as has become a custom a bit of a
starting line staging battle took place, with Ashley moving in very quickly this
time which seemed to throw Brandon off. So when the light turn green Ash was out
and gone with a big jump on the line giving her the edge and the win. This was
back to back wins for the young lady from Jasper who seems to have come into her
own a very short fashion for sure.
|
||||||||||||||
18 YEAR OLD
AS HLEY OGILVIE MAKES HISTORY WITH HER FIRST BIG WIN: AUG 19/19When Ashley Ogilvie turned on the win light against Troy Davis in the finals of last weeks Wawa Napa Auto Parts Tour Event, something was lost in all the excitement of the moment. Trust me there was plenty of excitement and tears as there was not to many a dry eye in the winners circle area. But what was lost was what Ashley had just done, and done in a very short period of time. She had become only the second female to win a big dollar race on the Napa Circuit, and in all likely hood, to win a big dollar race in Canada. Only Julie Dube another Luskville Dragway racer has done it before. This from a young 18 year old lady who graduated from the Luskville Dragway Jr. Dragster program, and young lady who in a very short period of time become a force to reckon with. Yes the event at Wawa set all kinds of records and Ashley's win was one that many of us forgot about in all the excitement. Congratulations once again and I would bet any money this win wont be your last. |
||||||||||||||
|
PIT
BITS AUG 11/19 *OK folks, the big weekends just keep rolling around in the Month of August, and with Wawa now behind us we can set our sights on this weekend and the 50th. Anniversary Celebration of Luskville Dragway. I can understand how it might not mean as much to some as it does to me, but if it ever was part of your life then one day out of your life is not to much to ask, to show your gratitude. I started going from the beginnings, I raced there for a while, and for the past 40 years I have had the Tears, The Beers and the Cheers from this place we call our cottage. To me its like a part of our family, we have watched it grow, and watched many a person grow with it. I often wonder what i would be doing if it was not for Luskville Dragway. Luskville Dragway has brought me and my family, many friends, many great times and great memories that nothing else could have created. In the beginning it was just Diane and I , then it was Diane and I, Angie and Derek, now its all of us the spouses and the grand kids enjoying Luskville Dragway and the making of memories. An example of what I'm saying happened this past weekend, when Dan Lanctot, who had been at the Vegas Nationals in Vegas, ran into Jimmy Jet Neilson, a jet car driver I had booked decades ago, and only for a few races. When he found out Dan was a Canadian who was going to Luskville Dragway, Neilson asked him to give this autographed T-Shirt to this guy called Arnie Malcolm. Another example was the Sunday Finals in Wawa, where Ashley Ogilvie won her first Super Pro Race, and a big dollar one at that. Like Derek, Troy, Kyle and Brandon I have watched these kids drive jrs. grow into you adults and win races in Big Cars, nothing makes me more proud than that. No words can describe how that made me feel, and I have a thousand stories just like these ones. But I'm sure I'm not the only one with stories of Luskville Dragway, and hopefully everyone will be part of another memory that the little track in the Pontiac will create this weekend. BE THERE *Could there be something up the sleeves of the promoters up North, time will tell but there has been some talk of a few changes for the Wawa and the new venue in Chapleau that would be very interesting to many. Stay tuned as it is very early and obviously these events are just wrapping up, or in the case Chapleau about to get done.. STAY TUNED *The one cool thing about drag racing is there is always a lot of really cool cars, cool paint jobs and J&S Collision of Tillensburg, Ontario makes that even more fun, as we reward one lucky racer with the J&S Collision Best Appearing Car Award each Napa Tour, and Super Tour. The winners so far this year have been Kevin Poitras, Mike Chenier, and last week Jean Harvey. Well this week in Wawa the award went to Don Morden of Timmins, Ontario and his immaculate 69 Semi Pro Nova. *Look for a few changes at the Bracket Bonanza next year as we try to take it to another level once again, also look for MAYBE a few more small improvements at the track after racing season is over as we prioritize what we will be doing next season for improvements. We know the things that are important and as we move forward will work on all aspects of making Luskville Dragway a better place, your support is all that is required. We can tell everyone that parking will take place at Chapleau on Thursday with the gates opening at 4 pm. *Last but not least we apologize for being late, we have been very, very busy to say the least, once the Sept 7-8 race rolls around things will quiet down , I think. We also are a little short on pictures as our great photographer John Chambers was unable to make the trip to Wawa, that thing called work got in the way. We don't realize how important Johns pic's are until there not there. |
||||||||||||||
| WAWA NAPA TOUR IN THE
BOOKS For us the Wawa Race started on Tuesday Morning bright and early as we had to make a stop at Ogilvie Auto & Fleet, so Mike could put a new tail pipe extension on our Motorhome. Mike and the crew like always got the job done quickly and efficiently and had me on our way in 30 minutes. Tuesday night had us stay over in Sault St. Marie while we also delivered a Tranny for Jordan Parniack so he could be ready for the Wild Wawa Weekend. Wednesday was going to be another busy day so we where back on the road at 6 a.m. as we had to get into Wawa early so we could make our way to Chapleau that morning to go over finals details for their race which was only less than three weeks away. Things went well in Chapleau and they have everything in order as they wait patiently for their weekend. Thursday was kick of Day and a huge outdoor party was planned at the Wawa Goose, the newly renovated sports bar at the Wawa Inn. And to say it was huge would be putting it lightly as the place was packed indicating we where already starting things off on the right foot. The burnout contest went on for so  me time as everyone tried their best to out do
each other.Friday, Sunshine and cool temperatures where the order of the day as we the boys started to put things together for the Friday test and tune. Rob Sanderson and his crew had done an amazing job on putting the facility together and that team should be very, very proud of their accomplishments. Time Trials got underway at 2:00 pm with everyone getting plenty of runs, eliminations rolled around in Semi Pro and Super Pro with Mark Young of Wawa winning the foot brake side of things. Super pro would see last weekends big winner Derek Malcolm going up against Brandon Barker with Malcolm continuing his incredible win streak. Rick Ream and the Volunteer Fire Fighters of Wawa then put on a wild night of fire show. Saturday was another great day, and the weather man all though cool was right on target with lots of sunshine, which made for some great racing and great numbers. With a record turnout of cars it was a long day with time trials starting at 9 am with everything wrapped up 9 hours later at 6pm. The big winner of the day was Brandon Barker who was on a double entree and took them both too the finals when he beat Kyle Jessup and Doug Quinton in the semi finals. Brandon then did what a number of the Luskville Dragway big winners have done on Saturday Night he took everyone out for dinner at the Wawa Goose, Class Act which Brandon is. The rest of the Saturday winners whe  re Semi Pro: Mario
Trudel over Bernie Beauais, Sleds saw Daren Shail from Kirkland Lake take the
win, Ashton Savoie was the winner in Jr. Dragster, Jr. Open went to Cole Smedts,
the King of the Street Champion was Kurt Geldart of Wawa driving a Camaro. Sunday was the wrap up day and once gain the sun was shinning brightly when the drivers started to pull them selves out of bed. Time trials got underway a little ahead of schedule and then it was into eliminations by 9:30 for the Semi Pro Class. After many rounds Adam Sayers and Ashley Muttart pulled to the starting line for the final race of the day in that class, this was to be Adams day as he took the win light and first place. Jr. Dragster was won by Ashton Savoie who comes from a Sled racing family who have slowly all switched to the regular format of racing. Speaking of sleds and bikes over 20 of then battled it out on Sunday with Serge Lapierre taking the win. Super Pro was the story though as Ashley Ogilvie mowed down the competition on her way to her first ever Super Pro Win, and what made it sweater was this was a big dollar one. Ashley took out Derek Malcolm in the Semis with Kyle Jessup loosing to Troy Davis on the other side of the ladder. This set up another ADM Motorsports car taking on the young lady from Jasper, but that was not a problem as a better reaction time was all it took to put Ashley in the Winners Circle. This was a very special winners circle to say the least and there was definitely more than one teary eye.
