It’s not just the scent of lavender and cherry blossoms that signify a change of season; it’s also marked by the aroma of hot engines and burnt rubber. Spring marks the start of the B.C. racing season, which kicks off with the Confederation of Autosport Car Clubs (CACC) opening races at Mission Raceway Park. The Raceway—home of the Speed Fanatics, a Fraser Valley and Vancouver-based racing group—has a drag racing strip, autocross field, and the Speed Fanatics Motorsport Circuit: a full 2 km, nine-turn road course.
On the weekend of April 29 and 30, drivers of varying skill in cars of all types raced through the quick straights and technical corners of the circuit. Most overtakes occurred at Turn 1, as Turn 2 (a corner named after B.C. racer Greg Moore who died in 1999 during an IndyCar competition) is a challenging one for drivers. With a short straight heading into the turn, drivers risk losing the racing line and surrendering track position coming exiting the corner if they go in too hot. Drivers then have to contend with the technical Turn 3 hairpin and Cascade Corners chicane, before the G-forces of Turn 9’s wide arc lets them reclaim speed down the home straight.
The races, held the last weekend of April, featured two types of cars: open-wheel and closed-wheel, that competed in multiple races throughout the weekend. Both days held morning qualifying races to determine the starting grids for each category. Saturday’s fastest drivers made it through to Sunday to battle for wins and lap time bragging rights.
The Speed Fanatics were testing out their newer drivers and cars, as well as their Formula 4 cars. Aaron Robins from the Formula Vee Pacific Cup Challenge made an appearance, but a mechanical issue cost him a spot in his final race.
The stand-out driver was Naz Degan in her number 022 Lamborghini, who had the best lap time in the final closed-wheel race with a 1:15.232, despite spinning out at Turn 8. Brett Payne in his number 72 silver Porsche Carrera won the vintage car races with a lap time of 1:18.560.
The next major racing event is the B.C. Historic car races and accompanying Field of Dreams car show on May 13 and 14. Additionally, the next CACC races will be held on May 27. Both events will be hosted at Mission Raceway.
Teryn Midzain is an English Major with ambitious goals to write movies and a full-time nerd, whose personality and eccentrics run on high-octane like the cars he loves. More importantly, Teryn loves sports [Formula One], and doesn’t care who knows. When not creating and running deadly schemes in his D&D sessions, Teryn tries to reach the core of what makes the romantic and dramatic World of Sports, the characters and people that make the events so spectacular.
