MXP Motocross Summer 2022 - 22.02

CANADA’S SOURCE FOR MOTOCROSS AND OFF-ROAD

TANNER WARD

GRAD

U AT I O N

SUMMER 2022 $4.95

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M O T O C R O S S

P E R F O R M A N C E

CONTENTS

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V O L U M E

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I S S U E

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FOR SUBSCRIPTION INQUIRIES VISIT:

www.mxpmag.com

COVER STORY

PUBLISHER: Melody Hodgson

Tanner Ward: Graduation

EDITOR: Chris Pomeroy

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SALES MANAGER: Charles Stancer BUSINESS AND MARKETING DIRECTOR: Brett Lee PHOTO DIRECTOR: James Lissimore SENIOR WRITERS: Mike McGill, Andy White, Allison Kennedy Davies

32 FEATURES

32 2022 TRIPLE CROWN SERIES PREVIEW The Road Back To Normal 38 THE STEVE MATTHES STORY An Empire Of Opinion 46 FROM THE TRACK TO THE TRAILS! Jared Stock Talks About Why Riders Are Converting 52 INDUSTRY PROFILE WITH DANIKA WHITE Palms Talks To The Girl Who Loves to Ride 56 FACE TO FACE With Ron Cameron and Steve Sulyok

58 THE HUB: MEDIA DAY AT GOPHER DUNES MXP Heads To Gopher Dunes To Meet The Factory Honda Team

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS: Ève Brodeur, Dylan Wright, Matt Wellumson, Scott Donkersgoed, James Lissimore, Jackie Riess, Lawrence Hacking CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS: Matt Wellumson, Allison Kennedy Davies, Lexi Thompson, Align Media, John McKenney, Mike Vizer, Isaiah Reid, Austin Watling, Brad Nemeth, Bill Petro

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COVER PHOTO: James Lissmore

60 YOUNG AND ON THE RISE WITH CALEB VANKOUGHNETT Palms Talks To The Youngest Member Of The Thor/ Kawasaki/Pro Circuit Team

FOR ADVERTISING INQUIRIES CONTACT: Charles Stancer (charles@mxpmag.com)

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62 NEW PRODUCTS For Summer Of 2022 64 MXP ESSENTIALS With Ryder McNabb

SPECIALS

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65 MXP RECOMMENDS With Quinn Amyotte

DESIGN AND PRODUCTION

EXPOSED

CAUGHT ON CAMERA GROUP PUBLISHER & CEO: Tim Rutledge

COLUMNS

SENIOR ART DIRECTORS: Patrick Beltijar, Patrick Dinglasan, Queue Gonzalez, Edward Shintani PRODUCTION: Richard Robles

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FAMOUS LAST WORDS

by Chris Pomeroy

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GUEST COLUMN

by Dylan Wright

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FEMALE PERSPECTIVE with Jackie Riess

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MX PERFORMANCE IS PRINTED IN CANADA

INSIDE LINE with Andy White

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CAUGHT ON CAMERA

A PHOTOGRAPHIC JOURNAL FROM RACES AND EVENTS THROUGH OUT THE YEAR.

S The Honda boys are looking ahead to the outdoor series.

S This celebration was years in the making.

S There are not many teenagers that clean up this well.

S It was most certainly a season of highs and lows for Phil.

S J-Bone keeps a watchful eye on the riders in SLC.

S This guy brought a new face and a ton of energy to SX in 2022.

S Only in SX can you get a 30-year-old rookie.

S Looks like our champ picked up some fashion tips from his time in Italy last fall.

S JT and BL talk about the past, present, and future of Canadian moto.

S The racing this season in SX has made the hair stand up on all of us.

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S If Troll is the rookie of the year in SX then Forkner has to be the comeback kid of the year.

S One of the rare photos this season when Eli wasn’t smiling.

S Congratulations on a solid career Chris Blose.

S The moment every mechanic in this sport dreams about.

S If SX was hockey you’d definitely want Barcia on your team.

S The Jett shows his softer side as he congratulates his buddy and former teammate in SLC.

S Even the kids had their race faces on in SLC.A

S A great rider, a great person, and a great career for Justin Brayton.

S Four months and 17 rounds will drive everyone a little crazy.

S Thankfully this sport makes you smile more than it makes you cry.

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PHOTO BY JAM E S LISSIMOR E

ONE LEG SWAG Styling Quinn Amyotte is looking for his best summer of racing in 2022.

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THE RED ARROWS

PHOTO BY JAM E S LISSIMOR E

These two Honda teammates could be holding both red plates when the 2022 season comes to an end.

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PHOTO BY JAM E S LISSIMOR E

WEIGHT MANAGEMENT Obviously, the weight of his new #1 plate won’t stop Jacob Piccolo from letting it all hang out.

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P H O T O B Y M AT T W E L L U M S O N

DREAMS DO COME TRUE After injuries and multiple setbacks, Christian Craig finally got it done in SLC and won his first-ever SX title.

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FAMOUS LAST WORDS PHOTOS BY JAM E S LISSIMOR E

WITH

CHRIS POMEROY

PREPARATION LEADS TO SUCCESS Well, are you ready for another summer of incredible racing right across Canada? Whether we’re talking about the 2022 Triple Crown Series, the WCAN, the ECAN, or the 30th Anniversary of the Walton TransCan in August, there’s most certainly some entertaining race action on the horizon. Also, after two long years of Covid-19 restrictions, it looks as though things will be back on track as far as fan access and travel. As a whole, we’ve been a resilient group in this industry and it really goes to show that as long as you have passion and a strong work ethic, you really can persevere though anything. Of course, now we all have to deal with inflation and record-high gas prices for the summer, so it really cements the fact that we just can’t get ahead. By the end of year, we’re all going to be experts in health and accounting as we navigate through the foreseeable future.

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s I write this, we at MXP Magazine are putting the finishing touches on our second issue of 2022. As I spoke about in my previous column, we at MXP have renewed vigour as well as a new sense of direction and it couldn’t have come at a better time. Right now, we are full steam ahead with trying to make this the best media product going. So far this MXP reset has been going well and things are progressing nicely. As you will see in this issue, we have once again assembled a solid group of writers and contributors to bring you some great stories that I hope you all enjoy.

As I mentioned at the beginning of this column, we are the outset of the 2022 Triple Crown Series which kicks off at the rough and challenging Whispering Pines MX Park on June 5th. From there, the series moves to Alberta and then Manitoba to cap off its first western swing since 2019. First off, I cannot believe that it will be three years since the series headed west.

I don’t know why but that just seems so long ago. I remember when Covid-19 first began back in the spring of 2020 and everything was locking down. Looking back now, other than the laughable “Two weeks to flatten the curve” statement, one that was memorable was when the Air Canada CEO said

that as a company they felt that the amount of passengers (or load factor) most likely wouldn’t return to normal until 2023. When I heard that I nearly fell off of my chair in disbelief. However, here we are entering the summer of 2022 and things are just now returning to somewhat normal and probably won’t be 100% until next year. Air Canada was correct, although I don’t they factored in the $2/litre fuel that we’re going to be paying on average this summer.

The weeks leading up the pro nationals are always an exciting one for us, the media, as well as fans, but for the riders and teams it’s usually a stressful time. It never fails that regardless of how ready you think you are, some issue always pokes its ugly head up and you’re forced to put out fires when all you want to do is relax.

Obviously, times have changed from my days with regards to pro racing and now there is a little more direction when it comes to most things. If you compare the top riders now to the top riders of say 1997, I would say that although there is a lot more structure now, the uncertainty levels are perhaps higher now. From a riders perspective, unlike now when most of the top riders have maybe raced two or

three times so far at the most, prior to the opening round of the nationals in 1997 we had approximately 7-8 races in already so there was little concern with what was on the other side of the starting gate.

Our biggest concern was whether or not our bodies were ready to handle four 30-minute motos at the first national, or at least how we could fake it during the final two motos. Either way, the weeks and days leading up to any opening day are usually filled with a few sleepless nights and more than a couple of stressful days.

To help kick off the 2022 Triple Crown Series properly the GDR Honda Team had a Team Intro media event on May 12th. Derek Schuster and his crew invited all of the media, his key title sponsors, as well as a few dignitaries. It was a great day of interviews, bench racing, and of course the coolest part when the GDR Team green lighted my son and I taking out Ryder McNabb’s and Dylan Wright’s race bikes for a few laps. To be able to ride Dylan’s #1 plated CRF450R around the track was about as good as it gets for this aging rider and media guy. Add in the fact that just two days before that Walton Raceway hosted the Thor/Kawasaki/Pro Circuit Team for their annual photoshoot and it was most certainly ‘get excited’ time for the upcoming summer of racing.

As always, this is an exciting time of year with so many possibilities ahead. So please take this time to make a plan that ensures that you’re able to keep things in perspective and also try and enjoy the summer of 2022 as much as possible. I’m sure you’ve all watched the movie Ferris Bueller’s Day Off? Remember when Ferris says that “life moves pretty fast and if you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you may miss it.”

Well, aren’t those applicable words to our lives these days! I hope you enjoy this issue of MXP Magazine and congratulations to Tanner Ward for making the cover on his new KX450F. James Lissimore got the incredible shot of Tanner on the step-up behind the start at Walton Raceway. James wanted to wait until the evening so the lighting was just perfect! After seeing the finished product I’m glad he did. See you at the races everyone!

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JUSTINBARCIA

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GUEST COLUMN PHOTOS BY JAM E S LISSIMOR E

WITH

DYLAN WRIGHT

TIME TO SHINE As we get closer and closer to the season, the schedule for the team, the riders and the mechanics get busier and busier. It’s crunch time for everybody on the team to make sure that everything is 100% ready to go.

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or Derek, on the manager’s side, he has to make sure all the parts are ordered and will be here on time for the bikes and to stock the semi. He has to make sure the photoshoot gets done; media day goes well with the sponsors. For the mechanics, they have to make sure that the race bikes are dialed in, that testing goes smoothly, that all the spare parts have shown up. They also need to know where everything is in the shop and on the semi. As a rider, this is the last few weeks, the final push to make sure that you have done everything you can to be the best possible at round 1. We have to make sure the bike is how we want it with testing and riding the race bike.

To start, this week was a major week for the team. The final parts started rolling in for the race bikes.

For the mechanics, the photoshoot

is always the deadline to get the bikes done. For all the people working here at Gopher Dunes, they were in charge of making sure that the shop looked in tip top shape for the media day. When Wednesday rolled around, it was photoshoot day for us. It started bright and early in the morning, because at sunrise, it’s always one of the best times of the day for lighting. For Ryder and I, that meant rolling out of bed at 5:45 a.m. and being ready to shoot at 6 a.m. Thankfully I’m a morning person! Once we got rolling, James Lissimore got a bunch of amazing shots done early. He is always such a treat to work with, he knows what he wants and that makes our job as a rider a whole lot easier. That and he is normally pretty dang good at getting the shot within the first couple of times. Thanks for always doing such an amazing job Liss!

Then it was on to Thursday,

I was lucky enough that the CRF450R didn’t exactly change a whole lot for this year, which where we had our team intro and makes my job media day. This was a super cool a lot easier as a event for us, as some of our key sponsors of the team were coming lot of the heavier as well as many people from the lifting (testingmedia. It was very cool to see everybody here to support us as a wise) is already crew. I feel like the event went very well. I have to give a huge shootout out of the way.” to Fab from Grafic Men out of Vaughan for having us looking fresh in our suits. It’s not often as a motocross racer that we have the opportunity to get all dressed up so this was super cool for me. After our speeches were done, we had a little meet and greet with all the championship bikes and our fresh race bikes for 2022! From there, I headed out to do some riding as well as let some media guys spin a few laps on my race bike to see what they thought about it. The response was—I can’t believe how easy the bike is to ride.

The following couple of days I did the last little bit of testing on my race bike. After these few days, my race bike will be 100% ready to go for round one. For me this test is only to make a couple of small

changes. We made some bigger ones earlier in the off-season as well as a bunch throughout last season. I was lucky enough that the CRF450R didn’t exactly change a whole lot for this year, which makes my job a lot easier as a lot of the heavier lifting (testing-wise) is already out of the way.

That being said, I am confident that the few changes that I was able to make will be amazing. I can say that my suspension and engine package are just that much better than the platform we were running last year. I can’t wait to showcase this amazing bike at the first round and show you all what I am capable of doing on this motorcycle!

