44 MITCH BROWN FOUND WHAT HE WAS AFTER IN THE SUNSHINE STATE He certainly didn't get much of a suntan nor did he get to carry a checkered flag. And he didn't return from the Sunshine State with a hauler full of American dollars. But Mitch Brown did acquire what he went south for during the month of February...more experience in the lightning fast sport of Sprint Car Racing! Following his strong showing over the 2014 season where he was runner up in two series championship here in Southern Ontario, the twenty-one year-old driver feels confident he can do better in 2015 but knew he required more experience against some of the top winged, open- wheel competitors in the nation. And experience is what he got with the likes of past King of the 360's Ronald Laney Memorial Champions Wayne Johnson (2014 and 2010), Danny Holtgraver (2013), Glenn Styres (2012), Terry McCarl (2006), Chad Kemenah (2005) and Jason Sides (2002) among the drivers vying for a another crown. Others in the running for the 2015 King of the 360's title included a handful of drivers who compete in a partial schedule with the World of Outlaws Mitch's first stop during his 2-1/2 week winter getaway to the west coast of Florida came at Tampa's East Bay Raceway Park February 19th-21st for the track's 39th Annual Winternationals featuring a gathering of America's finest dirt track warriors. On the opening night of the three night event there were 67 competitors vying for top honours in 17th annual King of the 360's and 14th annual Ronald Laney Memorial – the first event on the 2015 Lucas Oil American Sprint Car Series. In night one, Mitch finished third in his qualifier and sixth Photo by Gary Eves in the B-Main. The following night he finished sixth in both his qualifier and B-Main and in Saturday’s finale finished seventh in his qualifier, fifth in a C-Main and fourteenth in a B-Main. Although he didn't qualify for an A-Main during the three night Sprint Car show he certainly learned that being among the best Sprint Car drivers here in Canada, there is still a lot to be learned competing against the top competitors he faced during his Florida experience. ... Continued on Page 2 Edition #2 February 2015 MITCH BROWN FOUND WHAT HE WAS AFTER IN THE Editor's Comments... SUNSHINE STATE Continued from page 1 Now that's more like it. At last a breath of warmer The following weekend, the ASCS Series travelled north to air has enveloped Southern Ontario. At first I thought it was simply my furnace kicking in with the Ocala’s Bubba Raceway Park where Mitch came close to repeated news that winter still has a few week to go making his first A-Main feature start with a fourth place finish before spring officially arrives? in the B-Main -one spot short of a top-three qualifying position. Gosh, February and the first couple of days in March had been relentless The second night of competition at the D-shaped, 3/8-mile track was cancelled with rain drenching the track and with record low temperatures, snow falls and off the lake streamers that had left me regretting not taking the Mrs.' advice to head south to finally surrounding areas of Florida. become a snowbird from December through March. STYRES AND DURAND AMONG OTHER ONTARIO DRIVERS I guess those of us here in Southern Ontario shouldn't complain too much WHO JOURNED SOUTH though when we hear about the plight of people in the Maritimes and in 2014 Ohsweken Speedway and Southern Ontario Sprints the North Eastern United States especially Boston. Champion Glenn Styres and Port Stanley's Chris Durand were A friend of mine who moved back to his native New Brunswick many years also among the handful of Canadian Sprint Car competitors ago laughs when I complain about our winter. getting in some pre-season racing on Florida's west coast His area of the country experiences many more winter storms and cold during February. arctic blasts on an annual basis than we do and was relating recently in a Styres who won the King of the 360's crown in 2012failed to phone call that in his specific area they're experiencing snow falls that have reach the feature in all three nights at East Bay but earned a reached 5 to 6 feet with high winds, periods of freezing rain and of course starting spot in the Night opener at Bubba Raceway Park on the drifting that compounds the problems. Says his spouse has spent the February 27th by finishing second in his qualifier the ran to a last two hours just staring through the kitchen window. He claims if the fourteenth-place