|
||||||||||||||
|
PIT
BITS AUG 4/19 *We start this weeks pit bits off on a sad note as another one of our racing family has passed away, its been a ruff year for sure. Jim Barkley a long time racer at Luskville Dragway and  many
tracks in this area died on Tuesday of last week. Jim was one of the original
drivers in this area and share the spot light with many of the racers of his
time, Larry Aslagsen, Rolly Doucette, John Adams, Bruno & Gino and many, many
more. Jim was best known for his Outlaw Dodge back in the day when every car had
a name, and every driver had a following. I personally raced with Jim in the
80's and we along with others would travel down the road together. This is
the 3rd person just this year that were former racers at Luskville Dragway that
have passed away. Our Deepest condolences to Jims Wife Judy, who along with Bev
Adams worked the control tower at Luskville Dragway for decades. It will be a
sad day come Sept 7th with all of the inductee's to the wall of fame at
Luskville Dragway.*It doesn't stop as the big one for Luskville Dragway is over, but Sunday Night saw us loading and getting ready to head down the road to Wawa, Ontario Tues Morning for the third Stop on the Napa Tour. As we pointed out many times this summer, August is going to be a killer month for ADM Motorsports as we take drag racing to the North, and a brand new venue to boot. After Wawa we head right home and get ready for what could be the biggest spectator event of all time, the 50th Anniversary Celebration Weekend/Honeywell Works Wally Show. Yeah its busy, but wouldn't want it any other way as we take drag racing to a whole new level this season. *Just a reminder that one of our advertisers is moving, Busters Bar and Grill a long time Luskville Dragway supporter had to move from their Carling Ave. Location and will reopen in Kanata near the Hazeldean Mall. The New Location is in the Mall just passed the Hazeldean Mall at 420 Hazeldean Road on the right side heading west. The plans are to open mid Sept and we will hope to have a part too play in their Grand Opening. Steve and Louise have long been great supporters of Luskville Dragway and our plans are to continue that relationship at the New Location. |
||||||||||||||
| BRACKET
BONANZA, LUSKVILLE DRAGWAY'S INDY OF BRACKET RACING A HUGE HIT: AUG. 5/19 DAY #1 It Starts its Thursday and there is a bunch of cars already in and parked from Wednesday, and then they started to come and by the end of the day there was more cars on the property than any other Bracket Bonanza Ever. Thursday Night would see a party at every corner as racers could feel the excitement in the air, the forecast was pretty good to say the least. DAY #2 Well the phone had been ringing off the hook, so once again the feeling it was going to be big was even more apparent, as most phone calls are coming from new people which is what you want. Once again the sun was up and shinning brightly as cars where once started to register in and get parked, with the Busters Big Dog Wally Shootout on everyone's mind. After 3 hours of time shots the Eliminations got underway with the Final boiling down to Kyle Jessup driving the ADM Motorsports Corvette against Fred Angers in the Diamond Dragster. Fred was better on the tree and that was all he needed to take home the $9000. first place prize money. Gord Harling who is no stranger to the winners circle was the big winner in the Semi Pro Gamblers race where he took home 1300. for his efforts. Then came the wild and crazy golf cart race where Tamara Simeoni took home 1200. for her efforts which started the Sudbury Team off on the right foot for sure. DAY #3 Saturday rolled around with a hint of a shower in the air and that hint turned a short mist of rain mid day that only shut us down for a 30 minute period and then it was clear sailing for the  rest
of the weekend. Saturdays is always the biggest and best day to say the least,
and that was the case this year also with record spectator crowd joining a
packed house on the pit side for some incredible racing. Jr. Dragster class was
won by Felix Ballebey of Montreal for his first super tour win of the season.
Semi Pro was the work of young Mike Reynolds who took home the big win when he
beat veteran Glen Tandy of Toronto for Day one. Super pro was the big story as
the two sides of the ladder worked they way down to the finals where Derek
Malcolm would once again make his way to a Bracket Bonanza Final. Dan Lanctot
was the class of the field on the door side as he moved to the finals against
Malcolm. As the front page of this web site shows the finals was a very exciting
deal with many standing on the staring line and cheering their choice on.
Malcolm was much better on the light and took the stripe and the 10,000. that
went with it. Semi Final spots went to Roch Beaudion on the door side and Russ
Adams on the dragster side. The perfect weather continued as the bar-bque got
underway with everyone once again enjoying their steak dinners. Music, dance and
a little drinking was the name of the game as everyone partied with the band
AMBUSH well into the we hours of the Morning.
DAY #4 The perfect weather continued as things got underway Sunday and after two time trials it was off to eliminations. The Jr. Dragster Program was once again the first to predict a winner when Shelby Sequin of North Bay took home her first win of the summer. Semi pro was a Montreal vs. Ottawa  with Naomi
Ballebey taking the big win and the 2000. first place prize money, Wes Clarmo
was her victim as she spanked the tree with the better reaction time. Super Pro
was once again the realm of Derek Malcolm as he once again marched his way to
the winners circle with the better reaction time on every single run, including
the last one against Gary Smith where both drives missed the tree but Gary
Missed it by a yard, giving Derek more than enough room to back up Saturdays win
with a second one for a double header weekend for the Chrome Worx Dragster
Driver.Too wrap it up its hard to not call this Bracket the Best ever, and work has already started to make next years even better. Perfect weather, great racing, record spectator crowd, incredible bar-b-que and the band Ambush that had the place rocking. Yes 2019 started off pretty wet and had everyone pretty down, but as we head to Wawa the feeling is pretty good for the rest of season. |
||||||||||||||
| APR. MAY JUNE JULY 2019 | ||||||||||||||
