Canadian Speedway Racing Association

Friday May 30th 2003
The season opener was threatened by rain which started falling 15 minutes before start time. Fortunately this proved to be no more than a shower and the meeting got underway after a 30 minute delay. The track surface was deeper than usual as the additional material added the week before was still quite loose and as the night wore on this built up on the outside and made this tricky to ride. With several of the D1 regulars missing, including the Legaults not yet back from the UK, it was fortunate that several out of province riders were on hand to take up the slack. It proved to be a good night for riders from Quebec as both Nick Fafard and Philip Lemay went through the program undefeated to take the honours in D1 and D2 respectively. Although much of the pre-meeting interest was on the first appearance in Canada of multi time World Championship finalist Kelly Moran in only his second outing after an eleven year retirement, it was young Nick Fafard who dominated the meeting. He showed little sign of having taken last year off from racing and although a trifle fortunate to win his first two races when the early leaders had problems, he was never headed thereafter and parlayed his fast starts into comfortable wins. He was clearly the fastest rider on the night and fully deserved his success. Behind him last year's top two at Paris, Joe Heye and Aaron Hesmer each dropped points with an uncharacteristic fall and it was Hesmer who edged out Heye for second with Gary Hesmer taking fourth in a welcome return to form after two difficult years due to injuries. Michigan based Steve Glasgow showed good form in his D1 debut and won the Consi from Marc Gauthier and Rob Dixon. Kelly Moran's debut was spectacular but all too short. In his first outing he ripped around the outside of the first turn and sped past Fafard only to coast to a halt when he lost his chain on the second lap. A similar start in his next outing saw him fly into the third turn at a high rate only to crash heavily and be ruled out for the rest of the night by the St John Ambulance staff due to a mild concussion. Competition was close in D2 but Phil Lemay was just that bit sharper from the gate than his rivals and handled the deep track well as he was never headed on his way to a five win night. No wonder he calls Paris his favourite track! Behind him competition was close with Phil Small just edging out John Perry on the night. Although he did not make the final Bob Mosquera looked much more controlled and comfortable than he did last year. Most disappointed man on the night was Graham Wale who could not get his bike to run, nor a spare offered to him, and as a result had to sit out what was going to be his first night of racing. This only left two riders in D3 and another rider having his first outing John Bennett, went unbeaten on the night including a come from behind win in his first race. After giving up the early lead he chased down Corinne Franic over the final two laps and swept around the outside of the final turn to pass her on the run to the line. The crowd gave him a good hand for this effort as he showed that, despite the different speeds involved, all three race divisions can provide entertaining action.

Friday June 6th 2003
The season debut of Kyle Legault, just returned from racing in the World U-21 Champs in England, added spice to this week's program and when Nick Fafard made the long trip from Quebec to compete for the second week in a row the stage was set for some exciting racing. This proved to be the case and fans were treated to an excellent night's entertainment with extremely close competition in both D1 and D2. In the first D1 heat John Mercier, also making his season debut, showed that he has fully recovered from the injury that sidelined him for the second half of last year by taking an impressive win from Aaron Hesmer. The next heat had Fafard, unbeaten last week, facing Kyle Legault and they provided four laps of pure excitement. Fafard from the inside gate grabbed the early lead while Legault used the outside line to try to get around him. He got just enough drive coming out of turn four to snatch the lead at the end of the first lap and the second lap was just as close. Both riders were pushing so hard looking for that extra little bit of traction that their front wheels lifted almost in unison as they came out of the turn. A sign of just how fast they were going is that Joe Heye, #1 at Paris last year was well back in third place. In the end Legault pulled a little ahead for the win and the battle between them was joined. This trio each went unbeaten for the rest of the night to reach the final where they were joined by Mercier. Legault had his choice of gate for the final and chose gate two and then completely missed the start. Mercier grabbed the early lead but left a gap coming out of turn four and Fafard seized the chance to come through for the lead. He seemed to have the race well in hand when he lifted on the back straight, hit the fence and went down hard. After treatment he made it out for the restart. This time Legault made no mistake and took a comfortable win while Fafard overcame his 10 yard penalty to take second place with another fine effort with Heye taking third after Mercier went down on the last lap. The D2 class provided more close racing with John Perry wowing the fans with a storming win from the penalty line when he caught and passed the rest of the field within two laps. To make things even better for him he then went on to win his first D2 Main event from Lee Charland, Phil Small and Phil Mosquera. John Bennett was again the class of D3 but Corinne Franic made her fans happy with her first win of the season. Fans held their breath when newcomer Graham Wale was involved in a spectacular accident in only his third race. Happily, although he went through the safety fence, he escaped serious injury and was in fine spirits in the pits after the meeting.

June 13th (Cancelled Rain Logged Track)

Friday June 20th 2003
Decent weather at last, an excellent track and a good rider turnout nicely balanced between classes, created the framework for a good night's racing. Heavy rain in midweek after the track had been graded, produced a rock hard smooth base with sufficient loose dirt on top to allow different race lines. The riders responded to this and provided excellent racing throughout the program and gave the fans a truly exciting night's entertainment. To make it a near perfect evening the spills were minor and the ambulance did not have to move all night. A problem with the starting gate for the first heat and a couple of bike problems in the first D3 heat got the program of to a slow start but things never looked back after Phil Small set the tone for the rest of the night with a nice move to take the lead away from John Perry in the next heat. For the fourth week in a row Nick Fafard and Lee Charland were welcome visitors, despite having made the long drive from Quebec last week only to have the events rained off at both Paris and Welland. Fafard and Kyle Legault, mounted on the bike he bought in England for the U-21 competition, met in the first round and the fans were eagerly anticipating a rematch of their exciting action in the last meeting but it was Joe Heye who got the better of the start and had a clear lead over Legault with Fafard bringing up the rear on the second lap when Legault misjudged his line coming out of turn four, cut across the track and hit Heye before hitting the deck. There was a complete reversal of fortune in the restart in which Fafard led from start to finish, Legault came from the penalty line to take second while the unfortunate Heye, the innocent party in the accident, was relegated to last place. The best race of the night featured a four lap duel with Fafard probing for a way past Aaron Hesmer on the inside of each turn and finally battling through to edge ahead around the final two turns only for Hesmer to find enough drive coming out of the turn to catch and repass him on the run to the line and win by less than a wheel. Just as entertaining was another four lap battle between Rob Dixon and Gary Hesmer for third place in which they went side by side for most of the race and seemed to swap positions at least twice a lap. Great stuff to watch! For the second meeting in a row Legault had his choice of starting position in the final, again chose gate two and again it did not work for him. Fafard led form the gate and in the end took a comfortable win as Legault slowed with bike problems and was overtaken by first Mercier and then Hesmer. Star of the night in D2 was unquestionably Phil Small. Just back from a trip to the UK he was suffering from jet lag and claimed to be be 'shattered' but this didn't affect his riding. He was able to use both the inside and outside lines as necessary and came from behind several during the night, including his win in the final to complete his best night's racing to date. With six riders in D3 racing was much more competitive this week. Aaron De Veau emerged as the winner in his first outing of the season by using the outside line to come from the back on several occasions. It may not be long before he is ready to move up a grade. Shawn Morrison, also making his debut for the season, showed that he can challenge John Bennett for Rookie honors.

