Greetings! I hope everyone had a great weekend. It’s hard to believe that July is now slowing winding down, soon it will be August, and then the 2024 Walton TransCan. As it always seems to, the summer is going by way too fast. Hopefully, you and your family have a chance to do a few non-moto fun things in the coming weeks.
I did not travel this past weekend out to the Riverglade National as I was home getting ready for the 2024 ECAN in Deschambault. I did however watch Round 6 of the Triple Crown Series on the RydeTV App, and I must say the racing was very entertaining. The Riverglade track crew did a fantastic job as they always do, preparing the track and making the facility look great. This has always been one of the best rounds of the series and yesterday once again proved that. Also, it’s not just Riverglade Raceway that provides the enjoyment, the local Moncton, NB area is full of fun things to do and places to eat. If you like Lobster, then this is where you want to be during the summer. The only problem for us is that over the past decade, Moncton seems to have become a staging point for Canadians to begin their East Coast summer holiday. This has made travelling to this fine city very expensive. However, if you’re the Moncton Tourism Board and local businesses, then this is a great problem to have, and it just proves that this is one of the nicest parts of Canada.
I feel like every year at the Riverglade National the same thing happens. During the practice the track is in perfect condition, and while the riders love it, there is always the underlying feeling that the track isn’t wet enough, and that it’s just going to get dusty later in the day. Then, like yesterday, the track ends up being good and once again everyone (with the exception of the track crew), are proven wrong. Yesterday was a carbon copy of that as the track started off wet, but not that wet. Then, as the day went on the track got rougher and more rutted. By the time the second motos came around, the track was as choppy and as challenging as anything we’ve seen this summer in the Triple Crown Series. Also, since the beginning of time, the one big complaint about the Riverglade track has been that it’s one lined and hard to pass on. As a former pro racer who has spun many a lap at Riverglade Raceway over the years, I would agree that as far as National tracks go, yes it is a challenging track to pass on. Passes don’t come easy there and you have to be aggressive, creative, and sometimes brave. As we witnessed yesterday, a few of the series top riders were forced to charge from behind after some early race crashes. In the opening 250 Pro/Am moto, both Kaven Benoit and Drew Adams went down in turn one and had to play catch up. Benoit, who remounted a little quicker was able to charge all the way up to second place, while Adams could only get to seventh. In moto two, Adams once again went down in turn one, pushing him back to almost dead last. From there, Adams put on one heck of a charge, slicing and dicing through the pack and making it all the way up to third. With Benoit going 2-2 on the day, Adams needed to make as many passes as possible, and he certainly did that. I mention last week that Riverglade has always proven to be a pivotal round in the series, and once again it was. Benoit will now head into his home Province race with an 8-point lead over Adams. This is a decent size gap, even if Adams goes 1-1 in Deschambault, as long as Benoit goes 2-2, he will still take the points lead into the final round at Walton Raceway. Here is my humble prediction. First, with the energy of the fans behind him this weekend, I have to believe that Benoit will win at least one moto this weekend in Deschambault. On the opposite side of that energy, Adams will be under tremendous pressure as it’s not easy to perform when you feel like everyone is against you, especially when you’re 17 years old. So, if these two split moto wins and second place finishes in the other moto, then Benoit will head to Walton with an 8-point lead and certainly the momentum to close out this 2024 250 Pro/Am Championship. If this championship does come down to a winner take all battle at Walton Raceway (which I think it will) , then does KTM also ask Marvin Musquin (who is coming to the Walton TransCan to hang out and race the FXR Pre-Mix class), to race the 250 Pro/Am class in order to help Benoit? I mean, with Loretta Lynn’s over by that time you know that Team Green riders like Krystian Janik will be back to race the final round, and you know he’s going to do everything he can to assist Adams. We shall see what happens, but either way, the crowd is going to be crazy this coming weekend in Deschambault as they cheer for their hero, Kaven Benoit.
