The Story so far...
My career started in 1990.
On Pancake Day that year,my Dad bought me an old Puch Magnum`X`50cc Automatic Dirtbike from a guy named Roy Pugh,the owner of a shop called `Road And Dirt`,in Newport,Shropshire.
My first race was in April 1990,at Buildwas,which is also in Shropshire,with a club called Warley Wasps.
We raced with Warley Wasps 3 times a year in a Championship called the Ironbridge Gorge Championship.Things were hard back then and the cost of racing became too much.
For the next few years I had bikes but never raced,we moved to Mid-Wales,and my Dad and I used to go riding in the forest by my house (the Dyfi forest).
I wanted to ride all the time and any chance I got, I did.Because we weren`t able to afford to go racing and my Dad was busy building a furniture manufacturing business up,I started playing Football, Rugby and also did a bit of Cross-Country running.
I was good at all of these sports especially Football.
I was picked to play for Wales,under thirteen`s in an International Tournament held in Holland.
I also won the County Cross-Country Championships, three years in a row.
In 1998,my Dad bought me a Suzuki RM 125,a 1996 model,and we finally had enough money to go racing again.
We joined a club called Dredgers, which at the time was one of the biggest Motocross clubs in Wales,and was run by a guy called Sean Smith.By this stage I was riding an RM125 which we had bought from Alan Bates at E.T.James in Rhyader,Powys.Alan was a former British Enduro Champion,and knew everybody in the sport.He organised some support for me through E.T.James,and,after my Dad,they became my 1st proper Sponsor.
In 1999,I was selected for the Rider Development Programme by Suzuki Great Britain,where I was trained by former British Motocross Champion,Jeremy Whatley.
For several season`s,my Dad,my Sister,& myself travelled throughout the United Kingdom taking part in British Schoolboy Motocross competitions at local and National level,achieving many distinctions including third place in the British Schoolboy Motorcycle Association Championship in 2002,& also third place in the British Schoolboy Motorcycle Association Finals in the same year.
During the 2002 season,I joined the Eurolift Suzuki Team,and gained my Auto Cycle Union Expert Licence Status,which enabled me to begin competing in British Championship under Twenty-one Motocross competitions,where i achieved an 8th place overall.
In 2003,I moved up to compete in Adult British Championship Motocross,and joined T.M. United Kingdom.
On T.M.machines,I Competed in both the MX1 and MX2 British Championship Motocross Classes,and achieved a 12th place overall in 2004.
I began competing in British Championship Cross-Country race events on a T.M.in 2005.
Following early successes,I was approached by P.A.R. Honda and joined the team in June 2005.
With P.A.R.Honda,I achieved many successes,including third place overall in the British Cross-Country Championships,and third place overall in the British Championship Beach Race held at Weston-Super-Mare.
I became friends and Trained with former British Enduro Champion Ady Smith through 2005,and later in the year I was selected by P.A.R. Honda to accompany former World Enduro Champion,Paul Edmondson,to The United States to compete in the final round of the G.N.C.C.Cross-Country Championships.
I was so impressed with the Cross-Country racing scene in America that i decided to return to The United States with Paul Edmondson in March of 2006,and,once there,i was fortunate enough to be invited by Tim Taber to join the Fun Mart Cycle Racing Team,based in Moline,Illinois.With Team Fun Mart i competed in the O.M.A.Cross-Country race series,achieving 3rd place overall in the 2006 Championship.I also raced at selected Enduro events,finishing as runner-up in the United States I.S.D.E.Team selection event held at Cooperland,Oklahoma.
I also continued to compete in as many events as i could in the United Kingdom,achieving first place in the Welsh Enduro Championship,and selection for the United Kingdom Junior Trophy Team for the International Six Days Enduro,which was held that year at Lake Taupo,New Zealand.
From 2006 onwards,I have divided my racing career between The United States,Canada,and Great Britain.
In 2008,I won the Canadian Cross-Country Championships,Canadian Enduro Championship,Canadian Enduro-Cross Championship,& the XC2 Pro-Lites Class at the Yadkinville GNCC.Following my GNCC victory,i was offered a ride by former GNCC Champion Fred Andrews,on one of his Joey Maurer prepared YZ250F`s.I scored 3 more podiums for Fred that year,& have been with him & his team in Salem,Ohio,ever since.In 2008,i also won a Gold Medal,& the Arthur Prince award,for being the highest placed British rider at the ISDE held in Serres,Greece,finishing 11th in E1.At the end of the 2008 season,i also succeeded in earning the A.M.A. National Number 17 GNCC plate.
In 2009,I signed to ride a WR250F with Fred`s factory-supported Monster Energy Andrews Yamaha Team,and took part in the full GNCC Series.I ended the 2009 season as 3rd placed XC2 Pro-Lites rider,and I also took 7th place overall in the GNCC Championship.
In 2010,I once again competed in the GNCC XC2 Pro-Lites Class in America as a member of the Monster Energy F.A.R.Team,riding a Yamaha YZ250 Two-Stroke machine.I also represented KTM North America,Duroy Racing & LRP Racing Products in the Canadian FMSQ Series,winning their Cross-Country,Enduro,& Enduro-Cross events.During the GNCC Summer Break,i returned to the United Kingdom,&,as a guest rider for the V Customs Team,won both a Fast Eddy Cross-Country race held in Mid-Wales,& the final round of the A.C.U.British Cross-Country Championship,held at Canada Heights in Kent.During the Summer Break,my F.A.R. Team were approached by Husqvarna,& i was offered the opportunity to compete in the final rounds of the GNCC Season on a factory-supported Husqvarna TXC250F.I scored 4 podiums on the machine,which included gaining Husqvarna a 1st place in the XC2 Pro-Lites Class.This was their first major victory in American Cross-Country racing for many years.I ended the 2010 GNCC Season as runner-up in the XC2 Pro-Lites Class,& 8th Overall in the GNCC Championship.
In January of 2011,I signed a multi-year deal with F.A.R. Husqvarna to compete on the Fuel-Injected TXC250F in the GNCC XC2 Pro-Lites Class,as well as other selected East-Coast Cross-Country & Enduro events.
Biography
| NAME | Jason Thomas |
| DATE OF BIRTH | 07/11/83 |
| FAVOURITE FOOD | Pasta, Mars Bars, Chicken Korma! |
| FAVOURITE DRINK | Monster Energy |
| FAVOURITE MUSIC | Bon Jovi, Phil Collins, Bryan Adams |
| HOBBIES | Mini Bikes, Girls, Ice Skating, Girls, Cycling! |
| MOST VALUED POSSESSION | My Dad |
| MOST RESPECTED RIVALS | Ricky Mair, Paul Edmondson |
| AGE STARTED RIDING | 6 Years Old |
| FIRST RACE | Buildwas,Shropshire,April 1990 |
| HERO | Rick Johnson |
|
CAREER HIGHLIGHTS |
3rd BSMA Motocross Nationals 2002 2011 GNCC XC2 PRO-LITES Championship 4th 2011 GNCC OVERALL PRO Championship 7th 2011 JNCC-AAGP (ASO) 3rd Place Overall. |
| AMBITIONS | To be World Champion E1 To win as many British titles as I can To win a GNCC Championship Overall |
Machines
HUSQVARNA TXC250F