Friday June 27th 2003
The spell of ninety degree weather broke in time to provide excellent race conditions which helped attract the biggest crowd yet of the season. The late arrival of the St John ambulance delayed the start of racing but once underway things ran smoothly including the first appearance on the program of a P50 class. With a meeting at their local track the following night, long distance travellers Nick Fafard and Lee Charland were missing from the program for the first time this season. Although the track was in excellent condition again the racing, although entertaining, lacked the edge that it had last week. However it did have its moments several of which were crammed into the final three races of the night. In the D2 final John Perry timed the start perfectly, rocketed from the gate, and was several lengths ahead at the first turn when the race was stopped with the referee ruling that it was an unsatisfactory start and bringing all four riders back to the tapes for the restart. Presumably this was because Perry was judged to be rolling as the tapes were released as he did not touch them. Second time around it was Phil Small who got the better of the start and went on to win followed by the Mosquera brothers, Phil and Bob as Perry went down on the first lap. He remounted but was well back at the finish and then showed his sportsmanship by congratulating Small on the cool down lap although he must have been feeling disappointed that his original jet propelled start was called back. The next race up was the D1 Consi and kudos in this go to Rob Dixon who did an excellent job of laying his bike down to avoid a rider who fell in front of him. Surprisingly the race was not stopped and both riders were left to remount and rejoin the race far behind the leader Aaron Hesmer who cruised around for the win. In the end Dixon was most unfortunate to lose a place as a result of laying his bike down but more importantly he did get the approval of his fellow riders. There was no controversy in the D1 main event but plenty of excitement. Joe Heye made the gate and battled Kyle Legault for the lead around the first two turns and looked to have the better line when he lost control, did a 180 degree pirouette and went down. Fortunately the other riders managed to avoid him but he had to go to the penalty line for the restart. This time John Mercier was first out of turn two but Kyle Legault powered through on the inside to take the lead by the end of the first lap. Although chased hard by Mercier, Legault never looked like being caught and took the win while Gary Hesmer continued his run of improved performances with a third place finish. Although not the fastest race of the night one of the most entertaining was a D3 battle between veteran Paul Martin and Shawn Morrison in which they battled hard for all four laps swapping the lead back and forth several times during the race. Morrison then led the final from start to finish to earn his first main event win.

Friday July 4th 2003
A spell of hot weather gave way to thunderstorms early Friday evening but Paris defied the odds, shook off the effects of a mid-afternoon shower and lived up to its reputation as a track that manages to avoid the worst of the bad weather as the meeting took place. Perhaps it was this reputation that helped to attract the biggest crowd of the season for 'Symes Catering Night' and they were rewarded with another night of excellent racing. With lightning visible in surrounding areas after the interval, the program was run as quickly as possible in case of rain that happily did not come. There was plenty of action on the track too with top American Craig Estelle adding spice to a very competitive D1 class. Unbeaten in two previous visits to Paris, that record went in his first heat when Kyle Legault squeezed past him coming out of turn four to takeover the lead and go on to win. Falls in his first two races put Joe Heye out of the running for a place in the final but competition was tight with one round left. Needing points, Estelle booked his place with perhaps the best effort of the night when, back in third place after two laps, he powered around John Mercier then caught and passed Kyle Legault around the final two turns after the latter faltered for a moment on the back straight. That left Aaron Hesmer and Nick Fafard to battle for the last place and it was Hesmer who was the odd man out. To make matters worse for him he had bike problems while leading the Consi and could only watch as Joe Heye went past to take the win from Rob Dixon. This week Legault selected gate one for the final and made it work. He just beat Fafard to the turn and was never headed as he took his third main event win. Behind them Estelle took a lap to get around Mercier who then got into trouble next time around trying to do the same to the American and came off, happily without injury. Marc Gauthier moved down to D2 due to the rider numbers and program setup. His experience showed and he was just that bit sharper than the D2 regulars, particularly from the gate and around the first turn, and he went unbeaten on the night. John Perry did make him work for his win in the final jumping out to the early lead before falling on the second lap. He remounted and finished third with Phil Small taking second behind Gauthier. With only three riders D3 was decided on total points over the night and the decision went right down to the final two turns of their last heat. John Bennett missed the gate, moved up to second on the second lap and set out after race leader Shawn Morrison. A determined effort saw him catch up going into the final two turns and a burst around the outside saw him squeeze past and snatch the win with a fine effort.

Friday July 11th 2003
Defying the odds of rain and storms in most of the surrounding areas, the Paris track was bone dry a couple of hours before racing was due to start. Unfortunately the threat of rain kept most of the fans and several of the regular riders at home. However those who were there put on a good show and despite the cold the fans who were there stayed to the end and enjoyed the shorter than usual race program. Kyle Legault came out on top of D1 for the third week in a row although Aaron Hesmer made him work hard for the win. Hesmer surprised Legault by finding drive out of turn two and zipping past his rival in the deciding heat. He held the lead until Legault used the outside line at the same spot to overtake him and move ahead for the win. In view of the short program an extra elimination race was staged at the end of the night between the four D1 riders. The format for this was for the riders to race for a single lap with the last place rider dropping out, a similar one lap dash to eliminate a second rider and then a two lap race between the remaining riders to determine the winner. In this Aaron Hesmer hopes of winning disappeared quickly when he looped at gate and went to the penalty line for the restart. Despite a strong ride from there line he was still a length behind Gary Hesmer at the line and was eliminated. Gary was next to go leaving Joe Heye and Kyle L as the survivors. For the third tine in a row Heye did not get the starting position he wanted when he drew gate four. Despite this he had the edge around the first two turns but bobbled it striving for the line he wanted out of two and that was all that Legault needed to roar past him and take the win. D2 and D3 were combined into a single class for the night and provided some excellent competition between the pairings John Perry and Phil Small and John Bennett and Shawn Morrison with Small and Bennett just having the edge on the night. Unfortunately the other two riders in this class crashed early in the program and Graham Wale was sidelined with a broken hand plus a broken finger. Corinne Franic injured her hand in the same crash but was able to continue riding.

