Photos Attached: courtesy of www.DaveFranksPhotos.com
Randy Rusnell of Cambridge is better known as ‘The Rocket’ on Saturday nights. Nearly 10 years later he earns a second chance at the elusive championship three-peat.
Jason Shaw of Guelph will try and become the first Late Model driver in Ontario to three-peat as track champion in the new era.
48th Consecutive Start for Community Motorsport Arena
HAMILTON, April 19, 2009 – This Saturday will mark the 48th consecutive year that the gates of Flamboro Speedway will open to local motorsport fans and competitors and kick-off the summer season for Canadian grass roots stock car racing.
Originally built in 1961, the 1/3 mile high-speed asphalt oval and surrounding stadium seating has stood the test of time and is a landmark in Canadian motorsport history. Entertaining millions of fans over its illustrious career, Flamboro Speedway has been the proving grounds for great Canadian racers including internationally recognized greats like Junior Hanley and ‘Daytona’ Don Biederman, as well as recent NASCAR competitors Peter Shepherd III and John-Ryan Fitzpatrick. Fitzpatrick most recently achieved a top-five finish in Daytona Beach this past February and continues to compete against some of the world’s top racing performers including Kyle Busch and Kevin Harvick.
With a new VIP Suite open for business in turn one, race fans will have an all-new opportunity to watch hometown heroes and the stars of tomorrow compete at Flamboro Speedway. This new facility has been nearly 5 years in the making and boasts a spectacular view of the entire speedway facility. From the vantage point atop the turn one hill guests can see the pit area to their right, the grandstand to their left, and the full racing surface right out the front windows. The overhanging balcony also allows guests to get outside and enjoy the sweet summer weather and take in the live action complete with the ear-blasting roar of the engines.
This season will also set an unprecedented record as all three track champions will defend their titles for the second consecutive racing season. Jason Shaw, Randy ‘the Rocket’ Rusnell, and Dave Bailey each successfully repeated as the champion of their division in 2008, and will all attempt a three-peat this season. No one has accomplished this feat in recent memory, and the closest to achieving this goal was in fact Randy Rusnell back in the late 1990’s when he attempted a third consecutive track title and was robbed by a single point, falling to ‘Mr. Excitement’ Terry King.
The tradition continues this Saturday night, and so will be the theme for the 2009 season. With much of the speedway facility standing intact as it was in 1961 those that have been away for years can return with a sense of familiarity and recapture the excitement of summers past. The names have changed, but the excitement stays the same.
Regional Information
Brantford: Brantford has four competitors registered to compete at Flamboro Speedway this summer. Topping the roster is the two-time Oktoberfest Classic Late Model Champion Mark Burbridge. Mark is a mechanic working in the city, and is sponsored by Brantford based DGB Accounting Services. Joining Mark in the Late Model field will be Matt Balog, an experienced Thunder Stock driver who will pilot a Late Model for the first time this season. Matt is heavily favoured to be the 2009 Late Model rookie of the year.
Brant: Recent Paris High School grad Erinn Bailey will return to Flamboro this summer in the #02 Thunder Stock, sponsored by St. George Tire. The ‘Teen Queen’ earned her first trip to victory lane last summer and earned a top five finish in the point standings. Fellow Paris Panther Ted Horsfall will also return to Flamboro this summer, piloting a Late Model in the speedway’s premier division. Teddy earned a top ten finish in the point standings in 2008 and also earned the Rookie of the Year title.
Cambridge: The Cambridge area is a proven hotbed for local racing talent with more than a dozen registered competitors calling it their home base. At the top of the roster are two Thunder Stock drivers who have battled furiously in recent seasons, Brad Collison and Randy Rusnell. Collison, better recognized as the ‘Ice Man’ on Saturday nights and Rusnell, famously known as ‘The Rocket’, have both claimed a division title in the past five years. Currently Rusnell holds the court, looking to build on his two-consecutive championship victories.
