BROUGHT TO YOU BY MOTO TASSINARI

MOTO TASSINARI IS THE PREMIER MANUFACTURER OF PERFORMANCE ENHANCING REED VALVES

CANNING REIGNS IN RETURN AT CROW HILL

Chris Canning returned to the FOX Racing J Day Off Road Championship after his successful quest in the U.S. MX Nationals and picked up right where he left off with a double moto win and a convincing Overall win. My final statement on the Round 11 podium was “Great for the fans but bad for his competitors Chris Canning Loves J Day and he’ll be back “. This statement is one that all the PRO riders must take to heart as Canning is more than a notch above the fields’ speed and it will take major upping of their game to compete with Canning who seems intent on a Championship run in 2023. Some can come close to his speed for a lap or two but to do it for the entire 30 minutes seems an outside chance at best. The racer who scored second Overall at Round 11 the LOUD Fuel Company GP is Justin Cokinos who is a student of Canning’s MX School and has learned his lessons well as he continues to ride the wheels off the small bore 2 stroke 125cc KTM. Question is will we see the rest of the PRO field signed up for Chris Canning courses in the future ??

Simon Johnson kept a tight grip on his Championship points lead as his nearest competitor Cody Williams had a strong first moto but succumbed to the extremely difficult Kurt Caselli Hill, that was trouble for all but a few today, in Moto 2 to finish 6th Overall and though he lost a few points today still has a very real chance to win the title with four rounds to go.

The day started overcast and warm and the MX track was groomed to perfection by the Marshall family and the Off Road and FMF Extreme section beautifully layed out by the J Day crew. The facility is always a pleasure to visit as it is far and away the nicest in New England and the pride of Rick and Roseanne Marshall and we thank you.

The Kenda Tires Pee Wee Challenge started their 40 minute moto on the best course they have seen in all of 2022 and possibly ever, running all of the MX track and with a woods section that included up and down hills and what I like to call the jump-o-cross which was a section in the woods littered with jumps in the trees with a nice wide path around said jumps if one was so inclined. It was FUN !!! Tony Pacella who is quickly becoming a J Day regular took his Husqvarna to yet another Overall and Senior class win followed by Tucker Aldrich and DJ Leblanc. Pee Wee Squirt was all Dylan Carlson on his KTM, the Bantam division went to Destry Tucker on his KTM , the Trailrider division was won by Coleston Swift and the Pee Wee Girls division was again Audrina Anello on her Gas Gas.

The Youth Overall was won again by Ryan Amancio on his Factory supported KTM followed by Trail Jesters team riders Van Gosselin and Jiggs Fustini on their KTMs all on Super Minis. Kamden Krause was a surprise winner in Mini A on his KTM with a double moto win, Chris Artegian took his Husqvarna to victory in Mini B, Anthony Natale took a 1-1 score to the top of Mini C on his KTM and Madison Kazimir, an accomplished MXer but a new comer to J Day, took both motos for the Overall in the Girls class.

The C Class was up next and another accomplished MXer Kawan Matiola took both motos and won the Overall and the 250 class. The 3 top riders in the C Class were all from the 250 class and all on KTM motorcycles as Nate Cady and Owen Pouliot rounded out the podium. 

The Womens PRO class had some exciting racing and it was Womens Amateur rider Melony Pickard who made it so. Melony would take her KTM to victory in the Amateur division and chase Womens PRO winner Ruby Fustini right down to the finish line in the second moto. Fustini would experience bike troubles in her 1st Junior B moto and switch to a friends’ borrowed KTM  to bring home the win in moto 2. Taylor Johnston took her Trail Jesters KTM to second in Womens PRO and Haley Bourdon would stand on the 3rd step of the Podium riding a solid race on her Husqvarna.

Super Senior winner was again Nate Martel who won both motos outright on his Yamaha, while the Masters class went to former NETRA Champion Pete Leonard on a KTM. C Vet winner was Jeff Hunt on a KTM and C Senior saw Gilbert Marquez take his 2-1 moto scores to the Overall win aboard his KTM.

The PRO 125 class saw the return of Nate Smith who is definitely a certified tough guy as he continues to bounce back from some tough falls and injuries including his last heart stopper just 6 weeks ago at Hemonds. Smith would lead early in the 1st moto but fall back to 4th by motos end and not be a factor for the overall win today. After a brief time battling into the lead with Chris Canning who would hit a tree early and retire from the PRO 125 race, this class was all the Justin Cokinos Show as he tore around the Crow Hill circuit on his Factory Connection KTM and laid the class to waste in both go rounds. Nick Kordana on his Edelmans KTM was second Overall and Aaron Zielfelder took his Facory Connection / Bullit Racing KTM to the 3rd rung of the rostrum. Chase Gosselin and JD Mele on his Cliff’s Cycle KTM rounded out the top 5. 

