For those of you that were at the Grand Opening in mid August, remember the fly over that took place. Well, the picture on the far left is what it looked like from the rear turret of the B-25 Mitchell called "Miss Mitchell", one of the planes that participated in the fly over.

According to Vern Gwin from Team Lesko Racing, "The Canada Remembers Airshow is one of our team sponsors. This was the second year that we have had this aircraft do the fly over. Last year "Miss Mitchell" and a second B-25 passed over BCS during the Street Stock Invitational. This year we had the good fortune to have "Miss Mitchell" joined by a P-51 called "Stang".

The second photo was also taken from the B-25, and is a shot of the P-51 while waiting for the cue to start the pass over the track. Track announcer Matt Bradley and the staff at the Saskatoon Aerocentre worked together via cell phone and radio to arrange the timing for the end of the anthem.

"I Hope you find these interesting and could maybe post them for all the fans and drivers to enjoy." Vern Gwin, Team Lesko Racing.

2007 Car Registration Fees have been confirmed at $400, the same fee as this past season. Drivers wishing to pay this fee by installments can do so, in one of two ways. If paid between now and the season opener, in any number of payments, and in any amounts they wish as long as the total amount paid by the season opener equals $400. If not paid by the season opener, in equal installments of $75 per race over the course of the first six races of the season. The total paid in this case will be $450.

The 2007 Pit Levy has been confirmed at $100. This payment must be paid prior to entry on the track for your first race of the 2007 season. The Pit Levy is a levy which the 2003/04 Executive Committee instituted to cover the cost of cement pit pads at the new race facility. The Pit Levy is a one-time levy of $500 that all registered car drivers are required to pay. When it was instituted it was intended that the Pit Levy be paid over time as follows: $50 in 2004, $100 in 2005, $150 in 2006, and $200 in 2007. With the 2007 levy being reduced to $100, there will now be one more payment of $100 required in 2008. Those drivers that wish to, may pay any remaining amount on their Pit Levy at any time.

Non-registered cars may race at Auto Clearing Motor Speedway, a maximum of 2 times during the 2007 season, by paying a $50 race fee. Non-registered cars will not be eligible to participate in any feature payouts. 

All but two members of the 2006/07 Executive Committee, along with the club's technical, marketing and business advisors, spent pretty well all day Saturday holed up in the Royal Room at the Sandman Hotel formulating an outline of an operating plan for the 2007 race season. At the end of the day, each of the six operating committee's (Competition, Buildings and Grounds, Advertising and Promotions, Ethics and Junior Racing, Finance & Fund Raising, and Fan Side) had a general framework in which to operate. Over the course of the next month or so each of these committee's will flesh out a more detailed operating plan. As these details are confirmed they will be announced - at regular monthly meetings, on this web site, via direct email, or through media releases as deemed appropriate.    

For those that have not yet been to Auto Clearing Motor Speedway, and even for those that have, Global Television has graciously provided us with a short video clip with various race action from this past race season. The video clip is an 'mpeg' file that is a little over 2 minutes in length. It is best accessed with high speed internet service. To view the clip please click here. Thank you Global Television!

All those that received Mini Stock Survey Questionnaires at the Mini Stock Rules/Information meeting last week are asked to complete them as soon as possible and drop them off at either Ens Lexus Toyota - 285 Venture Cres (Wayne Schick), Streetwise Service - 417 42A St  E (Jim Barnsley), or at 527 Klassen Crescent in Martensville (Wayne Schick). Completed forms can also be faxed to E.L.T. at 306.664.6965. Please get your form in by this Friday, November 17. If you did not receive a form and would like to complete one, please call Wayne Schick at 934.8169, or see Jim Barnsley at Streetwise Service on 417 42A Street.

About 15 people took in the Mini Stock Rules/Information Meeting last Tuesday, discussing a wide range of topics. Attendees were reminded of the importance of the Mini Stock Division in that it is an entry level division , both financially and technically. It is an excellent division  for attracting new drivers of all ages because of the affordability of building a car for the division . In addition, the limited modifications allowed by the rules, encourages family/friends to crew for race teams without the need of a racing expert to tune the car.

Although there was discussion on specific sections of the rule book (safety, body, windshield and windows, power train, suspension, and tires) a lot of time was spent talking about "evening out the field", or slowing down the faster cars to maintain the 'entry level' intention. Registration fees and prize payouts were also discussed. Those in attendance were provided a survey questionnaire to obtain additional feedback. Several new face were in attendance and it was noted that at least 3 or 4 new cars are currently under construction. The consensus, or recommendations, from last week's meeting will now be reviewed by the competition committee. For more information on the Mini Stock Division please contact the Mini Stock Technical Advisor, Wayne Schick at 934.8169.

For the most part, racers and race fans in Saskatoon, turn their attention to football at this time of the year. Congratulations to the University of Saskatchewan Huskies who defeated the previously undefeated and #1 ranked University of Manitoba Bisons 32-15 yesterday in Winnipeg. The Huskies now play the University of Ottawa Gee Gees next weekend with the winner advancing to the Vanier Cup the following weekend in Saskatoon.

This afternoon, all football fans will be watching to see if the Saskatchewan Roughriders can defeat the British Columbia Lions in BC Place. A win by the Riders will propel them to the Grey Cup game in Winnipeg next weekend. Good luck Riders!

For those that have not yet been to Auto Clearing Motor Speedway, and even for those that have, Global Television has graciously provided us with a short video clip with various race action from this past race season. The video clip is an 'mpeg' file that is a little over 2 minutes in length. It is best accessed with high speed internet service. To view the clip please click here. Thank you Global Television!

The 2006/07 Executive Committee with input from the 2005/06 Executive Committee and 2006/07 Technical Advisers will be meeting on Saturday, November 18, 2006 to brainstorm and carve out a direction for the 2007 race season. This is sure to be a full day of discussion, debate, and decision making. Among the many items sure to be discussed are; Car Registration Fees, Front and Back Gate Admission Prices, Schedule of Regular and Special Events, Season Ticket Options, Junior Racing Program, Required Improvements to the Facility, and of course fundraising. If you have any thoughts on how to improve any aspect of the operations of the race program for 2007 and beyond, please either contact any member of the Executive Committee or send us an email with your comments.  

At tonight's Executive Committee meeting, 2006/07 President Andrew Clewes outlined the committee structures for next year as well as the individuals who will be taking on responsibility for each committee. Each of the six elected Directors will take overall responsibility for one of six committees. Each Director will be assisted by one of the six Junior Executive members. Returning Directors Bryan Johnson and Dan Shirley retain responsibility for the Competition and Fan Side Committees respectively. Junior Executive members Richard Woodvine will assist Johnson and John Rees will aide Shirley in their responsibilities. Doug Bienia, with assistance from Junior Executive Wilf Hanson have been tasked with the Buildings & Grounds Committee. Neil Wagner, with help from Junior Executive Cliff Yelland takes over the Ethics and Junior Racing Committee. Doug Cooper steps into the Finance & Fund Raising Committee with assistance from Bill Zubrecki, and Wade Wohlford along with Glen Hertzke are now responsible for the Advertising & Promotion Committee. If you have a particular interest in the work involved in any one of the six committees, please feel free to contact the Committee Chair to be added to the Committee. You can also send us an email noting your area of interest. For a full list of Board, Executive, and Committees please click here. 

In early July, with the opening of Auto Clearing Motor Speedway mere days away, we were fortunate enough to have Roland and Maryann Thiessen from Great Impressions take on, on a trial basis, the task of manning the souvenir booth. With fairly brisk sales over the course of the first few races, and the Thiessen's growing interest in stock car racing, it wasn't long before the 'trial' basis turned into taking on the task for the remainder of the 2006 season.

Through Roland and Maryann's efforts, this year's souvenir sales have surpassed all expectations. Roland and Maryann greeted anyone visiting the souvenir tent with a smile and had a willingness to help their customers find what they were looking for. New items were brought in on a trial basis throughout the year. Roland and Maryann, thanks for a great job!

Auto Clearing Motor Speedway souvenir merchandise is still available and can now be obtained from the parts department at Auto Clearing Chrysler Superstore or by phoning Roland or Maryann at 955-4805. Yes the new license plates are in!

Although Donna Lyrette, co-ordinator of the Saskatoon Stock Car Racing Association's 2006 Awards Banquet is quick to deflect any accolades to her committee, she deserves a big round of applause for stepping up and volunteering to organize this year's event. "With my background as an events co-ordinator, I just thought if I could relieve some of the burden off of those that have been working so hard all year long, at the track and on the track, it might be a help" offered Lyrette when queried about her involvement. This has certainly been the case!

For the most part, the Saskatoon Stock Car Racing Association's Annual Awards Banquet is an opportunity to recognize drivers for their 'on track' accomplishments. With the introduction of a new facility this year, Auto Clearing Motor Speedway, formal recognition was also paid to the individuals who contributed to the 'Building Committee' or the group spearheaded the building of our new home. The Awards Banquet also serves as an opportunity to raise funds through silent and live auctions of various donated items. Attendance at this year's banquet was right around the 450 mark.

Assisting Lyrette in the organization of this year's Awards Banquet were: Past-President Lauralee Ross who looked after confirming trophy winners, securing trophies and the presentation of trophies, Ben Pogoda who developed an excellent reflective video presentation of photographs taken by Cindy Moleski during the year, Matt Bradley and Lawrence Nugent who provided advice on program logistics and hosted the evenings activities; Mickey Pogoda looked after all the decorations; and Wade Wohlford who, with a bunch of help from Barb Wohlford and others, took care of securing close to 100 items for the silent and live auctions. Several others including Lewis Nugent, Doug Cooper, the Nugent girls, and Trent Seidel to name a few were seen providing hands-on help over the course of the evening - undoubtedly there were others as well. Thank you to everybody!

