With the second round and the third and fourth races of the 2013 Eastern Canadian Karting Championship now complete, CKN looks back at the weekend with some notable news and notes.
Another Record Number of Entries
Breaking the record set only four weeks ago at Mosport, the ECKC continues to grow with 163 registered drivers competing at Goodwood, with the growth coming mainly from the Briggs & Stratton divisions. It is great to see new life in the series and with the shift to Quebec for the final two rounds it will be interesting to see final entry numbers.
Ben Cooper vs Pier-Luc Ouellette: Season Two
After missing out on the opening round, it was great to see PSL Karting’s Pier-Luc Ouellette back in the seat at Goodwood. Immediately getting up to speed in two classes, Ouellette waged an incredible battle with Ben Cooper in the Saturday Rotax DD2 Final that resembled the great racing the two Rotax Grand Finals Champions provided all last year. Cooper did win the battle on Saturday, but Ouellette went untouched on Saturday, setting up the final showdown later this summer at the Canadian Championships for Rotax DD2 Supremacy.
Tough Weekend for Championship Points Leaders
In the two most competitive Rotax divisions, the championships took a major shakeup after Goodwood. In Junior Rotax, points leader entering the event Anthony Tolfa struggled all weekend long just to finish a race, while Jeffrey Kingsley looked to leave Goodwood with the lead after dominating on Saturday. But trouble early in the Sunday final found him sitting on the sidelines and out of the race. In Rotax Senior, Mosport double-winner Kevin Monteith had trouble even completing a lap in race trim, twice being knocked out on the opening lap. He did bounce back on Sunday, but his championship lead took a major hit and factoring in the drop tightens up the Championship completely.
Beautiful Weather at Goodwood
After the monsoon weather at Mosport, everyone at Goodwood was very happy to see sunshine in the forecast. Although scattered thunder showers were a possibility, the event stayed dry with high temperatures on both Saturday and Sunday.
Full Grandstands with Exciting Racing on Display
Kudos to Goodwood owner Dan Di Leo for bringing in the grandstand for the front straight-away. For almost every race it was full with friends and family but also some race fans too. In the larger classes such as Briggs Senior, Rotax Senior and Rotax Junior, those in attendance were treated to plenty of excitement and great battles all over the track while the smaller classes like Micro-Max and Rotax DD2 had the crowd roaring with many races coming down the wire and drivers duking it out for victory.
Couple notable absences at Goodwood
CKN wishes a quick recover to Gerald Caseley Sr. of PSL Moncton. While preparing the trailer for Goodwood, Caseley had a heart-attack and was forced to cancel his trip for himself and his team of drivers. After catching with up with Caseley, CKN is happy to report that he is recovering well and plans to be back at a track as soon as possible.
Also missing from the event was Jean-Francois Lafontaine and his teammates who had unfortunate vehicle troubles en route the event and was forced to turn around and head back home. Lafontaine was very disappointed to miss the opening round at Mosport and even more upset to miss Goodwood and all the excitement in the Briggs & Stratton Senior division.
Next up for the series is race #5 on the popular streets of Trois-Rivieres, Quebec. The annual street race is a hit among competitors and should once again provide some great racing for the fans on hand.
