by Tommy Goudge
(May 5, 2016) – Ohsweken, Ontario – Ohsweken Speedway officials are pleased to announce this year’s class of inductees for the Ohsweken Speedway Wall of Fame.
Jay Mallory, Jim Swing, Abel Castelein, and the Bell family will be honoured on Wall of Fame Night on Friday, June 17 as Ohsweken Speedway celebrates the past, and looks forward to the future during the track’s 21st season of racing.
Jay Mallory’s 29 feature wins are the most in the 20 year history of the 3/8 mile track at Ohsweken. With titles in 2004 and 2005, he was the only driver to win multiple Sportsman championships during the 12 seasons when the division competed weekly on a weekly basis at Ohsweken.
Jim Swing is the only driver with three Ohsweken Mini Stock division championships on his resume, having claimed titles in 1998, 1999, and 2002. He’s also a winner of both the Art Hill Memorial race (2000) and the Art Hill Memorial Award (2001). The award is dedicated to the memory of the late Art Hill, and given to the Mini-Stock competitor who demonstrates sportsmanship, both on and off the track, strives to maintain the highest level of competition, and acts as an ambassador for Ohsweken Speedway.
Abel Castelein won two Mini Stock division championships and 18 feature races at Ohsweken Speedway during his career, including a win in the 2011 Art Hill Memorial race. He was honoured with the Art Hill Memorial Award in 2007. Abel’s passing in 2011 was a great loss to the racing community.
The Bell family has been involved with Ohsweken Speedway from the very beginning, with Rick, Sue, Sherri, and Will having a hand in everything from promotion to officiating to track preparation. Sue was honoured last year as the first ever recipient of the Noah Thomas Memorial Employee of the Year Award.
About the Ohsweken Speedway Wall of Fame:
The Ohsweken Speedway Wall of Fame is dedicated to celebrating the achievements and contributions of those who have helped Ohsweken Speedway to become a premiere racing facility, and inspired generations to come. Selections will be made annually by the Wall of Fame committee, with potential honourees including (but not limited to) drivers, car owners, manufacturers, car builders, mechanics, sponsors, promoters, officials, sanctioning organizations, and media members.
The community is invited to submit nominations for induction to the Wall of Fame, and all nominations are given due consideration. The number of inductees in any given year shall be at the discretion of the Wall of Fame committee. The names of inductees for any given year will be announced in early spring, and the official induction ceremony will be held at Ohsweken Speedway on a selected race night during the subsequent season. The Styres Family, the Southern Ontario Sprints club, and Mike “Pinball” Giberson were selected for the inaugural class of Wall of Fame inductees in 2015.
The 2016 Ohsweken Speedway Wall of Fame Selection Committee included Clinton Geoffrey, Tommy Goudge, and Adam Ross, with consultation from Greg Calnan, and Doug Leonard. Nominations for the 2016 Wall of Fame class were accepted until February 29, 2016. To nominate a candidate for consideration for the 2017 Wall of Fame class, please contact media@ohswekenspeedway.com, or utilize the nomination form on the Ohsweken Speedway website at http://ohswekenspeedway.ca/?page_id=3279
2016 SEASON
Ohsweken Speedway’s 2016 racing season begins on Friday, May 20 when Ackland Insurance presents the 21st Annual Ohsweken Speedway Opening Night. The weekly Friday night racing program will include Kool Kidz Corr/Pak 360 Sprint Cars, Strickland’s GMC Crate Sprint Cars, Affordable Towing & Recovery Thunder Stocks, HRW Automotive Mini Stocks, and Gale’s Auto Aftermarket Bombers. Driver rosters for the 2016 season are taking shape, and the roster page is regularly updated on the track website. Visit www.OhswekenSpeedway.com to keep an eye on your favourite driver’s plans.
About Ohsweken Speedway:
Founded in 1996, Ohsweken Speedway is a motorsports complex which includes a 3/8 (0.375) mile clay oval track. The facility is owned by the Styres family, and located in the village of Ohsweken, Ontario, Canada. Ohsweken’s weekly Friday night racing program runs from May to September each year, featuring 360 Sprint Cars, Crate Sprint Cars, Thunder Stocks, Mini Stocks, and Bombers, while the season finishes each year with the annual Canadian Sprint Car Nationals. Ohsweken Speedway also hosts weekly Micro Sprint racing on Thursday nights, and has been a yearly stop on the World of Outlaws Sprint Car series schedule since 2007.