By Tommy Goudge (October 7, 2009) – The fourteenth season of Southern Ontario Sprints competition came to a conclusion on Saturday, October 3 as the club honoured 2009 champion Justin Martin at the annual SOS awards banquet, held this year at Brantford’s Best Western Brant Park Inn.

The top fifteen in 2009 SOS points took home point fund money, while awards were presented to:

Marie White Memorial Award (100 career SOS races) – Keith Dempster and Glenn Styres
Founders Rookie of the Year Award – Tyler Rand
ImageFactor.ca Best Appearing Car Award – Tyler Rand
Riverside Bar & Grill Brighton Speedway Championship – Rick Wilson
Dave MacLeod Mechanic of the Year Award – Bob Martin and John Watson
Kenetic Photos Hard Charger Award – Jamie Collard
SOS Points Championship – Justin Martin

The Top Ten in 2009 Southern Ontario Sprints Points were:

1st – Justin Martin (Shedden, Ontario)…Martin put together a strong and consistent season to claim his first SOS championship, with four “Top 5’s”, and eight “Top 10’s”. The twenty-one year old driver did not finish outside the top ten in any SOS feature in 2009, and recorded a best finish of third, which he accomplished three times at Brighton (June 6, August 8, and September 5).

2nd – Adam West (Ridgetown, Ontario)…The 2005 SOS Champion competed in all eight SOS events in 2009, recording two feature wins (South Buxton May 23, Brighton July 11), five “Top 5’s” and six “Top 10’s”. The wins moved “Batman” into a tie for sixth on the all-time SOS feature win list.

3rd – Warren Mahoney (Lefroy, Ontario)…The 2001 and 2006 SOS Champion competed in all eight SOS events in 2009, claiming three “Top 5’s” and seven “Top 10’s” along the way. His only finish outside the Top Ten came during the season finale at Brighton, when a hard crash relegated “The Wile One” to seventeenth.

4th (tie) – Tyler Rand (Consecon, Ontario)…Rand claimed the 2009 SOS Rookie of the Year award on the strength of seven “Top 10’s” out of eight races. His best result was seventh, a spot he finished in three times this year at Brighton (June 6, July 11, September 6).

4th (tie) – Jamie Collard (Burford, Ontario)…Collard hooked up with the Ballantyne racing team for the 2009 season, and they met with instant success. Jamie finished fourth in points despite missing an SOS event due to engine problems. Out of seven SOS events, Collard had five “Top 5’s” and seven “Top 10’s”. His best finish was second at South Buxton on August 22.

6th – Bob Crawford (Sutton, Ontario)…A mainstay on the SOS tour, Crawford once again competed in all eight SOS events in 2009, with five “Top 10’s”. The “One Man Army" has finished sixth or better in the points in each of his seven SOS seasons.

7th – Dick Mahoney (Newmarket, Ontario)…Mahoney competed in all eight SOS events in 2009 to run his career total to one hundred forty eight, which leads the all-time SOS list. “The Pig” accrued two “Top 10’s” in 2009.

8th – Rick Wilson (Joyceville, Ontario)…Wilson competed in six SOS events in 2009, claiming an exciting feature win at Brighton on August 8. With that win, “The Joyceville Jet” has now recorded at least one SOS feature win each season since 2001, the longest streak of any SOS driver. Wilson continues to lead the all-time SOS feature win list, with twenty-four.

9th – Glenn Styres (Ohsweken, Ontario)…Styres competed in five SOS events in 2009, claiming three feature wins (Brighton May 17, Brighton June 6, Brighton September 5) and finished in the top five in each event. “The Ohsweken Flyer” now sits just five wins behind Rick Wilson on the all-time SOS feature win list. Styres competed in his one-hundredth career SOS event on September 5.

10th – Travis Cunningham (Grimsby, Ontario)…A rookie competitor, Travis competed in six SOS events in 2009 and showed great promise. The former modified racer recorded two “Top 5’s” and five “Top 10’s” in his first year with the SOS.

Also recognized for their contributions to the Southern Ontario Sprints in 2009 on Saturday night were:

Competition Director – Cliff Williams
Pit Tent – Terri Watson
Pit Steward – Loree Ferrell
Car Shows – Mike Ferrell and Mike Doughtery
Quad Trailer – Warren Mahoney
50/50 – Jane Williams, Alicia Rowlands, Andrea West, Kathy West, Karen Mahoney
Announcer – Greg Calnan
Media Officer – Tommy Goudge
Pit Reporter – Dale Calnan
Photographer – Mike Doughtery
Firemen/Tech Inspectors/Crew – Warren Lindsay, Ron Sparks, Mike Ferrell
Merchandise Tent – Ron and Judy Ferrell
Sponsors – Fatheadz, ImageFactor.ca, ASi Racewear, Have Bus Will Travel, Kenetic Photos, Wiseco Piston, Riverside Bar & Grill, and BS&B Radiator
2009 SOS race venues – Brighton Speedway, Ohsweken Speedway, and South Buxton Raceway
2009 Board of Directors – Mike Ferrell, Tommy Goudge, Adam West, Warren Lindsay, and Bob Martin
2009 Executive – Terri Watson, Helen Brown, Dick Mahoney, and Peter Turford

Twenty-nine different drivers competed in at least one SOS event in 2009. Drivers competing in their first SOS full-points events in 2009 included Tyler Rand, Travis Cunningham, Jason Martin, Jim Munsie, Erin Joyce, Kyle Fraser, Doug Banks, and Chris Durand.

The annual SOS meeting was held on Saturday afternoon before the banquet. One rule change was passed, as the “3 spin” rule was modified. Also taking place at the meeting were the annual elections, during which Mike Ferrell was chosen as the new president, Loree Ferrell became the new secretary, and Warren Mahoney, Tyler Rand, and Mike Dougherty were elected to the board of directors.

The SOS would like to thank all the banquet attendees for their donations to the Travis Rutz trust fund. Thanks to the generosity shown, $1,000 was raised for Travis and his family to help cover his medical costs. At the time of this writing, Travis remains in Methodist Hospital in Indianapolis recovering from injuries sustained in a crash at Terre Haute on September 27. The SOS would like to wish Travis well on his road to recovery, and we hope he will be back home in British Columbia very soon.

The Southern Ontario Sprints will be taking part in many of the car shows and motorsports expos coming up in the area during this offseason, and will be releasing the 2010 schedule in the new year as well. The SOS club would like to thank the competitors, fans, officials, and everyone else involved for making 2009 a great season, and we hope to see you again in 2010!

Please visit www.SouthernOntarioSprints.com for more news and information about the Southern Ontario Sprints. 2009 marks the fourteenth year of operation for the Southern Ontario Sprints, brought to you this season by Wiseco Piston, Kenetic Photos, Fatheadz Eyewear, BS&B Radiator, Triple X Race Co., ASI Racewear, and ImageFactor.ca.