Has anyone noticed that, with three out of their top nine forwards missing, and led by classy Mats Sundin, the Maple Leafs have won 12 out of the last sixteen games to move into a playoff spot?

I spoke to the AMA about who decides which riders are privateers and they informed me that the OEMs give the AMA a list of guys that get factory support and that becomes the official list. Live Nation has nothing to do with it. I was told that Travis Preston was NOT a privateer, but on Live Nation’s website it has him in third in the privateer points.  Doesn’t it seem a little funny that the two organizations can’t get it straight? Should Preston be a privateer when he is on a team that gets funding direct from Honda and his bike is in the same truck as Kevin Windham’s? Look for an investigation from James Lissimore into this….

The intros of the riders have stepped up a bit and the videos for Stewie, CR and Ferry are funny and entertaining. Good to see Live Nation always looking for a way to do it better. They had Reed wake up in a hotel room and wheel his bike down an elevator while the song “down under” played. Stewie was eating breakfast out of a trophy and showering with his gear on. Ferry was walking a bulldog through the tunnels before riding out.

Ferry got a hot lap and asked me what he should do. I thought a one-hander would be appropriate. He thought so as well because he said that Stewart would do some “crazy balls” move that will make his whip look like crap.

Team Solitaire’s Brady Sheren ran as high as 10th in his heat. He didn’t get a great start in the LCQ and Houston … here we come!

This just in: Kyle “Ritchie” Cunnigham is a good rider, he has a bright future. Come to think of it, Matt Lemoine looks real good as well.

Wakeem Rodrigues debuted his Motosport Outlet Kawi ride and qualified for the main. Good to see the Portuguese Pirate out there, he always looks good on a bike.

Matt Lemoine was up front and looking good again. He passed Ryan Villopoto back at one point before getting cleaned out by Josh Hansen.

We all got real excited as FMF riders Josh “Cheech” Hansen and Jason “Chong” Lawrence were getting ready to race for position in the main—fireworks were going to ensue. It was not to be as Chong was on it and rode past Cheech and left him behind. No time for hi-jinks on this night.

After riding past Cheech, Chong just couldn’t have a non-eventful night. After passing Martin Davalos for third, he cut Davalos off going up the face of the triple. Davalos had to grab some brakes and he came up so short on the triple that his ancestors felt it.

After looking so good in Canada and also running up front at a few races, I was surprised to see that Martin Davalos is only 15th in the points. 

There shouldn’t be any rider out there saying they are too heavy for the Lites class. Kyle Partridge has got to be 200 pounds and is putting in top tens. I have also seen him jump everything that the rest of the fast guys jump. Now watch him get caught with an overbore and make me look like a jackass.

What is the deal with the kids these days? At the expense of sounding like Wilford Brimley, they all need to calm down. I spoke to one veteran of the Lites class and he said that you take your chances when you pass some guys—clean or not—they are going to try and T-bone you in the next turn. 

Iron man Josh Summey crashed in the first supercross heat and collapsed when he tried to get up, but the Tar Heel got a reprieve and lined up for the restart! I saw him spit out some chewed nails after that.

Manuel Rivas is back! The Spanish Armada made it back into the main after missing San Fran. 

Stewie won his 10 minute heat by 16 minutes. He stopped for a Cappuccino at one point, got his bike washed and then continued on for the win.

I heard that Ryan Villopoto signed a one year deal with Pro Circuit for 2008. He will ride Lites one more year and then the Brink’s truck will back up to his door for 2009.

The SX LCQ was good. Summey took off but Bryan Johnson and Jason Thomas battled for the last spot—they are teammates and I think it could’ve gotten ugly. But after passing Johnson for the last spot, JT left the door open and BJ (nice handle!) got him back.

DV12 did not look good; he faded to the back in the main. I figured he hurt his rib again but it turns out he had food poisoning. Now his crappy ride turns into an “Atta Boy, DV” ride.

What a rough stretch for JT$; I feel bad for him. He is one of the nicest guys in the pits, and keeps having bad luck. He reminds me of Danny Brault in school, always getting picked on. His Racer X gas card interview was also a classic; he looked like he wanted to beat Terry Boyd senseless with the mic.

The press box had a good shot of the whoops from behind and I think I saw a saddle on Hansen and Davalos’ KTMs.

Damon Huffman was up in the press box and showed me a bunch of business cards. Seems that there is no shortage of teams looking for Lites riders. I asked him if he misses it and he said, “Nah….” Then he said that racing supercross is “a lot of work.”

Red Flags are in vogue; we had a couple on this night. If this is the AMA’s idea to lengthen the show, I’m not for it. All I know is that if I go down in the first turn, I am immediately going to start rolling around like I a sniper got me. Or act like a grizzly is sniffing my jersey and play dead.

Jake Weimer caused one of the red flags, then proceded to go from 19th to 6th in the restarted main event. Shouldn’t there be some kind of rule where if you cause the red flag you’re out for the night? 

Canada’s favourite son, Dusty Klatt had an okay main. It had to be frustrating for him as he caught up to a pack of guys but couldn’t get by an obviously tired Michael Lapaglia. It had to be real frustrating to watch his teammate, Matt Lemoine, get by him then watch him motor up to said pack. Klatt looked like he got stronger as the race went on, but suffered in the whoops and not jumping the triple-triple combo every lap. The good news for Klatt is that his 12th in the main moves him up to 17th overall and back into the seeded practice for Houston.

Doug Dehaan got caught up in crash in his LCQ on the first lap. He was near the front but something’s missing this year with him. 

They did fuel samples after the race. Nothing more needs to be said here. 

[Insert Leonard Nimoy voice here] This week we go behind the banner, deep into the heart of the Factory Connection semi, wander around looking through the Titanium drawers and the Bar-B-Q’s, this week we are … in search of Kevin Windham! Seriously, it’s time for KW to stand on his bus in the middle of the desert for a “What’s eating Kevin Windham?” Racer X cover. It’s time people.

The SX main event was great. Chad Reed showed that he is healthy and ready to fight for this championship. I am not sure what happened to the Stewie that won his heat, but in the main, he was literally stopping in the turns. He did not look good; I thought there might have been something wrong with his bike. After talking to a Kawi guy, that thought ran through his head as well.

Thats all folks! I won't be at the next two races. I get a weekend off and then I will help Canada defend its honour against Scott Wallenberg and the rest of the dirty Americans in the Racer X hockey game at the Indianapolis Dealer show. Until I make my long-awaited return, you can read race reports at www.racerxill.com and we will continue to keep you updated right here at www.racerxcanada.com.