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Once again friends, welcome aboard as we get set to launch into another great weekend of Fall festivities across the country. Yes, the season may be winding down outdoors but there is still lots of action to be found and plenty of great racing on the horizon with the two upcoming Arenacross Series. I will get a little more into some of those details once the ‘fasten your seat belt’ sign has been removed. The AMO Series is back in action this weekend at Moto Park and I am sure no matter where you are coast to coast there is plenty of good riding to be had nearby. Do yourself a favour, take advantage of it, I am sure you do not need a reminder of how long the off-season can be.
I myself am still coming down off of the Motocross fuelled high that was our final round of the Canadian Kawasaki BC Provincial Championship race of the season at the Bear Creek track in Kelowna. This all inclusive, three round series that encompassed and included a solid footprint of our vast province was long overdue and very well supported. As a race fan and the announcer for this series, I would like to thank all of those that went out of their way by putting differences of the past aside and made the effort to support each other’s region. There were many who lined up and hit their marks on the result sheets, but as I see it, the biggest victory of all was this collective effort of the different regions working together. It is imperative in this sport to work together as much as possible. Future West Moto made the decision at the onset of the season to unite with the CMRC sanctioning body and I believe that decision, along with the efforts of those behind it, helped precipitate the unity and growth we are experiencing. The Lucas Oil BCMA region along with Vancouver Island Motocross and Future West did all race fans a solid with this series by laying down a large, solid foundation for future championship series to be built upon.
With my current involvement in the sport as the race day announcer, as well as media duties with MXP Magazine and the Canadian Moto Show, many things in my life have changed. Some of them are obvious, some of them are easy to do deal with while others are, quite simply put, no fun at all. The one thing that remains constantly steadfast is that no matter how much I balk internally when I set my alarm for 4:30am, when it goes off I am like I have always been on race day morning. You guessed it, just like a little kid on Christmas morning as race days are simply the best days of my life. Last week on the Flight I took a little trip down memory lane in which I received a lot of feedback. Upon request, I will do a sequel one day soon as to what happened that spring at Saddleback Park. I know I am getting a little bit sideways here and qualifying my ADHD or whatever modern day Band Aid blanket term diagnosis many are quick to slap on things, but I have a good reason, I promise. My father often reminds of the time just shortly after getting my first motorcycle and attending my first race as a spectator. The following weekend there was to be a race at the historic ’Stampeder’ track, and I knew about the event and told him I wanted to go. I was all of 6-years-old and he told me that if I came and woke him up in the morning on time, we would load my bike and go. To his surprise, a wide eyed kid was at his bedside at 5:00am saying “Dad, can we go to the races?” As he always did for many many more years to come, he took me to the races.
When my alarm went off this Sunday morning I was as excited as I had been all season if not more; this was it, the finale for the Championship. There was much to be settled on the race track and Future West was set to honour all those who hit their mark with a dinner and awards ceremony on Sunday night. I was also a little extra amped up to have some help on the Mic this weekend as Adam ‘The Seven Deuce Deuce’ Enticknap was up to take in the action. Adam was a lot of fun to work with, and we had a blast taking in all the day’s action and interacting with the riders and fans. The Kelowna Dirt Bike Club and the Future West crew had the track in great shape and the event was supported by more spectators than I have ever seen there. As far as the racing goes, there were absolutely epic battles in all classes and we could not have been more entertained throughout the day. I cannot say enough about how cool it is to see the developmental classes so well supported ensuring our bright future. The Ladies class was stacked, and like every round of the series, there were many hard fought battles for all positions. Kelowna Yamaha’s Kristen Tse edged out Valley Moto Sports Jamie Munro for the victory on the day and also took home the title of BC Champion. Nice work Kristen! In the Pro class, I was a little concerned for series points leader Maple Ridge Motorsports’ Ryan Lockhart as he took a spill on Saturday and would have to muster up the fortitude to line up with badly damaged ribs. We all know how an injury in that area can affect one’s chances. Ryan was the frontrunner in the series heading into the final round and it would have been a shame to see his championship bid cut down on the final weekend. I did what I could to convince him to take advantage of our good friend and top shelf medic, Steve Sulyok, and get himself mummified and shrink wrapped to be race ready.
Ryan did not take part in practice but would be one of the full gate of Pros for the final motos of the season in hopes of taking home the Province’s top prize. I did empathize with Ryan, because he was riding better than we had seen him all season and he would have a stellar field on the gate with him to use as a true yardstick. I know that being on the sidelines for the final Pro National of the season at Walton and watching his friend Jay Burke get that top 10 finish that he would have liked to have this season, it gave him even more fuel. However, as things can often go sideways, Ryan would have to line up in damage control mode and did a good job of it. The Pro class was highlighted by an epic, two moto battle between GA Checkpoint Yamaha’s Brad Nauditt on a YZ-450 and Vernon Motorsports ripper, Prince George, BC’s Jess Pettis. When the gate dropped it was the 450 grunt of Nauditt that got to the front on the fast, flowing, speed-favouring race track. With Jess Pettis literally shadowing Brad for most of the first moto, it provided race fans with one of the fiercest and cleanest racing battles we had seen on BC soil all season. Pettis would make a remarkable pass on Nauditt late in the moto, right below Adam and I, which raised eyebrows and dropped jaws. Pettis was literally wringing the throttle housing’s neck only to have the Yamaha 250F bellowing ‘Uncle’ out of its FMF exhaust pipe. If the motorcycles of Nauditt and Pettis were Steel Horses that started the day with hair, I guarantee you they were both bald by day’s end. Both riders used every square inch of their motorcycles to maximize their forward progress, and as far as the scrubbing goes, the Kelowna Dirt Bike Club could only hope they aren’t sent a cleaning bill. Moto two would unfortunately be red flagged as our Provincial Intermediate Champion for 2015, Full Throttle Motorsports Quesnel, BC rider Jackson Nickolet, would come together with Teagan Williams, sending the two to the Matt hard. Both riders would DNF and I am happy to report they are both on the mend. It was originally thought that Nickolet had a broken femur, but it is just a deep bruise and he is on the ‘Limp’. Thanks for the update Ross Nickolet.
After the race was restarted Jess Pettis got a bad jump and stated the gate did not go down the way it should have. I cannot say for sure as I had ‘The Friendly Giant’ Adam Enticknap blocking my view over my right shoulder. I will note that Jess’ start was out of character and he was at the back of the bus early. Pettis did charge hard and eventually found the rear fender of Nauditt but Brad was a little more savvy this moto to the spots that Jess had his number in Moto one. Brad Nauditt got a well deserved win for the overall. There was some talk of the race being re-done as a result of the gate, etc., but at the end of the day and one red flag in the Moto, I believe the right decision was made. Scotty’s Motorsport’s Graham Scott, who rode the National Series in the MX1 class, also had a great day finishing 3rd overall and pocketed a substantial portion of the $2,500 plus on the line from BigSteelBox, Kettle Valley Woodworks, and Konquer Motorcycles in Kelowna.
It was great having Adam Enticknap at Bear Creek, the kids especially loved him when he helped hand out trophies.
At day’s end it was time to celebrate this amazing series over a nice pulled pork dinner (thanks to Kristine Day and Future West, it was absolutely delicious). We had some pretty cool trophies as well as some extra swag from Parts Canada, Motovan, and FXR Racing, plus some Nitro Circus and Freestyle FMX World Tour tickets to give away. The ceremony lasted well into the evening and it was a truly great way to honour those who achieved their goals. After all, it was Labour Day and no one had to bomb off to get to work Monday morning. This BC Championship will definitely be on my top 10 list of memorable moments when I look back on a calendar year at the races that has been one of the best of my life. This sport and these memories are only as solid as they are because of people like you, yes you. Thank you.
I guess the best way to finish this up is with some breaking news, and share some of the most recent developments for the upcoming Arenacross Series. First off, is anyone really shocked to hear that Vince Friese will possibly line up again in Canada? This is big news for sure and it did not really come as that big of a surprise to me. Vince is as feisty a competitor as Canadian Motocross has seen, and for him to sign a deal here to ride outdoors would be a good fit for someone like him. He is a great rider, and if he ends up on the Monster Energy team as forecasted, it would be a great fit. Why? Quite simply because he is as talented as any, and he, Jason Hughes and their connections, like everyone else that will challenge, wants to win. Vince surprised many in Calgary this year but not his team owner from Smartop Moto Concepts. I sat with Mike Genova and the team in the lobby of the Blackfoot Inn the night before the Calgary National and he was quick to point out that Vince would be a big surprise to many. Yes indeed, he was. Will we see the drama we saw in 2014? Maybe, maybe not. Will Vince Friese sell a few more tickets? Probably. Will the race fans of Quebec remember the drama of Ulverton? I will let you answer that one. I do believe, however, that if this deal does go to paper and come to fruition, it will not be done to sell tickets to any kind of side drama, but merely done to give a team the best shot at winning a title. Teamed up with Brett Metcalfe, I would have to think the morning line on either rider would be very low. Speaking for Brett Metcalfe, who was listed to ride the USGP, I verified with him via text on Wednesday that he is in fact out for the Glen Helen race in a couple of weeks. Will Brett ride Supercross again this year? He told me he is working on it and reminded me that his US efforts are all on his own deal. Whatever you do Brett, we hope you make it back to Canada for the great outdoors in 2016.
Brett Metcalfe might ride the upcoming SX series in Australia, or he might be on the starting line at Anaheim in January. However, he definitely won’t be lining up next weekend at Glen Helen for the USGP. photo by James Lissimore
From the outdoors to the indoors, we are rapidly approaching Sept. 25th – 26th for the Arenacross Tour’s inaugural Canadian voyage that will begin in London, Ontario. On the West Coast, round one of the Future West Moto Canadian Arenacross Series has the table set for Oct 2nd-3rd in the small farming community of Armstrong, BC. Both these series will provide a great outlet for riders and race fans alike to keep that off-season a little bit shorter on this side of the border. The gate drops that I have seen, riders here in the west benefit from the technical, challenging indoor venues, which have helped develop their skills and results a ton. You can practice all you like but there is no replacement for racing, and when you add in the variables of the intimate venues and adrenaline related octane, it only multiplies. The AX Tour will only add to the number of riders at all levels that can now benefit from this type of racing. So before I hit the landing gear switch on this week’s ‘Flight’, wherever you are in this vast piece of real estate we love and call Canada, get out and support these races. In life, we cannot be everywhere we’d like to be, but if we all make the best of what’s going on and support the sport we love when it comes our way, we can collectively make that difference that will push us forward and have us all smiling. Everyone loves a winner baby and that’s you. Let’s All Go Racing.
Until next Friday Flight, Airmail out………………….