Frid’eh Update #17 | Yanick Boucher | Presented by Husqvarna Motorcycles Canada
By Billy Rainford
Welcome to Week #17 of the DMX Frid’Eh Update this week presented by Husqvarna Motorcycles Canada. Yanick Boucher is the hard-working rider from the fairly remote town of Hearst, Ontario. Whenever I mention Yanick, I always make sure to point out where he lives because it’s just so impressive to me that someone can make it as far in our sport and be from somewhere so removed from high level racing. Growing up, any time he wanted to compete it involved a very long drive. Kudos to his family!
Yanick is one of our year-round racers who slaps on a snowbike kit and goes racing Snow BikeCross through the cold months up here in the north. He had another successful season in the snow and we were sure to talk about that in our conversation.
He always found himself in some of the best racing on the track last summer. There were always a good group of riders fighting for positions around him. It was fun to watch.
Here’s a look at his 2021 Canadian Triple Crown Series:
450 MX: 11th
450 SX: 6th
Direct Motocross: Hey, Yanick. As we always do, let’s go back to last season for a minute. You finished 11th in the 450 MX series last summer. You were one of the riders in a nice group fighting weekly. Can you sum up the MX portion for us?
Yanick Boucher: Hi, Billy. Yes, I had a good season last summer. Started off a little slow with my riding being a little off at round 1 but we made some adjustments and improved all throughout the season and got some good results to finish 11th overall. Pretty happy about it!
You also competed in the entire SX series too, finishing a very consistent 6th overall. How did you like that series at Gopher Dunes?
It was my first time doing the full SX series. I had a lot of fun learning Supercross and racing on the tighter tracks. My main focus was to have fun with it and not get hurt.
I don’t think you’re a rider who will be chasing AMA Supercross though, right? Or am I wrong about that?
That’s definitely something I would love to try and comes through my mind, but with my winters consumed by snowbikes it would be tough for me to find time to properly get ready and try an AMA Supercross event.
And then, you’re one of our top riders who has a serious full-time job up there in Hearst, Ontario. Did you get back to work after the series ended? And remind everyone what it is you do for a “living.”
Yes, when I go home between seasons I work as a licensed plumber and gas technician for the family business. After the last Supercross event I went home and got busy installing heating systems as the cold weather was coming.
But then you’re also one of the riders who somehow doesn’t have an “off season” because you race Snow Bikecross. How do you make time for all of this?
Right?! Haha It’s more of a work and prep season for me. Between work and getting everything ready for the next season it’s definitely pretty busy! But I seem to enjoy always being on the go.
You landed on the podium in the Amsoil series and were in a tight battle with fellow Canadian Troy Horbaty from Manitoba. Can you take us through that series? Highlights? Lowlights?
Yes, I definitely had a good time racing Snowbikes south of the border this past winter. Definitely had a lot of mishaps and things not go my way at some of races which cost me valuable points in the championship. However, we got better towards the end of the series end ended up winning the final race which was definitely the highlight of my season!
How close were you to eventual series winner Jesse Kirchmeyer? How’s the competition these days?
Me, Jesse and Troy we’re all so close every round. We had many great battles all season long.
How much has that sport felt the effect of not being in the Winter X Games these past couple years?
I’d be lying if I said it hasn’t affected it. With X Games not having Motorsports last couple years the number of racers has gone down. Riders that usually use the race series as preparation for X Games don’t come out anymore.
Has there been talk that it will return and would that immediately become your main focus?
There’s always talk but nothing that is for sure. One thing that is for sure is the sport needs it and I would be pumped to go back to X Games and compete.
With our series going cost-to-coast again, finally, what are your racing plans this summer?
It’s really good to see the full series back on the schedule. Lots of driving to come but I’m excited to follow the series coast to coast this summer!
How long will you keep chasing this before you “settle down” and become a full-time working stiff?
That’s something I’m still not sure of. Haha. I have a lot of fun racing dirt and snow year round but I also really enjoy what I do for work so I look forward to chasing that when the time comes.
Will you do some pre-season racing before the Nationals start?
