Photos by Dale Calnan (www.imagefactormedia.com)
By Tommy Goudge
OHSWEKEN, Ont. (September 16, 2022) – Mike Bowman took the win in the Inaugural Canadian Crate Sprint Car Nationals on Friday night at Ohsweken Speedway.
Steve Murdock and Darren Dryden earned front row starting spots for the 30 lap A-Main, and Dryden led the first lap before Mike Bowman slipped past on lap three. Bowman’s pass was negated, however, by a yellow flag for the stopped car of Tyler Ward on the frontstretch. Several drivers made significant gains in the first two laps, including Curtis Gartly who had picked up nine spots.
Dryden kept the lead on the restart, but the race came to a halt when Matt Billings flipped on the frontstretch with three laps complete. Bowman again looked poised to make a pass for the lead after the restart, but a melee ensued when Eric Gledhill and Gartly got together and brought out the yellow flag; Gartly and Brian Nanticoke got the worst of the exchange and were done for the night.
Dryden, Bowman, Jesse Costa, Murdock, and Dale Curran made up the top five for the next restart, and Bowman again went to work in an effort to take the lead from Dryden. While the leaders raced, AST points leader Jacob Dykstra moved back into the top five, passing both Curran and Murdock in quick succession. Dryden, Bowman, and Costa raced close together over the next few laps, with Dryden running the low groove and Bowman up high. Bowman then dove low on Dryden in turn one with eight laps complete, but couldn’t make the move stick.
The leaders caught the tail end of the field with nine laps complete, and Dykstra was able to move past Costa into third as the two negotiated traffic. Dryden briefly opened a gap, but Bowman and Dykstra ran him down again. A joust for second was cut short when Lucas Smith spun off the track in turn four to bring out another yellow flag with 14 laps complete. The yellow was a reprieve for AST championship contender Mathieu Bardier, who had just gone a lap down.
Bowman yet again went after Dryden on the restart, only to see the red flag come out again for a hard Tyeller Powless flip in turn three. Bowman continued to challenge Dryden for the lead when the race restarted, using the outside line while Dryden stayed in the middle of the track and kept Bowman at bay. Murdock re-entered the top three at this point, getting around Dykstra before another yellow appeared for Seth Roy. Murdock then drove around the outside of Bowman on the restart, only to see that move negated when Eric Gledhill spun and collected Adrian Stahle.
Bowman finally got past Dryden after the next restart, but Dryden stayed close behind as the two raced through traffic. Bowman stayed ahead though, leading the final nine laps through one more restart to collect the win and write his name in the record books. Given the choice between $5,000 or a brand new crate engine in victory lane, Bowman chose the engine and left the cash for Saturday night’s winner.
Dryden fought Murdock off to take the runner-up spot, with Murdock taking the final podium spot. Dykstra crossed the line in fourth but came up a few pounds light at the scales and was disqualified. Costa and Curran got credit for fourth and fifth as a result, while Lee Ladouceur, Allan Downey, Darrell Pelletier, Sheldon Bender, and Johnny Miller rounded out the top ten.
