Posts Tagged ‘Snowmobile’

Arctic Cat Recalls Snowmobiles

Monday, November 2nd, 2009

Arctic Cat has voluntarily recalled about 3,000 snowmobiles due to fire hazard. The company is working in cooperation with the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC). The sleds being recalled pose a potential fire hazard to consumers from oil leaking into the engine compartment. Arctic Cat has received 33 reports of oil leaks, including eight vehicle fires. The CPSC also said the fuel tank could come into contact with the engine, possibly wearing and causing fuel leakage. There have yet to be any reports on fuel leakage from tank wearing and no injuries have been reported.

The recall involves MY 2009 Arctic Cat Z1 Turbo, Z1 Turbo Sno Pro and TZ1 Turbo model snowmobiles.

The vehicles were sold at Arctic Cat dealerships nationwide from June 2008-July 2009 for $12,500-$14,300.

SnoCross Championship, Final Race this Weekend.

Monday, March 16th, 2009

 

Reckoning Day Is Here!
Year End Championships Decided at Geneva
Seven Down and One to Go; Battle for Season Supremacy is On and Every Race Matters When the AMSOIL Championship Snocross Series Hits Geneva
   

 

 SnoCross Championship, Final Race this Weekend.MINNEAPOLIS (March 11, 2009) – Nearly an entire season has unfolded during the inaugural AMSOIL Championship Snocross Series, yet the most important race of the year remains as racers battle for the biggest prize of them all – a year end championship. When the factory teams and standout independents set-up shop along the hills of Lake Geneva, March 20-22, many will face the biggest race of their career as every lap, of every race will have an impact on the year-end final standings.
    Perhaps nowhere is that pressure cooker atmosphere more apparent than in the Pro Super Stock field, where Garth Kaufman (Arctic Cat) and Levi LaVallee (Polaris) enter the weekend in a tie for the year-end crown. With a total of 195 points each, every race will matter, and with Ryan Simons (Arctic Cat) close on their heels just 10 points back, its anybody’s title to win.
    “It should be an exciting weekend,” said Bob Coffin, Race Director for the International Series of Champions (ISOC). “With our scoring system, a racer has the opportunity to capture as many as 37 points in a weekend, that’s if they win both their heat race and the final. With the points so tight, one bobble or mechanical issue can ruin their chances. It puts a lot of pressure on not just the racer, but the entire crew to perform.”
    In Pro Open, the chase is not as tight, but the top five are still in the hunt mathematically speaking. Polaris rider TJ Gulla sits atop the pack with 198 points, just 13 points ahead of his teammate Levi LaVallee and 25 points in front of first year pro Brett Bender (Polaris). Close behind are Brett Turcotte (Arctic Cat) and Garth Kaufman (Arctic Cat).
    In Pro Women, the margin is relatively comfortable for Soldonta, Alaska racer Carly Davis (Arctic Cat) with 209 points. She sits ahead of JC Hupe – 188 points (Arctic Cat) and April Moritz – 169 points (Arctic Cat).   

Davis, Tremblay, Ebert and LePage Face-Off for Semi Pro Crowns
Equally exciting and tension filled is the race for the Semi Pro year-end championships. Here the cream of the crop have been trading wins and podium positions all season long and the close point race atop both the Open and Super Stock standings is evidence of this.
    In Semi Pro Open, Quebec hot-shoe Tim Tremblay (Ski-doo) holds a slim 11-point margin over Minnesota native Bobby LePage (Polaris). Close behind them just 15 points out is Dan Ebert (Arctic Cat) and on his tail is Swedish sensation Christian Salemark (Arctic Cat) with only a 20-point deficit.  
    “The racing action in the Semi Pro ranks has probably been some of the most closely contested and competitive of the season,” said ISOC Owner John Daniels. “Every week someone new steps up to take the win, and just when you think someone is going to break out from the pack to establish themselves, a crash, mechanical or fresh face comes on strong to change it up again. Lake Geneva will be interesting to say the least.”
    Such change was evident during the previous AMSOIL Championship Snocross Series race in Hayward, Wisconsin in the Semi Pro Super Stock final. Both Cory Davis (Arctic Cat) and Ebert encountered trouble on the track and finished deep in the field, while Tremblay and Salemark capitalized. A look at the point standings in Semi Pro Super Stock shows Davis with a slim 4-point margin over Tim Tremblay, with Ebert (31 points back) and Salemark (47 points back).   

Hentges Racing Leads Woody’s Team Challenge
Year-end supremacy is more than an individual effort on the AMSOIL Championship Snocross Series tour. Every member of a national race team must bring their A-game in order to not only win but to simply compete. This reality is what prompted the ISOC crew along with help from Woody’s Traction Products to implement the Woody’s Team Challenge. The Team Challenge is designed to reward the best performing “team” for both the race weekend and the season, and with one race remaining there remains $25,000 up for grabs as part of the year-end payout with $10,000 going to the winning team.
    Currently the Hentges Racing effort which fields such riders at Brett Bender, Bobby LePage and TJ Gulla is leading the pack with 801 points, but with points awarded in both Pro and Semi Pro classes, they can add up quickly and teams trailing Hentges such as Christian Brothers Racing and HC Racing are still in the hunt for the $10,000 top prize.

 

 

(Pat Bourgeois, ISOC Report #20, March 2009)

SnoCross, Hayward #2

Monday, March 16th, 2009
Winning Proves Contagious as Bender Wins Again
Iain Hayden Gives Yamaha First Podium of the Season; Tremblay Poised to Capture Both Semi Pro Year-End Titles
Faced with perhaps the most technically challenging track of the season, the racing action for day two of the Hayward 300 proved to be some of the most competitive and surprising of the season. Warm temperatures early in the week quickly followed by freezing temps just prior to race time created a track filled with hidden ice trenches and pockets just below the churned upper layer. Race lines which looked smooth were quickly discovered to hold off-camber ruts and surprises resulting in unexpected “get-offs” and mechanical failures both of which played a roll in Sunday’s main event.
 
The Semi Pro Super Stock action started off as expected, with top riders including Dan Ebert (Arctic Cat), Cory Davis (Arctic Cat) and Tim Tremblay (Ski-doo) each winning their respective qualifying rounds. And at the start of the Semi-Pro Super Stock final, Ebert nailed the holeshot, pulled out to an early lead and appeared to be well on his way to another national win. But suddenly at the mid-point of the race, he got tangled with challenger Colby Crapo (Polaris), who came into his own over the Hayward weekend, and was pressing for the lead. The incident injured Ebert forcing him to resign from the final and in the process created an opportunity for Davis to take over the lead.
 
With a clear track and visibility, Davis looked extremely strong, posting incredibly fast and consistent lap times. But just as it had all weekend, fate and a punishing track changed the make-up of the race. With just two laps to go, Davis began to fade due to mechanical issues. Tremblay and Christian Salemark (Arctic Cat) who had been tailing Davis, soon slipped around him followed by others in the field including Colby Crapo now running third. Davis eventually fell all the way back to 8th place at the checker while Tremblay, Salemark and Crapo crossed the finish line for the top three podium positions respectively.
 
The unfortunate fate of Davis and another win by Tremblay pulled the duo into a very tight race for the year-end championship with just one race to go. Davis holds a slim 4-point margin over Tremblay, while Dan Ebert sits in third, 31 points behind Davis.   

 SnoCross, Hayward #2

 

 

Hayden Podiums for Yamaha; Bender Finds the Top Box Again
To date it had been a challenging season for the Factory Yamaha Snocross effort. While holeshots were becoming more and more common, the blue squadron had yet to find the set-up and consistency they needed to garner a box on the podium. But on Sunday, that appeared to be ancient history, as Iain Hayden (Yamaha) looked to not only put Yamaha on the podium, but also win it all.
 
Hayden grabbed a monster holeshot at the start of the showcase Pro Open final and started to open up a slight lead over challengers Robbie Malinoski (Ski-doo) and Brett Bender (Polaris). Further back in the pack, year-end championship contenders TJ Gulla (Polaris) and Levi LaVallee (Polaris) found themselves in a myriad of traffic. Meanwhile Hayden continued to lead and the crowed found themselves anticipating what could be history repeating itself as Yamaha was poised to put a four-stroke powered race sled on the top box in only the second time in history.
 
But then at the mid-race mark, with just a 2-second lead, Hayden bobbled and it was just enough for challenger Malinoski to sniff the lead. While Hayden and Malinoski vied for the front of the pack, young-gun Brett Bender who was running third had been calculating the ultimate pass. Suddenly Bender found “another gear” and slipped by both riders to move into the lead, shuffling Malinoski to second and Hayden to third. It was a running order that would stick till the checker and it gave Bender his second national win in as many weeks.
 
With just one race left on the season, Nielsen’s Grand Finale in Lake Geneva, March 20-22, the year end point battle in both pro classes is extremely tight. In Pro Open, TJ Gulla holds a 13-point lead over teammate Levi LaVallee; while in Pro Super Stock Garth Kaufman (Arctic Cat) is tied for the lead with LaVallee.
(Pat Bourgeois, ISOC Report #19, March 2009)

Winter X Games 13, Snowmobile Freestyle

Monday, January 26th, 2009

It can’t get more polished than this. This is a great FreeStyle run for Joe Parsons, and he deserves the Gold. Check it.

