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Lawrence (Larry) Bastedo (2004)
An enthusiast of any type of two-wheeled sport, 67-year-old Larry Bastedo of Hamilton has ridden in almost every type of motorcycle competition going. His first major win came in 1957 when he was first in the 500cc division in the Expert class at the Ontario Championship Spring Scrambles. He only lost one race that season, which he capped off by winning the Eastern Canadian Championships in Copetown. In 1958, he won the national championship Spiked Tire Ice Race at St. Agathe, Que. After that, Larry tried his hand at Road Racing and Dirt Track, attaining Senior status in both disciplines. A road race injury led him to Enduros and he was a member and later official with Team Canada at Six Day Trials in Poland, Germany, Spain and Wales. He went first as a rider but later as a support person and finally, in 1989 and 1990, as Canada's Jury Delegate, the team's only link to the organizers. Over the years, Larry gained a wonderful reputation as an announcer, using his knowledge of the riders and great memory to provide extraordinary commentary. In later years, his voice could be heard at Supercrosses. From the first mudbath at the CNE in 1977, through the years at SkyDome, Larry was co-announcer and did the voice-overs for the television post-production. He was also an administrator, and served the provincial and national boards of the Canadian Motorcycle Association as president, vice-president, member-at-large, and so-on. In the late 1980s, Larry arranged for his home club, the Steel City Riders, to take over the running of the legendary Corduroy Enduro from the British Empire Motor Club and it continues to this day.
More about this member :: Back to top Jim and Alice Fergusson (2004)
Jim Fergusson was a successful motorcycle, sports car and sedan racer, and rally driver. He was a team manager, crew chief, mechanic, race and rally organizer, official, sponsor and patron of the sport. He was also a racing car designer and constructor. He was introduced to motorsport by members of the British Empire Motor Club (BEMC) in the year it was founded, 1928. It was like introducing a duck to water. He was a barnstorming fairgrounds motorcycle racer and sometimes motorcycle road racer until he went off to war in 1939. Alice Fergusson was one of Canada's pioneer women racing and rally drivers. She was also a race and rally organizer and editor of BEMC's Small Torque, probably the oldest racing club publication in Canada and now an invaluable source for the history of motorsport in central Canada. On June 25, 1950, Jim was president of theBEMC when the club held a pair of sports car races at Edenvale, the first known sports car races in eastern Canada. Jim finished third in both events; Alice was 15th in the first and official scorer of the second. It was the beginning of many years of racing and rallying for Jim and Alice. They raced at Sebring, Watkins Glen, Harewood and other circuits. They rallied in club events, national events and competed in a variety of hillclimbs, ice races and economy runs. Jim designed a formula junior car; Alice built a Flathead Ford stock car motor that set a track record in 1952 at the CNE Speedway. Their last hurrah came in the early 1970s; they were the only Canadian competitors in the very first (and highly illegal) Cannonball Baker, Sea-to-Shining-Sea, Memorial Trophy Dash that was won by Brock Yates and Dan Gurney. Jim passed away in 1976 and Alice followed in 1997. Separately and together, Jim and Alice Fergusson made a remarkable contribution to the development of Canadian motorsport. Their efforts were purely voluntary. They did what they did for the love of the sport.
More about this member :: Back to top Jack Greedy (2004)
Jack Greedy started racing in 1954 in the jalopy division at Pinecrest Speedway, where he was named Rookie of the Year. He progressed to supermodified racing at the CNE Speedway, where he was the track champion in 1963, the year it closed. During the mid-'60s, he won track championships at Delaware Speedway, Nilestown and Flamboro and was known to one and all as "Smiling Jack'' because of his cheerful disposition. In 1968, Greedy often travelled to Oswego Speedway in New York state where he won a feature over the acknowledged king of the supers at that time, Jim Shampine. Several weeks after the 1968 Oswego Classic (in which he finished fourth), he was involved in a horrific crash with Bentley Warren and both their cars were destroyed. Amazingly, Greedy's car - which started life as an A.J. Watson roadster that was driven in the 1963 Indy 500 by Roger Ward - was repaired and back at the speedway the following Saturday. Owning a construction company, in which several employees were also members of his pit crew, helped. Greedy retired from driving at the end of the 1969 season after purchasing, with a partner, Delaware Speedway near London. He enlarged the track from a quarter to a half-mile, started a low-dollar beginner division called Rat Racers and, with Cayuga Speedway management, started the Export A Super Late Model series for serious racers. Greedy was manager of Carling's NASCAR Grand National team (Earl Ross, driver) and headquartered the team at Delaware. He sold the racing plant in 1975 but continued in the sport, supporting his son John's racing. He passed away in 1988.
