10.07.2008
JLO 1,188CC TRIPLE
Aaron Johnson up in Roseau has done a little more research on what was reported as a JLO 1116cc motor in the photo below. According to Aaron, the man on the left is none other than Polaris racer Tony Burkel, but he is still looking for verification on that. Aaron notes it is a right hand chain case - not normal at all on a 68 sled. Each cylinder was bored to 396cc, making this monster not a 1116cc, but a 1188cc super monster. Not sure if it has tune pipes, more than likely they are megaphones. He also learned that his was one of the hardest to start beasts in the Polaris fleet that year.

Nice work Aaron, and thanks for checking for us. Lots of curious emails and questions on this baby! The number one question of course, "where is it, and is it for sale?"

I wish.

MEET KAWASAKI KATE
At drag racers all over the midwest this summer, a very strange thing was going on.

In certain classes, all the guys were trying harder for second place, rather than first. The reason? They all wanted to stay behind and watch the girl who has come to be known as "Kawasaki Kate" as she races down the strip on her fast Speedway sleds.

Even though she's and her crew (including her dad) have been Speedway buffs for some time, she got called "Kawasaki Kate" at one event and it just stuck. I got to meet her last weekend at Brainerd, and I noticed she's developed quite the little following of admiring Bull Session readers and race fans. It's easy to see why. She can hang on a drag strip as good, if not better than most of the guys. At about 95 lbs., she has a bit of a weight advantage. Kate's having a good time with all of this and the having a great time hanging with her family and racing.

We'll have more on Kate in the future.

Click on the picture to see a much larger shot. Yes, that's Jeff Lausten's Yamaha Kate is giving her blessing to.

10.06.2008
NEW RACE TRACK IN ELK RIVER
It's official: Elk River Minnesota has a new year round motor sports race facility and it will be running motocross and snocross events, and the snocross will have a vintage portion. Racing starts December 18th, and there are a total of five events scheduled so far this coming winter. Check out the video on their website that shows what the track will look like. The facility is right off highway 169 and will also have races for go-karts, ATV's and side by sides. They also have time for trail riders to get some track time on trail sleds! Let's hope it all works out for the promoters here and we will be checking in with them from time to time.

DICK PETERSON AUCTION
You may have heard some of the rumors that vintage racing's Dick Peterson is auctioning off some his sleds. The rumor is true, but not what you may think. I spoke with Dick this morning, and he is doing just fine. What he's auctioning off is remnants of some company assets that were sold off years ago. But he is throwing in all the vintage sled stuff that he now feels he will never get the time to restore. Included in that is a pile of vintage Ski-Doo sleds that Dick has been collecting since he was 16. There's also some partial and complete Polaris sleds, and even a 295 73 Starfire that Dick used to race. No, he's not selling any RXL stuff! More information on the auction - this October 18th in Clear Lake Minnesota at the auction companies website.

10.03.2008
SHOTS TO DROOL OVER
I got a pile of photos to share. Let's start with this amazing image. Ken Jacobsen from Missoula Montana sent this in. It was taken in West Yellowstone Montana in December of 1967. On the right is Jerry Reece of the Polaris factory team, and we're not sure who is on the left. But check out the machine. Ken and I would like your help on this one. Ken believes this is a 1116cc JLO triple mounted in a 68 TX 500 chassis. If so, it would make this sled truly a one of a kind beast. Anyone have any information they can share on this?

Click on the photo to see a much larger version.

These next shots are no mystery, just plain fun. This is a small sample of a stash sent in a long time ago by Steve Smith from Holden Maine. They were taken at a SnoPro race in Bangor, Maine in 1977.

That's Larry Coltom zipping along in Super-Mod III, probably wondering if that new IFS contraption will work on the upcoming corner.

Always a force to be reckoned with in the East, J.R. Tozier and his Blizzard.

Ed Schubitzke got caught peaking up Jerry Bunke's 440 IFS.