Joe Parsons SMB Freestyle Gold, Winter X Games 13 Video

Winter X Games, SnoCross LCQ

Monday, January 26th, 2009

Final Standing for the Winter X Games 13 SnoCross Last Chance Qualifier (LCQ):

1-Simons

2-LaVallee

3-Crapo

4-LePage

5-Bauerly

Winter X Games 13 LogoBoth Simons and LaVallee had something to prove not qualifying on the first round, so they went out and ran hard. The real story for this LCQ? Paul Bauerly. Bauerly races semi-pro for BOSS Racing during the regular season, while everyone else qualifying races pro. He dropped a few places throughout the race and nearly dropped out of qualifying as the strength and skill of the pro riders began shining through. But he held on, raced hard and proved he can race with the best of them. Bauerly has had a good season so far as well, taking home the only major victory for a Ski-Doo in the ISOC national series. He could be moving up to pro if he keeps it up. And poor Steve Taylor, just missing a qualifying spot on his 4-stroke Yamaha.

Winter X-Games Next Trick

Monday, January 26th, 2009

Winter X Games 13 LogoLevi LaVallee hands down had the most jaw-dropping, and of course most anticipated, trick of the evening…the Double BackFlip; and he nearly pulled it off. He completed two rotations and landed on his track, but the landing was just so hard it popped him off the sled, but as fast as he went down…he got right back up with his hands in the air. Although the trick didn’t actually count, it was still quite a feat. In fact, all Next Trick competitors (except one) failed to complete their tricks, leaving it an easy gold medal decision. Dane Fergusson, who was originally planning a double back flip as well but couldn’t get the appropriate sled and funding in time, captured the gold with a not-so-elegant single back flip.  Check out the video of the winning back flip and LaVallee’s double.

Dane Fergusson Next Trick Gold Video

Levi LaVallee’s Attempted Double Backflip Video

Winter X Games 13, Speed & Style Final

Thursday, January 22nd, 2009

Winter X Games 13So what’s Speed & Style? A head to head competition, two laps total, very fast and fun to watch. One rider starts on speed and one on style (jumps and tricks), then on the next and final lap, they switch.  New to X-Games last year and I’m sure here to stay.

Round 1

Sam Rogers and Joe Parsons up first. Parsons style, Rogers speed on lap one. Parsons pulled a no-handed back flip to start. Rogers was running behind in speed. Parsons advances to semi.

Chris Burandt vs. Corey Davis. Davis on style to start, Burandt on speed. Davis look good and consistant, but nothing overwhelming. Burandt was very disappointing on style. Davis advances to semi.

Steve Martin vs. Heath Frisby. Frisby on style, Martin on speed to start. Close match. Martin starts to pull it together on style, but just not enough. Frisby advances to semi.

Levi LaVallee vs. Paul Thacker. LaVallee on style, Thacker on speed. Levi ahead, way ahead. Thacker had some short jumps and wasn’t performing well. Apparently his mechanic couldn’t make it to X-Games and he blew a motor during practice, so he was riding a lowner for the race. LaValle advances to semi. Not only is LaVallee looking for a Gold in Speed & Style, but also the other three snowmobile events at X-Games; the only rider to compete in all 4 events.

Semi

Davis vs. Parsons. Davis on speed, Parsons on style to get started. Very close, side-by-side action. Davis a little ahead, but Parsons had a great style score. Again, Davis had decent tricks, but nothing like what Parsons was pullin. Davis had to win by 10 seconds and just couldn’t pull it through. Parsons advances to final.

LaVallee vs. Frisby. LaVallee on style, Frisby on speed for lap one. LaVallee looked good, and had a real advantage on the Snocross section of the course. Frisby almost pulled a monster first trick (Superman Indian Air) for the second lap, but landed a little short. LaVallee advances to the final.

Final

Parsons vs. LaVallee. LaVallee on style and Parsons on speed. Levi had some good combos, but missed an Air Christ. Parsons poured it on in speed and had consistent tricks. I don’t think his tricks wowed the crowed quite as much as Levi’s, but Levi’s bobbles lost him his gold. Parsons pulls it through for the top spot.

Up for tomorrow? Levi LaVallee attempts to pull off the first double back flip on a sled at Next Trick.

Winter X Games

Friday, January 16th, 2009

Ski-Doo/ BOSS Racing snocross athlete, Paul Bauerly (#324) has been invited to participate in the upcoming Winter X Games 13. The dates for Winter X Games 13 are scheduled January 22-25, 2009 at Buttermilk Mountain, Aspen/Snowmass, Colorado. The annual Winter X Games event features athletes from across the globe competing for medals and prize money in the following sports: Skiing, Snowboard and Snowmobile.

This brings the stable of Ski-Doo/ BOSS Racing athletes represented at Winter X Games to three, as both Pro athletes; Robbie Malinoski and Dave Allard will also be competing for Gold at Winter X 13.

