Ovide Doiron (born September 22, 1940) is a retired Canadian Dirt Modified racing driver and engine builder. Credited with more than 300 wins he captured 25 track championships.[2] Doiron became known as the "Flying Frenchman" after an incident at the Fort Covington Speedway (New York), which occasioned Doiron's car getting airborne and backward, tearing down the flag stand as he took the checkered flag for the feature event win.[3]
| Ovide Doiron | |
|---|---|
| Born | September 22, 1940[1] Shediac, New Brunswick, Canada |
| Retired | 2003 |
| Oval track racing career | |
| Debut season | 1958 |
| Car number | 40 |
| Championships | 25 |
| Wins | 300+ |
Racing career
editOvide Doiron got his start in the sport in 1958 by maintaining the racecars for the owners of the Riverside Speedway, an asphalt track in Laval, QC. He was soon driving and competing as well at the nearby Quebec City and Sherbrook speedways. Family life prompted a switch to the hobby stock and the late modal classes on dirt surfaces, while Doiron began building and maintaining his own engines.[4]
By 1972, Doiron had moved to the modified class, competing successfully at the tracks of northern New York and southeastern Cananda, including Brockville Speedway ON, Can-Am Speedway NY, Cornwall Motor Speedway ON, Autodrome Edelweiss QC, Mohawk International Raceway NY, Kingston Speedway ON, and Watertown Speedway NY.[1][4][5][6]
In 2003, Doiron retired from driving but continued to build power plants for many of the area teams. He was inducted into the Northeast Dirt Modified Hall of Fame in 2012.[1][2][4]
References
edit- ^ a b c "2012 DIRT Hall of Fame Class: Ovide Doiron". SuperDIRTcarSeries.com. Retrieved September 13, 2023.
- ^ a b Lauwers, Sylvain (February 4, 2019). ""The Flying Frenchman" honored at Cornwall Motor Speedway banquet". The Review. Retrieved September 13, 2023.
- ^ "Car trunk meets checkered flag at Ft. Covington Speedway". Courier & Freeman. August 9, 1972. p. 8. Retrieved September 13, 2023 – via NewspaperArchive.
- ^ a b c Simpson, Don (February 11, 2019). "A Diamond in the Rough - Ovide Doiron". 360 Nitro TV. Retrieved September 13, 2023.
- ^ O'Donnell, John (September 18, 1989). "Doiron takes modified qualifier as Can Am season ends". Watertown Daily Times. p. 9. Retrieved October 18, 2023 – via NNY360 Archives.
- ^ "Doiron rolls to win in Can-Am Track's Modified Sportsman". The Post-Standard. Jun 22, 1981. p. 68. Retrieved September 13, 2023 – via NewspaperArchive.