High gear at Toonie Night
Peterborough Speedway hosts second Summer Toonie Night with 20-lap main event
Canada’s toughest 3rd of a Mile Paved Oval hosted the year’s second Summer Toonie Night – presented by Pepsi – Saturday with the Battlefield Equipment Rental 4Fun, Jiffy Lube Mini Stock, Thunder Car and Organics and Glass Late Model divisions.
Also on the card at Peterborough Speedway was the first ever national qualifier for the Trailers Plus Eastern Ontario Legends, with three guaranteed starting spots for the U.S. Legends Asphalt Nationals – Oct. 13 to 14 at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway Bullring – up for grabs.
Feature race action got underway with Connor Parkes and Jessen White leading the Battlefield Equipment Rental 4Fun teams to the line for their 20-lap main event. Griffin Powell – who took the checkered flag at the Chase for the Colours event less than a week earlier – took control of the event with just three laps complete.
With former track champion Ryan Oosterholt glued to his rear bumper, the past Autumn Colours Classic title-holder took the win. Parkes, Jake Kelly and Corey Strawn – making his first career start – completed the top 5.
With 20 laps to settle the score, Tyler Park and Dan Archibald brought the Thunder Car division from the staging area. Archibald took the lead from his outside front row starting spot and the pack had started lapping the backmarkers near the halfway point. The driver of No. 07 led from green flag to checkered over Miles Tyson, Anthony & Fedele DiBello, with James Townsend taking fifth spot.
Bryan Mercer and James Horner paced the Organics & Glass Late Model field to the Great Canadian RV green flag to kick-off their 25-lap feature tilt. From the drop of the green flag, Ryan Kimball set his sights on the front of the pack and worked past Horner into the second spot. 2009 track champion Amanda Balson took the third position with 8 circuits complete, as the pack caught the tail-end of the field a lap later.
A mid-race yellow flag may have slowed his charge, but there was no keeping Bryan Mercer from his first main event of the year. Tyler Betts and Horner completed the fast 5.
Matt Haufe and former champion Adam Cuthbertson brought the Trailers Plus Eastern Ontario Legends Series teams to the stripe for a 30 lap ‘A’ main. Cuthbertson took the lead early, but surrendered the top spot to Haufe a lap later.
The race’s first yellow flag – with six laps on the scoreboard – slowed the pace, with Cole McFadden moving into second spot on the restart. Brad Haufe took a hard tumble in turn 2, as the lap counter showed 10 complete. The driver was OK, but the No. 17 ride was unable to continue. Matt Haufe built-up a sixcar length lead, as the pack started to work through lapped traffic just past halfway. Not even a pair of late race yellows could keep the former go-karter from his 6th straight win. Robin Jongen, Cole McFadden, Kevin Foisy and Cuthbertson completed the top 5.
Front row starters Dan Demers and Ember Junkin introduced the crowd to the Jiffy Lube Mini Stock pack for 20 laps of excitement. Junkin would use some ‘girl power’ to take an early lead, as Rob Harwood moved into the runnerup spot.
Ryan Oosterholt moved into the lead of the fast-paced final feature of the night as the lap counter showed 8 complete. Even with James Townsend looking for a way around, the former track champion held on for the win. Kevin Strutt, Junkin, and Neil Hannah chased the lead duo across the line.
Heat wins for the Trailers Plus Eastern Ontario Legends Series went to Matt Haufe, Adam Cuthbertson, Cole McFadden and Kevin Foisy. Malcolm ‘Pops’ MacDonald, Connor Parkes, Sean Kennedy and Jeremy Kelly took the Battlefield Equipment Rental 4Fun qualifiers. The father and son duo of Fedele and Anthony DiBello each win a pair of Thunder Car preliminary rounds. Tyler Betts, Ryan Kimball,JamesHornerandAmanda Balson won the Organics and Glass Late Model heats, while Kris Khan with a pair, Ryan Oosterholt and Dan Demers claimed Jiffy Lube Mini Stock checkered flags.
Bullring bullet points: In support of the Millbrook and District Lions Club, the 50/50 draw paid $1,272.00 to Rick Bovilloli of Port Perry…A full moon could have contributed to some unusual incidents. During pre-race practice, Baden Powell made hard contact with the retaining wall in the second turn. His 4Fun car was heavily damaged, but other than a cut on his knee, the driver was unhurt.
In a Mini Stock crash, Donovan Price and Kent Missons came together on the exit of the fourth turn. Price was upset, but uninjured and used a borrowed ride in the night’s main event. Missons was taken to hospital by family members and has a sprained ankle.
Andrew McFadden was forced into the grass during an ELOS qualifier and when he came back onto the track, his No. 02 machine was collected by rookie Dawson Drimmie. McFadden was finished for the night, while Drimmie took the main event green flag and retired for the night.
Canada’s Toughest 3rd of a Mile Paved Oval continues its 50th Anniversary Season Saturday. Racing will feature a 50 lap ‘A’ main for the Battlefield Equipment Rental 4Fun division, along with the home track Thunder Cars and Organics and Glass Late Models.
The Trailers Plus Eastern Ontario Legends and Ontario Modifieds Racing Series – powered by Torque Builders Inc. – will also be part of the show, with King of the Hill timed spectator laps at intermission. Pit gates will open at 3:00, with the general admission grandstands unlocked at 5 p.m. and the first green flag at 6 p.m.
Full schedule details and the latest 50th Anniversary Season news can always be found by logging onto www.peterboroughspeedway.com, liking the Peterborough Speedway page on Facebook or following the track on Twitter. Fans can also download the free app on their Smartphone.