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Reigning Vintage SnoPro points champion, Mike Smith from Wasilla, Alaska, piloted his Cat’s into first place after the races in Eagle River. Mike and his son Adam both benefited from being in races classes so big that all the heat races allowed them extra points for their strong finishes in the finals. But Mike’s lead is pretty slim at this point and anything could happen at the next race, February 5th in Sauke Centre Minnesota.
See the total point standings in the SnoPro section.
When the last motor is finally shut down after the Eagle River weekend, you get kind of a buzz from everything you witnessed over the last three days, and your mind just keeps replaying highlight reels for days afterwards. This morning, my highlight reels are in overdrive.
The weather was very good all weekend, with a stiff breeze making it seem colder than it was on Friday and for part of Saturday. The track held up very well, there was few accidents, and thankfully only minor injuries on the ones that did happen. All in all, I think a lot of people walked away with a lifetime of memories from this past weekend.
We got a ton of pictures to come. But for now, I wanted to start with the winner of the VintageSleds.com 440 F/A Cup, Brandon Gentz. I had some time to visit with Brandon and his crew that included ed several mechanics, motor builder Norman Ball, personal help, chassis guys, even a personal cook inside the trailer who could cook up a hot dog any way you want it. I was impressed with what a tight-knit group they are, and the obvious team work they have in getting Brandon and team mate Nathan Feuchts sleds running and out front.
Mark Anderson who took a brief hiatus from retirement, borrowed Aaron Johnson’s red hot smoking Polaris and won every heat, quarter final and semi final he was in like it wasn’t even a fair fight. Fast Freddy Smith had his Ski-Doo close to Mark, and it looked like he was holding back… every once in awhile he’d really punch it, and you could see Freddy had a lot more than he was going to reveal fully in a heat race. It’s no secret that these two are not each others biggest fans; So it looked like the race might come down to a battle royal between Anderson’s Polaris and Smith’s Ski-Doo. Classic Polaris Vs. Ski-Doo, with the best of the best driving.
But no one else in that starting field could be counted out! Bill Stull was running fast and furious on his Rupp, as was Tom King on his Polaris sled, and Jeff Lausten on his Yamaha.
From the start, it looked like all Anderson, all the way. But Mark made it a mere lap when his bulkhead snapped, he threw up his arms coasted off the track in turn two. That left Freddy Smith a wide open run, and he took advantage of it. Fred pulled away, and kept pulling away with each lap… getting close to a half a lap ahead.
At that point, the real race was for second. Gentz, Stull, King and Lausten all battled back and fourth in some of thee most exciting racing I have ever seen. None of those guys was going to give an inch or back off. Bill Stull finally pulled off the "Stull Swoop" in turn 3 and four, taking the high line and passing all three of them in one swift, decisive movement. Bill was taking second place comfortably when a small miracle happened.
Freddy Smith threw up his arm coming out of turn two and coasted to a stop, just in front of his biggest rival, Mark Anderson.
Bill Stull was now leading, and the race was really on. All of them battled as hard as they could. Gentz was gaining a little ground on Stull when his might Rupp started to slow… Bill was slowly burning down! Gentz went flying by, Lausten and King in hot pursuit!
When it was all over, the smooth driving, pacing and strategy of Gentz proved to be the best of the field. He made all the right choices, and all the right moves. At the end, Gentz and Lausten came to the podium to take their prizes, but someone had to let King know he had come in third – he was a little late to the podium, but got there in time for the photos!
All in all, great fun, great racing, great sportsmanship by all, and a great race run by the Derby Crew.
More to come…
Bill Stull put together this very fun t-shirt just to help promote vintage racing and his efforts. I just wanted to post a picture of it, because I dig it.
Bill has also made up a whole bunch of T-Shirts for the 2009-2010 Vintage SnoPro series that I am sure you will want one of.
Speaking of the Vintage SnoPro season, all the race dates have now been confirmed:
Race #1 is in Rock Rapids Iowa December 19th.
Race #2 is in Amherst Wisconsin, January 2nd.
Race #3 is in Eagle River Wisconsin January 8th through the 10th.
Race #4 is in Sauke Center Minnesota (friday night under the lights!) on February 5th.
The final race will be in Garrison Minnesota on February 27th.
Don’t forget that the trophies are awarded at the Hall of Fame Classic Sled Roundup in beautiful downtown St. Germain Wisconsin on May 30th, 2010.
