Greetings! Welcome to this Victoria Day Long Weekend edition of the Monday Gate Drop Column, which as always is brought to you by the awesome people at Yamaha Motor Canada. With the summer fast approaching, the Blu Cru riders are getting ready to try and dominate at both the Pro level, as well as the Amateur level. With riders like Preston Kilroy, Jess Pettis, Kaylie Kayer, and Jonathan Bergeron, we will no doubt see a plethora of Yamaha riders standing on top of the podium in 2026.
With this being a holiday Monday, and given the fact that I got home late last night from Sand Del Lee, I’m thinking that this week’s column could be on the short side. I will begin with my glorious weekend in Ottawa as Mother Nature finally got onboard with the AMO Racing Series and gave everyone some beautiful weather. The sun and 25 degree temperatures couldn’t have come at a better time as Sand Del Lee was underwater in the days leading up to the race. However, after a muddy start to Saturday’s race schedule, the track began to dry up, and by Sunday morning it was in perfect condition. As the day went on, the SDL track only got better for racing, and then during the second half of the motos, it was rough and challenging for all of the riders. All in all, it was a great weekend of racing and I think that Kevin Tyler and his crew, as well as the AMO crew deserve a ton of credit for making it happen.
As expected, the Pro/Am class was stacked yesterday, not only was the entire MX101 Yamaha Team in attendance, but so were riders like Sebestien Racine, Crayden Dillon, Dylan Rempel, Wyatt Kerr, Quinn Amyotte, Noah Viney, and Tanner Scott, as well as a host of other fast pro riders. With a rough track and 20 minute motos, the day presented itself with some more solid training for the upcoming Triple Crown Series. In the end, it was local hero Sebastien Racine who dominated both motos. The newly signed MX101 Yamaha Team 250 pilot Ryder Malinoski finished second. Racine was very impressive aboard his Kawasaki SSR Team KX450 and I think he showed that he’s ready for his rookie year in the 450 class. Malinoski was also fun to watch as he was certainly the most aggressive rider on the track in both motos. Dylan Rempel had a good first moto, but then pulled off halfway through the second with what looked like mechanical issues. Preston Kilroy had a crash in the early stages of moto one that set him back, but then came back with a strong third place in moto two. Jess Pettis was looking forward to getting his first gate drop of 2026 completed, but mechanical issues derailed his day before the opening moto. Jess did start the second moto, but pulled off after two laps. In talking to him at the end of day, he mentioned that he was having some clutch issues and decided to not make things worse by continuing on the track. The MX101 Yamaha did appear to get his bike sorted out as Jess was out doing motos on the rough SDL track once the racing was all done. Jess also told me that his training has been going great, and that he’s ready to go for the opening round of the Triple Crown Series in a few weeks. As I said, it was a fun weekend in the Ottawa area, and the SDL track was a great host to Round 3 of the AMO Racing OPC Series.
Last week, the Canadian moto media got invited to Gopher Dunes for the annual GDR Honda Team intro day. Derek Schuster and his team have been hosting this day for several years now, and each year Derek and his staff find ways to improve upon it. For this year, highlights included some great interviews on stage with M/C Brett Lee, a delicious lunch, and then being able to watch the GDR Honda Team’s four rider spin some laps on the back track at Gopher Dunes. As expected, all four riders looked great while breaking in their race bikes. Obviously, the main focus was on team leader Dylan Wright as he attempts to right some wrongs from the past two seasons. From changing suspension companies as well as engine builders, Dylan’s CRF450R has certainly gone through some alterations for the 2026 season. So far, Dylan and his teammates are happy with the changes and they’re comfortable heading into the opening round in Calgary. For Dylan Wright personally, he told me that he feels a lot more connected with the bike with this new package, and if the Triple Crown Series began tomorrow, he’d be ready. One of the questions I asked Dylan was “With all of the issues that you’ve gone through during the past two seasons, heading into this summer, are you feeling an urgency to start winning again, or are you looking at being more patient?” He looked at me, grinned, and said “I’m wired to win Palms, and with this bike, I know I can do that this summer.” So, there you have it! Dylan Wright is ready to go, his teammates also look ready to go, and the entire GDR Honda Team are ready go! It’s going to be a great summer of racing in all three classes in the 2026 Triple Crown Series. As always, thank you to the GDR Honda Team, as well as the Gopher Dunes staff for inviting us out last week. It was a great day, and one that always gets us excited for the summer ahead. Oh, and one final note. Dylan Wright is heading out to Calgary this weekend and will race at the Wild Rose MX Park on Saturday. This will allow him to do some race testing on the track that will obviously be hosting the opening round of the Triple Crown Series, as well as get set-up for his third “Ride Wright” riding schools, which takes place on May 25th.
Well, that is all for me this week. I hope everyone is enjoying this holiday Monday as we enter the final two weeks of May. On Thursday, my son and I are heading East to the famous Riviere Du Loup AX, where Ayrton will be racing on Saturday evening. This long standing event is one of the best in Canada, and even though it’s a ten hour drive, I always look forward to going there. Paul Thibault and his crew always do a great job, and their hospitality is second to none. Finally, my pick for the Motovan Canada Rider of the Week is Kawasaki SSR Team rider Sebastien Racine! Thank you for reading, and if you have any questions or comments, please email me ateditor@mxpmag.com.