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FEMALE PERSPECTIVE

WITH

JACKIE RIESS

CATERPILLAR TO A BUTTERFLY Like a caterpillar turns into a butterfly, The Female Perspective has morphed into a new form. Though this article still remains in MXP Magazine, we’ve expanded our coverage of women in motocross by adding a bi-weekly podcast. And though the podcast too has changed its ways from the beginning, we’ve found ways to focus and bring value to women in the sport.

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or months now, I’ve been talking with the folks at MXP Magazine about beginning a podcast. After hashing out many ideas, we found the expansion of The Female Perspective to be the most suitable addition to the MXP lineup. In January, the podcast started out as racing analysis of the AMA Supercross series. Joined by my trusty co-hosts Lindsey Bradley, Eve Brodeur, and Jensen Amyotte. We dug deep into the racing, analyzing the intense passes, explaining the varying results, and highlighting Canadians competing in the series. The first 10 episodes shared these themes and were entirely focused on Supercross.

However, there are many podcasts covering this topic, and who really needs another one?

After chatting with Eve about this, she suggested switching the focus towards women who are active in the sport, and I couldn’t have agreed more. We needed something interesting, different,

and maybe even unheard of in the sport of motocross.

Starting in episode 11, we made this change, and switched to a bi-weekly schedule. First on deck was the ever-stoked Danika White, followed by the highly-decorated Shelby Turner, and then Melody Hodgson, a vital asset to both MXP and Walton Raceway. But before we hear about the ladies we’ve talked to so far, who is the host?

Who is Jackie Riess?

As a grom growing up in the suburbs of Minneapolis, Minnesota, I always wanted to be on wheels with my hair flowing in the wind.

I wanted to go fast. As a toddler, I would back my tricycle up to the garage door, lift my feet, and ride down into the street to my parents’ dismay. I soon moved up to a bicycle, which I crashed into my neighbors trees multiple times before figuring out how to ride it.

And soon afterwards moved up to a PW50. But have no fear, I crashed this too. For my first ride, per Dad’s instructions, I was to go down to the

tree in our front yard, turn around, and come back. Easy right? Well, I think he installed one of those whisky throttles on my ‘96 PW50 and I ended up in Mom’s flowers.

I eventually got the hang of riding around our suburban yard, so we quickly went searching for places to ride. We ended up at the closest motocross track, about half an hour from our house, where I found myself on the ground yet again.

As a newbie at the track, I had no sense of etiquette. Going through a roller section on the 50cc track, I went from side to side trying to keep upright and ended up in a faster rider’s line. We hit the ground together, and that was when I learned the importance of keeping your line.

Right there on day one at the track.

The other rider you ask? She was more experienced and fast… very fast, to say the least. We went on to become close friends, and she continued to beat me for years to come.

She was always someone I aspired to be like as a young racer.

Year after year, I continued riding and competing, and motocross became my passion. As a young teen and into my later teen years,

“I’m not alone, many other women in the industry feel the same way.

That is why I’m highlighting their stories and why I love doing it.”

I never really felt like I belonged in school. I felt that ‘normal people’ just didn’t get it. ‘It’ being the passion and dedication I had, and still have, for riding dirt bikes. The track is where I feel like I belong, where I’m meant to be, and where I still love to spend my weekends.

This is why I love being involved in the sport at many levels. From my contributions here at MXP, to the countless hours volunteered for our local District 23 ARMCA events here in Minnesota, to coaching younger riders, I’ve found it important to give back to the community that has given me so much. And I’m not alone, many other women in the industry feel the same way. That is why I’m highlighting their stories and why I love doing it.

Danika White, our guest in episode 11, has given back to motorcycling in so many ways.

From her never-ending excitement for ride days, to her involvement with Wild Rose MX, to her dedication to WMX through Surfin’ Berms, Danika does it all. She’s an inspiration both on and off the track. Shelby Turner, our episode 12 guest, is a highly-decorated motorcyclist in many disciplines of racing. From motocross to Endurocross to off-road events like GNCC, National Enduro, and ISDE, Shelby is one of the toughest female competitors. She’s an inspiration to many riders, and has pieced together a program that funds itself, something very rare for women in motorcycling at this time.

And finally, Melody Hodgson, our episode 13 guest. Mel is a vital part of both MXP Magazine and Walton Raceway. Her passion for the sport and the people within fuel her dedication to organizing highly touted motocross events year after year.

All these women have unique stories and experiences within the motorcycling community, and I am proud we can share them with MXP followers. The Female Perspective is available on major podcast platforms including Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, Google Podcasts, Spotify, and Stitcher, as well as on YouTube. I hope you tune in and enjoy listening to these stories as much as I enjoy giving women an avenue to share them.

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Graduation B Y C H R I S P O M E R OY / P H O T O S B Y J A M E S L I S S I M O R E A N D M AT T W E L L U M S O N

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Coming into the 2021 Triple Crown Series last summer Tanner Ward was one of the favourites to win the 250 MXTour Championship. Although still young himself, Ward brought to the series a lot of experience and knowledge of both the tracks as well as his Honda Canada/GDR/Fox Racing CRF250. These attributes most certainly paid dividends in the opening two rounds of the Triple Crown Series last summer as Tanner stormed out of the gate and took the win at both.

It was a promising start to the 250MX Series and, even though Tanner was nursing a knee injury at the time, he felt good with where he was at. Throughout the series last summer, Tanner was remarkably consistent and if it wasn’t for a terrible final round of the series at Walton Raceway, he might have been standing on top of the podium with the championship plate. Instead, Tanner ended up finishing the 250 MXTour Series in fourth place, well back of the champion Jacob Piccolo.

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t was a disappointing conclusion to the 2021 season for Tanner but since he’s no stranger to adversity, he took it all in stride. Being able to regroup and focus on the next challenge is also one of Tanner’s strengths and throughout the fall his goal was to try and race a few rounds of the 2022 Monster Energy Supercross Series. During the off-season, Tanner headed to Florida to begin training for both Supercross and the entire 2022 race season. During his time in Florida, Tanner improved his Supercross

skills little by little as he trained with some of the best riders on the planet. Everything was progressing as planned when Tanner got the call that would change everything for 2022 and beyond.

With Tanner planning on moving up to the 450 class for 2022, the Thor/Kawasaki/Pro Circuit Team sensed an opportunity. With their goal of being a Canadian-only team, signing Tanner Ward as their main 450 rider made perfect sense. So just a few weeks before the gate dropped on the opening round of the 2022 250SX East Series, Tanner

switched from Honda to Kawasaki and the stage was set for a successful season as well as a successful partnership with Team Green.

As we’ve seen so many times in the past, competing in the Monster Energy Supercross Series can be a challenging task. Not only are you racing against some of the best riders in the world, but you’re battling on tight tracks within the confines of noisy stadiums. In a nutshell, a lot can go wrong in SX and remaining healthy can sometimes be more difficult than finding good results. However, Tanner rode

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extremely smart during his five rounds of the 250SX East Series, and from Minneapolis to Indy, Ward had an entire country cheering for him. There was one moment in Minneapolis that had Tanner all over social media as a camera caught him jumping off the track and landing on the concrete just between the track and the stands. It was an unforgettable moment and one that we’re sure had Tanner thanking his lucky stars. Other than that scary moment, Tanner’s SX journey was a success, especially since he’d only gotten on his new Kawasaki a few weeks prior to the opening round in Minneapolis.

As we mentioned Tanner rode five rounds of the 250SX East Series and during that time he and his dad put in a lot of miles.

Unfortunately, Tanner wasn’t able to qualify for the main event at any of the rounds he competed in, but that doesn’t mean his time in the SX series wasn’t without some highlights. His best weekend came in what you would also call his hometown race in Detroit, Michigan. With Tanner calling Woodstock, Ontario home the fact that he only had to drive a few hours to Ford Field in Detroit was a bonus. Because of Tanner living in close proximity to the stadium

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Feld Motorsports invited him to media day on Friday and for the first time in the series Tanner was able to get some extra practice on the same track he’d be racing on the following day. Tanner loved it and, in the end, it was a dream come true as he was on the Detroit track at the same time as Eli Tomac, Chase Sexton, and his Team Green teammate Jason Anderson. Not surprisingly, Tanner logged his best result of the 250SX East Series as he finished a solid sixth in the LCQ, just missing the main event by two spots. If Tanner wanted to kick off

the 2022 season in style he most certainly did so by rolling the dice and competing in the Monster Energy Supercross Series.

Now, with SX firmly in the rearview mirror, Tanner has been training hard on his new KX450. Getting a big 450 dialed in isn’t an easy task but Tanner and his new Thor/ Kawasaki/Pro Circuit team have been working hard. The team’s testing began down in Georgia and then moved north to Ontario in late April.

Since then they’ve made massive strides with the 2022 KX450F and when the gate drops on the opening

“Being able to regroup and focus on the next challenge is also one of Tanner’s strengths and throughout the fall his goal was to try and race a few rounds of the 2022 Monster Energy Supercross Series.”

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“Getting a big 450 dialed in isn’t an easy task but Tanner and his new Thor/Kawasaki/ Pro Circuit team have been working hard.” round of the Triple Crown Series in Kamloops, Tanner and his team will be ready to compete for the 450 Championship.

It’s been awhile since we’ve featured Tanner Ward on the cover of MXP Magazine. In fact, even though Tanner is still in his early 20’s, it’s hard to believe that he’s been a pro rider for so long. And although this will be Tanner’s rookie year in the 450 class, he most certainly brings a lot of racing experience. Life hasn’t always been

easy for Tanner and his family, but through it all they’ve worked hard and done things the right way.

For this issue we at MXP Magazine are honoured to have Tanner Ward featured on the cover on his new 2022 Thor/Kawasaki/Pro Circuit KX450F. Since he was a young kid battling in the 65cc class in Ontario, Tanner has been a joy to watch on the track as well as a pleasure to chat with off of the track. Congratulations Tanner and good luck in 2022!

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2022 TRIPLE CROWN SERIES

THE ROAD BACK TO NORMAL B Y C H R I S P O M E R OY / P H O T O S B Y J A M E S L I S S I M O R E

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T

he 2022 Triple Crown Series has all of the makings of the most successful summer of motocross we’ve witnessed in Canada in a long time! We know these words are often spoken at the beginning of every year—as through January and February optimism is always high when most of us are looking outside and staring at snowbanks. Let’s face it, after months of shovelling snow and dealing with winter, Canadians will grasp at anything positive and run with it. However, when the snow does melt and spring arrives every rider in Canada will be wide open. Soon after the bikes will hit the track at Whispering Pines Raceway on June 5th, the 2022 Triple Crown Series could be one for the ages, and here’s why.

Now, before we talk about the upcoming summer of professional motocross in Canada, we first have to go back to 2018. At the time the Pro Nationals in Canada had come off multiple successful years where top riders such as Davi Millsaps, Mike Alessi, Matt Goerke, Colton Fac-

ciotti, and Christophe Pourcel were all at one time part of the series. Both Millsaps and Pourcel were well-known riders on the world stage having won races in the Monster Energy Supercross Series as well as in Europe. In fact, Pourcel was a 250 World Champion in 2006 as well as a two-time 250 Supercross Champion in the USA. These two MX legends gave our Pro Series here in Canada some added credibility in 2016 and 2017 and things are status quo heading into 2018.

But that would all change 24 hours after the final round of the 2017 series with a jaw-dropping press conference in Barrie, ON. This was when the news was announced that the Jetwerx crew, who had been growing their AX series, would venture into outdoor Pro motocross. This new Jetwerx Series would be called the Triple Crown Series and would feature Arenacross, Motocross, and also Supercross. This idea was eagerly embraced by the corporate giant Rockstar Energy Drink. There would be a champion in each discipline as per usual. Also an overall Triple Crown Champion in the 450 and 250 classes would be crowned and each would receive a sizable payout. For the 450 champion, a cool $100, 000.00 would be deposited into their bank account while the 250 champion would receive $10, 000.00. A longer series featuring both indoor as well as outdoor motocross, a few new venues, and a chance to grow this incredible sport. On paper, this was a win-win for everyone, except of course for the CMRC which had been running the pro series

since 1994. As you can imagine in the months following that press conference there was a mixture of optimism on one side but complete disdain on the other. In the end, this new endeavour prevailed and since 2018 our National Series has run under the Jetwerx/MRC umbrella.

Looking back, it’s hard to believe that we’re now entering the 5th season of the Triple Crown Series.

