Taking Count With Two Races to GoS

We’re getting down to the end of the 2018 season.

For most, it is time to dig deep and grab a checkered flag before the long winter season sets in at Scotia Speedworld. For about a dozen or so drivers, championships are on their mind.

Now, some of those drivers, like Steve Matthews and Emily Meehan don’t like to talk about points. They are the worst things to talk about, especially for two drivers looking to close in on their first championships. Paul Goulden mentioned it the last time the Legend cars raced that you have to think about it if you’re in the hunt like he is.

I think we can say after seeing how the Parts for Trucks Tour championship played out on our track that nothing in this sport is a given and nothing is safe if it can be mathematically done. We’re going to run through championship scenarios in depth here next week, including potential tiebreakers and the like, but keep an eye on those running near the top of the standings. As we’ve said since CTV Night opened the season, a championship cannot be won on any one given night but it certainly can be lost.

If you know me, you know I like statistics. With two races to go, let’s dive into some.

What I want to focus on is the amount of different feature winners we have had across the CARSTAR Weekly Racing Series this season. In our six divisions (not including Bandits within the combined Hydraulics Plus Bandolero field), we have seen 35 different feature winners. Think about that, let that sink in. In contrast, we saw 37 different winners last year, but that also includes an extra class that saw three different winner. If you remove the Trucks from 2017, we are one up with two races to go.

The Hydraulics Plus Beginner Bandoleros have had four different winners, the combined Outlaw/Bandit features have had five different winners in nine races. The Strictly Hydraulics Legends and Toursec Lightning divisions have had six different winners in ten events, while the Affordable Fuels Sportsman and Toursec Thunder have seven different winners in seven and eight point races, respectively. If you want to get technical, the Sportsman have ran ten feature races total, but still have seven different winners with Richard Salter’s Shriners Classic win and Matt Vaughan’s triumph in the Affordable Fuels 100.

Of those, we have had a dozen first time winners in their respective classes. Megan Parrott and Richard Salter lead the way in the Sportsman class, Neil Miousse, Darren Flemming and Jesse Deveau in Thunder, Matthew Barkhouse, Marshall Bezanson and Travis Keefe in the Lightning class and the four Beginner Bandolero winners in Gage Gilby, Emma MacMillan, Dawson Noble and Ayden Christensen.

What does it say to me? While our car counts are some of the strongest we’ve seen in Sportsman, Legends and Bandoleros in years, it means the competition is just as stiff. These past two seasons have the most competitive seasons I can remember in some time at Scotia Speedworld, which is something we can be proud of.

There are also a bunch of really good cars that have yet to win this season too, so I think that 35 number could grow by the end of the year. Give me an Aaron Boutilier, Deven Smith or an Alex Johnson win before the year is out, or even Brentley Pirri who has shown he is ready. Paul Goulden is probably the best bet to crack a win in the final two Legend races but there are a half dozen others that could do the same. Chevy MacDonald should crack victory lane in these final two races or he’ll go down trying. Add Emily Chisholm and Chase MacKay in the Beginner Bandolero division. There are at least eight drivers to keep on your radar before this year is over. Keep in mind, I was right about Neil, Jesse and Darren in Thunder before we started 2018.

I know Ken Cunning likes to keep track of statistics, so let’s look at that car count margin compared to 2017. Keep in mind, I believe the days of seeing 30+ Thunder and Sportsman a week are gone at every track around here, but I think we’re having a pretty decent 2018.

For this exercise, a “full time” car is one that has competed in 80% of shows in the year. The 2018 is a rolling total or based on what the car should obtain in this current year.

Sportsman:
2017: 33 Cars Total, 10 Full Time, Eight Different Winners
2018: 30 Cars Total, 15 Full Time, Seven Different Winners

Legends:
2017: 29 Total Cars, 14 Full Time, Six Different Winners
2018: 26 Total Cars, 13 Full Time, Six Different Winners

Thunder:
2017: 19 Total Cars, 10 Full Time, 7 Different Winners
2018: 19 Total Cars, 9 Full Time, 6 Different Winners

Lightning:
2017: 21 Total Cars, 11 Full Time, Five Different Winners
2018: 19 Total Cars, 11 Full Time, Six Different Winners

Bandolero Combined:
2017: 17 Total Cars, 11 Full Time, Five Different Winners
2018: 15 Total Cars, 13 Full Time, Five Different Winners

Beginner Bandolero:
2017: 14 Total Cars, 9 Full Time, Three Different Winners
2018: 10 Total Cars, 9 Full Time, Four Different Winners

The greatest thing we can take from this is that car counts are stable. We haven’t seen a significant drop and while the Thunder class could use a revamp on the rulebook to help boost the car count like they’ve been able to do at central Nova Scotia East Coast Mini Stock Tour stops, we are seeing some really good racing while some tracks in the region struggle to get over the double digit car count hump.

The next two Friday nights will be busy with all divisions in action, or six features a night for those counting. If you are making plans to be at the track, you might want to circle these next two Friday nights, they’ll be good.

For those heading out to Scotia Speedworld on Friday night, we have another little added bonus for you! NASCAR PEAK Antifreeze iRacing Series driver Keegan Leahy will be in the house tomorrow night to check out the action, meet fans and give out a few new memberships to iRacing for those that haven't tried the simulation yet.

If you're unfamiliar, in short, Keegan has made the first round of the NPAiS Playoffs after scoring three wins in the regular season in his No. 24 Virtual Racing School Chevrolet. The eSports Series is sanctioned by NASCAR and features the best 40 drivers on the simulation competing for the top prize. The champion gets $10,000, a NASCAR championship trophy, ring and the presentation of said awards at the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series finale at Homestead-Miami in November. That’s pretty big for a video simulation I must say.

Keegan is one of only three Nova Scotians to qualify for the Series since its inception in 2010 and one of two to win a race in the Series, joining Halifax's Dylan Duval as a former race winner in NPAiS.

Racing starts at the Speedworld tomorrow night at 7pm! If you are in the area, stop out and enjoy some great short track racing before the season comes to a close!

Until then, keep the hammer down and we’ll see you at the track!