How Canadian of a Motorsports Nut Are You?
11-23-06, 01:32 PM
#1
Rotary Freak
Thread Starter
How Canadian of a Motorsports Nut Are You?
It was in a different thread, but I thought I would start a new one for this.
1) Canadian who qualified for the Daytona 500 with Carling Black Label sponsorship. (Hint, he is from Ontario)
2) What Canadian Retailing heir raced in the Can-Am series and made it to F1?
3) What was Gordie Bonin's nickname and in what type of car did he drive?
4) Name 3 of the 4 pro road racing series in Canada that died in 1991. At that time it was possible to be a real pro driver in Canada and actually make money racing.
5) Ontario focus (sorry) name 7 present and former road racing tracks in Ontario?
6) What Canadian privateer team raced in the Daytona 500 back in the 70's and 80's. (Hint, he was from Victoria B.C.)
7) Name 5 road racing tracks that are no-more.
8) What company sponsored the series of Halifax street races?
9) What was the Shell 1000?
10) What was the name of the famous Ontario oval track that was located in the Highway 7 / Keele Street location that closed for good in the early 70's.
I will eternally respect and pity any poor fool who knows all the answers to these questions. You have wasted your life, like I have.
Al, you can't answer yet as I know you have a wasted life as well, LOL.
Just ran the questions past Al and he only got 6 answers.
Lets see how good you guys are. Please don't make me the biggest knowledge loser.
Bonus points if you can tell me what racetrack they filmed the movie Fast Company at.
Eric
1) Canadian who qualified for the Daytona 500 with Carling Black Label sponsorship. (Hint, he is from Ontario)
2) What Canadian Retailing heir raced in the Can-Am series and made it to F1?
3) What was Gordie Bonin's nickname and in what type of car did he drive?
4) Name 3 of the 4 pro road racing series in Canada that died in 1991. At that time it was possible to be a real pro driver in Canada and actually make money racing.
5) Ontario focus (sorry) name 7 present and former road racing tracks in Ontario?
6) What Canadian privateer team raced in the Daytona 500 back in the 70's and 80's. (Hint, he was from Victoria B.C.)
7) Name 5 road racing tracks that are no-more.
8) What company sponsored the series of Halifax street races?
9) What was the Shell 1000?
10) What was the name of the famous Ontario oval track that was located in the Highway 7 / Keele Street location that closed for good in the early 70's.
I will eternally respect and pity any poor fool who knows all the answers to these questions. You have wasted your life, like I have.
Al, you can't answer yet as I know you have a wasted life as well, LOL.
Just ran the questions past Al and he only got 6 answers.
Lets see how good you guys are. Please don't make me the biggest knowledge loser.
Bonus points if you can tell me what racetrack they filmed the movie Fast Company at.
Eric
11-23-06, 09:17 PM
#3
I'll give it a try.
#1 Junior Hanley? But I'm just guessing there...
#2 ?
#3 Pacemaker funny car?... he's a wee bit older than I heh
#4 ?
#5 Shannonville Dunville Cayuga Mosport Calbogie
#7 Edenvale, Carp Airport, Green Acres, Harewood Acres, .... theres more if I can think of 'em.
#10 Pinecrest!
Bonus answer: International speedway, I think it's in edmonton.
I watched the movie a few years ago and still remember that.
yah the rest, I have no idea.
#1 Junior Hanley? But I'm just guessing there...
#2 ?
#3 Pacemaker funny car?... he's a wee bit older than I heh
#4 ?
#5 Shannonville Dunville Cayuga Mosport Calbogie
#7 Edenvale, Carp Airport, Green Acres, Harewood Acres, .... theres more if I can think of 'em.
#10 Pinecrest!
Bonus answer: International speedway, I think it's in edmonton.
I watched the movie a few years ago and still remember that.
yah the rest, I have no idea.
11-23-06, 10:26 PM
#4
Lives on the Forum
#7 - Westwood - We now don't really have any good tracks in BC, there's Mission, but many people hate it and refuse to race there
I haven't been paying attention to racing for long enough/closely enough to know most of those, but I've got Canadian road racing in my blood.