Friday July 18th 2003
For the first time in three weeks the weather was good as was the crowd. With only two riders in D3 as due to last week's accident, that class was combined with D2 for the night and D3 regulars John Bennett and Shawn Morrison reveled in the stonger opposition and both made the final while continuing their personal chase for the season high points title. Jeff Orosz made a welcome returrn to the Paris track after his early season injury at Leamington and was in thick of the action all night. His presence made the D1 class even more competitive than usual and racing was always entertaining as the riders battled for each point and a place in the final. With Joe Heye in good form and Aaron Hesmer getting a zero return in his first race when he dropped out with more bike troubles, it looked as if Hesmer might be headed for the Consi again but he stormed back and a win over Legault and Mercier in his final race enabled him to squeeze past Mercier and join Legault, Orosz and Heye in the final. Another battle between the teenagers seemed to be underway when Legault, out of gate one, and Hesmer, out of gate four, emerged side side by side from turn two. However, as they dove into turn three Hesmer slid out and off. Although Orosz took up the chase he never looked likely to catch Legault who went on to take the Final for the fourth week in a row. Heye was third while Hesmer sportingly remounted to avoid a restart, and finished fourth. With Phil Small missing this week John Perry always looked the likely winner in D2 although John Bennett did manage to beat him by half a wheel with a great effort in one race. He shot of the line and had a comfortable lead in the final only to slide off on the second lap. Shawn Morrison inherited the lead and held it for a lap until Phil Mosquera got past and earned his first checkered flag of the season. Behind them Perry had remounted and just managed to chase down and catch Bennett out of the final turn to take third. Other efforts to catch the eye included a perfect drive around the outside by Steve Glasgow to overtake Gary Hesmer in one race and a good effort by Pete Hamm to lay his bike down to avoid Shawn Morrison who fell in front of him.

Friday July 25th 2003
"Dean Bencsics Memorial Meeting" The first Dean Bencsics Memorial Meeting was a huge success and it is a mark of the respect in which he was held by his many friends that it attracted by far the biggest crowd of the season. It’s timing, Great weather, lots of prizes for the fans from several sponsors, 35 heats of exciting racing, some spills and controversy over some refereeing decisions all added up to a great night’s entertainment for the fans and the hope that this may become an annual event. The strongest field of D1 riders of the season ensured that racing in this class was competitive throughout the night as the riders battled for a place in the main event. They provided lots of truly exciting action with shoulder to shoulder racing happening several times. Kyle Legault went unbeaten through the qualifiers and was joined in the final by Nick Fafard making a welcome reappearance after a couple of weeks absence. A fall by Craig Estelle in his final heat left him tied in points with Jeff Orosz and Aaron Hesmer for the remaining two places. Estelle got in as he had beaten the other two when they last met and as Orosz and Hesmer had not met during the night it had to go to the second method – race wins – to break the tie and this put Orosz into the final and relegate Hesmer to the Consi which he then proceeded to win. With such a high quality field for the final the start was critical as evidenced by three riders touching the tape as the referee held them at the start. They must have been relieved when he ruled a full restart rather than penalize anyone. When the tapes did go up it was Estelle who just beat Legault to the first turn. The four laps that followed were classic speedway. Legault was all over Estelle looking for the smallest gap on the inside at every turn. Often barely the length of a wheel separated them but the American was unflappable. He soaked up the pressure and did not move from his race line and did not yield an inch to the youngster. Although there was no passing during the race it was a spine-tingler and well worth the price of admission. Third place went to Nick Fafard. Phil Small led the D2 final for two laps but the race was halted and rerun due to a fall when Lee Charland went down on the second lap. John Perry took advantage of his second chance and led from start to finish to notch a very popular win and one which was fitting in view of his close friendship with Dean. In D3 John Bennett went unbeaten through the qualifying heats but fell on the second lap of the final while leading. He got off the track but despite his bike being left on it the race continued and Shawn Morrison got the win. The result was protested and the outcome of this will not be known for some time.

Friday August 1st 2003
Despite a forecast of rain there was a good rider turnout for the meeting. The field included one rider, Chris Houtby, having his first outing. The weather during the week and practice on Tuesday produced a track that was not as consistent as usual and which developed some ruts on the turns that gave the riders some problems until shaved down half way through the night. Kyle Legault continued his domination of racing here and swept through the program unbeaten. His win in the main event was his sixth in eight meetings. John Mercier looked likely to give him his stiffest opposition when he led him for almost two laps before Legault found a way through on the inside coming out of turn four. However Mercier fell on the last lap and a harder fall in his next heat left him sidelined for the rest of the night. So it was Aaron Hesmer who finished in second place in both qualifying points and the main event while Joe Heye took third and Marc Gauthier had his best outing yet at Paris and reached the D1 final for the first time. Phil Mosquera got things off to a good start in D2 by holding off a strong challenge from John Perry with Phil Small pinned back in third but thereafter the night belonged to Small who went unbeaten for the rest of the evening including a win in the main event when he had to hold off a strong challenge from Phil Mosquera whose form has improved in recent weeks. Also showing much improved form was Aaron De Veau while Pete Hamm had a better night and just missed a place in the final. In D3 John Bennett and Shawn Morrison continued their season long battle and for the second week in a row it was Morrison who came out on top. Chris Houtby, riding Graham Wale's bike showed promising form in his first outing.

Aug 8th (Cancelled Rain Logged Track)

Aug 15th (Cancelled Rain Logged Track)

Friday August 22nd 2003
After missing two weeks to first a thunderstorm and then the large scale power outage which affected all of Ontario, racing returned to Paris this Friday. There was a smaller than usual D1 field and Kyle Legault picked up from where he left off at the last meeting by going through the meeting unbeaten and basically untroubled to once again take D1 honors for the night. Behind him Aaron Hesmer finished in second place with Joe Heye third and Greg Starcevic fourth. Going into the meeting Phil Small trailed John Perry by two points in the season's high points race and they had a fantastic race when they met in the opening D2 heat. They swapped the lead three or four times during the race and hotly contested the entry to each turn throughout the race. Pure entertainment that ended with Small winning and narrowing the gap to a single point. However, that was the high point of the night for him as a couple of falls in subsequent races saw the gap widen to four points by the end of the night. These two topped the qualifying points but it was Phil Mosquera who won the race that mattered when he swept around the outside of turn four on the first lap of the final to grab the lead and leave the others behind him for his second main event win of the season. Unfortunately it wasn't such a good night for brother Bob who had the misfortune to break a finger in a fall in his third heat race. Michael Martin Evans made his season debut in Division 3 but it was dad Paul who continued to show the leaders in D3 that he still has what it takes by topping the qualifying points and taking his first main event win of the season. Part of the drama in this division was in the pits as high points leader John Bennett struggled to get his bike running while rival Shawn Morrison was on the track whittling away at his points lead. In the end Bennett missed his first two heats and a fall in his final outing allowed Morrison to reduce his lead to only four points by the end of the night. However, it wasn't all plain sailing for Morrison as he crashed heavily into the boards on the front straight in the most spectacular spill of the night.

Saturday 30th August 2003
The meeting had plenty of action with D2 providing most of the exciting racing and D3 more than its share of minor spills. Fortunately those involved escaped with minor scrapes and bruises. Eight riders in each class allowed for four qualifying rounds after which the top four met in a final race with the remaining four taking part in a consolation event. However, the result was not based on the final race but on total points over the night with points in the final being 5-3-2-1 and in the heats 4-3-2-1 and any ties in points being broken in the usual way by the finishing position in the final. As it turned out the D2 championship was decided by that additional point at stake for the winner of the final. As the riders came to the tapes three of the four could still win the title by winning the race. Phil Small was ahead in points with 15, while John Perry had 14 and Phil Lemay 13. Phil Mosquera was the other finalist but with 9 points he could not catch Small. Perry’s hopes vanished as the tapes went up when his engine gave up the ghost and he could only watch as the others raced away. Lemay grabbed the lead and although Small stayed close for most of the race, he stretched his advantage over the final lap for a comfortable win. The two-point differential between first and second place tied him on points with Small and gave him the title based on his higher placing in the final heat. Competition was close throughout the meeting between the top three and they provided plenty of action when they met. Small showcased his ability with a spectacular ride in his final qualifying heat. Last after the first lap, he overtook Aaron De Veau but was still back in third place behind Lemay and race leader Charland as they approached the final turns. Lemay opted for the inside line leaving the outside to Small. It proved to be a bad choice as he was pinned behind Charland while Small was able to find the drive to power around both and snatch the win which gave him his point advantage going into the final. The competition in D3 was not nearly as close as the anticipated battle between Shawn Morrison and John Bennett simply did not happen. Both Bennett and last week’s winner Paul Martin had meetings they will want to forget as Bennett hit the track four times during the night and Martin went down three times. Going into the final Shawn Morrison had a four-point edge over his nearest rivals and only needed to finish to take the title. It took three tries to complete this but although Jocelyn Lesieur overtook him on the final lap to deprive him of a maximum score the title was his by a comfortable margin. Quite a night for Morrison as not only did he win the championship he finally moved past Bennett, after weeks of chasing him, in the hunt for the season’s high points total and must now be favored to complete the double by clinching this next week. Lesieur finished as runner up and showed that he has improved considerably since his last visit to Paris two years ago. Chris Houtby will also be pleased with his third place finish while Michael Martin Evans grabbed a spot in the final and showed that he only needs track time to challenge the best in this division.

Sunday August 31st 2003
Race Format was the traditional 16 man, 20-heat program with the four top scorers moving forward to a final race and the winner based on total points for the night. With Craig Estelle and Jerry Harman traveling up from New York, Michel Lemay from Quebec, Bobby Muszynski coming out of retirement and the top finishers from the previous day’s D2 championship also taking part, fans were looking forward to an entertaining meeting and they were not disappointed. None of the meeting favorites slipped up in the early heats and Muszynski showed that although he may not have been race fit he could still race with the best. After three rounds the race was well underway for a place in the final four with only two points separating the top six. Kyle Legault and Estelle were unbeaten, Joe Heye and Aaron Hesmer were a point back with Harman and Muszynski two back. While Heye, Harman, and Hesmer get up their challenge with wins in the next round something had to give when Legault, Muszynski and Estelle went head to head. Legault and Muszynski hit the first turn fractionally ahead of Estelle who was forced wide and the race was on. Legault picked off Muszynski on the first lap and raced off for the win. Estelle looked likely to take second as Muszynki appeared to be tiring but unfortunately for him was pinned outside him as Muszynski drifted out to the boards and took him with him and all but out of the race. Fred Legault seized his chance to move into second and Muszynski kept going to take third while Estelle could only restart and circle round for fourth. The first heat in the final round was crucial as Heye, Harman, Hesmer and Estelle were all in it and needing points. Heye made the gate and led from start to finish with Estelle holding off Hesmer’s challenge for second while Harman was at the back. In the third lap Hesmer got the entry into turn three wrong and to avoid Estelle’s rear wheel went right out to the fence allowing Harman to move past and take third. This mistake meant the end of the night for Hesmer as it left him tied with points with Estelle and Harman for the last two places in the final four and eliminated as a result of finishing behind them when they met. All four finalists still had a chance to win as they came to the tapes but Legault left nothing to chance and after he found a tiny gap to squeeze past Estelle out of turn four the result was never in doubt. His win was popular with the fans and put an exclamation point to his domination of racing at Paris this summer. Behind him Heye was in excellent form and had his best finish of the year. While Craig Estelle could feel unlucky with the manner in which he lost points in his critical fourth race fellow American Harman was delighted with his fourth place finish. Tribute is also due to Michel Lemay who aggravated his injured shoulder during the meeting but resisted the recommendation of the St John Ambulance staff and continued to race and managed a sixth place finish with a truly gutsy performance.

Friday September 5th 2003
This additional race was staged to offset the two meetings lost in August to the weather and the black out. Unfortunately, despite the increased prize money on offer it did not attract the usual number of riders. However if the program lacked variety it did not lack interest, as there was something at stake in each division besides the prize money. In D1 Kyle Legault , Aaron Hesmer and Joe Heye all had their moments with Hesmer looking particularly sharp. However, it was Legault once again coming out on top although this time he suffered his first defeat at Paris in several weeks. He came from behind to beat Hesmer in the first heat. But when he missed the gate in his next race and tried to make his patented move on the inside of turn one, he found his path blocked by Joe Heye, made contact with him, shot across the track and finished up in a heap against the fence. That put him on the penalty line for the restart and he never looked like catching up to either Hesmer or Heye. It looked like another loss for him next time out as Heye had the lead and control of the race only to swing wide at the beginning of the final lap and lose the lead. Later it was revealed that he had miscounted the laps and thought the race was over. All in all some good racing spiced up by Legault's chase for points to break Len Dillon's single season record which he achieved during the meeting to cap a great season for him. However, unquestionably the best action of the night was the battle for season's D2 High Point honors between Phil Small and John Perry. Perry has a single point advantage going into the meeting and gated well all night but Small would not be denied and his efforts to come from the back kept the crowd entertained. Their first race was typical of their battles. Perry got the lead from the gate and held off Small's challenges for the first three laps. Small caught him on the inside out of turn two on the final lap and moved ahead on the back straight. Perry did not give up and fought back so that there was only half a wheel separating them at the line. Two more come from behind wins gave Small the lead but Perry kept the pressure up with a start to finish win in the next heat. This meant that Small had a one-point margin as they came to the line for the final race. This time Small finally got the better of the gate and when Perry fell on the second lap it was all over with Small taking the honors. In a sporting gesture and a fitting finish for their friendly season long battle, he gave Perry a pillion ride for his victory lap and the crowd responded with warm applause for them both. The D3 \High Points title was also up for grabs but with John Bennett absent the title went to Shawn Morrison who then went on to celebrate with an unbeaten night. It was good to see veteran Graham Wale back on the track for the first time since being injured early in the season.

