The Abbottsford, BC native will pilot the Yamaha GA Checkpoint YZ250F in the BC spring series, then line up at the Nationals when they kick off in Nanaimo on June 3.

“I haven’t been this excited to start a year in a long time! I’ve got great support from Yamaha and GA Checkpoint, AXO has taken care of me for gear and this new YZ250F is an awesome bike,” relayed an excited Knowles. Although he only raced the Western half of the nationals in 2011, Knowles showed great speed with his best finish a 4^th at ‘The Wastelands.’

“I’m really excited to work with Spencer. He is a low maintenance guy who understands what it takes to perform at the track and his role in representing the dealership,” comments Gordon Aulenback, owner of GA Checkpoint. “I wouldn’t want to have put this deal together with any other rider.”

Bryan Hudgin, Yamaha’s race director, was equally impressed. “I haven’t spoken much with Spencer in the past but after a few quick phone calls I knew he was our guy. I always like riders that chose Yamaha before they were top pros and I like how he wanted to race that YZ250F as soon as possible. He’s hungry to win!”

Knowles will contest the remainder of the Chilliwack Arenacross events on the YZ250F before starting his outdoor program.

Knowles finished with, “It’s nice to have everything in place so early in the season. It’s all about preparation from now until Nanaimo. I’m going to be ready so when the gate drops the #28 Yamaha is leading everyone around the first corner.”

November 22, 2011. Toronto, ON – Continuing with their grassroots advertising approach, Yamaha Motor Canada is spotlighting real world Yamaha owners in their 2012 ad campaign.

After asking Canadians ‘What Kind of Yamaha Are You?’ the company now wants to know, ‘Why do you Yamaha?’

“We had a great response to last year’s ad campaign, where we invited Yamaha owners to upload photos of them with their Yamaha to our Facebook page,” says Yamaha Motor Canada’s National Marketing Manager, Tim Kennedy. “We received hundreds of photos, and placed many of them into our corporate advertising. Now we want to know why they choose Yamaha.”

What’s the process to entering Yamaha Motor Canada’s new ad campaign? It’s simple:

1. Organize your best ‘you and Yamaha’ photos.
2. Write down the reasons why you choose Yamaha
3. Email your photos and testimonial to horizons@yamaha-motor.ca

“For each person featured in Yamaha’s 2012 ad campaign, we will send them a $250 Yamabuck, good for anything and everything Yamaha at their local dealer!” adds Kennedy. “This includes many of our partners like Irish Setter, AXO, Yamalube, TRIC, and more.”

What are you waiting for? Send in your photos and story and you could be Yamaha’s next star!