Today I dedicated the races to Cliff Frazee Sr who was the owner of Cliff’s Cycle in Norfolk, MA who passed away recently. Cliff was a great guy and a friend to many off road motorcycle enthusiasts and a guy who gave many a successful racer their start including the New England hero Tommy Norton and former NETRA Champion Neil Dennett who still works at the shop. Cliff was also a heck of a rider and gained Expert status in NESC MX. Godspeed my friend.

As always the A Vet class had some great racing with no clear cut dominant rider. The Overall was won by former PRO rider Matt Obuchon out of Rhode Island on a KTM going 1-3 to beat Kawboy Clint Angwin on the HK Powersports entry who went 4-1. It’s good to see Matt back at J Day after a long stretch off. Senior A winner was Leo Silva with a consistent 2-2, while Julio Lubiana continues to crush the B Vet class and Thiago Matiola did the same to the B Senior class. Making it almost a clean sweep of this race for Team Brazil was the youngest member of the team but also the most dominant as Ryan Amancio came from the second starting line giving a one minute advantage to claim Overall victory in both motos and win the Junior B class by a large distance, Impressive !!!!

PRO Vet class winner was Todd Levesque and the A Overall win went to Jake Cady as well as the A 250 win. A Open winner was Tyler Riendeau and A 200 went to Dan Desmarais as both riders kept their championship hopes alive.

The crowd was buzzing about Chris Canning’s return to J Day but it was another New England MX Legend, Jimmy Decotis who zoomed into the early lead on his Trail Jesters KTM and showed everyone the fast way around the MX track on the first lap. A win would not be in the cards for Decotis today but his improvement at Off Road racing, where he has very little experience, comes in leaps and bounds and if on the right day on the right bike a win is possible in the future. Decotis raised the crowd to their feet in moto 2 on the last lap as he entered the MX track about 20 seconds off fourth place rider Gavin Simon. He had this annoncer so worked up due to the fact he caught Simon and battled him in the woods to make the pass stick and bring it home in 4th for the moto but a DNF in moto 1 would only give him 24th overall and keep him from gaining any points in the J Day structure. Still an impressive ride from a hero to many in New England and one heck of a nice guy who has fans all around the world.

Canning would grab the lead in the woods and lead every lap of both motos and to watch him ride a motorcycle you know he is a great teacher because you can see the intense concentration and the basic fundamentals executed on every turn, straightaway, jump and obstacle. It is a joy to watch him ride and a pleasure to talk with him in the pits and on the podium. After the race on the Evans Coolant podium I asked Chris what his favorite part of the track was and his reply was shocking enough to have the follow up question that after his first J Day experience would he ever think he would say the “ FMF Extreme Section “ ??? He has grown to excell in the challenge as he always has and has learned to conquer and enjoy even the most difficult aspects of the off road form of motorcycle racing. That my friends is why he is a 19 time NESC Champion and why when he decides to ride a full season will prevail in his pursuit of  a FOX Racing J Day Championship. 

Second overall went to Justin Cokinos on his 125 KTM and a more impressive ride we have only seen from the youngster himself as he continues to ride the wheels off the small bore bike against the other bikes that are double the engine size or more. Justin has learned his lessons well from his early teacher Jo Jo Keller and now Chris Canning, who he is gaining traction on. Unfortunately J Day fans won’t see much of Cokinos in 2023 has he embarks on a professional SX and MX career that got started earlier this summer. We wish you all the luck my young friend.

On the third step of the podium stood Championship points leader Simon Johnson on his Trail Jesters KTM. He put in some very consistent laps and beat his main championship rival Cody Williams who would follow Canning home in the first moto but even though many fans and officials tried to help him in the worst parts of the course Pizza Willy could not do better than 11th in moto 2 and 6th overall. Williams had just returned home from the UK where he represented the USA in the Vintage Vet MX des Nations at the world famous Farleigh Castle in England where he teamed with Keith Johnson, Tim Ferry and Brock Tickle. Though troubled with bike issues he was able to score a 2nd in one moto against some of the worlds’ best MX racers and contribute to the team. He might have been feeling a little jet lagged and overwhelmed by the once in a lifetime experience but rumor has it due to his impressive finish he has already been invited back for next years annual event. Simon Johnson was impressive with his maturity and comittment to his goal of the championship that has eluded him for the past few seasons and would go 3-3 for third overall and increase his points lead.

Rounding out the top 5 overall were Gavin Simon who still has a slim chance at the title and Nick Kordana with both riders on Edelmans sponsored equipment. Sixth was Williams, 7th overall went to Nate Smith with Brandon Gregoire, Alex Higley, who continues his improvement weekly, and Nick Casey rounding out the top 10. 

Great racing at a beautiful facility on the last weekend of summer has us on the edge of our seat waiting for several championship battles to be decided in the next four races. On to the sands of Rumney NH in two weeks at the Sand Box and I will see you there my friends.

Until nex time this is JJ saying “ See You at the Next J DAY “