‘Three in a Weekend’  (Weekly Report 17th August 2020)

Wow, things were almost back to normal for me this weekend , I had three back to back shows at three different tracks.

From Thursday on wards it became quite hectic for me.

I was back at the Cornwall Hospital first thing on Thursday morning for day one of my monthly I.V.I.G transfusions. I was there again the following morning, for my second session.

I was all done by 12-30 pm  , and I was soon back at home and ready to head out for the races.  The car had been packed and ready the night before, so when my ‘tog buddy’ Don Simpson arrived, we were ready to set off for Autodrome Granby.

Don was going to do most of the driving on this trip , as I was still a bit weary from my treatment.

We arrived at the track at around 4-30 pm and were ready for the program of Modifieds, Pro Stocks and Sport Compact (Mini Stocks).

There  were no Sportsman on the bill, as there was a big race for them taking place, the following night at Autodrome Drummond.

 

I was able to leave my camera bag in the race hauler of my friend # 33  Pro Stocker  Bruno Cyr, before I went off to shoot pictures. 

One surprise in the pits was Luke Whitteker, guest driving the Pierre Daganais car.

I also took the opportunity of getting a picture of Chantal Provencher beside her 358 Modified. She comes from a family of racers and I’ve known her a long time.

With just the three divisions racing on the big track and a few karts during intermission  on the inner oval, we were hoping for an early finish .

I tried various places to shoot, but for most of the night,  I stationed myself on turn one and two.

The Sport Compacts were the first Feature of the night, and this was won by,  Mathieu Voghell.

Next up , was the Modified Feature where once again, Francois Bernier # 49 made it look so easy, getting yet another win. He was followed across the line by his brother Steve # 25

This was my third Granby visit of the year, and the third time I’ve seen him get the win.

Final feature of the night, was for the Pro Stocks where Pascal Payer # 338 took the checkers.

 

For a time, my friend Steve Chaput had held the lead, but he slipped back to third as the race went on. Even so, Steve was still quite happy with his podium finish. 

It was around 10-00 pm , that the last race finished, and well before the 11-00 curfew,  so with Victory Lane  pictures done, we were on our way .

We got the early finished we were looking for.

Don did all the driving back to Cornwall, and it wasn’t long before I was behind my lap top downloading pics.

I had a nice relaxing day around the house on Saturday , before leaving later than normal for race track number two of the weekend.

It takes just over an hour from Cornwall to the Brockville Ontario Speedway, and I was there by 5-00 pm.

The program consisted of 358 Modifieds, Sportsman, Sportsman Rookies, Vintage, Street Stocks and Mini Stocks.

A lot to get through, but the good thing was, that the cars I’d come to see were having their Features first.  No disrespect to the budget divisions, but once the Mods and Sportsman are done, I like to get away.

Although there wasn’t a big number number of Modifieds, the line up was impressive. The local drivers were joined by the visiting Niagara drivers, Gary Lindberg, Dalton Slack, Pete Bicknell, Tim Jones and Matty Williamson . Add to this Quebecs , ‘Grinder’  J.F Corriveau and Steve Bernier. 

Who was going to be the winner , I thought, Steve or Matty ?

I had a feeling it would be Matty, but who knows ?

Before going on the middle I had my usual pit wander , and met up with fellow ‘togs’ Alex and Helen Bruce and John Lyng.

I also took the opportunity of getting a shot of Dylan Evoy beside his car.

For many years Dylan had dominated the Sportsman division, but after a lay off for a season or two , he’s  back this year with a Modified.

I put my camera bag and lawn chair on turn one and two, and that’s where I remained for the night.

The first of the Features was for the Sportsman Rookies where Michael Delormier got his second win in a row.

The Modifieds were next  where , as I expected, the battle at the front was between Bernier and Williamson. It was a great race between the two of them, Steve had Matty on his tail through out, who even managed to edge past  for a few yards, but when the checkers fell it was the man from St Hyacinthe , Quebec who took the honors.

Looks like my gut feeling was wrong ,  and this turned out to be  Steve’s first ever win at the B.O.S.

A great weekend so far for the Bernier family

Well that was a good one, and they’d been no major stoppages.

The Sportsman feature followed this, and what an excellent race this was.

It looked like Gab Cyr had got it all sewn up , but on the final lap Jessica Power had other ideas.

She’d been gradually moving up through the field , and was ready to make the move as the white flag dropped, and was able to edge passed Cyr on turn one and two.

Once she’d got by, there was no stopping her, as she ‘Powered’ her way to the checkers.

As I said earlier,  the cars  I’d come to see had their features first this week , and it was still only 9-45 pm.

Just what the doctor ordered !    I was soon out the gate, and heading home to Cornwall. I was home around 11-00 pm.

Perfect !

The next day it was my local Cornwall Motor Speedway, and the weather forecast didn’t look good. Rain was expected at some point during the night.

One good thing about this, is when management are aware of the situation, programs are usually moved along swiftly without unneeded delays.

The forecast was correct and we did get the predicted rain. Not a lot , but enough to give us a bit of down time. 

The program consisted of 358 Modifieds, Sportsman, Vintage and Mini Stocks. 

Bernier and Williams were in attendance, and once again I was wondering who’d get the win. They’ve both had wins at Cornwall.

 

We got the heat races in the books, before the first little bit of rain hit us. By now , it was more or less intermission time so instead of the Vintage having their Feature before, they had it after, when the rain had stopped and the track was packed. 

Winner of the Vintage Feature was Josh Powers.

The Modifieds then entered the track for their Feature, just as the second bout of rain hit us.

It didn’t last long and after a short delay, we were back in business.

Last weeks winner , David Hebert dominated the 50 lapper, and kept Williamson at bay right to the checkers.

So I was wrong again , it was neither Steve Bernier or Matt Williamson in the winners circle.

 

It was the second win in a row for my friend from St Damase, Quebec.

The Sportsman Feature  followed where local Cornwall  man, Ryan Stabler got the win.

The final race of the night was for the Mini Stocks.

They ran a very clean race without cautions ( if I remember correctly) . James Clarke fended off the experienced Mike Gaucher to get his third win of the year at Cornwall. Clarke is having a stellar year, with a win at Brockville adding to his achievements. 

Once again I was in luck , the rain hadn’t delayed things much at all, and the show was all over by about 10-00 pm. After two days of I.V.I.G transfusions, and three days of racing, it all ended well for me.