Mosport Speedway set for season opener on Saturday

BOWMANVILLE, ON - As Mosport International Raceway kicks off its 50th anniversary season with the Victoria Day SpeedFest, Mosport Speedway will also begin its exciting racing action this Saturday.

The 21st year of racing at the half-mile oval revs into high gear with the three regular home classes - the Thorsons EVT Six Cylinder or Less, Bob's Towing Sportsman and the R.P. Oil Ltd. Late Model thundering around the track.

In 2009, Dan "Spiderman" Kimmerly of Courtice, Ont., won his first Mosport Late Model title after several years of knocking on the championships door.  Kimmerly won three feature races in his #01 Dom's Auto Parts Pontiac Grand Prix.  After finally achieving what he long strived for, "Spiderman" will now focus most of his attention on his daughter Shannon's progress, who finished 6th in points last season.  He hopes to run in as many races as he can but he may not be successful in defending his crown with a limited schedule.

Last season's R.P. Oil Ltd. Modifieds winner Jim "the Professor" Rossiter of Orono, Ont. will make the jump to the Late Model Ranks.  In 2009, Jim was perfect, scoring an unbelievable 25 race wins in 25 starts, never missing a single lap.  With three consecutive Modified championships, Rossiter should be an early season favourite to make a successful leap and win the Late Model Championship.

In the Bob's Towing Sportsman division, Oshawa, Ont. Bill Northam returns to defend his title.  Northam earned a lifetime reward after two decades of racing at Mosport Speedway as he drove his #85 Five Points Mall Monte Carlo to three feature wins and six heat race victories to edge out long-time rival Terry Shaw by 21 points to secure the crown.

One of Mosport's most popular divisions, the Thorsons EVT Six or Less division will continue to see great competition week in and week out.  In 2009, almost 30 drivers scored points over the course of the season. Series veteran Kevin Hinds went home with the most hardware, with four feature victories but after missing a few weekends, he fell out of contention for the series title.  Bowmanville, Ont. own Jeff Scott emerged at the top of the leader board by seasons end.  In all, Scott recorded 10 victories and won the title by 33 points.

Virtually every Saturday will include special travelling tours events besides the home series races.  Beginning on May 29, there will be a special for nine straight weeks including OSCAAR, Lucas Sportsman Cup, Modifieds and Ontario Legend.

Each week will see the return of the Old Dutch Snacks "King of the Hill" spectator races, where two cars go head-to-head with the winning driver moving on and the loser parking it for the night.

The highlight of Mosport Speedway's season will undoubtedly be the Dickies 200 featuring the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series on August 21. It's stock car racing at its best - always fast and unpredictable and not to be missed. There will also be two Fan Appreciation nights starting with the first on July 3 and the second being on the final weekend of the season, September 11.

Gates open at 5:30 pm this Saturday with the races starting at 6:30 pm. Admission for adults is $13, youth $8 and as always, children 12 and under is free.  Admission for the Speedway this Saturday is included with the Victoria Day SpeedFest Super Ticket.

For more information and to purchase tickets call the Mosport Hotline at 1-800-866-1072 (Monday to Friday from 9 am to 5 pm ET), visit online at www.mosport.com, or email info@mosport.com . For further information: Ryan Chalmers, Mosport ryan@mosport.com.