VFORCE RACE REPORT – Unadilla 1 & 2

BROUGHT TO YOU BY MOTO TASSINARI

MOTO TASSINARI IS THE PREMIER MANUFACTURER OF PERFORMANCE ENHANCING REED VALVES

CANNING CRUISES TO VURBADILLA 1 VICTORY

Chris Canning took his Factory Connection / MotorBikes Plus Gas Gas to a convincing victory at Round 2 of the FOX Racing J DAY Off Road Championship sponsored this double day weekend by VURBMOTO and coined “ VURBADILLA “ . It was fun to have the VURBMOTO crew out for the weekend on their Vurb Shred Tour where they had some great promotions, activities for all, bike demos and races and a very special treat “ Mom Mossas “ for the Mothers because of course it was Mother’s Day Sunday !! 

Cody Williams on the Bullit Racing / Factory Connection KTM grabbed the Holeshot in Moto 1 of the PRO Class and tried to make a run for it but Branden Gregoire who is having a serious resurgence in his off road career on his Facory Connection Yamaha took the lead on lap one and held it throughout most of lap 2 until succumbing to the pressure of the 19 time NESC Moto Cross Champion Canning. Gregoire would keep the battle close throughout the moto and finish just 3 seconds behind the winner. Joe Tait who usually toils the NESC MX Circuit and leads the NESC Championship in both PRO Classes this year took time to come out to J DAY for Round 2 and rode his Yamaha to a solid third in the moto. The Connecticut rider looked strong in all his motos and also stood on the podium of the PRO 125 Class but more about that later. First round winner Gavin Simon rode his Edelman’s Husqvarna to fourth in moto 1 and Simon Johnson the reigning J DAY Champ tried to dodge the rocks and sort out the new Plaistow Power Sports Yamaha and would finish 5th. Rounding out the top ten were Brayden Nolette , Justin Cokinos, Toby Cleveland, Nate Smith and Cody Williams who would blast off the start of Moto 2 and pull another Holeshot and collect the check. Chris Canning would grab the lead early and cruise to victory lane being sure to thank his suspension sponsor Factory Connection on the podium as the Unadilla course got super rough late in the day and the woods section was both rough and slippery and if you don’t have good suspension you can’t get the power to the ground and with the FC setup he was able to conquer the track and the competition with a double moto win for the overall. Brayden Nolette would get a better start in moto 2 and by lap 3 the reigning NETRA Hare Scramble champion now on a V3 Kawasaki was up to 2nd and would chase Canning right down to the finish line to finish 4 seconds off the blistering pace and he would stand on the 3rd step of the podium at days end for his first ever PRO J DAY Red Bull Podium appearance. Nolette had a tough first moto but persevered through it and shows great promise for continued future success. He has a great attitude and is surrounded by a great support crew. Branden Gregoire got off to a mid pack start but was able to slice and dice his way through the pack and by the final lap was able to secure 3rd in the moto to turn that into second overall showing belief in his own abilities and just not giving up and pushing through. He had some great insight into his career so far and some humble admissions in his podium interview and was sure to thank the people who have contributed to his recent success including the Factory Connection Team and especially owner Rick Zielfelder. Fourth in moto 2 and fourth overall on the day was Gavin Simon on the Edelman’s Husqvarna. Simon won in the mudsand of Southwick and had an uneventful day to keep his championship hopes alive but it is going to be difficult as Canning and Gregoire are committed to the series and Nolette will be at every round that does not conflict with his GNCC comittment where he has been the top A or Amateur rider several times this season. Joe Tait would bring the Yamaha home for fifth in the moto and fifth overall and you could see he really enjoyed his J DAY experience. 7th in moto 2 and 6th Overall for round 2 was defending champ Simon Johnson while Cody Williams would see his fast start work out to 6th in moto 2 and seventh Overall. Scott Walker rode to 8th in moto and Overall. Kyle Murdoch another fast MX guy from Massachusetts would take 9th and his buddy, former top contender in the J DAY GP circuit, Jake Abbott took 10th in moto 2 and 11th Overall while Murdoch was 14th Overall at Round 2 both on MotorBikes Plus Husqvarnas. Great to see both of these great riders back out on the J DAY track. Rounding out the top ten Overall in the PRO Class were Nate Smith on the MHR / POR / FXR entry and Pat Meehan and both were atop Husqvarnas as well. Great racing throughout the day and this will be another tough championship run this year as there are so many talented riders in this class.

