By Brent Otchere
OHSWEKEN, Ont. (August 30, 2024) – I.L.A. Sports and Brant County Tire presented Back To School Backpack Night at Ohsweken Speedway on Friday; Dylan Westbrook, Brett Stratford, Ryan Beagle, and Wayde Thorne took A-Main wins.
Kool Kidz-Corr/Pak 360 Sprint Cars
Dylan Westbrook and Cory Turner brought the 19 car field to the green flag for the 360 Sprint Car A-Main. Westbrook rocketed ahead of the field when the green flag fell, catching up to traffic in eight laps. Josh Hansen brought out the caution flag on lap eleven as he slowed down the backstretch. This caution allowed the lead lap drivers a second chance to overtake Westbrook, who was enjoying a four second lead prior to the caution.
Westbrook handled the pressure well, easily putting distance on the pack. By lap 18, Westbrook could be found overlapping drivers once more. He took a commanding victory with a three second gap over second place finisher Nick Sheridan. After Sheridan crossed the finish line, Liam Martin crashed on the front stretch and brought out a red flag which ended the race. Martin was unharmed in the accident. Cory Turner, Ryan Turner, and Shone Evans were classified in third, fourth, and fifth respectively.
Strickland’s Crate Sprint Cars
Johnny Miller started on pole with Brett Stratford next to him for the 20 lap Crate Sprint Car A-Main. Stratford overtook Miller in the opening lap for the lead. The third lap featured a caution flag, which saw Stratford lose his gap over the field. Stratford had a great restart however, lapping drivers in just four laps.
Travis Hofstetter spun out in turn two on lap 12 and brought out another caution. Stratford again held off the field on the restart, going on to win the race after navigating the last five laps through traffic. Next to cross the finish line were Miller in second, Jesse Costa third, Cameron Thomson fourth, and Lance Erskine fifth.
Middleport Mechanical Thunder Stocks
Mike Klazinga started on pole alongside Mike Thorne to take the green flag for the Gale’s Auto Aftermarket Cash Blast 55 lap Thunder Stock A-Main. Thorne led the first lap with 33 drivers thundering after him. Thorne’s lead ended as he got tangled up on a lapped vehicle who spun, ending his race.
Mark Fawcett got the lead on the restart, however Dave Bailey took the lead not too long after. The 55 lapper quickly turned into an endurance race and a battle of attrition as big money was on the line. A total of 15 caution flags fell throughout the duration of the race.
Ryan Beagle, Bailey, and Fawcett were the class of the field, all taking turns leading during different points of the race. Fawcett was poised to win the race, but he ran out of fuel due to the inordinately high number of caution laps. Beagle took advantage of the situation, quickly taking over the lead and going on to win the race. Rounding out the top five were Bailey in second, Trevor DeBoer in third, Spencer Smolders fourth, and Ron Loggie fifth.
HRW Automotive Mini Stocks
The front row of the grid featured Jonathan Joyner and Christopher French to begin the 15 lap Mini Stock A-Main. Mason Anderson led the opening laps after starting third on the grid. Wayde Thorne began to catch up to Anderson, making the overtake for the lead on lap seven after applying tremendous pressure.
The pack behind the leader was racing three-wide, showcasing their talent and car control. A late race caution flag came out due to John Lubeck’s car going up in smoke. Thorne didn’t succumb to the pressure though, and led the final laps to victory. Following Thorne across the finish next were Alex Riley in second, Jeremy Cooper third, Jeff Elsliger fourth, and Gillian Hils fifth.
Up Next at Ohsweken Speedway
Bradshaw Fuels and Epic Racewear present Championship Friday at Ohsweken on Friday, September 6, featuring the Kool Kidz-Corr/Pak 360 Sprint Cars, Middleport Mechanical Thunder Stocks, and HRW Automotive Mini Stocks. Visit www.ohswekenspeedway.ca for more information.
