NOLALU — Kyle Monteith regularly competed at Mosquito Speedway when the track hosted the Thunder Bay Truck Centre Dirt Track Nationals, which have since moved to Thunder City Speedway.
The Midwest Modified (which is also known as a B-Mod) driver was back at Mosquito on Saturday as the track held its first competitive race in five years with the two-day Wayne Hari “Fall Freezer” Memorial.
“It’s pretty cool,” Monteith said shortly after running his car around the track in hot laps.
“This place has always kind of had a special place in my heart, so it feels good to be back here.”
The dirt oval, which is now officially known as the King of the Fields Test and Tune facility, presents a lot of different challenges compared to what local drivers face during the season at Thunder City.
“This track is a lot shorter and more high-banked,” Monteith said.
“It’s funny to say this, but it’s probably more physical because you’re in the corners a lot more and you have to set up the car a little bit differently as well because of it being a higher-banked track.”
Second-year Street Stock driver Chase Kivi found that out firsthand last month when he came to Mosquito for one of the track’s test and tune sessions.
“My dad (David) started racing here back in 1994 so I was pretty excited to finally get a chance to run on it when they opened it back up,” Kivi said.
“The banking here is obviously a big difference compared to Thunder City and there’s not much of a (front or back) straightaway. It’s kind of wide open with some brakes, which makes it a fun race track.”
The two-day show wraps up on Sunday with racing starting at 1 p.m.
Plans for the 2025 racing season will be decided in the coming months.
“It’s good to have a second track to go to and I’m hoping that the whole team here at Mosquito can get things going for next year,” Kivi said.