The first two seasons for Jetwerx didn’t come without challenges. The biggest one in hindsight was attempting to hold pro nationals on Saturdays across the country. Many pointed to the USA and its outdoor national model where all of the rounds of the Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championships are held on Saturdays. With a live television audience as well as a large population of fans to draw from, that model seems to have worked in the USA for several years. However, not all things can find transborder success in North America and like the Target Department Store chain or the Outback Steakhouse, what works in the USA doesn’t always work here, and vice-versa. Jetwerx CEO Justin Thompson had this to say about the original idea to hold races on Saturdays. “Obviously, it works well in the USA and it has for years now. It didn’t work here and we know that now. However, at the time there was a big push for Saturday Nationals by a few of the teams and riders, so it wasn’t just us who wanted to reinvent the wheel in Canada.” After witnessing what happened during those first two years, the entire industry was excited to return to Sunday races in 2020.

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To add to the challenges, the added rounds tapped out the teams as well as the sponsors who supported them. Again, unlike south of the border which has year-round riding in 75% of the country, Canada’s riding season is more like a sprint.

We in the north, go hard for six months, giving it everything we have, and then we’re forced to shut things down. Since the first person in Canada threw their leg over a dirt bike our industry has revolved around this six-month rotation with regard to sales and marketing. Racing in Canada will always have a summer mentality and budgets reflected that.

Thompson once again adds, “With the seasonal challenges that Canada has with regards to riding, we hoped that by introducing more indoor events we’d be able to extend the racing season and also allow the riders to get more familiar with tight indoor racing. However, this was difficult for the teams and their budgets because not only did it involve more travel but all of sudden their riders had to be riding and training earlier than ever before.”

Finally, with already low fan attendance in the first two years, a little thing called Covid-19 unleashed itself on our unsuspecting world and racing took a backseat to just trying to survive—another challenge the Triple Crown Series as a whole has faced since their opening round. For so many, the helpless feeling was felt across the industry with the restrictions it brought upon our lives and the series. While events across the country in all areas stopped or became small versions of themselves - Jetwerx, the facilities, the teams, as well as their sponsors pulled together to produce a very entertaining series to limp through 2020, assuming 2021 would see the pandemic in the past. It was a bold move that many sports chose to not pursue. It required series, facilities, and teams to forge forward to meet obligations to sponsors and maintain a series. As 2020 closed, the reality that 2021 would look much the same was soon real.

And 2021 appeared with more news: Rockstar Energy Drink, a driving force behind the new series ideology was sold to Pepsi and was pulling back and reviewing all of its marketing endeavours around the world—outlining the liabilities of outdoor events in Covid-19 as a determining factor. 2021 the series was forced to limit itself again, without the support of the title sponsor who

walked from their third-year option. Once again, the series, facilities, riders, and team forged forward to make the best series in a very difficult time. It was Walton One on Canada Day when the gate dropped on 2021 - not the expected location. But it was also the first event, not just motocross but all events to run in Canada that week. To Gopher the following week, Sand Del Lee, Deschambault, and back to Walton. What was a completely unthinkable scenario a few short years ago, had to happen in back-to-back years with unimaginable challenges.

Thompson reflects and the past two pandemic seasons. “Honestly, they have been nothing but a financial nightmare but we knew they were going to be tough. However, to see all the industry pull together to make racing happen at the pro level was special to see. We’re a passionate group and that is the driving force behind what we do.”

With tried weekend changes, format changes, sponsorship changes, and with pandemic life an everyday reality, we now look back to our original statement: The 2022 Triple Crown Series could be the most successful one yet. Think about it for a second. This year will represent the first time in five years that the pro series will be back to normal.

Sunday nationals, manageable travel and no event restrictions, and also sponsors looking at a market experiencing its largest growth since the 80s! Good old fashion Sunday nationals in six different provinces with all the old and new fans that can make it out. Jetwerx and the MRC, facilities, and teams have a clean slate to work with and our bet is they are about to make the most of it.

The excitement begins on June 5th in Kamloops, BC when the opening round will take place at the rough Whispering Pines Raceway. Also, in the days leading up to the opening round of the Triple Crown Series, Whispering Pines will first host the 2022 WCAN. A multi-day large amateur event that will see each class run three motos to determine the overall winner. This event will no doubt kick off the Triple Crown Series in grand fashion as it will also be the first time racing in the west since 2019. The idea of the Pro riders and the best western amateur riders coming together in Kamloops seems like the perfect way to launch the 2022 season.

From there, the series heads in an easterly direction to a pair of new tracks in Drumheller, Alberta, and Pilot Mound, Manitoba. Both facilities are excited to host the Triple Crown Series and hopefully, the surrounding population is as well. The west felt the Covid pinch the most in recent years - with the series unable to travel west. To add insult to injury, the regional series were shadows of their former selves. 2022 Pro motocross returns and Western Canada is set to roar back to motocross life.

With the first three west rounds in the rear view mirror, the series continues its march east to the first of two rounds at the famous Walton Raceway.

While the 2022 TransCan will precede the second Walton round in August, Round 4 of the Triple Crown Series will take place on the Canada Day long weekend and will feature an XC event on Friday, Parts Canada Amateur Open race on Saturday, where the entire industry is being brought out to see the showcase of Amateur racers. Then of course the pro-national on Sunday will feature the 3-moto national format. It will be an entertaining weekend at Walton Raceway and a great way to kick off the eastern half of the series.

2022 TRIPLE CROWN SERIES

THE ROAD BACK TO NORMAL

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“The excitement begins on June 5th in Kamloops, BC when the opening round will take place at the rough Whispering Pines Raceway. Also, in the days leading up to the opening round of the Triple Crown Series, Whispering Pines will first host the 2022 WCAN.”

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2022 CANADIAN PRO NATIONAL MOTOCROSS SCHEDULE

2022 TRIPLE CROWN SERIES

THE ROAD BACK TO NORMAL After Round 4 at Walton Raceway, the series heads to the roughest track in Canada—Gopher Dunes. There the riders will be tested to the fullest as Gopher Dunes is always challenging.

Gopher Dunes has steadily grown into an off-road destination and the Gopher National has built an international reputation as a true test of fitness and grit. You do not luck into a win at Gopher Dunes. It is always an inspiring race to see.

Round 6 will be held just outside our Nation’s Capital at the beautiful Sand Del Lee track. The MX101 crew has become a rider’s favourite. Great viewing and a tight challenging track offer up some of the sport’s greatest battles.

The three Ontario Parts Canada Open events will form a series - with series awards and prizes being handled at the Sand Del Lee round. Another great opportunity for racers to place themselves on the radar of Canadian motocross.

The series heads to the east coast for the longawaited return to Riverglade Raceway. A bucket list event for Canadian motocross fans in Moncton, NB. Like the western rounds, it’s been two years since the series was allowed to travel to the east coast so it will be exciting to go back there on July 24th.

After Riverglade, the series heads to Quebec for Round 8 in Deschambault. This track is a favourite among the riders and will also serve as the host to the ECAN on Friday and Saturday before Sunday’s pro-national. After that, the riders and teams have a week to catch their breath, and then it’s back to Walton Raceway for the 30th Anniversary of the TransCan Grand National Championships and then the final outdoor round of the Triple Crown Series on August 14th.

What a series, what a summer, what a return to normal for the Triple Crown Series in Canada this year. We know it’s been a tough road to navigate since Jetwerx took over our National Series in 2018, but they should be applauded for sticking with it, even when it’s been anything but a financial windfall. Passion and a love for this sport are what’s been driving the Triple Crown Series for the past few years, so hopefully, this summer with fans and unrestricted travel to our west coast and back, the financial pendulum can swing a little more to the middle by the time the 2022 race season is complete. Now, let’s drop the gate!

JUNE 3-4-5 ....................................KAMLOOPS,BC WCAN/MXTOUR JUNE 10- 11-12 .................................DRUMHELLER,AB MXTOUR JUNE 18-19 .....................................PILOT MOUND, MB MXTOUR JULY 1-3..........................................WALTON ONE MXTOUR JULY 9- 10.......................................GOPHERDUNES,ON MXTOUR JULY 16- 17......................................SAND DEL LEE, ON, MXTOUR JULY 23-24.....................................RIVERGLADE,NS MXTOUR JULY 31-AUG 1.................................DESCHAMBAULT,QC ECAN/MXTOUR AUGUST 10-14.................................WALTON TRANSCAN GNC

2022 TRIPLE CROWN SCHEDULE AND RIDER LIST

450 CLASS

250 CLASS

1 ............. DYLAN WRIGHT 2 ............ MARSHAL WELTIN 3 ............ SHAWN MAFFENBEIER 5 ............ TYLER MEDAGLIA 10 ........ KEYLAN MESTON 11 .......... DAVEY FRASER 13 ......... DANIEL ELMORE 15 ......... JESS PETTIS 16 ......... COLE THOMPSON 17 ......... YANICK BOUCHER 18 ......... PARKER EALES 19 ......... RYAN DERRY 21 ......... LIAM O’FARRELL 24 ........ TOMMY DALLAIRE 29 ........ TIM TREMBLAY 25 ........ WESTEN WROZYNA 26 ........ CASEY KEAST 28 ....... SAM GAYNOR 32 ........ ETHAN OUELLETTE 35 ........ TAYLOR CIAMPICHINI 37 ........ MAX FILIPEK 39 ........ DONNY TURNER 42 ........ DEREK HAM 43 ........ DARIO ZECCA 53 ........ MITCH COOKE 61 ......... TEE PERROTT 84 ....... TANNER WARD

1 ............. JAKE PICCOLO 12 ......... JULIEN BENEK 14 ......... QUINN AMYOTTE 22 ....... TYLER GIBBS 23 ........ JAMIE POWELL 27 ........ GUILLAUME ST CYR 30 ....... SEBASTIEN RACINE 31 ......... WILLIAM CRETE 33 ........ JEREMY MCKIE 34 ........ WYATT KERR 40 ....... PRESTON MASCIANGELO 44 ....... ZACH UFIMZEF 46 ....... MARCO CANNELLA 60 ....... TALLON UNGER 64 ....... RYDER MCNABB 65 ........ BRYCE WADGE 132 .... SETH HUGHES 138 .... DYLAN REMPEL 195 .... BLAKE ASHLEY 223 ... AUSTIN JONES 229 ... MITCHELL HARRISON 510 .... MARCUS DEUSEY

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THE STEVE MATTHES STORY:

AN EMPIRE OF

OPINION From humble beginnings on the start gate in Manitoba, to spinning wrenches for the likes of Tim Ferry and Nick Wey to recording his 500th Pulp MX show, if you’re a motocross fan in Canada or the U.S, you probably know more about Steve Matthes than you’d ever thought possible. Whether he’s sharing tales of his basset hounds, detailing his love affair with Van Halen and the Toronto Maple Leafs, sharing his opinions on supercross safety nets or reeling you into his current bromances and standoffs with today’s top riders, Matthes has made a living sharing his personality and his opinions with the motocross industry. Some love him, some don’t, but with over a decade of experience as a mechanic and nearly two decades as a moto journalist, most have learned to respect, if not admire, Matthes for being unapologetically himself.

B Y A L L I S O N K E N N E DY D AV I E S / P H O T O S B Y J A M E S L I S S I M O R E

H

ot on the heels of his PulpMX Privateer Championship Series Finale at the Salt Lake City supercross, we caught up with industry folks and Matthes himself to reflect on his success.

When I was first asked to write this story, I laughed. Back in 2004, I was the Senior Editor at Racer X Canada when Matthes started writing his Behind the Pit Board column—his first foray into print journalism. In that position, I was the first to lay eyes on his column every issue. And while I loved his style, I was genuinely scared of just how much honesty the Canadian motocross industry could handle.

We butted heads at first over his raw style but in the end we let the column run as written—an approach that continues today when Matthes writes for Davey Coombs and the Racer X Illustrated team.

“That’s a question I’ve been asked many, many times,” laughs Coombs. “Just how much of Steve’s stuff do I edit? The answer is literally maybe half a percent every now and then.

Matthes has got to be Matthes or he’s going to have to be someone else … and he refuses to be someone else.”

With Racer X Canada closing its doors after a few short years, Matthes continued to write for Racer X Illustrated giving Coombs a front row seat to his success. “My first impression of Steve? He was like those kids with raw talent who show up on a ride day with a sleeveless shirt, blue jeans and work boots, but can ride with anyone, you know?” recalls Coombs. “Steve spent a lot of time as a privateer mechanic, driving around in the box van, probably listening to his Rush and Cory Hart CDs. He had conversations at the

track and then, because he was by himself a lot of the time, he started putting those words down and became a real solid voice coming out of the trenches.”

