Full Race Report from Chilliwack AX

Words by Brent Worrall

Photos by James Lissimore

Hello friends, Brent Worrall here checking in for a re-cap of the great racing action I experienced this past weekend in Chilliwack, B.C. Rounds 5 and 6 of the 2015 version of Future West Moto’s Fall Classic saw no shortage of drama and excitement on the race track. I landed there early Friday afternoon and was greeted by news from Head Referee Dan Coombs that we had 26 Pros signed up. An absolutely amazing number, and with what is on the line financially and Christmas just around the corner, we were in for a beauty.

When the gate dropped on Friday night’s action I was strategically perched at the north end of the building on my Ironsides Designs crafted broadcast platform. This series had yet to see the types of numbers that would warrant last chance qualifiers at the top level. Not only were they needed this weekend but they provided some fiercely entertaining battles. Friday night’s main saw the Cycle North Honda of Ross Johnson get to the front early and stay there. He was followed by the Goldentyre armed KTM 250 two-stroke of Jake Anstett. Anstett managed to close the gap late in the Moto and was comfortable with a second. Third went to JMC Husqvarna backed Noah McConahay. The Lites Moto would see more than a couple of riders hit the dirt hard on a right hander in the slicker open air portion of the building. Jess Pettis on his Vernon Motorsport / Prince George Motorsports Yamaha and Ryeley Gallup on his Goldentyre, GP Moto backed KTM were two of note who paid a hefty price. Pettis pulled off the track and didn’t finish the Moto, and for this race fan it was a huge bummer as Pettis was a slayer in his qualifier with a huge front end score.

Friday Night’s Dash for Cash would see the writing on the wall in the form of the vibrant, FXR Racing, Cycle North Honda mural that was on that night being painted by artist Ross Johsnon. Ross would best McConahay in an all-out lap and a half brawl for the much elusive tractable real estate. This battle was highlighted by Johnson catching McConahay a little off guard on an inside left hand corner. Johnson, with the victory, would light the Future West candles as well as hearts of his many loyal backers. Ross would carry the momentum of these two victories into Friday night’s Pro Open. Johnson would complete his nicely paying Trifecta by again besting all challengers on the front end. I liked what I saw in second place rider Brad Nauditt on the GA Checkpoint Yamaha 450 as he finished a stealth second. Stealth meaning at least, in my opinion, that he was very fast and nursed the YZ450 grunt to perfection. Another lap or two beyond the scheduled 15 and we may have seen Ross’s lead contested. Chris Howell, who also rides a JMC Husqvarna, would round out the podium in his first efforts.

Saturday night saw race fans show up in droves and it was the biggest crowd I have seen in Chilliwack in over three years. Future West had just short of 300 entries over two nights, and on Saturday night 22 Pros would head to the gate. One of them would not be Jess Pettis as after practice he admitted that he was under the weather but is looking forward to next weekend’s finale. Each and every gate drop on the weekend gave us ravenous race fans something different to cheer for. In the Women’s class, Danyluk Racing’s Brittany Danyluk continued to march along keeping her perfect Moto win streak alive. Brittany, who was Women’s Western National #3 in 2015, still has her work cut out for her for the series overall as she is 27 points off the leader, Maple Ridge Motorsports Zoey Shamley’s pace. To Brittany’s credit she has missed a third of this series but with her competitive drive and nature it is far from over. To this point in the series the qualifiers had not been near as entertaining as they were this past weekend for obvious reasons. For a change, the qualifiers were not just about gate pick, but many riders were confronted with no gate at all if they did not make the cut of 12. Free Style – Free Ride sensation and former top level Pro Motocrosser Kris Foster was one rider who was a ton of fun to watch in Chilliwack. Foster, who has not seen a competitive gate drop in Moto for quite some time, did not look out of place. Kris battled in the top half of Motos early and got a 5th in one qualifier along with top 10s both nights in the Pro Open class mains.

