The Grunthal Motocross (GMX) Race Weekend is quickly approaching, an event the team, riders, and fans are all highly anticipating.
The races start at 8:30am on Sunday, August 25 at the Grunthal Motocross track, with open practice for the riders on Saturday, August 24 from 10 to 3.
The races will be divided into two rounds – one in the morning and one in the afternoon – with riders from various classes hitting the track. A 1-hour intermission will take place around noon, where spectators can grab a meal from the two food trucks on site.
“There’s gonna be lots of noise, mud flying, bikes getting all kinds of sideways, and tons of next level speed,” said Jason Friesen from GMX. “Especially when you get to the pro class races – they really turn it up a notch for all the fans. It just gets everybody’s adrenaline going.”
To gear up the excitement for the races on Sunday, GMX will also be hosting Pit Bike Racing on Saturday evening.
“So we built a small motocross track designed for small trail bikes,” said Aaron Toews, also from GMX. “We started it as a way to keep the kids – and adults – entertained during practice hours, but it’s turned into a really exciting experience.”
Jason added, “We have kids and adults riding these small bikes, doing small jumps on the tight tracks, so it’s lots of bar banging action, crashing, and guys flying off the track. It’s super cool to see.”
The Pit Bike Races are free to attend, and there is no cost to participate. Just sign up online, bring your bike and gear, and get ready to have fun! Prizes will also be available for the winners.
Looking forward to the August races, Jason spoke on the community’s growing support of the GMX track, and motocross as a sport in general.
“The GMX track has opened every single week this year for an opened, prepped practice,” he said. “And we’re getting more and more riders come in that have never ridden on a track before, or even seen a track, but have heard about it through friends, family, or radio ads. And it’s great to see more people get into the sport, including new fans. This year during our May Race Weekend, we had over 1300 spectators, which was just incredible.”
Aaron and Jason gave a basic explanation of how the races work for fans and riders who may be new to the experience.
“Different classes do different races,” says Aaron. “For example, younger riders only riding a 50CC bike – that’s the smallest bike you can race – will only have one race for their class. So they’ll race in moto 1, the morning half, and again in moto 2, the afternoon half. Then, the two races are averaged together at the end to give the overall score for the day.”
He continued, “For higher level classes, there will be up to three classes they can race in, meaning they’ll do six races in total.”
Jason added, “The majority of the races are 12 minutes plus one last lap. The pro riders get 16 minutes plus one last lap. So, at the end of the allotted time, a white flag will wave at the finish line, signaling the riders to finish their last lap.”
Both Aaron and Jason are long-time motocross riders. Aaron has been riding most of his life:
“since I was about three or four, and I’m 30 now,” he said. And Jason has been racing on and off for around 7 years, since he was 15.
“Once you start, it’s hard to quit,” said Jason. “You start accomplishing more and more, like the jumps becoming easier, corners faster, lap times quicker… it’s almost an addiction. Once you have the passion for it, it stays with you for a lifetime.”
“The adrenaline is really high,” added Aaron. “There’s a lot of risk, for sure, but there’s also such a high personal reward.”
There’s a ton of fun to look forward to during the GMX Race Weekend, August 24 and 25. Tickets for Sunday, August 25 will be at the entrance -- $15 for ages 13+, $5 for ages 5-12, and free for ages 4 and under.
More information is available online at www.GrunthalMX.com