The event includes day and evening competitions and is free to the public. You can also check out all the competition footage on ABC and ESPN, look into your local listings for details.

Here’s the ESPN coverage times for Snowmobiling events:

Thursday, January 22: 9:00 PM: Snowmobile Speed & Style Final

Friday, January 23: 9:30 – 11:30 PM: Snowmobile SnoCross Round 1, Snowmobile Next Trick

Saturday, January 24: 9:00 – 11:00 PM: Snowmobile SnoCross Final

Sunday, January 25: 2:00 – 6:00 PM: Snowmobile Freestyle Elimination
Sunday, January 25: 9:00PM: Snowmobile Freestyle Final

Check eXpn.com for more events schedules and coverage.

Snocross at Canterbury, Hibbert Continues

Monday, January 12th, 2009

Tucker Hibbert continued his snocross success in both Pro Stock and Pro Open this past weekend at the third AMSOIL National Snocross race in Canterbury.  Arctic Cat rider Brett Turcotte pulled the holeshot lead in the Pro-Open Final but Hibbert quickly found his way to first before completing one lap, leaving Turcotte to follow in second. In usual fashion, Polaris machines found their way rounding out the rest of the leading pack ridin by Levi LaVallee, DJ Eckstrom and Ross Martin.

Early in the race, Eckstrom found his way off the track leaving him in bad positioning. Malinoski (Doo) lost 5th place to TJ Gulla (Pol) making the top order Hibbert, Turcotte, LaVallee, Martin and Gulla. This is how it remained until lap 13 when LaVallee and Martin battled for 3rd, exchanging the spot several times in the laps to come.

Malinoski continued to run a strong 6th place until he ran right off the track, causing a red flag and forcing a single file re-start with just 7 laps to go in the 26 lap final. This was everyone’s chance to knock Hibbert out and claim a victory. Unfortunately (for them), Hibbert had a clean shot back into first and solidified a victory. Gulla made one last go of it, with final top spots going to Hibbert, Turcotte, Gulla, LaVallee and Martin. Once again giving the podium spots to Arctic Cat and Polaris.

Pro Super Stock was packed with action as early leaders Ryan Simmons, TJ Gulla, Ross Martin and Andrew Johnstad lost their footing and fell deep into the pack. This leveled the playing field for eager contenders to stake claim to the top spots. LaVallee (Pol), Brett Bender (Pol), Garth Kaufman (Cat), Eckstrom (Pol), Turcotte (Cat) and Shaun Crapo (Pol) held the top seven spots after the first lap with Hibbert just on their heels.

This order continued for nearly half the race while Hibbert consistently made his way to first; eventually lapping every racer up to the top four. The final saw Hibbert in first, followed by Kaufman who had an impressive struggle making his way to second, LaVallee, Bender and Eckstrom rounded out the top five.

Ski-Doo finally got their first major win of the season, falling into the hands of Tim Trembly in the Semi-Pro Super Stock final. Dan Ebert (Cat), Derek Ellis (Pol), Paul Bauerly (Doo), and Matt Pichner (Cat) held the remaining top five spots. A last lap on-track incident in Semi-Pro Open delayed the official Semi-Pro Open results. The top five posted results are now as follows: Dan Ebert, Tim Tremblay, Derek Ellis, Paul Bauerly, Chris Kafka.

Be a Crew Member for a Day.

Friday, November 14th, 2008

Wanna be a snocross crew member for a day. Avalanche racing and their sponsors are gonna allow one lucky race fan (per event) be an official member of the team for a day at one of the 08/09 AMSOIL Championship Snocross Series National Tour Events and win prizes. Pretty cool.

Plus if an Avalanche Racing Pro or Semi-Pro Racer podiums in the finals, the Crew Member for a Day wins additional prizes valued up to $1,000 from generous sponsors.

“It’s really a fantastic experience for the whole team. The winners get to feel  the exhilaration of the starting line and the finish line up close and personal.  They also get to do some racetrack flagging, spend time in the the 53′ Avalanche Racing Transporter plus they get a chance to meet their favorite drivers. The winners have a great time and so do we.” said Bonnie Glefke Co-Owner of Avalanche Racing.

Race fans can register by sending an email to info@isocracing.com.  To be eligible, you must send the following information in the email:

* Name
* Age
* Email Address
* Phone Number
* City & State
* Do you own a snowmobile?
* What is the age of the snowmobile?
* Do you plan on purchasing a new snowmobile?
* If so, when?

Winners must attend the event to be eligible and will be notified via e-mail five (5) business days prior to the race.  Winners will be drawn randomly from entries filed no later than five days prior to an event.

For more information, please visit www.AvalancheRaceTeam.com.