See you in Rock Rapids!
This coming Sunday in St. Germain Wisconsin it’s the Classic Sled Roundup to benefit the Snowmobile Hall of Fame. It’s a show that always brings out some exotic, interesting and really nice sleds. It’s a swap meet that every year that I have been there, yields a bunch of stuff no one has seen in years, or is impossible to find. It’s also a brief award ceremony for the Vintage SnoPro Series, with trophies presented to the class winners, as well as our overall winner.
This year we have a repeat from Smith Brothers Racing on their Arctic Cats as a winner – but a different driver. Mike Smith of Wasilla Alaska, running several classes came away with the most points this year, defending his brother Steve’s title from 2008.
Mike has been racing since 1975. Last season the Smith Brothers Racing team was short a couple of members. Steve and Sean decided to stay home in Alaska, but Adam came to Wisconsin to go to college. Mike and Adam decided that since Adam was here already, they might as well go race.
One would expect that with two fewer drivers that Mike and Adam would scale it back a little. But no, they showed up at Rock Rapids Iowa for the first race with a fleet of Arctic Cat liquids and free-airs that would have made the original 3 tough cats proud.
The thing Mike had going for him this year was consistency. Either Mike won the race he was in, or he came in the top three. That’s a tough thing to to when your racing with so many talented, hard charging guys.
It was very interesting for me this year to watch Mike and Adam in the series this year. They had a buzz going – kind of a fan club. At each race I would run into people that just came to see what they called "them crazy Cat guys from Alaska".
It seems more than a few people were interested in seeing how a couple of dedicated Cat guys from Sarah Palin’s home town would stack up against the rest.
They were not disappointed.
Congratulations to Mike – and he has confirmed that he will be at the Classic Sled Roundup on Sunday to collect his trophy.
There’s some other surprises coming to St. Germain that I know of … One is green has not been seen since the late 70’s in this form. One is black and green and is the first real 75 Cat race sled to be seen at the Roundup. Rumor has it that not one, but two 75 Yamaha’s will be there.
Oh boy. This is going to be interesting.
Photos courtesy of Kelly Anderson, Larry Preston, Mike Smith
Matt Spies and his team shows you one great way to promote your racing team and do your part to get more people to come on out and watch the best kind of racing anywhere. This is his teams T-Shirt design for 2009-2010.
He’s light, strong, determined, hard-working and is getting some help from one of the industries very best. He got his first sled going this year and definitely made an impression at the race in Cable Wisconsin. Here’s Brent ripping along at Cable last season, and we look forward to watching him have a good time next year.
I thought maybe vintagesleds.com readers would like to see some pictures of a machine that my grandfather built while working for Thunder Bay’s Canada Car. This plant is now known as bombardier.
My grandfather referred to this machine as an "ice toboggan". Construction began in 1955. This machine is powered by a 10 horsepower brigs and stratton engine. The frame is made of aircraft aluminum the belly pan and tunnel are of the same materials. Either side of the engine compartment are sheathed with marine plywood, before the belly pan was attached ash was placed along the under side all the way to the rear of the machine.
The PTO side of the engine has a double pulley and from this point two belts drive a model A 4 speed transmission with a 1st gear, 2nd 3rd and reverse. On the opposite side of the transmission he attached a sprocket to the shaft. From here a drive chain went to a center drive wheel (air inflated), inside the tunnel there is a front and rear wheel that a track goes around
similar to today’s systems.
The ride is cushioned by a automobile shock on either side of the tunnel. To steer there is at bar on the under side of the belly with cables fed through the tubing to the steering wheel. The steering wheel is from a model A. Speeds on this machine reached approximately 40 mph.
This machine was built to assist my grandfather in navigating across Dog Lake north of Thunder Bay Ontario. Aside from working full time, he was a trapper in the winter months. Transportation across the lake came in different forms – dog sleds, skis, snowshoes or two men holding a canvas sheet having skates on and using the wind like a sail this was ok providing there was no snow. His invention of the ice toboggan made travel allot easier.
This machine has sat in storage for 47 years following his passing in 1962. I pulled it out of the corner of the garage the other day to check it out. To my astonishment it is in excellent condition. The drive wheels needed air which I filled and was surprised that it held. This was the first time that I had really took a good look,I found that everything that turned had a grease nipple and everything turned, the motor has been used occasionally for our log splitter and still runs well. I plan to put the engine back in this winter and take it for a ride. I will be sure to have a camera and a video to share the moment. This will be a 3rd and 4th generation adventure we are all very excited to have it back up and running. I will be sure to send current pictures of this event.
