Cracked concrete kills Kambusters race

When Frank Pohozoff walked across the drag racing taxiway earlier this spring, he knew something was wrong. As his team drove their cars and forklifts over the track, he noticed splits and cracks in the concrete. He described the taxiway as so damaged that cars would “float over it like an iceberg.”

“The concrete’s all broken,” he said.

Pohozoff, Senior Executive with Kambusters, worked with his team to host the annual “Test and Tune” drag race event at the Yorkton Municipal Airport in May. It was meant to be a preview of the 15th annual Prairie Thunder Drag Race Challenge, which is held in August every year. But due to shaky groundwork, the tune-up event might be the last taste of drag racing in Yorkton for a long time.

“We’re going to step back,” Pohozoff said. “We decided to call it now instead of hoping [for a change].

“I hated saying it.”

For over a decade, the Kambusters Drag Racing Association has hosted rubber-melting races at the Yorkton Airport. Hundreds of racers and fans have traveled across Saskatchewan to participate in and witness the August event. Now the event has been put on a permanent hiatus.

“It’s a shame,” Pohozoff said.

Kambusters cancelled its August event and all future drag races. Pohozoff claims the culprit for the cancellation is cut and dry: Bad concrete.

“It broke apart,” he said. “We can’t use [it].”

Pohozoff said the taxiway is essentially shattered. Kambusters uses the taxiway to transport heavy machinery and gear to the main runway. They require a sturdy foundation. Broken concrete created a major safety risk.

“We need a very good surface,” said Doug Hrushka, a technician with Kambusters. “It’s all about safety.”

Pohozoff suggested frost damage might have splintered the concrete, wearing it down over the years. Mayor Bob Maloney said the age of the concrete played a factor in its fracture.

“Some of the concrete has been there since the 1940s,” he said.

Kambusters presented their taxiway problem to Maloney and the City of Yorkton. Engineers inspected the track and the City discussed laying down gravel as a short-term solution, which Kambusters rejected. Pohozoff and his group are also opposed to using pavement to fix the taxiway.

“[Fresh] pavement wouldn’t work,” he said. “We’d wreck it.

“You need to concrete [the taxiway].”

Kambusters needed new concrete on the taxiway by August, which would be a financial and logistical struggle. In the end, budget concerns and insufficient time killed Kambusters hopes for a renewed track this year. Maloney stated that while the City supports Kambusters, they can’t invest in repairing the taxiway at the moment.

“It would be a pretty big expense,” Maloney said. “We don’t have the cash for new projects.”

“You hate to see something like this go by the boards,” he added. “[Kambusters] did a great job over the years.”

In June, Kambusters decided to call off the annual drag race. They also ruled out the possibility of doing any races in the foreseeable future. Pohozoff is sad to see drag racing wither in Yorkton.

“It’s devastating [for the racers],” he said.

“I was definitely disappointed,” said Greg Hall, a Yorkton racer. “[The event] brings a lot of people to town.”

“Our events did a lot of good for the city,” Hrushka said. “[Local businesses] benefited.”

Kambusters’ future with drag racing in Yorkton is up in the air. Currently, there are no plans to move the event to a different track. Until the airport taxiway gets a new coat of concrete, Kambusters won’t host races there. It’s all in limbo.

The familiar sounds of squealing tires, cheering fans, and screaming engines will fall silent this August. Hrushka, who’s worked with Kambusters for years, tries to focus on the positive when he thinks about his group’s unexpected stop at the finish line.

“We had a good run,” he said. “We’re proud of what we did.”