World Financial Group

According to the Environment Canada, the town of Red Deer, AB averages 70.1 milliliters (or 2.76 inches) of rain during the entire month of August.  This August the rain in Red Deer decided to come all at once – or at least seemed to - during The 2009 Red Deer Chuckwagon Championship.  Two days of racing were rained out, giving World Financial Group-sponsored driver Buddy Bensmiller only two days to show his stuff on the half mile of “heck”.

The opening day of racing, Thursday, featured Buddy and the WFG tarp in the fifth heat opposite Mike Vigen, Tyler Helmig and Rae Croteau, Jr.  Buddy didn’t have his best day racing, coming in fourth with a time of 1:19.12 and only four points.

Hopes were high for a second day of racing, but the weather brought steady rain, making racing conditions unfavorable.  Rains continued into the third day, causing the event to be shortened to two days.  But that fourth day of racing proved fruitful for the “Dewberry Rocket”.

On Sunday, Buddy faced off against the same three racers in heat five.  And the rains may have paid off for the World Financial Group-sponsored chuckwagon driver.  Buddy and his team crossed the finish line first with a time of 1:18.93 and 24.5 points for a clean race.

So, for the two day Red Deer Championship, Buddy finished 23rd overall with a time of 2:38.05 and 28.5 points.  In the world standings, he now stands 18th with 850 points.  And we have one more race to go.  The Dodge World Chuckwagon Championship will take place September 1-5 in Edmonton.  Here’s to continued success for Buddy from your friends at World Financial Group (WFG)!

Some of you may remember the TV show “Dawson’s Creek”.  Viewers tuned in every week to watch the goings on among Dawson and his friends. What you may not know is that there’s an actual Dawson Creek - it’s a town in British Columbia that recently hosted the “Battle of the North” chuckwagon competition at the Dawson Creek Exhibition.  Among those battling over five days was World Financial Group-sponsored chuckwagon racer Buddy Bensmiller. 

The “Dewberry Rocket” started the “Battle” in the fifth heat opposite Tyler Heming, Chad Harden and Leo Tournier.  Buddy blasted off and finished second with a time of 1:16.8, just seven tenths of a second shy of first.  His efforts earned him 30 points for the day. 

With that momentum going into the second day of the competition, Buddy and the WFG tarp faced the same drivers again in the fifth heat, with his effort bringing him to finish again in second.  But his time improved to 1:16 and he received 33 points for the day. 

On day three, our World Financial Group-sponsored chuckwagon racer squared off again in heat five opposite Leo, Tyler and Chad.  Buddy finished the race in third with a time of 1:17.99 and only nine points.  But his wagon was subject to interference from Leo.  In fact, Leo and his team were hit for four penalties, causing them to lose 32 points. 

After the dust of the third day settled, the “Battle” resumed on day four with Buddy facing off against the same three drivers.  And while the half mile of “heck” had Buddy and the WFG tarp finishing fourth with 1:17.66, his time ended up being third due to Tyler’s false start penalty.  Buddy also earned 38 points, his best so far of this meet. 

The final day of the “Battle” saw Buddy facing off in heat seven opposite a new field, which included Mark Sutherland, Kirk Sutherland and Jerry Bremner.  And while the new competition gave the “Dewberry Rocket” a very fast start, he had to settle for third place with a time of 1:16.45 and 24 points.  Overall, Buddy finished the Dawson Creek “Battle of the North” in 11^th place with a total time of 6:24.9 and 134 points. 

In current world standings, the World Financial Group-sponsored chuckwagon team driven by Buddy is currently 17^th out of 36 racers with 821.5 points.  But Buddy won’t have to wait long for a chance to improve on those standings.  The next event in the WPCA schedule takes us to Red Deer, AB next weekend for “The Championship”.  Let’s continue to cheer Buddy on that Half Mile of “Heck”!

The town of Strathmore lies about 40 kilometers (25 miles) east of Calgary, AB, with many of residents commuting to and from that city on a regular basis. But one weekend a year, the Strathmore Heritage Days brings citizens in to the fine town for five days of various competitions, including the 2009 World Professional Chuckwagon Association Dodge Pro Tour Championship.  And the World Financial Group blue and white chuckwagon was present those five days, being driven by our very own Buddy Bensmiller. 

Day one saw Buddy and the WFG tarp facing off against Grant Profit, Tyler Helmig and Chad Harden in the fifth heat.  While Buddy had a mistake free race, his 1:19.25 was only good enough for fourth place and 14 points in the standings. 

The following day of racing saw Buddy facing the same three competitors in heat five on a very sunny day.  Buddy’s World Financial Group-sponsored blue and white wagon had a very fast start and even got the inside rail.  Unfortunately, Buddy did not cross the finish line first, but his time of 1:18.48 earned him third place for the heat and 19 points. 

Day three of chuckwagon racing featured another race alongside Grant, Tyler and Chad.  However, the weather had turned from clear to cloudy and there was an impressive amount of mud on the track.  This mud may have been just what the “Dewberry Rocket” needed as his team took the lead at the beginning of the run and held on to come first in a photo finish.  Unfortunately, the mud also proved detrimental: Buddy’s wagon wheel knocked a barrel, which is a major penalty, causing a five second penaly to be added to  his finish time of 1:18.96, placing him fourth with 1:23.96 and earning him only three points. 

The next day of racing in Strathmore saw a return to sunny skies and a somewhat drier track.  Buddy and the WFG tarp found himself in the fifth heat again opposite the same three drivers.  And while Buddy got a very slow start, his team pulled into second place at the wire with a time of 1:17.70 and 24 points; his best day at Strathmore so far. 

On the final day of racing, Buddy found himself opposite Chad Harden, Luke Tournier and his younger brother, Leo, in the fourth heat. The race was very, very close.  However, Buddy’s time of 1:18.95 was only third best, but it did earn him 21.5 points. 

Overall in Strathmore, Buddy finished 26^th with a total time of 6:38.34 and 81.5 points.  In the world standings, Buddy is in 20^th with 687.5 points.  But the season is nowhere near over.  Next up for our World Financial Group-sponsored chuckwagon driver will be the “Battle of the North” at the Dawson Creek (BC) Exhibition starting on August 5.  Let’s cheer Buddy onto continued success for the rest of the 2009 WPCA season!