The final round of the RACEMoto Regional Series is a month away at Shannonville Motorsport Park, with a host of special activities planned to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the first ever motorcycle race at what was then called Nelson International Raceway on Thanksgiving weekend, 1976. With this milestone in mind, here are the rest of the top ten listings of the most significant motorcycle racing events to take place at the” birthplace of champions.”
The following are our final five entries (plus a couple extra for good measure), chronologically, from our “IM” top ten list.
No. 6: 1990 Match Races II with added YZRs!
In year two of the Match Races, Formula USA provided the opposition, and the main attraction of that F1 “open” style division were the ex-works 500cc two-stroke four-cylinder Marlboro Yamahas Grand Prix machines of Rich Oliver and Robbie Petersen.
However, the weather didn’t co-operate, and after Pedersen got tangled up in the Heat race start with Benoit Pilon (Yam) in turn one, the distinctive crowd favorite machines did not feature at the front.
Star of the show was Suzuki Canada’s Jeff Gaynor, making the most of the rain on the Competition Systems Suzuki Canada GSX-R750RR. Gaynor ran away, and the battle for second developed into a crowd pleasing, sideways fight between the Yamaha 0W01s of Pascal Picotte (Sunoco-FAST) and Kipp (Wiseco).
No. 7: 1992 – Clarke Edges Crevier for 10 Gs
1992 marked the 10th Anniversary of the Superbike Challenge, and Shannonville Track Manager Alan Labrosse, a former top bike racer, wanted to do something special: a ten-thousand-dollar first prize payout for the winner. This was likely the biggest pay day in Canadian motorcycle history, certainly when corrected for inflation.
Reigning champ Steve Crevier was the rider to beat on the Weld Rite Canadian Kawasaki ZX-7R Ninja, but internal issues with his team meant not all the crew – or all the parts – were at the track.
Meanwhile, Linnley Clarke was establishing himself as a front runner with recently retired Michel Mercier’s Sunoco FAST Yamaha program. A crash from the lead in the Supersport race meant Clarke started Superbike sore but then held off Crevier in a tense tussle to earn the win and the big Cheque!
No. 8: 1997 – SMP Back on National Schedule
After three years removed from the National Scheule due to political issues that are all too common in Canada, Shannonville returned to the National calendar for 1997. S.M.P. would host the first ever race in the newly minted Toyota Canada Superbike Championship, organized by Professional Motor Sports Productions – the same group that handled the recently revised TSN television production.
After dominating the early 1990s, Steve Crevier left Canada to race for factory teams in the U.S., and Kawasaki Canada replaced him with Toronto’s Michael Taylor and Nova scotia ex-Honda star Don Munroe. Munroe and Taylor traded Championships, and a return to home ground for oft-injured Taylor, allowed his number one plated Kawasaki to get the edge over Munroe and take the season-opening victory.
No. 9: 1998 – Rise of Szoke – Changing of the Guard
The 1998 Championship chase for the Pro title in the Toyota Canada Superbike Championship came down to the final race at Shannonville, with a trio of Kawasaki racers in contention for the next year’s number one plate: the recently dominant duo of Michael Taylor and Don Munroe, and upstart new Ninja pilot Jordan Szoke, still a teen-ager.
A shock win in the rain for Szoke in Alberta combined with an unprecedented Munroe crash to send Szoke to the last race with a good shot at the overall crown. Taylor and Munroe fought for the victory, Munroe winning in his last career Canadian start before retirement when leader Taylor encountered mechanical issues.
Meanwhile, Szoke needed to net third, and was fighting for that spot with rising star Francis Martin on the Brooklin Cycle Honda CBR900RR. Szoke got the spot, celebrated on the back of Munroe’s machine, and started his long running string of Canadian successes in front of a big (maybe biggest ever?) Shannonville crowd.
A documentary covering this historic Shannonville event was recently competed by TSN Editor Cam McFadyen and will be available to view shortly.
No. 10: 2000 – Height of the full blown SBKs; Szoke wins but Crevier Champ
The 2000 Parts Canada Superbike Championship featured the strongest field of full-blown Superbikes ever offered in Canada, with Kawasaki fielding four entries (Champ Martin, Taylor, Jeff Williams, Neil Jenkins), Yamaha having a full on R1 for new star “Warlord of Shannonville” Frank Trombino, Suzuki entering Linnley Clarke on a trick GSX-R code named “Brutus,” and of course the full blown HRC Honda RC51 v-twins for Steve Crevier (back from the U.S.) and crowd favorite Szoke.
Szoke rode for the “A” team run by Kevin Graham out of Honda Canada in Scarborough, while Crevier’s crew was managed by Alan Labrosse and situated in Quebec. In the end, Szoke won the battle, but Crevier took the war; “Jordan of the Jungle” netting four wins, Crevier just two, but consistency and Szoke’s crash at Shubenacadie helped Crevier to the Championship, also aided by a solid second to clinch at Shannonville.
No. 11: 2002 – Lacombe wins with works Honda RC51, but Szoke takes No. 1
The traditional, final September National race of each season a Shannonville had special significance in 2002, since the decision had been made the year previous to ramp the rules away form the much-loved by very expensive “open rules” Superbikes. The new plan for 2003 would focus on more production oriented Superstock class guidelines, with restrictions to trick parts including wheels, forks and brakes.
The final race of the open era not surprisingly went to Honda’s dominant RC51 twin, piloted by Kevin Lacombe. Joined in the works Honda squad by Trombino, Lacombe was a regular front runner and had recently left Yamaha for the new Diablo Paint Ball Suzuki team. Then Crevier got hurt at the Shannonville opener, and Honda arranged for Lacombe to leave Diablo and take Crevier’s place on their factory effort.
Lacombe is still considered to be perhaps the best Canadian Superbike racer to never win the overall National number one plate and has not competed in the series for a decade.
Meanwhile, at the 2002 Shannonville final race, Szoke has a solid lead in the standings and could be conservative, taking the title for the Coors Light/Fast Company Suzuki team. Earlier in the season, Szoke had fallen on the opening lap in Nova Scotia, then charged up through the field to earn victory at Atlantic Motorsport Park.
No. 12: 2023 – First Shannonville National Triple Header
In 2023, historically bad weather washed out the National on the East Coast, and forced new Bridgestone CSBK National tour boss Ross Millson to put together as many make up races as possible to honor his television commitments. This led to the season-ending Shannonville race having an unprecedented three Superbike Nationals races, in a year when upstart youngster Alex Dumas on his Patric Goyette-built, FAST backed Suzuki often had the measure of Ben Young’s Van Dolder’s Home Team BMW Motorrad entry.
In Friday’s opener, Dumas got out front early but fell in the infield of the 15-turn Pro track on lap one, also delaying the BMW of front runner Sam Guerin. Young won to move into the points lead, a key moment in that Championship.
Young won again Saturday from Dumas, confirming his title chase standings, but Dumas was a force Sunday, earning the final win of the season just clear of Young. Attracting considerable attention at the front was Trevor Dion in his debut on the ex-Daniello Pettrucci Ducati v-4, earning results of 3/3/3 – all podiums in his Superbike career launch.
After missing time due to serious injuries suffered motocrossing (but not actually crashing!) Jordan Szoke scored 2/4/4 placings, just weeks before his induction into the Canadian Motorcycle Hall of Fame.
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