Action Sprint Tour Crate Sprint Car series fueled by Pinty’s
Statistical Report – Saturday, September 17, 2022
Ohsweken Speedway – Ohsweken, Ontario, Canada
Inaugural Canadian Crate Sprint Car Nationals
A-Main [Started] 30 laps – NT
1. 71-Mike Bowman[4]; 2. 12DD-Darren Dryden[2]; 3. 2M-Steve Murdock[1]; 4. 52-Jesse Costa[6]; 5. 31-Dale Curran[3]; 6. 51L-Lee Ladouceur[7]; 7. 19D-Allan Downey[21]; 8. 4B-Darrell Pelletier[19]; 9. 97-Sheldon Bender[16]; 10. 20-Johnny Miller[17]; 11. 74-Rob Neely[22]; 12. 77E-Ashton VanEvery[30]; 13. 49L-Lucas Smith[9]; 14. 19-Mathieu Bardier[10]; 15. 14-Larry Gledhill[8]; 16. 16R-Seth Roy[11]; 17. 94-Ryan Fraser[18]; 18. 51-Trevor Young[24]; 19. 26-John Verney[29]; 20. (DNF) 39-Jonah Mutton[23]; 21. (DNF) 88-Lance Erskine[20]; 22. (DNF) 7-Eric Gledhill[15]; 23. (DNF) 50LS-Adrian Stahle[12]; 24. (DNF) 77T-Tyeller Powless[25]; 25. (DNF) 45-Curtis Gartly[28]; 26. (DNF) 9C-Brian Nanticoke[27]; 27. (DNF) 5C-Conor Mahoney[14]; 28. (DNF) 52B-Matt Billings[26]; 29. (DNF) 29W-Tyler Ward[13]; 30. (DQ) 5D-Jacob Dykstra[5]
A-Main Lap Leaders – Darren Dryden 1-20; Mike Bowman 21-30
Hard Charger – Ashton VanEvery +18
Awards:
-A-Main Winner Bonus: Mike Bowman (Free Fire Suit – EPIC Racewear)
-Bill Peer Memorial Best Appearing Car: Darren Dryden ($350 – Corr/Pak Merchandising)
-Travis Rutz Long Tow: Mathieu Bardier ($250 – Slack Lumber)
-Fastest Qualifier: Brett Stratford ($300 – Qwick Wick)
-Hard Charger: Ashton VanEvery ($300 – Nitro 54 Variety)
Qualifications Flight 1
1. 52 Jesse Costa – St. Thomas – 14.853; 2. 31 Dale Curran – Bowmanville – 14.991; 3. 19D Allan Downey – Hamilton – 15.042; 4. 88 Lance Erskine – Brantford – 15.092; 5. 51L Lee Ladouceur – Alexandria – 15.132; 6. 29W Tyler Ward – Beachville; 7. 94 Ryan Fraser – Rockwood – 15.164; 8. 71 Mike Bowman – St. Catharines – 15.204; / 9. 74 Rob Neely – Rockwood – 15.214; 10. 39 Jonah Mutton – Brighton – 15.234; 11. 9C Brian Nanticoke – Ohsweken – 15.257; 12. 16R Seth Roy – Port Colborne – 15.273; 13. 45 Curtis Gartly – Thamesford – 15.278; 14. 99 Joshua Hill – Ohsweken – 15.391; 15. 14 Larry Gledhill – Thamesford – 15.403; 16. 08 Steven Beckett – Fonthill – 15.436; 17. 26X Terry Baker – Ancaster – 15.454; 18. 52 Matt Billings – Brockville – 15.528; 19. 2 Travis Hofstetter – Stratford – 15.655; 20. 2C John Cadman – Smithville – 15.846; 21. 21 Braedan Burning – Ohsweken – 16.380; 22. 69K Ken Hamilton – Brantford – NT
Qualifications Flight 2
1. BS39 Brett Stratford – Wainfleet – 14.844; 2. 19 Mathieu Bardier – Pierreville, Quebec – 14.927; 3. 5D Jacob Dykstra – Port Colborne – 14.996; 4. 51 Trevor Young – Ancaster – 15.009; 5. 12DD Darren Dryden – Freelton – 15.016; 6. 2M Steve Murdock – Georgetown – 15.037; 7. 7 Eric Gledhill – Thamesford – 15.087; 8. 49L Lucas Smith – Brantford – 15.115; / 9. 5C Conor Mahoney – Hamilton – 15.127; 10. 4B Darrell Pelletier – Port Perry – 15.177; 11. 97 Sheldon Bender – Ethel – 15.213; 12. 50LS Adrian Stahle – Kitchener – 15.253; 13. 26 John Verney – Salmon Arm, British Columbia – 15.382; 14. MK8 Matt Hill – Ohsweken – 15.477; 15. 420 Victor Bomberry – Ohsweken – 15.555; 16. 20 Johnny Miller – Six Nations – 15.575; 17. 77E Ashton VanEvery – Ohsweken – 15.587; 18. 48 Andrew Marshall – Dorchester – 15.632; 19. 28 Cam Thomson – Hamilton – 15.667; 20. 16X Keegan Baker – Ancaster – 15.672; 21. 77T Tyeller Powless – Ohsweken – NT
