FTLComm - Tisdale - June 18, 2000

There is no question about it stock car racing has come to Tisdale with a vengeance The First Annual Invitational presented by Tisdale Stock Car Club got under way Saturday with an enthusiastic full house crowd. Twenty-five cars were to participate in the two days of racing but there may have been more. Race teams from Preeceville, and Kelvington were among those I talked to in the pits and there seemed to be no shortage of outstanding competition. Tisdale's new track was a winner with the drivers and pit crews as they pointed out that as a 3/8th mile track it was longer and had much steeper turns then the Preeceville and Nipawin tracks and seemed much like the Prince Albert track for speed and drivability. When drivers were queried about the dangers of having a track that could accommodate hirer speeds they did not voice any concerns but said that the cars were able to handle the higher speeds that could be obtained on the Tisdale track and they were really enjoying the racing.

Stock car racing is arranged in classes so that engine sizes are matched with one another and this made the races close and kept the cars bunched together in highly competitive events. Each car has its accompanying pit crew, many of whom had almost complete shops set up in the infield to deal with damage and be able to effect repairs between heats. The pictures on this page illustrate the excitement and the spectacle of motor racing. With the engines howling and the mud flying each race was an attention revetting experience for fans, pit crews and drivers alike.

Most of the cars were driven by several drivers in the team with special races for mechanics and women drivers. This picture sees the Kelvington Kollision 67 car being readied in the pits by a female driver. The cars often sustain considerable side damage as they rub into one another as we can see below where this same lady driver first tangles with one car on the back stretch (below right) then as she comes around turn three she and the 69 car bump as she takes the low track run. This was fairly typical of the various races where all were accompanied with the sound of V-8s running at full revs without the benefit of mufflers.

Preeceville has already had three races this season so their drivers, even those who are rookies this year had considerable experience going into this weekend's races at Tisdale. Many of the Tisdale cars and drivers, like the track were going through the first race growing pains. One such team were the excited and revved up folks from Northern Steel. In their car's first outing they were able to come in third and that is exception for beginning drivers. On several occasions cars through a tire during the heat and the drivers would push on around the track on one rim. But even with four inflated tires the track which was wet down prior to the races and during the intermission would erupt into a blast of clay balls around the turns. This was not only a spectacle but a major danger to the drivers who have only limited protection with either screens or in the case of the 88 car a thin Plexiglas shield.

These pictures in the back stretch shot from the pit area give you some idea of the dynamics of the races. Below is a QuickTime VR panorama of the scene as viewed from the pits.

The yellow #50 was one of the few fords entered into competition this weekend, below right is Shane James #77 car.

The Tisdale Stock car club have done an amazing job of bring motor sports of this excellent calibre to the community and they went to great lengths to design a facility that is safe for the spectators and yet gives everyone a great view of the action. Tisdale's Fire Department and the Tisdale Ambulance were both in attendance in case there was a mishap. However, there was no on hand emergency dressed crash crew. Perhaps this is something they should consider for future events. An experience team wearing fire gear should be in a pick up ready to dash to a roll over waiting in the infield at all times. But when it comes to safety the cars on the track looked to be fitted extra well and there was lots of examples of first class sportsmanship from the drivers. Races are in progress as this is being written.