Did Matthes’ brutal honesty give Coombs the same fits as me? Maybe, but DC also let him speak freely. “I think that his honesty combined with his persistence is what has worked so well for him,” explains Coombs. “That and his confidence. He’s always asking questions he thinks are important—questions that merit a response.

It makes him a really unique journalist. Sure he’s not classically trained, but I don’t know that a lot of us are. But he does have that school of hard knocks education. He wanted to be a racer; that didn’t work out. He tried something

else; that worked out. Then he found his voice.”

Matthes is the first to admit he made a conscious effort to do things differently. “I’m a big fan of mainstream sports, right?,” explains Matthes. “My whole life I’ve followed hockey, football, baseball –and I’m a really big reader. I like people who have opinions and if there’s an expert on the sport, I’m into that. When I was a mechanic, I felt like there was nothing out there like that in moto. MXA was pretty tough on dudes, but they weren’t really at the races.

And the others were just there to get a photo pass and hang out with their buddies. Nothing against those people, but when I read those race reports I wanted more. I wasn’t happy with the way the media was and I wanted to put my

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own slant on it. I had twelve years as a mechanic so I knew everybody. My wife will tell you I’m pretty stubborn and I’m a pretty opinionated person. I think, when you add all of that up, it was natural for me to start doing moto media and start doing it differently.”

And so Matthes set out to share the types of stories he’d begun telling while working as a mechanic for both Nick Wey and Kelly Smith.

Wey was one of the first riders to have his own website and Matthes soon began writing updates of his life on the road in the box van and posting them there. Later while working with Kelly Smith, Matthes started writing press releases for KTM and sharing them with the team.

“We were doing the East Coast Four-stroke Nationals—it was a cheesy little series and I would write press releases to the entire team and just dress them up like Kelly was champion of the world,” recalls Matthes. “Everybody at KTM got a big kick out of that.”

But while the written word was quickly translating into success for Matthes, he had even bigger things in mind. His passion for mainstream sports had him listening to podcasts from the hockey world and beyond. While the guys at DMXS were already doing MX podcasts, Matthes felt there was still more to be done. His first podcast had a whopping $200 Shift Canada sponsorship and his equipment at that time cost $40.

He continued to write and podcast, recording lots of career retrospectives with legendary riders and gaining a following. Then his wife’s penchant for the Howard Stern Show inspired him to kick things up a notch. “I started looking at what was involved with streaming live and taking calls,” recalls Matthes. “It’s a lot more complicated and there’s a lot more money involved. We started with that in 2010 and I had so many technical problems. I’d have to call my wife to test things

“Steve has ambitions, he’s got a work ethic, he’s got no kids and I don’t think he drinks very often, so he’s got a lot of extra time. The sky is the limit.”

out. Now I have a producer, co-hosts, calls in and we just hit our 500th show.”

That success has helped define a new media space in motocross, explains Davey Coombs.

“Just as I would say, Cycle News were pioneers with weekly coverage and Steve Bruhn was a pioneer of internet coverage, Steve is the pioneer of what we now know as the podcast space—but really it’s the whole talk space,” says Coombs.

“He’s the tip of the spear when it comes to that whole genre of media in our sport. I’ve said this before and I mean it, he’s become part of the daily fabric of every motocross enthusiast’s life.

He’s done a good job of getting into each space, staking out his territory and then doing what he believes works and …it works.”

Beyond his work ethic, creativity and endless opinions, Matthes’ work as a mechanic for both privateer and factory teams is another key to his success. “We had a couple of really big achievements together,” recalls Tim Ferry. “We earned top privateer together in 1999 which was kind of unheard of. I was a full-on privateer with a box van and we had some really good results and some really good times together. He’s always been a good storyteller—the same as he is now.

I think being a privateer mechanic and a factory mechanic has given him some credibility in the industry. He’s been through everything.”

Ferry admits that Matthes can rub some folks the wrong way, but there’s nugget of truth in his opinions that can take people some time to find.

“When somebody writes something about you, it can sting,” admits Ferry. “Later you realize that they were probably just right. You mature a little bit as you get a little bit older and you always come full circle. I think at the same time though, he’s just being honest. If you really did suck, he just tells you that you sucked and when you do really well, he just tells you that you did really well. As much as he loves me, he’ll tell me when I’m doing something stupid to this day (laughs). He doesn’t hold back. There’s no favoritism to anybody which is ultimately quite fair once people realize it.”

From those box van roots comes another key to his success—his ongoing support of the privateers and underdogs of the sport. While Matthes interviews the superstars of the sport, he also devotes some solid airtime to the privateers. Whether it’s helping them find a mechanic, giving them a place to tell their stories on the show, or perhaps his ultimate achievement to date—letting them battle for a $100,000 purse in the Pulp MX Privateer Challenge Series finale race in Salt Lake City this year, he’s got a soft spot for the little guys. While the Privateer Challenge Series has been running for several years and has given out some serious funds to privateer riders, 2022 is the first time the folks at Feld gave Matthes the time and tools needed to run a one-off finale race.

“I worked for a few privateer teams, so I saw firsthand their struggles,” recalls Matthes.

“You see the personalities and you know they are laying it all on the line for not much money.

It’s such a struggle and they’re doing it for the love of it. I felt like I wanted to help those guys because I’ve been there. Also, they’re great in-

WHERE DO I BEGIN WHEN IT COMES TO STEVE MATTHES?

BY JAM E S LI SSI MOR E

I’d have to say I owe a large percentage of my photography career to the guy. We both got our starts at RacerXCanada - him writing a magazine column and his now ubiquitous Observations on the website, myself as the Senior Photographer there. As his career in moto media progressed and grew, he took me along for the ride.

He would invite me to stay with him in Las Vegas, use his frequent flyer miles to fly me to Supercrosses, and generally just document all the random things he was doing. I got to experience so many cool things in the sport that I never would have without his generosity.

I have to say, we can butt heads sometimes, but the guy is a visionary. I didn’t understand it when he first started doing audio podcasts, but they took off. Then he sent me a link to www. pulpmx.com one day, and I didn’t understand the point. “Can’t you just post stuff on RacerX?” I asked him, but he explained he had all sorts of story ideas that other people didn’t want to run, and he wanted a place to share them. Of course, Pulp took off and he started to build his own brand. Then, at the Montreal SX one year, he told me of his idea for a call in, internet radio show. Again, I didn’t understand why someone would want to do that, but he made it happen and it was a huge success. It’s the same with the video broadcasts of his radio show. I didn’t understand why someone would want to watch a video of an audio show, but he invested in doing it right and sure enough, now he’s made it onto MavTV. I’ve learned to not question his ideas. He clearly has a vision and somehow it always works out.

Sure, not everyone is a fan of Steve. I’ve been there for some pretty heated confrontations in the past, but funnily enough, many of those people, are now regular guests on his show. He can be the most stubborn person I know, but he also rarely writes a person off and usually his detractors come around.

I’ve personally been a big benefactor of Steve’s generosity, but what he’s done for the privateers is next level. The fact that Feld gave him his own race this year is also one of the funniest things I’ve seen, knowing that they were not big fans of him for a long time. Just goes to show how people always seem to come around when it comes to Steve. I still struggle to come to terms with it, but it always blows my mind when we walk around the pits at a Supercross and the number of fans that want to come up and get a picture, shake his hand, and just generally get a piece of Steve – like a true celebrity. Just a kid from Canada who went south, worked hard and achieved his dreams, and built PulpMX into a true empire.

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terviews whether it’s Cade Clason or Alex Ray or the Seven Deuce Deuce, they’re all good guys.

I’ve always had that little bit of sympathy for them and I guess that’s where it came from.”

Cade Clason is one rider whose career has gotten a big boost from Matthes and his PulpMX support. “Honestly I first talked to Steve on Twitter, just bantering about some of his opinions because some are so god awful,” laughs Clason. “But he’s always been super genuine and honest with me even when I don’t like it.

He’s become a great friend because of it.”

The financial support has gone a long way for Clason and others. “Obviously the privateer challenge is the biggest help, not just for me but everyone. That money went a long way and has helped mould me into the rider I am now.

Steve is always open to helping make connections with sponsors and riders and I think the voice he gives riders on his show really helps all of us.”

While Clason doesn’t always agree with Matthes (re-read the latest tweets between these 2 over Clason’s exclusion from the privateer finale), he values their differing opinions. “Personally, I believe he tries his best to be super open-minded and see both sides of every situation,” says Clason. “Some people won’t agree and some people think he is very hard headed, but I don’t feel judged by him when our opinions differ and that says a lot about a person. I think that open-mindedness and his desire to put out great stories is awesome for our sport.”

With 40,000 fans tuning into the PulpMX Show each week, and another 20,000 listening to his weekly podcasts, successful columns running in Racer X Illustrated and other international publications and his own Privateer Race closing out the supercross season, what’s next for Steve Matthes? “I’m honestly not sure,” says Matthes calmly … but we’re willing to be he’s got some

ideas brewing.

As for Coombs, he’s unwilling to set any limits for Matthes and the future. “Canada has given all of motocross and supercross a gift in Steve Matthes,” says Coombs. “His influence is such that we’ve even got Europeans doing podcasts for us now and they’re all based off Matthes.

Steve has ambitions, he’s got a work ethic, he’s got no kids and I don’t think he drinks very often, so he’s got a lot of extra time. The sky is the limit.”

For his 500th show, Matthes managed to have both Ricky Carmichael and Jeremy McGrath on as guests—no small achievement for a guy who had to mend a few fences to get there. On the eve of that show Tim Ferry sent the perfect text. “I said, ‘It’s time to retire. You’ve reached your peak. It’s time to retire because my kid will need a mechanic soon’,” laughs Ferry. And who knows … maybe that’s not quite as crazy as it sounds.

“Nothing against those people, but when I read those race reports I wanted more.

I wasn’t happy with the way the media was and I wanted to put my own slant on it.”

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MXP21_22.02_Dual Purpose - Off Road Story Jared Stock.indd 46

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e h T m o r F o T k c a r T ! s l i a r T The OFF-ROAD RACING IS ON THE RISE IN CANADA AND PEOPLE WANT TO KNOW, IS THIS A TREND OR A FAD? PEOPLE ALSO WANT TO KNOW IF EXTRA TIGHT RIDING PANTS THAT LEAVE LITTLE TO THE IMAGINATION ARE TRENDING, BUT THAT’S FOR ANOTHER ARTICLE, ANOTHER TIME, AND ANOTHER AUTHOR.

BY JA R E D S TO C K / P H OTO S BY DA R I N M A R R A N D C H R I S G R O S E N I C K

I

was asked to lead this article on the topic as I was a long-time motocross athlete that decided to crossover into the enduro world about ten years ago. My journey to the eventual cross over to enduro was not an intentional pursuit but more of a continuous “yes” to trying something new. At the end of the 2012 Canadian motocross national season, I was feeling the burnout sink in. The previous five years consisted of chasing the motocross dream with six months of working on a drilling rig to build a giant money pile balanced with six months of training and competing across the country to deplete that aforementioned money pile. After my last dollar was spent, I decided to throw in the towel in my full-time pursuit of racing altogether and go back to school to figure out a new direction in life.

It was at this point that I received a phone call with the information on how to apply and try out for what was called the ISDE. “Would you be interested in competing in the ISDE” was being broadcasted through my speaker phone while I was speed reading on google what in the world the ISDE was. “YES! I have always wanted to do that race,” I replied in an eager voice and with confidence like I knew what I was

talking about. That unwavering “yes man” attitude to this new opportunity to race an ISDE resulted in something like drinking water from a firehose while I attended school full time, began training at an allnew level and rode with a whole new mindset.

Looking back now, I realized this new mindset I developed was what really made me crave the crossover to enduro then and continues to be the driving force behind my riding today. I stopped focusing on what I had to do to defeat others and wrangled my focus on what I needed to do to better myself. Equally as important as my paradigm shift to successful dirt bike racing was a welcoming environment of people with the same mindset. It goes without saying that any one path that leads to success is filled with great people to support and challenge you through each level.

Fast forward four years later to 2016, I ended the season with three ISDE events completed, six GNCC races raced, two attempts at major endurocross events, and multiple Canadian offroad races logged.

I could almost officially call myself an enduro guy,

“Equally as important as my paradigm shift to successful dirt bike racing was a welcoming environment of people with the same mindset.”

