6/29/2007
MORE MYSTERY COLLECTOR If you've not been following the story, I got some feedback that we need less race sleds and more trail sleds on the site. So to do that, I went and visited a collector that has lots of them, and over the next few days/weeks, I'll be featuring some of his "barn fresh" collectibles.

Here's some more:

This is one amazing little Suzuki, a 292 Nomad. Legend has it, it was originally driven every morning by Johan Yorgenson out to his mailbox every day for two whole winters. Johan died will trying to start it on the first snow of the 3rd year.

More from the barns: a Panther and in the background, a Ski-Whiz.

The mystery collector does have some race sleds, blah, blah, blah. :-)

6/26/2007
YAMAHA LAKE LOVE
Ken Dahl sent in this shot of why it's good to live near a lake. Even with the low snow conditions of the last five years, the lake in front of his cabin has provided a nice stomping ground for his vintage Yamahas to stretch out on. This photo was from the winter of 2007.

MORE FROM MY BARN FRESH WEEKEND
ANother "Barn Fresh" beauty from last weekend was this Muscaro. Clearly a prized possession, this baby is just dying for someone to clean the poop off and go for a ride! More from our mystery collector to come...

6/24/2007
JLOPower TO THE RESCUE!
I asked what the story was behind the JLO 4 cylinder motor yeterday, and our Bull Sessions resident expert on JLO's was quick to share his research on it:

"After researching and translating quite a bit of printed matter and German language webpages, I have come up with this summary.There is quite a bit of speculation and assumption here on my part. It is based on the best info I have at the moment.

JLO was purchased Rockwell in the early 60s with the intention of expanding engine sales to the US. Shortly after that, snowmobile builders started searching for lightweight 2 strokes to power their new product lines. JLO had quite a few different designs available to power everything from lawnmowers to motorcycles to small rail cars used for RR maintenance. Basic problem was the current lineup was built for commercial use and they were too heavy. Snowmobile manufacturers wanted a better power to weight ratio.

So a new design was drawn up that would be the most compact and powerful engine available to date. This was introduced as the 339cc and 399cc axial fan which were oddly named the LR series, a name already in use for the centrifugal fan 454cc twin. Along with the engineering work for the new fan cooled line, the free air engine was born. Production numbers and documentation is virtually nonexistant for the free air line. A multi page brochure showing the three free air engines is the only published proof I can find to confirm it was ever marketed to snowmobile companies. The only serious use of the free air line was by Arctic Cat which used the 650cc engine as a fill in for Kawasaki in the King Kat. I believe that AC would not have built JLO or Hirth powered King Kats if Kawi had been further along with their production. [That would have been a shame too!]

Details about the 800cc 4cylinder and 440cc twin are even harder to find than that of the 650cc triple. Production numbers for the 650cc can be estimated by the production numbers of the King Cat triple. No production machines were built using the other two engines. Any use of them would have probably been by privateer racers. The previously mentioned brochure shows the free air engines with a slick fuel injection setup. Don't know if it worked in actual use.

Questions regarding the durability of the four cylinder would have to mirror the problems seen in the Kawasaki four cylinder engine. The crankshaft being the major issue. The other odd fact I have observed about the 800cc 4cylinder and 440cc twin is that neither of engine has an advance mechanism for engine timing. Look at the scan of the engines below and you will see the triple has a larger magneto housing, apparently to make room for the advance mechanism."

6/24/2007
BARN FRESH
I took some comments to heart on the Bull Session that there is just too many race sleds on this page. In my defense, that's largely because that's what people send me. Since I had no interesting trail stuff to post, this weekend I set out to visit some people that would have some interesting trail sleds to feature, and boy did I find some Barn Fresh stuff!

I'm not going to divulge where I saw these beauties, but I bet a whole bunch of you will know. Let's just say the current owner of these sleds has been collecting snowmobiles long before anyone ever uttered the word "vintage", he has a very cool shop, display room and a very cool entertainment room that I'm sure has lead to many nights of fun "bench racing".

Here's just a sample of the stuff I found in just one barn (out of 3). More to come before we reveal this collectors name. I will add he's a heck of a nice guy and was a great host, and I'd like to say thanks to him for letting me hang out there!

If you have some some photos of the trail sled you love, send me a good picture and or a story about it, and we'll show it to the world!

This 292 Yamaha looked like a good cleaning could bring it back to life!

This Cheetah just needs a seat and some love.

Pretty complete Scorpion.

Can you guess what this is?? Hint: These motors never came in King Kats.

6/20/2007
MAY 12th ALEXANDER SHOW
Bruce Lindsley sent in this photo of a stunning array of Polaris hardware from the recent show. Bruce owns the 71 TX racer and the 72 Starfire. The rest all belong to his friend Pete Kemp, better known as "Polaris Pete". Nice display boys. That's gotta make the people in Roseau proud!

OOPS, SHOULDN'T HAVE SOLD IT!
Just because this one looks so nice, I had to post this as well, This is Blaszkowski@comcast.net's 245RV he restored and now kicks himself on a regular basis for selling. I can see why.

BENCH RACERS!
What do you get when Vintage Snopro racers Kenny Kitzman, Mike Smith and Devin Fackrell all have a couple adult beverages near some race sleds? Bench races of course! These guys just couldn't help themselves and had to jump up on the sleds and make funny "vroom-vroom" noises for about an hour.

By-standers for the first annual "Kenny's Garage Destroyer Kup" had a tough time deciding, but eventually had to give the win to Mike Smith - his table moved forward.

6/18/2007
4 RARE BOONVILLE PHOTOS
Jay Kormash sent in 4 nice photos from the race at Boonville, New York in 1973, where he was racing himself back in the day. Thanks Jay!

6/13/2007
ONE TOUGH CAT LEAVES THE PRIDE.
When it comes to Arctic, you never really leave the pride... It's a life long deal. But I just caught the news that "One Tough Cat" Dave Thompson will be retiring from Arctic Cat this coming Friday - and the plant will be having a big old part for him. Of course, I may have just ruined the surprise, but I'd rather that everyone who would like to get there and wish him well will have the chance to do so. I got to meet Dave for the first time at a SLEDS racing banquet a few years ago. He's a great guy, and I'm sure Arctic will miss him - but congratulations on the retirement Dave!

6/11/2007
CAT PRIDE
Lloyd Neufeld Send in this photo of himself and his pride & joy - a 1974 Arctic cat El Tigre 440 - of which his just the second owner, and a 1976 4000. The 4000 is totally stripped down now and in the process of being built back up. Welcome to the addiction Lloyd, and thanks for sharing the photos!

KRUGER AID FESTIVAL
At the Waseca city fairgrounds this past weekend, tons of people came together to support the surviving members of the Kruger family. As you recall, Tracy and one of his sons were shot and killed by a home intruder, and his wife Hilary was injured very badly. Since that time, Hilary has undergone many surgeries and will be in physical therapy for a very long time. The youngest son was not at the home at the time of the incident.

By ALL accounts, the festival this past weekend was nothing short of magical. There was a "three-ring circus" atmosphere to it, with auctions, shows, displays and activities happening all around. The people who told me about the event all said the event had the feel of one big happy family. Together for a sad reason, but happy to be there, be together and somehow make a contribution. I'm told even though Hilary is not yet well enough to have been there - they arranged a live internet feed so she could watch the happnings on a laptop from the hospital! How cool is that!

I'm also told a full 30 volunteers put in a ton of time, but the efforts paid off - everyone agreed it was one of the best get togethers of the year so far.

Check out all the photos from the event on the Bull Sessions. Lots of good stories there as well. I'm sorry I couldn't get down there, but we did send some items from the store to auction off. Congrats to the family, the volunteers and everyone that worked so hard to make it a success!

6/8/2007
SPEAKING OF LAWNMOWERS
So what exactly is a die-hard vintage sled guy supposed to do in the longs months of tough sledding? For Greg Karbowski, it was just too much to pass up on this 1954 2-stroke lawn boy lawnmower. Greg says the wife thought he really went off the deep end on this one - but he couldn't resist, seeing the diamond in the rough.

Now the mower helps him remember the race fumes - as he runs 110 octane race fuel in it, complete wit Klotz oil for that ever-popular race sled smell. As a bonus, Greg was pleasantly surprised to find out that the motor on this hummer really revs like a banshee!

Nice work Greg. If you want to chat with Greg about his project, you can email him. Thanks for the entertainment Greg, I'll bet after seeing the finished product your wife couldn't help but smile as well.

1954 Lawnboy before...	...And after. Nice work!

6/6/2007
SUMMER'S HERE
So I haven't been doing much with sleds...but I did get one heck of a bargain on a nearly new John Deere lawn tractor - 25 horse with a 54" deck. I'm not bragging - just grateful to have cut the lawn mowing time down to a little over an hour!

There's lots of news about vintage sledding that has been floating around the past few weeks - so hear goes:

The Classic Sled Roundup in St. Germain was another success this year. I was there all day, running around like a chicken with my head cut off. Somehow I got roped into judging. I guess they call it a "Roundup" for a reason. Best of show went to Brent Schut and his 1947 Eliason - but there was so many great sleds there, who could pick just one??? See the results on thee Hall of Fame Home page, and all the results on this page.

Highlights of the show included Bill Stull's 1973 Rupp 340 Magnum - Originally raced by Hall of Famer Gene Bloom. Phil Mikkelson, Author of the Ski-Doo race sled book was there, as was Mike Trapp, His mechanic Real LaRochelle and his original 73 racer, restored by John Jantsch. Kurt Krueger's Ski-Doo display was fantastic. The Warning Family's Bud Speed sled, 77 Kawasaki Shark clone (outstanding) and their "Boss Cat 0" clone were great. Really, too many great sleds to do the show, and the sleds justice. You can see from the videos below that everyone was all fired up to fire up there sleds - it was cold out, so they all ran good!

There was continued news from the St. Germain Hall of Fame show even after it was over... seems there was an insanely rare part in the swap meet, and people walked over it all day - until the right person came along and realized what it was. I can't give out the details just yet, but this will again be proof that "it's still out there!".

NEW DVD - FROM THE DAYCO HOLIDAY SPECTACULAR!
In 1978, 1979 and several years thereafter, a youngman walked the pits and watched the famous races at Alexandria with his HI-8 camera (color and sound) rolling wherever he went. The result is a 20+ minute video that really captures what it was like to be at that race at the time. Footage includes rare shots of Jerry Bunke and Brad Hulings working on a sled in the Polaris truck, T.J. Patrick and the soon to be mother of Danica Patrick sharpening studs on T.J's RXL, Jacque Villenueve and Brad Hulings on the first twin trackers - and the wrecked machines after they both crashed. The most amazing footage is from 1979 - when Brad Hulings on his Scorpions just kills everyone on the track. In every race he's the first to the corner and gone before anyone else can even get close.

I'll have screen shots soon - and you can order your copy today (it's shipping now) from the store.

5/30/2007
PAUL GROTH AND THE WARNINGS' BUD SPEED SLED
Brutal amounts of horsepower made teh crowd very happy at the Hall of Fame Classic Sled Round Up.

5/30/2007
TIM FLEISCHMAN'S WORLD CHAMPION RXL
Tom won the Eagle River 340X World Championship on this Rotax powered RXL in 2007.

5/30/2007
TIM BENDER'S 4 CYLINDER YAMAHA VIDEO
Current owner Jon Bertolino fires it up at last weekends Hall of Fame show.

5/27/2007
SEMI-LIVE FROM ST. GERMAIN
Looks like I have Internet access so I can report a little from the show. These photos are from last night when I got a look at the new Hall of Fame display of all the inductees into THEE Hall, and I shared a special moment with Gilles. I had no idea he was so tall!

5/24/2007
GENE BLOOM'S ORIGINAL RACING RUPP!
Sorry I don't have a picture of it yet, but I just heard Bill "Elvis" Stull is bringing one of Gene Bloom's original Rupp racing sleds to the how this weekend - complete with a lot of memorabilia from the man himself. Gene was inducted into thee Hall of Fame a couple of years ago, and was one grateful guy that we all remember him. I can't wait to see this one.

5/23/2007
MIKE TRAPPS 1973 SKI-DOO FACTORY RACER!
One of my favorite Ski-Doo guys, just for his sheer, unbridled enthusiasm is John Jantsch. John heard a rumor that Mike Trapp had this fascinating and insanely rare factory Ski-Doo race sled tucked away in his garge all these years. He got to talking to the 2X World Champion, and sure enough, it was hiding away there all these years.

That it existed was the good news: The bad news was that it had been backed into by a truck at one time, and some parts had gone missing.

Undaunted, Joh volunteered to restore it! And what a gret job he did - faithfully matching up every hole, rivet and unique element on this really cool sled. You can see it in person and look at the amazing detail this weekend at St. Germain.

John Jantsch's latest work: Mike Trapp's 1973 Ski-doo FACTORY Blizzard this weekend at St. Germain!

5/22/2007
TIM BENDER'S FIII
Okay, I know this one isn't exactly vintage yet, but it is a classic. Here's another amazing machine that will be at St. Germain this weekend. Jon Bertolino, author of the new Yamaha 40th Anniversary book, will be brining his prized FIII race sled to the show - restored with the original 4 cylinder motor! If that's not cool enough, He'll be firing it up and running it several times at the event.

Ever wondered what a 4 cylinder Super-Modified Yamaha motor sounds like?

Tim Bender's 4 cylinder FIII racer, on display and RUNNING this weekend at St. Germain!

5/21/2007
FIRED UP FOR ST. GERMAIN
I've been getting emails from all over this past week of sleds that will be coming to thee Hall of Fame show in St. Germain this weekend. So I'm going to preview one here everyday this week. Sounds like most of the guys from the SnoPro series will be there and will have a display of sleds, and several of the big collector guys are bringing out some seriously big hardware for the event.

First up on our parade of teasers for this weekends show is this spectacular 1980 SnoPro from Tom Ische. Tom is bringing a huge variety of meticulously restored Cat sleds for the event. If you 've seen any of Tom's sleds, you know how good his work is. Might be the nicest display of Cat stuff they've had there yet.

Stay tuned... each day this week I'll preview another rarebird coming to St. Germain!

SNOPRO RETURNS TO IRONWOOD!
Speaking of the SnoPro series, the news is that the oval snowmobile racing will return to the historic Ironwood Michigan track January 5-6, 2008. Details are sketchy at this time, but it sounds like several groups are working behind the scenes to make it happen, and the program will consist of vintage and late model racing. That is good news huh?

Rumor (no confirmation on this yet) has it the SnoPro series is ready to go to: Rock Rapids Iowa, December 29th, Ironwood Michigan Jan. 5 & 6th, Eagle River Wisconsin Jan. 12-13th, then maybe Boonville New York on Jan. 26th & 27th. If that's all true, then the Vintage SnoPro series really will be racing in the shadows of the legends that preceded. How cool will that be? Stay tuned for more details.

SNOWPOD.COM
Lots of emails from people wondering if SnowPOD.com will stay running now that CJ Ramstad is no longer with us. I've talked to the fine folks that work with CJ< and my understanding is that it will, but I don't have a final confirmation of that yet. I hope they can. It was fun just seeing a new photo every day.

2007 STANDOUT KENNY KITZMAN
Arctic Cat driver Ken Kitzman had a very good year in vintage. He'll more than likely be at the show in St.Germain. Kenny finished 2nd in the Vintage SnoPro IFS division this year, as well as 5th overall for running very consistent performances on his Rotax powered sleds. But the highlight for Kenny was being names the winner of the Jerry Bunke Memorial in Beausejour, Manitoba last fall. Checkout that awesome poster.

NEW BOOKS AND DVD's COMING!
Oh I wish I could tell you more... but there are two new books coming, one chock full of never before seen photos from 1968-1973. One DVD is a full length feature snowmobile film (rarely ever seen before) and one is some top-secret race footage from back in the day. Stay tuned!

DERBY TRACK FOR SALE?
Rumors festered all over the internet a couple weeks back that the famed track was, or is for sale. The Vilas County news reported that county was thinking of buying it to move the fair there, but was considering allowing the Decker family to operate the site for the World's Championship race. Word from the race track is it has only gone as far as an initial discussion, and that in any case, they will continue the race there. This will be interesting to watch.

The article says the county is looking at 38 acres around the track... Mmm. What else is in that 38 acres... mmmm. Wasn't there a little museum there? Huh. Wonder what will happen to that? More information as it becomes available.

5/16/2007
43 NEW PHOTOS TO DROOL OVER!
Paul Socwell sent these in last winter, and with everything going on, it took this long to get them up. You never know what treasures you'll find while in a bar, but Paul overheard a conversation that let to the discovery of these photos, most from 1972. There's a ton of Ski-Doo photos, some Thunder-jets, Cats, Skiroules, Chaparrels, Suzuki's, Yamaha's, Arctic Cats, Larry Rugland's 73 650, Stand and Doug Hayes and much more. Enjoy, and thanks PAUL!

5/14/2007
CJ and JJ RAMSTAD FUNERAL CERMONY
I just got back from the ceremonies. All I can say is wow. The church was filled to overflowing capacity, with (my guess) over 1200 people there. It was kind of a "who's who" of the snowmobile industry: I spotted and or talked with John Deere racer Jon Carlson, World Champions Stan Hayes and Jim Dimmerman, Roger Skime from Arctic Cat, Guy Useldinger, Ray Monsrud from Polaris, Loren Anderson from the Hall of Fame, Richard, Audry and Mike Decker, The Karpik brothers and so many more.... the list was really, really long. The extent of CJ's network of friends and associates is pretty amazing.

The ceremony, for those of you who could not attend was a pretty eclectic gathering that could have only happened in America, and only for CJ and his son JJ. I'm sure both would have been pleased with it being much more of a celebration of life then mourning for the dead. There was dance, song, stories and memories. JJ's guitar was out front, as was CJ's old Panther. One speaker commented that "CJ is up there, right now... lobbying for more snow!" That got some big laughs. The huge amount of students there was testament to the fact that son JJ was well liked, and a blessed individual.

What I knew about CJ Ramstad was pretty limited, really. I knew of his love of snowmobiling, his enthusiasm for the sport, his love of photography and story telling. I knew he liked sushi. CJ fought hard for what he thought was right and the best for the whole sport.

I knew CJ mostly for his work (in particular his photography) which I found to be outstanding. But for all work CJ did, what I learned today was that work was but a tiny, tiny sliver of a life well lived. The rest - and the best part of his life - was his family and the relationships he fostered.

And today I think about 1200 people would agree.

5/09/2007
CJ and JJ RAMSTAD FUNERAL AND MEMORIAL
As you probably know by now, CJ Ramstad and his son were killed in a head on collision last Sunday.

CJ and JJ have left behind wife Karla and daughter Marly, many friends and even more associates from the snowmobile, motorcycle and ATV business. CJ wrote several books, including the famous "Of Ice and Engines", "Legend: Arctic Cat's First Four Decades", and "The Collected Works of Pappy". CJ is widely known for his journalistic and photographic work for Snow Week, Sno-Goer, Minnesota Snowmobiling, Supertrax, All-Terrain Vehicle and Minnesota Off-Road.

If you'd like to share your CJ stories, please visit this topic on the Bull Sessions.

The funeral is Monday. May 14th 11:00 AM
Westwood Community Church
3121 Westwood Drive
Excelsior, Minn. 55331
www.westwoodcc.org
952-224-7300

For information on accommodations near Westwood Community Church, log onto www.chanhassenchamber.org or call the chamber at 952-934-3903.

To make a financial donation to the C.J. & J.J. Ramstad Memorial Fund, send your gift to:
CJ & JJ Ramstad Memorial Fund
c/o Beacon Bank
19765 Highway Seven
Shorewood, MN 55331
1-800-648-5507
Or email them at customerservice@beaconbank.com

To send the family your condolences, please mail to:
The Ramstad Family
c/o MSPN
9445 Minnetonka Blvd.
St. Louis Park, MN
55426

We'll see you all there on Monday; I'll bet CJ won't let us do anything but have fun after the services. There's a story and video on KARE11.com. I highly reccommend the video.

5/07/2007
TRAFFIC ACCIDENT CLAIMS THE LIFE OF CJ RAMSTAD
Just got the news that writer, photographer, business owner, Hall of Famer CJ Ramstad and his son were killed in traffic accident here in the Twin Cities yesterday. No further information is available at this time, but I will let you know as we find out more.

UPDATE: Watch this page, or supertraxmag.com formore details, including funeral arrangements.

5/04/2007
JUST A FUN PHOTO
Ronald Killips sent in this photo. Two guys causally chatting while a sled burns in front of them? Actually the driver merely un-screwed the plugs to clean out a flooded engine, and must have decided a little flame would do better to get the job done. Photo taken by Harold Clark and the Kawartha World Series. Note the dude in the car looking in in awe.

5/03/2007
LIVE ON SKIS PHOTOS
I got all the photos up from last year's "Live on Skis" event - just a bunch of people on old sleds, going for a ride, sharing some meals and shooting the breeze and having a party. It was great fun, and I already have the sled for next year ready to go! Enjoy! You know, I do not think I've ever had an Evinrude on the front of this website before. But frankly, the above Evinrude kicked my butt going down the trail, so all props to Rampage, who I'm sure was the most entertaining character of the event.

BIG NEWS IN THE RACING WORLD COMING SOON?
Seems that a certain chunk of land is for sale (or already sold) that could have giant repercussions in the vintage racing world... stay tuned for details as the story unfolds.

4/30/2007
SECRETS OF THE SHOOTING STAR
I had a pretty big vintage weekend. I'm doing some research and I got to spend most of Saturday with Polaris racer Greg Grahn, and Sunday with Bob Eastman.

At the end of the day, Bob took me out and gave me a guided tour of the 1973 Shooting Star. A couple of weeks ago, photos showed up on the Bull Sessions of Bob and the sled at a couple of shows. Amazing, since the sled had been kind of "hidden" (it was with Bob the whole time) since about, well, 1973. From those photos, there was much speculation on what was all on the machine, if it had a custom hood, belly pan and more. Hopefully this will answer some of the questions for all of you on this one of a kind classic drag racing sled.

1. The chassis is made out of magnesium, making it very light.
2. The bulkhead is completely custom for to fit both motors in and drop the front one low enough for the hood.
3. The hood is a standard 73 Starfire hood. It was modified by Eastman.
4. One motor runs forward, the other runs backwards. Each drives one side of the jackshaft.
5. The pipes are aluminum, except one that was replaced at the last moment in 1973.
6. The rear motor's mount is magnesium.
7. The fuel tank is under the seat in the back.
8. It has a 121" track, with what looks like a Colt suspension with added bogie wheels.
9. The skis and the leaf springs are aluminum.
10. The fins were cut off to make room for the steering.
11. There is no belly pan. It's just very thin aluminum cut to look like a belly pan.
12. The front motor is suspended on the recoil side, and there is a small motor mount plate on the other side.

How cool is that? My thanks to Greg, Mr. and Mrs. Eastman and Aaron Johnson for all the great help (and the fun!) this past weekend.

See more Shooting Star photos here.

4/24/2007
JUST A COUPLE OF COOL PHOTOS
Over the winter, I have received hordes of interesting updates. Time was in short supply over most of the winter, but things are clearing up a little now, so hopefully I can start to get caught up with all the great stuff you've been sending in! Forgive me for going a little heavy on all the Polaris stuff, but it's all good.

This is a very cool photo from Robert Borlin. That's Robert holding the throttle on his 76 Starfire he and his crew converted to a SnoPro. This photo was taken at Ironwood, Michigan that season. How cool is that little racer? Check out the liquid kit motor and the 76 Starfire seat outfitted with seat snaps. I love the hood. Nice Robert - thanks for sending it in!

This is Scott Geislinger's collection of Polaris TX sleds. I know that when anyone gets more than a couple of sleds, where to put them and how to display them becomes an issue. I think Scott solved this little problem in a very original fashion. Nice job Scott.

4/23/2007
NEW YAMAHA BOOK
Wow it's the 40th anniversary of Yamaha. No doubt everyone has seen the special 40th anniversary Yamaha Apex GT, done up in traditional Yamaha colors. Now Jon Bertolino, author of "Snowmobilia" a guide to vintage collectibles has written a new book marking Yamaha's 40th anniversary. Jon contacted Yamaha way back in 2005 and Yamaha corporate liked the idea. However, the book idea wasn't really taken seriously until the 2008 model production and marketing programs got started in 2006. After a three hour meeting at Yamaha's corporate office in Pleasant Prairie, WI the conceptual idea of a 40th Anniversary of the Yamaha Snowmobile book was created.  After getting corporate buy-in, Yamaha then contracted Jon to be the composer of the books pictorial contents and the author of the books text. After many months of design work a 96 page full color hard cover book was created comemorating Yamaha's 40 years of snowmobile production from 1968 to the 2008 Anniversary Edition snowmobiles.

Jon sent me a copy of the book and I'd say it is a must have for vintage buffs. It's 95 pages long, mostly photographs, and spends a lot of time on historic Yamaha racing accomplishments. The book can be ordered from Jon's website.

TROY PIERCE BACK ON TOP
Troy Pierce has a long history of winning on Polaris machines. Troy won, among other races, the St. Sault Marie I-500 in 1996 and 1997. After a brief stint at Yamaha, Troy returned to work at Polaris, where he started working with Aaron Johnson, who put a huge bug in his ear about vintage racing. Aaron and his 73 Starfire were on the way to Beausejour last March for the Canadian Championship, when a small problem at the border prevented Aaron from getting across. So they sent Troy with Aaron's machine to run the vintage races. To say Troy took to running the Starfire like a duck to water was an under statement. He won the Early Modified class on Saturday and the same class on Sunday. He also won the 440 Early Mod on the same 340cc Machine. Not bad for a guy who retired from racing huh? Of course it begs the questions: Will Troy be racing more in 2008? Rumor has it he owns an RXL and would love to see it on the track again some day...

BEASEJOUR RXL REUNION
Speaking of Beausejour, plans are already underway for a first ever "RXL REUNION" at the historic race track in March of 2008. RXL Owners from around the world are invited to bring their RXL's to run some parade/demonstration laps, or even to race them (if they are up to current rules). Some very special machines will be at this show, but just gathering as many RXL's as possible in one spot will be quite a show in itself. Below is Todd Elmer on his 79 at the track.

4/21/2007
NEW JERSEY TX's
First up is Gene Aton of New Jersey with a pair of beautiful Polaris riders. Nice work Gene! It's good to know we even have vintage sledders in New Jersey!

A STUNNING PDC CLONE CAT!

Tom Ische got this fantastic, cloned Arctic Cat 650 PDC factory racer together just in time for the big Waconia show last winter. It made a BIG impression. You have to see it in person to really appreciate what a really cool sled this is. Here's what Tom had to say about this magnificent piece of hardware:

Hey Larry, I have a few pics of my 75 I said I would send you. I found out about this sled and a 77 1/2 at the VSCA National Show in TRF last May. The week after, I made a trip back up there and picked this sled up and a very rare 77 1/2 SnoPro. 

It has a 650 triple T8 with the big finned RX cyls. The sled was in tough shape but the cyls were the hardest to find.

There are a few guys I have to thank on this project. John at Northern Crankshafts, Ed Schlosser for the seat, Kenny Holverson for making the mold for the Hood, Glencoe Auto Body for the paint, Derik's Racing Decals, and Intek Graphics for the Decals, and my Wife Nancy and daughter Brianna for putting up with this project since last May, and Andy Avelis for the support.

I first got a good look at this sled just a few weeks ago at the Hutchinson show. It's stunning, amazing and kind of left me stunned. For those of you that do not know Tom, he's put together one heck of a collection of rare cat race sleds in a very, very short period of time. Congratulations Tom!

3/26/2007
MEET JAY SPERRY JR. - 2007 VINTAGE SNOPRO CHAMPION!
Our story begins on a cloudy day in 2006. Wolf Lake. Alexandria, Minnesota. It's the last race of the year in the 2005 Vintage SnoPro Series. There is pretty much a three way tie between Mark Anderson and his nimble fleet of Polaris Starfires, Bill Stull on his fleet of Rupps, and the surprise of the season, Jay Sperry Jr., driving a single Rupp 440.

Jay Sperry Jr. is the owner of the St. Croix Outpost. A motor sports and firearms dealership in Hudson Wisconsin. It was at work one day that Jay first heard of vintage racing from an employee at the time - Joanne Kruger. Joanne was always going on and on about how much fun she and her husband Kurt were having racing old Ski-Doos. Jay poked fun of mostly, wondering why anyone would want to race an old sled around.

But eventually Jay got the bug. He couldn't get it out of his mind that no Rupp had ever won an Eagle River title. Including his Dad, Jay Sperry Sr. You all will remember Senior from his cover on Race & Rally magazine, on his DDI Sperry Special Rupp Magnum. Senior didn't win back then at the track, and Jay thought he could right a terrible injustice to his father and the Rupp fanatics out there. Build a Rupp, win an Eagle River title, and get vindication. Jay did some research and quickly learned that Dennis Berning in Minnesota owned the original sled of his fathers. Jay traveled to the Berning residence and shot up several rolls of film of the sled - it was exactly as it had been when it came off the race track all those years ago. Jay lifted the font for the number "552" as well as the styling of the hood for his new machine.

But the similarities stopped right about there.

READ THE FULL STORY ON JAY SPERRY HERE. A FULL - LENGTH FEATURE ARTICLE WITH PHOTOS! PLUS ALL THE FINAL RESULTS FROM THE HALL OF FAME 2007 VINTAGE SNOPRO SERIES!