In case you hadn’t noticed, GasGas has been on the Gas in Canada lately with new dealers and very aggressive marketing campaigns. GasGas Pacific , the Canadian importer of the Spanish motorcycles, and Alberta dealership A&E Racing and Marine , have joined forces to put together an enduro ‘dream team’ for 2011 consisting of several top off-road racers and trials riders. We caught up with GasGas Pacific’s Dave Fair to find out the scoop.

Offroadmotorcycles.ca: GasGas has really been working to take control of off-road racing in Canada. The most recent rumour about a GasGas dream team includes Chris VanHove…

Dave Fair: Chris VanHove will be riding a GasGas for A&E Racing. He has a two-year contract through Dave French at A&E Racing, with support from GasGas Pacific. He’ll be riding an EC300 in the E3 class, competing in all the WEC enduro nationals, as many races as he can in Alberta including Cornergrass, and Xtinction.

When I spoke to Chris recently he was really happy to be learning so much from the Western riders…

There are a bunch of fast riders in Alberta, and the guys at Corner Grass have kind of taken Chris under their wing. He is very excited and has been training hard.

He did so well ‘for an Ontario guy’ out West last year, adapting to the mountains quickly…

When I met Chris I thought he was pretty big for a little 250F! Living in Alberta and riding with Shane Cuthbertson and guys of that calibre will help him. Chris was already a great rider, but I think riding with the Alberta guys will polish his riding and boost his confidence.

National E1 Champ Jared Thomas

You’ve got a bunch of heavy hitters on GasGas motorcycles this season…

Jared Thomas, the 2011 E1 National Champion, is also on a GasGas. He is riding an EC250 Six Days model in the E2 class through A&E, with support from GasGas Pacific.

Stephen Foord will also be on a 300 for A&E Racing and GasGas Pacific. He won the World Enduro Canada National Trials Championship in 2009, plus he won the expert title in both the Alberta and the Western Canada Hare Scrambles Championships that year.

Foord in action at the Calgary Motorcycle show

Stephen is quite an accomplished trials rider and made the cut at Xtinction last year! He rides a Sherco in trials, but this will be an exciting year since he and quite a few other Alberta guys are racing enduro and cross-country for GasGas! Matt Coonfer will also be on a GasGas 250 through A&E and GasGas.

Matt Coonfer took third overall in the C class in the CEC series in 2010

L to R Thomas Cordner and Andrew Watson aboard Gas Gas Six Days replicas

Add them to your strong group of GasGas riders from BC…

Here in BC on Victoria Island we also have a couple more riders who are going to do the CEC series, like Thomas Cordner who rode Xtinction last year. In 2009 he was the Victoria Motorcycle club champion in Enduro and Trials. He’ll be in the E3 class riding for GasGas Pacific directly.

Thomas Cordner aboard his Gas Gas Raga 300cc

Also Andrew Watson, who is a five-time Victoria Motorcycle Club Expert Trials Champion, will be riding a 250 GasGas in the CEC A-Class. If you remember from Xtinction the trials riders were the ones that were most comfortable on those giant hills!

Mike Graham, keeping busy polishing a Gas Gas at the Vancouver Motorcycle Show

Mike Graham will be also riding A on a 250. And then there is Victoria Hett. She’ll probably get the most press of any of them!

Victoria Hett will represent GasGas in 2011

Wow Dave, what a neat mix of off-road champions, trials pros and up and comers you’ve assembled to race the CEC series this year. GasGas certainly does have an enduro dream team!

Definitely!