Friday May 30th 2003

The season opener was threatened by rain which started falling 15 minutes before start time. Fortunately this proved to be no more than a shower and the meeting got underway after a 30 minute delay. The track surface was deeper than usual as the additional material added the week before was still quite loose and as the night wore on this built up on the outside and made this tricky to ride.

With several of the D1 regulars missing, including the Legaults not yet back from the UK, it was fortunate that several out of province riders were on hand to take up the slack. It proved to be a good night for riders from Quebec as both Nick Fafard and Philip Lemay went through the program undefeated to take the honours in D1 and D2 respectively.

Although much of the pre-meeting interest was on the first appearance in Canada of multi time World Championship finalist Kelly Moran in only his second outing after an eleven year retirement, it was young Nick Fafard who dominated the meeting.   He showed little sign of having taken last year off from racing and although a trifle fortunate to win his first two races when the early leaders had problems, he was never headed thereafter and parlayed his fast starts into comfortable wins. He was clearly the fastest rider on the night and fully deserved his success.

Behind him last year's top two at Paris, Joe Heye and Aaron Hesmer each dropped points with an uncharacteristic fall and it was Hesmer who edged out Heye for second with Gary Hesmer taking fourth in a welcome return to form after two difficult years due to injuries.   Michigan based Steve Glasgow showed good form in his D1 debut and won the Consi from Marc Gauthier and Rob Dixon.
Kelly Moran's debut was spectacular but all too short.   In his first outing he ripped around the outside of the first turn and sped past Fafard only to coast to a halt when he lost his chain on the second lap.   A similar start in his next outing saw him fly into the third turn at a high rate only to crash heavily and be ruled out for the rest of the night by the St John Ambulance staff due to a mild concussion.

Competition was close in D2 but Phil Lemay was just that bit sharper from the gate than his rivals and handled the deep track well as he was never headed on his way to a five win night. No wonder he calls Paris his favourite track! Behind him competition was close with Phil Small just edging out John Perry on the night. Although he did not make the final Bob Mosquera looked much more controlled and comfortable than he did last year.
Most disappointed man on the night was Graham Wale who could not get his bike to run, nor a spare offered to him, and as a result had to sit out what was going to be his first night of racing. This only left two riders in D3 and another rider having his first outing John Bennett, went unbeaten on the night including a come from behind win in his first race. After giving up the early lead he chased down Corinne Franic over the final two laps and swept around the outside of the final turn to pass her on the run to the line. The crowd gave him a good hand for this effort as he showed that, despite the different speeds involved, all three race divisions can provide entertaining action.

Friday June 6th 2003

The season debut of Kyle Legault, just returned from racing in the World U-21 Champs in England, added spice to this week's program and when Nick Fafard made the long trip from Quebec to compete for the second week in a row the stage was set for some exciting racing. This proved to be the case and fans were treated to an excellent night's entertainment with extremely close competition in both D1 and D2.

In the first D1 heat John Mercier, also making his season debut, showed that he has fully recovered from the injury that sidelined him for the second half of last year by taking an impressive win from Aaron Hesmer. The next heat had Fafard, unbeaten last week, facing Kyle Legault and they provided four laps of pure excitement. Fafard from the inside gate grabbed the early lead while Legault used the outside line to try to get around him. He got just enough drive coming out of turn four to snatch the lead at the end of the first lap and the second lap was just as close. Both riders were pushing so hard looking for that extra little bit of traction that their front wheels lifted almost in unison as they came out of the turn.
A sign of just how fast they were going is that Joe Heye, #1 at Paris last year was well back in third place. In the end Legault pulled a little ahead for the win and the battle between them was joined. This trio each went unbeaten for the rest of the night to reach the final where they were joined by Mercier.

Legault had his choice of gate for the final and chose gate two and then completely missed the start. Mercier grabbed the early lead but left a gap coming out of turn four and Fafard seized the chance to come through for the lead. He seemed to have the race well in hand when he lifted on the back straight, hit the fence and went down hard. After treatment he made it out for the restart. This time Legault made no mistake and took a comfortable win while Fafard overcame his 10 yard penalty to take second place with another fine effort with Heye taking third after Mercier went down on the last lap.

The D2 class provided more close racing with John Perry wowing the fans with a storming win from the penalty line when he caught and passed the rest of the field within two laps. To make things even better for him he then went on to win his first D2 Main event from Lee Charland, Phil Small and Phil Mosquera.

John Bennett was again the class of D3 but Corinne Franic made her fans happy with her first win of the season. Fans held their breath when newcomer Graham Wale was involved in a spectacular accident in only his third race. Happily, although he went through the safety fence, he escaped serious injury and was in fine spirits in the pits after the meeting.

June 13th (Cancelled Rain Logged Track)

Friday June 20th 2003

Decent weather at last, an excellent track and a good rider turnout nicely balanced between classes, created the framework for a good night's racing.   Heavy rain in midweek after the track had been graded, produced a rock hard smooth base with sufficient loose dirt on top to allow different race lines. The riders responded to this and provided excellent racing throughout the program and gave the fans a truly exciting night's entertainment.   To make it a near perfect evening the spills were minor and the ambulance did not have to move all night.

A problem with the starting gate for the first heat and a couple of bike problems in the first D3 heat got the program of to a slow start but things never looked back after Phil Small set the tone for the rest of the night with a nice move to take the lead away from John Perry in the next heat.

For the fourth week in a row Nick Fafard and Lee Charland were welcome visitors, despite having made the long drive from Quebec last week only to have the events rained off at both Paris and Welland.

Fafard and Kyle Legault, mounted on the bike he bought in England for the U-21 competition, met in the first round and the fans were eagerly anticipating a rematch of their exciting action in the last meeting but it was Joe Heye who got the better of the start and had a clear lead over Legault with Fafard bringing up the rear on the second lap when Legault misjudged his line coming out of turn four, cut across the track and hit Heye before hitting the deck. There was a complete reversal of fortune in the restart in which Fafard led from start to finish, Legault came from the penalty line to take second while the unfortunate Heye, the innocent party in the accident, was relegated to last place.

The best race of the night featured a four lap duel with Fafard probing for a way past Aaron Hesmer on the inside of each turn and finally battling through to edge ahead around the final two turns only for Hesmer to find enough drive coming out of the turn to catch and repass him on the run to the line and win by less than a wheel. Just as entertaining was another four lap battle between Rob Dixon and Gary Hesmer for third place in which they went side by side for most of the race and seemed to swap positions at least twice a lap. Great stuff to watch!

For the second meeting in a row Legault had his choice of starting position in the final, again chose gate two and again it did not work for him. Fafard led form the gate and in the end took a comfortable win as Legault slowed with bike problems and was overtaken by first Mercier and then Hesmer.

Star of the night in D2 was unquestionably Phil Small. Just back from a trip to the UK he was suffering from jet lag and claimed to be be 'shattered' but this didn't affect his riding.   He was able to use both the inside and outside lines as necessary and came from behind several during the night, including his win in the final to complete his best night's racing to date.