The Saskatoon Stock Car Racing Association and Bridge City Speedway Inc. held their Annual General Meeting Monday evening with the main order of business being the election of the 2006/07 Executive Committee. Heading up next year's Executive is Andrew Clewes who was elected President by acclamation. Clewes served as 1st Vice President in 2005/06. Current President Shawn Hill moves to the position of Past President, taking the place of current Past President Lauralee Ross who steps off the Executive Committee. Jesse Krahn takes over as 1st Vice President and Brent Olson continues as 2nd Vice President. Stacy Enns was elected Treasurer, the position currently occupied by Lewis Nugent who did not run for reelection. Jim Barnsley was uncontested in his bid for reelection as club Secretary. Elected to three year terms as Directors were Doug Cooper and Wade Wohlford. Cooper and Wohlford join returning Directors, Bryan Johnson, Doug Bienia, Dan Shirley, and Neil Wagner. Lawrence Nugent chose not to run for reelection due to health reasons. Rounding out the 2006/07 Executive Committee are Junior Executive members Richard Woodvine, Cliff Yelland, John Rees, Glen Hertzke, Wilf Hanson, and Bill Zubrecki. For a complete list of Executive Committee click here.

Former Thunder Stock driver #8 Dan Pearce outlasted the entire Ellen Plastics Enduro 300 field of 19 cars on Sunday afternoon to claim top spot and first place prize money. This year's Enduro was a real test of endurance. The afternoon consisted of three separate 100 lap races, with drivers being credited with the total number of laps he/she completed in each of the separate races. On the afternoon, Pearce was the only driver to complete the maximum 300 laps. Pearce won the first and third race segments and finished second in the middle segment.

Claiming second place overall was #77 Sherman Brown from North Battleford. Brown was relatively consistent, opening and closing with fourth place finishes and hanging on for fifth place in the middle segment. Brown completed 298 laps on the afternoon.

Finishing third overall, also with 298 laps completed, was 2006 Saskatoon Hyundai Mini Stock Champion #76 Greg Vangool. Vangool was one of three Mini Stock drivers in this afternoon's race. The others were #44 Jesse Krahn (9th overall) and #92 Clay Ballard (2nd in the 3rd segment race and 13th overall). The second race segment was won by #49 Ben Pogoda. For a complete list of results please click here.

Although 5 drivers bettered Auto Clearing Motor Speedway's Super Late Model 15.649 second track record held by #70 Trent Seidel, clearly the best of the best on Sunday afternoon was #50 Jim Gaunt. Gaunt shaved nearly 3/4 of a second off of Seidel's mark, posting an early time of 14.912 seconds. The next best time, 15.448 seconds, posted Sunday afternoon by #53 Earl Harms was 0.536 seconds slower than Gaunt's time. Gaunt record time on Sunday was 1.513 seconds quicker than the time he registered on opening day. Gaunt figures that the actual lap times during Sunday's Super Late Model Border Challenge were even lower, "perhaps in the 14.6 range".

Saskatchewan drivers were the clear winners on Sunday afternoon capturing 5 of the top 6 spots in the inaugural Border Challenge. #70 Trent Seidel topped the field of 22 cars that started the race. #38 Dave Bone was second. Seidel and Bone also won their respective heat races earlier in the afternoon. #99 Bill Royce from Sherwood Park, AB was the lone Alberta car to prevent a clean sweep by Saskatchewan cars. Royce claimed 3rd spot. Saskatchewan drivers, #50 Jim Gaunt, #14 Glen Hertzke, and #5 Jeff Reimer placed 4th, 5th, and 6th respectively. Another Saskatchewan driver, #47 Ron Kelly was 9th.

Although the field of 22 cars was the biggest Super Later Model field to race in Saskatoon for some time, it could have been 4 cars higher had it not been for #01 Alex Leschenko's crash on Friday night, a couple of cars biting the dust in the morning practice and #09 Clint Habart losing a wheel in the first heat race. For complete results from Sunday's races please click here. For information on the NEWALTA Late Model Challenge Series and stories on Sunday's race please click here.

The #59 team of Frank and Greg Vangool stayed out of trouble Sunday afternoon and in the process laid claim to the 2006 Saskatoon Hyundai Mini Stock Points Championship. The Vangools are no strangers to Championship row - Greg was the 2004 Mini Stock Champion and Frank the 2005 Mini Stock Champion.

Also staying out of trouble Sunday afternoon were #43 Todd Ferguson and #41 Jim Barnsley, who ended the 2006 season in 2nd and 3rd place respectively. While Ferguson's best finish on the afternoon was a 2nd place finish in the qualifier, Barnsley took home 2nd in the heat race, and 4th in both the qualifier, and the feature. The best Mini Stock driver of the afternoon was #44 Jesse Krahn who won both the qualifier and the feature. Krahn ended the year claiming 4th position in the points race. 

Tyler Forbes made his driving debut, driving the #48 car usually driven by Terry Forbes. Heat winner #78 Matt Bartsch took an unexpected and unwanted ride Sunday afternoon. Coming out of corner 4 at the end of the qualifier, Bartsch went into a spin and made solid impact with the front wall. After taking some 20 minutes to get Bartsch out of his car, he was taken by ambulance to the hospital for precautionary measures. At last report he was okay. #88 Allison Nagorski also took an uncharacteristic spin, in the feature race, ending up in the dirt on the inside of the track. Nagorski was also okay. For complete results from Sunday's races please click here.