By Brett Dailey

Well, I have a new comrade in the motocross industry. No, it’s not because Dean Thompson is a big-wig on the Blackfoot race team and I'm schmoosing him for spare parts, it’s because we followed similar career paths in life and we both ended up back at the motocross track—doing what we love.

Dean and I are both motocross enthusiasts who went on to careers in finance and then took a leap of faith later in life back into the motocross industry. Bean counters are taking over Canadian motocross! Oh, sorry … never mind me.

Dean Thompson took a position with Blackfoot in January. He’s the Race Team Coordinator so he’s responsible for all administration duties and financial aspects of Blackfoot Racing (including the Suzuki roadrace team), which includes media/public relations, rider, team and sponsor contracts and travel arrangements. He joined Blackfoot at the right time: This year JSR clinched his fifth-straight MX1 title, Dusty Klatt won his second-straight MX2 West title and Damon Huffman and Mitch Cooke both finished third overall in their respective classes. Not bad for your first year on the job.

Avid readers might remember that Dean was in the mailroom section of our very first magazine. It was before his Blackfoot days and he mentioned a desire to break into the industry. Well, things happen quickly in motocross because Dean now has two championship notches in his belt and our ninth issue is currently at the printer.

We caught up with the likable Albertan as he was heading out to watch the Arenacross races in Calgary.

Racer X Canada: Are Dusty Klatt and Mitch Cooke in Georgia now?
Dean Thompson: Yes Dusty and Mitch arrived in Georgia late Wednesday night.

What training facility will they be using?
Blackfoot Racing purchased a membership at the Georgia Training Facility. We also rented a house for the team right on site for five months. 

Will anyone else be training there?
I was talking with Ray Woods and he said there will be approximately 30 riders at the peak. Right now there are only a few guys around including Chad Charbonneau who has been there for a few weeks already. The Millsaps Training Facility is right next-door and they also have riders all season. So there will be lots of high quality riders for our guys to judge their speed against.

Which team members will be there for support?
Currently Jon Balducci is down there and will be staying for the whole time to look after the equipment and help them with the program.  Kelly drove the truck and equipment down earlier in the week and will be staying for a week or two to help get everything settled in. Joe [Skidd], Andrew [McLean] and myself will also drop down from time to time.

Have you been there before? What is the setup like? Is the Supercross track suitable?
Joe went down prior to scope it out, and I have been dealing with Ray Woods who oversees the operations. The place is perfect and I really think a facility like this is the future of the sport for those who are really serious and want to take their riding to the next level. There are cabins on site, the supercross track was built by Mark Barnett and it is second to none. The facility has one full supercross track, a second one under construction and a national track. Gary Semics is available and we have access to a personal trainer for Dusty and Mitch.

What is your testing schedule like from now until WSX and from then until 125 East SX?
Today the guys are meeting with the trainer to help them develop a fitness program, a diet plan and to be assessed. We have four weeks before Toronto to prepare. The mini Olympics are in Gainesville, Florida from November 21st through 25th and we have pre-entered both guys in the 125 SX and 250 MX classes.

Is the team excited about Toronto and Vancouver? You skipped it last year and took some heat from Canadian and American fans.
We are all really excited about it. Last year the WSX rounds were announced with little notice and we didn't have much time to plan and had already committed to the MXDN and the Future West Arenacross series. The feedback from the fans was that they would rather see us here on their home turf for the World Supercross rounds, so we took it to heart and planned this year accordingly.

Was JSR's knee surgery successful and how is he doing?
JSR had the surgery last Friday and he is recovering well at home. I was talking with him a few times this week and he is really happy to have it behind him so he can move forward and get ready for the 2006 CMRC Nationals to defend his fifth consecutive 250 Championship.

Being the competitor he is, I know it is very difficult for him not to be racing this winter, but this will motivate him even more this spring. What many people don’t know is that this is an injury that has been plaguing JSR for years. The guy is a warrior, I think he used more on ice on his knee this summer between motos than we used in the cooler … and he still dominated.  I can only imagine what next year is going to be like with him at 100 percent.
 
I'm sure that Blackfoot is looking for additional sponsorship and support to be able to add the U.S. Supercross rounds to your schedule. Have you been successful in your sponsorship search?
As you know, doing something like this takes not only commitment from all of the team members but obviously the proper funding as well. We are looking at the U.S. Supercross as an investment in our riders more than anything. We have had quality sponsors for many years, which many have committed to supporting in any way they can for supercross. We would not be able to do this without the support of Fox Canada in particular—they really stepped it up and are behind us all the way. We are really fortunate to have the sponsors we do and would not be out there doing what we do if it was not for them.

Have you been following the Future West Arenacross series? Why did you decide not to send Klatt and Cooke? Do you think the Arenacross regulars will have an advantage on them when they get to Toronto since they have been racing regularly?
Yes, I have definitely been watching the series. We have been planning on doing the AMA Supercross series for a long time and while it would be nice to also contest the Future West Arenacross series also, it was just not feasible this year. We really wanted to have Mitch here in Calgary for the hometown race but everything at GPF came together very fast and the decision was made to get the guys down there immediately. Like you mentioned … it is important to have track time and that is exactly why we felt it was necessary to get them down south so they can not only race on weekends but train on quality tracks during the week. 

People are expecting a lot from Klatt and Cooke at the WSX rounds but they really have very little experience with Supercross racing. What are your expectations for them?
Competing in these rounds will provide them with the experience. Blackfoot is doing what we can to provide them with the tools and training they need and we are not putting any pressure on them to do anything but their best. All that is asked from any rider on the team is to ride with heart and there are not too many riders with heart that Dusty, Mitch and JSR have.

How about expectations for U.S. Supercross?
The way we are looking at the whole Supercross deal this year is to provide both Dusty and Mitch the experience of racing at that level and they will in turn gain the confidence they need to be fully prepared for the 2006 Canadian Nationals and hopefully have a little fun along the way.

Well, I guess we will pressure you into some tougher predictions once you see them on the track in Georgia. Keep us posted on your progress. We want practice lap times for Cooke and Klatt! 
Will do! See you and all the fans in Toronto and Vancouver.