It’s time to honour contributors to Canadian motorsport

Let’s get the conflict-of-interest stuff out of the way first.

I am a member of the Canadian Motorsport Hall of Fame (CMHF). I was inducted in 2013 and was the first journalist so honoured. Since then, I have been asked to serve on the CMHF board of directors and at one time I was chairman of the selection committee. I quit that job when I had a disagreement with the board.

But I’m up to my ears in motorsport and its hall of fame and that is the subject of today’s column. I’m writing about it today because the call has gone out for nominations as part of the process to select the 2021 class of inductees. Nominations will be open until July 30 and those eventually selected will be honoured at an induction ceremony in February 2022.

“I look forward to seeing the nominations for this year,” said CMHF chair Dr. Hugh Scully. “I do not envy the independent selection committee, which always had difficult choices to make. I urge everyone involved in motorsport — from team owners to drivers to fans — to nominate anyone who you feel has made a major contribution to racing in Canada, whether behind the wheel, from the owner’s box, on a timing stand, turning a wrench, or holding a microphone.”

According to its media release, the CMHF honours and recognizes the achievements of individuals and institutions that have made outstanding contributions to Canadian motorsport as drivers, owners, team members, motorsport builders, sponsors and significant contributors, as well as those who have distinguished themselves in the media category.

Get that? Now, this is where I give everybody reading this a pep talk.

It is not up to the CMHF to find people to induct. It is up to you. For years, people like you (and me) have been attending motorsport events from coast to coast in Canada. “Motorsport” includes everything from powerboat racing to motocross to Formula One. Surely, over all those years of going to races at places like Western Speedway in Victoria, or Jukasa Motor Speedway in Ontario, or Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve, Atlantic Motorsports Park or Riverside International Speedway in Antigonish, N.S., you have seen someone who, week after week, year after year, has worked their butt off to promote, officiate, wrench or drive race cars for your entertainment.

Those are the people we want you to nominate for the CMHF.

Now, please remember this is a national hall of fame. It is not a CNE Speedway Hall of Fame, which does not disqualify a candidate, but it certainly helps their chances if they have raced or administered successfully elsewhere in Canada or the United States. I remember talking once to early inductee Warren Coniam, who told me he often felt like he was better known south of the border than he was in his own country.

Inductees must be retired from competition for at least three years or, if still active, been involved in motorsport for at least 25 years. Informally, this is known as the Ludwig Rule.

The late Ludwig Heimrath, a two-time Canadian driving champion (he finished second three other times), was still racing when he died recently at age 86. When the hall was established in 1993 by Gary Magwood and Lee Abrahamson, you had to be retired for three years to qualify for induction. But someone said, “What are we going to do about Ludwig? He’s never going to retire.” So, the 25 years of involvement was added and has worked well to date.

Since inducting its first members in 1993, including racers Bill Brack, Gilles Villeneuve and Billy Foster and builders/sponsors Imperial Tobacco, the CMHF has honoured more than 220 men, women and companies, who were recognized for their accomplishments and contributions to Canadian motorsport.

We want you to help us add to that total this year. Information about the nomination process, submission requirements and an online submission form are online at CMHF.ca.

An Andretti anecdote

Several years ago, when Mario Andretti was scheduled to be a special guest of the hall of fame for a black-tie event at the Canadian International AutoShow, there was a huge snowstorm that pretty much paralyzed air travel in the east. This happened the day before he was due to fly to Toronto from his home in Nazareth, Pa.

But air travel was backed right up and controllers in both countries had to clear the backlog before starting to move that day’s traffic. Andretti was scheduled to fly out of a suburban Philadelphia airport at 3:30 in the afternoon in order to land at Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport and limo over to the Metro Toronto Convention Centre for a reception and then dinner.

But his pilot couldn’t get permission from Toronto to take off because there wouldn’t be an opening to land when they got up to Billy Bishop, so Andretti sent selfies of himself aboard his jet, all gussied up and ready to review his career in an interview at the dinner.

The Great Man’s pilot finally got tired of waiting. “Toronto,” he said. “You should know that I have Mario Andretti on board.”

The Toronto controller radioed back: “I don’t care if you have god almighty on board. You can’t leave the ground till I say so.”

But there was soon an opening and he made it to Toronto. Thank goodness for that.

Norris McDonald was inducted into the Canadian Motorsport Hall of Fame in 2013 along with the late Diana Carter, John Magill, Scott Maxwell, Paul Tracy and Nigel Mansell. He reports on the weekend’s racing every Monday at wheels.ca