Snowcross?! Yes, we know it’s the middle of April but we had to wait until our May issue hit newsstands to run this story. Plus, you’ll be seeing a lot more of Team Royal Distributing when the CMRC nationals start at the end of May. They will be the new kid on the block when they debut this year with Marco Dubé (MX1), Iain Hayden (MX2E) and Michael Sleeter (MX2W). What experience do they have to run a major race team? Read on…


By Todd Kuli
Photos by Allison Kennedy

Since you have all read the latest issue of Racer X Canada, I am sure you’re familiar with the Racerhead story about Danny Brault and I trying snowcross with the Royal Distributing/Factory Recreation Snowcross team. If you haven’t read it … stop what you’re doing and scatter to the bathroom, get your new RXC and read the article first! Due to the fact that I am very long winded/worded, there wasn’t enough space in the magazine to capture the entire riveting story. So here it is:

Where's the shifter? Kuli prepares for practice.

As in motocross, the inner workings and dynamics of a team can determine the outcome of a season’s racing. Great riders on inferior equipment don’t perform any better than top-dollar race machines ridden by out of shape riders with no heart. A winning team needs a good blend of both rider and machinery to make it all happen. The Royal Distributing/Factory Recreation team has that support; they work together to put forth a winning effort.

Our weekend began with a tour of the main facility. Royal Distributing’s Canada-wide mail order off-road accessories business has moved from a humble beginning in a rural barn to a 57,000 square foot headquarters in Guelph, Ontario. There are three retail outlets: Guelph, Barrie and Sudbury. Vice President and marketing man, Mark Fries, told us getting involved with racing was a natural progression for Royal as they expanded. Snowmobiles were their main focus in the beginning so they felt snowcross was a good jump-in point to the racing world.

Royal is basically a candy store for moto heads! If you are into MX, off road, ATV’s or snowmobiles you can find it there! Mark gave Danny, Brett and myself the VIP tour of the showroom and warehouse. The place is so big we had to stop and let Dailey rest a few times! Mark also showed us the plans for the new store they are building right off the 400 Highway in Barrie.

Factory Recreation, the sled connection for the team, is a Bombardier dealer in Midland, Ontario owned by Doug Sagan and cousin Donny Woods. Doug acts as race team manager and is the official Ski-Doo connection for his crew. A good team manager, he’s there to help when needed and provides guidance when things get stressful. Doug was on hand many times during the weekend to offer advice to Danny and I and make us feel like part of the team. Doug is a father figure not only for the team but also for the team’s semi-pro racer, his son 17-year-old Joey Sagan.

Joey Sagan

Sagan’s #202 sled is always wide-open and on the edge. Working the sled in the air and hammering his way past or through anyone in front of him makes this high-school kid exciting to watch. Riding both semi-pro stock (440cc sleds) and semi-pro mod (600cc sleds) he has a bright future ahead of him.

The team's pro rider has all the style of a snow-covered Jeremy McGrath. Twenty-two-year-old Iain Hayden from Espanola,Ontario has a silky smooth riding style that looks effortless. A holeshot master, Hayden sets a blistering pace from the beginning and builds a comfortable lead to keep himself out of trouble. A sponsor's dream, Iain is polite, always smiling and friendly to his fans. Iain is no stranger to the Canadian MX scene, either. A competent pro rider, Iain will be racing the eastern MX2 nationals this year for Royal and KTM.

Hayden's race face

To keep two pro-calibre riders winning week-in and week-out, you need a tuner and mechanics to keep six sleds running at their highest level of performance. Wayne Legge from Manitoulin Motorsports is the lead technician and brings years of sled-tuning experience with him. “The Fresh Water Newfie” as he is affectionately called, is a character all his own. In some ways, tuning a sled is similar to a motocross bike but, unlike a bike, a sled has no transmission so all the power is put to the track through a clutch. “Clutching,” as they call it, is a black-magic type of science that can have a million wrong answers and only one right answer. Legge usually has the right answer as proven by the number of holeshots his sleds pulled throughout the weekend (and a couple of those coming from a certain “magazine guy” I might add). Some of you may remember Wayne as the manager of the KTM Canada team in 2004.

The team works in the trailer while Kuli tries to sneak
away with a free PB&J.

Assisting Wayne is Jason Smith from Owen Sound, Ontario who was a formidable snowcrosser in his day. Like a lot of top-notch MX spanners, “Smitty” grew tired of the financial burden racing brings to the privateer. Working for the team gives him a chance to stay connected to the sport he loves.

Co-op student Ryan Keller leads a charmed life. The 17 year old spent the semester earning high school credits by working for the Royal Distributing/Factory Recreation team. Anyone who has worked on any type of race team and traveled a series knows the life lessons a young man can learn. Just don’t tell his mother! Ryan is always smiling and works hard; he is the type of kid you would almost want your little sister to date. Almost!

Our race weekend ended up with Iain winning every race he entered in both the pro stock and pro mod classes. Joey crashed hard in the semi pro mod class and tweaked his thumb. A little tape and he was right back out on the track to take the semi-pro stock win.

As a footnote, the race we attended was on the first weekend of February in Barrie Ontario. I followed the team’s results throughout the rest of the CSRA series and they continued to impress. The season ended at Horeshoe Valley Ski Resort near Orillia, Ontario and the team came away with the following results:

Joey Sagan is now the Semi-Pro Open and Semi-Pro 440 National Champion, as well as the Regional Semi-Pro 440 Champion. Sagan had a great season-long battle with Team OTSFF's Peter Raymer but Raymer broke his leg at the final round and Sagan ended up clinching both titles.
 
Iain Hayden finished the season with a perfect 16 for 16 in finals at CSRA events this year and was crowned 2006 national champion in both the Pro Open and Pro Stock Finals. Iain also won the Pro Open and Pro Stock Regional titles as well.

I want to extend a huge thanks to Mark Fries, Doug Sagan and the whole Royal Distributing team for such a great weekend in the snowcross world. Iain and Joey were great coaches and, of course, thanks to the team mechanics Wayne, Jason and Ryan for keeping our sled running and for being a huge help to a couple of lost puppies at their first big snowcross race!

Iain Hayden is the 2006 Pro Open and Pro Stock Champion.

Joey Sagan is the 2006 Semi-Pro Open and Semi-Pro 440 Champion.