Go To Canada, Watch Some Racing

Back in 2012, I took a shot at racing B-Spec in the Canadian Touring Car Championship for a weekend at Mont-Tremblant. I wound up taking a whipping from a very talented field on an unfamiliar track, but I was amazed at the quality of the show that CTCC puts on for the spectators. Given the teething issues that the Tudor series is having this year, those of you who really want to see some close competition without the extraneous political factors and post-race decisions that have characterized “united sports car racing” so far this year might want to cross the border.

With the Canadian Touring Car Championship (CTCC) presented by Continental Tire preparing for its eighth season of competition, title hopefuls will again this year face the challenges of racing in seven doubleheader weekends, played out on six of Canada’s most demanding and diverse circuits.

“The drivers and the teams will have to work hard this year,” confirms series founder John Bondar. “Each track brings its own distinct challenges, and everyone will need to have all the pieces in order if they hope to be successful.”

As has become the tradition, the CTCC schedule will begin at the daunting, high-speed Canadian Tire Motorsport venue. In the 2013 season opener, Scott Nicol’s back-to-back victories kicked off his charge to the Super Class championship.

“It always pays to have a good start to the season. With our schedule, it’s really hard to play catch-up if something goes wrong early,” explains Nicol. “The speed is the challenge at Mosport (CTMP). It’s all about momentum, maintaining a high speed, especially through the corners. That’s when having confidence in your car is important.”

Rounds Three and Four of the 2014 campaign will see the CTCC competitors traveling to the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in Montréal. In one of the season’s highlight events, the touring car teams will test their skills in front of an appreciative audience gathered for the Canadian F1 Grand Prix circus.

From the glamorous urban setting in Montréal, two weeks later the series will trek to the wilderness surroundings of Calabogie Motorsports Park, northwest of Ottawa, before returning to Quebec to a (tentative) two-race event on the flat and featureless airport circuit of ICAR Mirabel. Entering the second half of the 2014 calendar, the CTCC’s next appearance will mark a return to the four-kilometer track of Shannonville Motorsport Park.

“We haven’t raced at Shannonville since May 2009. It will be something completely new for a lot of our drivers,” explains Bondar. “Shannonville is a very technical track, so it’s going to present some new and different challenges for the teams.”

After a very short break, the CTCC is again on the move, heading towards another season highlight, their twin bill date with the unforgiving, concrete-lined street course in the Grand Prix of Trois Rivieres. What truly makes this an exceptional attraction is that the weekend’s opening race will take place Thursday night in the late evening hours.

“The nature of this track is what we call ‘Point and Squirt’; it’s very hard to get into a rhythm. The biggest demand on each driver is that they must manage their equipment, especially their brakes. And keep it off of the walls,” laughs two-time Touring Class champion, Damon Sharpe. “But the vibe of this place, and the history behind it, gives this race a very special kind of aura.”

With the various class championships inevitably still on the line, the 2014 Canadian Touring Car Championship will conclude the season by coming full circle, returning to Canadian Tire Motorsport Park where they will share the Labour Day weekend schedule with the NASCAR Camping World Truck and Canadian Tire stock car Series.

Concludes Bondar, “Working such a variety of tracks into our schedule forces the teams to up their games, and any championship here is well earned. The difficulties that our teams face and their resulting successes can only help to improve the brand of the CTCC.”

“These are all wonderful events. They’re well organized and well attended. And they offer the perfect opportunity for lots of exposure for the drivers, the teams, the sponsors and the series itself.”

2014 CTCC Schedule:

May 17-18 Canadian Tire Motorsport Park Super (SC)/ Touring (TC)/ B-Spec (B-S)

June 6-8 Circuit Gilles Villeneuve SC/ TC/ B-S

June 21-22 Calabogie Motorsports Park SC/ TC

July 5-6* Circuit ICAR SC/ TC

July 26-27 Shannonville Motorsports Park SC/ TC

August 7-10 Grand Prix du Trois Rivieres SC/ TC/ B-S

August 30-31 Canadian Tire Motorsport Park SC/ TC/ B-S

We invite you to download the CTCC App, follow us on Facebook (@ touringcar.ca) and Twitter (@CTCCracing).

It’s worth checking out. Who knows — you might even see me show back up at Mont-Tremblant, with a little more steam under the hood!