And now for the rest of the story….

Beautiful weather would greet the J DAY faithful and before the races started the crowd was treated to the owner of Unadilla Valley Sports Center Greg Robinson sharing information about the rules at the huge facility and the reasons for the rules. Greg was also helpful in laying out the logistics of the property and all the amenities it entails. It sure is refreshing to hear an owner speak and show such care for all who came to enjoy his facility. It definitely made a difference in peoples behavior on Saturday night as he was up in the tower on Sunday morning thanking the huge crowd for their respect they showed to his property and the very few incidents that occurred. Makes you want to go back as soon as possible and also makes you want to do the same at every venue to gain the respect for the whole J DAY organization globally.

The Kenda Pee Wee Challenge raced for the the first turn soon after 8 o’clock and it was Sawyer Langenback ripping the Holeshot. Langenback whose family has a storied tradition in New England off road racing would keep his lead only for a short time as reigning Pee Wee champ Tucker Aldrich from Greenfield Mass absconded with the lead and checked out. Langenback would hold second throughout the grueling 40 minute race and Destry Tucker another second generation racer would follow him to the finish line and stand on the third step of the podium and revel in the celebration we hold at 10:30 AM most every race day at the Red Bull Podium, weather permitting.  

Benjamin Silva on a KTM won the Squirt division, Crue Hopkins took top honors in the Bantams on a Husqvarna, Hunter Aubin on a Honda garnered the Trail Rider win and Sophia Teixeira cruised to the Pee Wee Girls win on her KTM.

 The Super Mini class was won by Ryan Amancio as he scored a convincing double moto win and Kamden Krause stepped up to his first ever podium in the class on the second step while Jiggs Fustini battled hardship to stand on the third rung.

Mini A winner was Anthony Pacella, Mini B went to Ryder Wren, Mini C was all Ashtin Dumeer and the Girls Class went to Addie Harris with a resounding win and would see the young lady from Rhode Island finish 9th Overall in the entire race while starting at a distinct disadvantage as the boys had more than a minute or even two head start. Addie is an amazing young rider and a super nice person and a pleasure to interview on the podium.

Porter Breton was a refreshing podium interview as he clinched the C Class Overall and the 250 class win on a KTM. Zack Steiner took his KTM to second overall C and Corey Stolarski made it an all KTM C Class podium in third and the Open class win. Devon LaRoche would break up the Orange Party and ride his Blue Cru Yamaha to the 200 class win.

The Womens PRO Class saw Ruby Fustini back to her winning ways but not before she lost the first moto to Savanah Kipp the multi time Champ on her Steve Banach sponsored KTM. Fustini and Kipp riding KTMs traded moto wins but Ruby, who is the reigning champ won the all important second moto for the overall. Melony Pickard rounded out the podium to make it an all Orange affair. Nykea Williams and Kaycey Prior completed the top 5.

In this same moto we have several other classes running and the Super Senior is the most competitive even though these guys are over 50 and some way over that age of eligibility. To name one is the multi tme and reigning champ Nate Martel who rarely loses in this class but when a much younger and former go faster Mxer Leo Candidus shows up the battle is on and “Cando” came out on top today.

Womens Amateur class was dominated today by the Rhode Island Rocket Addie Harris who finished with over a three minute lead against riders who are considerably older than her, remember Addie from the “ GIRLS “ Class win. She looks completely comfortable on the much larger 250 and will be a force to reckon with as she becomes even more so through the season.

C Vet winner was Kyle Seggelin, In C Senior Ricardo dos Reis beat Carlos Marquez and the Masters class win went to Mike Hauser.

PRO 125 buzzed into the first turn and it was Kyle “ HoleShot “ Hangos on a Plaistow Power Sports / Answer YZ with the lead but Justin Cokinos would quickly drive his Factory Connection / Hutch Motorsports entry into the lead and stay there the whole moto……almost. Factory Connection pilot Brandon Gregoire was on a mission and dogged Cokinos throughout the moto and would close up the gap and then Justin would pull a little and did enough to look comfortable as they leapt out of sight on the last lap into the choppy, rutted, rocky and slippery woods section and ultimately the off cambered and up and down Kurt Caselli section which is a great equalizer. As stated Gregoire was on a mission and closed the gap whilst out of sight and when they flew down off the Sky Shot Jump he had closed the gap to One bike length and this announcer called the play with fervor. They climbed Horsepower Hill and crested it almost side by side and hurled themselves into the FMF Extreme Section not even noticing the small uphill chicane as if they floated above the track. Into the log infested final section and as I said earlier……almost…..Cokinos had the lead clearly but on this day at UNAVURBADILLA Branden had that feeling that racers sometimes do and the adrenaline carried him past Justin at the very last moment with a few feet of track left because he was not to be denied in his quest for the win. It was a great race one that will be remembered for some time and had me yelling at the top of my lungs and as a race announcer of over 30 years it is still an awesome feeling to bring that to you, the fans, with such emotion…….almost…….almost as good as being that racer who makes that move and scores that victory and though it has been a very long time I have been that racer a time or two. Not to be forgotten in this moto were the fine performances by Toby Cleveland on his new Rockstar Husqvarna in third, Tegan Temple fourth and Nate Smith on his MHR Husqvarna in fifth.

Moto 2 would see Toby Cleveland lead for 4 laps and when he exited the race Gregoire was there in second and took the lead and won the race and the Overall for his first ever PRO 125 FOX Racing J DAY Off Road win !!!

Nate Smith would finish second for second Overall and Joe Tait who finished seventh in the first moto grabbed third in the second moto on a 2005 Suzuki RM 125 and claimed third Overall for the day in an inspiring performance. Kyle Hangos would finish 4th in the moto and fifth Overall and Aaron Zielfelder would ride the Factory Connection / Bullit Racing KTM to fifth in moto 2 and Fourth Overall. Super competitive racing from all the riders in this class and exciting racing to watch and this year they get time on the end of day Red Bull Podium Party and these guys are great interviews. You really should hang around for 30 or 40 minutes at the end of the day to join in the fun. You won’t believe what they might say because “ This is J DAY Off Road and Anything Can Happen “. 

In the same moto Ryan Amancio won the Junior A class on a KTM, Robbie Webb  took his Yamaha to the B 200 win, Shane Czelazewicz won B 250 and Jacob Stevens took his KTM to the B Open victory.

Jon Gosselin scored a double moto Senior A win on a Ronnie’s Cycle Sales KTM, Jiggs Fustini took his Trail Jesters KTM to the Junior B victory, Vet B was all Brian Hopkins on a KTM and Jay Frey kept the Austrian Brand undefeated winning Senior B on a Husqvarna.

In the PRO motos there is some intense racing going on in the A Classes and the Vet A class has some of the best action and your winner is Matt Obuchon out of Rhode Island on a KTM at Round 2, Matt Webb put the Blu Cru in victory circle with his win in A 200, Van Gosselin was on fire in A 250 on his Battery Park / Ronnie’s KTM with a double moto win just like his Dad did and A Open was won with consistency by Grady Hall on his Gas Gas.

Great Racing in all classes and some fun with the VURBMOTO Crew with Chris Canning in the drivers seat of the PRO Class and Brandon Gregoire coming into his own as well as Brayden Nolette realizing the potential we all know he has. VURBADILLA ROUND ONE is in the books and this JJ Saying “ See you at the Next J DAY “

ANOTHER CANNING WIN IN THE VALLEY

Unadilla Valley that is !! Though the track is called Unadilla it is named for the Valley it sits in and though the town of Unadilla does exist in New York  it is quite a distance away. History lesson over and now history in the making, as most of you know Chris Canning has been a dominant force on the NESC MX circuit since winning his first Championship in 2014 and 19 titles since. He doesn’t often get beat in a motorcycle race and he is not used to it by any stretch of the imagination. Since trying his hand at the FOX Racing J DAY Off Road Championship a few years ago he has been mostly successful but not unbeatable. Round 3 at VURBADILLA proved to be one of those days where what usually doesn’t happens happened…… Chris Canning Lost…… A moto, not the Overall however and now sits in control of the Championship points lead. In Moto style scoring the better finish in the second moto breaks the tie breaker and awards the better overall position to the rider who places higher in the second moto, so to be called a “ Second Moto Man “ has always been high praise in the off road world. At Round 3 Brandon Gregoire road a smooth, consistent and fast race on his Factory  Connection Yamaha to do what not many have done in the last 9 years and he beat Chris Canning in Moto number 1. Gregoire lead every lap of the 30 minute moto after taking the lead quickly from the “ Hole Shot Man “ Cody Williams on the Bullit Racing KTM. Branden rode like the wind and looked fast but Canning wouldn’t let him slip away and at times you really felt like Chris who got a good start on his MB Plus Gas Gas was just biding his time and would soon pass into the lead position. But Gregoire kept speeding away and that time never came and by motos end Branden Gregoire beat Chris Canning by a healthy 19 seconds. Sometimes victories like these are momentum builders and sometimes they are inspiration for those who have been beaten.