I plan on leaving the frozen grounds in Northern Ontario soon to head south and start riding on wheels again, but not sure about any races yet.
Well, good luck with everything, Yanick. See you in Kamloops! Who would you like to thank?
Thank you, Billy! I just got to give a big thank you to everyone for supporting me again this season getting me out to all the races: Bailey Motorsports, Husqvarna Motorcycles, Yeti SnowMx, Fly Racing, Motul, RMR Suspension, Hall Race Fuels, Renegade fuels, St.Onge Recreation, Boucher Plumbing, Goodale Marine, Flybyu Motorsports, Wallace, C3 Powersports, Rekluse, Flo Motorsports, 139 Designs, Scott, Atlas, Gaerne, Mobius, Seco seat cover.
As spring finally arrives across Canada, I can say this: I have now ridden more this year than I have in any year in the past couple decades. It’s sad but true. Sure, I’ve been able to ride some new bikes at some pretty cool tracks over the past few years, but I’ve never ridden this often. More sad news…I’ve only ridden 4 times so far this spring and it’s a new record.
You always hear people “in the industry” say they simply don’t have time to actually ride. I definitely thought I fell into that category. However, I now realize that I just have to make a slight adjustment to my daily schedule and get out there and ride, and it’s been a blast.
A major factor in elevating my motivation is the fact that my old “mechanic” Cary Hitchen has gotten himself a bike and is keen to get out as often as he can. As a line in Family Ties went: “He’s going solo and I’m going with him.” That line always makes me laugh. Anyone remember it? No?
Anyway, it’s been a blast getting reacquainted with my old friend and getting out to the tracks in the area. And it turns out we are very fortunate in the London area. We’ve got a lot of tracks to ride all within an hour of my door.
I’m sure I’m going to miss some but we’ve got The Pit, Gore Road MX, Swiona, GullyMor, The 15, Compound 138, Vision Built, Gopher Dunes, Walton Raceway, Auburn, plus a whole slew of private places. I guess there’s really no reason to complain in these parts.
Big thanks to Mike Judge for having us out to his farm just east of London on Thursday after work.
Canadian Triple Crown Riders and Teams
We’re now only just over a month away from the start of the 2022 Canadian Triple Crown Series MX Nationals. They will fire up at Whispering Pines in Kamloops, BC on May 5th. We may not have all the finalized team listings, but we’ve got a pretty good idea where almost all of our top riders will be and what the major teams will be doing. Let’s have a look:
250 Class
| NAME | TEAM | |
| 1 | Darien Sanayei | Not returning to Canada |
| 2 | Jake Piccolo | Red Bull Thor KTM (Full) |
| 3 | Tanner Ward | 450 – Thor Kawasaki Pro Circuit (Full) |
| 4 | Marco Cannella | MX101 FXR Yamaha (Full) |
| 5 | Ryder McNabb | GDR Honda Fox (Full) |
| 6 | Julien Benek | Partzilla PRMX (Leg) (Full) |
| 7 | Sam Gaynor | 450 – SSR TLD GasGas (Wrist) (Full) |
| 8 | Daniel Elmore | 450 – Cycle North Honda (Full) |
| 9 | Quinn Amyotte | Manluk Rock River Fox Yamaha (Full) |
| 10 | Tyler Gibbs | SSR TLD GasGas (Full) |
| 11 | Jamie Powell | MX101 FXR Yamaha Support (Full) |
| 12 | Guillaume St Cyr | Junior Mecanique Plus Peak KTM (Select east rounds) |
| 13 | Davey Fraser | 450 – (Select rounds) |
| 14 | Sebastien Racine | Red Bull Thor KTM (Full) |
| 15 | William Crete | (Select rounds) |
| 16 | Jeremy McKie | Fox Oakley SMX (Full) |
| 17 | Wyatt Kerr | Guaranteed Comfort OGs Hudson (Full) |
| 18 | Seth Hughes | True North Motorsposrts Fox (Full) |
| 19 | Preston Masciangelo | Hudson Kawasaki (East rounds) |
| 20 | Zach Ufimzef | Valley Motorsport Fox KTM (Full) |
MVP Racing (Al Dyck) – Marcus Deausy, Blake Ashley (Georgia)
Cobequid Callus GasGas – Mitchell Harrison (Michigan)
450 Class
| NAME | TEAM | |
| 1 | Cole Thompson | (Local rounds) |
| 2 | Marshal Weltin | Not returning to Canada |
| 3 | Dylan Wright | GDR Honda Fox (Full) |
| 4 | Jess Pettis | Red Bull Thor KTM (Full) |
| 5 | Parker Eales | Holeshot Carlson KTM (Full) |
| 6 | Tyler Medaglia | Cobequid Callus GasGas (Full) |
| 7 | Yanick Boucher | Bailey Motorsports Huaqvarna (Full) |
| 8 | Ryan Derry | Welders Helper TLD Honda (Full) |
| 9 | Liam O’Farrell | Priority FXR KTM (Local rounds) |
| 10 | Shawn Maffenbeier | MX101 FXR Yamaha (Full) |
| 11 | Tommy Dallaire | CarrXpert Fox Oakley (Full) |
| 12 | Tim Tremblay | (Local rounds) |
| 13 | Westen Wrozyna | MX101 FXR Yamaha (Full) |
| 14 | Davey Fraser | Carlson Callus Husqvarna (Select rounds) |
| 15 | Casey Keast | Not racing |
| 16 | Keylan Meston | (Local rounds) |
| 17 | Ethan Ouellette | Cycle North Honda (Full) |
| 18 | Taylor Ciampichini | (Local rounds) |
| 19 | Max Filipek | Safeguard TLD OGs (East rounds) |
| 20 | Donny Turner | (Local rounds) |
Manluk Yamaha – #61 Tea Perrott
Partzilla PRMX – Justin Rodbell and more to come…
RYAN DUNGEY SET TO RACE OPENING ROUNDS OF AMA PRO MOTOCROSS SERIES THIS SUMMER
The Red Bull KTM Factory Racing team is excited to announce that nine-time AMA Supercross and Motocross Champion Ryan Dungey will line up at the first two rounds of the 50th Anniversary of the AMA Pro Motocross Championship, beginning next month in California.
Dungey will race alongside the Red Bull KTM Factory Racing team in the 450MX class at the Fox Raceway National at Pala season-opener on May 28, as well as the Hangtown Motocross Classic in Sacramento on June 4. After stepping away from professional racing in 2017 as one of the most decorated riders in the sport, the 32-year-old will return to the starting gate READY TO RACE with the iconic #5 proudly displayed aboard his all-new KTM 450 SX-F FACTORY EDITION.
Ryan Dungey: “I’m really excited about the opportunity to race the first couple rounds of the outdoors for Red Bull KTM. I’ve had a lot of success with KTM in my most recent years of racing and it’s exciting to go back and race for the same team with a lot of great personnel. I have a lot of trust with the team, which breeds confidence sitting on the line knowing I have good people behind me and we’ve got a great dirtbike underneath us. This is a stacked class and it’s been a long time since I’ve been on the line with them but I’m excited to be back on the gate. I’ve got a lot of respect for the sport and the riders, so I don’t go into this underestimating anybody. I’m excited to just be out there racing with everybody and see what we can do.”
Ian Harrison, Red Bull KTM Team Manager: “We couldn’t be more excited to have Ryan joining us for the first two rounds of the AMA Pro Motocross Championship. He’s a world-class rider who has obviously achieved many great successes throughout his career and it’s great to see him having so much fun riding the bike. Ryan is a true competitor at heart so we are happy to support his desire to line up on the gate this summer and we look forward to seeing what he can do.”
Delaware Back on the Triple Crown Supercross Schedule
You won’t get any arguments from me with Delaware back on the Supercross schedule for this coming SX season. Delaware Speedway sits just a short few minutes southwest of London and we’ll be there September 2-3 for some AX/SX.
Now we just need to sort out a stadium race!
SUPERCROSS
Round 9 – Delaware, ON – Sept 2 /22
Round 10 – Delaware, ON – Sept 3 /22
Round 11 – TBA
Monster Energy Supercross
Have a great weekend, everyone.
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