Canadian McLeod Entered in 400 Lapper at Anderson

London, Ontario (July 25, 2008) -

It's hard to believe it's almost the end of July already...Where has the season gone? It has been a fun first few months working at Ohsweken and with the Southern Ontario Sprints, and I'm really looking forward to the rest of the season. The biggest disapointment of the year is definitely the World of Outlaws rainout this week at Ohsweken.

It was looking to be a huge event as advanced ticket sales were very strong, and on Tuesday night there were literally hundreds of motorhomes and campers at the track, along with the Speed Channel crew. Mother Natures didn't co-operate with us though, and we are left instead to wonder what could have been. Hopefully we can try it again next season. At least we can all take some consolation in the fact that the rest of this season should be very entertaining. The points battles in both the Ohsweken standings and in the Southern Ontario Sprints are very close, and this year's edition of the Canadian Sprint Car Nationals should be the best one yet!

The change to weekly sprint car racing at Ohsweken has produced yet more growth in the class, and that growth is continuing even during the middle of the season. Over the past month, we've seen James (PeeWee) Evans get into a sprint car after success in the OSCAAR Super Late Model series, and microsprint driver Doug Bowman of London has also made the jump, while other area racers are also interested in switching over. Now we just need some fans to start coming out to watch these guys every week, because they've been doing a great job all year at Ohsweken...

Elsewhere, Mississauga driver Alison McLeod won her 2nd feature of the season on Wednesday night at Anderson, Indiana in a USAC Regional Midget series event. McLeod is one of many drivers entered in the first ever Anderson 400 Midget Classic slated for Saturday night. Modeled after the Little 500, the Midget 400 figures to become an instant success, and hopefully will become an annual tradition for years to come. Midgets are my favourite race cars, and I am in always in favour of adding more big events for them to run.

Sharp-eyed fans would note that McLeod wasn't the only Canadian driver racing in Indiana this week. Last night at Indianapolis Raceway Park (now called O'Reilley Raceway Park), Steve Arpin of Fort Frances, Ontario was in action driving the RE Technologies/Carl Edwards-owned #35 Silver Crown car. Arpin has thoroughly dominated IMCA and UMP type modified racing over the past couple of years, and apparently that has not gone unnoticed. Arpin qualified 21st and finished 16th last night.

A rare weekend off for open wheel racing in Ontario means I have a chance to go to the Hy-Miler Supermodified Nationals at Sandusky, Ohio this weekend. In his excellent book about life in the NHL titled The Game, Ken Dryden describes the old Boston Garden as a "disheveled friend", and that is much the same way I look at Sandusky Speedway. It could use a coat of paint or two, and it's a little rough around the edges, but the important stuff all works, but on Saturday night of the Hy-Miler Nationals when there are 40+ Supermodifieds in the pits and thousands of fans in the grandstands, there is a buzz in the air that is hard to recreate. It's the atmosphere, not the venue, that makes for a great event. Where else can you see Johnny Benson fighting tooth and nail with journeyman Pat Lavery in the conci for the final transfer spot to the main event? It's things like that which come to mind a few years later when you're standing around in the pits chatting with people and waiting for it to stop raining.

While the Hy-Miler is assuredly going to be a great event again this year, many will be attending with heavy hearts after the death of Terry Gibson last Friday at Toledo. The Gibson family has been a huge part of open wheel racing in Ohio and elsewhere since the days when Terry's father Todd was winning dozens of races in his famed Flintstone Flyer, and there are sure to be a few drivers from the Gibson clan in action this weekend in both the supermodified and sprint car portions of the event. I'll be cheering for them...