Canadian Speedway Racing Association

June 12th (Cancelled Rain Logged Track)

Saturday June 21st 2003
Unfortunately the wet weather which caused last week's season opener to be cancelled was still a factor this week. The ground had still not dried out and the result was a very heavy, extremely tacky track which was ok for the flat-track and ATV classes but was completely unsuitable for speedway. The result was a meeting best forgotten, with the track being so tacky that it was hardly possible to get the bike sideways through the turns so that most riders had to resort to a semi-flat track style of riding. This produced a series of processional races with the riders usually well spread out. Exciting it wasn't! All three D2 races were similar with Lee Charland and Phil Small well ahead of John Bennett and the only pass was in the second race when Charland was able to catch and pass Small. The action in Division 1 was a bit better but offered little entertainment. Heat 1 . The riders were well spread out with Kyle Legault leading Nick Fafard only to come to a halt on the third lap when he blew the motor on the bike he bought in the UK to race in the U-21 championship. Heat 2. Just how difficult the track conditions were became clear when John Kehoe, bothered by a sore shoulder, zipped from the gate and emerged from turn two with a comfortable lead, only to pull to the inside of the track on the back straight, let the other riders pass him and then simply coasted around to complete his four laps. Joe Heye took the win ahead of Aaron Hesmer but the riders were far apart. Heat 3. Drew Kehoe led from the gate and took the win. Joe Heye slowed on the final lap with his engine misfiring and Rob Dixon caught and passed him for second place on the run to the line. Heat 4. Best race of the night with Kyle Legault, on his dad's bike, chasing race leader Nick Fafard for all four laps. However the track simply did not allow for safe racing and his efforts got him into and out of trouble more than once during the race and showed why John Kehoe opted again to cruise around and settle for a most uncharacteristic fourth place finish. FINAL The result was a most unusual line-up for the final with neither of the Legaults or John Kehoe qualifying. Nick Fafard led from the first turn and ran away from the rest of the field to win by a wide margin. Behind him Drew Kehoe passed Joe Heye to earn his best finish yet. Congratulations go to the riders for doing their best on a very difficult track but in the end probably only Nick Fafard and Drew Kehoe can take much satisfaction from the night. Fafard rode well and had to be pleased with his first main event win at Welland while Drew Kehoe handled the conditions extremely well and appears to be much improved from last year. However it was an expensive and unhappy night for Kyle Legault with the destruction of his motor while it wasn't much of a night for Andy Delimat who made the long trip from his Wisconsin home to ride here for the first time since he broke his leg here several years ago only to find such a difficult track and to make things worse miss his first ride due to bike problems.

Saturday June 28th 2003
The warm weather during the week dried out the Welland track and it was in good shape for this week's race. There was a good crowd on hand but with several riders having made the trip to Quebec to take part in the St. Alex race there were only seven competitors in the speedway class. Jeff Orosz made his return to the track despite having broken two bones in his foot in his crash at the Leamington half-mile. He rode with a leg brace and although he had some pain happily there were no major ill effects. Andy Harris made his season debut having finally got his bike in running order and made it a night he will always remember. He showed no signs of being rusty from his layoff and to the delight of the crowd capped his return by winning his first ever Main event win at Welland, something he has long wanted to do.

July 5th (Cancelled Rain Logged Track)

Saturday July 12th 2003
A long eventful night that did not finish until almost midnight. The meeting did not get underway until eight p.m. and long delays when the lights went out and Andy Harris's accident made for a long program. Add in confusion and a dispute over which rider should get the last berth in the final and it all added up to a harried night for the organisers. Fortunately when the track lights went out the riders were on their cool down lap but had it happened a few minutes earlier it could have caused mayhem with fifteen novice class riders on the track at the time. Cause of the problem was a blown fuse in the main power control panel. The track had a narrow groove and got very dry. Even watering at the interval did not help much and there was no grip to provide an outside line. As a result there very little close racing let alone passing. John Kehoe was back in form and he a and Andy Harris won both their heats and looked impressive doing so. Heat 1: Orosz had a comfortable lead when he went down at turn three and slid into the haybales. He broke his footpeg but took part in the restart off the penalty line and managed a third place finish using his engine as a footrest. Aaron Hesmer had bike problems. Heat 2: John Kehoe led from the gate. Kyle Legault tried to come through on the inside of turn two but Kehoe easily rebuffed the challenge and took a comfortable win. Heat 3: Another win for John Kehoe. Although chased by Orosz he easily covered the inside and, with no alternative race lines available, won comfortably. Trying for a tight line out of four on the third lap Orosz caught his foot on the inside pipe and this flopped cross the track in front of the unfortunate Drew Kehoe who had to ride over it. This caused him to lose control and he hit the fence and came off at the start line. Making matters worse this cost him a berth in the final. Heat 4: Andy Harris was first to the turn and stretched his lead throughout the race to take an easy win ahead of Legault. Four riders were tied on three points with only one place remaining to be filled in the final. The two with the best finishes in the second round, Aaron Hesmer and Rob Dixon, had identical records and had not met during the meeting so a run-off between the four riders was announced but did not take place. Instead, after representations from some of the speedway group, Aaron Hesmer was given the place in the final although the reason for this is not clear and it seems that Rob Dixon in particular got the short end of the stick on this occasion. Consi : Rob Dixon went wide on the second turn while battling for second place and dropped back leaving Drew Kehoe to chase Joe Heye without ever looking likely to catch him. Final : Kehoe had what looked likely to be a secure lead when Kyle Legault slid off at the third time in pretty much the same spot than Orosz came off earlier. Harris then slid off while trying to avoid him and went into the boards hard feet first. After a lengthy delay for the city ambulance to arrive he was transferred directly to it and taken to hospital with possible back injuries. In the restart it was Aaron Hesmer who zipped out of gate one and was first to the turn. This time his bike performed flawlessly and he led from start to finish for a comfortable win ahead of Legault, Orosz and Kehoe.

Saturday July 26th 2003 - Canadian Championship Race
This year's Nationals will likely be remembered as the year Kyle Legault fulfilled his abundant promise and won his first Canadian National Championship. In doing so at eighteen, he became the youngest rider to capture the title since the CMA recognized speedway as an official class. But it should also be remembered as the year that misfortune snatched the crown away from Craig Estelle who came within seconds of winning it. There was never more than a point separating them throughout the meeting and they were tied for the lead going into the final race. Estelle had won meetings at St Alex and Paris earlier in the season and looked set to complete a trifecta of victories on Canadian tracks when he made the better gate and grabbed the lead. Although chased hard by Legault, he was in command and seemed to have the race won with just over a lap to go. However, the race is never won until the checkered flag is displayed and it was one lap too many for Estelle's motor as the top end went and he could only watch as the rest of the field and the title disappeared into the distance. Legault made no mistakes on the final lap and took the win to the delight of the local fans. The meeting was also the third round in the ECSS (East Coast Speedway Series) and this brought several US riders up to take part. A full field of 25 contested the event in front of a solid crowd that ignored the threat of more rain that persisted throughout the meeting. Heavy rainfall in the afternoon created a tacky track for the first round of racing but it improved throughout the night and was in good shape well before the end of the program. All the favorites won their heats in the opening seeded round in which the biggest surprise was a second place finish by D2 regular Phil Small who parlayed a fast start and the track conditions into a second place finish ahead of a couple of D1 riders. The Kehoe family had conflicting fortunes in the second round. Drew had an impressive win in the "second place finishers" race while in the "winners" heat his dad John's motor failed as he left the line, ending his hopes of successfully defending his title. In this heat Legault took the win and the early lead from Estelle while Nick Fafard took advantage of a slip by Jeff Orosz to pass him for third. Orosz made up for this next time out by powering around John Kehoe going into the third turn and taking the win with Marc Gauthier taking third with a good ride. This time in the top scorers race it was Estelle who won the charge to the first turn and got the win to pull level in the standings with Legault who finished second ahead of Joe Heye. With Estelle and Legault four points ahead of their nearest challengers the title was now virtually a two-man race. With points now critical for a top ten finish and a place in the next round, Jerry Harman grabbed a spot for himself with a win over Brian Hollenbeck and Aaron Hesmer and in doing so eliminated them from further action. Then it was Nick Fafard keeping his hopes of a top three finish alive with a good win over the impressive Drew Kehoe while behind them Rob Dixon and Marc Gauthier grabbed a top ten spot at the expense of Michel Lemay. As always the competition was fierce in the top scorers race. This time it was Estelle and Orosz who reached the turn first but they made contact as they both tried for the inside line at the crown of the turn and finished up in a heap against the fence. After a delay to get treatment and fix their bikes they both went to the penalty line for the restart, although that may have been a harsh decision for Estelle as Orosz seemed to be the one mainly responsible. Legault took advantage of his second chance and grabbed the lead but all eyes were on Estelle who kept his title hopes alive by powering around the outside, getting drive where no one else had been able to find it earlier. He quickly caught and passed (John) Kehoe and Heye and closed in on Legault. However, that was as far as he could get as Kyle made no mistakes, and got the win to again move a point ahead. Estelle kept the pressure on by winning the first semi from Fafard. Orosz then improved his chances for a podium finish by leading the other semi from start to finish with a perfect ride that pinned Legult back in second place and left the top two level on points with only one heat to go. In this, although all eyes were on the battle between Legault and Estelle, there was another vital race going on behind them as Orosz took second ahead of Fafard, a finish that gave him third place in the final standings. The result was immensely popular with the local crowd and although there was an element of good luck in his win Kyle earned it with easily his best performance yet at Welland. Until this meeting he had not shown that he was as comfortable on the slick clay surface of the large Welland track as he was at Paris where he has dominated racing in recent weeks. On this night he gated and rode well and never looked likely to make a mistake. He handled the pressure of his meeting long battle with Estelle and has now established himself, at least for the time being, as the top rider in Canada with the potential to get even better. The Nationals often produce some unexpected performances and best of these this year was by another 18-year old, Drew Kehoe. His sixth place finish was impressively earned by some fast, controlled, stylish riding throughout the meeting that even brought him a place in the top scorers race in one round. Marc Gauthier and Rob Dixon can also be pleased with their results while Joe Heye will be delighted with his top five finish. Small track specialist Nick Fafard was another with his best finish yet in a Nationals and almost got a top three finish, while Jeff Orosz showed that he is rounding back into form after his early season injury.

Saturday August 2nd 2003
A good track and an excellent crowd for what was originally planned as the final night of the season. It started off in an unusual way with a wedding ceremony taking place on the track before the start of racing. Quite a change from last week's Nationals field as there were only eight riders on hand this week. Racing in the heats was fairly pedestrian but the final changed all that with an exciting three man four lap battle that would have been a fitting climax to the season were it the last race as originally intended. Heat 1 : Jeff Orosz was first to the turn and won comfortably. Behind him John Kehoe got past Aaron Hesmer on the first lap and finished second although Hesmer was not far behind at the end. Heat 2 : Kyle Legault was an easy winner with the field well spread out behind him. Heat 3: Ragged start with some riders moving before the tapes went up and Rob Dixon left far behind. Legault had a rather easy win with the action focused on the race for second place. Kehoe went around the outside of Hesmer on turns three four on the second lap and completed the pass on the front straight to clinch his place in the final. Heat 4: John Bennett went down at turn two on the first lap and finished a long slide in the hay bales. He received treatment for an ankle injury and did not come out for the restart. In this a very quick looking Orosz ran away from the rest of the field. With four riders tied on four points the Consi race was used to break the tie, with the top two from this transferring to the final. Consi : More problems in the first turn when Drew Kehoe highsided it and came down hard. This brought the St John ambulance out again only this time they were a little to quick as they pulled onto the track in front of Hesmer and Dixon, fortunately without further incident. Kehoe was not able to make the restart which Hesmer won from Dixon while Phil Small's third place finish brought him a sixth place finish overall and his first payday in D1 racing. Final : Legault chose the outside gate and used this to advantage to grab the early lead from Kehoe and Orosz. Kehoe came close as he tried to come through on the inside out of turn four but couldn't get enough drive to do so. With the inside line blocked to him Orosz spent the entire race looking for enough drive to sweep around the outside but it simply wasn't there. However, his efforts to power around the turns thrilled the crowd and although he often lost ground doing so, he seemed to have the fastest bike and continually made up ground for another challenge. His efforts helped Legault as Kehoe had to pay attention to him rather than concentrate on catching the leader. In the end there were no position changes although these three stayed close throughout the race. Hesmer took fourth while Dixon appeared to get entangled with the pipe marking the inside line at turn three and went down on the final lap.

Saturday September 13th 2003
The Welland club was rewarded for their gamble in staging an extra meeting in September to offset those lost in their traditional race season when they attracted a crowd that easily exceeded the 1,000 level and was the biggest for a race there in several years. The start of the official portion of the program featured a tribute to young flat-tracker Chris Miller who was killed in a racing accident at the half-mile event race at Barrie late last month. The track was slick and dry and as a result passing was very difficult on what was basically a single line track although Jeff Orosz certainly did his best to prove otherwise. The younger generation of riders had to take a back seat on the night as veterans John Kehoe and Jeff Orosz showed they still have what it takes and provided almost all the entertainment with a couple of great races including the final. It was a vintage performance by Kehoe who was a little faster to the first turn and parlayed this into an unbeaten night. Chris Houtby turned out on a speedway bike for the first time at Welland and as a result a D2 class was run despite this having only three entrants. Unfortunately Houtby had bike problems and did not take part after the first heat. With only one of three, Phil Small, being a genuine D2 rider, it meant that he had clinched the season's D2 High Points title before racing began. Heat 1. Easy win for Small. Houtby looked good as he overtook Bennett but his motor started spluttering and he could only manage to coast home. Heat 2. Legault gated first but Orosz caught up and drove around him at turn three and went on to win comfortably by a dozen lengths. Heat 3. Heye touched tapes but race allowed to continue. Race well spread out with Kehoe taking an easy win. Heat 4. Only two starters. No competition for Small who won by a quarter of a lap. Heat 5. Best race so far. John Kehoe and Orosz were shoulder to shoulder on the back straight on lap 1 before Kehoe moved ahead. For the rest of the race Orosz never stopped trying but Kehoe had control of the race line and had a couple of lengths to spare at the end. Heat 6. Most of the action was at the beginning of the race. Legault lifted as he came off the line and was last into the first turn. Drew Kehoe was leading when he picked up some extra traction, lifted in the middle of the turn and moved wide as he fought for control. He did well to keep control while Heye and Hesmer went past him on either side while Legault took advantage of the vacated inside line and nipped past all of them. Hesmer got close to Legault later in the race only to lose ground when he went wide at turn three. Heat 7. Rob Dixon and Drew Kehoe had a good race as they battled for sixth place. Dixon led from start to finish with a fast smooth effort to take the win while Kehoe kept things interesting by staying close throughout. Heat 8. Again only two starters and Small won by an even larger margin than last time. FINAL: Kehoe led from Orosz, Heye. Legault and Hesmer going into turn three when Legault tried to power inside Heye. Contact many have been and Hesmer laid his bike down to avoid trouble only to have it and him skate across the track and into the hay bales. He borrowed David Hensby's bike for the restart. Again Kehoe grabbed the lead off the line and the race quickly became a two man affair. He was hounded for all four laps by Orosz who gave it everything he had but Kehoe fought off each challenge and crossed the line with a Orosz a mere yard behind his rear tire. All in all a great race to mark the close of the Canadian season.

June 12th (Cancelled Rain Logged Track)

Saturday June 21st 2003

Unfortunately the wet weather which caused last week's season opener to be cancelled was still a factor this week. The ground had still not dried out and the result was a very heavy, extremely tacky track which was ok for the flat-track and ATV classes but was completely unsuitable for speedway. The result was a meeting best forgotten, with the track being so tacky that it was hardly possible to get the bike sideways through the turns so that most riders had to resort to a semi-flat track style of riding. This produced a series of
processional races with the riders usually well spread out.   Exciting it wasn't!

All three D2 races were similar with Lee Charland and Phil Small well ahead of John Bennett and the only pass was in the second race when Charland was able to catch and pass Small.

The action in Division 1 was a bit better but offered little entertainment.
Heat 1 . The riders were well spread out with Kyle Legault leading Nick Fafard only to come to a halt on the third lap when he blew the motor on the bike he bought in the UK to race in the U-21 championship.
Heat 2.    Just how difficult the track conditions were became clear when John Kehoe, bothered by a sore shoulder, zipped from the gate and emerged from turn two with a comfortable lead, only to pull to the inside of the track on the back straight, let the other riders pass him and then simply coasted around to complete his four laps. Joe Heye took the win ahead of Aaron Hesmer but the riders were far apart.

Heat 3. Drew Kehoe led from the gate and took the win. Joe Heye slowed on the final lap with his engine misfiring and Rob Dixon caught and passed him for second place on the run to the line.

Heat 4. Best race of the night with Kyle Legault, on his dad's bike, chasing race leader Nick Fafard for all four laps. However the track simply did not allow for safe racing and his efforts got him into and out of trouble more than once during the race and showed why John Kehoe opted again to cruise around and settle for a most uncharacteristic fourth place finish.

FINAL      The result was a most unusual line-up for the final with neither of the Legaults or John Kehoe qualifying. Nick Fafard led from the first turn and ran away from the rest of the field to win by a wide margin. Behind him Drew Kehoe passed Joe Heye to earn his best finish yet.

Congratulations go to the riders for doing their best on a very difficult track but in the end probably only Nick Fafard and Drew Kehoe can take much satisfaction from the night.   Fafard rode well and had to be pleased with his first main event win at Welland while Drew Kehoe handled the conditions extremely well and appears to be much improved from last year.

However it was an expensive and unhappy night for Kyle Legault with the destruction of his motor while it wasn't much of a night for Andy Delimat who made the long trip from his Wisconsin home to ride here for the first time since he broke his leg here several years ago only to find such a difficult track and to make things worse miss his first ride due to bike problems.

Saturday June 28th 2003

The warm weather during the week dried out the Welland track and it was in good shape for this week's race. There was a good crowd on hand but with several riders having made the trip to Quebec to take part in the St. Alex race there were only seven competitors in the speedway class.

Jeff Orosz made his return to the track despite having broken two bones in his foot in his crash at the Leamington half-mile. He rode with a leg brace and although he had some pain happily there were no major ill effects.

Andy Harris made his season debut having finally got his bike in running order and made it a night he will always remember. He showed no signs of being rusty from his layoff and to the delight of the crowd capped his return by winning his first ever Main event win at Welland, something he has long wanted to do.

July 5th (Cancelled Rain Logged Track)

Saturday July 12th 2003

A long eventful night that did not finish until almost midnight.   The meeting did not get underway until eight p.m. and long delays when the lights went out and Andy Harris's accident made for a long program. Add in confusion and a dispute over which rider should get the last berth in the final and it all added up to a harried night for the organisers. Fortunately when the track lights went out the riders were on their cool down lap but had it happened a few minutes earlier it could have caused mayhem with fifteen novice class riders on the track at the time. Cause of the problem was a blown fuse in the main power control panel.

The track had a narrow groove and got very dry. Even watering at the interval did not help much and there was no grip to provide an outside line. As a result there very little close racing let alone passing. John Kehoe was back in form and he a and Andy Harris won both their heats and looked impressive doing so.

Heat 1: Orosz had a comfortable lead when he went down at turn three and slid into the haybales.   He broke his footpeg but took part in the restart off the penalty line and managed a third place finish using his engine as a footrest. Aaron Hesmer had bike problems.

Heat 2: John Kehoe led from the gate. Kyle Legault tried to come through on the inside of turn two but Kehoe easily rebuffed the challenge and took a comfortable win.

Heat 3: Another win for John Kehoe. Although chased by Orosz he easily covered the inside and, with no alternative race lines available, won comfortably. Trying for a tight line out of four on the third lap Orosz caught his foot on the inside pipe and this flopped cross the track in front of the unfortunate Drew Kehoe who had to ride over it. This caused him to lose control and he hit the fence and came off at the start line.   Making matters worse this cost him a berth in the final.

Heat 4: Andy Harris was first to the turn and stretched his lead throughout the race to take an easy win ahead of Legault.

Four riders were tied on three points with only one place remaining to be filled in the final. The two with the best finishes in the second round, Aaron Hesmer and Rob Dixon, had identical records and had not met during the meeting so a run-off between the four riders was announced but did not take place. Instead, after representations from some of the speedway group, Aaron Hesmer was given the place in the final although the reason for this is not clear and it seems that Rob Dixon in particular got the short end of the stick on this occasion.

Consi : Rob Dixon went wide on the second turn while battling for second place and dropped back leaving Drew Kehoe to chase Joe Heye without ever looking likely to catch him.

Final   : Kehoe had what looked likely to be a secure lead when Kyle Legault slid off at the third time in pretty much the same spot than Orosz came off earlier. Harris then slid off while trying to avoid him and went into the boards hard feet first. After a lengthy delay for the city ambulance to arrive he was transferred directly to it and taken to hospital with possible back injuries.   In the restart it was Aaron Hesmer who zipped out of gate one and was first to the turn. This time his bike performed flawlessly and he led from start to finish for a comfortable win ahead of Legault, Orosz and Kehoe.

Saturday July 26th 2003 - Canadian Championship Race

This year's Nationals will likely be remembered as the year Kyle Legault fulfilled his abundant promise and won his first Canadian National Championship. In doing so at eighteen, he became the youngest rider to capture the title since the CMA recognized speedway as an official class.   But it should also be remembered as the year that misfortune snatched the crown away from Craig Estelle who came within seconds of winning it.

There was never more than a point separating them throughout the meeting and they were tied for the lead going into the final race. Estelle had won meetings at St Alex and Paris earlier in the season and looked set to complete a trifecta of victories on Canadian tracks when he made the better gate and grabbed the lead.   Although chased hard by Legault, he was in command and seemed to have the race won with just over a lap to go.   However, the race is never won until the checkered flag is displayed and it was one lap too many for Estelle's motor as the top end went and he could only watch as the rest of the field and the title disappeared into the distance. Legault made no mistakes on the final lap and took the win to the delight of the local fans.

The meeting was also the third round in the ECSS (East Coast Speedway Series) and this brought several US riders up to take part.   A full field of 25 contested the event in front of a solid crowd that ignored the threat of more rain that persisted throughout the meeting. Heavy rainfall in the afternoon created a tacky track for the first round of racing but it improved throughout the night and was in good shape well before the end of the program.

All the favorites won their heats in the opening seeded round in which the biggest surprise was a second place finish by D2 regular Phil Small who parlayed a fast start and the track conditions into a second place finish ahead of a couple of D1 riders.

The Kehoe family had conflicting fortunes in the second round.   Drew had an impressive win in the "second place finishers" race while in the "winners" heat his dad John's motor failed as he left the line, ending his hopes of successfully defending his title.   In this heat Legault took the win and the early lead from Estelle while Nick Fafard took advantage of a slip by Jeff Orosz to pass him for third.

Orosz made up for this next time out by powering around John Kehoe going into the third turn and taking the win with Marc Gauthier taking third with a good ride. This time in the top scorers race it was Estelle who won the charge to the first turn and got the win to pull level in the standings with Legault who finished second ahead of Joe Heye.   With Estelle and Legault four points ahead of their nearest challengers the title was now virtually a two-man race.

