Yamaha Motor Canada Presents The Monday Gate Drop

Good day and welcome to another edition of the Yamaha Motor Canada Monday Gate Drop. Hopefully the weather in your part of the country was as nice, or at least close to as nice as it was in Ontario this past weekend. I’m not sure if there’s anything better than a warm and sunny fall day in Canada. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed it.

I will begin this week by talking a little about the 2020 Yamaha Media Ride Day at Moto Park this past Tuesday. All of the Canadian media (all three of us) were on hand along with Blu Cru pro motocross riders Phil Nicoletti, Marco Cannella, Sam Gaynor, Jack Wright and Jamie Powell. It was a great day of riding and the Moto Park crew had the track in great shape. The track had received a lot of rain the night before so it did take a few hours to dry up, but by mid-morning we had cut some good lines and the motos began. Yamaha had their full line-up of 2020 bikes there for all of us to ride so I was able to get a bunch of laps on the new YZ250F as well as the YZ450F. With the exception of a few small items, the 2020 YZ250F is basically unchanged, however the new YZ450F offers a few more refinements. I really like what Yamaha has done the past few years with the YZ450F. Each year they figure a few things out and make the bike more rider friendly. For 2020, the most noticeable change is the smoother more linear power that the lighter and more compact engine puts out. While past models have been plenty fast, at times the power has felt like a little too much. I know everyone loves power and great acceleration, but if it wants to rip your arms off then that can lead to you getting tired and making mistakes. This new YZ450F has a very smooth power delivery that really makes you feel connected with the race track. It was most certainly a great day of riding at Moto Park with the Blu Cru.

Last week I had a blast test riding the 2020 Yamaha’s at Moto Park. Photo by Pete Marcelli

With no racing this past weekend to focus on, we all received a quick reminder of what happened in Montreal as a press release was issued on Friday regarding the penalty assessed to Cole Thompson. As you might recall, Cole was originally docked five positions for cutting the track during the start of one of the main events. What Cole did obviously deserved a penalty as he gained some time by cutting the track in that spot. I understand that with the way the track was set up it would’ve been dangerous for Cole to do anything but continue on the path that he did, but once he reached the other side of the track he should’ve stopped, let everyone go and then join at the back of the pack. Ironically, my son did the same thing in one of his races as he went into the first turn on the tight inside, got boxed out and was basically pushed to the bowl turn that was built just before the first turn. In my son’s case though, he was dead last going into the first turn and even though he was forced to cut the track, he was still last as the pack exited Turn 1. Anyway, in Cole’s case the MCC Competition Council Protest Tribunal looked at the incident, and not only did they hold up his original penalty of five positions but also added on another three spots for a grand total of eight positions. I understand that the council really objected to the fact that Cole appeared to make zero effort to give back the spots he gained by cutting across the track, but I’m not sure I like the practice of accessing a stiffer penalty than originally given just because a rider appeals it. Not only is it unfair and really not the point of an appeal, but it also makes the Head Referee, who is working that particular event, as well as the actual rulebook, look bad. If the rules say five positions and the Head Referee makes that call, then the penalty should either remain the same, or if the appeal goes through then it should be less. In this case, of course Cole deserves a five position penalty, but I don’t think he deserved eight. Moving forward I suppose riders and teams will think twice about appealing penalties if they know things can go from bad to worse. Maybe this is the MCC’s way of saying enough is enough when it comes to being careless and cutting the track.

The first turn in Montreal wasn’t kind to a few of our top riders. Photo by James Lissimore

So with that tempered rant out of the way, let me talk about this coming weekend and the adventure I’m set to go on. I was approached last week by Fox Canada to see if I’d be interested in heading out to Calgary to compete and cover the new Red Bull Outliers event. After some careful thought I figured that it was something that I couldn’t really say no to, and that it might actually be fun. This event begins on Saturday with the Endurocross portion in downtown Calgary and then finishes on Sunday, two hours east of the city in dinosaur country. I’m really not sure what has my attention more, riding over rocks and logs in the Eau Claire Market on Saturday or spending three hours riding through the countryside on Sunday? Both days should be a true test of my riding abilities as this event is really outside of my comfort zone. At least I will have a great support team. Not only is Fox Canada helping me out, but the Red Bull KTM Team is taking their rig out to Calgary and I will be pitted out of that. I will definitely look good and I will have a great bike for my first ever off-road race. Now all I have to do is try to stay on two wheels all weekend. It all kicks off this Friday when a few of us will be riding for the local Calgary media right in the downtown part of the city. Hopefully the weather forecast for Calgary improves as right now they’re calling for a high of 0 degrees on Saturday and Sunday with the possibility of snow. That most certainly won’t add to the enjoyment of the weekend. Anyway, as usual, stay turned to our Social Media for updates all weekend long. Instagram: @mxpmag  Twitter: @mxpmagazine Facebook: mxpmagazine

Wish me luck this weekend in Calgary. I’ll need it.

Well, that is it for this week. I hope everyone has a great week, and if you live in Ontario don’t forget about the big Vet race at Moto Park this weekend. Also, the MXON’s is taking place this weekend in Assen, so that should be fun to watch. As I stated last week, I’m cheering for Team USA this weekend. I love all of the extra preparation they’ve done and I think they’ll be strong in the sand. Have a great week and thanks for reading!