FXR Racing Presents the Mid-Week Report With Andy White
Last weekend the Rockstar Energy Drink Canadian MX National series made it’s way to the Pleasant Valley track in Truro, NS. This is the second year in a row we have been to former pro rider, Mitch Cooke’s track. As a spectator I like this track. When you enter in to the track you see all the white picket fences and the nicely cut grass and the parking area is big enough for everyone. I know most riders don’t like the track due to the dirt. It’s very slippery and is not that easy to ride on. I saw plenty of good riders slide right and washout. I overheard a few riders complain that it’s kind of one-lined. I have to disagree with that statement though. The berms were 30 ft out so you could easily make passes in those areas. The crowd was solid with lots of Tyler Medaglia and Davey Fraser fans cheering on their favourite riders.
This time of year is no doubt East coaster Davey Fraser’s favourite with two nationals in his backyard. Photo by James Lissimore
The MX1 class had a new overall winner. The American, Dylan Epstein rode like he had been to this track before. Dylan had great starts and he looked very comfortable out there on his Kawasaki. Finishing second with a 3-2 was points leader Matt Goerke. Not the best weekend for the sand specialist but good enough to build on his points lead. Third with a 2-6 was fan favourite Mike Alessi. If it wasn’t for a flat front tire I believe Mike would have had 2ndoverall for the day. Not far behind Mike was Kyle Chisholm on his Royal Distributing Honda. This was Kyle’s best finish to date with a 7-3. Local fan favourite Tyler Medaglia rode well but I thought with his momentum coming off the last few rounds he would have faired better than a 5-4. Finishing 6thwith 4-8 was World Champion Christophe Pourcel. The results don’t really tell the whole story though, CP really finished second in the second moto but somehow after finishing the race, he rode right back to his pit area. The rules state that if you finish in the top three you need to stop at the podium and have your bike impounded for 20 minutes. This way if there is a protest to the bike, it’s sitting there and no one has touched it. I am on the fence about this call. Pourcel says no one directed him to the podium and he thought Alessi beat him for 3rdoverall. Plus CP said he was feeling really sick so he wanted to get back to his pit to lay down. If he needed medical attention I agree, stopping at the podium would be the last thing on your mind. The other thing that got me thinking, his team would have told him he was in second place, at least I hope they would have. Anyway rules are rules and sometimes they work against you and there are times they work for you.
The MX2 race was one of the weirdest ones to date. To start off, points leader Cole Thompson is now out for the series after his crash last week. Cole tried to compete but after one lap said there is no way he can hang on. In the first moto everything went fine. Maffenbeier won by 10 seconds over his team mate Pettis who hasn’t been on the bike for 3 plus weeks due to a broken collarbone. Third was Dylan Wright on his GDR Honda who looked great on the Truro track. Moto two starts business as usual with Osby out front and Pettis, Wright, Hayes and Maff in chase. Three laps into the race Maffenbeier pulls into the mechanic area with an electrical issue. Osby still out front but Wright is really close and showing Osby his red front fender. As the riders hit the fifth gear finish line plateau somehow Dylan lands on the side of Osby and knocks Osby into the solid white fence post and basically clotheslines Osby right off his KTM. That was it for Osby. He was stretchered off the track and transported to the hospital. Somehow Dylan stayed on his bike and inherits the lead. One lap later Dylan is tipped over in a tight right hand turn and both Hayes and Pettis rode right by. This gave the overall to Jess Pettis. This is the first overall win for the Prince George native in his career. It’s pretty crazy to think that Pettis has not been on a bike since the Calgary round and comes back and takes the win. So the Pettis gets the overall and Hayes finishes second. Dylan Wright finished 3rdoverall. The strange part is Shawn Maffenbeier in now leading the series with 3 rounds to go. Osby is second but he is out of the series with his injuries. Ryan Surratt is third and fourth is Cole Thompson who is also out for the series.
If you want to watch some unbridled aggression on two wheels, check the first 15 minutes of every MX2 moto. Photo by James Lissimore
This coming weekend the series moves to Riverglade MX park located in Moncton, NB. This track has been on the schedule for as long as I can remember and I raced it way back in 1986 and if I remember correctly, I think I did pretty well too. The dirt is hard in some areas but also loamy in others. Larry and his team have built the jump faces so the pro riders get some big air. This event usually draws a lot of fans from the area and there’s always plenty of parking for teams and spectators.
Another huge event this coming weekend is the 2017 Loretta Lynn Amateur championship. If you’re a somebody, you are probably on your way to the hottest place in the US in August. It seems every year LL has record rain fall or heat wave. Remember to pack your super vented gear if our racing there next week.
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