Gavin Simon has shown good form and consistency in 2023 on his Edelman’s Husqvarna and brought it home in 3rd, Brayden Nolette took a decent start and scored fourth in moto one on the V3 Kawasaki and Cody Williams rode the MotorBikes Plus KTM to 5th. Simon Johnson is still sorting out his new ride and finished 6th, Nate Smith on the POR Husqvarna was 7th and  Cody Groves, Scott Walker and Cole Daniel rounded out the top 10.

In between motos Chris Canning thought about the moto 1 defeat and decided it would be his inspiration to go out and be a Second Moto Man and win the moto in convincing fashion with a 18 second cushion over Branden Gregoire and with it the Overall which in turn gave him the points lead leaving Round 3 after Chris had a MudWick he’d rather forget where he finished 6th at Round One. “ P. O. R. “ is a phrase used in the gruelling world of Rally Racing and means Press On Regardless and Chris Canning takes it to heart and that is what Champions are made of because they block any sub par result from memory and go out and win again because they have done it before and know how and know they can do it again. Branden Gregoire put forth a great effort today but it just wasn’t enough to overtake the determination of Canning but it did award him second Overall. Brayden Nolette would have another determined ride finishing 3rd in the moto and 3rd Overall for the second time this year and boosts himself to sixth on the points table. With Gregoire sitting 4th in points both riders sit the highest they ever have after 3 rounds. Cody Williams would rip his Fourth Holeshot of the weekend and bring it home 4th in the moto and fourth Overall and make another appearance on the Red Bull Podium for an interview with yours truly which are always fun and Grant says both of us can’t stop smiling the whole time. I know he wasn’t there but that’s what he was thinking I’m sure. Simon Johnson on the Plaistow Power Sports Yamaha finished 5th in the moto for 6th Overall. Gavin Simon finished 7th in the moto for 5th Overall, 7th Overall was Cody Groves with 8-6 moto results, Nate Smith went 7-10 for 8th Overall, Scott Walker and Pat Meehan rounded out the top 10 overall and Jake Abbott was again an impressive 11th Overall.

And now for the rest of the story

The VURBMOTO Crew had the “ Mom Mossas “ going early on Mother’s Day as they continued with the Vurb Shred Tour and the Kenda Pee Wee Challenge was away by 8 o’clock and who should appear at the front of the pack, that’s right Tucker Aldrich. He lead the entire 40 minute moto and looked so smooth he reminded me of a wily veteran who occasionally coachs him. A man who helped the J DAY series grow from it’s infancy and is still pretty fast on a motorcycle. You see Tucker as I’ve mentioned is from Greenfield Mass at the bottom of the Mohawk Trail and his Dad’s friend happens to be Brooks Hamilton who was once the KTM Rep who helped JDAY prosper with his company’s support and his time and effort and Brooks is now the Triumph Motorcycle Rep and I wouldn’t be at all surprised when they release their new off road line soon he will be coming around to the J DAY races to showcase the bikes and lend his support with the famous British motorcycle brand which is steeped in history. Welcome back my friend, we’ve missed you. Yes my friends Tucker Aldrich has form and style similar to that of one said Senor Hamilton and that will serve him well because before Brooksy was a motorcycle company rep he was a contender for National Enduro wins and a three time NETRA Enduro Champion, so as you can see he can really ride and has a patient way of teaching those he cares about and Tucker is one. Destry Tucker stood on the second step of the Pee Wee Senior podium besting his best finish from round 2 finishing a couple hands full of seconds off the leader and one second ahead of Sawyer Langenback. 

Benjamin Silva took the Squirt division again, Nathan Salgado scored the win in the Bantams, Hunter Aubin was the fastest Trail Rider and Sophia Teixeira cruised to the Pee Wee Girls victory.

