2012 SCOTIA SPEEDWORLD
AWARDS BANquet

The drivers, crews, officials and fans of Scotia Speedworld celebrated the 25th Anniversary Season of the track on Saturday night at their annual Awards Dinner and Banquet at the Best Western Glengarry in Truro. Over 300 people were in attendance for the November 3rd event.

Awards for the Maritime League of Legends Tour kicked off the evening with Porter’s Lake driver Cole Butcher taking top honors in the class in his rookie season. Butcher captured wins at Petty International Raceway and Riverside International Speedway to take the championship over Bedford’s Justin MacNeill and Truro’s Dylan Blenkhorn.

The Scotia Speedworld Weekly Racing Series Awards were kicked off with the presentations of the Wooden Door Bistro Rookie of the Year Awards. Craig MacDonald (Waverly, Hydraulics Plus Bandoleros), Chevy MacDonald (Stewiacke, ACE Lumbermart Lightning), Chantel Ackles (Halifax, ACE Lumbermart Thunder), Butcher (Strictly Hydraulics Legends) and John Poan (Hantsport, Dartmouth Dodge Sportsman) were awarded for their freshmen years in their respective divisions. There were no drivers that met rookie criteria for the Jack Daniel’s Trucks and therefore no Wooden Door Bistro Rookie of the Year title was awarded.

The Most Sportsmanlike Driver Awards were presented in each Weekly Racing Series division and were voted on by the drivers. Nathan Blackburn (Timberlea, Hydraulics Plus Bandoleros), Marc MacMillan (Glenholme, ACE Lumbermart Lightning), Drew MacEachern (Dartmouth, ACE Lumbermart Thunder), Dylan Blenkhorn (Strictly Hydraulics Legends), Dan Smith (Lower Sackville, Jack Daniel’s Trucks) and Mike Banks (Wilmot, Dartmouth Dodge Sportsman Series) each took the prestigious honors in their respective divisions. In the case of Blenkhorn, it is his second Cathy Ledwidge Memorial Most Sportsmanlike Driver in the Legends division in as many years.

The Easiest Car To Score Award spotlights those cars in each division that the Scotia Speedworld scoring staff can easily pick out on the fly. Craig MacDonald (Hydraulics Plus Bandoleros), Mark Campbell (Halifax, ACE Lumbermart Lightning), Dwayne Flemming (Shubenacadie, ACE Lumbermart Thunder), Ryan Goldsmith (Bridgewater, Jack Daniel’s Trucks), Dan Michaud Jr. (Lawrencetown, Strictly Hydraulics Legends) and Fred Schofield (Windsor, Dartmouth Dodge Sportsman) stood out amongst scorers voting to receive the awards.

The Scotia Speedworld Weekly Racing Series point awards recognized drivers who competed in 80% of race meets in each division in the 2012 season. Champions were recognized in all six Weekly Racing Series divisions, including Jarrett Butcher (Porter’s Lake, Hydraulics Plus Bandoleros), Jorden Smith (Lakeside, ACE Lumbermart Lightning), Kyle MacMillan (Hammonds Plains, ACE Lumbermart Thunder), Cole Butcher (Strictly Hydraulics Legends), Dan Smith (Jack Daniel’s Trucks) and Aaron Boutilier (Porter’s Lake, Dartmouth Dodge Sportsman Series). In the case of Jarrett Butcher and Smith, it is their second divisional titles in as many years and for Butcher it is the first time the Speedworld has crowned a two-time Bandolero champion. Cole Butcher’s Legend title is his second track championship after taking the 2010 Bandolero crown. For MacMillan, Smith and Boutilier, it is their first Scotia Speedworld track championships.

The final award of the night went to Sportsman champion Boutilier. It was announced at the Banquet that the Scotia Speedworld Sportsman Championship trophy would be renamed to the Roma Brothers Cup after Terry and Lockie Roma, who passed away in 2012. Terry’s son Travis and Lockie’s son Chris presented the Cup to Boutilier at the Banquet.

The Awards Banquet officially caps the 2012 season for Scotia Speedworld. Watch ScotiaSpeedworld.ca in the coming months for announcements on Rules Meetings for the upcoming 2013 season.