More about this member :: Back to top Robert and Helen Harvey (2004)
A life-long citizen of Sparta, Robert (Bob) Harvey was a man who was always concerned about his community. A young employee of the nearby St. Thomas dry cleaning business made frequent stops in Sparta. As bundles of clothes were being picked up, the Harveys frequently invited the driver in for supper. The young fellow was an active hot rodder named Doug Kennington. During one of these mealtime discussions, Kennington took the opportunity to explain his concerns over the state of racing in the community. As the Harveys listened, Kennington told them that local hot rodders needed a drag strip set up in that area of the province to provide a safe and professional place to race their cars. After a visit to Detroit Dragway, Bob Harvey announced that he would build his own drag strip on an unused parcel of land in Sparta. St. Thomas Dragway opened in the spring of 1962 and quickly became a landmark drag racing facility in Canada. It became the first drag strip outside the United States to be sanctioned by the National Hot Rod Association. In 1963, the track was given a coveted regional meet to host. This again was another first for the NHRA, being the first major regional meet outside the U.S. St. Thomas went on to host drag meets that attracted some of the finest racers on the continent. After her husband died, Helen Harvey chose to keep the track open for racers of all classes. Helen was one of the most unique women in motorsports. In 1962, at a time when women didn't get involved with automobile racing, she was as important a member of the building process of St. Thomas Dragway as anyone. In fact, from the opening day in the spring of 1962 until the day she sold the track to John Fletcher in 1989, she was at every single event ever held at the racing facility.Bob andHelen Harvey created a legacy when they built St. Thomas Dragway and their mark on drag racing in Canada will never diminish.
More about this member :: Back to top Doug Kennington (2004)
Independent, dedicated, versatile and determined. For more than 40 years, Doug Kennington has displayed those qualities at drag strips and oval tracks throughout Canada. Fuelled by a passion for motorsports and a single-minded determination to succeed on the road of his own choosing, Kennington has created a wide-reaching legacy that has left an indelible mark on the Canadian racing scene. It was Doug Kennington who convinced local businessman Bob Harvey to build St. Thomas Dragway and he became the driving force behind the new facility. As well as overseeing the operation, he was Technical Director and he also raced. With a young family and a growing business, Doug eventually backed away from St. Thomas. It wasn't until young son DJ started in go-karts that Doug got involved in the sport again. Faced with the choice of going drag racing or oval racing, young DJ opted for stock cars. By all accounts, Doug was always a 'MOPAR Man', regardless of what he raced on the track. Although successful in a '52 Olds, a sedan Willys and several other makes, Doug's heart always belonged to one certain brand. The Kenningtons' decision to race MOPARs on stock car ovals was anything but the easy route to take. But their perseverance paid off in spades. In 1996, powered by Doug Kennington-built MOPAR motors, DJ captured the CASCAR Sportsman track championship at Delaware Speedway, as well as his first CASCAR Super Series win. In the time since, they've been - more often than not - the top performing MOPAR Super Series team. The team's level of respect is further evidenced by its long-running sponsorship support from Castrol Canada.
More about this member :: Back to top George LeMay (2004)
George LeMay was one of the real pioneers of auto racing in Western Canada. He was born in Kindersley, Sask., but later settledin Calgary. When he was discharged from the Navy after World War II, he opened a gas station and auto repair business. Bow Valley Service became the sponsor of his first race car, a stripped down Model T. which he raced in the Lion's Club races at Calgary and Edmonton and at smaller Alberta fairgrounds in 1947, '48 and '49. In 1949, the International Motor Contest Association (IMCA) sprint cars toured Western Canada featuring most of the top American dirt track cars and drivers. Some of the local Model T drivers who attended the races as spectators - LeMay among them - got together to form the Alberta Auto Racing Association to promote sprint car racing in Alberta. The inaugural season in 1950 included fairgrounds races in Edmonton, Lacombe, Red Deer, Three Hills, Brooks, Calgary, High River, Nanton, and Lethbridge. When the dust settled at the end of the season, George LeMay was Alberta's first sprint car champion. He went south to race full-time on the IMCA circuit for several years and in 1953, replaced the Mercury V-8 in his sprint car with a 440 c.i. Ranger aircraft engine. The car was known as the LeMay Ranger. Years later, he restored this car and raced it several times at the annual IMCA Old Timers Reunion race in Arlington, Minnesota. From 1954 until he retired from race driving after the '59 season, George raced modified stock cars, primarily at Springbank Speedway in Calgary and Edmonton's Speedway Park. In 1995, he was inducted into the IMCA Hall of Fame. It was well known that George LeMay, being Canadian, put the "international" in the International Motor Contest Association. He passed away in 1996.
More about this member :: Back to top Rollie McDonald (2004)
Rollie MacDonald's love for racing cars and speed has kept him in the racing game for nearly 40 years. He's raced on tracks in Canada and the United States against some of the racing world's toughest competitors, breaking both local and national records and winning numerous races and championships. As a boy growing up in rural Pictou County, Nova Scotia, his love for fast cars began when he would race old cars around the fields of the family farm. In 1965, he built his first real race car, a '55 Pontiac, and started his racing career that year at Mountain Raceway, a dirt track near New Glasgow. From there he went on to race at speedways throughout the Maritime provinces, Quebec and the northeastern United States. He was only injured once, but it was a dilly: he was bedridden for a month in 1977 after hitting the wall while trying for 22 straight victories at his local speedway. In 1983 he won the three-province MASCAR championship and was a strong runner in that series for many years afterward. A friend and customer of fellow Maritimer Junior Hanley, MacDonald took a Hanley car to Quebec in 1986 and won the QUASCAR title. MacDonald says his most memorable victory came in 1989 when he won the Nissan 200 International at the newly built Scotia Speedworld near Halifax. In 1994, MacDonald purchased a Busch Grand National car from Jimmy Spencer and raced in the Busch North series. Never content with racing in just one series, he continued to race locally and in selected MASCAR events at the same time - a pattern throughout his career. In 1998, Rollie MacDonald - a successful business as well as sportsman - made a major change: he went from driver to owner. He continues to compete today with a local fellow, Scott Fraser, in the car.
More about this member :: Back to top Jean-Paul Perusse (2004)
Jean-Paul Perusse became interested in rallying in the mid-1960s when he was studying engineering. His first major rally was the Shell 4000. Fiat gave him a Fiat 128 to enter in the 1972 Canadian Winter Rally and he beat his teammate, rally superstar Andrew Cowan. He won the Winter Rally again in 1973 and '74. Then began what can only be called a Perusse domination of the rally scene, winning the Canadian Rally Championship in 1975 and '76. Included in his victories was the 1976 Winter Rally, his fourth in five years, and he beat rally legend John Buffum in the process. He switched manufacturers and drove a Saab for several years but, in late 1976, he moved to British Leyland and ran a Triumph TR7 in 1977. Not long after, Perusse cut back on his rallying and went ice racing until he was called back to the scene by his old friend, John Buffum. Jean-Paul drove a Volkswagen GTI to win the 1987 Group A class in the North American Rally Cup, which combines results from both Canada and the United States. In the early 1990s, he again left rallying and returned to ice racing, winning two Quebec championships. By the turn of the century, he was rallying again in his old VW GTI. He showed the younger generation how it was done in 2001 by finishing tenth and fourth in a series of Quebec rallies. The came the 2002 Percce Neige, where he was faster than many of his opponents, eventually finishing sixth overall and first in his class. Today, he is still in the driver's seat, planning on even more seasons, proving that you can't keep a superb rallyist down.