9 o’clock and the Super Mini Class was ready to rock and Colt “ the Bolt “ McQuarrie “ a third generation racer from New Hampshire, who is by the way only 11 years old, rode the race of his life in moto one to beat his buddy and someone he admires very much who happens to be the toughest guy to beat in the class. That is of course Ryan Amancio who had all the praise for his little buddy Colton on the Red Bull Podium where Amancio stood on the top step as he went out and beat the entire field in the second moto to take the Overall honors. McQuarrie would take the Blu Cru to the second step of the podium and his first ever in the SuperMini class while we had another newcomer to the SuperMini podium as Evan Worthington let his riding do his talking and stood on the third step of the podium.

Mini A winner Anthony Pacella rode a KTM  to victory, Ryder Wren was again victorious in Mini B, Trentin Hurley took his Kawasaki to the Mini C win and again Addie Harris cruised to the Girls class win on her KTM uncontested.

The C class was a repeat of Round 2 as Porter Breton conquered the C class overall and the 250 class and Zack Steiner took 2nd with Corey Stolarski 3rd.

Ruby Fustini just kept on rolling in the Womens PRO Class with a double moto win and a dominating performance on the #555 KTM. Savanah Kipp was second in both motos for second Overall as was Melony Pickard third in both motos to round out the podium. Womens Amateur winner Addie Harris battled with the top 3 Womens PRO riders and even beat third place PRO Melony Pickard in the race overall final standings. Another impressive ride from the personable young lady from Rhode Island.

Nate Martel was back to his winning ways in Super Senior, Sean Bohan took the Masters win, Victor Medeiros got the nod in Vet C and Ricardo dos Reis grabbed the Senior C win.

PRO 125 was not as exciting as Round 2 but it had some great racing topped off by newest Rockstar Energy Husqvarna recruit Toby Cleveland the New York Speedster claiming both motos for the overall win. He was challenged by Round 2 winner Branden Gregoire as the Yamaha rider tried his FMF Extreme section surprise pass on Cleveland but Gregoire’s mojo was just not working and Toby got the win in a photo finish. Branden would be a little off Cleveland’s pace in moto 2 but still second and second Overall. Nate Smith on the Precision OffRoad Racing Husqvarna took the third step of the podium. Aaron Zielfelder on the Factory Connection / MBP entry took fourth Overall and Kyle Hangos on the PPS / Answer Yamaha rounded out the top five.

In this same moto the Junior A class was won by Dane Howe, B 200 winner was YZ pilot Robbie Webb, Shane Czelazewicz took the B 250 honors and in B Open Ethan Benoit topped Zach Girard.

Senior A saw Justin Tucker motor his Kawasaki to his first ever class win with the double, Junior B was a double moto win as well for Trail Jesters Jiggs Fustini, B Vet win was secured by Brian Hopkins in a repeat performance of Round 2 and Larson Schultz took the top spot in B Senior.

The Vet A class saw a first time winner in the name of BJ Lanigan who once was a pretty fast MX guy who proved to be a Second Moto Man and has found a home here in the off road world at J DAY. Funny thing is BJ almost didn’t go out for his second moto but sure is glad he did as he can now tease the Kaw Boy a wee bit. 

In the hotly contested A 250 class Ronnie’s Cycles of Bennington sponsored Van Gosselin took both motos at the historic track, while Jacob Pacheco took the A 200 class on his Dunkin Donuts KTM and Grady Hall on his Gas Gas completed the weekend sweep of the A Open class.

Terrific weather topped off with memorable racing at the Hallowed Halls of Moto Cross Racing UNADILLA the World famous race track in up state New York where we held the first VURBADILLA and lived to tell about it.

It feels so good to be there with all the special moments and memories and a chance to make more. Chris Canning came away with the points lead in the PRO Class and a renewed spark. Branden Gregoire, Gavin Simon and Brayden Nolette the upstarts proved they can contend for the 2023 FOX Racing J DAY Off Road title and veterans Williams, Johnson and Smith believe the old addage “ this is J DAY Off Road and Anything Can Happen “ and will Press On Regardless in their quest for the Champions spoils. They all better hope that Gregoire didn’t start the fire that will see them all burn if Canning gets on a roll. 

In two weeks time we will see you in Huntington Massachusetts for the Dozer Memorial and until then this is JJ Saying “ See You at the Next J DAY “