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From The Track To The Trails! or at least that’s what everyone called me when I started to show up back at motocross races with my oversized fuel tanks and eighteen-inch rear wheels.

If you don’t believe me, search the 2016 Calgary pro-national on YouTube and watch me almost holeshot the first MX2 moto on a YZ250X. It was at this race that I remember Tyler Medaglia walking by my pit while admiring my oversized tank and saying something along the lines of “Love it, absolutely love it.” If this was a storybook, I would consider this foreshadowing of the legendary crossover performance in the making of Tyler in the near future!

So let us re-visit the original question…Enduro, TREND or FAD? I am here to confidently say it is here to stay and we will continue to see it grow larger and larger with each year. I believe enduro was showing a steady climb in numbers previously and took a large jump when the data sheets along with the empty dealership showroom floors to prove we have had a massive spike in dirt bike purchases within the last two years resulting in many new faces to enter the sport.

Here are the reasons I can see why it has started to grow and will continue to trend upwards with each year:

Minimal barrier of entry

There are many aspects to this headline to which I would define minimal, but I would have to say the number one aspect is attitude. In most cases off road riding is an extremely welcoming environment that invites the most non-experienced and new to the scene riders to mingle with the most experienced and professional riders in their area. Those with the most experience seem to always have a great way of welcoming the newest to the group and ensuring they have a wonderful time (Disclaimer on “wonderful time” - side effects can include max exhaustion, physical discomfort, pain, loss, and or damage of expensive parts causing holes in wallets.) At the end of the day, the encouraging environment grows the same principle inside of each rider that further drives my passion for riding off-road, what can I do to better myself, and my previous accomplishments. This fire continues to drive riders of all skill levels and experiences from a small trail ride with friends to the next local race in the woods to the next ISDE.

“This fire continues to drive riders of all skill levels and experiences from a small trail ride with friends to the next local race in the woods to the next ISDE.”

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Photo: F. Montero

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From The Track To The Trails!

Lower cost of entry

Blending with that constructive attitude, I would have to touch briefly on the lowered necessary cost of entry. I have had the opportunity to lead plenty of group rides here in Alberta and many times we will encourage new to the scene riders to show up with a “run what ya brung” attitude which results in many different types of dirt bikes arriving for the ride. You can see this same attitude throughout the entire staging area with a spread of motorcycles from the last two decades being warmed up for their upcoming adventure. Now I am not saying that it is impossible for this same sight to happen at the local motocross tracks; however, it seems to be less likely and is tied in with the ultra-accepting attitude and the challenge for personal accomplishment.

Like myself, we have also started to see more and more familiar names in motocross dip their toes into the off-road or enduro type discipline. As I mentioned earlier, for me it has been all about the environment that encouraged me to focus on what I could do to improve my performance on my bike and loving 95% off the process. The training rides consisted of extremely testing times but always had a sense of learning, overcoming, and comradery with the group you were with that day. Whether it be an extremely technical hill climb or just challenging yourself on the stopwatch, you will find the right group that encourages and assists you to be better even if you are lining up against them next weekend. If you aren’t already convinced, I will let you hear it from someone much more accomplished than myself and I am willing to bet you will hear glaring similarities to our attitudes towards riding.

I reached out to Tyler Medaglia and asked him where his desire to ride off-road came from and this is what he said. “I think my connection to off-road riding began when I was a kid and we had a bunch of trails and woods behind our house,” recalls Medaglia. “I would go in there and rip through the woods and just have a blast. As I got older I kept doing that and over the years I guess I just developed a comfort level for riding in those conditions. These days, I still love to ride motocross but sometimes I

get bored of doing lap after lap on a track, and then I’ll head into the woods. Also, I’ve always been a rider who doesn’t mind suffering while riding and with the off-road events being long and grueling, I think it just fits with who I am.”

Recently Tyler flew out to Kamloops to compete in the Big Kahuna 500 race and he won the pro class. “The Big Kahuna was so much fun and I’m glad I went out to do it,” said Medaglia. “I’ve always loved racing motocross at the Whispering Pines track so to be able to race an off-road event there this time was pretty cool. They used the entire MX track which was fun, and they also had an Endurocross section that although I don’t have much experience with, that ended up being the funnest section on the track. Now, I’m going to be racing there for the opening round of the Triple Crown Series so I’m looking forward to that.”

In closing, I will share my excitement for the future vision of offroad riding and enduro racing.

With the numbers continuing to grow in our market we will continue to see more emphasis and attention from all of the manufacturers put into enduro.

I believe this will lead to increased budgets in enduro-specific research and development projects from bike manufacturers which will result in better bikes and components each year. With more enduro-specific models being purchased we will see more chassis and suspension tuners producing advanced settings for an offroad application.

Finally, alongside all of this, we will see an increased focus on enduro-specific performance wear that will enhance our trail ride and racing requirements. In my opinion, somewhere between over-the-boot cargo pants and yoga pants tightness is a good fit for me… Oh right, tight pants were for another article!

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Industry Profile:

Danika White B Y C H R I S P O M E R OY

W

hen you think of passionate people in our industry who just live and breathe riding, Fox Racing Canada’s Regional Marketing Coordinator Danika White instantly comes to mind. Introduced to riding by her parents when she was just 8 years old, Danika has been wide open ever since. Even a serious injury while training for the WMX Nationals Series when she was still in her teens couldn’t stop her from continuing with her riding and racing. Off of the track, Danika has also proven herself as she first started out working at a dealership in Calgary to now working with one of the most iconic brands in our sport. It’s been an entertaining journey for Danika and we caught up with her as she was out in Ontario attending the Honda Canada/GDR/Fox Racing Team intro at Gopher Dunes.

bikes so my dad, my brother, and I could go riding, but after a short time, my mom thought that it looked like fun so then she got a bike as well.

After a year, we had four Honda’s from Blackfoot Motorsports and we all loved riding.

MXP: THAT SOUNDS AWESOME DANIKA. SO WHAT AGE WERE YOU THEN? MXP: SO IT’S GREAT TO SEE YOU OUT IN ONTARIO DANIKA, WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON THIS HONDA CANADA/GDR/ FOX RACING TEAM INTRO AT GOPHER DUNES?

DW: It’s been a great day and I think Derek Schuster and his crew did a fantastic job in putting it together and welcoming everyone. As you know the Fox Racing brand has been part of Gopher Dunes and the Honda Canada/GDR/Fox Racing Team for a few years now so it’s great to come out from Calgary and see everything in person.

MXP: OBVIOUSLY, THE PAST TWO YEARS HAVE BEEN A MASSIVE STRUGGLE ON SO MANY DIFFERENT FRONTS. HOW HAS FOX RACING CANADA BEEN ABLE TO WEATHER THE STORM THROUGHOUT THIS PANDEMIC?

DW: It most certainly hasn’t been easy and, like everyone, we’ve had to adapt quickly to the ever-changing landscape of our business. When Covid-19 first began, we didn’t know what the immediate future looked like and we all had to adjust from not coming into the office and doing everything at home. From there, things changed and people began buying and buying, and with the supply chain issues it was hard to keep up with

demand. Our dealers wanted as much product as they could get but at the time it was challenging to get them what they needed. It’s just been one thing after another but as a company and as a brand I feel like we’ve adapted well and hopefully the future is bright.

MXP: YES, IT’S BEEN A CHALLENGING TIME IN SO MANY DIFFERENT AREAS. NOT TO MENTION THAT WE’VE ALL BEEN IN AND OUT OF LOCKDOWN FOR TWO YEARS. BUT IT DOES APPEAR LIKE THE WORST IS BEHIND US. OKAY, TAKE US BACK TO THE BEGINNING AND HOW YOU GOT INTRODUCED TO DIRT BIKES?

DW: For sure! When I was younger my family was heavily into hockey and that is what ate up much of our time. My brother and I both played and as you know sometimes the season doesn’t stop when the snow melts. We were consumed with hockey but then my mom decided she wanted us to have something that we could all do as a family.

Since my dad used to ride some moto back in the 1970s my mom suggested that we all get some bikes and then we could go riding and camping and hang out as a family. At first, we just got three

DW: I would’ve been around 8 years old.

MXP: SO YOU CAN TOTALLY RELATE TO THE FAMILIES THAT HAVE BOUGHT THEIR FIRST DIRT BIKES DURING THE PANDEMIC?

DW: Definitely, riding is such a fun thing to do and if you’re able to do it as a family it’s even better.

So from there, we would take camping trips and bring our bikes and just enjoy riding together. It was pretty awesome and obviously I have some incredible memories of that time in my life.

MXP: JUST LISTENING TO YOU TALK ABOUT IT I CAN TELL HOW MUCH YOU ENJOYED THAT TIME. HOW DID YOU MAKE THE TRANSITION FROM RIDING TRAILS TO RIDING MOTOCROSS?

DW: Well, since we were living in Calgary we heard about the Wild Rose track so we started going there whenever they’d have open practice. It ended up being really convenient for my parents to take us there after school and on weekends so we spent a lot of time there. It was a pretty rad time to be there because Dean Wilson was living in Calgary then so he’d always be out riding. It was just so much fun, and again, as a family we loved it.

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MXP: SO YOU’RE OLD ENOUGH TO REMEMBER WHEN THE WILD ROSE TRACK WASN’T QUITE PREPPED AS WELL AS IT IS THESE DAYS? DW: Oh for sure! I laugh these days when I hear anyone complaining about the Wild Rose track conditions after its groomed. As you said, I remember it when they didn’t water and prep it as much and it was dusty and hard-packed. Now there are multiple tracks and it’s groomed and watered daily. The track has come so far and sometimes new riders don’t know how good they have it now (laughs).

MXP: SO YOU PRETTY MUCH SPENT YOUR EARLY TEENAGE YEARS RIDING MOTO AND HAVING FUN. AT WHAT POINT DID YOU GET MORE SERIOUS ABOUT RIDING AND EVEN RACING? DW: Well, it’s an interesting story and one that I wouldn’t change for the world. After Grade 12, I was prepping for my first full WMX West National series, and I had a bad crash at the Wild Rose track and ended up breaking both my legs.

So that changed my plans up a little.

MXP: BOTH LEGS! OMG, WHAT HAPPENED?

DW: It wasn’t really that crazy of a crash as I ended up over jumping the finish line and just the impact ended up shattering my left leg in like 100 pieces and my right leg in like 50. It was a bad break and probably the most humbling experience a person could have at that point in their life. I remember lying in the hospital and talking with my dad just being so excited to get back to riding and being around the moto community. At that point I was just out of high school unsure what my future would look like. Growing up, I thought I wanted to be a helicopter pilot or a vet. So, this injury really put in perspective what I really wanted to focus on and be surrounded with.

MXP: I REMEMBER BREAKING MY LEG WHEN I WAS 16 BUT IT WASN’T AS BAD AS WHAT YOU DID. WHAT A DIFFICULT THING TO GO THROUGH AT THAT AGE. SO YOU’RE LYING IN THE HOSPITAL AND TRYING TO FIGURE OUT WHAT YOUR NEXT STEP IS. I’M ASSUMING YOU DIDN’T GO THE HELICOPTER OR VETERINARIAN ROUTE.

DW: No I didn’t. Actually, as I started to feel better I began missing my moto friends at the track and I couldn’t wait to get back to see them. At the time, JC Seitz and his family had a dealership so I reached out to them and asked if they had any job openings. I thought if I wasn’t able to ride then at least I could work around bikes. So I ended up getting hired as a receptionist and worked there for 8 years. Being a competitive person, I

wanted to improve my skills and learn new things so it didn’t take long for JC to see value in me and I kept moving up and doing new jobs.

MXP: THAT SOUNDS LIKE A GREAT JOB AND A WONDERFUL EXPERIENCE FOR SOMEONE AT THE AGE AND WHO LOVES MOTO AND RIDING. SO QUICK QUESTION BEFORE WE MOVE ON. YOU’RE WALKING FINE TODAY SO I’M ASSUMING YOUR LEGS HEALED UP OKAY? DW: That seems so long ago now but yes everything healed up just fine.

MXP: OKAY GREAT! SO YOU’VE BEEN WITH FOX RACING CANADA FOR A FEW YEARS NOW. HOW DID YOU END UP GOING FROM WORKING AT A DEALERSHIP TO AN ICONIC COMPANY LIKE FOX?

