Photo Credit: Ashley McCubbin/OnPitRoad.com
Back in December, a new tour was announced for the short tracks of Ontario – the United Late Models of Ontario Tour presented by APC Auto Parts. The tour is meant to combine both limited and pro late model drivers together with fair rules, putting them up against each other at tracks across the province. It marks the first tour of its kind to launch in awhile, since the closing of the ALSTAR series.
READ THE FULL ANNOUNCEMENT OF THE TOUR BY CLICKING HERE
Since the announcement, drivers across the province have been discussing the tour rules and schedule, with three drivers recently announcing their commitment to the tour.
Sauble Speedway standout Josh Stade announced earlier this month that he has purchased a pro late model with intentions of following the tour full-time.
“For those of you who didn’t know, Stade Motorsports has purchased a Pro Late model to run in the United Late Model tour this summer. We will be running every event ! More then excited to announce this,” Stade posted on the team’s facebook page. “The car we had purchased will be worked on by Brian MacDonald, the race track guru ! Lots of new changes to our team and both cars. Can’t wait come 2015 race season.”
“I think this tour is exactly what Ontario needs right now,” Baker said in the press release by Spencer Lewis. “The Pro Late Model division needs something to push it back into the spotlight, and there are drivers everywhere that are looking for more meaningful events. This is the best of both worlds.
“We’ve had this chassis for a year now and haven’t had the chance to race it much. It’s been to New Smyrna and Toledo and has shown a lot of potential. We’ve put a lot of hours into it over the off-season, and I think it’ll give us a good chance at some solid outings on the tour.”
Former OSCAAR Super Late Model Champion Brandon Watson also confirmed that he will run the series, after running mostly down in the United States with the ARCA/CRA Super Series last year.
We learned a ton racing with the ARCA/CRA Super Series last year,” Watson told Speed51.com. “I’m not sure there’s another Super Late Model tour on the planet that has that level of talent on a regular basis.
“When you race against teams that are that well prepared, it really helps you improve your own program. We were able to take a look at what was working for other guys and apply it back to our own team. It was an awesome experience.”
RT @OnPitRoad_: United Late Models of Ontario Tour Presented by APC Boosting Strong Pre-season Entry List by @ladybug388 http://t.co/VZliUU…