Ohsweken Speedway
Ohsweken, Ontario
Friday, August 30, 2024
Kool Kidz-Corr/Pak 360 Sprints
Heat Race #1 (8 Laps)
1. 87X-Shone Evans[1]
2. 45-Nick Sheridan[3]
3. 47X-Dylan Westbrook[4]
4. 68-Aaron Turkey[2]
5. 11-Jamie Turner[6]
6. 46-Kevin Pauls[5]
DNS: 71-Mike Bowman
Heat Race #2 (8 Laps)
1. 9-Liam Martin[1]
2. 17X-Cory Turner[3]
3. 77E-Ashton VanEvery[5]
4. 12DD-Darren Dryden[6]
5. 19D-Allan Downey[4]
6. 94X-Scott Hall[2]
Heat Race #3 (8 Laps)
1. 5-DJ Christie[2]
2. 15-Ryan Turner[1]
3. 88H-Josh Hansen[3]
4. 7-Eric Gledhill[6]
5. 77T-Tyeller Powless[4]
6. 0-Glenn Styres[5]
A-Main (25 Laps)
1. 47X-Dylan Westbrook[1]
2. 45-Nick Sheridan[6]
3. 17X-Cory Turner[2]
4. 15-Ryan Turner[3]
5. 87X-Shone Evans[7]
6. 71-Mike Bowman[19]
7. 12DD-Darren Dryden[9]
8. 77T-Tyeller Powless[15]
9. 19D-Allan Downey[14]
10. 0-Glenn Styres[17]
11. 88H-Josh Hansen[11]
12. 7-Eric Gledhill[10]
13. 9-Liam Martin[4]
14. 68-Aaron Turkey[13]
15. 11-Jamie Turner[12]
16. 46-Kevin Pauls[16]
17. 77E-Ashton VanEvery[8]
18. 94X-Scott Hall[18]
DNS: 5-DJ Christie
Strickland’s Brantford Chevrolet Crate Sprints
Heat Race #1 (8 Laps)
1. 88-Lance Erskine[1]
2. 16X-Keegan Baker[4]
3. 20-Johnny Miller[6]
4. 52-Jesse Costa[3]
5. 2M-Steve Murdock[7]
6. 53-Logan Shwedyk[5]
7. 98-Jonah Mutton[2]
8. 50LS-Adrian Stahle[8]
9. 72-Tanner Podwinski[9]
10. 3-Devon Bacher[10]
Heat Race #2 (8 Laps)
1. 9C-Brian Nanticoke[7]
2. 14-Larry Gledhill[4]
3. BS39-Brett Stratford[9]
4. 14B-Broden Weiler[3]
5. 28T-Cameron Thomson[10]
6. 71-Brent Begolo[8]
7. MK8-Matt Hill[2]
8. 24A-AJ Lewis[6]
9. 69K-Ken Hamilton[1]
10. 38-Melissa Miller[5]
Heat Race #3 (8 Laps)
1. 2-Travis Hofstetter[2]
2. 27-Niko Hansen[1]
3. 99-Joshua Hill[6]
4. 24K-Kiana Teal[4]
5. 29W-Tyler Ward[8]
6. 5-Tom Pellezari[7]
7. 51-Trevor Young[5]
8. 11W-Josh Robertson[3]
DNS: 777-Cameron Olm
A-Main (20 Laps)
1. BS39-Brett Stratford[2]
2. 20-Johnny Miller[1]
3. 52-Jesse Costa[14]
4. 28T-Cameron Thomson[9]
5. 88-Lance Erskine[6]
6. 53-Logan Shwedyk[18]
7. 71-Brent Begolo[16]
8. 72-Tanner Podwinski[24]
9. 14-Larry Gledhill[3]
10. 50LS-Adrian Stahle[20]
11. 24A-AJ Lewis[23]
12. 24K-Kiana Teal[13]
13. 51-Trevor Young[19]
14. 98-Jonah Mutton[21]
15. 2-Travis Hofstetter[4]
16. MK8-Matt Hill[22]
17. 777-Cameron Olm[29]
18. 27-Niko Hansen[10]
19. 3-Devon Bacher[26]
20. 38-Melissa Miller[28]
21. 69K-Ken Hamilton[27]
22. 11W-Josh Robertson[25]
23. 14B-Broden Weiler[15]
24. 2M-Steve Murdock[12]
25. 99-Joshua Hill[8]
26. 5-Tom Pellezari[17]
DNS: 29W-Tyler Ward
28. (DQ) 9C-Brian Nanticoke[5]
29. (DQ) 16X-Keegan Baker[7]