About Time!

St. Thomas
August 16th was a big day for dirt biking in Canada. It was the last day of the Walton Trans Can race, the big to-do for all the CMRC moto-heads. But even more near and dear to our hearts, August 16th was the day the man who would be king, the two time runner up in the CMA Hare Scramble series, finally got what he came for. After opening up the gap in Oshweeken on second seated Chris Van Hove, Wojo pushed harder, while Hooter was forced back by more bike trouble. When the mud and dust had settled, it was final: with one race left, Wojo was Champion. After chasing the #1 plate for three years, Wojo finally had it. Congratulations, Wojo! I don’t think anyone has worked as consistently hard for that plate; you earned it, buddy!
But before we go deeper into the Pro race, as there was as much drama as in any other Pro class, let’s start from the beginning.
St. Thomas is a beautiful track, known for its valleys and multiple water crossings. Put on by the Lynn Valley Dirt Riders, the event was well organized, as always, and fun for both competitors and spectators. I am constantly amazed by the number of people, the growing number of people, who stay to watch the Pros and afternoon classes. It shows that the support is there, and that you, as spectators and fans of the sport, are proud of the level of riding that we have here in Ontario. Our riders are trying to step it up, those who participated in the WEC were woken up when they faced the best from the West.
The day opened up, as most do, with the youth classes. For the Mini Junior class, Jordan Fisher, who has been sitting in first for some time now, collected another win at St. Thomas giving him a whopping twenty-point lead over second place Braden Butcher. Porsche Reynolds, of Cookstown, Ontario, made it a team Green podium by putting the #552 Kawi up next to the #540 and #566s of second and first. In Mini Senior Nathan Playford, no stranger to the podium, finally climbed his way to the top of the box on his #577 KTM. The orange rider has had two second place finishes and a third, but in St. Thomas finally made his way to first place, followed by brothers Tyler and Ryan Maenz of Thorton Ontario. Tyler took home second aboard his #594 Kawasaki, while #555 Ryan rode his Honda to a solid third.
Ainsley Farr is your 2009 CMA Ladies Champion! The only female rider to score points at every round, that hard working woman has put herself a full forty points in front of second place Kate Knight with a second place at St. Thomas. On top of the podium was local lady Renee Freeman, of Ruthven, Ontario. Rachel Comiskey took home third place and ten points for her efforts.
Novice A was a bit of an upset, with Chris Culbert-Castelo taking the win, with points leader Jesse Grummett coming in second. In the Youth class last year these two riders rode hard against each other, and I guess they aren’t done battling yet. Culbert-Castelo will have to make the move to the afternoon program, however, if he wants to keep up with Grummett who will make the move at Wilberforce, this Sunday. Local boy Brett McBain, on the #737 Yamaha, took home third place.
In the Veteran class, Jim Clayton edged out Guido Knieling to lead the class by a slim four points. Clayton’s win stretched his lead over Knieling, who took home second place. Jeff Stephens, of Port Colborne, make it an all orange podium, with three KTMs up on the box. The Veterans, all plus 40, are a tough bunch of men who are still running with the young bulls.
Speaking of tough, older men, the Super Vet class, composed to 50+ year old riders, has been dominated by Brian Holloway, the Parry Sound native and Suzuki rider has put that yellow #617 up on the box more times than any other rider in the class, including the top spot at St. Thomas. Yamaha rider Steven Hard took home the second place finish, for third overall in the class, while Husaberg rider, Greg Bradnam, put that big euro bike in third place, for second overall.
Following the Veterans and Super Vets can be difficult, if you aren’t a Legend. Not only a Legend, but part of what might become a Legacy, David Cockayne put his #612 KTM up on the top of the box, yet again, leading his class with a monsterous 75 points. He has won five out of seven rounds. Brad Kitto took home a fourth second in a row, twelve points behind Cockayne.
Now, the morning vets are fast, and experienced riders, but when a Veteran wins his class, he gets bumped into the afternoon program, to the Vet Expert class. Roger Messier battled hard with Paul Andreatis all year for the #1 spot, and while Andreatis took home the win at St. Thomas on his Huskey, Messier’s mean, black KTM took the overall after finishing second. In third place, Dwayne Soper of London, Ontario, made it a total Euro podium, with that #371 KTM on the last podium position.
Speaking of dominators, Greg Filer made his last appearance at St. Thomas, taking home yet another first place trophy. As your 2009 CMA Intermediate champion Filer will race in the Expert class next year. Following him on the podium was Oshweeken’s top Intermediate rider Steven Bond, of Kitchener, Ontario. Steven Shaw, in Uxbridge, Ontario put his Yamaha back up on the podium for the first time since Barrie, with a third place finish.
The Millson/Jonker show continued once again, with Jonker being forced back into second after a triumphant, hard fought win in Oshweeken. Millson edged out the younger rider and took home another fifteen points, making him the first rider to push into the 100 point range, with 102 points after six wins and one second. Jonker is in second place with 79 points. Jason Griffeth, of Bowmanville, Ontario, took home the third place trophy at St. Thomas, and is seated in third place, a mere four points in front of Frank Cantin in fourth.
And... the Pros...
At St. Thomas Brian Wojnarowski did what he’s been trying to do since he moved into the Pro class four years ago. Brian “Wojo” Wojnarowski is your 2009 CMA Pro Hare Scramble Champion! With a win at St. Thomas, Wojo pushed himself out of the reach of second place in the standings Aaron Wilkins. Wilkins, one of only three Pros to get to the top spot of the box, had a rough run at St. Thomas and finished just inside the points, receiving only three points. Third in the points standing, Kevin Cockayne took home third place behind Mister Mike Vandenhoek. Vandenhoek finally got that mellow yellow Suzuki on the podium after a season filled with DNFs, bike trouble and bad luck.
With one race left, Wilberforce this weekend, the Pro class looks like this:
Brian Wojnarowski – 79
Aaron Wilkins – 63
Kevin Cockayne – 51
Chris Van Hove – 47
Tyler Linton – 41
Dustin Heacock – 38
Jeff Pillon – 26
Chad Burford – 21
Mike Vandenhoek – 19
Bryan Marshall – 16
Michael Bond – 15
Jake Stapleton – 15
Tim McIntosh – 11
Trevor Hall – 6
Tom Farr – 3
Jonathan Ryan – 2
Brandon Lawson – 1

Nick Barker, OCMC rider and Wilberforce organizer, has put lots of work into the Wilberforce course, so I encourage everyone to come out and give it a run, and congratulations to the champions who’ve been decided already, and good luck to those titles still in contention!
As always, photos are available here. I will be selling calendars for pre order at the race at Wilberforce; come up and see me (in the red IMX shirt) to take a look at the promo copy and to order your very own copy of the 2010 Pro calendar, $25/each.
See you in the woods!