Five Minutes with ... Jean-Sebastien Roy
SEPTEMBER 7, 2007

 

With the 30th Anniversary of the Montreal Supercross just a few weeks away, we'll be running a weekly feature to get you ready for the biggest indoor race in Canada. Our series kicks off with a rider who shares a close association with the Olympic Stadium event, Jean-Sébastien Roy.

JSR collects the trophy for the overall win at Sand Del Lee.

 

Photos and story by Allison Kennedy

The 30th Anniversary of the Montreal Supercross is set for September 29. And while the race is an important one for all Canadian riders, it is a huge event for five-time national champ Jean-Sébastien Roy. This will be Roy’s sixteenth Montreal SX. He’s won the event four times, with his first win coming back in 1996. We caught up with The Champ to see what he’s been doing since Walton and to see how he’s feeling about the upcoming MXdN. We also got to hear some pretty sweet stories about the legendary Montreal SX from a rider who perhaps knows it better than anyone.

What have you been up to since Walton?
I was just in Montreal for a launch of the supercross, it was a press conference at the go kart place around the corner so it was a bit more fun. Things have been good; I’ve just been doing some riding and a lot of work on our house. I did a local race last weekend in Deschambeault. Now I have no more races until MXdN and Montreal, there are not many local races here in the fall. I am riding some outdoors; I want to focus on being in good shape for the Nations. Montreal SX has always been really physical, so I am going to do some supercross, but I’d rather work on my fitness on an outdoor track. We are building a SX track and then I’ll start adding in a few days where I do half a day of supercross and half a day of outdoors.

Are you excited about Des Nations?
I am excited to race that track again, it is a super nice track and it’s going to be fun. It’s a different type of racing, to race with all three of us together, we are not racing against each other, I’ll be racing with Blair and Colton to try and win, instead of trying to beat them. It’s cool because there are quite a few Canadians going to the event, sponsors and fans. It’s not like going and racing in Holland or overseas where there aren’t many people we know.

What’s it like preparing for Des Nations and SX at the same time?
It’s very similar training, for me. I’ll spend some time riding a supercross track but that’s more just to get used to the supercross set up on the bike, and just to get back on the jumps and the whoops. I’ve done enough supercross in my life that I know what to do. The track in Montreal is never that difficult compared to the ones I raced back in 97, 98, 99 and 2000. Those tracks were really, really difficult so I have the background for sure.

After returning from your injury, it seemed like you had something to prove at Moncton and SDL. Were you happy with the way the season ended?
I felt really good at Moncton. That track was super fun, I was pumped and I was excited to ride, I was ready to win motos. I wanted to win both motos, but I made a little mistake on my part and let the front end slide out and lost the second moto. There was a bit of pressure and I was pushing hard to win some motos for the team. Sand Del Lee’s track was, once again, incredible. It was super hard and super rough and I wanted to do really well there. I did struggle a little bit there that weekend, in practice and stuff, just with my speed and with finding a good flow. Walton was good, I got a second in the first moto and I felt good. Then, in the second moto, I was ready to go. I had a good first moto and I found some good lines and I was ready to win the last moto of the day. I was going for the sword, I wanted the overall to win the King of Walton sword, but I got a rock stuck in my brake and I couldn’t get it out for quite a while. Somewhere in there I lost all interest in getting back on the bike and finishing way back. But I was happy to finish strong this season and get some overalls and prove that I am still a guy who can win championships.

 

JSR is 99 percent sure he'll be back, looking for another championship, in 2008.

 

Speaking of winning championships, are we going to see you back in `08?
I have a really awesome deal with Blackfoot, Toyota, and Yamaha so I signed a two-year agreement in November last year. I am 99 percent sure I’ll be there for another season. Montreal is a big race for me, the Nationals are quite important and I know that I am still one of the favourite guys to win a championship so I want to come back again and try to win another year. I am having fun at the races, the tracks were much better this year, they are getting better every year, so it’s actually fun. The only reason I say 99 percent and not 100 is that I might get hurt training this fall and if I get hurt badly another time, that would probably make the decision for me. But I am a positive person, so I say 99 percent sure that I’ll be back with the same deal, the same sponsors, the same mechanic. It will be nice; I will keep my bike after Montreal and not have to worry about any big changes. It’s good because there is no stress, everything is the same, I am not starting all over again. This year I am also hoping to do more races this winter and not have a big break like I have the last few years. Maybe I’ll do some outdoor races in Florida, I will just try not to have some much time off the bike. It will be much better than last year, because to be honest, at Ste-Julie last year, I was on the gate thinking, ‘The last time I was in this position was 10 months ago.’ I got a bit nervous and there were just a few things that weren’t on my side, little details, but to win the championship, you need those things to be perfect.

