NLL Rochester Knighthawks

Styres' Success Began at Ohsweken Speedway

Published on June 15, 2015 under National Lacrosse League (NLL)
Rochester Knighthawks News Release


Curt Styres and the Rochester Knighthawks
Curt Styres and the Rochester Knighthawks
(Rochester Knighthawks)

Over the past 20 years, Curt Styres has experienced a tremendous amount of success in the world of sports. Not only did he construct a state-of-the-art lacrosse arena in his hometown of Six Nations, but he established the Six Nations Arrows as one of the premier Junior "A" programs in Canada. On top of that, he led the Rochester Knighthawks to a National Lacrosse League record three straight Champion's Cups.

"Anything he puts his name to is gold," said Knighthawks forward Dan Dawson. "Curt is the most unselfish man I have ever been associated with. He's always putting others before himself."

On Friday, July 3rd, he will add another milestone to his already impressive list of accomplishments. That evening, the Rochester Knighthawks Owner and General Manager will become an inaugural member of the Ohsweken Speedway Wall of Fame.

Curt, who preaches a strong commitment to family, will go up on the Wall of Fame with his brother Glenn and their mother, Vera. They will join the Southern Ontario Sprints club and Mike "Pinball" Giberson in the Class of 2015.

It's fitting that Curt's first such honor will come on the track where he and his family first ventured into the sports industry. Glenn and Curt founded and built Ohsweken Speedway in 1996 with the support of their family. Over the past two decades, the brothers have received support from their mother, their wives Tina and Trish, and numerous other members of the family, who have invested time and money into making the speedway a jewel of the motorsport circuit.

Since opening on June 16, 1996, the speedway has become a destination for drivers and racing fans. Even NASCAR champion Tony Stewart has made regular stops in Ohsweken to race on the track. Ohsweken Speedway has hosted hundreds of races and big-name drivers, but still nothing compares to the thrill of opening day 20 years ago, which started with fireworks and sprint cars. It also signified the start of the Southern Ontario Sprint Cars.

The opening of Ohsweken Speedway was the realization of a dream for Glenn.

"My mom said I was telling her when I was 7 years old that I was going to build a speedway," he said. "Probably at the age of 27 to 30, I'm not even sure, I presented the idea to Curt and he said, 'Let's do it,' and away we went."

The 3/8-mile clay oval track has grown in popularity in its 20 seasons of operation and currently hosts the 360 Sprint Cars, Crate Sprint Cars, Thunder Stocks, Mini Stocks and Bombers, weekly Micro Sprint racing, the World of Outlaws Sprint Car series, and the annual Canadian Sprint Car Nationals. Like the lineup of events, the pits have also expanded to accommodate 120 cars on race nights.

Two of the first professional athletes to attend races at the speedway were Toronto Rock legendary goalie Bob Watson and future NLL Hall of Fame forward Chris Driscoll.

"It was something I had never experienced before," said Driscoll. "That was the first time I had ever seen a sprint car race. It was a lot of fun. I plan on going back in the near future."

The success of the speedway has been gradual. In what began as bleachers and a fry stand has been upgraded to include a larger grandstand, more powerful lights, higher announcer's tower and a concession stand. And Sunday afternoon racing moved to Friday Night Excitement at the speedway.

"It has taken 20 years to get to where it is," said Glenn. "I am grateful that it did because back then we didn't have the facilities to handle 10,000 people. We grew and evolved as the fanbase grew and evolved. It has been a difficult but amazing experience building a speedway from scratch."

Glenn, who has won seven Promoter of the Year awards, recalled a saying that his brother had when they were first starting out.

"Curt said that he 'could take a handful of rocks and throw it at the grandstand and not hit anybody,'" said Glenn. "Now, it's pretty packed. You throw a handful of stones in the grandstand and a lot of people are going to get hit."

It's amazing for Glenn, whose house sits near the back turn of the track, to walk out his front door and live out his dream as an owner, promoter and driver. He still remembers driving around with his mom to pick out the brick for his new home. On race nights, he has a short commute to his trailer, which is just around the corner from his house.

Glenn, who is known as the Ohsweken Flyer, is also a well-established driver, having won four Southern Ontario Sprints championships and three Ohsweken titles. He was raised on racing, which is what will make Wall of Fame Night even more special for him.

"Because I grew up and know about it, and evolved with it, I am more interested in the other people who are going to be inducted," he said. "A lot of the fans have been here since Day 1 and have watched the growth of it. It's going to be awesome to recognize the people who have been there just as long."

Since Ohsweken Speedway opened, Glenn and Curt have shared success away from the speedway. In 2008, Curt jumped into professional sports by purchasing two cornerstone franchises in the Rochester Americans (AHL) and the Rochester Knighthawks (NLL) in June of 2008. Arrows Express Sports owned and operated the two teams before eventually selling the Amerks to the Buffalo Sabres in 2011.

With the Knighthawks as his sole focus in Rochester, Styres delivered on his promise to bring a championship to the city. With his family by his side, he triumphantly raised the NLL's Champion's Cup a record three straight seasons from 2012-14. His nephew, Cody Jamieson, has also been there in a supporting role as one of the key offensive players during the league-record championship run.

Jamieson was part of Styres' championship blueprint, which was carefully executed over a three-year period by his lacrosse staff. It was a labor of love that produced the team's historic success, which was not a surprise to Jamieson.

Even before he turned pro in 2011, Jamieson was exposed to his uncle's work ethic. As an aspiring lacrosse player he played at the Iroquois Lacrosse Arena, which was built by Styres and Delby Powless Sr., in 2004 to bring local youth and minor lacrosse under one roof. That same season, Styres began sponsoring the Arrows, which led to four straight trips to the Minto Cup. Styres' influence helped elevate the program, which began in 1990 at the Junior "A" level, and took it to its second Minto Cup championship in 2007. Jamieson and other future Knighthawks like Craig Point and Sid Smith were part of that championship team.

"I've known Curt for a long time, and he has always been a hard worker in everything he's done," said Jamieson. "He wants to make everything an enjoyable experience for everyone involved, not just his own family. Anything he associates himself with, from the Knighthawks, to the Iroquois Lacrosse Arena, to the speedway and so many more, he wants it to be the best."

In July, Curt will add another achievement to his resume by joining his family on the Ohsweken Speedway Wall of Fame.

"I can't think of a more fitting honor for Curt, Glenn and their mom, Vera, than to have them placed on the Wall of Fame at Ohsweken Speedway as part of inaugural group recognized for their time and efforts in the Speedway's success," said longtime friend and business associate, Lewis Staats, who is the president of the Knighthawks. "As part of a job I had early on in my career I feel I did help out in at least a small way in the opening of the speedway as I approved the first business loan the Styres family used to do the initial construction of the speedway. And it's because of this I know all the dedication and hard work the whole family put in to make Ohsweken Speedway the resounding success it is today.

"Once again, to three people Wendy (Staats) and I consider to be good friends, congratulations Curt, Glenn and Vera on this honor. It was earned and is well deserved."

Styres' success at Ohsweken Speedway helped launch his sports business, which has taken him to the pinnacle of the professional lacrosse world in Rochester with the Knighthawks. Always humble and modest about his achievements, Styres is the same person he was back in 2008 when he first walked into The Blue Cross Arena as the team's majority owner.

"I am an ironworker by trade," said Styres after purchasing the Knighthawks. "I'm just a blue-collar, hard-working guy - who got a couple of breaks - and is now living his dream."

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Curt Styres and the Rochester Knighthawks
Curt Styres and the Rochester Knighthawks
   



National Lacrosse League Stories from June 15, 2015


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