A new multi-track facility is opening in Alberta. Central Alberta Raceways is located in Rimbey and is owned by the Rimbey Kinsmen Club. The site is planned to have a paved oval, a dirt oval with a flat-track motorcycle oval within, a motocross track, a 1/4 mile drag strip and a mud bog. Track maps and more info can be found at their web site: http://www.caraceways.ca/

Saskatchewan also has a new track opening this year. Yellowhead International Speedway is 3/8 mile dirt track located in Yorkton. The track has been built by and will be run by the Parkland Racing Association. Yellowhead will hold its first race on Sunday, June 19. Three more race dates are scheduled - July 17, August 21 and September 18. Gates open at 1:00pm, racing starts at 2:00pm. The classes for 2005 will be Street Stock, Thunder Stock and Mini. Directions: Highway 16 west leaving Yorkton, track is on the north side of the highway, on the first road that heads north after Harvest Meats plant and the Husky Oil/Pounder Emulsion facility.

Bridge City Speedway near Saskatoon, SK has started work on an completely new speedway that will open in 2006, replacing the current track. Follow their progress at their web site: http://www.bridgecityspeedway.ca.

Gasport Speedway in Port Colbourne, ON was sold to Dennis Giancola and Pete and Linda Cosco in October of 2004. Previous owners, Ed and Edith Wagner had owned the track since 1990. The track did not operate in 2004. The Speedway has gone back to its original name - Humberstone Speedway. Information on the track can be found at their website: www.humberstonespeedway.com.

Barrie Speedway, north of Barrie, ON, was reconfigured during the fall of 2004. The track has been converted from a 1/4 mile oval to a 1/3 mile tri-oval. The dog leg of the tri-oval is on the back straight. Details of the renovation can be found here: http://www.barriespeedway.com/track.shtml

Shifting to the Maritimes, Onslow Speedway may re-open in 2005. Rumours had Onslow re-opening in 2004, but it never happened. Since the fall, Onslow has had a web site: http://www.leaguelineup.com/welcome.asp?url=onslow. The site claims they are opening this year but there is no scheduled posted yet - just a rumour that the Maritime Legends Tour may be making a visit. I e-mailed the address shown but have not received an answer.

The Maritime Sportsman Series has shut down. The series, operated by Bruce Langille, lost its title sponsor Can-Fan Race Tours. The 2004 season was the first season back for the Maritime Sportsman Series after being absent for two seasons.

Eric Vandaalen, the owner of Riverside Speedway near Antagonish, NS passed way in December, 2004. Rumour has it that the family is not interested in running the track on a weekly basis. The Carquest Maritime Pro-Stock Tour schedule shows 2 events at Riverside in 2005. These may be the only races in 2005 at Riverside.

Two new road courses are continuing to be developed this year as well. Construction has begun on Active Mountain Raceway, near Merritt, British Columbia. The main course is 2.5 miles long but can be configured in various smaller lengths. See the Active Mountain Raceway web site for more info. Active Mountain will be the home base for Team Elite, running a Lotus GT1 in American Le Mans competition. The track will host club level car and motorcycle events and the organizers are hoping for an American Le Mans race. In 2004 the engineering and surveying for roadwork and services was completed. Construction has begun and they plan to open this year.

Calabogie Motorsport Park, located in the Calabogie region of Ontario, about an hour west of Ottawa also continues its slow development. The main circuit is 5.05 km long and consists of 2.22 km West Course and the 2.81 kilometer East course. For more information see the Calabogie Motorsport Park web site. The track is intended to be used for club level events or "Track Days" for owners of high-performance cars. Final grading was completed in 2004. The paving should be done in May, 2005 with an anticipated opening date in July.

There's another group in British Columbia trying to get a road course started. The track is being developed by RM Racing Group and they are currently working on funding for the 2.5 mile Millennium Motor Speedway. The site is located each of Cache Creek, about 45 minutes west of Kamloops. Follow their progress at their website: http://www.millenniummotorspeedway.com. The group hopes to start construction this year with racing to begin in 2006.

A multi-track facility is scheduled to begin construction in Saskatchewan. Cupar International Raceway will be located near the town of Cupar. Construction of a 1/4 mile drag strip will begin in May, 2005. The next state is a 1/3 mile oval. The last phase will be a road course. The track has its web site going: http://racecir.tripod.com/.