Defending AMSOIL Championship Snocross Series Pro Open Snocross Champion Tim Tremblay has signed with Scheuring Speed Sports. The two-time Pro Champion will join the reigning Team of the Year for the 2012-13 ACSS tour, racing out of the AMSOIL/Ski-Doo trailer alongside top pro riders Robbie Malinoski (third overall in points) and Pro Rookie of the Year Darrin Mees.

“With the addition of Tim to our race team, and with Robbie and Darrin already on board, we will be a force to be reckoned with this year,” says team owner Steve Scheuring.

For Tremblay, the move is one he believes will bring continued success and stability as he enters the prime of his career.

“Steve Scheuring has a true professional race team and his team never stops working on being better, and that is the team I want to race for,” says Tremblay. “The AMSOIL/U.S. Air Force/Rockstar/Ski-Doo sleds they put together came out of the holeshot strong at every race last year. And the way the Fox Shox handled the rough national tracks was impressive. I am excited to race for Scheuring Speed Sports and still stay with a great company like Ski-Doo.”

Since moving back to Ski-Doo, the AMSOIL/Scheuring Speed Sports team has been one of the most consistent race teams on the national circuit, finishing with two riders in the top five in points last year.

“Ski-Doo is a great company with a rich history of racing and winning,” says Scheuring. “We are constantly sharing ideas with the race group to develop and improve future products that will make their way to the consumers’ snowmobiles.”

The official unveiling of the new-look AMSOIL/U.S. Air Force/Rockstar/Ski-Doo team will take place at the annual Sno-Baron’s Grass Drags September 8-9, 2012.

For more information, visit Scheuring-SpeedSports.com.

Cable Willford made history aboard his Yamaha FX Nytro MTX, becoming the first person in history to race a four-stroke snowmobile to a podium finish in RMSHA hillclimb competition.

Wiillford’s historic run happened on April 14, 2012 at an RMSHA event at Schweitzer Mountain Resort in Sandpoint, Idaho. He crossed the finish line in 1 min. 2.937 sec., topping six other pro drivers in the 600 mod class to finish third, giving Yamaha its first RMSHA podium in recent years. Adding to the laurels, Willford and teammate Kody Malmborg both put their Yamahas into the finals in a total of seven different classes, ultimately earning three additional top-five finishes along the way.

“Simply put, the season-ender in Idaho was Yamaha’s strongest and most dramatic hillclimb showing this year, serving notice that its four-stroke snowmobile technology can match the best competing two-strokes,” Yamaha says in a release.

At about a quarter-mile long with 500 feet of vertical gain, the run at Schweitzer Mountain was shorter than some hillclimbs, but it made up for this with a series of technical challenges including tight hairpin turns through the trees and lift towers. Fortunately weather conditions were terrific, with sunny skies for much of the weekend and well-packed snow that held up well. Willford and Malmborg both rose to the challenge on Friday, each qualifying their FX Nytro MTXs in five classes, the maximum number allowable, for the first time this season.

RMSHA racing is perhaps the most concentrated form of snowmobile competition, in that drivers get only one chance to qualify and then a single final run – that’s it. When Willford lined his FX Nytro MTX up for the 600 Mod final, two racers had already run up the mountain and put good times on the clock. So he knew had to run hard and fast – with no mistakes – the entire way up.

“After my run we had some tense moments waiting for the other racers to make their runs up the hill, and we had a giant celebration when my time held up,” says Willford. “It was a very rewarding moment and it put the competition on notice that we are here and getting better. This is definitely a building block to competing for overall wins.”

“Our goal the whole year was to put both Cable and Kody in the finals,” says Yamaha’s Eric Josephsen. “We knew that Yamaha’s four-stroke machines are capable, and we’re really happy with the way things turned out. Congratulations to the whole team, including Cable, Kody and our semi-pro rider Kolton Malmborg, our crew chief “Big Kody” and Troy Johnson, who maintained and tuned Cable’s machine.”

