Vintagesleds.com

A Fantastic Day in St. Germain

May 31st, 2010 by Vinny

I had a great day at the Classic Sled Roundup in St. Germain Wisconsin yesterday. This was my first big-time vintage snowmobile show, and I am truly impressed. I had no idea there was so many of these old machines out there in such fantastic condition. You can see a ton of photos on the Bull Sessions provided by user ProX8.

According to Hall of Fame curator Loren Anderson, there was over 177 show sleds and a record 145 people who came with stuff to sell in the swap meet. There was so many people that the food sold out by 3:30. The weather was perfect – 80 degrees, sunny and a mild breeze. Even without the show, I would have gone just to hang out and enjoy the day. Its really nice that this show is just before a holiday. It gave me the chance to hang out in the area till late in the night and then take my time coming home today.

The sleds? Well the all original 1979 TXL they were giving away was really nice. I can’t believe Jon Carlson donated the sled to help out the Hall of Fame. It was won by one of the workers in the food booth who had just purchased a ticket for it that very day.

Several machines really caught my eye: The two Arctic Cats with the “Montana” pipes were among my favorites, as was the baby blue Sno-Trac, something I had never seen before. Seeing and old Ski-Daddler again was a treat – my family had one of those when I was a kid and it brought back every memory of riding that  around the yard as a kid. The original Harley-Davidson snowmobile is also something I’ve not seen since they were new.

The race sleds were really pretty stunning. Although I am not all that familiar with the more exotic, rare snowmobiles, they are still very nice to look at and boy did they draw a crowd.

All and all, a great day in the park and my thanks to all the people at the Hall of Fame who put on such a great show with all the people whom I understand traveled from as far as Maine and Washington state to be there. I’m sure it was worth the trip. It was for me!

Posted in Shows, Thee Hall of Fame | Comments Off

FOR THE LOVE OF IT

May 23rd, 2010 by Boy Wonder

The fabled "Tilly"Once again, I am reminded of all the great people in this hobby, and the cool things they do, simply out of the passion for the old machines.

It seems one J. Robison has just begun restoring sleds about a year ago, and on his latest project, he was having a great deal of trouble getting a Tillotson carb to work.

He got on the Bull Sessions and several people jumped in to help, including Dog Lubahn, Snowking43, Wankel303, AKA Mike Lackore.

Mr. Lackore went way over in his generosity to help, giving up countless hours over the phone and via email to help a person he’s never met face to face.

The Tilly carb on his latest restoration was giving Mr. Robison fits. He just couldn’t get it right, and as a result, his restoration was going nowhere. Well pictured here is a fresh rebuilt Tilly that Mike did up and sent to Mr. Robison (at no charge) merely because he wanted to help out.

My experience with the hobby was much the same. The more I wanted to restore, the more people wanted to help out. As Mr. Robison pointed out, sometimes it feels like these people just don’t get the recognition they truly deserve.

As the Thanksgiving Holiday approaches, me and Mr. Robison, and all the other "newbies" out there, would love to take the time and thank the countless people who have helped us along the way. None of us would been able to learn without you!

Note: The People For the Ethical Treatment of Tillitson’s were in no way responsible, nor did they pay for this post!

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74 Yamaha SRX Resurrection Project

May 22nd, 2010 by Boy Wonder

In 1973 the development of Yamaha’s racing program hit the bulls-eye with the 74 SRX. The innovations are extensive and impressive. Words like Titanium, Magnesium, Carbon fiber, liquid cooling, CDI electronics, and more all describe this engineering marvel. Geometry and function marry together with “fine tuning” created a competitive weapon. Notably for the individuals, manufactures and competitors that cried foul for an exotic hand built machine, they cannot deny that nearly all its innovations have ended up in the retail line-up as a technological feature [sales on Monday].

