By Allison Kennedy

JSR with his fifth-straight Canadian MX1 trophy.

During the Canadian National season, it’s difficult to get five-time Canadian Champ Jean-Sébastien Roy to stay still long enough for a solid conversation. But in the off-season, if you catch JSR on a good day, it can turn into an all-day chat. I caught JSR looking for any excuse not to finish the paperwork on his desk Monday and here’s what the champ had to say about his fifth title, his future, the Montreal Supercross and World Supercross.

RXC: Hey JSR, what have you been up to since Walton?
JSR: Last weekend I worked for a few days on a new motocross track I am building about 15 minutes from my house. I also went up north and rode about 650 kilometres on the trails. I bought a CRFX500 and I’ve been riding that around town quite a bit. One of my buddies has a camp in the middle of nowhere, 200 km north of La Tuque. So we drove the pickup truck to La Tuque and then did about 650 km in three days. It was kind of different, to ride a dirt bike just for fun, instead of putting laps on the track.

How are your ribs?
Not too bad. I’m just bummed out that I can’t play golf or do any activities because of my ribs. I could ride on the trails, but it was nothing physical; just gravel roads and stuff. But as soon as it started to get physical or rough, I can’t do much. I tried to hit some golf balls the Thursday before Walton and I played two holes before I stopped. I tried riding at Walton and since then I’ve just been working on a tractor and a bulldozer at the track. That’s about it.

So you’re not going to Steel City then?
No, I don’t want to go if I’m not 100 percent in shape. I’m a bit bummed out; I was looking forward to doing Binghamton and Steel City.

So is the Montreal Supercross your next big race?
Yep, Montreal will be the next big thing for me. I am going to be working on a supercross track with my buddy later this week. It’s in Granby, about an hour from Montreal. I have my own track but I’m over it, I’ve been riding on it for too long. I may still talk to Charbonneau, he is supposed to have a nice supercross track at his house too. I might go there ten days before Montreal. It’s only four hours from here and it will be a little bit warmer there too. So I have a couple of options for supercross. If worst comes to worst, I’m going to fly down to Tallahasee and ride down there for Montreal, at Ricky’s track because he’s going to be training for the U.S. Open or I may just go to the Georgia Practice Facility.

You missed out on a win in Montreal last year. Are you looking to win this one?
Well, it’s my fifteenth anniversary at the Montreal stadium. It would be nice to win. But the fact that I’ve been racing there for 15 years is pretty amazing. I haven’t missed any main events or any rounds. I’ve been lucky with that event, I never got hurt and I never missed a weekend. That’s pretty amazing in 15 years.

Have you heard much about who’s invited?
I’m sure it will be all last minute and there are always surprises at the last, last minute; like the day of the event, someone decides to come, someone decides not to come. I’ve learned not to worry about that, just get ready for the worst, for the fastest guy.

Have you had much time to reflect on winning your fifth title?
After the championship in Ste. Julie, I was pumped to claim the championship again, but it’s getting to be a bit of a routine—I don’t really want to say that, it’s just that I need a new goal. I need to go back to the states or do something else; I need a new challenge. Through my career, I’ve always set up challenges for myself, I’ve always set goals and achieved my goals and after that, it’s time to do something else.

Were things easier or harder for you this season?
I would say it was easier this year because—and this might sound weird—but it was easier because the riders are getting better. So the guys finishing second and third are always splitting finishes, like second one moto and seventh the next, but I was able to win all the time, so it got easier to build a points lead. Two or three years ago, Blair or Damon were always second. So this year, after the fourth round, I had a good points lead and I had no more stress. The rest of the year was pretty mellow. I had no pressure. Of course, I got hurt and twisted my knee at Gopher Dunes, that bummed me out, but I was so focused on winning the championship that it didn’t change much. I think it’s just the caliber of the other guys, they stepped it up, if I hadn’t been there, the championship would have been quite a battle.

There were a few times when it seemed like someone was going to give you a run for your money.
Yeah, absolutely, but not for the championship. When you have a guy like Gavin Gracyk running in second, he’s a threat. After Calgary, I thought about him and I said, ‘That’s going to be the guy who can beat me.’ But he had already DNF’d a moto. Right there, that’s 25 points I had on him. I wasn’t too nervous about that. But for sure, every year, guys are stepping it up and getting closer, but that’s how it is. I can’t expect to win every year, that’s why I am looking for something new, looking for a new challenge.

Any ideas what that new challenge might be?
I’d like to go back to the states to learn some more. I know I am on a better training program and I am stronger mentally than I was before. That is a big, big step at this level of racing. I look at [John] Dowd, he is in sixth or something in the championship in the states. I know sometimes, Jason Mitchell from Blackfoot says, “Even if you go back to the states, you know how you are going to finish.” But it’s still a new challenge. I’d be racing on different tracks than I’ve been racing on for the last five years. Then I could go there and learn a little bit more for the next two years. So that’s something I’m looking at. To be honest, I don’t think it will happen for next year, because I have a two year deal with Blackfoot, so that’s pretty much it.

What have you heard about Blackfoot’s plans for U.S. Supercross?
It looks like they are going to do East coast supercross. That’s their plan. Of course I know that with sponsors and budgets, money-wise it will be tough to get everything lined up. It’s good for them if they are going. I am not going to be racing 125 East coast; don’t count on me for that. I would have been interested before in doing a couple of rounds. We talked about it last year and the year before. But now… the only supercross I’ll be doing is the Canadian rounds here and Montreal. It’s not the same. In the U.S. Supercross series, the caliber is super high and you need to be training hard and riding hard every week, racing every week. I’m over that. I’d rather take some time off in the winter and focus on motocross. I still have quite a few races to do in Europe, which I have fun doing. There’s no stress at all and I am not riding for a championship.

So will we see you at the Toronto and Vancouver World Supercross Rounds?
Yes, unless I get my knee fixed. I have to get my knee fixed sooner or later. I’m having an MRI and a full check-up on it. I will be seeing a surgeon to see if I really, really need the surgery. It’s getting better now but every time I twist it, it hurts like hell and it swells. I have an appointment in the next few weeks and if I need the surgery, I’ll be getting surgery after Montreal so then I would be out for four months. That’s not what I want to do but if the doctor says I have to, I will. If not, I will wait for a year or two. But otherwise, we are doing Toronto and Vancouver as a team, the Blackfoot Honda team. And like I said, East coast Supercross, I told them to do it five years ago and now it’s too late for me so I’m bummed, but that’s life. I’ll still be involved with it for sure. I will probably help with testing and I’ll help with the team and go to the races. I’ve done it for years and years and I know all the people.

Thanks JSR and we’ll see you in Montreal.
Thanks.