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PETITCODIAC - The wait is over for Ernie and Winona McLean and hundreds of other motor sports enthusiasts. The Maritime Motorsports Hall of Fame, which Ernie and Winona have worked countless hours on, will officially open its doors to the public here tomorrow (Friday) afternoon at 2 p.m. Dignitaries from the federal and provincial governments as well as representatives from the Village of Petitcodiac will join the pubic for the ribbon-cutting ceremonies, tour and reception. For Ernie McLean, president of the Hall, and his wife Winona, it's a dream come true. The pair, along with various other volunteers, has been planning and working towards this day for the past four years. The facility was built to preserve and promote motor sports in the Maritimes. "We're very proud of the building," Ernie said this week. "It's exciting to finally get it finished and I think everyone is going to really enjoy it." Located at 5 Hooper Lane in Petitcodiac, the recently-completed 10,000 square-foot building will house a visitor information centre, office, two conference rooms, full kitchen facilities and 4,400 square feet of display area for the many motorized vehicles. There will be numerous vehicles on display including stock cars, motorcycles, antique cars, hot rods, drag racing cars, tractors and snowmobiles. The bulk of the items on display were donated and are on loan. The plan is to change the various vehicles from time to time to give the public something different to look at each time they visit the facility. Financing for the construction of the building consisted of $550,000 from the federal government, $250,000 from the province and $131,00 the Maritime Motorsports Hall of Fame raised from donations and various fundraisers. The Village of Petitcodiac did its share -- donating the land for the facility. "We got a lot of help with this," Ernie said. "We had numerous volunteers and various committees that made this all happen. "Without their efforts this would not have been possible." The sod turning for the building took place in June of 2008 and it's been in use all this summer. Some conferences have already been held including a recent meeting of the Maritime Road Development Corporation. The 73-year-old McLean has been connected to motor sports for almost his entire life. He was raised in Barnaby River (near Miramichi) and moved to Petitcodiac in 1950. One of his first jobs was at the Fawcett's sawmill but after acquiring his mechanic's licence he worked almost entirely in the motor mechanics business. Ernie worked at various car dealerships in Moncton including Noble's on St. George Street and Les Jones's car garage on Foundry Street. He also owned and operated his own garage for a number of years in both Toronto and River Glade. Ernie is also extremely proud he was able to build the first paved stock car racing oval in the Maritimes in 1964 -- River Glade Speedway -- and operated that facility for over 30 years. He was named top stock car promoter in Canada in 1984 and was inducted into the Canadian Motorsports Hall of Fame in Toronto in 2000. "We're very pleased this day has come," Ernie said. "It's a big day for all those connected to this project. "It's been a lot of work, but enjoyable work ... we're retired so we had some time to spend on this." Ernie, who worked in the Toronto area from 1957-64, did his share of stock car racing while he was in Toronto and during the 1970s at various tracks in the Maritimes including Hammond River, Miramichi and Antigonish. Cindy Jones of River Glade, and formerly of Riverside-Albert, will be the manager of the non-profit hall facility. Meanwhile, Motor sports Hall of fame induction ceremonies will be held Nov. 14 at Crystal Palace. This will be fourth instalment of the event.
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