DW: Well, it’s a long story but I guess my first experience with Fox came when I was still working at the dealership, and at the time we sold a lot Fox Racing gear and casual wear. Anyway, Fox flew some key dealers down to California so we could get a look and the new up-and-coming line of gear as well as attend one of the Anaheim SX races. At the time I just remember walking around the Fox HQ in Irvine and meeting all of the employees there, and just seeing how much passion they had for the sport and motivated they were really gave me the drive to want to work in an environment like that one day. After working for JC at his dealership I ended up getting hired

by Blackfoot Motorsports which was a big change for me at the time.

MXP: HOW WAS YOUR TIME AT BLACKFOOT?

DW: It was a big adjustment to go from a dealership where it was only a few of us working to a place like Blackfoot that had like 60 people working there sometimes. However, it ended up being great and even though Blackfoot is a massive dealership, the people who work there are extremely passionate about riding and grassroots racing.

They’re a great group of individuals and that’s one reason they’ve been so successful.

MXP: SINCE YEARS BEFORE YOU’D WALKED INTO BLACKFOOT WITH YOUR FAMILY TO BUY YOUR FIRST BIKE, IT MUST HAVE FELT LIKE A FULL-CIRCLE MOMENT WHEN YOU BEGAN WORKING THERE? DW: Yes it did feel pretty special.

MXP: YOU HAVE A GREAT STORY AND IT’S AMAZING TO HEAR THE PASSION YOU HAVE IN YOUR VOICE FOR MOTO AND THE PEOPLE INVOLVED IN THE SPORT. SO YOU SPENT MANY YEARS PAYING YOUR DUES SO TO SPEAK AND LEARNING

DIFFERENT PARTS OF THE BUSINESS. WHAT WAS YOUR FIRST JOB AT FOX RACING CANADA?

DW: My first job was an outside sales rep for moto in Alberta and Saskatchewan so I used to drive around the province from dealer to dealer making sure they were happy and had all of the stock they needed. Having worked in a dealership for so many years, I knew the struggles they faced daily, but I was also familiar with how hard they work and the passion they have. I think because of my past experience the dealers liked me and enjoyed the time I would spend in their shop.

MXP: I CAN’T EVEN IMAGINE AS A DEALER REP IN ALBERTA HOW FAR YOU WOULD HAVE TO DRIVE SOMETIMES? DW: Yeah, I don’t think you want to know about that (laughs). My longest drive was 13 hours!

MXP: WOW! SO YOU’RE DOING THE DEALER REP DEAL WITH FOX RACING CANADA AND I’M QUITE SURE THAT THE ALBERTA DEALERS WANT YOU TO DO THIS JOB FOREVER. HOW DID YOU MAKE IT TO YOUR CURRENT POSITION AS REGIONAL MARKETING COORDINATOR?

DW: The marketing job was posted and for whatever reason I missed it. Then someone asked me if I had applied and I was surprised because I hadn’t even seen the posting, I was stoked to see Fox was opening the marketing department up again in Canada. So anyway, I put my name in and got the position. So far it’s been great and I’ve enjoyed all aspects of it. I do miss seeing my friends at the dealerships but this is the type of job I was dreaming about when I first went to Fox HQ years ago.

Now I get to go to work alongside an amazing team of people and attend events like this one and see you and everyone else. As you can tell I’m a pretty social person and I enjoy talking to everyone, especially about moto.

MXP: YES, THAT IS VERY EVIDENT AND I THINK IT’S GREAT! YOU WOULD THINK THAT WITH THIS NEW JOB THAT IT WOULD BE TOUGH FOR YOU TO FIND TIME TO RIDE, BUT THAT’S SIMPLY NOT THE CASE?

DW: No I still ride a lot and whether I’m in Calgary or California, we still get to moto quite a bit. I recently did the Cake Worlds Electric bike race in California and did well there. It was a qualifying round for the final race at Fox Raceway in September. I didn’t qualify for the finals, but hopefully will be out there to watch in September! Last week we had our first SurfinBerms ride at Wild Rose with all of the female riders.

Yes, I still get to moto a lot and love getting to see new places riding.

MXP: DO YOU STILL GET TO RIDE WITH YOUR DAD?

DW: Yes, my dad is 64 now but he still loves to ride and we ride together a lot. My boyfriend Charlie is actually the facilities manager at the Wild Rose track so he rides and we have fun. I guess at the end of the day I just really love the sport and the amazing people it introduces me to. This sport has been my love and my passion for so long, and has gotten me where I am.

MXP: WELL DANIKA, I LOVE YOUR STORY AND IT’S BEEN FUN TO HEAR ABOUT YOUR LIFE AND YOUR JOURNEY. THANK YOU FOR TAKING THE TIME TO CHAT AND I HOPE THAT WE CAN GO RIDING TOGETHER THIS SUMMER.

DW: Thank you Palms! It’s been fun chatting and yeah anytime you’re in Calgary and you want to ride just let me know. Enjoy your summer at the track and good luck to Ayrton. Maybe we’ll see you at Walton Raceway in August.

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Please make no attempt to imitate the illustrated riding scenes, always wear protective clothing and observe the applicable provisions of the road traffic regulations!

The illustrated vehicles may vary in selected details from the production models and some illustrations feature optional equipment available at additional cost.

Photos: P.Platzer, H. Mitterbauer

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2022-05-25 12:01 PM

FACE Ron TO Cameron AND FACE Steve Sulyok EVERY WEEKEND FROM COAST TO COAST THE GATE DROPS ON OUR EXCITING RACES AND WITH EACH ONE WE PRAY THAT ALL OF THE RIDERS REMAIN SAFE AND INJURY-FREE. HOWEVER, SOMETIMES ACCIDENTS DO HAPPEN, AND WHEN THEY DO WE IMMEDIATELY LOOK TO OUR CHERISHED TRACKSIDE MEDICAL STAFF TO ENSURE THAT WE’RE GIVEN THE BEST CARE POSSIBLE. TWO OF THESE AMAZING INDIVIDUALS ARE ONTARIO RESIDENT RON CAMERON AND BC NATIVE STEVEN SULYOK. BOTH HAVE BEEN GOING TO RACES FOR YEARS AS PARAMEDICS AND EACH WEEKEND EVERYONE AT THE TRACK IS HAPPY THEY ARE THERE. IN THIS ISSUE, THESE TWO WONDERFUL GENTLEMEN GO FACE TO FACE. MXP: WHERE DID YOU GROW UP?

RC: Charlottetown, P.E.I. SS: I live on Vancouver Island in a town called Yellowpoint.

MXP: WHAT IS THE MOST FAMOUS THING ABOUT YOUR HOMETOWN?

RC: It is the Birthplace of Confederation.

SS: We are famous for straddling the 49th parallel that divides Canada and the US.

MXP: WHEN DID YOU FIRST ENCOUNTER DIRT BIKES?

RC: I started in 1982 with my one and only bike.

SS: My first official encounter with dirt bikes was when we bought a PW50 for our son’s 4th birthday in 2009

MXP: DO YOU LOVE DIRT BIKES OR ARE THEY JUST AN ADDICTION?

RC: I love watching them race.

SS: A little of both.

MXP: WHAT WOULD YOU CONSIDER TO BE YOUR GREATEST ACCOMPLISHMENT?

RC: Elected as Vice-Chair of the Canadian Ski Patrol Board of Directors SS: My greatest accomplishment is becoming a productive and licensed member of the Emergency Health Services.

MXP: FAVOURITE PART ABOUT BEING AT THE RACE TRACK?

RC: The comradery with the riders, family, and staff.

SS: The social interaction both on and off the track and watching my son race.

MXP: LEAST FAVOURITE PART ABOUT BEING AT THE RACE TRACK?

RC: Working during inclement weather.

SS: Usually the mad dash of packing up and bombing home in an attempt to make the last ferry back to The Island. BC Ferries and I have a lovehate relationship.

MXP: YOU’RE BOTH WELL KNOWN AT THE TRACK. WHO TALKS TO MORE PEOPLE IN A DAY?

RC: I would guess that it’s Steve.

SS: I’m sure Ron probably speaks to a lot of people but I never waste an opportunity to chat with anybody and everybody who is willing to listen.

MXP: FAVOURITE RIDER TO TALK WITH ON RACE DAY?

RC: That is a tough one as I enjoy talking with all of the riders on race day.

SS: That’s an easy one. Ryan Lockhart and of course my son Seby.

MXP: WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE MOVIE? RC: Shawshank Redemption SS: Sound of Music

MXP: WHO WOULD PLAY YOU IN A MOVIE? RC: OMG! I have no idea.

SS: Andy Garcia

MXP: WOULD YOU RATHER LIVE IN THE MOUNTAINS OR ON A BEACH? RC: I’d say a beach.

SS: Beach for sure.

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MXP: WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE TYPE OF MUSIC? RC: Rock SS: Classic Rock.

MXP: FAVOURITE ALBUM OR CD OF ALL TIME?

RC: Guns and Rose- Appetite for Destruction.

SS: Pink Floyd- Dark Side of the Moon.

MXP: DO YOU PREFER BLONDES OR BRUNETTES?

RC: Most certainly blondes!

SS: Blondes- 23 years married to a blonde will sway a guy’s opinion.

MXP: WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE TRACK?

RC: Auburn Hills. It’s great to see it back.

SS: It’s a tie between Washougal and Fox Raceway in California.

MXP: WHAT IS YOUR LEAST FAVOURITE TRACK? RC: Grand Bend.

SS: Touchy subject so no comment.

MXP: FAVOURITE RIDER OF ALL TIME?

RC: JSR was unreal in his day.

SS: We love everything about James Stewart.

MXP: HOW MANY STEPS DO YOU WALK ON RACE DAY?

RC: Around 13,000 on race days.

SS: I average approximately 11,000 steps on race day.

MXP: OTHER THAN INJURIES, WHAT COULD OUR SPORT DO WITHOUT?

RC: Anything that makes it harder to have races.

SS: All of the off-track drama.

MXP: WHAT CONDITIONS ARE HARDEST TO WORK IN, HEAT OR RAIN? RC: Definitely heat.

SS: Heat. It can be soul-sucking.

MXP: WHAT IS THE BEST RACE YOU’VE EVER WITNESSED? RC: The year at Walton where JSR came from last place to win with a 30-40 second lead.

SS: When Eli Tomac won the million dollars at the 2018 Monster Energy Cup in Las Vegas.

MXP: FAVOURITE SPORT OTHER THAN MOTOCROSS? RC: Alpine Skiing SS: Surfing. Definitely Surfing.

MXP: IF YOU WEREN’T DOING THIS WHAT WOULD YOU BE DOING?

RC: Working as a ski patroller.

SS: I’d probably be chanting in a Buddhist Monastery in the mountains of Tibet.

MXP: NAME SOMETHING MOST PEOPLE DON’T KNOW ABOUT YOU?

RC: I have been doing first aid for over 40 years.

SS: I speak fluent Hungarian. Both dialects.

MXP: FAVOURITE THING ABOUT BEING A TRACKSIDE PARAMEDIC?

MXP: LEAST FAVOURITE THING ABOUT BEING A TRACKSIDE PARAMEDIC?

RC: Seeing riders get hurt.

SS: When all hell breaks loose and it turns into “one of those” one-off crazy race weekends.

MXP: THE BEST WAY TO SPEND A DAY AWAY FROM THE TRACK?

RC: Going for a long drive.

SS: Hanging out and socializing with my flock of chickens. I have 29 and they all have names.

MXP: THE WORST PLACE ON EARTH?

RC: Stuck in traffic.

SS: Anywhere that has eternal year-round snow.

MXP: BEST INVENTION IN THE LAST FIVE THAT HELPS YOU DO YOUR JOB?

RC: The various improvements in rider equipment.

SS: Point of care trackside portable ultrasound machines. Extremely handy in ruling out catastrophic internal injuries.

MXP: MOST ANNOYING THING ABOUT YOU?

RC: I never sit still, always working on something SS: Probably my loud voice. I tend to get a little loud once and a while or so I m told.

MXP: WHAT IS YOUR PROUDEST MOMENT?

RC: Seeing the riders I have helped come back to race again.

SS: When my children Jasmine and Sebastian were born.

MXP: WHAT WAS YOUR FIRST JOB IN MOTO?

RC: I started as a medic in 2004.

SS: Back in 2008 when I was part of the medic team at the Wastelands Pro National.

MXP: WHAT IS THE CRAZIEST THING YOU’VE EVER DONE FOR MONEY?

RC: Long story but I blew myself up once.

SS: I think I should take the 5th amendment on this one.