My great uncle is John Hall, who raced in the Canadian Trans-Am series back in the 60's and 70's (and I think he may have even been National Champion). He also held a record at the Knox mountain hillclimb for many years.
That's a picture of his car racing at Laguna Seca in my avatar, it was taken during a rare trip to the US in the early 70's. That car is still racing today.
I haven't been paying attention to racing for long enough/closely enough to know most of those, but I've got Canadian road racing in my blood.
My great uncle is John Hall, who raced in the Canadian Trans-Am series back in the 60's and 70's (and I think he may have even been National Champion). He also held a record at the Knox mountain hillclimb for many years.
That's a picture of his car racing at Laguna Seca in my avatar, it was taken during a rare trip to the US in the early 70's. That car is still racing today.
11-24-06, 08:05 AM
#5
Rotary Freak
Thread Starter
Wow... pretty good answers so far.
Terrh, you have Al and my eternal respect for remembering that little tidbit about Edmonton International Speedway. I can't believe that they used to hold Trans Am and Can Am races at that track. One of my favorite movie scenes from all time is from that movie (Fast Company). When the guy steals his top fuel flopper back from the car show and drives it down the street and pulls up beside the 2 guys in the Road Runner. The kid tries to race him and in a blast of noise and light the flopper is gone and the kids just sit there. Ah, teenage fantasies. Everybody should watch that movie. It was my high school years. Also, knowing Gordie Bonin's Funny Car...WOW AGAIN....but what was his rhyming nickname. Also great work on closed Ontario tracks.
Black91N/A I was hoping someone would bring up Westwood. A great track fondly remembered. I can't believe the great circle of contacts on this site. Your great uncle is John Hall and he raced a Mustang in the 60's and 70's. That car is still racing today and I believe worth well over $250,000 USF. I also race with Tim Brown of Brown Bros. Ford whose dad used to support a car that, I believe, competed with your great uncle. I will check with Tim when he gets up for more details about that period. Could you post a bigger picture of the photo? I would really like to see the shot.
Terrh, you have Al and my eternal respect for remembering that little tidbit about Edmonton International Speedway. I can't believe that they used to hold Trans Am and Can Am races at that track. One of my favorite movie scenes from all time is from that movie (Fast Company). When the guy steals his top fuel flopper back from the car show and drives it down the street and pulls up beside the 2 guys in the Road Runner. The kid tries to race him and in a blast of noise and light the flopper is gone and the kids just sit there. Ah, teenage fantasies. Everybody should watch that movie. It was my high school years. Also, knowing Gordie Bonin's Funny Car...WOW AGAIN....but what was his rhyming nickname. Also great work on closed Ontario tracks.
Black91N/A I was hoping someone would bring up Westwood. A great track fondly remembered. I can't believe the great circle of contacts on this site. Your great uncle is John Hall and he raced a Mustang in the 60's and 70's. That car is still racing today and I believe worth well over $250,000 USF. I also race with Tim Brown of Brown Bros. Ford whose dad used to support a car that, I believe, competed with your great uncle. I will check with Tim when he gets up for more details about that period. Could you post a bigger picture of the photo? I would really like to see the shot.
11-24-06, 12:58 PM
#6
Lives on the Forum
There's some info on him and his cars here (this is where the picture came from):
http://www.ponysite.de/transam_hall.htm
9th fastest sedan time to date:
http://www.knoxmtnhillclimb.ca/resul...danranking.htm
My dad loved Westwood. He drove there once back in the early 80's at a driving school and fondly remembers watching racing there. One funny story was with a stock Civic class (or something like that) where two cars got hooked together at the bumper from hard braking into the hairpin at the bottom of the hill (car benind got his bumper under the car in front's rear bumper. We've got a number of Westwood posters in the den at home.