Ski-Doo X-Team rider Tyler Aklestad and skier Marco Sullivan won the Arctic Man Skiing/Snowmobiling competition for the second year in a row this past weekend. The pair finished the course in a blazing fast four minutes and 4.8 second and reached a top speed of 80.6 mph.

Alaska’s HooDoo Mountains play host to the annual Arctic Man competition that consists of a skier or snowboarder teamed with a snowmobile rider. There are three parts to the run: a 1.75-mile downhill, a 2.25-mile snowmobile pull and another 1.75-mile downhill run to the finish line. The pairs must work as a team as the snowmobile rider hands off the tow rope to their partner for what can be a blazing fast pull if the team coordinates their run well.

Aklestad also won the (Snow) Board competition with partner Nate Holland, clocking a winning time of four minutes and 47.92-seconds and logged a top speed of 75.7 mph. Ski-Doo rider Tyson Johnson backed up Aklestad in both events with his Ski partner Scott Montalbo and Board partner Jayson Hale. Julie Thul pulled Anna Goodman to the win in Women’s Ski division with a time of fourminutes and 14.47-seconds and another impressive top speed of 80 mph.

Aklestad is a veteran cross-country racer and normally competes in much longer events on his Ski-Doo MX Z X RS snowmobile than the Arctic Man, including the grueling 2000-mile Iron Dog. Sullivan is a World Cup downhill skier.

Snowmobilers in Iowa should probably avoid skipping their machines across the water unless they want to fork over a $100 fine.

According to the DesMoines Register, the Iowa Senate approved a bill that makes water skipping illegal. Specifically, Senate File 2331 officially makes it illegal to operate a snowmobile on any public waterway without measureable snow, except on rivers and streams between Nov. 1 and Apr. 1.

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As well, the bill requires Iowa residents to purchase a permit to ride snowmobiles in public land. The permits cost $15 annually and used to only be required for non-residents. This rule was changed at the request of the Iowa Snowmobile Association, which says the annual fees will be used for maintenance and to expand trail development.

Source

It may only be April, but it’s awfully hard not to think about winter riding when we see something like this.

It feels almost cruel to watch it now as winter seems so far away, but we still enjoyed this video of an old Polaris RMK towing a skier to an otherwise inaccessible backcountry riding location near Lake Tahoe. Just look at all that fresh powder!

BRP’s Ski-Doo team of Jean-Guy AuCoin and Steve Girard won this year’s Cain’s Quest aboard Ski-Doo Summit Freeride models, making it the third year in a row Ski-Doo X-Team riders have captured the top spot. In just its seventh year, Cain’s Quest has quickly become one of the most coveted and grueling events in snowmobile racing.

Cain’s Quest features 1500-miles (2414 km) of racing across some of the most brutal and unforgiving terrain in North America. It is considered one of the most challenging snowmobile races on the planet, testing a man’s endurance, navigational, winter, and sometimes mechanical skills, plus it requires a snowmobile that can traverse any kind of terrain; from deep snow to ice and back again, while maintaining speed, fuel economy and dependability.

Excellent snow conditions made this year’s Cain’s Quest one of the most daunting to date. Two-rider teams set out from Labrador City, Nfld. and rode a 1500-mile loop battling through ice fields, deep snow, mental and physical fatigue and mechanical challenges along the way. Team 25 of AuCoin and Girard led the field of finishers into Labrador City on March 22, crossing the finish line at 9:21AM, 39-minutes ahead of the second place team. After them came the Ski-Doo riders of Team 29 (Mark Nui/Joachim Nui) in third place and Ski-Doo riders of Team 26 (Lucy/Flowers) in fourth place. In all, Ski-Doo teams claimed three of the Top 4 finishing spots in the race.

AuCoin and Girard chose Summit Freeride models, which share the reinforced REV XP RS chassis, racing brake and shocks of the Ski-Doo MX Zx 600RS snocross race sled, but with a longer track and rising rate SC-5M2 rear suspension. It is built for deep snow like a Summit model, but with a wider front suspension and racing shocks. Powered by the Rotax E-TEC 800R engine, BRP says it posts superior fuel economy and oil consumption numbers while making a class-leading 163 horsepower.