finish in the A-Main. weather gets much worse ....he may have to let her in! Durand who runs at Ohsweken and in the SOS series had his I'm not sure if he's pulling my leg or not but in a few weeks I may call him best finish at East Bay was a sixth-place run in his opening to see if the two of them are still on speaking terms. night qualifier. All kidding aside, at least we can start to watch some motorsports on TV now that the official start to the 2015 racing season has kicked off with the 57th running of the Daytona 500. As noted in this edition of our newsletters, Mitch Brown, Glenn Styres and a number of other short track dirt and paved oval competitors have already escaped some of the icy grasp of Mother Nature to take in some pre-season competition in the Sunshine State. We still have a few more weeks to go before the Ontario paved and dirt ovals throw the green flags to open their 2015 racing programs. And for those seeking a preview to the season two motorsports shows were held to feed their racing appetites for before the season get underway. Mitch Brown (above left) and Glenn Styres (above right) were The Motorama Custom Car & Motorsports Expo -(Former names of this among the handful of Canadians who ventured to Florida in combined show include Motion Custom Car Show, Performance World February for events at East Bay Raceway Park and Bubba and most recently MegaSpeed) was held at the International Centre - Raceway Park for 360 Sprint Car competition. Toronto, Ontario March 13 through March 15, 2015 Chris Durant of The following weekend - March 21st and 22nd- The Speed & Custom Car Port Stanley, ON Show took place at London, Ontario's Western Fair District. also made the Reports indicate some local tracks, series and competitors from a wide journey to Florida for some preseason range of motorsports series were present at those shows. racing action. Ken Spencer PLENTY OF STOPS AND LOTS OF Early Start to Season Just A Warm-Up For Mitch Brown's Ambitious 2015 Season Schedule EXCITEMENT IN MITCH BROWN RACING'S Mitch Brown’s Sprint Car season got off to an early start this year with five nights of racing 2015 SEASON OF SPRINT CAR in the Sunshine state…not a bad place to test the refreshed equipment and sharpen the reflexes following 3-1/2 months of relative inactivity since his 2014 season ended. RACING But the February laps he ran in practice and in fierce competition at Tampa’s East Bay Raceway Park and Ocala’s Bubba Raceway Park were simply a warm-up for the hectic schedule he’s plotted into his Sprint Car racing calendar for 2015. With 56 events spread among seven Southern Ontario tracks and eleven ovals in 5 states south of the border, Mitch and his Brantford-based team know they have a tough challenge ahead of them. Included in those 56 events are 34 counting towards three championships in three series - Ohsweken Speedway’s Corr/Pak Merchandising 360 Sprint Car Division; the Southern Ontario Sprints championship; and the Canadian portion of the US-based Patriot Sprint Tour’s cross-border championship. Last season Mitch was runner-up to Glenn Styres in both Ohsweken’s and the SOS championship races and was fourth in the PST’s Canadian series final standings. Before Ohsweken Speedway’s opener on May 15, Mitch is scheduled to begin his spring season with three National Racing Alliance events at Limaland Motorsports Park at Lima, Ohio and three Patriot Sprint Tour races with stops at Merrittville Speedway (Thorold, ON), Canandaigua Motorsports Park in the Finger Lakes Region of New York State and Woodhull Raceway in the Southern Tier of New York State west of Corning. Also on Mitch’s busy schedule are two events against the Empire Super Sprints, the World of Outlaws annual race at Ohsweken Speedway on July 3rd and the annual Canadian Sprint Car Nationals at Ohsweken in mid-September. His season will wrap up in October with the UNOH Sprintacular at Tony Stewart’s Eldora Speedway in Ohio and two American Sprint Car Series events at Devil’s Bowl Speedway, Mesquite, Texas and I-30 Speedway at Little Rock, Arkansas. JAKE BROWN SET TO RETURN TO OSHWEKEN SPEEDWAY'S 602 SPRINT CAR SERIES Following a strong showing in his first season of racing the 602 Crate Sprints at Ohsweken, Jake Brown is looking forwarded to an even better season in 2015. Last year he won two A-Main events at the 3/8th-mile oval, finished third in the developmental division and added another win in a special late season appearance at South Buxton Raceway south of Chatham.