If Jess Pettis were to look back on his career racing dirt bikes at Blackwater Motocross Park, no doubt he would see a checkered past.
That's the type of flag they wave at you when you cross the finish line first. If he kept all those trophies he won on display, the 20-year-old Prince George rider would need an awfully big shelf.
But Pettis has never had the opportunity to race with the big boys of motocross on his home track. That's because he outgrew the regional circuits and graduated to the pro ranks, which until this year did not include Blackwater as one of the stops. That drought will end this weekend when the Rockstar Energy Drink MX National Series comes to Prince George for the first time.
"I'm really pumped, it's super good to have the hometown crowd, it's good for the city and everyone, there aren't lot of big events like this," said Pettis, now in his third full season racing the pro national circuit.
"Compared to a local races it's going to be huge. There's going to be thousands of people and tons of campers, Rockstar girls, all the big vendors, and all the best riders in Canada and a lot of the best from the States. Just to see some of the best guys in the world like Kristophe Pourcel and Mike Alesi race on my home track is pretty cool to see. It brings the sport up and makes it so we've got to be on on our toes."
Last weekend at the series-opener at Whispering Pines in Kamoops, Pettis blazed a trail to a second-place finish in his first MX2 moto, was fifth in his second moto and placed fourth overall. Shawn Maffenbeier of Swift Current, Sask., won both races.
"That went pretty good, the first race went awesome, I got a good start and was able to get second, my best moto result in pro nationals," said Pettis, who finished fifth overall in the MX2 series in 2016. "The second one I got not a great start and went down about halfway through but fought back to fifth, so I'm pretty happy with it."
Pettis has had a few days to practice on his home course and he's noticed quite an improvement in the quality of the dirt on the trails at Blackwater after volunteers from the Prince George Motocross Club dumped 100 truckloads of sand on top of the clay surface. That should eliminate the rock-hard or mudbog conditions that have plagued the course in years past.
"The track is so much better, it's not even funny, it's going to be a good race track," said Pettis, who rides with the MX101 FXR Yamaha team. "They've got lot of sand so it's going to mix in good (with the clay) and they can't overwater it, whereas before that was the big issue.
"It going to be an advantage because I've ridden the track a lot but it's completely different from what it has been with all the sand and new lines and it's going to be a lot rougher than any local race," he said. "There's so many good pros and they make it a lot rougher."
Prince George picked up the Nanaimo stop on the MX National tour for a minimum three-year term. For fans who have never seen a pro race before with 40 riders lined up in the start gate, Pettis promises they are in for an exciting treat watching that many riders gun their engines for the narrow hole shot.
Pro races last 30 minutes and Pettis has had four months of riding in California to get his body ready for the punishment. He trained in Menifee, Calif., with motocross coach Kevin Urquhart. Pettis took some time off in December after he hurt his shoulder on his way to winning the Future West arenacross circuit. The injury spoiled his plan to enter the supercross series but he's since made a full recovery and is ready for his homecoming.
"Obviously there is pressure but I deal with that every weekend, so I'll just treat it as a normal weekend and go and race and do the best I can," Pettis said.
Pettis will have some Prince George company to race with - Jonah Brittons, Hayden Wolff, Nolan Da Silva, Jake Joes, Bailey Garrison, and Phillip Dillman all all entered in the MX2 class. Brittons, a rookie on the MX2 national circuit, was 18th and 31st in his Kamloops motos and placed 23rd.
In the MX1 (450cc) pro class, Pourcel, a native of Marseille, France, was the big winner in Kamloops, posting first- and third-place finishes to win the overall title.
Today's schedule includes all amateur classes and the women's pro class. Racing goes from 9 a.m. - 5 p.m. The pro/intermediate races Sunday start with practice and qualifying heats in the morning starting at 8 a.m. MX2 motos start at noon and 2:30 p.m. and the MX1 (450cc class) pro motos are at 1:20 and 3:55 p.m.
Blackwater is located about 30 kilometres southwest of Prince George at 28100 Blackwater Rd.