With points now critical for a top ten finish and a place in the next round, Jerry Harman grabbed a spot for himself with a win over Brian Hollenbeck and Aaron Hesmer and in doing so eliminated them from further action. Then it was Nick Fafard keeping his hopes of a top three finish alive with a good win over the impressive Drew Kehoe while behind them Rob Dixon and Marc Gauthier grabbed a top ten spot at the expense of Michel Lemay.

As always the competition was fierce in the top scorers race. This time it was Estelle and Orosz who reached the turn first but they made contact as they both tried for the inside line at the crown of the turn and finished up in a heap against the fence. After a delay to get treatment and fix their bikes they both went to the penalty line for the restart, although that may have been a harsh decision for Estelle as Orosz seemed to be the one mainly responsible. Legault took advantage of his second chance and grabbed the lead but all eyes were on Estelle who kept his title hopes alive by powering around the outside, getting drive where no one else had been able to find it earlier. He quickly caught and passed (John) Kehoe and Heye and closed in on Legault. However, that was as far as he could get as Kyle made no mistakes, and got the win to again move a point ahead.

Estelle kept the pressure on by winning the first semi from Fafard. Orosz then improved his chances for a podium finish by leading the other semi from start to finish with a perfect ride that pinned Legult back in second place and left the top two level on points with only one heat to go.

In this, although all eyes were on the battle between Legault and Estelle, there was another vital race going on behind them as Orosz took second ahead of Fafard, a finish that gave him third place in the final standings.

The result was immensely popular with the local crowd and although there was an element of good luck in his win Kyle earned it with easily his best performance yet at Welland. Until this meeting he had not shown that he was as comfortable on the slick clay surface of the large Welland track as he was at Paris where he has dominated racing in recent weeks. On this night he gated and rode well and never looked likely to make a mistake. He handled the pressure of his meeting long battle with Estelle and has now established himself, at least for the time being, as the top rider in Canada with the potential to get even better.

The Nationals often produce some unexpected performances and best of these this year was by another 18-year old, Drew Kehoe. His sixth place finish was impressively earned by some fast, controlled, stylish riding throughout the meeting that even brought him a place in the top scorers race in one round. Marc Gauthier and Rob Dixon can also be pleased with their results while Joe Heye will be delighted with his top five finish. Small track specialist Nick Fafard was another with his best finish yet in a Nationals and almost got a top three finish, while Jeff Orosz showed that he is rounding back into form after his early season injury.

Saturday August 2nd 2003

A good track and an excellent crowd for what was originally planned as the final night of the season. It started off in an unusual way with a wedding ceremony taking place on the track before the start of racing.   Quite a change from last week's Nationals field as there were only eight riders on hand this week.
Racing in the heats was fairly pedestrian but the final changed all that with an exciting three man four lap battle that would have been a fitting climax to the season were it the last race as originally intended.
Heat 1 : Jeff Orosz was first to the turn and won comfortably. Behind him John Kehoe got past Aaron Hesmer on the first lap and finished second although Hesmer was not far behind at the end.
Heat 2 : Kyle Legault was an easy winner with the field well spread out behind him.

Heat 3: Ragged start with some riders moving before the tapes went up and Rob Dixon left far behind. Legault had a rather easy win with the action focused on the race for second place. Kehoe went around the outside of Hesmer on turns three four on the second lap and completed the pass on the front straight to clinch his place in the final.

Heat 4: John Bennett went down at turn two on the first lap and finished a long slide in the hay bales. He received treatment for an ankle injury and did not come out for the restart. In this a very quick looking Orosz ran away from the rest of the field.
With four riders tied on four points the Consi race was used to break the tie, with the top two from this transferring to the final.
Consi : More problems in the first turn when Drew Kehoe highsided it and came down hard. This brought the St John ambulance out again only this time they were a little to quick as they pulled onto the track in front of Hesmer and Dixon, fortunately without further incident. Kehoe was not able to make the restart which Hesmer won from Dixon while Phil Small's third place finish brought him a sixth place finish overall and his first payday in D1 racing.

