Mother Nature added a twist the final day of competition for the 2014 Eastern Canadian Karting Championship and Coupe du Quebec. Heavy rain was forecasted for the afternoon but a dry morning had everyone in limbo as to what conditions they would be competing in with ominous clouds hovering all day long at the Jim Russell Karting Circuit in Mont-Tremblant, Quebec.
Entering the final weekend of competition, Ryan MacDermid (TonyKart) held a slight advantage over the reigning Canadian Champion Alexandre Légaré (PSL/CRG) in the Mini-Max division.
A real curveball was thrown at the Mini-Max drivers as rain began to pour down as they left the grid for their Saturday Final. With all drivers still on slick tires, opportunity was in the air.
After taking a few laps to settle in, Légaré found his groove and overtook both Stefano Lucente (K&P/LH Kart) and leader MacDermid just before the halfway point. MacDermid did all he could to retake the position, but the harder he pushed, the more ground he lost to the leader. On the final lap, Lucente spun in corner four but a remarkable recovery kept him pointed in the right direction and with a last corner pass on MacDermid he was able to score the second step of the podium. With the day’s results tallied, Légaré advanced past MacDermid for overall lead entering the final day of competition.
For Sundays final, a consistent rain meant all drivers would compete on the proper tire in the Championship Final.
Légaré jumped out to the early lead with MacDermid hot on his trail and Xavier Harris (Goodwood/Intrepid) in check. But MacDermid attacked early and took advantage before the second lap was complete and he was now in control as Légaré fell to third behind Harris. With the challenging conditions and the rain picking up, Harris excelled in the conditions and gained the lead on five, leaving the championship rivals to race for second.
As Harris drove off into the mist, Légaré overtook a struggling MacDermid and at the finish line Harris scored the win while Légaré not only secured the ECKC championship, but also the Coupe du Quebec title, a triple crown when you factor in his Canadian Championship as well. MacDermid crossed in third and wound up second in the ECKC championship followed by Lucente, while Marc-Antoine Poirer and Esteban Munoz joined Légaré on the Coupe du Quebec championship podium.