The 74 SRX history is a story in itself. I have separated the saga into three parts. First was the development and introduction of three individual race machines that were very near to custom units – three sleds for Larry Oman, Ed Schubitzki and Lynn Trapp. Each machine was based on a basic platform; from there the differences are many. Some items individualized are: the seats, brakes, [manual vs. hydraulic], traction devices, clutching, handle bars, shocks, stirrups, and add in particular set ups for track size, conditions, and secret combinations, very possible the machine you saw this week could be dramatically different from last week. Documentation for original gets a little fuzzy. Very little is noted of the 4th machine. This was the photo-opt sled that initially was for marketing purposes. It had a dual spark plug per cylinder head and was reported to be all magnesium motor. The steering post was higher than the raced units and was thought to be the donor sled for Lynn Trapp after the Syracuse, NY crash.

The second part of the saga is surrounded in rumor, theories, and maybe some fabrication for the next 35 years. Parts were reported to be retrieved from dumpsters, complete sled missing from under the staircase, [which is resting peacefully in a place undivulged] and complete motors finding there way to a local motorcycle shop. All were mentioned by credible and incredible sources. The tidbit stories all make for great entertainment around the campfire; that’s what’s great about this saga.

The third part of this snowmobile history is the part my son and I have played in resurrecting and recreating what we have today. The lion’s share of our sled came from Kenny Edmiston in Anchorage Alaska – these sleds were tested at Kenny’s Anchorage Yamaha shop prior to the 74 race season. Our sled is an amalgamation of these sled parts. The sled we acquired, in its current form, was a local warrior of the track and had many changes in appearance and power plants, but it was the same basic platform.

I know there has been much debate on what this sled is or isn’t? This sled is not the 74 SRX Lynn Trapp, Ed Schubitzki or Larry Oman raced. Parts of these sleds could be in ours; Yamaha did not make a parts list nor did retail pieces enter the system, so availability limits the sources. Please enjoy it as much as my son and I have by adding it to our collection.

We only plan to take our sled to the Hall of Fame show, May 30th in St Germain Wisconsin. With many other special Yamahas at this show it will be on overwhelming day. We look forward to seeing old and new friends this Memorial day.

Larry Ellifritz Sr.

Posted in Cloning, RareBirds, Thee Hall of Fame | Comments Off

ST. GERMAIN BUZZ FACTOR: 12+

May 11th, 2010 by Boy Wonder

On a scale of 1 to 10, the Buzz Factor for the St. Germain show at the end of the month is as high as I have ever seen it. The vintage world has been a little slow this spring, but that’s too be expected; By this time of year, most sane people are looking forward to other aspects of life. Us vintage lunatics are looking forward to the next big thing, and St. Germain is it.

I’m sure more than one interesting sled will be there, with it being the Year of the Deere and all, but the 1974 Yamaha SnoPro coming all the way from Washington sure has peaked my interest, and that of many others.

I also have a rumor of a one off 1979 SnoPro sled coming as well. I can’t give out the details yet, but I hope to have a picture before the show.

Another rumor: a fire breathing, original alcohol race engine that will get fired up at the show. Ah to smell actual alcohol and Klotz burning… that would be worth the trip north by itself huh?

Posted in Shows, Thee Hall of Fame | Comments Off

Kind Of Quiet Huh?

May 11th, 2010 by Boy Wonder

I know it’s been a little quiet on here lately. It gets tough to think about snowmobiles after the snow leaves and when I’ve got perfect weather here – sunny and in the high 60’s!

But don’t get me wrong, I’m still knee-deep in old sleds: I have one restoration project in the works, another I am helping out with, one rider to finish from last year, one rider to fix from last year, and one rider I may yet put together this year. And I still have an itch to build one more race sled that I think could be a barn burner. But that will have to wait till next year.

I’ve opened up the Bull Sessions so non-members can read it again. I had to do that as a last resort to keep from having to spend more money on yet another server last January when traffic it an all time high. Traffic always cools down this time of year, so we shouldn’t have any issues there till the late fall again – and I do have some things in place to prevent the server stalling issues from happening again. Thanks to everyone for your patience and continued support.

Buzz factor for the Classic Sled Roundup in St. Germain is at an all time high. Lots of people are in need of a fix, and that is the first big one in the spring. If your dying for some hot vintage on vintage action, schedule yourself for a trip to Wisconsin’s scenic northland on May 30th. You will have a great time.

I’ve got one other really big project in the works that is getting very near completion. I hope to have an announcement about that in just a couple of weeks.

Stay tuned – and enjoy some Quality Garage Time™ this spring.

Posted in Vintagesleds.com News | Comments Off

TWO GREAT VIDEOS FROM THE NORTHLAND!

May 11th, 2010 by Boy Wonder

First – from the Snowmobile Hall of Fame!

Second – From The Derby Track!

Posted in Racing, Snowmobile Legends | Comments Off

BOB EASTMAN INTERVIEW

May 11th, 2010 by Boy Wonder

Pretty awesome interview with Bob Eastman, and some very rare photos included! Click here to read it.

Posted in Snowmobile Legends | Comments Off

WOLF LAKE – RIP

May 11th, 2010 by Boy Wonder

Editors note: Just found this on the Bull Sessions and thought I better share it with everyone.

Wolf Lake

After 7 or 8 years, I’ve decided to disband the Outlaws of Wolf Lake. It’s been a fun run and I don’t regret any of it.

I’ve met lots of people and made a lot of friends I would not have otherwise. You’re a great bunch of people! To everyone that called Wolf Lake your home track, "THANK YOU!" To those who occasionally visited us, "THANK YOU" as well – it was always fun to see new faces and machines.

I had a great crew helping each day and they were a pleasure to work with. To Robby, Jesse, Candice, and Bruce, thanks for the smooth operation – you made me look better than I was! To my hero Armand, thanks for the introduction to Ice-Oval Racing!

I want to free up some time in the winters and divorce myself from the weekly grind so I may pursue other activities of interest. It was all good…I just don’t want the job anymore. I miss fishing and fox hunting…perhaps I’ll take them up again. I also have a car that never seems to get the attention it requires to be finished. I love racing, wrenching and building sleds and, will likely continue to do so.

And to be fair, I am announcing this early before some of you made investments in sleds that may have raced at Wolf Lake only.

Thanks for the memories!
Scott Tillmann

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VINTAGESLEDS.COM STORE: CLOSED

May 11th, 2010 by Boy Wonder

As of today, I have officially closed down the VintageSleds.com store. I have a lot of other things I would like to pursue, but there just isn’t enough time in a day, so something had to go.

I just want to thank the hundreds of customers who made it a success and helped support VintageSleds.com. I really do appreciate it!

All pending hood orders can be picked up at Arctic Restorations this weekend (call them for details) or will be shipped early next week. All the store merchandise is very nearly gone (check the classifieds for the list of what is left if you are interested.) and all current orders have been shipped.

Again, thank you!

Posted in Vintagesleds.com News | Comments Off

BOSS CAT I IT’S BACK!

May 11th, 2010 by Boy Wonder

Boss Cat I

Well I never thought anyone of us would ever have the chance to see this again! The original Boss Cat I burned to the ground in a fire at Arctic Cat in the early 1970’s. The sled was built for the early 70’s speed wars being waged between all the factories. A lot was at stake if any manufacturer gained the title “The World’s Fastest Snowmobile”.

Boss Cat IThe Boss Cat I had a Turbine engine it. It exploded on one of it’s earliest runs. Driver Dale Cormichan was injured in that blast. It was later rebuilt and put in an Arctic Cat museum.

The project to rebuild Boss Cat I got under way just over a year ago and started with the only two remaining original pieces: The parachute from the original sled,which was not in it at the time of the fire, and the original 4 cylinder King-Kat motor used to start the 1,000 horsepower Turbonique brand turbine motor. That 4 cylinder motor was also not in the sled at the time of the fire. Every other piece had to be built from scratch – using photos and drawings, and prodding the memories of lot of the people involved with the original.

She’s at home with her new owners now and has been re-united wtih Boss Cat II and Boss Cat III and it’s all done. Expect to see it at some shows soon!

Posted in Cloning, RareBirds | Comments Off

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