More about this member :: Back to top Gordon Reelie (2004)
Gordon Reelie represents a sub-culture of automobile racing that often goes unnoticed: that of the car owner. Gordon Reelie was such an owner. From B.C. to California, his midget race cars were instantly recognized and admired for their preparation and presentation. In fact, one was once displayed at the Vancouver Art Gallery. His infatuation with motorsport began in the 1920s when he first heard the roar of racing engines at Vancouver's Hastings Park while standing in the backyard of his family's North Burnaby home. But it wasn't until after World War II that his career took off. Gordon tried driving once, won and promptly retired. From then until his death in 1994, Reelie's cars were always contenders for feature wins, if not season championships. He was instrumental in laying out the dimensions for both the Digney and False Creek Speedways - he patterned them exactly after Seattle's Aurora Stadium - and he was president of the B.C. Midget Auto Racing Association (BCMRA) for several years. He raced up and down the west coast, winning as far south as the famed Ascot Speedway in Los Angeles with Hank Butcher driving. Other famous drivers like Rich Vogler took turns behind the wheel of Reelie's cars. Palmer Crowell drove for Reelie for 20 years and racked up more than 50 Washington Midget Racing Association victories and several WMRA championships. Dennis Kitts, who wasn't born when Reelie started racing, won him his last championship, in 1992. Over the years, his cars were powered by Ford V-8-60s, Offenhausers, VWs and whatever else would get them around the track and to the front, including - on the odd occasion - a little nitro.
More about this member :: Back to top Mark Rotharmel (2004)
Mark Rotharmel made a name for himself in a sport where the penalties for making a mistake are abrupt and serious: high-level powerboat racing. He started racing at 17 when he entered his first professional race in Peterborough. He won his first title - the Vee-bottom (FE) Canadian championship - in 1972. He was then recruited by Mercury Marine to join their factory racing team. He won the restricted Unlimited One (U1) tunnel boat Canadian and High Point championships and sent a Canadian record in the class. From 1974 to '79, Mark raced for Mercury in the unlimited outboard categories, earning four more titles and another speed record. When Mercury withdrew from competition, he was hired by Outboard Marine Corporation, and continued?his winning ways with?back-to-back Championships in 1980. In 1984, Mark entered several U.S. and two European races with his Evinrude-sponsored V-8-powered Formula One tunnel boat and then he competed in the full 1985 nine-country world tour. He also continued to race in Canada, winning the 1985 North American Mod U championship and he set the fastest recorded average lap time at the Gold Cup course in Picton, Ont., of 116 miles an hour. Shortly after, Mark retired from the cockpit - but he wasn't finished. After announcing at national races and hosting regional cable TV specials, Mark co-hosted Power Boat Television, a long-running series on TSN and Speed channel. He's written about the sport for numerous publications, hosted and produced the American Power Boat Association's offshore races held in Toronto and co-hosted Canada's largest F1 Powerboat Grand Prix. He has been chairman and secretary of the Performance Boat Club of Canada. He is a member of the Canadian Boating Federation's Hall of Fame.
More about this member :: Back to top Brian Stewart (2004)
Quick now. What do Paul Tracy, Brian Herta, Airton Dare, Scott Maxwell, P.J. Jones, Marty Roth, Jacques Lazier and Cristiano da Matta have in common? Well, at one time or another, they've all driven race cars for Brian Stewart, of Sutton, Ont., who is one of Canada's most successful racers. Not a race driver, but a racer all the same. Brian Stewart is known internationally as a fellow who produces winners. He is the owner of racing cars who prepares them, takes them to the circuits and then provides the drivers with everything from logistical to psychological support while they're there. Stewart started in Formula Vees and raced them for three years, winning the Canadian championship in 1970. In 1972, he moved up to Formula Fords and won the national championship in that class. A trip to the Formula Ford Festival at Brands Hatch in Britain saw him finish 12th out of 200 who entered. When no one seemed interested in hiring him as a driver, Stewart decided to go into the business of managing race teams and preparing race cars for other people to drive. In the late 1980s, Stewart formed Brian Stewart Racing and entered the Indy Lights series. From that first season, when Tommy Byrne finished second, through the championship years of Tracy, Eric Bachelart, Robbie Buhl and all the others, Brian Stewart Racing has enjoyed unparalleled success. When CART decided to shut down the Indy Lights series, Stewart thought of going to Formula Atlantic but considered it a step backward. Instead, the Indy Racing League invented the Infiniti Pro Series and invited Brian to join. He continues in that series to this day.
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