You don’t really realize how much time flies during the racing season until it comes to an end. This has been the case for me and the transition almost seems weird at times. You go from having barely any free time because you spend your days at the track, at the gym and your weekends away racing. Now we are in the off-season where we need to give our body a break to make sure that when we start training again our health is back to 100%. Many of you may think that this time off would be super easy but in fact I find it the hardest time of the year. I’m a person that always likes to be busy and on the go, and never really likes having a break. I do realize, however, that it is necessary for my body to have this break. After the busy season, the first week and a bit felt nice to have some time off! But now, I feel the need to get busy and get back to it. Since the end of the season, I’ve been staying in Newmarket at my girlfriend’s house and have been doing some riding here and there when the weather has been good. I also raced my first Hare Scramble with some friends back home in Ottawa. This race was held at the local dealership that helped me out when I first started riding. It was nice to see the owner again, because I hadn’t seen him in a while. The track was a 9.5 km loop through some intense bush and over some pretty gnarly rocks and drop offs! I do have to admit, I had a lot of fun out there, and despite getting a flat tire on the last lap I didn’t have any issues all day other than a couple tip overs. For my first experience, other than the sprint enduro at gopher, it was quite a different style of riding but I think I did pretty good. I feel like racing different stuff every once in a while is always good because you always learn different skills on the bike that will ultimately make you better on the motocross track as well!
Also, a lot of people have been asking me if I’ll be racing the 450 because I have been riding it so much. My answer is that I won’t be racing it next year, but that I really enjoy riding the 450 and practicing on it. I feel like it makes me a better rider on the 250! It’s bigger bike and more powerful so when I get back on the 250, it almost feels like a toy. It’s so much easier to throw around and get out of trouble than it is when I’m on the 250. So, if you see me at the track on a 450, there you go, you know why I’m riding it!
Also, I’ve been trying to keep busy with doing chores around the house. I also just got a side job at a marina not too far from where I am living right now to keep me occupied. I think this will be great for me, as I have been fortunate enough to make a living doing what I love to do. But I think a little taste of the real world will be good for me. I am going to balance my riding, my training, and the work. You can count on that. I found it kind of funny because I had to go buy a set of work boots today because I didn’t have any. This will be the first time that I have to wear some, so that will be interesting. I find that if you keep your mind busy it keeps you on your toes and motivated, so you can count on me doing that for the next little bit.
Along with MXP Magazine, Dylan will be headed to California in two weeks to test ride the new 2018 CRF250R.
On another note, I have heard nothing but great things about the new bike. I got an email from Honda Canada last week about having the opportunity to fly out to California to finally get to try that new bike out. It should be a great time riding and doing the intro out there, and I’m excited to see what all the hype is about! I will keep everyone up to date on social media about how my trip is gong and all the news about the new bike, so keep your eye out for that!
Until next time, I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving!