Elk Horn Pike

**Elk Horn Pike** is a street circuit in Northwest Territories, Canada that hosts the second race on the Utica Rallycross Series schedule.

 Time zone
 Capacity
 Owner
 Broke ground
Circa 1960s (Snowmobile Circuit)
 Opened
 Closed
 Events Held
Utica Rallycross Series Season 2, Race 3
 Surface
 Turns
 Lap record

## Pre-URCS

The town of Elk Horn Pike was first founded in 1889 as a small mining town. Rumors of gold in the area sent hopefuls up to the remote area, turning the valley adjacent to the mountain into a boom-town. However, after only two years of mining, the gold strains dried up and many, too poor to afford the trek back, made their stay there.

As more communities along the way sprung up, Elk Horn Pike eventually connected back to society, allowing for further development on the town.

Harsh winters cultivated a culture circulated around winter sports. Hockey and curling were the most popular sports in town, with the Elk Horn Pikers Curling Club winning the Northwest Curling Championship in 1958.

After the advent of the snowmobile in 1960, enthusiasts traveled to Elk Horn Pike to partake in racing their machines in the winter wasteland. Sometime in the 1960s, the Town Council approved organized snowmobile rallies and events.

The town fell on hard times in the 1990s, as the remoteness of the town and a depletion of resources made commerce difficult. An idea was proposed in 2001 to try and host a racing event on the town street, but most racing franchises rejected the proposals, citing difficulty of travel for the drivers and teams and low projected spectator turnout as reasons. In 2011, the town council sent out a proposal to the newly formed Utica Rallycross Series, which accepted the offer. Preparations were made in October of that year and the track was complete in March, 2012.

## Season 1

Seth Cole was the first driver to take to the track, completing it in a little under two minutes. Attrition was high, with six of seventeen competitors wrecking out of the event. Points leader, Dillon White struggled as well, finishing with the slowest completed time.

Alex Tanker had a solid time in the early going, stealing the lead just before the halfway point, but Richerd Johnson was able to take the lead away. Ray Davis made a spirited effort with only two drivers to go, but came up two seconds short. Johnson would go on to win his first and only career Utica Rallycross Series event.

Two infamous events occurred during the event itself. Tyler Benoit was almost decapitated after crashing the cabin of his car into the infamous "Hole in the Wall" jump. Benoit was fortunately unscathed in he event. Estavas Cortez also had his infamous steering miscalculation, which resulted in the naming of the "Cortez Turn."

The track saw a low attendance for its first Rallycross event, bringing in only around 1,000 people from outside of town. Despite this, the quality of the race resulted in inquiry calls for ticket pre-orders for next season's event.

## Season 2

The spectator turnout quintupled from the previous year, pouring money into the local economy.

Last years' winner Richerd Johnson was the first car on track, beating his old track record. Billy Bishop set an unexpectedly fast pace several cars later, taking first place away. Michael Aurelio was able to usurp the race lead and hold onto for the majority of the event, before being toppled by Tyler Benoit, who kept the lead until the race's conclusion. It would be Benoit's second victory and second win of the season, as he had won the season opener in Yuma.

William Duncan finished in last place. He had finished in last place the previous year, resulting in, at the time, the worst average finish for a driver at a race track.

## Season 3

During the off-season, luxury resort company MotoResorts United made a deal with the town to promote tourism and improve the racing facility. A large-scale resort was built on the edge of town and the track was renovated, notably removing the "Hole in the Wall" and restructuring the off-road segment of the course.

For the second time in his career, Seth Cole was the first car to take to the track, beating the old track record. Rookies Tyler Kulesa and Dylan Theroux both took turns leading the event. William Duncan, who had finished last in his previous two attempts, was able to eke out a fast lap, stealing the lead away with four cars to go. Two cars later, Nick Pericles was able to best Duncan by five-tenths of a second. Last year's winner Tyler Benoit was the last car on rack, but wrecked out of the race. Nick Pericles secured his first career Utica Rallycross Series victory.

Attendance was its highest yet, and the track plans on hosting other events in the future.

## Trivia

* As of a 2010 census, the population of Elk Horn Pike is 982.
* The current mayor is Billy Quash.
* The resort located in town boasts "The Largest Indoor Pool in Canada." The West Edmonton Mall protests this claim.