ESTEVAN - Local racing fans know that the Estevan Motor Speedway is home to a thriving slingshot class, giving youth drivers the chance to learn how to race before moving up to other, faster classes.
But thanks to the success of a couple local drivers, a broader number of race fans now know about the strength of slingshot racing in Estevan.
Ryder Raynard and Cash Saxon travelled to Linda’s Speedway in Jonestown, Pa., in late October for the slingshot world championships. Raynard won the junior slingshot feature on Oct. 31, becoming the first Canadian to ever win a feature at the track in its 44-year history.
“It’s a lot harder competition and more fun with a short track,” said Raynard, who went to the event in 2019 and finished fifth overall that weekend.
Saxon, meanwhile, won the hard charger award for the second feature Oct. 30, thanks to how he weaved his way through the field.
In the feature for Oct. 31, Raynard won his heat race and started from the pole position in the feature. Josh Landers passed Raynard at the start and pulled away. Raynard recovered, gained ground and was about to pass Landers when a caution flag occurred.
Raynard passed Landers after the caution and took over to win the race by a straightaway.
The track at Linda’s Speedway is about a quarter-mile in length, smaller than the three-eighths mile track in Estevan.
There’s a special feeling for Raynard in knowing he’s the first Canadian to win at the track.
Saxon started sixth in the feature and worked his way up to fourth, but fell back and wound up in 10th in the 15-car field.
As for Saxon’s hard-charger award, he started from close to the back of the pack at No. 17 for the Oct. 30 feature, and worked his way up to seventh of 23 cars.
“I got the feel of the track,” said Saxon.
The level of competition was really good, he said, with lots of skilled drivers. And there were some great people.
Raynard, meanwhile, was involved in a crash for the second feature.
“We regrouped and worked on the car for probably seven hours to get it ready again. We went back out and he did what he had to do,” said Raynard’s father Michael.
Saxon said the track is small at Linda’s, with a red clay surface that makes for fast racing.
“It’s a lot different. The banking’s a lot smaller, and then you have cement walls all around you. And there are a lot more cars there,” said Saxon.
Cars raced much tighter there, resulting in some good battles.
The world championships at Linda’s were to be a three-day event, with one feature on Oct. 29, two on Oct. 30 and one on the final day. But rain cancelled the Oct. 29 race and delayed the start of racing the following day.
Both drivers are grateful to the Estevan Motor Speedway for helping them develop as racers.
“It taught me how to deal with a caution and all that type of stuff, and the basics of racing in slingshots. I get the feel for the speed so that you don’t have to jump right into a big car,” said Raynard. “You start at a younger age.”
Raynard won the slingshot class in Estevan for the last four years. In 2021, he won eight of the 10 feature races in Estevan. Saxon took the other two.
Raynard noted he will be graduating from the slingshot class next year, and hopes to race a sport mod. The win at Linda’s Speedway has given him a lot of confidence, and he can’t wait for the start of the 2022 season.
Saxon will be staying in the slingshots, and expects this experience will help him as a driver as well.
