McThoughts: Women’s East Nationals Round 2
By Jeff McConkey
This week’s photo coverage is brought to you by Nihilo Concepts.
Round 2 of the Women’s East National Series went off on Saturday at the fast, fun, flowing Sand Del Lee racetrack in Richmond, Ontario. Earlier in the week, we were informed that fast American Brittany Gagne was going to make the trip north from her home in Montana. That was pleasant news as we were all hoping someone could show our young champion Eve Brodeur a wheel. Unfortunately, a pair of really bad starts never allowed the super-fast American a chance to run with our French Canadian Champion.
It was a fantastic turnout for the 2nd round as 37 racers signed up, which is a great sign for the future of Women’s Motocross in Canada. As fast as the front runners are, it’s really great to see how there are battles throughout the entire pack and nobody is riding alone. The series now takes a two week break before heading further East to Ulverton, Quebec, for the 3rd and final round. Word is that Brittany Gagne will make the long trip to Quebec, and with a good start, the aggressive American will do some serious damage. Let’s take a look at the top ten and see my thoughts.
Round 2 Sand Del Lee
1st Eve Brodeur (1-1) Eve got both holeshots and easily won both motos. She went down by herself in moto 1 allowing Allie Argue to close the gap, but her win was never in jeopardy. It’s really scary to think how good she is going to be, she is only 15 and is already head and shoulders above everyone else.
She’s doing it again, people. Can anyone step up to challenge young Eve Brodeur? – Bigwave photo
2nd Allie Argue (2-2) Allie had a lot of pressure on her going into her hometown race. I was worried it was going to get to her and she would struggle to stay on 2 wheels, but she fought hard both motos and rode great. She got a little out of shape a few times, but she was really on the gas.
3rd Brittany Gagne (3-3) Brittany had 2 horrible starts, but she muscled her way up to 3rd both motos. Her speed looked really good, and if she were to holeshot a moto in Ulverton, I think she could lead some laps and make it very interesting. I’m very glad to see a girl of Gagne’s calibre join the series.
3rd place finisher, Brittany Gagne, has booked her flights from Montana to Montreal. Can she challenge for wins at the final round in Ulverton? – Bigwave photo
4th Kim Normandin (4-4) Kim had a very solid day at SDL. I thought she had the speed to maybe battle with Argue a bit, but I think she could have been playing it smart and riding to secure 2nd overall for the series. I’m expecting Kim to be super-fast in 2 weeks at Ulverton.
5th Alexandra Raymond (6-6) Alexandra bounced back after a not-so-good round 1 at the Dunes. She got 2 decent starts and rode well all day long, and her Answer gear was on point like always.
#5 Alexandra Raymond grabbed 5th at Sand Del Lee. Make sure you listen to her and Brian Koster’s conversations on the podium. Great sound bites. – Bigwave photo
6th Madison Seguin (5-7) Madi finally got some better starts and looked really good on the 2-stroke KTM. She never looked out of control all day and should be inside the top 5 for Ulverton.
7th Nikki Voorhees (8-5) Nikki’s speed and starts really impressed me. She hit the dirt a few times, but never backed down. If she can up her fitness a bit and smooth out, she should be a podium girl every moto.
8th Cassandra Belanger (7-9) Belanger is a top 5 girl, and she is obviously not happy with her results. I really feel that with a good start and a good first lap she should be right there with Normandin and Argue. I’m sure she is busting her ass this week and she will come out swinging for the 3rd and final round.
#4 Cassandra Belanger had a rough week in Ottawa but will surely bounce back for the final round. – Bigwave photo
9th Kassie Boone (11-8) I was glad to see Kassie make the trip to Ottawa. I really expected her to be a front-runner. Let’s hope she makes the drive to Quebec to show us that badass style.
10th Abbrielle Tardelli (12-10) This poor girls starts have been awful this season. She really has the speed to be top 4 every moto. I’m sure she will be practicing starts for the next 2 weeks.
#3 Abby Tardelli was looking to better her number for 2016 but starts have been her Achilles heel. Let’s see if she can fix that for the long, uphill start straight in Ulverton.
Biggest Stud: The turnout is my stud. It was great to see that many girls. Pretty soon we are going to need qualifiers in the East. Good job, Ladies!
Biggest Dud: It’s really hard to pick a dud, but I’m going to go with poor Abbrielle Tardelli (sorry). She has the speed, style and the fitness, but damn, she’s making it hard on herself every moto with these starts. I’m just glad to see her smiling like always, and I’m sure she will turn it around for the final National.
Biggest Surprise: Young Kelcey Jones from the MMRS club really surprised me. She went 14-14 for 14th, and wasn’t intimidated by anyone. She worked hard all day long and was awarded with the Dunlop Hard Charger award. Congrats, Kelcey.
Thanks for reading and see you at Ulverton.
