Van Domselaar Motorsports

September 24th, 2006: VMS Pleased with Season Finish

Saskatoon, SK:With the conclusion of the August 19th CASCAR FLO~PRO Western Series event in Wetaskiwin, the Van Domselaar Motorsports team had stabled their #14 SouthFort Chevrolet, Mac’s Convenience Stores, Dewar Western Monte Carlo for another year. The team was pleased with its level of competitiveness, even though they ran only a limited schedule for the 2006 racing season.

However, because of the generosity of Kevin Dowler’s EMCO sponsored Apollo Motorsports team, the Van Domselaar Motorsports group was given the opportunity to race again this year, test out some newer equipment, and join the rest of the CASCAR FLO~PRO tour for last weekend’s season finale at Saskatoon’s Auto Clearing Motor Speedway. Given NASCAR’s recent purchase of CASCAR, the Saskatoon season finale may well have been one of the last CASCAR-sanctioned races in Canada. This made the opportunity afforded to VMS by Apollo Motorsports especially appreciated.

VMS Team Celebrating in Saskatoon!

The VMS contingent was smaller than usual for the Canadian Forces/Affinity Credit Union 200, but several extended family members of the CASCAR Western Series lent a hand over the weekend, helping out with pit crew and spotting duties. The impromptu team gelled quickly and performed well.

A week of wet weather beforehand soaked the facility, resulting in Saturday’s schedule of events being pushed up to Sunday, September 24th. The wet weather and compressed race schedule didn’t dampen the team’s enthusiasm for the season finale. The team put the newly-dubbed #85 EMCO car through its paces during the practice sessions. The first practice went well, with the #85 car turning in the 5th fastest time in the field. Everything came together in the second practice as James Jr. piloted the car to first position atop the list of 16 competitors.

August 9, 2006: Van Domselaar Motorsports Driver Development Program off to a quick start!

On August 9th at 12:52 PM Van Domselaar Motorsports acquired the services of Kaden James Van Domselaar, Kaden has been signed to a lengthy multi-year deal of which the details cannot be revealed at this time. Kaden is expected to take the wheel of his fathers CASCAR Super Series SouthFort Chevrolet, Dewer Western, Mac’s Convenience Stores Chevrolet Monte Carlo for the 2022 season.
Kaden showed great promise in his first ride in a car when driven home from the Sturgeon Hospital, buckled snuggly into his baby seat Kaden made hardly a sound for the 35 minute trip. If Kaden could speak we are sure he would have said something like “Dad you need to run it deeper into the corners and drive by them on the outside...” Funny how the youngster already sounds like his grandpa...

Proud parents Tamera and James would like to send many thanks to the Nurses and Staff of the LDRP ward at the Sturgeon Hospital for all the special care and attention during our stay and to all our family and friends for all your help and support.

August 01, 2006: VMS Takes 5th in the West at
Edmonton’s “Griddly Headz 100”

Teams had moved into the CASCAR paddock area by Thursday afternoon, and were on track for their first practice early Friday morning. Practice went well for the VMS team, with driver James Jr. quickly settling back into a road-course racing groove. Crew Chief Jim Sr. called for a slight adjustment to the chassis for the second practice, and this along with a fresh set of tires shaved several seconds off the #44 entry’s initial lap times. A few complications set in when the clutch failed, cutting the second practice short for the team. Undaunted, a new clutch was installed within the hour, and the Northgate Industries car was race-ready well in advance of the first qualifying session.

Temperatures would reach a record breaking 35.1 degrees Celsius before the feature event got underway on Saturday afternoon. Thirty-eight of forty-one teams qualified for the Griddly Headz 100, with the Van Domselaar Motorsports entry slotted into 29th spot.

Upon taking the green flag, the impressive pack of racecars navigated the hard right of Turn 1 cleanly, but by Lap 3 one competitor’s car suffered an early engine failure. This resulted in an oil spill on the track’s backstretch, which brought out a full course yellow for seven laps.