Dundas: The close proximity to the speedway has developed a large following of local racing talent from Dundas. Most notable are the efforts of Thunder Stock driver Bobby Mercer and the Larkin Racing family. Mercer is a multi-time winner of the Best Effort award for his unbelievable ability to be consistently involved in the most spectacular turn of events. Picking up his first checkered flag at the close of the 2008 season, Bobby will look to build on this positive energy. In the Mini Stock class one name is repeated more than any other, and that name is Larkin. Patriarch Ron Larkin Jr. leads the multi-car team of sons, brothers and other friends and family with a recent championship win in 2006 and a number of main event victories.
Flamborough: The Fireball-5 of Linda Dean will be sporting a new look on Opening Day as the team continues the tradition of unveiling a hot new paint scheme for their Thunder Stock racer at the start of the season. Dean looks to put the struggles of the past season behind her and competitively chase the championship in 2009. Also looking to get into the chase this year will be veteran racer Gary Elliott. Returning for a 41st consecutive racing season Gary will debut a ‘fresh’ new ride in 2009 as he competes in Flamboro’s premier division. While focused on tackling his first Late Model track championship he will also be managing new responsibilities as a multi-team owner, expecting to enter a Thunder Stock racer into Saturday night competition.
Guelph: Guelph’s Jason Shaw, in partnership with locally owned Spira Fire Protection, has been the class of Flamboro’s premier division for the past two years. The #82 Ford Fusion has been the car to catch in the Late Model division, proven with two consecutive division championships. In 2009 Shaw will attempt an unprecedented three-peat. However, his competition will be tight and hot on his bumper will be fellow Guelph native and past division champion Todd Campbell. Also in the Spira-stable are a number of development drivers, the stars of tomorrow, including teen drivers Billy Schwartzenburg and Samantha Shaw.
Hamilton: Hamilton boasts a number of weekend warriors competing in the asphalt arena, but the most decorated to date is Matthew Dean. With two division titles to his credit, more than 50 main event victories in the past five years and experience driving the more powerful Thunder Stocks, Dean remains the top contender to unseat current track champion Dave Bailey. Bailey has been crowned the past two consecutive seasons.
Milton: Following a history of top contenders from the Milton region, Steve Adams and David Elliott have taken up the mantle in Flamboro’s premier racing division. Elliott’s #37 Pennzoil Monte Carlo has been a quiet force in the Late Model class, earning a championship in 2006 but then falling silent in 2008. Similarly, Adam’s continues to search for his stride in the #41 Reliance Machine Works Late Model. Both drivers will race to improve their past season performance.
Orangeville: MacMaster Pontiac-Buick-GMC returns in 2009 as the official sponsor of the speedway’s crate engine program, designed to create an economical power plant solution for competitors and create parity on the track. Two drivers who have succeeded in making this motor package work are Hillsburgh’s Paul Howse and Richard Holmes. Competing in Flamboro’s premier division the Late Model class, Howse and Holmes each earned trips to victory lane in 2008. Both drivers return to better their performance in the new season. Paul Howse has been noted as the most likely driver to unseat the current division champion, Guelph’s Jason Shaw.
Stoney Creek: Jeff Bean proudly represents Stoney Creek in the asphalt arena, returning to pilot his #37 Thunder Stock in the Saturday night competition. Bean was deep in the chase for the championship in 2008 until a sad turn of events demolished his primary race machine. Working feverishly with his team he entered a backup car in the weeks that followed but was never able to regain the lost momentum. 2009 is a fresh start for the Bean team as they try once again to chase down and ground current division champion, ‘The Rocket’ Randy Rusnell.
Woodstock: After a string of main event victories in 2008 at the age of 13, now 14 year-old driver and fan favourite Parker Holman will return in the #20 Mini Stock to take on a full field of competition ranging in ages 14 – 60, and then some. A multi-time champion of go-kart racing, Holman burst onto the stock car racing scene in 2007 and continues to show he is a star of tomorrow, today.
Release prepared by Josh Paxton
