Penticton Speedway owner Johnny Aantjes was very pleased with the 2015 Gordie Mannes Memorial weekend.
It marked the debut of the Tri-City Series, which Aantjes said was good. Thirty cars started the race and by the end there were 16 left. While there were plenty of crashes resulting in caution flags, none were very serious, but enough for drivers not to continue.
“It was a really good race, it was very exciting,” said Aantjes. “The follow up the second day, we had less cars out. Another great day of racing.”
On Saturday, along with the Tri-City series, nearly 3,500 spectators took in hornet racing, the Okanagan Dwarf Car Club and hit to pass. The crowd was the biggest to date.
Six drivers from the Tri-City Series competed and Aantjes said they enjoyed the track. The only thing that bothered him was there absence from Sunday’s action.
“I was disappointed that more of them didn’t stay for the second day,” he said. “They are set up to run their series. That’s a priority for them.”
The next race in the series is set for Aug. 15 in Prince George.
Once again Eve of Destruction was a hit, though there wasn’t as much destruction as normal.
“It was still a really good race,” said Aantjes.
Next action at the speedway is Aug. 22 for Flying Destruction and Aug. 23 featuring Eve of Destruction. The Penticton Speedway received a lot of hype, Aantjes said, about the Flying Destruction. Both events start at 7 p.m.