With six riders in D3 racing was much more competitive this week. Aaron De Veau emerged as the winner in his first outing of the season by using the outside line to come from the back on several occasions.   It may not be long before he is ready to move up a grade. Shawn Morrison, also making his debut for the season, showed that he can challenge John Bennett for Rookie honors.

Friday June 27th 2003

The spell of ninety degree weather broke in time to provide excellent race conditions which helped attract the biggest crowd yet of the season. The late arrival of the St John ambulance delayed the start of racing but once underway things ran smoothly including the first appearance on the program of a P50 class. With a meeting at their local track the following night, long distance travellers Nick Fafard and Lee Charland were missing from the program for the first time this season.

Although the track was in excellent condition again the racing, although entertaining, lacked the edge that it had last week. However it did have its moments several of which were crammed into the final three races of the night.

In the D2 final John Perry timed the start perfectly, rocketed from the gate, and was several lengths ahead at the first turn when the race was stopped with the referee ruling that it was an unsatisfactory start and bringing all four riders back to the tapes for the restart. Presumably this was because Perry was judged to be rolling as the tapes were released as he did not touch them.   Second time around it was Phil Small who got the better of the start and went on to win followed by the Mosquera brothers, Phil and Bob as Perry went down on the first lap. He remounted but was well back at the finish and then showed his sportsmanship by congratulating Small on the cool down lap although he must have been feeling disappointed that his original jet propelled start was called back.
The next race up was the D1 Consi and kudos in this go to Rob Dixon who did an excellent job of laying his bike down to avoid a rider who fell in front of him. Surprisingly the race was not stopped and both riders were left to remount and rejoin the race far behind the leader Aaron Hesmer who cruised around for the win.   In the end Dixon was most unfortunate to lose a place as a result of laying his bike down but more importantly he did get the approval of his fellow riders.

There was no controversy in the D1 main event but plenty of excitement. Joe Heye made the gate and battled Kyle Legault for the lead around the first two turns and looked to have the better line when he lost control, did a 180 degree pirouette and went down. Fortunately the other riders managed to avoid him but he had to go to the penalty line for the restart. This time John Mercier was first out of turn two but Kyle Legault powered through on the inside to take the lead by the end of the first lap.   Although chased hard by Mercier, Legault never looked like being caught and took the win while Gary Hesmer continued his run of improved performances with a third place finish.

Although not the fastest race of the night one of the most entertaining was a D3 battle between veteran Paul Martin and Shawn Morrison in which they battled hard for all four laps swapping the lead back and forth several times during the race. Morrison then led the final from start to finish to earn his first main event win.

Friday July 4th 2003

A spell of hot weather gave way to thunderstorms early Friday evening but Paris defied the odds, shook off the effects of a mid-afternoon shower and lived up to its reputation as a track that manages to avoid the worst of the bad weather as the meeting took place. Perhaps it was this reputation that helped to attract the biggest crowd of the season for 'Symes Catering Night' and they were rewarded with another night of excellent racing. With lightning visible in surrounding areas after the interval, the program was run as quickly as possible in case of rain that happily did not come.

There was plenty of action on the track too with top American Craig Estelle adding spice to a very competitive D1 class. Unbeaten in two previous visits to Paris, that record went in his first heat when Kyle Legault squeezed past him coming out of turn four to takeover the lead and go on to win.
Falls in his first two races put Joe Heye out of the running for a place in the final but competition was tight with one round left. Needing points, Estelle booked his place with perhaps the best effort of the night when, back in third place after two laps, he powered around John Mercier then caught and passed Kyle Legault around the final two turns after the latter faltered for a moment on the back straight. That left Aaron Hesmer and Nick Fafard to battle for the last place and it was Hesmer who was the odd man out.   To make matters worse for him he had bike problems while leading the Consi and could only watch as Joe Heye went past to take the win from Rob Dixon.

This week Legault selected gate one for the final and made it work. He just beat Fafard to the turn and was never headed as he took his third main event win.   Behind them Estelle took a lap to get around Mercier who then got into trouble next time around trying to do the same to the American and came off, happily without injury.

Marc Gauthier moved down to D2 due to the rider numbers and program setup.    His experience showed and he was just that bit sharper than the D2 regulars, particularly from the gate and around the first turn, and he went unbeaten on the night. John Perry did make him work for his win in the final jumping out to the early lead before falling on the second lap.   He remounted and finished third with Phil Small taking second behind Gauthier.

With only three riders D3 was decided on total points over the night and the decision went right down to the final two turns of their last heat. John Bennett missed the gate, moved up to second on the second lap and set out after race leader Shawn Morrison. A determined effort saw him catch up going into the final two turns and a burst around the outside saw him squeeze past and snatch the win with a fine effort.

Friday July 11th 2003

Defying the odds of rain and storms in most of the surrounding areas, the Paris track was bone dry a couple of hours before racing was due to start. Unfortunately the threat of rain kept most of the fans and several of the regular riders at home. However those who were there put on a good show and despite the cold the fans who were there stayed to the end and enjoyed the shorter than usual race program.

Kyle Legault came out on top of D1 for the third week in a row although Aaron Hesmer made him work hard for the win. Hesmer surprised Legault by finding drive out of turn two and zipping past his rival in the
deciding heat. He held the lead until Legault used the outside line at the same spot to overtake him and move ahead for the win.
In view of the short program an extra elimination race was staged at the end of the night between the four D1 riders. The format for this was for the riders to race for a single lap with the last place rider dropping out, a similar one lap dash to eliminate a second rider and then a two lap race between the remaining riders to determine the winner. In this Aaron Hesmer hopes of winning disappeared quickly when he looped at gate and went to the penalty line for the restart. Despite a strong ride from there line he was still a length behind Gary Hesmer at the line and was eliminated. Gary was next to go leaving Joe Heye and Kyle L as the survivors. For the third tine in a row Heye did not get the starting position he wanted when he drew gate four. Despite this he had the edge around the first two turns but bobbled it striving for the line he wanted out of two and that was all that Legault needed to roar past him and take the win.

D2 and D3 were combined into a single class for the night and provided some excellent competition between the pairings John Perry and Phil Small and John Bennett and Shawn Morrison with Small and Bennett just having the edge on the night.   Unfortunately the other two riders in this class crashed early in the program and Graham Wale was sidelined with a broken hand plus a broken finger. Corinne Franic injured her hand in the same crash but was able to continue riding.

Friday July 18th 2003

For the first time in three weeks the weather was good as was the crowd. With only two riders in D3 as due to last week's accident, that class was combined with D2 for the night and D3 regulars John Bennett and Shawn Morrison reveled in the stonger opposition and both made the final while continuing their personal chase for the season high points title.

