Parker Thompson Starts His Season On The Podium! POV Race Footage

Duane Rolheiser

Published

8 years ago

4 minute read

Exclusive POV race footage featuring Red Deer rockers Balaclava.

Parker Thompson has opened the 2017 season on a high note. The Red Deer based Race Car Driver and his brand new all-Canadian team.. Exclusive Autosport.. powered to a couple of impressive finishes in a pair of races on opening weekend of the 2017 Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda. The 8 race season opened at the Grand Prix of St. Petersburg in southwestern Florida back in March.

After a Thursday afternoon practice session afforded the drivers with their first opportunity to get on-track in St. Petersburg, the team’s pilots headed into qualifying for Race #1 on Friday morning. The track was still very green, which made it tough to find grip and balance on the cars’ setups. Thompson led the way for Exclusive by laying down the sixth quickest time of the session to secure a position on the third row for the first race of the doubleheader.

Both USF2000 races were held on Saturday, so the drivers needed to balance the aggression of racing for the win and making sure they avoid damage that could take them out of Race #2. In the opening race, Thompson battled in the lead group and eventually topped a spirited battle between three drivers to take fifth to begin the season.

Qualifying for the second race had taken place on Friday afternoon, and Thompson put it all together during the 30-minute session, earning Exclusive Autosport their first MRTI pole position.

Thompson paced the field to the Race #2 green flag early Saturday afternoon where he led 10 out of the 21 race laps. At the midpoint upon a restart (after a long full-course caution), Parker misjudged the grip slightly and pushed past the apex of turn 1, dropping to fifth in the running order. The result was an early-race battle with Kaylen Frederick. Thompson was able to manage the competition and power to a third place finish, giving the team their first podium in USF2000 action.

PARKER THOMPSON – USF2000 #90

Qualifying 1: 6th – 1:15.8117

Qualifying 2: 1st – 1:15.3708

Race 1: 5th

Race 2: 3rd

Here’s what Parker Thompson said at the end of the competition: “I can’t express enough what an honor it is to be driving for Exclusive Autosport this year. The entire crew at EA is beyond dedicated to the program. In their very first race weekend in the USF2000 Series, they put a car on pole, and they put together a car capable of winning the race. I can’t recall any new team on the Mazda Road to Indy taking a podium finish in their first race weekend. And if it wasn’t for my miscalculation on the restart, these boys would have their first win in the bag. The Openhwy #90 was a rocket ship this week, taking a fifth place and a third place in the two races. Thank you to everyone who has been a part of making this season happen for me. Big or small, I’m so grateful to have another shot at taking home this Championship.”

Enjoy a video recap of opening weekend from Parker’s Point Of View, featuring the hard rock of Balaclava. You can find them on iTunes. They absolutely rock this race.

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Duane Rolheiser

After 15 years as a TV reporter with Global and CBC and as news director of RDTV in Red Deer, Duane set out on his own 2008 as a visual storyteller. During this period, he became fascinated with a burgeoning online world and how it could better serve local communities. This fascination led to Todayville, launched in 2016.

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End of an era for Red Deer Minor baseball Braves

Published on December 6, 2023

Todayville

From Red Deer Minor Baseball Board of Directors

Following many discussions within the Red Deer community, the baseball community, our association members, as well as our board of directors we have made the decision to move forward with rebranding our teams, currently known as the Braves. For our association the Braves name symbolized warrior strength, bravery and resilience, all qualities we were proud to align with; and although the initial moniker of our teams was never intended to carry a derogatory or disrespectful connotation, for some, it has. The topic of our rebrand has been polarizing and arguments both for and against have been passionately presented. We have made the decision to move forward in the direction we feel is best for our association.

In alignment with the membership majority vote, the Red Deer Minor Baseball Board of Directors is excited to announce that we will now be known as the Red Deer Rangers.

The Red Deer Rangers will retain our current navy and crimson colors and will not adopt the colors or logo of the MLB, NHL, or any other Rangers franchise. We are looking forward to forging our own identity and embracing our own look.

As you can appreciate this is a complex initiative that will take time. We will remain the Braves for the 2024 season and aim to have our rebrand complete for the 2025 season.

All participants that submitted the Rangers name during our rebranding poll, will be entered into a draw to receive the first Red Deer Rangers jersey.

We hope you will join us in celebrating this positive endeavor as we create a new inclusive legacy for our association that all can be proud of.

RDMBA Board of Directors

Local Sports

Red Deer Minor Hockey is proud to announce our new General Manager Lane Moore

Published on December 1, 2023

Todayville

From Red Deer Minor Hockey

The Red Deer Minor Hockey Board of Directors is pleased & honored to announce, after an extensive search, that Lane Moore has accepted the position of General Manager of Red Deer Minor Hockey. Lane will start his new role early in the new year & is very excited about leading our organization into the future as we aim to provide a positive learning and maturing experience for all of our young athletes & coaches in a minor hockey setting.

Lane comes into the role of General Manager with an extensive resume, in both hockey and administration. Lane has led the Bentley school as principal for the last 17 years & was an educator prior to that. On the hockey side, Lane’s passion for coaching & engaging with young athletes, dates back to 2002. His most recent involvement as a coach with Red Deer Minor Hockey saw Lane lead the U17AAA North Star Chiefs for 2 seasons (21-22, 22-23). Prior to his work with Red Deer Minor Hockey Lane served as President of Rimbey Minor Hockey for several seasons.

One of Lane’s biggest strengths is his ability to create highly effective teams by building a common mission & vision & then executing on those through visionary leadership. These attributes shone through during this General Manager search and we are thrilled for Lane to lead this organization now & into the future as we aim to be one of the premier Minor Hockey Associations in the province.

Lane, his wife Kathleen & their three children Easton, Cooper & Lexi call Red Deer home. His son Cooper is the captain of Red Deer U18AAA Optimist Chiefs & his older son Easton is pursuing his hockey career and post-secondary studies in Massachusetts. Please join us in congratulating Lane Moore as the new General Manager of the Red Deer Minor Hockey Commission, welcome Lane!