Surprise win for Schouten

By John Hopkins

CALABOGIE, ON – Vicki Schouten was an unsuspecting winner of the second round of the Pro Honda Oils Women’s Cup at Calabogie Motorsports Park on Sunday.

The racer from Richmond, ON finished second on the road aboard her Kawasaki ZX-6R but was promoted to first place when Genevieve Lesieur was disqualified for using illegal Pirellis on her Suzuki GSX-R600.

Lesieur, who was also running in the national Pro classes, made a last minute decision to start at the back of the Women’s Cup grid but used tires that, while acceptable in the Pro classes were not eligible for Women’s Cup action. This is not the first time a racer running in multiple classes has been caught out.

The DQ wasted a great ride by Lesieur, who went from 13th to second in one lap and was onto Schouten’s tail by the midway point of the eight-lap race. She took a couple of looks inside Schouten into turn one before finally making her move in turn five with two laps to go.

“She had tried it the lap before,” explained Schouten, who had started from pole. “I wasn’t expecting Gigi to be running the race so I had scrubbed tires on, because I didn’t think I’d have to go that fast. The tires were gone by halfway and the bike was sliding everywhere.”

Natalie Catherine Provost qualified second but dropped to fifth on the opening lap before working her way up to third on the road on her Honda CBR600RR. She was 18.960 secs. behind Schouten at the finish, which with Lesieur’s disqualification gave the Kawasaki rider the Tirox Won Bigtime Award for the largest margin of victory of the day at Calabogie.

Karen Grujic was third in the final results on her Kawasaki ZX-6R ahead of the returning Shawna Aron, who came out of retirement to race her Yamaha YZF-R6. Vanessa Gareau Dominguez rounded out the official top five on her Suzuki GSX-R600 despite a five-second jump start penalty.

Race Results
1. Vicki Schouten, Richmond, ON, Kawasaki ZX-6R, 19:29.416
2. Natalie Catherin Provost, Laval, QC, Honda CBR600RR, +18.960
3. Karen Grujic, Cambridge, ON, Kawasaki ZX-6R, +28.373
4. Shawna Aron, Halton Hills, ON, Yamaha YZF-R6, +31.323
5. Vanessa Gareau Dominguez, Hudson, QC, Suzuki GSX-R600, +37.885*
6. Roxanne Gravelle, Gatineau, QC, Yamaha YZF-R6, +58.393
7. Josee Bouchard, Ottawa, ON, Yamaha YZF-R6, +1:11.009
8. Kana Matsumoto, Aurora, ON, Suzuki SV650, +1:48.831
9. Maude Labrosse-Legris, Fassett, QC, Yamaha YZF-R6, +1 lap
10. Sara-Clode Carriere, Gatineau, QC, Suzuki SV650, +1 lap
11. Samantha Goyer, Ottawa, ON, Yamaha YZF-R6, +1 lap*
12. Anissa Burachynsky, Brampton, ON, Kawasaki ZX-6R, +1 lap
DQ. Genevieve Lesieur, Quebec City, QC, Suzuki GSX-R600, Incorrect Tires
* -- Includes five-second jump start penalty
Fastest Lap: 2:11.646 by Vicki Schouten on lap 6
Margin of Victory: 18.960 secs.