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It Looks Like a Fantastic Season is Ahead of Us!

If the Test-n-Tune (TnT) session of Monday June 19th is an indication, it looks like we are going to have a great season at Laird International Raceway this season. Having attended many TnT’s in years gone by, I can’t remember one where there were so many cars in the pits.

We had a few veterans out there, but most were rookies, or drivers that have moved up a division since last season. The thing most notable in my opinion is the number of new or younger drivers that are moving into the sport. The Enduro division allows people to get on the track and have some fun, many get “bitten” by the racing bug, and return the following year to “scratch the itch”.

The TnT session saw nearly 20 cars in attendance, with a few other drivers in attendance that didn’t have their cars there.

Typically we don’t see too many veteran drivers from the Late Model, Modified, and Factory Stock divisions at these test sessions, mainly because those drivers are mostly familiar with their cars, and some have already started the season at other tracks down south.

Here’s a breakdown of most of the drivers in attendance during the TnT by division, in no particular order:

Factory Fours:
• Dyllen Sherrard will be running the #16. Dyllen ran an Enduro last season.
• Seth Ralph will be in the #16. Seth is a young guy, 16 years old, a student at Central Algoma Secondary School and got some experience last season.
• Matt Lewis will be driving the #20, this is his first year racing.
• Fern Mannarino, father to last season’s Factory Four champ, Anthony Mannarino, will be running in the division – also his first time racing.
• Gianni Viotto is out in the #95, which was previously run by Chuck Siddal
• Daryl Witmell is returning in the #21. Daryl placed5th in the division last year.
• Gord Badgero will be driving the #8 truck, it’s also his first year racing. Gord works with Daryl and it may lead to a friendly rivalry they can discuss during Friday morning coffee breaks after Thursday Night Thunder.
• Sean Desjardins will be in the #17, also a rookie.

Modifieds:
• Terrance Devon ran in the factory four division last season. This year he will be driving the sharp looking #7 modified, a car previously owned by Roddy Bolduc.
• Mike Hearty, a prior track champion was out with his #20 Mod to give it a pre-season run.
• Randy Larrett, who cut his teeth in the Enduro division is back out in the #73 Mod. Randy has also set up a few cars for the Enduro division this year.
• Devin Service, will be a rookie in the division driving the #97. He’s another Enduro driver that got hooked. His car was driven by Michael Carbone last season.
• Jake Irwin was at the track without a car, but indicated that his father Glen may be running the #21 Mod in the division.

Factory Stock:
• Anthony Mannarino is out in a bright orange #12 Factory Stock. Anthony was last season’s division champion in the Factory Four divison. Anthony picked up his car from Shawn Greeley. Greeley bought the car from down south with the intention of driving at Laird but may be concentrating his racing efforts in road racing this season.
• Jerry Ross may not run the #01 “General Lee” this season, but will likely be out with his brother John to run the #01 Modified.

Super Late Models:
• Kevin Errington in the 51K was the only Late Model in attendance at the TnT session. Kevin is driving a sharp looking number 51K Late Model.
• Dustin Jackson was in attendance and wanted to run his car but he grenaded the motor during a recent race down south. Dustin should be back to defend his Late Model Championship from last season.
• Jake Irwin had a scary run in with the backstretch guardrail last season and flipped his late model. Turns out that the damage to the car was not as bad as it looked when it was loaded on the hauler that night. Jake has the car back together again and will be out providing some more excitement for fans.

AIM Recycling Enduros:
There were only a couple of the Enduro cars out to test.
• Taylor Larrett ran the #72 Enduro last season, had great fun and is back out for more.
• Robert Morrison was at the session and is excited to run the Enduro race on Saturday June 24th
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The Enduro race on June 24th will be our season opener. There are over 20 cars registered, with a few more late registrants possible. The 100 lap race will have $4,000 go to the winner; 2nd place will be provided with a Factory Four car, courtesy of LIR to run for the season. Also, any car completing 10 laps or more will get a payout of $200.

WE ARE STILL LOOKING FOR ENDURO CARS FOR OUR UPCOMING RACE!!!
IT’S NOT TOO LATE!
WE WILL PAY FAIR MARKET VALUE FOR YOUR CARS AND PASS THEM ON TO PEOPLE WHO ARE NEEDING THEM!
AS AN ADDED BONUS, WE WILL THROW IN TICKETS TO THE ENDURO RACE FOR ANYONE WHO SELLS US A CAR SO THEY CAN WATCH HOW IT DOES!!!
ALSO, IT’S NOT TOO LATE TO REGISTER!!
CALL SHAUNA @ 705-256-1652 AND WE’LL MAKE IT HAPPEN!!

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