A packed crowd was treated to a full racing card that saw seven divisions including the Eastern Ontario Vintage Stock Car Club and Gord’s Water Vantastics following the inductions to the Brighton Speedway Wall of Fame Saturday night. Gord Langstaff, Jeff Waite and Tim Whitehead were inducted prior to the on-track action presented by McDougall Insurance and Financial, The Community Press and APC Auto Parts. Former drivers Langstaff and Waite were added to the wall while Whitehead was added in the dedicated employee category.
The ‘Fan Appreciation’ portion of the event allowed fans to get up close and personal with the drivers on the front stretch during intermission. Drivers brought their racecars onto the front straightaway, and hundreds of fans took advantage of the opportunity to get autographs, pictures, and various treats the drivers offered.
At the drop of the green flag No. 27 Sheldon Hoggwerf took the top spot and led the entire Ontario Vintage Stock Car Club 20-lap event. He used the top groove to protect his advantage in his souped-up Ford Pinto. As lap traffic slowed the pace and No. 01 Brandon Gregory closed in, it didn’t stop Hoogwerf from his mission of waiving the checkered flag in the 70s-80s division. Gregory earned second, No. 53 Jason Powers third, No. 28 Pete Shapper fourth and No. 75 Kenny Polite fifth. No. 601 Jeff Larmet earned first place in the 50s-60s category, No. 20 Tim Colmen was second, No. 12 Tim Charland third, No. 42 Patrick Charland fourth and No. 19 Shane Billings fifth.
Vanderlaan Building Supplies Late Model No. 5 Steve Baldwin took off from his pole position at the drop of the green flag and looked like he was well on his way to capturing his first checkered flag of the season as he dominated the majority of the 35-lap Hotch’s Auto Parts Triple Crown Race 2. No. 46 Brandon Mowat and No. 29 Phil Potts worked hard to catch Baldwin as No. 57 Charlie Sanderock muscled his way to the front from his 9th starting position. Lapped traffic eventually slowed the pace as Baldwin found himself sandwiched between No. 77 Caley Weese and Sanderock. Weese held her line up top forcing the leaders to stay high or go low. With seven laps to go, Sanderock made the decision to drop to the inside and passed Baldwin for the lead. Sandercock sailed to victory lane scoring his sixth win of the season, leaving Baldwin to settle for second. Potts took third, Mowat fourth and No. 7 Adam Nayler fifth.
Charlie Sanderock muscled his way to the front from his 9th starting position during the Vanderlaan Building Products Ltd. Late Model Feature race at Brighton Speedway last Saturday. Photos by Rod Henderson; canadianracer.com
It only took No. 1 Shawn Gregory one trip around before he pounced on the lead in the Bainer’s OilGARD Canadian Modified 25-lap main event. Gregory took off on the outside as No. 87 Andrew Hennessy worked his way through the field. A caution on the 11th lap reset the field. Gregory opted for the high-side but on the restart Hennessy hit the gas and punched it to the outside ahead of Gregory and No. 39 Jonah Mutton followed suit settling into second. Hennessy was hooked up as he flew to checkers with Mutton in second, Gregory third, No. 12 Adam Whaley fourth and No. 14 Brandt Graham fifth.
Arguably the best race of the night happened in just one lap, the last lap of the Brighton Automotive Thunder Stock 20-lap feature event. No. 2 Leslie Turcotte Mowat led over half of the race as No. 72 Doug Anderson used the tacky high-side to maneuver his way up to second from his 14th starting position. On the 13th time by, Anderson slid into the lead as No. 85 Austin Reid moved into second from his 22nd starting spot. Anderson and Reid went wire to wire until a caution on the last lap brought the race to a grinding halt. In a one lap shootout to the finish, Anderson drove hard on the inside with Reid up high. Reid put the hammer down and crossed the finish line a fraction of a second ahead of Anderson. No. 17 Jeff Humphry took third, No. 53 Wade Purchase fourth and No. 03 Justin Ramsay fifth.
No. 44 Tommy Bailey earned his second win of the season in the Bill’s John’s Comp 4 15-lap event. Bailey started 7th and on the second time by he jumped into the lead and never relinquished the point. No. 11 Adam Flieler took home second, No. 43 Devon Kippen, No. 13 Joel Dempster and No. 1 Brock Gregory was fifth. In the mini-stock division No. 12 Caleb Severn also earned his second checkered flag of 2019, No. 14m Matthew Moore was second and No. 7 Anthony Rinaldi third.
The ever-popular Gord’s Water Vantastics treated race fans to a thrilling show that saw No. 47 Ian Pennings and his brave passenger Allie Kerr dominate the 12-lap feature. Pennings took the lead from No. 121 Hunter Triemstra on lap 7 and never looked back, which was probably a good thing as No. 69 Christian Graham took his passenger Austin Bush on a wild ride off in the distance. Fans howled in delight as the 69 minivan went up on two wheels several times. Pennings went on to victory lane with Triemstra in runner-up, No. 01 Shawn LeClair third, No. 12. Rod finished fourth and Graham fifth.
The ever-popular Gord’s Water Vantastics treated race fans to a thrilling show at Brighton Speedway that saw No. 47 Ian Pennings and his brave passenger Allie Kerr dominate the 12-lap feature. Photo by Rod Henderson; canadianracer.com
Coming next Saturday, July 27th Rapid Rad, Classic Rock 107.9 and John West Construction host the Southern Ontario Sprints presented by Sanderson Tire & Automotive along with the Vanderlaan Building Products Ltd., Bainer’s OilGARD Anti Rust Canadian Modifieds, Brighton Automotive Thunder Stocks, Bill’s Johns Comp 4/Mini Stocks and Quinte Septic Tank Stingers. Front Gates open at 5:00 PM, Hot Laps begin at 6:00 PM and the green flag drops at 7:00 PM. Grandstand Admission is $20.00 for Adults, $18.00 for Youths & Seniors, $5.00 for Children 7 to 12 and a Family Pass is $55.00.
