LORETTO, ON – One of the most amicable and personable drivers on the Sunset Speedway roster, Super Stock standout Ryan Semple has confirmed he will return for another fulltime effort in 2017. And, much like all of his previous forays into competition, the first-generation racer insists his Semple Motorsports outfit will focus as much on having fun off the track as they will performing on it.

“The one thing our team is always thinking about is not to take things serious enough that we squeeze all the fun out of our racing,” smiles Semple. “You see it all the time. Guys get so caught up in wanting to win that they end up being miserable all through the week and all night Saturday. I don’t ever want to be that person”

Over the course of the last decade, the Loretto, ON driver has built a team compiled solely of volunteers and family members that have worked to develop Semple’s budget-conscious effort into one of the most formidable presences on the Sunset Speedway roster.

“Man, I wouldn’t trade my team for the world,” says the fan favourite with confidence. “The people that have helped build what we have today are some of the best friends I could’ve ever asked for. A lot of them have been with me almost since day one, and we’ve all worked side-by-side to get our car to the front of the field against some of the most stout competition I’ve ever raced against”

One look at Semple 2016 results would indicate that his relaxed approach most certainly has its merits. Two feature wins and six top-5 finishes in 13 starts earned Semple a 9^th place finish in the championship points standings. And, perhaps most importantly, he had more than just a good time doing it.

“If I can be one of the poster boys for having fun at the speedway - I’m completely than fine with that,” laughs ‘Kid Ruckus’. “We have a car that can run at the front on any given night and a team that’s never lost a party in their life. What more could a guy ask for?”

“In my opinion, too many of these teams we’re racing against take things too seriously,” adds the multi-time feature winner. “None of us are going to NASCAR. And stressing out over things as if you’re in the Cup Series garage on a Sunday afternoon is most likely just going to ruin something that we all started doing to have fun in the first place. If you can find that perfect balance between staying loose and relaxed outside of your car, while still paying a close enough attention to detail, good things are going to happen”

Looking ahead to the 2017 campaign, Semple is prepared to continue his efforts of contending on a weekly basis. However, don’t expect him to forget the approach that has helped forge his success thus far.

“I couldn’t be happier with how far we’ve come in the last few seasons,” says Semple. “We’re getting better with every race. We were finding speed on a weekly basis in 2016, and we’ve worked all winter to make sure we’ve kept up the pace. As much as we love having fun at the track, we love winning there too. And, if life works out the way we want it to, we’ll be able to do both of those things this summer.”

Ryan Semple will be in action with the rest of the Sunset Speedway NASCAR Super Stocks when the 2017 season kicks off on Saturday, April 29^th.

The team’s efforts are made possible thanks to the continued support of Auto Trim Design of Barrie, Streamline Race Products, Anderson Sheet Metal, Rosemont Limousine, Hybrid Landscape and HWY 400 Transmission.

photo credit - Dan Little Photography