JUNE 24, 2005
Story and photos by Brett Dailey
This Sunday marks the final stop of the eight-round Ontario Provincial Championships. Racer X Canada has been producing the souvenir program for the past two seasons and we must admit that we have thoroughly enjoyed watching the series grow and prosper. The competition is fierce and the rider turnout is astounding. The Walton round featured over 900 entries with a few American contenders making the trip north.
It almost seems like a flashback to the early 1980s when we saw full gates in the pro classes and multiple qualifiers in the junior classes—minus the boot savers, duckbill visors, monoshocks and Jofas, of course. Several factors have raised the prestige of earning provincial championships across the country and racers and sponsors are stepping up to the plate.
Last year there were a few runaways during the series. Pierce Chamberlain wrapped up both 125 and 250 pro titles early and skipped the final round to race Unadilla. Not this year! Although Lockhart’s Odyssey’s Chamberlain has a healthy 49-point lead in the 250 class, a late race charge by rival Machine Racing / Label It’s Kyle Keast at Paisley ensured that Pierce would have to at least show at RJs and earn his third 250 title the hard way.
In the 125 class, Machine Racing / Label It’s Jay Burke came out swinging with a 1-1 at the Gopher Dunes opener and has maintained the lead throughout the entire series. His teammate Kyle Keast is 25 points back in second place so he has a mathematical chance at the title. Defending Champion, Chamberlain, has struggled all season with mid-pack starts (and soil samples) on the KTM 125 and is 51 points back in third.
One thing that has added drama to the pro series this year has been the abundance of moto winners. Ontario’s win list includes: Jay Burke, Pierce Chamberlain, Ryan Gauld, Kyle Keast, Chuck Mesley and Joel Saarits. Even American riders Gavin Gracyk (OH), Casey Clark (PA) and Michael Willard (OH) have won motos this year. Nine different riders have won motos and that statistic is a testament to the level of talent at the Ontario provincials and the depth of field.
Of course, the true test for the pros will be the MX2 eastern national series, which kicks off at Gopher Dunes on July 16th and 17th. Last year Doug DeHaan and Chuck Mesley finished inside the top five of the MX2 East series but the Ontario regulars all had disappointing national seasons. It will be interesting to see if the Ontario riders can translate their success at the provincials into success at the nationals this year.
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Where's my 450? Pierce Chamberlain has mastered the KTM450 and barring a disaster this Sunday, he win win his third 250cc Ontario Championship. The 125 class, however, has been a different story. Chamberlain will race the 250 class at Red Bud on July 3rd. |
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125 Champ? Watch for this kid when the eastern nationals start. Jay Burke is fast, hungry and fit. Burke will probably win his first pro title on Sunday. |
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Charger: Kyle Keast may look friendly in the pits but you don't want him behind you late in the race. Heck, he doesn't even look all that friendly in the pits... |
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Off the air: Having Ryan Gauld race the entire provincial series means that we won't see him on TV when the western nationals air but he has added excitement to the series. |
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Sand specialist: Lighning Powersports' Joel Saarits gets faster each weekend. He won a moto at the last round in Paisley but watch his cornering skills at Gopher Dunes on July 16/17. |
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He's "Back": Chuck Mesley is riding himself into shape after back surgery. He won a moto at Wheatley and proved to himself and his fans that he has the speed to make an impact at the nationals. |
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Steady: Trever Hall is probably the most improved pro in the series. We should have had 10 moto winners this year but a late-race crash stole Hall's 125 win at Wheatley. |
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Hired: Sometimes it's strange how racers end up with rides. Brett Lee pointed out Ryan McLellan to me early in the series and noted that he was racing on a different borrowed bike each weekend. Later, KMS Racing's Pat Cyr mentioned that he was looking for a rider to finish out the provincials for his team. A couple of calls and McLellan was on the team. It was a long shot but it has turned into the good news story of the year. McLellan has holeshot almost every moto he has entered on the KMS YZ250F (Pat offers an extra $20 for a holeshot) and if he had two more laps of fitness in him, he would have won the opening moto at Paisley. |