I've only got one other picture of his car, taken at Knox
http://www.ponysite.de/transam_hall.htm
9th fastest sedan time to date:
http://www.knoxmtnhillclimb.ca/resul...danranking.htm
My dad loved Westwood. He drove there once back in the early 80's at a driving school and fondly remembers watching racing there. One funny story was with a stock Civic class (or something like that) where two cars got hooked together at the bumper from hard braking into the hairpin at the bottom of the hill (car benind got his bumper under the car in front's rear bumper. We've got a number of Westwood posters in the den at home.
I've only got one other picture of his car, taken at Knox
11-25-06, 09:46 AM
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1. ?
2. George Eaton
3. Smiley, dragster - not positive
4. (Firestone Firehawk) Rothmans Porsche, Players GM, Export A' Formula 2000
5. Mosport, Shannonville, Toronto Motorsports Park, Dunnville, Calabogie, Harewood, Edenvale.
6. ?
7. Harewood, Edenvale, Westwood, Abbotsford, Edmonton international, Capitol city.
8. Moosehead
9. Crap i forget,,,,,,,um, sportscar gt race?
10. Pinecrest
2. George Eaton
3. Smiley, dragster - not positive
4. (Firestone Firehawk) Rothmans Porsche, Players GM, Export A' Formula 2000
5. Mosport, Shannonville, Toronto Motorsports Park, Dunnville, Calabogie, Harewood, Edenvale.
6. ?
7. Harewood, Edenvale, Westwood, Abbotsford, Edmonton international, Capitol city.
8. Moosehead
9. Crap i forget,,,,,,,um, sportscar gt race?
10. Pinecrest
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11-25-06, 11:40 AM
#8
Go Hard....or Go Home
How can true Canadian Motorsport fans not know "240 Gordie". Gordie Bonin was the 1st to go 240 mph in a funny car, hence the 240 Gordie name.
BTW I think Gordie Bonin now sells beer for Molsons!
BTW I think Gordie Bonin now sells beer for Molsons!
11-26-06, 11:12 AM
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Originally Posted by Terrh
hey, I think this quiz favors OLD GUYS, I'm only 22 and think I did pretty good! :P
I was pretty sure Bonin was a drag racer. Was the Shell 1000 a dirtbike race?
I'll throw in my own question. Who was the only driver ever black flagged in F1 for racing to slowly???It has double Cnadian content.
11-27-06, 09:10 PM
#12
Rotary Freak
Thread Starter
Marc, was it in a race or in Qualifying? In a race I believe it was Alan Berg driving for Osella or was it Eppie Weitze's driving his Brabham BT44 for team Canada.
Actually he did say it had double Canadian content. Hmmmmmm.... scratching the memory banks. Was it Peter Ryan in the Sadler in like 61or 62?
Now I am completely confused.
I do know that Jacques Villeneuve (the elder one) was black flagged in practice for the Canadian Grand Prix in his rented Arrows for being too slow, but I dont think that is what Marc is looking for.
I will give my answers tomorrow.
Eric
Actually he did say it had double Canadian content. Hmmmmmm.... scratching the memory banks. Was it Peter Ryan in the Sadler in like 61or 62?
Now I am completely confused.
I do know that Jacques Villeneuve (the elder one) was black flagged in practice for the Canadian Grand Prix in his rented Arrows for being too slow, but I dont think that is what Marc is looking for.
I will give my answers tomorrow.
Eric
11-28-06, 10:03 AM
#15
Rotary Freak
Thread Starter
As Promised
The answers to the questions:
1) Earl Ross, sponsored by Carling Black Label Beer. His teammate that year was Cale Yarborough and in fact Earl really showed well and was very well respected by the NASCAR elite
2) As stated George Eaton. He raced in the Can Am series for BRM and moved on to do a couple of F1 races with them as a semi paying driver.
3) As stated, he was known as 240 Gordie Bonin and drove the Pacemaker Nitro Funny Car. Gordie was part of the NHRA elite and was very well respected long after he retired from the cockpit. I even believe that he drove Top Fuelers for a while as a hired gun.
4) The Road Racing Championships that died were the GM Players Goodyear Firebird/Camaro Showroom Stock, Rothman's F2000 and Honda Michelin. The only one that survived (for 1 more year) was the Firestone Firehawk Championship. Oh man it was a black period. Racing Teams shutting down everywhere. Canadian racing still hasn't recovered.
5) I am not even going to try to answer this. Look into this question and into number 7. Canada has had many dozens of road racing, oval and dragstrip tracks that were closed down over the years. You may be shocked to learn about how close they were to the towns and how popular they were. I was.
6) Roy Smith Racing. The guy was great and he did it by himself and his team fro Victoria B.C.. He ran in 2 or 3 races a year in a period that stretched from 1976 to 1989. His best year was 1982 when his team made 3 races with 2 Top 10 finishes. Could you imagine that happening today. He was something pretty special to do what he did from where he did it.
8) As stated, Moosehead. They held everything from Formula 3000 to American Indycar races in downtown Halifax. Must have been some kind of show and I am sorry I never got a chance to travel down there to see it.
9) I can't believe that nobody knew this. The Shell 1000 was a world class rally race that used to take place across Canada back in the '60's. It was televised and had coverage in all the newspapers when it ran. The roads were pretty tough back then, in places, and it had sorta a Paris Dakar feel to it.
10) Again as stated Pinecrest. Just another one of these big Canadian tracks that disappeared back in the early to mid 70's.
All I wanted to do with this was to get a few of you maybe looking into what motorsport has happened in Canada in the near and somewhat distant past. I recall Formula Atlantic street races taking place in Newfoundland, Hamilton and Vancouver. Stock Car races held at the CNE in the old football stadium (in fact I remember going to a stock car race there back in 1965 as a baby).
Canada has had a number of drivers who have made it to the top levels of every type of motorsport and we have been doing it for well over 50 years. Canada has a rich motorsport history in every province and I bet if you look around you can find out some really interesting history right around where you live.
Eric
Marc, it has to be Horst Kroll or Ludwig Heimrath then, LOL.
1) Earl Ross, sponsored by Carling Black Label Beer. His teammate that year was Cale Yarborough and in fact Earl really showed well and was very well respected by the NASCAR elite
2) As stated George Eaton. He raced in the Can Am series for BRM and moved on to do a couple of F1 races with them as a semi paying driver.
3) As stated, he was known as 240 Gordie Bonin and drove the Pacemaker Nitro Funny Car. Gordie was part of the NHRA elite and was very well respected long after he retired from the cockpit. I even believe that he drove Top Fuelers for a while as a hired gun.
4) The Road Racing Championships that died were the GM Players Goodyear Firebird/Camaro Showroom Stock, Rothman's F2000 and Honda Michelin. The only one that survived (for 1 more year) was the Firestone Firehawk Championship. Oh man it was a black period. Racing Teams shutting down everywhere. Canadian racing still hasn't recovered.
5) I am not even going to try to answer this. Look into this question and into number 7. Canada has had many dozens of road racing, oval and dragstrip tracks that were closed down over the years. You may be shocked to learn about how close they were to the towns and how popular they were. I was.
6) Roy Smith Racing. The guy was great and he did it by himself and his team fro Victoria B.C.. He ran in 2 or 3 races a year in a period that stretched from 1976 to 1989. His best year was 1982 when his team made 3 races with 2 Top 10 finishes. Could you imagine that happening today. He was something pretty special to do what he did from where he did it.
8) As stated, Moosehead. They held everything from Formula 3000 to American Indycar races in downtown Halifax. Must have been some kind of show and I am sorry I never got a chance to travel down there to see it.
9) I can't believe that nobody knew this. The Shell 1000 was a world class rally race that used to take place across Canada back in the '60's. It was televised and had coverage in all the newspapers when it ran. The roads were pretty tough back then, in places, and it had sorta a Paris Dakar feel to it.
10) Again as stated Pinecrest. Just another one of these big Canadian tracks that disappeared back in the early to mid 70's.
