Matechuk draws first blood

By John Hopkins

CALABOGIE, ON – Cochrane, AB’s Cody Matechuk was victorious in his debut in the Armour Bodies Amateur Sport Bike class at the opening round of the Parts Canada Superbike Championship at Calabogie Motorsports Park on Sunday.

Matechuk rode his Suzuki Dealers / Acceleration Racing / Suzuki GSX-R600 to a 5.661-sec. victory over the BnE Racing / Yamaha YZF-R6 ridden by Efram Ellenbogen. Ellenbogen actually crossed the line in third, but the man who finished ahead of him, Sebastien Tremblay was penalized five seconds for a jump start. Tremblay instead dropped to third on his A. Perusse Kawasaki ZX-6R.

Buoyed by the support of family and friends Ellenbogen, a former resident of nearby Ottawa, claimed pole position for the 10-lap race. Matechuk got the holeshot, however, and Tremblay led at the end of the first lap.

Ellenbogen ended the opening lap in fourth but worked his way up to grab the lead in Temptation – the corner at the end of the backstraight – on lap three. He stayed there for four laps, but a sticking throttle forced him to drop back.

Matechuk regained the lead on lap eight and turned the fastest lap of the race, a 2:07.239 on the penultimate tour as he edged clear to the win.

“I had a good start but in the last turn of the first lap I had a big moment and I had to work my way back up,” Matechuk said. “It was a tough race.”

Ellenbogen had the consolation of picking up the two-point bonus for leading the most laps.

“The throttle starting sticking open,” he explained. “I tried to hang on but I just couldn’t. I had an OK start, but I’m proud of my move at Temptation [to take the lead].”

Tremblay had qualified third and admitted to being nervous at the start, leading to his jump.

“It was my first time on this bike,” said the Longueuil, QC rider.

Ellenbogen’s BnE Yamaha teammate Billy Shields had qualified fourth but dropped back to seventh in the early laps before working his way back to fourth at the finish. He passed the Envy Rides / Yamaha of Joey McRae two laps from the end.

McRae took a solid fifth in his return to national competition after being seriously hurt at Calabogie last year.

Vicki Schouten was sixth on the Kahuna Kawasaki / Kawasaki ZX-6R with a strong ride at her home event.

Race Results
1. Cody Matechuk, Cochrane, AB, Suzuki GSX-R600, 21:31.433
2. Efram Ellenbogen, Belleville, ON, Yamaha YZF-R6, +5.661
3. Sebastien Tremblay, Longueuil, QC, Kawasaki ZX-6R, +5.856*
4. Billy Shields, Unionville, ON, Yamaha YZF-R6, +14.305
5. Joey McRae, Orangeville, ON, Yamaha YZF-R6, +14.548
6. Vicki Schouten, Richmond, ON, Kawasaki ZX-6R, +17.973
7. Alain Lefebvre, Rouyn-Noranda, QC, Suzuki GSX-R600, +22.004
8. Jason Thoms, Manotick, ON, Kawasaki ZX-6R, +46.043
9. Rahul Dua, Brampton, ON, Suzuki GSX-R600, +1:09.123
10. Aubrey Bailey, Parry Sound, ON, Honda CBR600RR, +1:09.249
11. Brent Vandenbroek, Corunna, ON, Kawasaki ZX-6R, +1:23.695
12. Natalie C. Provost, Laval, QC, Honda CBR600RR, +1:26.328
13. Harvey Renaud, Orleans, ON, Kawasaki ZX-6R, +1:32.954
14. Christian LaBrecque, Quebec City, QC, Yamaha YZF-R6, +1:35.863
15. Ted Kuehn, Kingston, ON, Kawasaki ZX-6R, +1:36.173
16. Guy Lagace, Levis, QC, Honda CBR600RR, +1:36.329
17. Clarke La Prairie, Kanata, ON, Kawasaki ZX-6R, +1:36.674
18. Dominic Goudreault, St-Lambert, QC, Yamaha YZF-R6, +1:36.677
19. Jean-Sebastien Perreault, Becancour, QC, Kawasaki ZX-6R, +1:40.103
20. Vanessa Gareau-Dominguez, Hudson, QC, Suzuki GSX-R600, +1:40.780
21. Roxanne Gravelle, Gatineau, QC, Yamaha YZF-R6, +2:09.334
22. Daniel-Eric Ouimet, Lasalle, QC, Suzuki GSX-R600, +2:14.823
23. David Cote, Acton Vale, QC, Suzuki GSX-R600, +2:15.964
Did Not Finish
Jeffrey Dion, Granby, QC, Kawasaki ZX-6R, 3 laps
Sylvain Dery, St-Colomban, QC, Yamaha YZF-R6, 0 laps/Accident
Stephane Beaupre, Quebec City, QC, Yamaha YZF-R6, 0 laps/Accident
Did Not Start
Josee Bouchard, Ottawa, ON, Yamaha YZF-R6
Shane Poon, Bowmanville, ON, BMW F800S
Sebastien Migneault, St-Tite, QC, Yamaha YZF-R6
Corey Lascelle, Calabogie, ON, Kawasaki ZX-6R, -
* -- Includes five-second jump start penalty
Fastest Lap: 2:07.239 by Cody Matechuk on lap 9
Margin of Victory: 5.661 secs.

Point Standings
1. Efram Ellenbogen, Yamaha, 48
2. Cody Matechuk, Suzuki, 53
3. Sebastien Tremblay, Kawasaki, 39
4. Billy Shields, Yamaha, 33
5. Joey McRae, Yamaha, 29
6. Vicki Schouten, Kawasaki, 27
7. Alain Lefebvre, Suzuki, 25
8. Jason Thoms, Kawasaki, 23
9. Rahul Dua, Suzuki, 21
10. Aubrey Bailey, Honda, 19
11. Brent Vandenbroek, Kawasaki, 17
12. Natalie-Catherine Provost, Honda, 15
13. Harvey Renaud, Kawasaki, 13
14. Christian LaBrecque, Yamaha, 12
15. Ted Keuhn, Kawasaki, 10
16. Guy Lagace, Honda, 8
17. Clarke La Prairie, Kawasaki, 6
18. Dominic Goudreault, Yamaha, 4
19. Jean-Sebastien Perreault, Kawasaki, 2
20. Vanessa Gareau-Dominguez, Suzuki, 1