Once upon a time, 20, 30 even 40 years ago, old snowmobiles didn’t get much respect. On occasion, one would win a big race or have some memory attached to it that caused the owners to hang on to a sled. Presereve it, store it – dare i even say respect it. But for the most part old snowmobiles were tossed aside in favor of a newer, shinier, faster model.
Many classic & historically significant sleds were sold for junk, sold for parts, or some even met the fate of being crushed and buried. With the years behind us now, it’s easy to shake our heads and feel a tinge of pity for the people who threw out not only the sleds history – but their own. Hopefully we’ve learned our lesson.
Once a machine is together and running, then finely tuned for maximum performance, it sure seems to me like they develop a personality and a even seem to argue with the driver and mechanics on occasion. Perhaps a machine is not without some kind of soul.
Well Mark Anderson and his friend Rod Evers (who partnered on this 1973 Starfire 800 racer) found a grand home for a sled that really did earn its place in history – two SnoPro titles and a World Championship. It’s now on permanent display at the Rodeo Bar & Grill in Neenah Wisconsin, with a huge framed picture of Mark just after his big win of the Eagle River World’s Championship. That’s pretty cool.
So how about that sled of yours that you’ve become attached to over the years? Where will it wind up?
This weekend in Grey Eagle Minnesota is the 5th and final race in the Hall of Fame Vintage SnoPro series. One name will join Mark Anderson, Jay Sperry and Steve Smith on the cup.
There are some great battles going on within the different divisions. In Free-Air, Newcomer Matt Spies has two smoking fast Yamahas. He’s well within striking range of beating out Alaska’s Mike Smith and Adam Hagen for the FA title. Bill Stull is not out of the running in that division either.
In the Liquid Cooled division, Mike Smith and his Cats are out in front, but Johnny Schumacher and his smoking Polaris is nipping at his heals. Mike Meagher and Bill Stull are also in the running.
In the IFS division, Adam Hagen with his leaf spring Arctic Cats is in the lead. But Kenny Kitzman’s Cats are right behind him. Billy Zawacki and Travis Hilmerson are in the hunt as well.
IFSX has Kenny Kitzman out front, but Jeff Karrow on his Ski-Doos is just two points behind, Devin Fackrell is in contention as well.
In the overall hunt, Mike Smith from Wasilla, Alaska with his Cat’s is out front with somewhat of a comfortable lead. One could argue that MIke has not had the greatest year ever – he’s won his fair share, but he’s been the most consistent driver out there, always finishing in the top 3. Unless something big happens, this is Mike’s series. But Johnny Schumacher does actually have a shot – and if he stays on the sled, I’m sure he’ll take it.
What I’m trying to say with all this is that anything can still happen. It’s shaping up that most of the big names in vintage racing are going to be there this Saturday – and when ever these guys show up, it’s bound to be some of the most exciting racing anywhere. These guys have been chasing a dream all winter, and when the last tether is pulled, one will come out on top – the best of the best.
I don’t know about you, but I sure want to be there to see that!
But it doesn’t end there. On Sunday, most if not all of the racers will move on to Wolf Lake in Alexandria Minnesota. Sunday’s race is the Vintagesleds.com "Midwest Vintage Shootout".
Winners in ALL classes will receive a Vintagesleds.com/
Britestitch flag, plus some extra money from a large array of sponsors that track owner Scott Tillman has put together – just as way to say "thanks" to the racers that make Wolf Lake one of the best kept "secrets" in vintage racing.
I’ll be at both events – with two RXL’s in tow that I’m going to let a couple of "mystery" drivers take a stab at. One of them is none other than Todd Elmer’s original 1979 Polaris RXL – with a different hood and skis. This is one of my favorite sleds in my whole collection – but its in excellent condition and was pretty much set up and ready to go… so I thought it a good idea to let it out of the stable and get a stretch.
The racers are all getting ready for round #4 of the series, this time in Bemidji, Minnesota. If your in the area, your going to get to see some of the best drivers in vintage racing this weekend, all battling it out to see whose name goes on the Hall of Fame (in St. Germain) Vintage SnoPro cup. For more information on the race, visit the SLEDS RACING website.
Best of luck to all the racers!