Jess Pettis's domination was so great a broken clutch couldn't stop him.
The 14-year-old Prince George motocross rider easily finished first in the super mini motocross event at the 2011 Parts Canada TransCan amateur national championship in Walton, Ont., last weekend.
"I got off to a lot of good starts and didn't have to worry about much, going through the pack," said Pettis.
In the three-day competition, Pettis placed first on the second and third day after battling back from dead last on the first day, when his clutch failed him, to finish fifth out of 42 racers.
Along with the first-place finish in the super-mini class, Pettis finished second to rival Westen Wrozyna in the 80 cc (12 to 16) class and 10th in the schoolboy (12 to 16) class.
"We're pretty much battling every race," said Jess about Wrozyna. "It helps push me because it's the same speed of rider."
Doug Pettis, Jess' dad, said it was thrilling to watch the two boys fight it out on the course.
"It was pretty exciting, because Jess caught him in the last lap and was going to make a nice clean pass and Westen went right across five rucks and cleaned Jess out," said Doug. "That's racing.
"He wants to win just as bad as Jess and they were going for it all the time."
In the schoolboy class, Jess finished 10th, ahead of his Ontario rival by six places.
Jess was also named the most improved rider from last year, and won $1,000, which both he and Doug credit to the extra training he had in the winter and to spending time at a pro track in Ontario in the weeks leading up to the race.
"We came down a week before the race and trained with a top pro at his motocross park and got conditioned with the humidity, which is really tough for Jess, because these guys ride in it all the time and we're so dry and cold [at home]," said Doug. "It takes Jess a couple days to get used to the track here."
They also spent six weeks in Texas in March where Jess worked with a trainer. But, Wrozyna spent all winter in Florida, working on improving his technique and speed.
"We get a bit faster and he gets faster," said Doug.
In 2010, Jess battled for sixth place and finished third overall in one class.
"This year he was just way more consistent and smooth and finished his super mini 21 seconds ahead of the pack," said Doug. "He dominated that class severely."
The week long motocross race in Walton is the biggest race for amateurs in Canada.
