What an action packed week we’ve had in our sport. I think we were all glued to our smart phones and laptops over the weekend. I know I was! Of course the Motocross of Nations was being held in Ernee, France and all the talk was about how strong the french team would be and if the Americans had what it takes to finally take the win after so many years of missing it. Roger DeCoster managed the all-Yamaha backed US team and they looked really solid this year. Jeremy Martins, well it’s kind of a no brainer with that one. I felt that Justin Barcia was also a good choice. The wild card and the one rider that I was a little unsure of was Cooper Webb. I had no idea he could ride a 450! Boy was I wrong, because that kid can definitely throw a 450 around with the best in the world. I was happy to see that the track in France was a normal looking clay base GP track and not a sand pit where the European riders have dominated in the past. After practice it looked like the top riders we all expected were in the top 5. The one rider that surprised me was Ben Townley from New Zealand. I think he has retired more times than Ryan Lockhart. Now came the qualifying heats and this is where they separate the groups in to the A list and the B list depending on your results. Well, Team France killed it with a perfect 1-1-1. I would have to check the record books to see the last time that has happened. Team USA was right there as well with really solid results. Time to make some final adjustments to the bikes and come out swinging for Sunday’s 3 motos in front of what I heard was approximately 80,000 crazy loud fans all cheering for Team France!
Once the gate dropped I was on the edge of my seat for the whole event. All 3 motos were pretty intense! From the get go it was really only down to two countries that would fight it out to the final moto. Team France has the current MX1 World Champ, Romain Febvre, on his Monster Yamaha, Red Bull ex-GP Champ Marvin Musquin and Gautier Paulin, who dominated last year’s MXON. That’s one heck of a line up. Plus home track advantage and a wild crowd that would motivate them. Social media was buzzing with tons of information, calculating the points from lap to lap. Crazy how much information we can tap into almost instantly these days. Anyways, back to the action. It basically went right down to the wire on who would win the 2016 MXON Championship. Team France edged out USA by only 2 points. USA put in a great effort and showed gracious appreciation for their competitors, which is something that has been somewhat lacking with previous US teams.
Next on my agenda was the Canadian Arenacross tour that was starting up in London, Ontario. To be honest I was a little nervous on what the rider turnout might be. As I pulled in to the back of the arena and to my surprise I saw the back lot full of motor homes and pickups already set up. I thought “wow is it not a school day?” I parked the car and started to walk to the rear doors of the arena. All I could hear was four-strokes revving off the rev limiter. It was like music to my ears. As I entered the building I could smell VP race gas, not sure if it was MR12 or a mix of U4.4. I had forgotten what the sweet smell of race gas was like inside an arena. Once in the building I also remembered why I had my ear plugs in my pocket. The echo of four-strokes in a small area is absolutely deafening. The track looked great, the dirt looked perfect, not to hard but not too soft. The layout was your typical arenacross layout with a huge finish line double then a rhythm section that connected to a rocker section. The starting line had the look of an official supercross starting gate. This is the real deal people. Monster is the official sponsor as is Royal Distributing, Valvoline, Marin Bikes, Race Tech, FMF and the list goes on. I was informed that there were approx 175 amateur entries for the day plus just over 20 pro riders. Now we just need spectators to fill the building.
The event went off like clockwork, the lights dimmed and the intros started. The first motos started just after 7pm and the show was a go. There was lots of action in the heats and it was really cool to see some of the top arenacross riders made it up for event: Chris Blose and teammate Jacob Hayes on the Monster Kawasaki Thor team were of course the favourites. OTSFF sent up their AX specialist, Bobby Kiniry. Local hero Cole Thompson on his Royal Distributing KTM Fox bike looked solid on the tight track. Canada’s Motorcycles FXR Yamaha rider Dylan Wright from MX101 put in a great effort for his first ever AX event. Nathan Bles told me this is his first attempt at AX. I asked him what type of racing do you prefer, he replied “all forms of racing on dirt!”
Chris Blose was one of the fast American riders that has come North to race this new series. photo by Spikman
Once the dust settled as they say, it was a great show with lots of bar banging and tight racing. At the end it was a mix of winners on the podium from Cole Thompson, Bobby K , Chris Blose and Jacab Hayes. I am looking forward to round two in Sarnia, Ontario in two weeks time. Hope to see you there!