Jeff Orosz made a welcome returrn to the Paris track after his early season injury at Leamington and was in thick of the action all night. His presence made the D1 class even more competitive than usual and racing was always entertaining as the riders battled for each point and a place in the final.   With Joe Heye in good form and Aaron Hesmer getting a zero return in his first race when he dropped out with more bike troubles, it looked as if Hesmer might be headed for the Consi again but he stormed back and a win over Legault and Mercier in his final race enabled him to squeeze past Mercier and join Legault, Orosz and Heye in the final.
Another battle between the teenagers seemed to be underway when Legault, out of gate one, and Hesmer, out of gate four, emerged side side by side from turn two. However, as they dove into turn three Hesmer slid out and off. Although Orosz took up the chase he never looked likely to catch Legault who went on to take the Final for the fourth week in a row. Heye was third while Hesmer sportingly remounted to avoid a restart, and finished fourth.

With Phil Small missing this week John Perry always looked the likely winner in D2 although John Bennett did manage to beat him by half a wheel with a great effort in one race. He shot of the line and had a comfortable lead in the final only to slide off on the second lap.   Shawn Morrison inherited the lead and held it for a lap until Phil Mosquera got past and earned his first checkered flag of the season. Behind them Perry had remounted and just managed to chase down and catch Bennett out of the final turn to take third.
Other efforts to catch the eye included a perfect drive around the outside by Steve Glasgow to overtake Gary Hesmer in one race and a good effort by Pete Hamm to lay his bike down to avoid Shawn Morrison who fell in front of him.

Friday July 25th 2003

"Dean Bencsics Memorial Meeting"

The first Dean Bencsics Memorial Meeting was a huge success and it is a mark of the respect in which he was held by his many friends that it attracted by far the biggest crowd of the season. It’s timing, Great weather, lots of prizes for the fans from several sponsors, 35 heats of exciting racing, some spills and controversy over some refereeing decisions all added up to a great night’s entertainment for the fans and the hope that this may become an annual event.

The strongest field of D1 riders of the season ensured that racing in this class was competitive throughout the night as the riders battled for a place in the main event. They provided lots of truly exciting action with shoulder to shoulder racing happening several times.   Kyle Legault went unbeaten through the qualifiers and was joined in the final by Nick Fafard making a welcome reappearance after a couple of weeks absence. A fall by Craig Estelle in his final heat left him tied in points with Jeff Orosz and Aaron Hesmer for the remaining two places.   Estelle got in as he had beaten the other two when they last met and as Orosz and Hesmer had not met during the night it had to go to the second method – race wins – to break the tie and this put Orosz into the final and relegate Hesmer to the Consi which he then proceeded to win.

With such a high quality field for the final the start was critical as evidenced by three riders touching the tape as the referee held them at the start.   They must have been relieved when he ruled a full restart rather than penalize anyone. When the tapes did go up it was Estelle who just beat Legault to the first turn. The four laps that followed were classic speedway. Legault was all over Estelle looking for the smallest gap on the inside at every turn. Often barely the length of a wheel separated them but the American was unflappable. He soaked up the pressure and did not move from his race line and did not yield an inch to the youngster. Although there was no passing during the race it was a spine-tingler and well worth the price of admission. Third place went to Nick Fafard.

Phil Small led the D2 final for two laps but the race was halted and rerun due to a fall when Lee Charland went down on the second lap.    John Perry took advantage of his second chance and led from start to finish to notch a very popular win and one which was fitting in view of his close friendship with Dean.

In D3 John Bennett went unbeaten through the qualifying heats but fell on the second lap of the final while leading. He got off the track but despite his bike being left on it the race continued and Shawn Morrison got the win. The result was protested and the outcome of this will not be known for some time.

Friday August 1st 2003

Despite a forecast of rain there was a good rider turnout for the meeting. The field included one rider, Chris Houtby, having his first outing. The weather during the week and practice on Tuesday produced a track that was not as consistent as usual and which developed some ruts on the turns that gave the riders some problems until shaved down half way through the night.

Kyle Legault continued his domination of racing here and swept through the program unbeaten. His win in the main event was his sixth in eight meetings. John Mercier looked likely to give him his stiffest opposition when he led him for almost two laps before Legault found a way through on the inside coming out of turn four. However Mercier fell on the last lap and a harder fall in his next heat left him sidelined for the rest of the night.   So it was Aaron Hesmer who finished in second place in both qualifying points and the main event while Joe Heye took third and Marc Gauthier had his best outing yet at Paris and reached the D1 final for the first time.

Phil Mosquera got things off to a good start in D2 by holding off a strong challenge from John Perry with Phil Small pinned back in third but thereafter the night belonged to Small who went unbeaten for the rest of the evening including a win in the main event when he had to hold off a strong challenge from Phil Mosquera whose form has improved in recent weeks.   Also showing much improved form was Aaron De Veau while Pete Hamm had a better night and just missed a place in the final.

In D3 John Bennett and Shawn Morrison continued their season long battle and for the second week in a row it was Morrison who came out on top.   Chris Houtby, riding Graham Wale's bike showed promising form in his first outing.

Aug 8th (Cancelled Rain Logged Track)

Aug 15th (Cancelled Rain Logged Track)

Friday August 22nd 2003

After missing two weeks to first a thunderstorm and then the large scale power outage which affected all of Ontario, racing returned to Paris this Friday. There was a smaller than usual D1 field and Kyle Legault picked up from where he left off at the last meeting by going through the meeting unbeaten and basically untroubled to once again take D1 honors for the night. Behind him Aaron Hesmer finished in second place with Joe Heye third and Greg Starcevic fourth.

Going into the meeting Phil Small trailed John Perry by two points in the season's high points race and they had a fantastic race when they met in the opening D2 heat. They swapped the lead three or four times during the race and hotly contested the entry to each turn throughout the race. Pure entertainment that ended with Small winning and narrowing the gap to a single point. However, that was the high point of the night for him as a couple of falls in subsequent races saw the gap widen to four points by the end of the night. These two topped the qualifying points but it was Phil Mosquera who won the race that mattered when he swept around the outside of turn four on the first lap of the final to grab the lead and leave the others behind him for his second main event win of the season. Unfortunately it wasn't such a good night for brother Bob who had the misfortune to break a finger in a fall in his third heat race.

Michael Martin Evans made his season debut in Division 3 but it was dad Paul who continued to show the leaders in D3 that he still has what it takes by topping the qualifying points and taking his first main event win of the season. Part of the drama in this division was in the pits as high points leader John Bennett struggled to get his bike running while rival Shawn Morrison was on the track whittling away at his points lead. In the end Bennett missed his first two heats and a fall in his final outing allowed Morrison to reduce his lead to only four points by the end of the night. However, it wasn't all plain sailing for Morrison as he crashed heavily into the boards on the front straight in the most spectacular spill of the night.

Saturday 30th August 2003

The meeting had plenty of action with D2 providing most of the exciting racing and D3 more than its share of minor spills. Fortunately those involved escaped with minor scrapes and bruises.

Eight riders in each class allowed for four qualifying rounds after which the top four met in a final race with the remaining four taking part in a consolation event.   However, the result was not based on the final race but on total points over the night with points in the final being 5-3-2-1 and in the heats 4-3-2-1 and any ties in points being broken in the usual way by the finishing position in the final.   As it turned out the D2 championship was decided by that additional point at stake for the winner of the final.

As the riders came to the tapes three of the four could still win the title by winning the race. Phil Small was ahead in points with 15, while John Perry had 14 and Phil Lemay 13. Phil Mosquera was the other finalist but with 9 points he could not catch Small. Perry’s hopes vanished as the tapes went up when his engine gave up the ghost and he could only watch as the others raced away. Lemay grabbed the lead and although Small stayed close for most of the race, he stretched his advantage over the final lap for a comfortable win. The two-point differential between first and second place tied him on points with Small and gave him the title based on his higher placing in the final heat.

Competition was close throughout the meeting between the top three and they provided plenty of action when they met. Small showcased his ability with a spectacular ride in his final qualifying heat.   Last after the first lap, he overtook Aaron De Veau but was still back in third place behind Lemay and race leader Charland as they approached the final turns. Lemay opted for the inside line leaving the outside to Small. It proved to be a bad choice as he was pinned behind Charland while Small was able to find the drive to power around both and snatch the win which gave him his point advantage going into the final.

The competition in D3 was not nearly as close as the anticipated battle between Shawn Morrison and John Bennett simply did not happen.   Both Bennett and last week’s winner Paul Martin had meetings they will want to forget as Bennett hit the track four times during the night and Martin went down three times.   Going into the final Shawn Morrison had a four-point edge over his nearest rivals and only needed to finish to take the title. It took three tries to complete this but although Jocelyn Lesieur overtook him on the final lap to deprive him of a maximum score the title was his by a comfortable margin.

Quite a night for Morrison as not only did he win the championship he finally moved past Bennett, after weeks of chasing him, in the hunt for the season’s high points total and must now be favored to complete the double by clinching this next week.

Lesieur finished as runner up and showed that he has improved considerably since his last visit to Paris two years ago. Chris Houtby will also be pleased with his third place finish while Michael Martin Evans grabbed a spot in the final and showed that he only needs track time to challenge the best in this division.

Sunday August 31st 2003

Race Format was the traditional 16 man, 20-heat program with the four top scorers moving forward to a final race and the winner based on total points for the night.

With Craig Estelle and Jerry Harman traveling up from New York, Michel Lemay from Quebec, Bobby Muszynski coming out of retirement and the top finishers from the previous day’s D2 championship also taking part, fans were looking forward to an entertaining meeting and they were not disappointed.

None of the meeting favorites slipped up in the early heats and Muszynski showed that although he may not have been race fit he could still race with the best.   After three rounds the race was well underway for a place in the final four with only two points separating the top six. Kyle Legault and Estelle were unbeaten, Joe Heye and Aaron Hesmer were a point back with Harman and Muszynski two back.

While Heye, Harman, and Hesmer get up their challenge with wins in the next round something had to give when Legault, Muszynski and Estelle went head to head. Legault and Muszynski hit the first turn fractionally ahead of Estelle who was forced wide and the race was on. Legault picked off Muszynski on the first lap and raced off for the win. Estelle looked likely to take second as Muszynki appeared to be tiring but unfortunately for him was pinned outside him as Muszynski drifted out to the boards and took him with him and all but out of the race.   Fred Legault seized his chance to move into second and Muszynski kept going to take third while Estelle could only restart and circle round for fourth.

The first heat in the final round was crucial as Heye, Harman, Hesmer and Estelle were all in it and needing points. Heye made the gate and led from start to finish with Estelle holding off Hesmer’s challenge for second while Harman was at the back. In the third lap Hesmer got the entry into turn three wrong and to avoid Estelle’s rear wheel went right out to the fence allowing Harman to move past and take third.   This mistake meant the end of the night for Hesmer as it left him tied with points with Estelle and Harman for the last two places in the final four and eliminated as a result of finishing behind them when they met.

All four finalists still had a chance to win as they came to the tapes but Legault left nothing to chance and after he found a tiny gap to squeeze past Estelle out of turn four the result was never in doubt.   His win was popular with the fans and put an exclamation point to his domination of racing at Paris this summer.

Behind him Heye was in excellent form and had his best finish of the year. While Craig Estelle could feel unlucky with the manner in which he lost points in his critical fourth race fellow American Harman was delighted with his fourth place finish. Tribute is also due to Michel Lemay who aggravated his injured shoulder during the meeting but resisted the recommendation of the St John Ambulance staff and continued to race and managed a sixth place finish with a truly gutsy performance.

Friday September 5th 2003

This additional race was staged to offset the two meetings lost in August to the weather and the black out.   Unfortunately, despite the increased prize money on offer it did not attract the usual number of riders. However if the program lacked variety it did not lack interest, as there was something at stake in each division besides the prize money.

In D1 Kyle Legault , Aaron Hesmer and Joe Heye all had their moments with Hesmer looking particularly sharp. However, it was Legault once again coming out on top although this time he suffered his first defeat at Paris in several weeks.   He came from behind to beat Hesmer in the first heat. But when he missed the gate in his next race and tried to make his patented move on the inside of turn one, he found his path blocked by Joe Heye, made contact with him, shot across the track and finished up in a heap against the fence.   That put him on the penalty line for the restart and he never looked like catching up to either Hesmer or Heye. It looked like another loss for him next time out as Heye had the lead and control of the race only to swing wide at the beginning of the final lap and lose the lead. Later it was revealed that he had miscounted the laps and thought the race was over. All in all some good racing spiced up by Legault's chase for points to break Len Dillon's single season record which he achieved during the meeting to cap a great season for him.

However, unquestionably the best action of the night was the battle for season's D2 High Point honors between Phil Small and John Perry. Perry has a single point advantage going into the meeting and gated well all night but Small would not be denied and his efforts to come from the back kept the crowd entertained. Their first race was typical of their battles.   Perry got the lead from the gate and held off Small's challenges for the first three laps. Small caught him on the inside out of turn two on the final lap and moved ahead on the back straight. Perry did not give up and fought back so that there was only half a wheel separating them at the line. Two more come from behind wins gave Small the lead but Perry kept the pressure up with a start to finish win in the next heat. This meant that Small had a one-point margin as they came to the line for the final race. This time Small finally got the better of the gate and when Perry fell on the second lap it was all over with Small taking the honors.   In a sporting gesture and a fitting finish for their friendly season long battle, he gave Perry a pillion ride for his victory lap and the crowd responded with warm applause for them both.

The D3 \High Points title was also up for grabs but with John Bennett absent the title went to Shawn Morrison who then went on to celebrate with an unbeaten night. It was good to see veteran Graham Wale back on the track for the first time since being injured early in the season.