Photo Report: Rockstar Energy MX Nationals|Nanaimo Round 2

By Billy Rainford


What a difference a week and a drive to the coast make! We went from record-setting heat last week in Kamloops to mid-teen coolness and overcast skies this week in Nanaimo, BC. I don’t think you’d get too many complaints from the riders, as they were able to go full bore the entire motos this week.

There were a few interesting stories from the Wastelands MX Park so let’s get to the photos and the racing action.

MX2

20160612-IMG_8588

The Wastelands in Nanaimo, BC is one of only a couple concrete starting pads on the circuit. Dylan Kaelin’s 250 2-stroke sounded great burning rubber!

20160612 Jeremy Medaglia

Racing jumped up and bit quite a few riders Sunday. #14 Jeremy Medaglia was one of the first casualties. A freshly watered track caused him to slide out and fall hard enough to break his helmet in the first moto. He decided to sit out the second. Hope you’re feeling better today, Jeremy.

20160612 Carson McQueen

When #177 broke a chain and stopped in the middle of a double jump, no flag was waved until it was too late. The result was a direct and unavoidable hit from Jess Pettis. Carson suffered some damage to his face and was fixed up at the hospital.

20160612 Riley Heinrichs

#115 Riley Heinrichs was hoping to bounce back after a tough first round in Kamloops. Unfortunately, things didn’t go his way and he’s scored a 34-DNF.

20160612 Kyle Springman

#87 Kyle Springman broke the top 20 with 17-20 motos for 19th.

20160612 Ryan Lalonde

My apologies for not knowing who #171 was Sunday. After his very impressive 7th place first moto finish, I won’t forget Ryan Lalonde’s name any time soon!

20160612 McCoy Brough

After his impressive Kamloops round, 16-15 15th for McCoy Brough has got to be a bit of a let down. Watch for more high end rides from this young American rider.

20160612 Jess Pettis

#20 Jess Pettis set the fastest lap time in qualifying. Unfortunately, he was forced out of the first moto but came back for 4th in the second and snagged 13th overall to salvage some points. Oh, and how can we be missing letters in the ‘Wastelands’ sign for the National???

20160612 Dylan Wright

#17 Dylan Wright has the speed to win one of these things. He just needs some racing luck to come his way. He smashed into a downed Medaglia in the first and hurt his foot. He could barely put his boot on before the second but toughed out a 3rd place for 12th overall.

20160612 Ryeley Gallup

#69 Ryeley Gallup had a solid 12-12 day for 11th and will be looking forward to the Calgary round.

20160612 Marcus Nilsen

#24 Marcus Nilsen was in some tough battles for 8th in the first moto and then finished 13th in the second for 10th overall.

 

20160612 Taylor Arsenault

#53 Taylor Arsenault sat out last week due to concussion symptoms. He wasn’t sure how he’d feel at race pace in Nanaimo then went out and finished 11-9 9th!

20160612 Casey Keast

Without support, #217 Casey Keast will not be heading east. With a 5th in the first moto, someone help get Casey to Ontario and beyond! 5-14 for 8th overall.

20160612- Davey Fraser

#36 Davey Fraser had a solid day in Nanaimo. 9-10 for 7th and he now sits 10th in points.

20160612 Mark Worth

#101 Mark Worth is the replacement for injured Jacob Hayes. He got out to the early lead in moto 1 but then went down hard trying a banzai inside move on Cole Thompson in the ext corner. He needed a better start in the 2nd to finish up near the front. He came from last to 10th in the first and then took 5th in the 2nd for 6th.

20160612 Dylan Kaelin

#324 Dylan Kaelin now sits 4th in points but only has one more round left in him. He won’t head east to Regina. 6-7 for 5th.

20160612 Brandan Leith

We all knew who #70 was this week! Brandan Leith finished 4-8 for 4th overall.

20160612 Brad Nauditt

#18 Brad Nauditt has his start mojo back and grabbed some Royal Distributing holeshot money again in Nanaimo. He raced his practice bike in the 2nd moto and finished 3-6 for 3rd.

20160612 Shawn Maffenbeier

#15 Shawn Maffenbeier enjoyed the red plates in Nanaimo and finished a very solid 2-2 for 2nd overall.

20160612 Cole Thompson

However, #4 Cole Thompson’s 1-1 motos gave him the overall and he’ll sport the red plates in Calgary.

MX2 Podium

MX2 Podium: Cole Thompson, Shawn Maffenbeier, Brad Nauditt.

MX1

20160612 Vince Friese

#55 Vince Friese set fastest time in qualifying but then a fall took him out of action after he hit his head and sat out the remainder of the day. He’ll get checked out this week and hopes to return to Calgary where he took the win in 2015.

20160612 Dusty Humphries

#873 Dusty Humphries is another of the Utah gang. He broke the top 20 with 14-19 motos for 19th.

20160612 Eric Jeffery

#33 Eric Jeffery took 18th with 17-16 motos.

20160612 Kaven Benoit

#11 Kaven Benoit was in the hunt for a podium in the first when he suffered a broken chain DNF. He bounced back and took 7th in the second for 17th.

20160612 Cody Matechuk

Everyone was impressed with #73 Cody Matechuk’s 5th place in the first moto! Unfortunately, he decided to sit out the second after hurting his shoulder a while ago. He still took 16th overall.

20160612 Shawn Robinson

#27 Shawn Robinson had troubles at the first round but came back strong for 15-11 finishes for 13th.

Tyler Medaglia

#5 Tyler Medaglia was feeling great and then had an ECU go on him in the first moto. He calmly stood in the mechanics’ area while Gibby ran and took the one from another bike. He got back out and managed to score points with a 19th. His solid 6th in moto 2 gave him 11th overall.

20160612 Kyle Swanson

#21 Kyle Swanson will have graphics for Calgary and joked about his “mailbox numbers.” 8-13 for 10th after charging through the pack in the second moto.

20160612-Morgan Burger

#19 Morgan Burger charged alongside Swanson in the second and his strong 6th in the first gave him 9th overall (9-14).

20160612 Austin Kouba

Burger’s Idaho counterpart, #468 Austin Kouba finished just ahead of him in 8th (7-12).

20160612 Keylan Meston

There weren’t a lot of passes being made at the front, but #28 Keylan MEston and #6 Cade Clason had a moto-long battle. Keylan finished 9-9 for 7th.

20160612 Matt Goerke

#1 Matt Goerke was not happy about being docked 10 places after jumping on a red cross flag (go listen to his interview on the site). He finished 13-4 for 6th.

20160612 Cade Clason

#6 Cade Clason finds himself up in 6th place after 4-8 motos put him 5th on the day.

20160612 Davi Millsaps

#118 Davi Millsaps crossed the finish line first in both motos but his 10-place penalty for jumping on a red cross he says he didn’t see put him 4th (11-1).

20160612 Brett Metcalfe

#3 Brett Metcalfe got out front in both motos, collecting the Royal Distributing Triple Crown. His 3-3 motos put him 3rd.

Mike Alessi

#800 Mike Alessi won the first moto and then wasn’t happy with his decision not to make any changes before the 2nd moto. He finished 1-5 for 2nd overall.

20160612 Colton Facciotti

#2 Colton Facciotti chased Millsaps around again in Nanaimo but his 2-2 motos gave him the overall and the red plates for Calgary. This battle should wage until we reach RJ’s in August!

MX1 Podium

MX1 Podium: Colton Facciotti, Mike Alessi, Brett Metcalfe.

20160612 Royal Distributing

Thanks for reading, and we’ll see you at the races…