Yamaha Motor Canada Presents Style Check- The Curtain Goes Up in Abbotsford

After months of anticipation, the opening round of the 2018 Rockstar Energy Triple Crown finally got underway this past weekend in Abbotsford, BC. With outdoor motocross playing such an important role with Canada’s pro racing for the past 17 years, these first four rounds of this new series marked the first time since the late 1990s that so many of our top riders would be racing each other inside an arena for national points. Oh sure, there have been one-off indoor events each and every year in Canada, but never before have we seen this type of an event mean so much. So as riders from every top team in Canada descended into beautiful Abbotsford, BC this past weekend, I’m quite sure they were surprised with what they saw.

First off, when everyone touched down on Friday in BC, the area was in the midst of a rare but massive snow storm. My flight from Toronto, for instance, was told to slow down over Calgary to allow for the sequencing of flights into Vancouver. Basically, that means that ATC begins to slow inbound flights down early so they don’t get a log jam of aircraft over the airport at one time. This usually happens when the airport is down to one runway, or as in my case, every few minutes our runway had to be cleared of snow. It definitely doesn’t snow very much in Vancouver, but when it does it really snows. So, with the adverse weather conditions that made driving or simply walking around difficult, everyone involved in the Rockstar Energy Triple Crown had their first surprise of the weekend.

The second surprise was when I made my way into the arena for the first time and saw the race track. As I mentioned yesterday in my Monday Gate Drop, over the years I’ve been part of more than one Arenacross that featured some very soft and difficult to ride on dirt. I think back to the Hamilton AX in 2002, a couple of Quebec AX events in the 1990s, and maybe even the 1995 Niagara Falls AX had some less than favourable soil. However, what I saw inside the Abbotsford Arena stopped me in my tracks. The dirt was beyond soft, it was actually muddy, not sloppy mud, but real thick, wet mud that had riders in every class just trying to make it around. Under normal conditions, the track would’ve been entertaining with its large finish line jump, short rhythm section, and SX style whoop section, but with its river bottom-like soil, not one rider could jump anything. Even a few of the pro riders who were standing there watching the amateur riders try to navigate their way around the track, had looks on their faces that combined fear and disgust. Being an old pro who was once in their shoes, I’m sure they were pondering why the conditions were so bad for this all important event.

By all accounts, the issues with the dirt stemmed from a few different things. First, with the cool temperatures that have surrounded the Abbotsford area in recent weeks, some of the dirt was frozen as they brought it into the arena. As the track was built and the dirt unthawed, it obviously just became wet. I’m sure that when this problem became evident to the Jetwerx crew, who have been building tracks for over ten years, a little bit of panic set in. With no time for the dirt to dry and no other dirt available, they simply had to go with it and hope for the best. At this point I feel like the Jetwerx crew has to be applauded for their efforts. With no options, and Round 1 of this new and exciting series only a day away, they did their best to make it work. Another thing that I also noticed as I walked around the cold and cramped paddock was just how excited all of the riders and teams were to be going racing. Here we are in late February and our top riders were getting ready to race each other on a big stage. Thankfully, this enthusiasm far overshadowed the conditions that were waiting for them on the track.

In show business there is a famous saying that simply states that the show must go on. Regardless of what happens to the stage, or to the performers, the curtain goes up, or in this case, the gate drops at a certain time. After a few wet and futile practice sessions and some inconsequential heat races, the riders finally lined up for the first main event of 2018. In keeping with his dominance of the recent Future West BC AX events, Carson Brown rocketed to the early lead in the 250 main event and basically didn’t look back. In these conditions, a good start was crucial, and clear vision trumps everything else. Even a slight pause to grab a tear-off caused riders to either go off the track or almost crash. With the race shortened, the 250 main event was 10 laps of absolute chaos. In the end, Brown held on for the win, Shawn Maffenbeier rode his new Kawasaki to second, and young Tanner Ward rode smart to finish third.

Just as he’s done so many times during his career, Colton Facciotti saved his best performance for when it mattered the most. When the gate dropped for the 450 main event and the roar of these big bikes echoed throughout the arena, Facciotti muscled his way to the front of the pack. Behind him was Tyler Medaglia, Cole Thompson, and a group of riders doing their best to maintain forward momentum. Up front, Colton was doing his best to pull away, while Cole Thompson was on the move and trying to reel in Facciotti. At the halfway point of the race, Thompson pulled alongside Colton and looked to have the pass made, but he made a small mistake and fell over in a corner. This allowed Colton to ride away to an easy win. Cole would remount for second, and Tyler Medaglia soldiered in for third. By the final lap, there were only two bikes on the track that weren’t smoking; the arena smelt like a combination of burnt clutches and coolant, but the large crowd was loving it. If AX racing is considered the Broadway Show of our sport, then it doesn’t matter what happens on stage, as long as it’s an entertaining show. This most certainly was entertaining for the fans. Yes, a lot of bikes were destroyed, and I’m sure more than one mechanic will have nightmares this week, but considering the conditions, Round 1 of the Rockstar Energy Triple Crown Series was at very least entertaining.

As the racing concluded and the fans began to filter out through the exits, I made my way back down to the paddock to speak with the riders and teams. There was a mixture of elation and concern in their words. On one hand, they were all happy to have survived the opening round and were all looking forward to Round 2 in Calgary. However, there was also concern that if this dirt miscalculation could happen here, what is going to happen in Ontario in early April when dry dirt is so very hard to find? I mean, as much as this past weekend was both entertaining and unforgettable, it can never, ever happen again. The world is watching Canada closely to see how this new series takes off, and I can only imagine the look on people’s faces when they saw what the riders and teams had to deal with in Abbotsford, not to mention the poor amateur riders who had to race multiple times throughout the day and night in the same conditions. These kids deserve a big pat on the back for sticking it out on Saturday. Will they now travel to Calgary for Round 2? I hope they do and I’m sure some will, but I also wonder if some simply won’t be able to after the bill comes in for their post Abbotsford bike repairs.

In talking with the Jetwerx crew after this event, they reassured me that this will never happen again. Not to say that there won’t be soft dirt at any event moving forward, but to have the conditions that we saw this weekend, that is a thing of the past. This was great news and this crew is too experienced to make the same mistake twice. So, let’s sit back and catch our breath. Round 1 is now in the history books and we look forward to Round 2 in Calgary. One thing is for sure, 2018 is off to an unforgettable start.