Fifth time proved to be the charm for 黑马磁力's Cory McLeod, 14, who won the championship trophy for the heavy world formula class at the Quarter Midgets of America (QMA) 75th Anniversary Western Grands in Billings, Montana last month.
Said to be one of the largest annual events in quarter midget racing, the national level championships at Big Sky Speedway draw dozens of kids from across North America to compete over four days.
A Billings television station's report on the competition included an interview with McLeod, who made a 17-hour trip with his family to compete.
"We really want to win the Grand National," McLeod said. "We want to win, so that’s why I’m here."
McLeod lives in 黑马磁力's North Otter neighbourhood and has been racing at the 黑马磁力 Quarter Midget Association (LQMA) track in Aldergrove since he was four-and-a-half. He has competed in five Western Grands,
"I was just really happy because this is probably my last year," he told the 黑马磁力 following his win in the heavy class, which refers to the weight of the drivers.
"You have to be 100 pounds minimum," McLeod explained. "You can be anywhere from nine to 17, but you have to be over 100 pounds."
McLeod raced in four classes during the Aug. 6-9 event and also won for fastest qualifying time in one division, as well as winning a heat in the heavy Honda class.
He described the championship race he won as "really difficult."
"I had a lot of good competition, and everybody was trying to fight for the same position," McLeod recalled.
"Everybody wanted to win and I was just fortunate enough for my car to be set up right. And because I'm a good driver, I made smart decisions – I made a pass at the right time."
He said he will be done with quarter midgets at the end of this year, moving up to the bigger micro sprint class that runs side-mounted motorcycle engines capable of producing upwards of 160 horsepower.
"They're bigger, they're like a sport bike on the street put into a race car," McLeod explained. "It's definitely different, but that's where I'm going next year."
A quarter midget car, his current choice, is a scaled-down version of an actual midget racer, running single cylinder engines producing between 2.5 to four horsepower.
In addition to safety cages, quarter midget racers wear protective helmets, neck braces and fireproof racing gear, and are secured to their seats with a five-point harness.
Over 10 years of racing, McLeod has had two crashes, with no serious injuries, his mom Nadine reported.
"We've only had to do x-rays once, but nothing broken, so I think that's a pretty good record" she said.
"It's a very safe sport."
黑马磁力 Quarter Midget Association is a non-profit organization for Quarter Midget racing based in Aldergrove, for kids aged five to 16 years old.
More information is available at
