Greetings! Welcome to this Victoria Day edition of the Monday Gate Drop Column, once again presented by the awesome folks at Yamaha Motor Canada. I hope everyone is enjoying this long weekend in Canada and I hope that the weather has been decent where you live. My family and I spent yesterday braving the on-and-off again drizzle and cool temperatures at the Sand Del Lee track near Ottawa. Despite the dreary weather, Kevin Tyler and his SDL crew had the track and facility in excellent condition, and once again the AMO Racing group ran a great event. Even with my son racing two classes on Sunday, and me having to conduct a few pro rider interviews after the final pro moto, we were still pulling out of the track just after 4pm. Several years ago this wouldn’t have happened, so I once again applaud everyone involved this past weekend.
These next two weeks for me will be short weeks at home as this Thursday we’re heading to the Riviere Du Loup AX, where my son will be racing there for the first time. Back in the 1990s, I used to travel to this event every year, even though it was scheduled just before the opening round of the Pro National Series. It was always a fun race to compete at and I can’t wait to head back there this week and see how it has evolved since the last time I went there in 1997. I know the city built a new arena years ago, so that will be cool to see. However, the man who runs the event, and has since its inception back in the late 1980s, Paul Thibault, is still the promoter after all of these years. Paul is a great guy, and for the past 27 years we have remained in touch and have wished each other Merry Christmas every time December rolls around. Anyway, it’s going to be an exciting and emotional return for me to one of my favourite old races, and to have my son lining up will make it even more special. I believe they call this a ‘full circle’ moment. Once we return from RDL it will be a quick turnaround before it will be time to fly out to Calgary for the opening round of the 2025 Triple Crown Series. As always, time has been moving fast and I cannot believe we’re almost to end of May.
As I mentioned, yesterday was a great day at SDL and part of what made it special was seeing another stacked Pro/Am class. Last month, we witnessed multi-time 450 class champion Dylan Wright dominate both motos at Gopher Dunes and looking like he was more than ready to regain the #1 plate this summer. Then, two weeks ago at Auburn Hills Raceway, we were able to witness the new and improved speed of Tanner Ward as he won both Pro/Am races aboard his new Priority MX Thor GASGAS MC450. Finally, yesterday it was entertaining to watch not only Jess Pettis ride flawlessly on his #1 plated MX101 FXR Racing Yamaha, but also his 250 class teammates Preston Kilroy and Sebastien Racine. Wright looked good, Ward looked good, and now I can confirm that Jess Pettis also looks good. Finally, judging by the videos of WLTN Kawasaki 450 rider Phil Nicoletti coming out of the ClubMX Training facility, he also looks good, and this past week Phil appeared to be riding with Jorge Prado. As we get ready to head out West for the opening round in Calgary, I think it’s safe to say that these are your top four riders in the 450 class. When you also throw in names like Amyotte, Benek, Elmore, and Van Berkel, the 450 class should be very entertaining to watch this summer. Yesterday, Amyotte looked very strong on his Guaranteed Comfort Fox Racing Canada KTM, and Van Berkel, who is coming off a broken elbow suffered at the MXGP in Argentina two months ago, will only get better as the summer goes on aboard his Guaranteed Comfort Honda. In fact, once the Triple Crown Series heads back East in late June, look for Van Berkel to possibly be a podium rider on tracks like Gopher Dunes, SDL, and even Deschambault. As I said, the gate drops in Calgary in less than two weeks, and if you can’t be there, you can watch all of the rounds on the RydeTV app, and on Fox Sports.
Last week, the Honda Canada GDR Fox Racing Team held it’s annual media day down at the famous Gopher Dunes Raceway. As always, it was an amazing day and everyone was treated like royalty by Derek Schuster and his Gopher Dunes crew. For 2025, the Honda Canada GDR Fox Racing Team will feature multi-time 450 class champion Dylan Wright, two-time 250 Pro/Am class champion Ryder McNabb, and the up-and-coming Noah Viney. All three riders appeared to be loose and very forthcoming with the media as they answered questions about everything from preparation, their expectations, and how the testing has been going on their 2025 CRF models. We also heard from GDR Team owner Derek Schuster and team GM Ryan Lockhart about where the team is at with less than two weeks to go before the opening round in Calgary. Both gentlemen said the team is in a great place, but they won’t be able to exhale until the GDR Honda Team transport heads west to Alberta later this week.
After the press conference, everyone was invited to eat lunch, and then we travelled just down the road to the Gopher Dunes track to watch all three riders spin some laps on their race bikes. All three red riders looked comfortable while performing massive whips over the main Gopher Dunes double jump. They also looked great in their 2025 Fox Racing custom Future race gear, which is now available for purchase inside the Gopher Dunes Pro Shop. After some riding and photos, the three riders were made available for one-on-one interviews with the media, and then it was time to head home. It was a great day, and thank you to the Honda Canada GDR Fox Racing Team and the Gopher Dunes crew for their hospitality. As always, we had James Lissimore there to capture the memorable moments from this special day.
Well, that was my past week, and these next two weeks should be even more exciting. I also have my 52nd birthday next week, so that will be nice to celebrate. Yes, said that correctly, I’m turning 52 next week and it’s hard to believe. If anyone can tell me why time goes by so fast as we get older, please email me at editor@mxpmag.com. Finally, for his great performance yesterday aboard his new MX101 FXR Racing Yamaha YZ250F, my Rider of the Week is Preston Kilroy. PK, (as everyone calls him) looked very smooth on the rough SDL track, and it’s going to be fun to watch him this summer in the 250 Pro/Am class. Thank you for reading and have a great week!