MXP: WHAT IS YOUR DAILY VEHICLE?

RC: VW Jetta.

SS: I love our 4x4 Moto Sprinter Van and I tend to use that for everything.

MXP: WHAT IS YOUR DREAM VEHICLE?

RC: Corvette!

SS: A 1976 Cadillac El Dorado Convertible, pearl white with matching white leather interior.

MXP: WHERE DO YOU SEE YOURSELF IN TEN YEARS?

RC: Retired and travelling to different races.

SS: I see myself living in the quaint little surf town of Santa Teresa located in Costa Rica.

MXP: WORDS TO LIVE BY?

RC: Embrace change.

SS: Preparation is stress prevention.

RC: Being able to help and support those that need it.

SS: To be at the track and to be able to assist when needed.

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THE HUB:

GDR Honda’s 2022 Team Intro B Y C H R I S P O M E R OY / P H O T O S B Y J A M E S L I S S I M O R E

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L

et’s face the facts, ever since COVID-19 began over two years ago, we sometimes forget how much as humans we need social interaction. Before the pandemic took over our lives in 2020 we took an activity as simple as meeting up and talking to people for granted. However, thankfully after two years, life is slowly returning to normal and bit by bit we’re reintroducing certain things back into our lives.

For 2022, the Triple Crown Series is headed back out west for the opening three rounds and to celebrate this return to pro motocross normality Derek Schuster held a large-scale event at Gopher Dunes to introduce his Honda Canada/ GDR/ Fox Racing Team to the media and industry people alike. This special day was kicked-off with a press conference featuring not just team riders Dylan Wright and Ryder McNabb, but also the team’s two key title sponsors in Honda Canada and Fox Racing. Justin Thompson, the man behind Jetwerx, the organization that runs the Triple Crown Series, was also on hand to give everyone an update on how things are looking for 2022 and beyond.

It was great to hear from everyone and the crowning moment came when Dylan Wright was asked about his success last fall at the MXGP Series in Italy. Judging by his detailed answer and the passion in his voice, you could tell that Dylan really enjoyed talking about his experiences in Europe.

After the hour-long press conference, the event moved down to the shop area at Gopher Dunes where Derek had neatly arranged all of the GDR Team’s Championship bikes from over the years.

Since this team has won numerous Canadian Championships with both Dylan and Colton Facciotti, there were more than a few shiny red machines to see. From there, everyone wandered down to the main Gopher Dunes track so they could watch Dylan and Ryder spin some laps on their fully modified race bikes.

To hear, to smell, and of course, to see the riders put some laps in on their race bikes was quite impressive. The GDR Team is ready to go for 2022 and it’s going to be fun to watch them battle all summer long. Yes, as you can imagine it was quite the day at Gopher Dunes and a great way to kick off the 2022 race season. Thank you to Derek Schuster and his entire crew for allowing MXP Magazine to attend and help us take one more tiny step in the return back to normal.

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YOUNG RISE AND ON THE

WITH

CALEB VANKOUGHNETT

When we think about some of our fast up and coming riders in Canada, Bluevale, Ontario’s Caleb Vankoughnett quickly comes to mind. After a solid season in 2021, Caleb caught the attention of the Thor/Kawasaki/Pro Circuit Team and for this season they signed him as their official amateur rider. So far in 2022, Caleb has made the most of this incredible opportunity as he’s been having some great results in the AMO Racing OPC Series. We caught up with young Caleb as he was out at Walton Raceway for the Kawasaki Team’s annual photo shoot.

MXP: HEY CALEB, HOW ARE THINGS. IT’S GREAT TO SEE YOU OUT AT WALTON RACEWAY WITH YOUR NEW TEAM GETTING SOME COOL PHOTOS DONE. HOW DOES IT FEEL TO BE OUT HERE WITH YOUR TEAMMATES TANNER WARD AND DYLAN REMPEL? CV: It feels pretty cool to be here with my team and also with everyone from Canadian Kawasaki Motors Inc. The weather is nice and hopefully, we can get some good photos.

MXP: FOR SURE! I SEE YOUR ENTIRE FAMILY IS OUT HERE ALSO SUPPORTING YOU. LET’S BEGIN WITH WHERE YOU LIVE AND WHAT TOWN DO YOU AND YOUR FAMILY CALL HOME? CV: Sure! Right now we live in a small town called Bluevale, ON. It’s actually not too far from Walton.

MXP: I’M DRIVEN THROUGH BLUEVALE MULTIPLE TIMES OVER THE YEARS. CAN YOU TELL ME SOMETHING INTERESTING ABOUT BLUEVALE?

CV: To be honest, Bluevale is not that interesting. I just moved here last October, but I have an appreciation for how quiet, peaceful and uninteresting it is. I would take this over living in the city any day.

MXP: WELL THAT’S GOOD. I GUESS YOU AND YOUR FAMILY GET ENOUGH EXCITEMENT AT THE RACES SO SOME PEACE AND QUIET AT HOME IS WHAT YOU NEED. HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN RIDING A DIRT BIKE AND HOW DID YOU GET STARTED? CV: It started when I was three years old when my uncle gave me a pocket bike. I have now been riding for about eight years and so far it’s been fun.

MXP: WOW! THREE YEARS OLD, THAT IS MOST CERTAINLY YOUNG. DO YOU REMEMBER YOUR FIRST RACE AND HOW IT WENT?

CV: No, I don’t actually. It was a long time ago.

I could ask my parents, they’ll remember.

MXP: NO IT’S OKAY, WE’LL JUST ASSUME IT WENT WELL BECAUSE YOU’RE STILL RACING (LAUGHS) DO YOU HAVE A FAVOURITE TRACK IN ONTARIO? CV: Right now it’s a tie between Walton and Motopark depending on the condition of the track.

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MXP: ALTHOUGH THIS SPORT IS AN INDIVIDUAL ONE, YOU STILL NEED A GOOD SUPPORT SYSTEM. DO YOUR PARENTS LOVE RACING OR DO YOU SCARE THEM WHEN YOU’RE HITTING BIG JUMPS?

CV: Both. I nearly gave my mom a heart attack when I unexpectedly attempted a new jump while down in Georgia. It was my biggest jump yet and she said I scared her to death. Also, on race days my dad says he gets butterflies in his stomach before every gate drop.

But I think, at the end of the day, they love it!

“I will be travelling across Canada to compete in the Triple Crown Series in the 65cc class. I will also be racing selected amateur races with AMO Racing.”

MXP: DO YOU HAVE ANYONE WHO TRAINS YOU OR GIVES YOU ADVICE? CV: Steve Shore from Compound 138 has been helping me a lot as well as my mom and dad.

MXP: THAT’S GREAT! SHORZY IS A BEAUTY AND HE REALLY KNOWS HIS STUFF, AND OBVIOUSLY, IT’S ALWAYS GREAT TO HAVE MOM AND DAD HELPING OUT. YOU ALSO SPENT SOME TIME DOWN SOUTH TRAINING, HOW DID THAT GO FOR YOU?

really blessed me and I want to make the most of this opportunity.

MXP: OKAY, LET’S TALK ABOUT 2021.

WHAT WERE SOME OF THE RESULTS THAT YOU WERE MOST PROUD OF?

CV: It went really well. I improved a lot in the three months I was there.

Steve Shore joined us and gave me some very valuable one-on-one training. He is a fantastic coach and we make a good team.

CV: My final race of the season at Gopher Dunes was when I had one of my best comebacks ever.

It was cold, wet, and miserable weather to ride in. My mental state wasn’t the best either because my first race of the day hadn’t gone so well. In the final race, I was battling for third so I could earn the points I needed but fell on the first lap. I got back up though and pushed myself and charged back to third by the finish.

MXP: SOUNDS LIKE A VERY POSITIVE EXPERIENCE DOWN SOUTH. FOR 2022, YOU ARE THE NEWEST MEMBER OF THE THOR/KAWASAKI/PRO CIRCUIT TEAM. WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO HAVE THIS KIND OF SUPPORT?

MXP: THAT SOUNDS AMAZING AND I DO RECALL WATCHING THAT RACE LAST FALL. IT WAS PRETTY COOL! HEADING INTO THIS SEASON WHAT DO YOU FEEL LIKE YOU HAVE TO WORK ON THE MOST?

CV: I am so honoured to have such a great team behind me. God has

CV: I think the mental side of things. Keeping my thoughts in

MXP: OH NO, YOU DON’T WANT TO SCARE MOM TOO OFTEN. LET’S TALK ABOUT SCHOOL FOR A MOMENT. WHAT GRADE ARE YOU CURRENTLY IN AND WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE SUBJECT? CV: Right now I am in grade 6 and my favourite subject is art.

check and believing in myself. I’m still young so I have a lot to learn and I’m going to make mistakes.

But if I can keep my confidence up then it should be a good season.

MXP: WHAT WILL YOUR RACE SCHEDULE LOOK LIKE THIS SUMMER? CV: It’s pretty busy as you can imagine. I will be travelling across Canada to compete in the Triple Crown Series in the 65cc class.

I will also be racing selected amateur races with AMO Racing.

MXP: THAT DOES SOUND LIKE A BUSY AND PRODUCTIVE RACING SCHEDULE. AS YOU MENTIONED ABOVE, YOU DON’T LIVE TOO FAR FROM WALTON RACEWAY AND YOU SAID IT WAS ONE OF YOUR FAVOURITE TRACKS. DO YOU ENJOY THE DEEP RUTS THERE?

CV: Yes, since I have been riding ruts frequently in the off-season and have improved a lot in how I handle them. Now I’m excited for the Walton TransCan later this summer.

MXP: THAT IS VERY COOL. I’VE DONE A LOT OF THESE INTERVIEWS AND I’VE NEVER HAD A YOUNG RIDER SAY THAT ART IS THEIR FAVOURITE SUBJECT. LET’S FAST FORWARD FIVE YEARS. WHERE DO YOU SEE YOURSELF IN 2027?

CV: Good question! I think I see myself being a pro rider on Thor/ Kawasaki/Pro Circuit Team. That would be pretty cool!

MXP: YES, THAT WOULD BE VERY COOL. HERE IS ANOTHER NON-MOTO QUESTION FOR YOU CALEB. IF YOU ASKED YOUR PARENTS TO BEST DESCRIBE YOU IN ONE WORD WHAT WOULD IT BE? CV: They’d say that I’m tender-hearted.

MXP: WELL, YOU DO SEEM LIKE A NICE KID. OKAY, WE’VE COME TO THE END OF THIS. THANK YOU FOR DOING THIS CALEB AND THANK YOU FOR BEING SO PATIENT. BEFORE WE SAY GOODBYE, IS THERE ANYONE OR ANY SPONSORS YOU’D LIKE TO THANK?

CV: First, I’d like to thank God who has made all this possible. My mom, my dad, and my two sisters who have been my biggest cheerleaders and my grandparents for supporting me. I also want to thank all my team sponsors.

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hot new

gear Atlas Wrist Brace

The X8 Wrist Brace incorporates the CCRS (Continuous Cable Routing System), Mobius’ innovative patentpending technology, which provides maximum support across the wrist joint, allows more mobility, and progressively resists hyperextension and minimizing the risk of injury to the ligaments and bones. The unique design dynamically changes the tension in the cable throughout the wrist’s full range of motion preventing excessive bending (lateral and medial) and hyperextension. www.atlasbrace.com

Renthal Fat Bar

Renthal has employed its 50+ years of experience in handlebar design, testing, and racing to develop the R-Works Fatbar36, the ultimate in lightweight motocross handlebars. Renthal’s 36Tech™ handlebar standard and proprietary Zarilium® material gives a high-strength handlebar at the lowest possible weight. The R-Works Fatbar®36 is 36% lighter than our standard 28mm diameter Fatbar®, previously the most lightweight motocross handlebar. www.matrixconcepts.ca

Troy Lee Designs GP Gear

Designed with comfort and minimal weight in mind, the GP gear also offers the durability that TLD is known for. Breathable and flexible material allows a custom, comfortable fit for any rider. The versatility of the line makes it the perfect choice for all types of riding and racing conditions. www.troyleedesigns.ca

Troy Lee Designs LE Air Glove:

Tallboy is an artist known for his bold, colourful graphics that have appeared on t-shirts, skateboards, large painted walls and more. Originally from the Boston, Massachusetts area, he has travelled, lived and worked in San Diego, Austin TX, Philly and Portland, OR. Tallboy’s wild graphic style made a collaboration with Troy Lee Designs a no-brainer! www.troyleedesigns.ca

EVS T5 Helmets

The T5 Helmet features a lightweight polycarbonate shell with oversized intake and exhaust ports. The EPS liner is Eject® compatible and features ventilation channels for increased breathability. Compression gasket integrates with race collar/neck brace. Max Flow air intake/exhaust system for superior ventilation and comfort.

