London, Ontario (December, 2012) – The seventeenth season of Southern
Ontario Sprints competition came to a conclusion on Saturday, November
24th as the club honoured 2012 champion Lee Ladouceur at the annual SOS
awards banquet held, once again this season, at the Best Western Cairn
Croft Hotel in Niagara Falls.
An energetic group of racers, friends and family gathered together for
an enjoyable evening and to salute the top 15 in 2012 SOS points who
took home point fund money and sponsor products. Special achievements
and awards were also presented to:
Four Wide Photos Best Appearing Car Award – Bob Crawford
Klotz Canada Hard Charger Award – Lee Ladouceur
Wiseco Piston Perfect Attendance – Mike Ferrell
Dave MacLeod Mechanic of the Year Award – Sebastien Chabot
The Club Founders Rookie of the Year Award - Charlie Sandercock
2012 Southern Ontario Sprints championship standings 15th to 11th were:
15th – Bob Crawford #10
14th - Dick Mahoney #79
13th - Glenn Styres #0
12th - Brad Lodge #2
11th - Frank Baranowski #66
The Top Ten in 2012 Southern Ontario Sprints Points were:
10th – Jim Munsie #9 The 2010 Rookie of the year had a steady season in
2012 with a top ten finish on May 19th at Brighton Speedway. “The Ol'
Buzzard” is already hard at work for next season and is looking forward
to big things for 2013.
9th – Mike Ferrell #15 After a three year hiatus from competition, the
SOS President returned to the drivers seat in 2012 and competed in every
event on the schedule.
8th – Charlie Sandercock #57 A local stand out in the Late Model field
at Brighton Speedway, Charlie Sandercock tried his hand at sprint car
racing for the first time in 2012 and showed that he was equally adept
at driving without fenders. Charlie won a heat race at the July 14th
Brighton Speedway race in front of the home town crowd, had 5 top ten
finishes for the year and took home the 2012 SOS Rookie trophy.
7th – Chris Durand #67 Chris started off the year strong with a 3rd
place finish at Brighton Speedway May 19th but suffered an up and down
season with some trouble at Ohsweken Speedway mid season. Chris came
back strong and finished the year with a pair of 6th place finishes
Labour Day weekend and looks to be a contender for 2013.
6th – Rick Wilson #42w The Southern Ontario Sprints winning-est driver
continued to add to his total this season with 2 wins at Brighton
Speedway. “The Joyceville Jet” has won at least 1 SOS feature each
season since 2001, the longest streak of any SOS driver.
5th – Warren Mahoney #25 The all time SOS points leader with 22,496
points, “Wiley” Warren started with his season up in the air, literally
as he did a tail tank spin May 19th at Brighton Speedway. But he settled
in for the long haul to take home a heat race win and 5th place in the
championship standings. Warren will also replace his father Dick in the
position of Vice-President after being voted in for 2013.
4th – Adam West #30 After finishing outside of the top ten in 2011, the
2005 SOS Champion came back strong with 2 top fives, 4 top tens and 2
heat race wins in 2012 to finish 4th. “Batman” hopes to have more strong
finishes in the 2013 season as he goes for a second championship.
3rd – Dain Naida #07x Hailing all the way from Tecumseh, Michigan, Dain
had a very successful year driving the 07x for Hill's Racing. With 2
feature wins in 2012 at Brighton Speedway and 7 top ten finishes, Dain
had a very strong season with the Southern Ontario Sprints.
2nd – Keith Dempster #5 The 2000 and 2002 SOS Champion competed once
again with the SOS driving for Styres Racing in 2012. A steady
performance all season with 1 top five and 5 top ten finishes led Keith
to the runner up spot in the championship. 2013 will surely see the
former champ looking to add to his win total on his way to regaining the
top spot.
2012 Champion – Lee Ladouceur #51 In 2011 Lee Ladouceur came to race
with the SOS and quickly made a name for himself as a top driver and
consistent finisher. Hard work and determination won him the 2011
Championship. 2012 saw the continuation of that hard work and driving
talent rewarded with back to back championship seasons; only the second
time in 17 seasons that a champion has been able to successfully defend
the title. Sebastien Chabot, the chief mechanic on the 51 team, was
awarded the Dave MacLeod Mechanic of the Year Award for 2012.
Congratulations to the 2012 SOS Champion Lee, Donna and their team. The
SOS looks forward to Lee's defense of the title in 2013.
Also recognized and thanked for their support and contributions to the
Southern Ontario Sprints in 2012 were:
Web Site/Media – Greg Calnan, Mike Dougherty
Competition Director – Cliff Williams
Pit Steward – Loree Ferrell
Track Marshall & Crew – Neil McKay, Bill Mansbridge
Tech Inspector – Neil McKay
Merchandise – Judy & Ron Ferrell, Hailey Sanderson
50/50 – Andrea West, Kathy West, Aric West
2012 SOS Venues – Autodrome Granby, Brighton Speedway, Ohsweken
Speedway, South Buxton Raceway
2012 Tour Sponsors – Wiseco, Klotz Canada, National Sprint Car Hall of
Fame & Museum, Image Factor, Sanderson's Tire & Automotive
2012 Board of Directors – Ed Lodge, Bob Crawford, Warren Mahoney, Adam West
2012 Executive – Helen Brown, Loree Ferrell, Mike Ferrell, Dick Mahoney
The conclusion of the 2012 season saw Helen Brown and Dick Mahoney
retire from the club's executive board after 13 years of service to the
club. In their honour a brick will be inscribed at the National Sprint
Car Hall of Fame & Museum. The club wishes Dick and Helen all the best
and thanks them for their years of service.
Elections held at the annual general meeting prior to the banquet saw
some new faces elected to the board of directors for 2013. The SOS
welcomes Warren Mahoney as Vice-President, Andrea West as Treasurer and
Frank Baranowski and Lee Ladouceur to the Board of Directors.
The SOS club would like to thank the competitors, fans, officials and
everyone else involved for making 2012 a great season. Work has already
begun for the 2013 season with the club working on scheduling and
sponsorship opportunities to make next season a fantastic summer of
sprint car racing across Ontario. Stay tuned to
www.southernontariosprints.com for news over the off season and we'll
see you at the races in 2013!
Find The Southern Ontario Sprints online at: www.southernontariosprints.com
Follow The Southern Ontario Sprints on Twitter: @sossprints
Like The Southern Ontario Sprints on Facebook:
www.facebook.com/SouthernOntarioSprints