Race Recap and Results From Round 2 in Drumheller

Well, that was interesting! As the sun sets in the Badlands of Alberta we’re sure many of the riders are glad that Round 2 of the Triple Crown Series is over. With an extremely hard-packed and dry track in Drumheller, the riders faced challenging conditions right from the first time they put their wheels on the circuit. After last weekend’s soft and rough track in Kamloops, this one was the polar opposite and it took all of the riders, even the top riders in each class, time to adjust. Also, with a three-moto format for Round 2, the emphasis was on speed and not on endurance. Unfortunately, trying to go fast on the Drumheller track was the last thing any rider wanted to do as it called more for a smooth throttle hand and absolute precision. In the end, Dylan Wright dominated the 450 class with three moto wins. Dylan has been perfect thus far in the 2022 Triple Crown Series and if he can keep his Honda on two wheels, this trend may continue all summer long. In the 250 class, it was newcomer Mitchell Harrison who remained fast and consistent throughout the three sprint motos to claim his first overall win of the series.

As we mentioned above, Round 2 was a very challenging day for everyone including, the riders, the teams, as well as the track crew. It was most certainly a group effort when it came to making the weekend run as smooth as possible. Some of the highlights included Tyler Medaglia who once again rode smoothly to finish second overall in the 450 class. On the podium, Tyler admitted to not being comfortable on the hard-packed Drumheller track. However, with so much experience to draw upon he kept his GASGAS on two wheels and made the most of his day. Shawn Maffenbeier was another 450 rider who used his vast amount of experience to remain safe and finish third overall. Considering a week ago Shawn was in a Kamloops hospital emergency room getting his injured shoulder looked at, his results at Round 2 were exceptional. Local Alberta hero Keylan Meston was back from his USA moto adventure and he rode well in all three motos to finish fourth overall. TLD/GASGAS/SSR rider Christopher Blackmer didn’t have the same success as he did last weekend in Kamloops, but the Michigan rider rode smart on the rock-hard track to finish up in 5th overall. It was a solid day of racing in the 450 class but unfortunately, there were some injuries. One of the title favourites Jess Pettis crashed on the opening lap of Moto 1 and ended up having to go to the hospital to get his arm looked at. The early word is that he once again suffered a broken arm in the crash but we’ll wait for the official word from his team. Also, popular BC rider Brock Leitner, who recently came out of retirement, crashed in practice and had to be transported to the hospital with a serious back injury. We’ll wait for Brock’s family to update all of us but Brock most certainly needs our thoughts and prayers right now.

The 250 class was a little more entertaining as the lack of traction wasn’t as big of a factor on the less powerful 250 machines. Jacob Piccolo was fast all day long but during the opening two motos, he played second fiddle to Mitchell Harrison. It wasn’t until the third moto that Piccolo was not only able to get a win but also scored enough points to take back the red plate heading into Round 3. For Harrison, his day was impressive as from the opening moto until the final one he was simply the fastest rider. This win, his first ever as a professional, will no doubt give him a big boost of confidence as the series heads to the final west round next weekend in Manitoba. Rookie pro rider Sebastien Racine rode brilliantly today to finish third overall and take the final spot on the podium. Like today, Round 3 will also be at a track that very few riders have raced at before. Look for local boy Ryder McNabb to rebound strongly after his disappointing 4th overall today. It was a solid day of racing and as I mentioned above our thoughts and prayers go out to Brock Leitner and Jess Pettis as they both deal with their injuries.

450 Class

250 Class