The single file restart on Lap 10 gave drivers a bit more breathing room, but traffic was still tight through the chicane of Turns 2 and 3, and the hairpin change up of Turns 11 and 12. It was in these parts of the track that James Jr.’s piloting abilities and Jim Sr.’s chassis set up skills shone through: all of the positions gained by the #44 car occurred during braking and cornering. One of VMS’ fiercest on-track battles for position was with the Eastern-based #14 entry of John Fitzpatrick. While the eastern machine touted more horsepower, Jr.’s cornering finesse ultimately clinched the spot. The VMS team went on to finish the 32-lap, 100 km event in 22nd position.

The Van Domselaar Motorsports team extends a heartfelt thank you to Northgate Industries, Ltd., who came on board with a primary partnership for this year’s Edmonton Grand Prix CASCAR race. The VMS team is proud to represent all of its generous sponsors at this world-class motorsports competition, and at all of the CASCAR FLO~PRO.com Western Series events.

July 21st, 22nd and 23rd, 2006: VMS Takes 5th in the West at
Edmonton’s “Griddly Headz 100”

Edmonton, AB: Last weekend marked CASCAR’s return to road racing at Edmonton’s City Centre Airport track, as part of the spectacular three-day Edmonton Grand Prix event. Despite sweltering temperatures, fans came out in droves for the CASCAR “Griddly Headz 100” on Saturday, July 22nd 2006. The VMS team members, running under the #44 moniker for the weekend, were very pleased with their 5th place finish among their CASCAR FLO~PRO.com Western Series competitors. This translated into a 22nd place finish overall for the Northgate Industries/Mac’s Convenience Stores/SouthFort Chevrolet Chevy Monte Carlo, in the field of forty-one cars on hand for the Grand Prix weekend.
Teams had moved into the CASCAR paddock area by Thursday afternoon, and were on track for their first practice early Friday morning. Practice went well for the VMS team, with driver James Jr. quickly settling back into a road-course racing groove. Crew Chief Jim Sr. called for a slight adjustment to the chassis for the second practice, and this along with a fresh set of tires shaved several seconds off the #44 entry’s initial lap times. A few complications set in when the clutch failed, cutting the second practice short for the team. Undaunted, a new clutch was installed within the hour, and the Northgate Industries car was race-ready well in advance of the first qualifying session.

Both Friday afternoon’s and Saturday morning’s qualifying sessions went well for the VMS team. No chassis adjustments were required: the car handled all nine right turns and five left turns of the 3.15 KM circuit equally well. By the end of the second qualifying session, Jr. had turned in his fastest lap of the day, which ranked 8th among FLO~PRO.com teams and 29th overall.
Temperatures would reach a record breaking 35.1 degrees Celsius before the feature event got underway on Saturday afternoon. Thirty-eight of forty-one teams qualified for the Griddly Headz 100, with the Van Domselaar Motorsports entry slotted into 29th spot.

Upon taking the green flag, the impressive pack of racecars navigated the hard right of Turn 1 cleanly, but by Lap 3 one competitor’s car suffered an early engine failure. This resulted in an oil spill on the track’s backstretch, which brought out a full course yellow for seven laps.

While the eastern machine touted more horsepower, Jr.’s cornering finesse ultimately clinched the spot. The VMS team went on to finish the 32-lap, 100 km event in 22nd position.

Commenting on the entire event, James Jr. noted, “The car handled great, and if we just had some more power we would be running in the top 15 overall. If we wouldn’t have been held up for three or four laps mid-race, I think we may have finished a few spots higher. I can’t thank my team enough for all the hard work put in for the weeks leading up to and the two days of race weekend. Other than the blown clutch we had a fast car right out of the trailer.”
The Van Domselaar Motorsports team extends a heartfelt thank you to Northgate Industries, Ltd., who came on board with a primary partnership for this year’s Edmonton Grand Prix CASCAR race. The VMS team is proud to represent all of its generous sponsors at this world-class motorsports competition, and at all of the CASCAR FLO~PRO.com Western Series events.

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