Heat Race 1 [Started] 10 laps – 2:30.932 NTR
1. 51L-Lee Ladouceur[2]; 2. 52-Jesse Costa[4]; 3. 14-Larry Gledhill[8]; 4. 94-Ryan Fraser[1]; 5. 19D-Allan Downey[3]; 6. 74-Rob Neely[5]; / 7. 9C-Brian Nanticoke[6]; 8. 45-Curtis Gartly[7]; 9. 26X-Terry Baker[9]; 10. 2-Travis Hofstetter[10]; 11. 21-Braedan Burning[11]
Heat Race 2 [Started] 10 laps – 2:36.508
1. 71-Mike Bowman[1]; 2. 31-Dale Curran[4]; 3. 29W-Tyler Ward[2]; 4. 16R-Seth Roy[6]; 5. 88-Lance Erskine[3]; 6. 39-Jonah Mutton[5]; / 7. 52B-Matt Billings[9]; 8. 08-Steven Beckett[8]; 9. 99-Joshua Hill[7]; 10. 2C-John Cadman[10]; 11. 69K-Ken Hamilton[11]
Heat Race 3 [Started] 10 laps – NT
1. 12DD-Darren Dryden[2]; 2. 5D-Jacob Dykstra[3]; 3. 7-Eric Gledhill[1]; 4. 5C-Conor Mahoney[5]; 5. 97-Sheldon Bender[6]; 6. 20-Johnny Miller[8]; / 7. 77T-Tyeller Powless[11]; 8. 26-John Verney[7]; 9. BS39-Brett Stratford[4]; 10. 16X-Keegan Baker[10]; 11. 48-Andrew Marshall[9]
Heat Race 4 [Started] 10 laps – 2:32.358
1. 2M-Steve Murdock[2]; 2. 49L-Lucas Smith[1]; 3. 19-Mathieu Bardier[4]; 4. 50LS-Adrian Stahle[6]; 5. 4B-Darrell Pelletier[5]; 6. 51-Trevor Young[3]; / 7. 77E-Ashton VanEvery[8]; 8. MK8-Matt Hill[7]; 9. 28-Jordan Hill[9]; 10. 420-Victor Bomberry[10]
Pole Dash [Started] 5 laps – 1:16.062 NTR
1. 2M-Steve Murdock[4]; 2. 12DD-Darren Dryden[2]; 3. 31-Dale Curran[6]; 4. 71-Mike Bowman[7]; 5. 5D-Jacob Dykstra[8]; 6. 52-Jesse Costa[5]; 7. 51L-Lee Ladouceur[3]; 8. 14-Larry Gledhill[1]
B-Main [Started] 12 laps – NT
1. 77T-Tyeller Powless[1]; 2. 52B-Matt Billings[2]; 3. 9C-Brian Nanticoke[4]; 4. 45-Curtis Gartly[6]; 5. 26-John Verney[8]; 6. 77E-Ashton VanEvery[3]; / 7. BS39-Brett Stratford[15]; 8. 08-Steven Beckett[5]; 9. 26X-Terry Baker[9]; 10. 28-Jordan Hill[10]; 11. 2C-John Cadman[12]; 12. 2-Travis Hofstetter[13]; 13. MK8-Matt Hill[7]; 14. 48-Andrew Marshall[17]; 15. 16X-Keegan Baker[14]; 16. 420-Victor Bomberry[18]; 17. 69K-Ken Hamilton[16]; 18. 21-Braedan Burning[19]; 19. (DNF) 99-Joshua Hill[11]
ACTION SPRINT TOUR MEDIA
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About the Action Sprint Tour fueled by Pinty’s: Founded in 2018, the Action Sprint Tour is a traveling Winged Crate Sprint Car Series based in Ontario, Canada. Action Sprint Tour cars are powered by GM 602 crate engines modified specifically to fit a Sprint Car chassis. Each points-paying event on the 2022 schedule will pay a minimum of $1,000-to-win and $150-to-start, and selected events will be broadcast live on GForceTV. The 2022 championship winner will be rewarded with $5,000 and a Pinty’s VIP package for the 2023 Bristol Dirt Race, while 10th place in the championship standings will pay $1,000. The 2022 Action Sprint Tour is made possible with the support of Pinty’s Delicious Foods. Visit www.actionsprinttour.com for more information.