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| AOW Awards Banquet |
| " Beyond my wildest expectations" was the comment made by Jim Duke, President and founder of the AOW ( Atlantic Canada's newest racing series ) to describe the first year of racing for the fledgling race tour at the Awards Banquet held Saturday Novemer 8th in Saint John, New Brunswick. Amidst the revalry and comradery, the first annual banquet hosted over 130 drivers, crews and guests. The banquet was the end of a long day of information meetings and driver meetings which saw nine new registrations for the 2004 season and more than fifty information packages being distributed. " One of our best plans is that the car design and rules will remain the same for five years" stated Mark Henry, an official with the Series. This means that once a driver has built his car ( at a cost far below that of most ) he only has to concentrate on maintainance, to remain competitive. " We do everything we can to help the drivers with their assembly as the car is available in kit form and we will send the designers out to the competitor's garage to help them if they have problems" Henry went on to say. The Racing Spectator web site editor and special racing reporter for the Amherst Daily News, Bruce Langille, gave a short address to those assembled, on the fan's perspective concerning the AOW tour. It was well received by all. Chris Garnet was awarded the championship trophy and a championship ring for his performance during the 2003 season. Mark Price and Ian Kruegar received second and third place trophies during the presentation as well. During the presentation ceremony, Duke stated " By race event seven, every registered driver had won at least one race ." This shows the incredible parity and close competition among the 21 drivers who participated during the " innaugural" season. Special awards were presented to each driver signifying their " Pioneer" efforts in making the first year such a tremendous success. Recognition plaques were also handed out to various drivers signifying their unique achievements during the season ranging from " most laps led" to " most races attended" as well as special awards for those who helped promote the series throughout the year. Troy Hamm received special mention for his spectacular " roll over" during race nine at NBIS. It was a testament to the safety and durability of the car as he was unhurt and returned to the track the next day for the tenth and final event of the season. After all awards and recognitions were handed out, Jim and Linda Duke were presented with a large checkered flag signed by all the drivers, in honour and thanks for their creation of this tour. |