The T5 Helmets exceed the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 218 as well as Economic Commission for Europe safety standard ECE 22.05. www.motovan.com

Shinko Hybrid Cheater Tires

Shinko’s newest Hybrid Soft/Intermediate Terrain Enduro/Extreme single-track trail tire finds traction in the most extreme conditions. Where a Trials tire falls short in braking and loose soil conditions, the 525 “Cheater” bridges that gap to make it the Ultimate Hybrid off-road tire. Wide self-cleaning tread design. Available in popular 18” and 19” sizes. www.motovan.com

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Thor Sector Helmet

Designed for comfort, performance, and coverage - all without draining your wallet. The Sector line of helmets features a dual-density EPS liner, injection-moulded polycarbonate/ ABS shell, adjustable visor, and integrated ventilation for class-leading performance.

Wherever your ride takes you, the Sector and Sector Mips® helmets are up to the task. www.partscanada.com

Fox Racing Karrera 180 Jersey

Time-tested in quality and performance, the 180 Karrera Jersey delivers breathable mobility while riding. Welcome to the evolution of the most recognized gear in motocross. The foundation of 180 Karrera Jersey is a moisture-wicking main body fabric that helps keep you cool, dry, and comfortable. Vented mesh panels add airflow, both aiding in moisture management and helping to regulate body temperature, while fit and comfort are enhanced even more via the mesh collar and sleeve cuffs. www.foxracing.ca

Fox Racing Karrera 180 Pant Time-tested in quality and performance and with the looks that make it the most recognized gear in motocross, our 180 Karrera Pants provide the essential performance needed for riding and accelerating your journey from beginner to seasoned veteran. The 180 Karrera Pants use our Rider Attack Position™ (RAP) construction for greater comfort while in the riding position and getting after it. This articulated fit, combined with TruMotion® stretch panelling, provides flexibility and more natural movement on the bike. www.foxracing.ca

Thor Pulse Cube Pant/Jersey

Workhorse reliability meets championship-level performance. Pulse racewear defies convention with the perfect hybrid of durability, ventilation, and flexibility. Utilizing their new In-Motion fabric, laser-cut ventilation, and anatomical construction, Pulse racewear is purpose-built for your hardest motos. www.partscanada.com

FXR Factory Ride Goggles

As the sport of motocross continues to grow, so does the need for high-definition optics in one of the world’s most demanding motorsports disciplines. The new Factory Ride “Predator” goggle results from a collaboration between the FXR Moto Division and Rich Taylor from EKS Brand goggles. EKS Brand brings its expertise built on 55+ years of combined goggle R&D knowledge. The game-changing design of the FXR Predator goggle provides superior eye protection and crystal-clear vision performance in all motocross, supercross, and off-road racing conditions. www.fxrracing.com

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Ryder McNabb is no stranger to hype. He’s risen through the amateur ranks and last year found himself competing for the second year under the Honda Canada/GDR/Fox Racing tent in the Triple Crown Series MXTour aboard a Honda CRF250R. But with his first pro win taking place at WaltonONE last year, Ryder quickly learned about the need to balance his dedicated work life with a fun personal one. Originally from Manitoba, he’s found a second home in Southwestern Ontario - enjoying everything from Lake Erie’s beaches to a killer steak in Mount Pleasant. One of the items below is on Ryder’s wish list…can you guess which one it is?

E S S E N T I A L S

BY RYDE R MCNAB B

2.

5.

7.

3.

4.

6.

1.

13.

9.

12.

16.

10.

14.

17.

8.

11.

15.

PROFESSIONAL: 1. Honda Canada/GDR/ Fox Racing CRF250R

5. Oakley Airbrake MX Goggles

motorcycle.honda.ca

oakley.com/en-ca

2. Custom Team LimeNine Graphic Kit

6. Bristol Coachworks Moto Sprinter

Price $34,000.00 CAD

$279.95 CAD

limenine.com

3. Fox Flexair Honda Jersey $99.95 CAD

4. Fox Flexair Honda Pants

$159.00

Custom Pricing

bristolcoachworks.com

7. Atlas Vision $199.00 CAD

atlasbrace.com

$284.95 CAD

PERSONAL: 8. Dev Chelsea Boot SHOE THE BEAR

12. Oakley Frogskin Lite Sunglasses, Prizm Grey Lenses, Matte Black Frame

15. GDR New Era 950 Team Hat

$225.00 CAD

oakley.com/en-ca

16. Seadoo Spark

10. IGGY IN PERFECTO NEUW

13. Devlin’s Country Bistro

lockhartsodyssey.ca

$210.00 CAD

9. GORDON SLIM SHIRT - SAND

$198.00 CAD

grafic.com

11. Organic Chocolate Milk with a Paper Straw Varies

$162.00 CAD

Mount Pleasant, Ontario

devlinscountrybistro.com

14. Marin Fairfax 3 $1,299.00 CAD

marinbikes.com/ca

$30.00 CAD

gopherdunes.com $6,899.00 CAD

17. Turkey Point Provincial Park Varies

ontarioparks.com/park/ turkeypoint

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recommends QUINN AMYOTTE

NICKNAME: Kwang INSTAGRAM: quinn.amyotte TIKTOK: quinn.amyotte YOUTUBE: Quinn Amyotte

Quinn Amyotte’s a fan-favourite in Ontario. With his easy-going demeanour, quick smile and his affable personality, you can’t help but be drawn to the Manluk/Rock River Yamaha/Merge Racing/Yamaha rider. Quinn will be leaving his home in Blackstock, Ontario soon to race all nine rounds of the Triple Crown Series’ MXTour in the 250 class this summer, but we managed to catch up with him to chat about his favourite things in this issue’s MXP Recommends.

Streaming Show: Formula 1 Drive to Survive Nothing is more financially humbling that watching this series on Netflix, now in its fourth season. The multi-billion dollar business of F1 is on display throughout the episodes, and viewers have a rare chance to follow the drivers, managers and team owners as they battle for the top spot. Team changes, driver conflicts and high emotions guarantee a solid binge-watching couch session as soon as the streaming service delivers a new season. The big question is, how do we make a show like this happen for motocross?

Gear: Fox Being a Fox sponsored athlete is a dream of many young riders growing up, including Quinn. The iconic foxhead is often our first intro to the sport’s branding influence, and it’s no surprise that this cross-culture brand’s clean looks keep it at the top of the pile year after year. To shop: www.foxracing.ca

Podcast: The Joe Rogan Experience Quinn listens to a lot of podcasts, but the top spot in constant rotation is The Joe Rogan Experience. Quinn’s reasoning? He speaks to a lot of UFC fighters and it’s cool listening to their intense training methods and the required mental strength to compete in the sport. Plus, he’s got a good roster of funny comedians that come on to provide a laugh when one is needed.

Winter Training Facility: The Shoals MX The Shoals MX is located in Donalds, South Carolina and is owned by the Wood and Baylor families. With 41 RV sites, 3 motocross tracks, 1 kids track, 1 SX track, 1 night track and a woods loop spread over 176 acres this facility offers a little bit of everything including training and a shop.

Quinn got to spend some time there this winter, and suggests it to anyone looking for some rut practice. To book: www. theshoalsmx.com

Movie: Talladega Nights - the Battle of Ricky Bobby Hard to argue with this one as Quinn think it’s pretty much everyones top movie pick and we don’t disagree. As a tribute Ricky, when you’re watching the podium interviews this summer, see how many riders also don’t know what to do with their hands.

Lifestyle Clothing: TEAMLTD Founded in 2013, TEAMLTD is a Canadian lifestyle brand that’s motivated by a community of like-minded individuals who’ve traded the status quo for a life of extraordinary. And while yes, they do sponsor Quinn, he could have easily plugged his own shirts in here - so you know his love is legit.

TEAMLTD has solid ties to the moto community too, sponsoring events like Ride With Me and a number of top riders across the country. To shop: www.teamltd.com

Album: All the Right Reasons, Nickelback Released in 2005, All the Right Reasons is Nickelback’s best selling album to date selling 12 million copies worldwide. Featuring some of the 2000’s ultimate pop rock/ post-grunge hits, Rockstar and Photograph, this album probably kept Limewire in business back in the day. At least in Canada. We’d like to thank Quinn and his brothers for bringing this one back into our rotation.

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THE INSIDE LINE

BROUGHT TO YOU BY

P H O T O S B Y M AT T W E L L U M S O N

Budgets are a balancing act that can make or break a team if not handled properly.”

WITH

ANDY WHITE

THE BUSINESS OF RACING In the past, silly season usually runs mid-way through the outdoor series but this year it’s a completely different story.

I am writing this article on a flight heading to Salt Lake City for the final round of the Monster Energy AMA Supercross. I would say by far this is the earliest I have seen or heard of big plans already solidified for the 2023 season. I sure wouldn’t want to be a factory rider preparing for outdoors and being told, ‘By the way, this is your last year with us’. How pumped are you now?

Will the team be motivated to supply all the best parts for you to race with or will they save them for the next guy? I guess it’s better to know now so you can at least dust off your resume and start knocking on doors.

T

he worst kept secrets in this sport always make me laugh. Remember the Jason Anderson going to Kawasaki story in 2021? I think everyone knew it except no one could talk about it. Same goes for Tomac and the Star Yamaha deal. That was a major shock. So many years with the green team and tons of wins and championships. You wouldn’t have guessed Tomac would leave the mighty Factory Kawasaki team for a semi-factory team. Well we all know how that turned out.

I heard a great interview the other day from a rider that stated, ‘You could be on the best funded teams but if the team players are

not working together well how do you build a winning team?’. We saw that with Anderson on his last move. I am sure he liked the Husky and the guys on the team, but sometimes it’s time for a change.

Now look at what he has accomplished. That goes for Tomac as well but sadly it doesn’t always go that way. Look at Plessinger. I bet he really didn’t want to move over to KTM after Star figured out that YZ450 late last year. I am super impressed with how they turned that bike from a mid-pack bike into a championship winning bike.

Budgets are a balancing act that can make or break a team if not handled properly. I remember when I was managing the Factory Red Bull

KTM team, riders would come and go. It’s a business for the factories.

They paid me to hire the best riders and to win championships. Management said here is the budget now go get the best riders and win races.

I wish it was that easy. I had a budget that allowed us to fly riders and mechanics to events. I had a budget for maintaining race bikes and practice bikes. I had a budget for the engines and suspension personnel.

I had a small budget for spring time testing. It’s a spreadsheet with 60 different budget lines that you need to respect. Now you need to sign a rider that doesn’t destroy bikes and can win. Do you know how much it costs to replace a bent crank rod that blows through the bottom of the cases? Lots! Do you know what the cost is for a bent frame or forks? Lots! If a rider misses his flights or if you lose a complete engine by the shipping companies, these are all unexpected costs.

Make sure to add a buffer in the budget for those extras.

Back to the business side of racing and riders. I really had fun with my riders that I had on the team for over ten years running. You want to be a friend to them but at the same

time you knew that day would come where you would have to say, ‘Well, Mr. Rider, this past season was not great. The results are just not what we both expected. I am going to pass on signing you for the following year.’ It’s never easy telling a rider that he has to go look somewhere else.

Every rider that races at the highest level loves riding and racing. When they get paid, it’s even better. It’s not really a job when you look at it. Not many people in this world love their job. When that day comes and that rider can’t find a seat on a team, he is actually heading to the pasture like a wellused race horse. It’s the business of the sport, manufacturers want to win and sponsors want to support the same. Sure there are a few riders that have continued racing on privateer support teams but that never goes well. They don’t get the same equipment as they had a year ago. The rider usually starts second-guessing the team and the equipment. The team manager is upset because the rider is not delivering the results he is paying for. It’s a never-ending circle that we see time and time again.

The moral to the story is enjoy the time you have at your peak.

Work hard and it will usually pay off. If you do get on a team, please make the best of it, communicate with your team manager and mechanic. The more transparent you are on the set up and with your feed back to the team, the easier it is to deliver the winning bike you need.

If you complain and vent to others about your equipment, well that’s the fast lane to the green hills of a pasture we call retirement!

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22 SHOT DISTRIBUTED BY

1

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1

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