All I wanted to do with this was to get a few of you maybe looking into what motorsport has happened in Canada in the near and somewhat distant past. I recall Formula Atlantic street races taking place in Newfoundland, Hamilton and Vancouver. Stock Car races held at the CNE in the old football stadium (in fact I remember going to a stock car race there back in 1965 as a baby).
Canada has had a number of drivers who have made it to the top levels of every type of motorsport and we have been doing it for well over 50 years. Canada has a rich motorsport history in every province and I bet if you look around you can find out some really interesting history right around where you live.
Eric
Marc, it has to be Horst Kroll or Ludwig Heimrath then, LOL.
11-28-06, 04:43 PM
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Surprisingly Canada does still turn out some great racers with no professional series or development series, One of whom may have a good shot at F1 is Bruno Spengler who narrowly missed winning the DTM series this year for Mercedes. The 2005 champion (Gary Paffett) is currently a test driver for McLaren, so if Bruno can continue his winning ways he has a very good chance at a seat in the bid show.
The answer to my question is.........
Canadian Al Pease. In the 1969 Grand Prix of Canada at Mosport Pease was black-flagged for driving too slowly, the only driver in Formula One history to have ever suffered that penalty.
Al was known for winning his fair share of races in a superchrged MG back in the day. I beleive he still raced in vintage up to 1988.
The 69 grand prix was won by some punk named Jackie Ickx, and Lotus brought cars with the crazy idea of using 4 wheel drive. I beleive Pease drove a Gurney Eagle.
I do'nt beleive Kroll or Heimrath ever raced F1. But speaking of Heimrath did'nt he have something to do with the fall of the Firestone Firehawk series???
The answer to my question is.........
Canadian Al Pease. In the 1969 Grand Prix of Canada at Mosport Pease was black-flagged for driving too slowly, the only driver in Formula One history to have ever suffered that penalty.
Al was known for winning his fair share of races in a superchrged MG back in the day. I beleive he still raced in vintage up to 1988.
The 69 grand prix was won by some punk named Jackie Ickx, and Lotus brought cars with the crazy idea of using 4 wheel drive. I beleive Pease drove a Gurney Eagle.
I do'nt beleive Kroll or Heimrath ever raced F1. But speaking of Heimrath did'nt he have something to do with the fall of the Firestone Firehawk series???
11-28-06, 04:44 PM
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Surprisingly Canada does still turn out some great racers with no professional series or development series, One of whom may have a good shot at F1 is Bruno Spengler who narrowly missed winning the DTM series this year for Mercedes. The 2005 champion (Gary Paffett) is currently a test driver for McLaren, so if Bruno can continue his winning ways he has a very good chance at a seat in the big show.
The answer to my question is.........
Canadian Al Pease. In the 1969 Grand Prix of Canada at Mosport Pease was black-flagged for driving too slowly, the only driver in Formula One history to have ever suffered that penalty.
Al was known for winning his fair share of races in a superchrged MG back in the day. I beleive he still raced in vintage up to 1988.
The 69 grand prix was won by some punk named Jackie Ickx, and Lotus brought cars with the crazy idea of using 4 wheel drive. I beleive Pease drove a Gurney Eagle.
I do'nt beleive Kroll or Heimrath ever raced F1. But speaking of Heimrath did'nt he have something to do with the fall of the Firestone Firehawk series???
The answer to my question is.........
Canadian Al Pease. In the 1969 Grand Prix of Canada at Mosport Pease was black-flagged for driving too slowly, the only driver in Formula One history to have ever suffered that penalty.
Al was known for winning his fair share of races in a superchrged MG back in the day. I beleive he still raced in vintage up to 1988.
The 69 grand prix was won by some punk named Jackie Ickx, and Lotus brought cars with the crazy idea of using 4 wheel drive. I beleive Pease drove a Gurney Eagle.
I do'nt beleive Kroll or Heimrath ever raced F1. But speaking of Heimrath did'nt he have something to do with the fall of the Firestone Firehawk series???
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