“The Summit Freeride with the Rotax 800R E-TEC engine definitely gave us the advantage at this year’s Cain’s Quest,” says Steve Girard from Team 25. “And it wasn’t just us, 8 of the 14 finishers were on Ski-Doo Freeride sleds. I think that’s proof that if you want to finish Cain’s Quest and win, you better be on a Ski-Doo.”

Cain’s Quest Facts:
• 35 teams started the race, 23 teams were on Ski-Doo snowmobiles
• 14 teams finished the race, 11 were on Ski-Doo snowmobiles Page 2
• This year a woman finished Cain’s Quest for the first time – she was on a Ski-Doo snowmobile
• Team 67 finished 9th on Ski-Doo Freeride sleds – they rode them completely stock, straight out of the crate

Even for mountain riders, the snowmobile season is coming to a close. This weekend marked the penultimate round of the Rocky Mountain Snowmobile Hillclimb Association (RMSHA) – the Beaver Mountain Hillclimb in Logan, Utah.

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Keith Curtis was the man to beat to beat on the weekend, winning the 600 Stock, 800 Stock, 800 Improved and 1000 Stock classes, as well as the Stock King title aboard his 2012 Polaris Assault.

Other notables included Erin Beukelman (Polaris), who earned wins in 700 Improved and 1000 Improved, along with the Improved King title, while David Sharp Jr. (Ski-Doo) won the 800 Mod class, multiple podiums and the Mod King title, and Cody Burningham (Polaris) topped the Semi Pro Improved class and took home the Semi Pro King crown.

The event also spawned a cool time lapse video, which you can see below the jump.

Snowmobile enthusiasts looking for a way to protect their vehicles from theft now have a new option in the marketplace. Inilex has released SkyLINK PowerSport, an advanced vehicle recovery system that uses a combination of GPS, wireless and satellite technologies to track and recover stolen motorsport vehicles in real time.

“Powersport vehicles have two strikes against them when it comes to theft – they’re easier to steal than cars because they can be placed in a truck bed, and they’re more difficult to recover because they can be easily hidden and their parts can be quickly altered,” says Michael Maledon, CEO of Inilex. “SkyLINK PowerSport tackles both of these issues by tracking its location whether it’s running or not, and ensuring the theft is reported as a crime in progress, triggering police to take immediate action.”

SkyLINK PowerSport is a compact device that is discretely installed by a dealer on nearly any motorsport vehicle. According to Inilex, the unit is water resistant, vibration resistant and dustproof to withstand even the toughest riding or storage conditions. Also, since it draws a negligible 4 microamps of power, it will not drain the battery.

As soon as a vehicle is reported stolen, SkyLINK’s 24/7 agents use GPS and cellular technologies to track it and provide its exact location to the police department. SkyLINK PowerSport works with all law enforcement agencies and, because it tracks powersports in real-time, the theft is reported to police as a high-priority crime.

To help thwart theft, SkyLINK PowerSport automatically sets a Quick Fence early-theft detection perimeter around powersport vehicles when the ignition is shut off. If it moves without the owner’s knowledge, they are immediately notified by an email or text alert. The Quick Fence is disabled when the ignition is turned on. Additionally, SkyLINK Powersport offers an online dashboard called SkyLINK PROTECT that promotes safety by enabling owners to track their powersport vehicle’s location, speed and battery levels when others are using it. Using SkyLINK PROTECT, vehicle owners can set geographic and speed thresholds and receive text or email alerts when either is exceeded.

Dealers can also take advantage of SkyLINK PowerSport to track vehicles that are being test driven or used by employees, as well as to locate vehicles stolen from their lots. They can keep their inventory in check and account for every vehicle’s location at all times. Dealers using the SkyLINK monitoring service may also secure better terms from their bank lenders and insurance carriers because of the inventory management function.

