By Peter Turford
SELKIRK, Ont. (December 13, 2022) – Southern Ontario Sprints series officials announced several rule changes on Tuesday.
Throughout the course of the year, there may be several of these changes and amendments, etc. In most cases, any rule changes or revisions will be written with the intent of a) increasing safety, b) further aligning ourselves with the other tracks/series in the area, c) closing loopholes, and/or d)speeding up the overall show. When we do make changes, an attempt will be made to clarify the logic, reasoning, and the intention(s) of the rule to prevent later misunderstandings and miscommunication. Finally, what is written here is the rule in brief – the actual rulebook may read slightly different to make things ‘more ironclad’;
1: Electronic bleeders are now LEGAL. They are pretty much in common use now, and by being legal it allows incoming teams to not have to scramble to find the older style bleeders.
2: Wickerbills are not allowed with dished wings. Flat wings are allowed up to a 2″ wickerbill. This puts us more in line with other series (although Ohsweken Speedway currently limits wickerbills to 1″ on flat wings). We will announce prior to the season opening what the rule will be for Ohsweken/SOS races. Some teams were carrying a dished wing as well as a flat wing for other tracks/series as they felt the dished wing with a 1″ wicker was advantageous when running with the SOS. This will eliminate that need.
3: For 2023, teams will be allowed to only use one right rear tire per night. Obviously there will be common sense allowances (replacement with a used tire) being made for flats, and/or if a B-Main is run. Tires will be marked prior to Qualifying. We have allowed three different tires for the racers to use up inventory and not have to change over to run with the SOS, NOT to optimize tire choice for qualifying vs. racing, etc. The actual tire selected at the beginning of the night is locked in.
4: There will be NO work area, nor work area time allowance. If your car is safely off the racing surface, you can work on it. The race will not be held up in any way for a team making repairs. Repairs may be made under yellow and red-flag conditions with no penalty other than starting at the rear. Note: if you go down one lap for repairs, you will not be allowed to return to the race.
5: A car that is two laps down or more on the track – and/or deemed to be running at an unsafe speed – may be black-flagged at the sole discretion of the race director. This is not only for safety reasons, but also to prevent race outcomes being altered by a car that is on the track for no justifiable reason.
Please stay tuned for more news in the coming weeks. Drivers, team members, and team owners interested in competing with the Southern Ontario Sprints in 2023 can contact SOS owner Peter Turford at pturford@tdpracing.com
SOS Media
Website: www.southernontariosprints.com
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About the Southern Ontario Sprints tour: Founded in 1996, the Southern Ontario Sprints series is a traveling winged 360 Sprint Car tour based in Ontario, Canada. Each points-paying event on the 2023 schedule will pay a minimum of $2,000-to-win and $250-to-start, and selected events will be broadcast live on GForceTV. A $10,000 points fund will be divided among competitors thanks to the support of Tammy Ten Media. Visit www.southernontariosprints.com and www.tammytenmedia.ca for more information.