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In 2009, the Canadian NASCAR series was in its third season.
With Canadian Tire as the primary sponsor, NASCAR had developed a successful format that attracted competitors and fans.
There were some changes to the 2009 schedule – mainly the order of the race weekends. The title chase started at Autodrome St. Eustache and was followed by a race at Delaware Speedway which replaced the event previously conducted at Cayuga Speedway. Next up was the first road course event of the year at Mosport Park. There would be an additional event held at this facility – a race on the oval track in August. After Mosport, teams made their second visit to Autodrome St. Eustache. The western swing included races at Vernon, Edmonton and Saskatoon. Saskatoon replaced the second date held by Cayuga Speedway in 2008. The crews traveled east to events in Quebec – Trois Rivieres and Montreal. Then it was back to Ontario and Barrie Speedway with the penultimate round taking place at Riverside Speedway in Nova Scotia. The championship would end in late September at Kawartha Speedway. In total, there were thirteen race weekends and the series would visit twelve different tracks in six provinces. The cars competing in the championship are constructed to specifications and rules typical of most stock car series. The chassis is a steel tube frame design covered with a fiberglass body and is required to weigh no less than 3000-lbs. Body styles are from manufacturers such as Dodge (Avenger), Pontiac (Grand Prix), Ford (Fusion) and Chevrolet (Monte Carlo SS). Engine type and displacement are dictated by the make and model of the vehicle. The carbureted eight-cylinder motors produce approximately 650-horsepower. Depending on the gearing, these cars are estimated to have a top speed of 160-mph. Round eleven of the 2009 NASCAR Canadian Tire Series was held at Barrie Speedway on the 1/3-mile oval track. Drivers would compete for 300-laps in a race sponsored by Torbram Electric and presented by the Source.
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Twenty cars are gridded on Barrie Speedway’s front straight for the Torbram Electric 300. The fastest qualifier was the No. 95 Crown Modular / United Lumber sponsored Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS of Anthony Simone – this was the local driver’s first pole position. Sharing the front row with Simone would be another local, Mark Dilley in the No. 9 Dodge Avenger with backing Dodge and Leland Industries. |
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After a difficult season which included a wreck and an engine failure, Don Thomson’s fortunes finally turned around. Thomson was the ninth fastest in qualifying. He moved through the field and had resigned himself to a runner-up finish when the race leader, Scott Steckly was blocked by an incident involving Anthony Simone and Ron Beauchamp. Thomson grabbed the lead and took his first win of the season. |
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Another driver having a string of bad luck was Mark Dilley. Dilley finished fifth in the season opener at Autodrome St. Eustache but since then, he was hard-pressed to score a result in the top-ten. It appeared that his season might be back on track at Montreal where he finished fifth. Dilley started second at Barrie Speedway and a late race charge saw him capture the runner-up spot – just 0.180-seconds behind Thomson. |
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The defending NASCAR Canadian Tire Series champion, Scott Steckly won the second Autodrome St. Eustache event and the round at Saskatoon. He entered the Torbram Electric 300 fourth in standings. The Canadian Tire sponsored driver was gridded third for the contest. Steckly took control of the race on lap-197 and led for the next eighty-six circuits until he was blocked by an on-track incident. He had to settle for third. |
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Second-year driver, Anthony Simone was having a stellar season. In 2009, the former road racer had three top-five finishes which include a pair of runner-up results (Mosport and Trois-Rivieres). At the Torbram Electric 300, he would earn his first pole position. During the race, Simone led a total forty-one laps but any chance for his first victory ended on lap-222 when he hit the third turn wall, Simone was classified twelfth. |
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The current point’s leader, Andrew Ranger turned in a solid performance at Barrie. The 2007 champ started the event in the tenth position on the grid. During the contest, Ranger ran as high as second but settled for a ninth-place finish. Kennington, Beauchamp and Steckly had a mathematical chance of challenging him for the title but with two races remaining it would be a difficult task. |
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One of the three drivers that had a chance of catching the championship leader, Andrew Ranger was D.J. Kennington. Kennington entered the event at Barrie Speedway second in the standings - 134-points behind Ranger. In qualifying, he was fourth quickest. Unfortunately, the driver of the Castrol Dodge Avenger fell out of contention early and finished one position behind Ranger in tenth place. |
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By round eleven, the early season point’s leader, Ron Beauchamp, Jr. had fallen to third in the title chase. There was a chance that Beauchamp could catch the point’s leader, Andrew Ranger but it would depend on solid performances in the last three events. Driving the No. 60 Dodge Avenger, he qualified fifth but contact with Jason White took him out of contention and he finished two spots behind Ranger in eleventh. |
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This victory was particularly sweet for the five-time CASCAR champion, Don Thomson, Jr. The former champion’s last win was twelve-races ago in 2008 at Riverside Speedway. Thomson and the team had faced a lot of challenges in 2009 but it all came together at Barrie Speedway. For Fitzpatrick Motorsports this was their second consecutive win as J.R. Fitzpatrick was victorious in the previous round at Montreal. |
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| FINISH | START | DRIVERS | SPONSOR / CAR | LAPS | RETIREMENTS |
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| 1 | 9 | Don Thomson, Jr. | Home Hardware / Chevrolet Impala SS | 300 | - |
| 2 | 2 | Mark Dilley | Dodge/Leland Industries / Dodge Avenger | 300 | - |
| 3 | 3 | Scott Steckly | Canadian Tire/Tow Truck in a Box / Dodge Avenger | 300 | - |
| 4 | 7 | Brad Graham | Logel's Auto Parts / Dodge Avenger | 300 | - |
| 5 | 12 | Jason Hathaway | Snap-on Tools/Vortex Brake Pads / Dodge Avenger | 300 | - |
| 6 | 6 | Kerry Micks | Beyond Digital Imaging / Ford Fusion | 300 | - |
| 7 | 14 | John Gaunt | Hy-Tech Drilling / Dodge Avenger | 299 | - |
| 8 | 19 | Joey Hanssen | Prime Champ / Dodge Avenger | 299 | - |
| 9 | 10 | Andrew Ranger | WAL-MART/Tide / Ford Fusion | 294 | - |
| 10 | 4 | D.J. Kennington | Mahindra Tractor/Castrol / Dodge Avenger | 286 | - |
| 11 | 5 | Ron Beauchamp, Jr. | Mopar/Mobil 1 / Dodge Avenger | 277 | - |
| 12 | 1 | Anthony Simone | Crown Modular/United Lumber / Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS | 272 | - |
| 13 | 8 | Dave Whitlock | Dickies/NMT / Dodge Avenger | 270 | - |
| 14 | 17 | Howie Scannell, Jr. | Lucas Oil/RC Trailers / Dodge Avenger | 239 | Engine |
| 15 | 13 | Jason White | A&W/Zimmer-Wheaton GMC / Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS | 200 | Engine |
| 16 | 18 | Jeff Lapcevich | Tim Hortons / Chevrolet Impala SS | 173 | Transmission |
| 17 | 11 | Kent Nuhn | The Fuel Genie / Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS | 140 | Differential |
| 18 | 20 | Dexter Stacey | WJS Motorsports / Pontiac Grand Prix | 133 | - |
| 19 | 15 | Cale Gale | Rheem Canada / Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS | 78 | Engine |
| 20 | 16 | Joey McColm | ATTO Insurance / Dodge Avenger | 24 | Suspension |
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