His slow healing wrist injury has so far prevented his return to racing the 2010 AMA Motocross Championship. However, James has been focused and determined to join the series just as soon as humanly possible. Currently James now has his head down in an attempt to get back up to racing speed in the coming few weeks.

James Stewart 2010

Both riders will campaign 2009 YZ450Fs in next year’s AMA Supercross series as well as other events including the 2009 X-Games and the Rockstar Energy Drink U.S. Open. It hasn’t been officially announced yet whether or not the team will be campaigning the 2009 AMA Outdoor season.

“I’m really excited,” Stewart said. “It’s time for a change. When I got the opportunity to come on board with San Manual and Yamaha I had to take it. I know the bikes are really good and I’m excited to ride them on Saturday. We plan on doing the X-Games this year. We’re going to do some events in which we can build publicity. It’ll be fun, something different.”

“I rode it a bit this week,” said Chisholm. “I got a jump start on James and the bike is unreal. I’m a bit nervous switching up bikes. I’ve been with Kawasaki since I was like nine or ten. The bike is easy to ride so it’s going to be a good year.”

Make sure you drink plenty of water the few days leading up to the event. You will need to be well hydrated even for short races. Don’t eat anything to heavy the night before and on morning of the race. Something protein rich for dinner and carbs for breakfast so a bowl of cereal is best.

Stay loose and relaxed and run at your own pace, don’t be suckered in to chasing the faster riders and definately don’t try anything new in the race, that’s what practice is for Just try to keep it fun no matter what.

You will also want to avoid the madness the first corner can at times produce. Just hang back a little at the start. Pretend its just practice with everyone starting at the same time.

Make sure you understand the racing rules and what all the flags and motions mean. The same flag can have a different meaning depending on whether it is being waved or is stationary.

Keep consistent lines on the track. Don’t switch from the inside to the outside in an unexpected manner. Remember there may be alot of other bikes around you, focus on whats in front of you and they will find their way around, just don’t cut across the track.

You bike will be scrutineered before the event but this doesn’t mean they won’t miss anything. Make sure you bike is prepped well before race day.

The cyclist, Rocky Gesner of Orting, was taking a practice run on the track prior to his race. He was speeding along a downhill portion when the front wheel of his bike turned out, sending him onto the track where he suffered severe chest injuries, park officials reported.

Two Clark County sheriff’s units and two paramedic units responded and were transporting him to a Life Flight helicopter when he died. It was about 9:30 a.m., 45 minutes after the crash.

Park officials don’t know what caused Gesner’s bike to spin out, and they don’t know why his plunge was severe enough to be fatal. There have been bike spin-out crashes at the track before, but they’ve usually only resulted in minor injuries, said Brian Barnes, spokesman for the park.

Gesner, an experienced racer from a small town southeast of Tacoma, was wearing protective gear, including a helmet and chest and neck pads.

“It’s basically what I would consider in 30 years experience, a very freak deal,” Barnes said. “He’s rode here many times before. This was an intermediate rider who was one step below the professional level.”

Saturday’s crash was only the second fatality at Washougal’s track since it opened in 1971, Barnes said.

Gesner was competing in a regional tournament that drew 560 racers from six states and Canada. Races went on after the crash, and will continue Sunday.

Following Gesner’s death, organizers and participants had a moment of silence. “All riders are riding on in his memory,” Barnes said.

A medical examiner determined Gesner died from his injuries, and the investigation is considered closed, said Sheriff’s Sgt. Jim Eastman.

After recieving an overwhelming number of applications, seven riders were awarded grants spanning across several racing disciplines, including Road Race, Speedway, Dirt Track and Motocross.

The successful applicants for the grant were:

Dylan Mavin (Road Race)
Jackson Leigh-Smith (Road Race)
Rory Schlein (Speedway)
Matthew Davies (Road Race)
Rodney McDonald (Dirt Track)
Shaun Redhead (Motocross)
Nicholas Diles (Road Race)

Motorcycling Australia (MA) provides significant funding for Australian national teams that compete in international teams events such as the Trial des Nations, Motocross of Nations, International Six Day Enduro.

Riders can apply for up to $5,000.