Ohsweken Speedway
Rain pushes WoO's Ohsweken event back to Friday
By Kevin Kovac
World of Outlaws Late Model SeriesOHSWEKEN, Ontario — Fans will have to wait one more day to see the first-ever World of Outlaws Late Model Series event at Ohsweken Speedway. Pesky showers refused to dissipate on Thursday night, forcing officials to postpone the Six Nations 50 to Friday, June 20.
A banner field of 43 dirt Late Models descended upon the 3/8-mile oval for the historic inaugural WoO program in Ontario, but Mother Nature wouldn’t allow it to be completed on schedule. Light rain fell periodically during hot laps and then intensified after eight drivers had taken time-trial laps, bringing an early end to the action.
With Friday slated as an off day on the Great Northern Tour for WoO teams, the decision was made to keep the WoO participants in town for the $10,000-to-win event. The tour will headline a Friday night card that includes the Lucas Oil Empire Super Sprints Series and Ohsweken’s regular divisions.
The WoO is scheduled to continue the Great Northern Tour on June 21 at Autodrome Drummond in Drummondville, Quebec, so series and track officials will work together to complete the WoO portion of Friday night’s show as quickly as possible to get teams on the road.
Rick Eckert of York, Pa., was the fastest qualifier of the eight drivers who took to the track before the rain red-flagged the competition, turning a lap of 15.439 seconds. A brand-new qualifying session will be held on Friday night, however.
The postponement was a godsend for 2006 WoO champion Tim McCreadie of Watertown, N.Y., who didn’t register a time because he cut a left-rear tire at the start of his time-trial effort. He would have been forced to start last in a heat race if the show had continued. The entries: