As the 2014 Canadian Motorsports Expo nears closer this weekend, anticipation grows among individuals as the official Inside Track Stage schedule has been released.
The Canadian Motorsports Expo, held at the International Center in Toronto, Ontario, serves as the kick-off to the race season for Canadian race fans as they get to interact with drivers and Ontario track representatives. There are also special guests included each year, with this year including Richard Petty, Ryan Newman, Angie and Mike Skinner, and Alex Tagliani.
The CME will kick off on Friday February 7th with doors opening at 1 pm EST and staying open till 9 pm EST. Festivities on stage will officially kick off at 6 pm EST.
Boneyard Event Services will present an AutoGlym Hot Road Panel Discussion that will feature legendary hot rod personality Gary Challice guiding a one hour discussion, with a focus on the tribute to the Deuce and the Merc. Several car owners and Hot Rod experts will participate in this interactive discussion, as well.
Then at 7:15 pm, the CME will play host to the first annual Drag Racing Night of Champions. Hosts Larry Satchell and Andrew Stirk honour series and track champions from around Ontario.
On Saturday February 8th, the doors will be open from 10 am EST till 7 pm EST for fans to take in the event.
On-Stage festivities kick off at 10:45 am EST with a group of Ontario short track promoters on stage to discuss their plans for this coming season and beyond, as well as issues facing the racing industry as a whole.
At noon, Alex Tagliani will be on stage to share details about his new NASCAR Canadian Tire Series deal with DJK Racing for 2014. Tagliani, who ran 13 IndyCar races last year, will run the full NCAT schedule this coming year. He will sign autographs afterwards at the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series display.
At 12:45 pm, the first special guest of the weekend will take to the stage. Ryan Newman will be on to hand to discuss his move to Richard Childress Racing, expectations for this coming season and more. There will be a live fan interactive Q&A from 12:45 pm EST to 1:15 pm EST, followed by an autograph session till 2 pm.
At 2:15 pm, the annual Road Racing Panel discussion will take place featuring several prominent representative from various parts of the Canadian road racing community to discuss their plans for 2014.
This will be followed by one of the most popular panel discussions – Meet The Media Panel Discussion – at 3:15 pm. Canada’s top motorsports journalists will discuss Canadian and international racing, well being joined by Sirius XM radio host Angie Skinner.
The night will finish off with the first annual Short Track Night of Champions kicking off at 5pm EST. Spencer Lewis and Greg Calnan will honor series and track champions from Ontario’s dirt and asphalt ovals. After, Lewis will then present the official Year-End Short Track Power Rankings presented by London Recreational list, featuring the top 10 asphalt drivers in Ontario.
The final day – Sunday February 9th – will see the doors open from 10 am EST till 5 pm EST.
On-stage activities will kick off at 10:30 am EST with Spencer Lewis hosting The Young Guns Panel. Six up-and-coming racecar drivers will featured on stage to talk about their accomplishments in their career so far and plans for this year. Lewis has revealed five of the members: OSCAAR Hanover Holiday Modified competitor Shane Stickel, Delaware Speedway competitor Trevor Collver, Flamboro Speedway competitor Dale Shaw, Mini Stock top competitor Billy Swartzenburg, and Lucas Oil Can-Am Midget driver Mack DeMan. The sixth member of the panel will be revealed later this week as part of Lewis’ Short Track Notebook at http://www.insidetracknews.com.
The Young Guns Panel will be followed by a NASCAR Canadian Tire Series driver Q&A at 11:45 am. Several drivers will be on hand to discuss their plans for the upcoming season with some key announcements.
At 12:30 pm EST, Seven-time Sprint Cup Series Champion Richard Petty will take to the stage to take part in a Q&A with the fans. He will then sign autographs from 1 pm till 2:15 pm.
He will be followed by Inaugural Camping World Truck Series Champion Mike Skinner as Skinner takes to the stage at 2:30 to discuss his career to date. He will be joined on stage by his wife Angie.
The on-stage portion of the show finishes off with a drag racing panel hosted by Bruce Biegler featuring some of the sport’s most prominent racers and industry personalities.
Beyond the on-stage festivities, there will be lots for fans to take in with driver, industry partners and tracks having displays all around the hall. There will also be seminars each day for fans to attend as well.
For more information on the show, check out http://www.canadianmotorsportsexpo.com.
