The U.S. series stopped in Elk River, Minnesota, on March 11 and 12 with two days of racing at ERX Motor Park.
It is necessary to recognize that the championship of snocross AMSOIL went to extremes the past two weekends. A week after a trip to Deadwood, S.D., which featured the smallest and narrowest track in the sixteen-race series, competitors were greeted by the largest and widest track of the season at Elk River at ERX Motor Park.
This track is familiar to most racers who compete in the series. But the great layout that was unveiled for this weekend’s action was a masterful mix of big air and multiple racing lines, ideal for giving the world’s best snocross racers a run for their money.
In the Pro category, on Friday, the predictions were in favor of Hunter Patenaude, who was the first qualifier. He also took the lead after the first turn. He maintained this lead until the very end of the race. But three minutes before the finish, his snowmobile seemed to lose power and his speed dropped. Emil Harr and Elias Ishoel were fighting for second place. With Patenaude pulling back, Ishoel took over and won by over four seconds and his fourth career ERX victory.
And Francis Pelletier, our Quebec Pro from Warnert Racing? He made a great start, but found himself in fourth place during the race. He stayed in contact with the top three. When Patenaude stalled, Francis Pelletier continued to close the gap on Harr. It wasn’t enough, but the Saint-Félicien driver was on the third step of the podium.
“We had the Speedwerx-tuned machine ripping up the start right away,” said Pelletier. “I kept pushing until the end, you know sometimes there are races like that. So we’re going to take this finish as a positive and be really happy about it.”
On Saturday, Adam Peterson took the holeshot in the Pro feature, but Patenaude found the inside line and passed the rookie. From there, Patenaude used the big, wide track to his advantage. He rode without pressure to take a lead of more than ten seconds and light the fire for the win. Behind him, Peterson was the most aggressive, but a mechanical problem put him out of the race. It was a chance for Francis Pelletier and Daniel Benham who exchanged positions throughout the race. The latter managed to escape to take the second position. The Quebec driver had to hold off Kyle Pallin who was trying every maneuver to get ahead of him.
Pelletier did not give in to the pressure and used all his offensive driving skills to fend off the attacks of the Polaris driver. His efforts paid off and he took third place on the podium.
“I was just trying to get around one more time,” Pelletier said after the race. “I knew Pallin was behind me, but I also put pressure on Benham. I just secured third place (of the weekend), and that’s good for me. I was feeling good tonight.”
Francis Pelletier leaves Elk River in fourth place in the provisional standings, only 6 points behind Harr who is third. Anything is still possible!
At the start of the Pro Lite feature on Friday night, the ERX track looked like a rodeo as several riders were thrown from their machines on the first lap, like cowboys on an excited bull. The holeshot author, Leo Patenaude, did not escape the ejection. This was good news for Jordan Lebel and Marcus Ogemar. The latter had taken the lead in the race. On his side, the Quebec driver of Warnert Racing started with a strong handicap. He had only been able to obtain an eighth place in one of his qualifying races, and he started from the last row for this Friday’s final. He took off very strong on his Ski-Doo and he nuked the field with a well negotiated inside line. After the first lap, he was already in fifth place. Four minutes later, he passed Anson Scheele and was second, chasing Ogemar.
The elder Lebels tried everything to take the victory, especially in the last two laps. He even pushed the back of Ogemar’s Ski-Doo. But Ogemar held on, took the right trajectories and resisted the pressure to take his first podium in 3 years. Jordan Lebel crossed the finish line two seconds later in second place. He said, “We had a mechanical problem in the first heat, so I had to go through the LCQ to qualify. “I just wanted to get a good start and I came out of the corner like fifth. Marcus was really fast tonight, and I couldn’t find a faster line than him.”
Théo Poirier, from Sayabec, Alberta, was in eighth place.
On Saturday, Jordan Lebel showed his ease in the jumps to dominate the game.
It was Ryley Bester who took the lead. Camryn Anderson passed him in turn. The Chicoutimi driver was on the lookout, a bit behind. He was waiting for his time. When the big triple jumps came, Jordan Lebel took off and passed everyone. He set off the lights to win for the eighth time in twelve rounds.
“I was good at the start,” said Lebel. “I was in the top five and I just knew where I was going to go because I had gotten my bearings by running the track before. I just followed my plan, made some passes early in the race and just held my line after that.”
Jordan Lebel is a solid leader in the provisional standings with a 50 point lead over second place Nickolas Lorenz.
Theo Poirier started in fourth position, and he hung on until the end to get a nice fourth place.
In the Pro-Women category, Naëli Lebel, the female member of the Lebel Racing team, showed great consistency. She took fourth place in the finals on Friday and Saturday. This is very encouraging for the Quebec women’s hopeful, who is gaining experience for the years to come.
In the Pro-Am 30 Plus, Frederick Godcher of Shawinigan placed 9th in the only race on Saturday.
Transition 9-13: Dylan Lebel began to follow in his brother Jordan’s footsteps. He won his second consecutive race on the weekend, winning by almost seven seconds. A feat that he did not repeat on Saturday by taking tenth place. But he was very busy on Saturday with the other category he competed in, the JR 10-13. He took the third step on the podium. This is a good exercise to gain experience to continue to make the Lebel name shine in the future.
Only two race weekends remain on the AMSOIL 2022 Snocross Championship schedule. The series will travel to the Grand Geneva Resort & Spa in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, for three days of racing. The action begins on Friday, March 18 and concludes with the AMSOIL Dominator race on Sunday, March 20. The AMSOIL Snocross Championship broadcasts all rounds live on FloRacing and CBS Sports Network.
