Not that I would want to take umbrage with anything Alfred, Lord Tennyson wrote or said, but back when I was in high school in Niagara Falls, and the late Miss Ruth Redmond was making us memorize stuff like that, my thoughts each spring were not necessarily all on flowers and girls.
In fact, a good 50 per cent of my grey matter was taken up with thoughts of Ford flathead V8 engines, the smell of castor oil in the night air and dirt flying up into the grandstands near the first and fourth turns at Merritville Speedway near Thorold.
Times might change, but what's in your soul doesn't, which is why I still remember poetry I memorized in high school and my heart still starts pounding each spring when I wake up and realize that the racing season has either arrived or is just around the corner.
In fact, just reading the schedule of events gets me excited: Pit gates open 4 p.m., grandstands open 5:30 p.m., drivers meeting at 6 p.m., with hot laps to follow. And at 7:15 p.m. sharp, it's going to be ... SHOWTIME!
Other Southern Ontario speedways are either opening tonight or will be within a week or two. Whichever, you can bet that the red mist of anticipation is already flowing through the veins of competitors and fans alike.
There is no doubt in my mind that the highlight of the racing season for Southern Ontario spectators this summer will be the visit by the World of Outlaws sprint car series to Ohsweken Speedway on July 25.
As far as I know, this will be the first time the Outlaws have raced north of the border. And I, for one, can't wait to see the likes of the "King," Steve Kinser, put the pedal to the metal against the likes of legends Donny Schatz (he won the Knoxville Nationals last August), Joey Saldana, Danny Lasoski, Brian Paulus, Craig Dollansky, Sammy Swindell, Jac Haudenschild and up-and-comers like Jason Meyers and Jason Sides.
Although it took most of the winter to get everything together, the owners, drivers and sponsors will be more than happy with what's happening with this series that will also see races held at Riverside Speedway in Antigonish, N.S., Sun Valley Speedway in Vernon, B.C., and all sorts of stops in between including the Champ Car Grand Prix in Edmonton, the Busch Grand National Series race at Montreal and the Grand Prix of Trois-Rivières.
Speaking of Mosport, club racing gets going there in two weeks with the British Empire Motor Club's annual Spring Trophy Races. The professional season kicks off a week later with the traditional Victoria Day SpeedFest Weekend (May 18-20), featuring the muscle cars of the American GT Series and the Sundown Grand Prix endurance race for sports cars.
The NASCAR/Canadian Tire series pulls in for a road race on Father's Day weekend (June 15-17) and will be joined by the Grand Am KONI Challenge Series. A week later (June 22-24), the 28th annual International Vintage Racing Festival is scheduled, the highlight being a reunion and celebration of 40 years of Formula One racing in Canada.
The NASCAR/CT stockers return Aug. 11 for an oval race and then the big weekend of the summer at Mosport, the Mobil 1 presents the Grand Prix of Mosport (Aug. 23-26) will feature the cars and stars (Canadians Ron Fellows and Scott Maxwell) of the American Le Mans Series.
The really good news is that Toronto's own Paul Tracy, who was injured while practising for the Grand Prix of Long Beach two weeks ago, is on the mend and will be back in action for his home race.
The other good news is that Graham Rahal, the young son of Indy-car legend Bobby Rahal, is finally hitting his stride (he finished second in the Houston round after a less-than-auspicious start in the first two races of the season) and will be setting his sights on a victory over Newman-Haas teammate Sebastien Bourdais.
In addition to the Grand Prix, a killer support race lineup featuring the Speed World Challenge series, Star Mazda and the incredible Formula Atlantics will be competing through the streets of Toronto.
And, thinking back to the beginning of this piece, if you can throw in a little romance to go along with the thunder and lightning of racing cars in action, so much the better.
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