Decal Works presents Monday Gate Drop

This week’s Monday Gate Drop is presented by the best graphic company in the world, DeCal Works. If you want your bike to look like the best machine in the pits then log on to www.decalmx.com and in minutes you can create your own set of custom graphics.

Before we get rolling here I have a question for everyone, where the heck did the month of April go? As I sit here to write this week’s Monday Gate Drop, the calendar reads April 27th and I find that really hard to believe. In a few days we will officially be one month out from the opening round of the 2015 Rockstar Energy Drink Motocross Nationals in beautiful Kamloops, BC. Yes, almost 30 days until the gate drops on what could possibly be the best racing we have ever seen in this country. With four former champions in total lining up in both classes, how could the racing not be great? Then when you factor in a host of other riders all coming into Kamloops in the best shape of their lives, there you have it!! The perfect storm is brewing for the May 31st series kick-off.

On the amateur side of things, the 2015 Parts Canada TransCan ANQs are getting into full swing as the Southwestern Ontario region held their first qualifier yesterday at Moto Park. Now, we in Ontario have always been very fortunate to have a plethora of good tracks, and while I’ve enjoyed racing on all of them over the years, Moto Park will always hold a special place in my heart. I know at times the track hasn’t always been the best with its rocky base, but that was years ago. These days the track is pretty awesome. Maybe it’s the fact that Moto Park is the very first track my Dad ever took me to watch a motocross race just over 35 years ago. I can still remember parking and jumping out of the car to the sights, sounds and the smells of a motocross race. Of course everyone was riding extremely rich running two-strokes back then so all I could smell was the dewy sweet scent of pre-mix. I think it’s safe to say that I was instantly hooked!

Here we are over three decades later and I’m still driving in the same driveway at Moto Park, only now with my own son in the truck. I believe that’s called the circle of life and I wouldn’t have it any other way. Of course I wasn’t the only person at Moto Park on the weekend as the pits and the starting gates were full with just over 500 entries. It was great to see classes such as MX2 Junior with 80 entries having to run qualifiers. I’ve obviously been lucky enough to watch a lot of motocross starts over the years so sometimes they kind of blend into each other, however watching the start of an MX2 JR final with 40 bikes on the line still gives me chills. Especially these days when the kids are just so stylish and aggressive!

As I mentioned before, yesterday was the first ANQ for SWO and if the action was any indication of what we might see in August at Walton Raceway, we’re all in for a treat. It was also great to see that for the second week in a row things ran very smoothly on both the main track and the mini track so thanks to the Moto Park staff, AMO and head ref Paul Kingsley. This weekend the racing heads east to the Ottawa area for the first Sand Del Lee Cup of 2015. The weather is looking great so the SDL track will be in perfect condition. I will be staying around home this weekend and teaching a motocross school at my private track in Shelburne, Ontario. I still have some room so if anyone is interested please email me at chris@mxpmag.com for details.

Here are the top five interesting quotes I overheard yesterday at Moto Park:

“Why does it look like there’s 120 riders on the line?”

“I think you could blindfold Zeb Dennis at this track and he’d still be leading this moto.”

“Dad, I think I hit a rock out there!”

“Those vintage bikes smoke so much they look like they’re on fire.”

“Kyle Keast just looks like one strong dude.”

One top Ontario racer that we haven’t seen yet is Jay Burke, who has recently switched to Yamaha for 2015. Our new reporter Cale Barnes caught up with Jay late last week to see what his plans are for the summer. Here is Cale’s interview.

Cale Barnes: Hey Jason we have another full season kicking into gear here and I saw you out at Motopark this past weekend tuning in the new blue machine. Tell us about the switch to Yamaha and your race plans for this season.

Jason Burke: Yes, excited to start another season, and like last year I’m planning to race the eastern rounds and select local races. There’s no real reason for the switch to Yamahas, it was the right bike at the right time and I had heard nothing but good things. I’ve been on it twice and am already blown away by the way it feels and I can’t wait to put more time on it.

CB: Were you able to get any training or riding in down south this winter?

JB: The timing didn’t work out to go down this year, but I’ll put the work in to be ready for the first eastern round.

CB: J.B.R Jason Burke Racing is a brand you have created for yourself and has taken off in the last few years as a real race team travelling the circuit and teaming up with other riders to get to the races. Is this something you would like to see grow and continue to build in the future, even when you are done racing the nationals yourself?

JB: I love racing and love doing it my way, and the JBR team has enabled me to do that. With my family and ‘real’ job keeping me busy, I have to find the time to ride and prep for the season. I wouldn’t be able to do it if I had to coordinate with someone else’s schedule. As for continuing JBR after I’m done racing – I can’t imagine ever being done racing, maybe scaling back. Usually I don’t enjoy being at the track and not riding, so not sure I would continue.

CB: Do you still have a business you run in the trades?

JB: I have a trade but work for someone else – I’m a plumber. We do waste and water treatment plants, lots of fitting and welding. It’s different every day and I like it.

CB: With you having a son now, is motocross something you will be encouraging him to do?

JB: The deal with Meag is we will talk about it when he’s old enough to understand and ask. We both agree it’s a great sport for family time, but she’s hesitant after spending so much time in hospitals with me. But we might not have a choice, his second word was bike. He loves them. He has a Balance bike and a battery powered Harley already.

CB: Thank you very much for your time, we all look forward to seeing you out at the races and best of luck at the Nationals this year. Who would you like to say thank you to?

JB: Thanks for checking in. I’d like to give a huge thanks to Steve Simms at “SSR” for always putting serious amounts of time into my bikes, John Nelson at Machine Racing for always supporting me, everyone at FXR, and all the guys that make this possible: Label It, Scott Goggles, LGS, Mongoose Machine, 180 Decals, Forma Boots, Deft Gloves, Sturgess Cycle, and my parents.

In other news, the big announcement coming out of this weekend’s New Jersey SX was that the Toronto SX will be back for 2016. I first heard this news a number of weeks ago but I was sworn to secrecy until it was officially announced. This is amazing news for everyone involved in SX as visiting a country other than the USA, I believe, is very important for the series. It’s also extremely important for the sport in Canada as this event just seems to get everyone excited about dirt bikes. Anyway, we will all gather in Toronto in late March of 2016 to watch some SX and celebrate the end of yet another long winter. Hopefully all the riders are still healthy by that point in the series, including Chad Reed who more than likely will be racing his final year of SX in 2016.

That is it for me this week. Before I go I’d like to send my condolences to Andy White on the loss of his beloved Mother last week. All the best to you and your family Andy, we’re all thinking of you. I hope everyone has a great week wherever your travels take you. Also, congratulations to all the big winners at Moto Park yesterday and good luck to everyone this coming weekend.