It's been a while since we've seen you indoors. What are your goals for Montreal?
My goal for Montreal is always to be on the podium. A podium there is very important, especially with all the coverage that goes along with it. Being on the podium is great, but winning the Montreal supercross is where it’s at. It’s a big pay cheque—to be honest—but it’s also a lot of fun, overall, and it’s just an awesome event. There is so much going on around the event, before and after. Most of the big team sponsors are there, most of my family, my friends, my fans. And being the last race of the year, it’s a big race. If you win Montreal, it’s a great way to end the season.

Tell us about your first experience at Montreal?
I was soooo, soooo nervous. That was back in 1990. This is my 16th year and we missed one because of some concrete falling off the roof of the Big O. I remember Ross Pederson, Carl Vaillancourt, Dean Madsen, Jeff Surwall. I remember being really, really nervous about the event. I made the main event, I won the Last Chance Qualifier, but I think I must have crashed a few times in the main event. From 15 years old through to 20, I was crashing all the time. I think I  got 18th but I remember winning the LCQ. Even the following years after that, I was so nervous at that race. There are so many people, and I put pressure on myself for Montreal. This race is really special. The last five years, I’ve really matured though and the last couple of years I’m not nervous there. But I think if you asked any of the Canadians, it’s a big race. There’s so much media coverage, and so many people. We are not used to being in front of 50,000 people, surrounded by fans. It’s super special.

 

JSR has become the face of the Montreal Supercross. He's won the race four times ... so far, in his career.

 

Do you have a most memorable moment at Montreal?
Of course, the years that I won were the best, but I have some specific memories, for sure. Back in 1997, I pushed my bike up to the gate, after the opening ceremonies I found out that I had a flat tire. I pushed my bike back to the pits but there was nobody but the autocross people there. The autocross team has a welder and so they had a tank with air and we just put 25lbs in my tire and I got back in the gate with the 30-second board up. I holeshot and lead for quite a while but I think my heart rate was through the roof. That was memorable, for sure. Of course, there are all the parties afterwards, but I am not giving you that (laughs) but there are some classics, all my buddies, we always, always go pretty hard that night. It’s good to get together with friends that I don’t see much. It’s always a busy weekend for me.

Best battle?
I had a good battle with Brock Sellards one year, Tim Ferry another year, Kyle Lewis a few times, Marco Dubé a few years ago, he got the holeshot and we battled for a bit. There have been some good ones.

What was it like winning Montreal for the first time?
Oh, it was unbelievable. I was so nervous on the last lap, I was worried about stalling the bike in the corners, I was revving the bike like crazy for the last lap, using the clutch and revving the bike so high. After I won, I think I seriously barely slept for a few days after. We went out until 5 in the morning, I went to bed at five and I was up at six, wide open, I went down to the hotel lobby looking for the newspaper. I couldn’t sleep at all. That’s what I remember the most, the adrenaline rush, I was really, really hyper. My family was pretty much crying, we had worked so hard and I had trained so much for the three or four weeks before, I was running up and down the hills by our house, doing sprints, every morning, my heart rate was through the roof, I wanted to train my hearts for sprints. When I won, it was amazing.

What makes Montreal so special?
It’s the last race of the year, the biggest race we have in Canada, for us it’s bigger than our WSX show for Carmichael and Stewart. For Canadians, it’s our race, it’s our event, there are 50,000 people, there’s the nightlife after, some people spend a few days in Montreal, all the sponsors and industry people are there, there’s a lot to do. Anytime 50,000 people come to watch us race, it makes a hell of a difference.

Thanks JSR and we'll see you at Budds Creek.
Thanks. See you soon.