Final :   Legault chose the outside gate and used this to advantage to grab the early lead from Kehoe and Orosz.   Kehoe came close as he tried to come through on the inside out of turn four but couldn't get enough drive to do so. With the inside line blocked to him Orosz spent the entire race looking for enough drive to sweep around the outside but it simply wasn't there. However, his efforts to power around the turns thrilled the crowd and although he often lost ground doing so, he seemed to have the fastest bike and continually made up ground for another challenge.   His efforts helped Legault as Kehoe had to pay attention to him rather than concentrate on catching the leader. In the end there were no position changes although these three stayed close throughout the race.   Hesmer took fourth while Dixon appeared to get entangled with the pipe marking the inside line at turn three and went down on the final lap.

Saturday September 13th 2003

The Welland club was rewarded for their gamble in staging an extra meeting in September to offset those lost in their traditional race season when they attracted a crowd that easily exceeded the 1,000 level and was the biggest for a race there in several years. The start of the official portion of the program featured a tribute to young flat-tracker Chris Miller who was killed in a racing accident at the half-mile event race at Barrie late last month.
The track was slick and dry and as a result passing was very difficult on what was basically a single line track although Jeff Orosz certainly did his best to prove otherwise. The younger generation of riders had to take a back seat on the night as veterans John Kehoe and Jeff Orosz showed they still have what it takes and provided almost all the entertainment with a couple of great races including the final. It was a vintage performance by Kehoe who was a little faster to the first turn and parlayed this into an unbeaten night.

Chris Houtby turned out on a speedway bike for the first time at Welland and as a result a D2 class was run despite this having only three entrants. Unfortunately Houtby had bike problems and did not take part after the first heat. With only one of three, Phil Small, being a genuine D2 rider, it meant that he had clinched the season's D2 High Points title before racing began.
Heat 1. Easy win for Small. Houtby looked good as he overtook Bennett but his motor started spluttering and he could only manage to coast home.

Heat 2.    Legault gated first but Orosz caught up and drove around him at turn three and went on to win comfortably by a dozen lengths.

Heat 3.    Heye touched tapes but race allowed to continue. Race well spread out with Kehoe taking an easy win.
Heat 4.    Only two starters. No competition for Small who won by a quarter of a lap.
Heat 5.     Best race so far. John Kehoe and Orosz were shoulder to shoulder on the back straight on lap 1 before Kehoe moved ahead. For the rest of the race Orosz never stopped trying but Kehoe had control of the race line and had a couple of lengths to spare at the end.

Heat 6.    Most of the action was at the beginning of the race. Legault lifted as he came off the line and was last into the first turn. Drew Kehoe was leading when he picked up some extra traction, lifted in the middle of the turn and moved wide as he fought for control. He did well to keep control while Heye and Hesmer went past him on either side while Legault took advantage of the vacated inside line and nipped past all of them. Hesmer got close to Legault later in the race only to lose ground when he went wide at turn three.
Heat 7.     Rob Dixon and Drew Kehoe had a good race as they battled for sixth place. Dixon led from start to finish with a fast smooth effort to take the win while Kehoe kept things interesting by staying close throughout.
Heat 8.    Again only two starters and Small won by an even larger margin than last time.
FINAL: Kehoe led from Orosz, Heye. Legault and Hesmer going into turn three when Legault tried to power inside Heye. Contact many have been and Hesmer laid his bike down to avoid trouble only to have it and him skate across the track and into the hay bales. He borrowed David Hensby's bike for the restart.   Again Kehoe grabbed the lead off the line and the race quickly became a two man affair. He was hounded for all four laps by Orosz who gave it everything he had but Kehoe fought off each challenge and crossed the line with a Orosz a mere yard behind his rear tire.   All in all a great race to mark the close of the Canadian season.