In the 450 class, we’re also witnessing a battle royale for the championship as KTM Canada teammates Jess Pettis and Josiah Natzke once again traded moto wins yesterday. Just as he was last weekend in SDL, Natzke was untouchable in the opening 450 moto, winning by over ten seconds. However, Pettis grabbed the holeshot in moto two, and after a big mistake and crash by Natzke in the third corner, Pettis cruised to victory. Natzke, who was slow to get up, and didn’t get going until the entire 450 field had disappeared, put on one heck of a charge and made his way up to fourth by end of the moto. Pettis will now take an 8-point lead into Round 7 in Deschambault. A track where Natzke has been good at in recent years, even winning a 250 class moto there in 2022. Let’s face it, this series is also going to go down to the final round at Walton Raceway, and that is exactly what we wanted to see happen when the summer began. Unfortunately, top riders like Dylan Wright and Mitchell Harrison are out with injuries, but the action at the front of the pack has been excellent, even with those two superstars not on the starting line. Preston Kilroy and Aaron Tanti were also fast yesterday and both appear to be getting closer to perhaps taking a moto win themselves. Kilroy has been a great addition to the Triple Crown Series, and Tanti appears to be getting stronger and more comfortable with each moto. I don’t want to look too far ahead into the future, but I hope both riders are back in Canada next year!
In the Thor WMX East class, Jamie Astudillo took advantage of rare mistake by Eve Brodeur to go 1-1 and claim her first win of 2024. Eve went down early in moto two, dislocating her shoulder in the process. After getting up and having her shoulder put back in, she got back into the race, salvaging a 9th place finish. Unfortunately, Eve would also lose the points lead and now Astudillo would carry the red plates into Deschambault this weekend. Another big story was the riding of Katrine Ferguson, who scored her first-ever overall podium finish yesterday. This talented 17 year old has been staying with Eve Brodeur and her family since the Gopher Dunes round a few weeks ago, and obviously the hard work and positive influences are paying off. Katrine is a hard charger who is at her best when she is trying to push forward. It’s awesome to see her get on the podium and spray some champagne. I’m sure when she reunites with her family this week at the ECAN, there will be a lot of hugs and celebrating to do. Finally, in the FXR Pre-Mix class, Sam Gaynor once again took the overall win, even racing a borrowed Yamaha in moto two. There will be some fast additions to the Pre Mix class in the final two rounds as this weekend Jimmy D (Decotis) will be lining up, and then at Walton Sam will have to battle the legendary Marvin Musquin. If I was a fan and wanting to go to one of the final two rounds of the 2024 Triple Crown Series, then I would get there early to watch the Pre-Mix class as well as the WMX class.
Beginning officially on Wednesday with practice, the 2024 MX Deschambault ECAN takes place at perhaps the most scenic track in Canada. This incredible event has grown over the years to include riders from right across the country. For some, what used to be just a trip to the Walton TransCan, is now a three week moto-cation to Quebec, and then onto Walton Raceway. The ECAN is unlike any other motocross event in Canada, and really should be experienced at least once in a lifetime. From the great track, the Social events like the rider vs horse barrel races on Thursday evening, to the incredible Quebec hospitality, the ECAN is an event that has to be seen to really be believed. Also, in a great move the event hired the AMO Racing crew from Ontario to run the on-track logistics. Last year, the races ran like a Swiss watch and everyone had a great time. Hopefully, it’s much of the same this year, and I cannot wait to get to Quebec tomorrow and see all of our ECAN friends. As I said, practice officially begins on Wednesday, and the first moto is early on Thursday morning.
Well, that is it for me this week as it is now time to pack and load up the Ford for a long drive to Quebec. As I mentioned at the beginning of this column, soon we will be all be gathering at Walton Raceway for the 2024 Walton TransCan. I just finished writing a story for the upcoming TransCan Program about my past thirty years of memories from this iconic event. As I wrote it and went through all of the amazing memories, it really got me excited for this year’s Walton TransCan. I mean, I’m always excited, but with this being my personal 30 year anniversary of attending the TransCan, it feels a little extra special. To think that in 1994 I was a wide eyed 21 year old who was still trying to turn a good amateur career into a long and successful pro career. The final round of the new CMRC Pro National Series at Walton Raceway in 1994, wasn’t just another cog in the wheel for me, it was an important event and one that I won’t forget. Thank you for reading this week and if you have any questions or comments please email me at editor@mxpmag.com. Have a great week and good luck to everyone this week at the ECAN, as well as to all of our Canadian families travelling down to Tennessee.