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Cyberspace: Internet regulars will be more familiar with Braap295 than Matt McGuiness but this guy hauls butt. His style reminds me of a hard-charging Mike Bell because of his height (not that anyone his age would know who that is). Matt says that he will finish high school a semester early and head to Georgia for the rest of the winter and come back swinging. |
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Rookie: Speaking of favourites, the Intermediate class has been very exciting this year. Billy Mullen (624) should wrap up the 125 Intermediate title this weekend in his first Intermediate year. The racing has been tight this year with Rob Pelletier, Trevor Middleton, McGuiness, Kyle Ferguson, Derek Hamm and Tyler Bezzo all mixing it up each weekend. |
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Ringer: Jay Burke's older bother (he's 19) was dubbed "Timmy Snow" after he killed the Junior competition at a Loretta's qualifier earlier in the season. He beat everyone convincingly at the first round but the competition is improving each weekend (Stephens, Snelgrove, Brooks). Tim has lost a couple of 125 motos but he's perfect in the 250 class with 350 points. Tim hangs it out and isn't afraid to crash. |
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Growth Spurt: Didn't Kyle Stephens just get off 60s? Look at how big this kid is already! Kyle has a 22 point lead over Corey Brooks in the 125 Junior class going into the final round. |
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+40: Rob McCullough turned 40 after the series started so he hasn't had a full season in the class. Despite missing a round, his perfect 300 points has him in the lead over Jeff Coles and Brad Coles. However, McCullough is skipping RJs to ride a Loretta's qualifier so it looks like Jeff Coles (the better looking brother) will win the title. In the Vet Master class, Marty Burr gave Ken Clark a run for his money in the early rounds but Clark will easily win his third vet master title. |
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+60? Bill Van Vugt, Sr. turned 60 in April but he still shows no signs of slowing down. Canada's one and only Loretta's champion is in the mix every weekend. |
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See the similarity? Bill's daughter Jolene decided to miss three rounds to compete in the WMA nationals in the U.S. She won't win her fourth title this year but a first turn crash and charge back to first place at Paisley proved that she's still the fastest in the class. |
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The Champ: With a 33 point lead over Codi Rae Ingram, Kassie Boone is expected to win her first Ladies title at RJs. |
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Attrition: With names like Mullen, Snelgrove, Maidman and Brooks moving out of the 80 class this year, the door was wide open for a new era. Oshawa's Brandon Phinney looks like the heir apparent in the 80cc 12-16 class. Can anyone name the last Canadian champ to come from Oshawa? |
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Five is enough: The youngest of five racers, Cole Thompson has a perfect score of 350 points in the 80cc 7-11 class. Check out his Exposure feature in the July issue of Racer X Canada. |
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Golden: Here is a kid to watch in the near future. Richard Grey (pictured here) and Cole Thompson are only one point apart in the 60cc class going into the final round. |
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I had the pleasure of watching this 50cc 7-8 moto at Paisley. Mitchell Godkin (828) and Steven Anderson (396) went at it lap after lap with Godkin coming out on top. Anderson won the KTM 50cc Challenge at the Toronto WSXGP. |
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Edge Performance continues to build their team and they have a pretty good lineup this year with Trevor Middleton, Codi Rae Ingram and Kyle Stephens under their tent. |
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Silly season already? Furious Styles' rider Joel Saarits talks with the head of the Fulle Twisted clothing empire, Ash Adams. |
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The Colonel sure looks different without his morning coffee. |
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See you at the races... |
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Directions to RJ's: From Toronto, take Hwy 400 North past Barrie (45 min) to Forbes Rd. Exit 111. Go west on Forbes Rd., take first right (old 2nd South) follow to track entrance. http://www.rjmotosport.com/ |
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POINT STANDINGS 250 PRO |