SkyLINK PowerSport is now available through motorsports dealerships across the country at the time of vehicle purchase, and is good for the lifetime of the vehicle. The first year of the SkyLINK PROTECT subscription service is free of charge and it can be renewed following that for $119 per year. The device itself, including installation, retails for $899.

A BRP Ski-Doo snowmobile was selected and adapted by Clarkson University to win its second straight Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) Clean Snowmobile Challenge. Ski-Doo models were also chosen by the second and third place teams in the internal combustion category and the winner of the Zero Emission category.

The snowmobiles entered are judged on many criteria, including emissions and noise, but they also have to be functional machines that can be trail ridden, so handling, comfort, endurance and the ability to pull loads factor in also.

Clarkson started with a Ski-Doo MX Z model featuring the Rotax ACE 600 engine and modified the fuel and ignition systems to automatically run on ethanol blended fuels that ranged from zero to forty percent ethanol alcohol. Student engineers then added a compact, one-of-a-kind catalytic converter they designed to further clean up emissions. In taking the overall championship, the team also took honours for Best Handling, Quietest, Best Ride, Best Value – which accounts for price, fuel economy and performance – and Most Practical Solution – which balances cost and noise reduction.

“Congratulations to Clarkson for winning their second Clean Snowmobile Challenge, and thanks to all the teams for their hard work in advancing technologies for our sport,” says Robert Lumley, vice president, sales and marketing for Ski-Doo snowmobiles and Sea-Doo watercraft, North America division. “The fact that so many successful teams started with Ski-Doo snowmobiles speaks volumes about the technologies already incorporated in our products, and who these young leaders see at the front of the pack.”

Placing second was Kettering University using a Ski-Doo Renegade model also equipped with a Rotax ACE 600 and in third was the University of Wisconsin Platteville using a Ski-Doo MX Z model with the Rotax E-TEC 600 as their starting platform.

Polaris snowmobile hill climbers won seven class titles and Keith Curtis won Stock King of the Hill honors at the 2012 Jackson Hole World Championship Snowmobile Hill Climb. Curtis won three class titles in addition to his Stock King title in competition held March 22-25 on Snow King Mountain in the scenic Wyoming resort city.

Curtis won the 1000 Stock, 800 Stock and Open Modified class titles, and was joined as a class champion by these Polaris hill climbers: Les Keller won the 700 Stock title, Erin Beukelman won in 1000 Improved Stock, Cole Willford won the 600 Modified crown and Charles Lopeman won the Pro Masters Modified title.

Polaris racers won seven class titles compared to a total of eight titles split among racers on two other brands of sleds. Curtis and Keller won their Stock titles on sleds that are nearly identical to what recreational riders can purchase.

“I raced a stock 2012 RMK Assault in Stock 800 and Stock 1000,” says Curtis. “For 800 Modified and Open Modified, I raced a modified 2012 RMK Assault 800.”

Curtis posted the weekend’s second-fastest time in a run to the summit, reaching the top in 59.723 seconds on his Mod sled in the Mod King of the Hill competition, just .47 seconds off the winning time.

Beukelman finished second in the Improved Stock King of the Hill runs, and Willford and Lopeman finished third and fourth, respectively, in the Mod King of the Hill competition. Keller finished fourth in Stock King of the Hill.

Along with the class winners, these Polaris racers earned podium positions with their top-three finishes:

• Dolan Phelps was second in Pro 700 Stock and third in Pro 1000 Improved Stock.
• Erin Beukelman was third in Pro 800 Improved Stock and second in Pro 700 Mod
• Aaron Sterck and Tyler Crockett were second and third, respectively, in Pro 600 Stock.
• Keith Curtis was second in Pro 800 Mod.

The Jackson Hole event was the third of five scheduled events on the 2012 Rocky Mountain Snowmobile Hillclimb Association (RMSHA) schedule. The next event is the Beaver Mountain Hillclimb, April 6-7, near Logan, Utah.