Yamaha Motor Canada Presents The Monday Gate Drop

Good day and welcome to another edition of the Yamaha Motor Canada Monday Gate Drop. With the 2021 YZ models already in the show rooms of Yamaha dealers right across Canada, now is the perfect time to go and pick one up and become a member of the Blu Cru. Also, Yamaha announced last week that the Factory Ride Award will be returning next week at the Walton TransCan. This is great award as it gives a lucky rider a chance to win a free YZ of their choice.

I hope everyone is having a great August long weekend regardless of what activities you’ve been doing. With the 2020 Rockstar Energy Triple Crown MXTour Series taking this weekend off to regroup and get ready for Round 2 at Walton Raceway, these few days off have given everyone a chance to relax. I’m sure it took the riders a few extra days to recover from their tough weekend at Gopher Dunes, so having this weekend to chill out was well timed. So now we’re on to Walton Raceway for Round’s 2 and 3 with the TransCan sandwiched in between. It’s definitely going to be an exciting ten days at Canada’s most famous track and I’m sure everyone is looking forward to it.

As I’m sure everyone knows by now, making the 2020 Walton TransCan happen has been a real battle for Brett and Melody Lee. In past weeks and months they’ve been going up against their local Government, neighbours, and even a few of their friends to try and make this event happen. To say that it has been a struggle would be a gross understatement. However, they never gave up and in seven days amateur riders and their families from across Canada will be moving into Walton Raceway for a week of fun. When you do arrive at Walton Raceway for the 2020 TransCan you can be rest assured that a multitude of steps have been taken to make sure that we all remain as healthy as possible. Obviously, it’s up to us to follow the rules and do our part throughout the week. Please, even if you think some of the rules aren’t right, just follow them and we can all have a successful week. I cannot believe that it’s almost time for the TransCan, it feels like summer just began last week. With everything that has gone on in our world since March, I have a feeling that this year’s TransCan is going to be very memorable. Regardless of where you’re travelling from, I hope everyone arrives safe next week at Walton Raceway.

As I mentioned above, before the TransCan can begin, we will have Round 2 of the Rockstar Energy Triple Crown MXTour Series. This is the first time ever that Walton Raceway has hosted two rounds of the Nationals so it should be interesting. In talking with Brett Lee this morning, he told me that the track will be altered slightly between the two rounds, so this will give the riders something different. After the extreme conditions that everyone had to deal with last weekend at Gopher Dunes, I’m sure everyone will be looking forward to getting out of the sand and into the deep ruts of Walton Raceway.

The big question heading into Round 2 is can Dylan Wright and Jess Pettis pick up where they left off at the opening round and continue their winning ways? I obviously don’t have the answer for this question as we’ll have to wait to see how it plays out. But I do think that the racing will be much closer then it was at Gopher Dunes. I spoke to a few riders last week and most said pretty much the same thing about their weekend at the opening round. Basically, because of the extreme conditions racing turned into survival on Sunday afternoon and everyone was trying to just make it through the day. Unless Mother Nature dumps a bunch of rain on Walton Raceway, the racing should be much more aggressive this weekend and more riders will be letting it all hang out. With the different surfaces, obviously riding the Walton track demands more precision and a different approach than Gopher Dunes does. With the bike feeling more stuck to the ground and tacky ruts everywhere, your bike pretty much goes exactly where your front wheel is pointed. There is very little sliding the bike around, and unlike Gopher Dunes, where you’re trying to get to the back of the bike, the battle at Walton is to try and stay more at the front of the bike. In my experience, riding the Walton track is always a little tougher on my arms as I’m always trying to stay forward coming out of the numerous rutted and tacky turns. Gopher Dunes is more about using your legs and steering your bike with your lower body. Anyway, all of the top riders have had success in the past at Walton Raceway so all of them should be very good in these next two rounds.

Unfortunately, like the opening round at Gopher Dunes there will be no spectators allowed at either Walton event. You can watch the pro races on Fox Sports Racing or the Two Wheel App beginning on Saturday morning, and from what I’m hearing they will have the broadcast sorted out for Round 2. So happy August everyone, I hope this final month of summer is a good one for you. Be safe, stay healthy, make good choices and thank-you for reading. If you have any questions or comments please email me at chris@mxpmag.com.