Saturday night’s Lites main would see Jake Anstett wick up the horsepower on his KTM 250 two-stroke with authority and make the front early. Ross Johnson on the Cycle North Honda would see his Chilliwack perfection thwarted as he finished a solid 2nd in the main. There were times in this Moto that I thought Anstett would give in to the pressure of leading but he seemed to be in full control of the pace. When Ross would get close Jake would respond with solid laps and a bit of breathing room. Was Ross pushing his hardest? I never asked him. After Saturday night’s Lites action and heading into the final weekend, he has a solid 25 point advantage over Anstett. If you are wondering why you did not hear me mention Maple Ridge Motorsports Ryan Lockhart, let me explain. The man I coined the People’s Favourite had an off night on Friday and was an uncharacteristic 8th and 9th in the mains. I spoke to Ryan in the pits prior to Saturday’s action and reminded him Friday was now history. In a very focussed fashion he agreed, and what happened on Friday night may have surprised one or two but I was not one of them.

Saturday night’s Dash for Cash was contested by 13 riders and saw some great battles to get down to the final 3. If you’re wondering how a head to head race can come down to three, hang on a second. If there is an odd number, sometimes in elimination fashion it is warranted that three become two. The trio of Noah McConahay, Ross Johnson and Ryan Lockhart would battle to become that final two in Saturday night’s Valley Moto Sport Husqvarna backed thriller. In what would prove to be the best launch for loonies since Johnson bulldozed both himself and Lockhart to the ground three years ago in Chilliwack. I was fortunate enough to have Brian Koster sit on the mic as he and I called it out to the house as well as ‘Live’ on the Canadian Moto Show. Johnson led early and when the duo surfaced over the BigSteelBox Ironside Designs Over/Under it looked to be over. But wait, this is Motocross and nothing is ever over until the checkers are waived. As they headed into the whoops just as I was certain that there was another 1200 hundred dollars going into Ross Johnson’s wallet, he made a minuscule error. That hundredth of a second he lost ignited the flickering flame that was Lockhart’s hopes. Accelerating into the tight right hander in front of me, Ross did what he could to protect the inside, all be it as unintentional as it was there was some pretty good contact. Lockhart was forced to the outside and would once again have his work cut out for him as the rhythm section heading into the final turn favoured Johnson’s line. That is about where the unthinkable happened, for everyone but Ryan. Somehow he managed to pull off an amazing inside pass and accelerate up the face of the finish line jump and prevail the victor. Nice work Ryan; you have said you are tough to beat at this discipline when you bring your best.

The Pro Open main Saturday would see a gate drop that had some question. While I was on the opposite end of the building, I could not say for sure what or if there was an issue. I can say that I spoke to one rider who was in the hunt for the Championship at the onset of the weekend that was not happy. The rider did in fact launch a protest at the conclusion of the race. Ross Johnson would get to the front around his stable-mate Wyatt Waddell shortly after the gate dropped. Waddell got the holeshot and looked great all weekend. Wyatt, who saw his first action of the series in Cloverdale with very little seat time in 2105, validated why many, including myself, have him pegged for great things.

Maple Ridge Motorsports Lockhart would lose a little bit of ground on Ross Johnson before getting around Waddell. Once around Wyatt, Lockhart, who at one point was as many as 8 seconds behind Ross, managed to close the gap considerably. As Ross rolled along where he is was accustomed to, I could only wonder what was going through Ryan’s head. Was he thinking about the highly coveted MXP Magazine cover shot? In a 15 lap main event at the end of what was a long, cold work week for all of us, this Moto was a great finale. Ross Johnson would ride flawlessly, and at the level he and Ryan were riding it was evident only an uncharacteristic mistake would change the final outcome. Johnson with the well-deserved victory will head into the final weekend of action in Chilliwack with a healthy points lead. Lockhart would take second. Even though his night was tons better on Saturday, the tale of the points chase will haunt him. Noah McConahay would pilot the JMC Husqvarna to the final spot on the podium over Keylan Meston on his Yamaha.

The final weekend of action goes this Friday and Saturday in Chilliwack and is a very short turn around for this cowboy. The Canadian Moto Show bus will be on the ground once again in a few short hours. If you can friends, do yourself a favour and get out to Heritage Park as I assure you for $20 you will not be disappointed. I will be on the Air ‘Live’ with Brian Koster Friday and Saturday night at www.canadianmotoshow.com.
Until then ‘Airmail Out’