10.02.2008
DELAYED THANKS...
Whenever I work on a project, I really do try and make note of all the people who helped. No man is an island, and there is NO way I would ever try and take credit for all the help I have received on bringing the race sleds in my little collection back to life. But even though I try and remember everyone who helped out (sometimes over a several year period) it is inevitable that I am going to blow it once in awhile.

Today it was brought to my attention that I forgot to thank someone very crucial in finishing the 1974 Don Omdahl SnoPro last spring. I had someone working on the seat, but the material is very, very hard to come by. Only one company in the U.S. actually makes the 1" heat pleated material. So they make a run of it pretty much whenever they feel like it. The St. Germain show was coming up fast, so I started calling everyone I knew to see if someone had some amount of it they could part with.

Enter Bill at Intech Graphics. I've known Bill for a couple of years now, and he's got an excellent business going with his sled decals. In fact his 78 RXL decals are the best available. But Bill had just enough of that material left that he was willing to part with prior to the St. Germain show, in fact saving me from not getting it done on time.

So when I made my giant list of "thank yous" to all the people that helped? Guess who I forgot? Arrgh. Sorry Bill. If it wasn't for you I indeed would have not gotten that sled done on time, then I went and spaced your name on the thanks list. I have since fixed that back in the archives, and if I forgot anyone else - please let me know.

9.29.2008
MIKE SMITH'S 67 MOTO-SKI ZEPHYR
Mike sent in this photo of his recently finished 67 Moto-Ski Zephyr 202H. It was finished last fall and it is all original parts, except for the seat. It took him over two years to finish his masterpiece. This is just one of Mike's many Moto-Ski's, and he's also working on a 1966 Capri. Nice job Mike!

SUPER TRAC RACE SLED MUSEUM
I've been aware of this museum for some time, but this is the first pictures of it that have been sent in. Located in Yorkton, Saskatchewan. The owner is Art Bilus (spelling?) and he's got some serious hardware in there! Lots of original Jacque Villenueve sleds, as well as an original 79 Amzoil race sled, some impressive looking drag sleds, SnoPros... oh my. And what a nice display. For more information or tours, call Art at 306-782-7137. Thanks to Valdi Stefanson for sending in the photos!

9.26.2008
RINGO DOES THE DOO
One of our BS'ers pointed this out this morning. Ringo Starr rides an old 'Doo in his "It Don't Come Easy" video from the early 1970's. What a hoot. Sled footage starts around 1:20. Thanks to "olddoos" for finding this. I wonder what John and Paul would have ridden?

9.25.2008
BOOK INTERVIEWS
I've been working more on the book - "Star Fire Kids - Midnight Blue Express" the last couple of weeks. I'm nearly done with the interviews, just a handful left. Last night I talked with Herb Howe, winner of the very first Winnipeg to St. Paul race and the guy behind Larsen-Olsen, a major Polaris distributor back in the day.

It was a fun interview for me - Herb likes to talk, and he's got GREAT stories. I was able to help him out a little bit, as he was telling me about the 1967 race, I told him I have a copy of the film from that one - and would be happy to let him see it. He's was pretty excited at that, since that is the one piece of film he's not seen. But he sure remembered it being filmed!

Herb kept his original sled he won the 66 race with. It's still with him to this day, and he's a pretty happy guy that he did keep it.

DANICA PATRICK - SHOULD SHE GO?
Well, we've had Danica Patrick as the Patron Saint of Vintage Snowmobiling for some time now, only because of her dad who used to race, and because her mom is from Roseau. But in all this time, she's never said boo about sleds, and she's proven to have quite the little temper. Lately, guys on the Bull Sessions have been demanding she be replaced because of her attitude. So is it time for her to head into the void of being a former Patron Saint? If so, who should replace her. We need a nationally known figure for this position. So should Danica stay or go?

Another position may be opening up as well - for "Queen of Vintage Snowmobiling". There are a couple of ladies out there who are in this hobby just as deep as any guy, and are just as good at it, and are a one heck of a lot more fun to look at than any of us dudes. There has already been an discussion on the Bull Sessions about this going full steam. Join in and take a look.

9.23.2008
THE SNOW MACHINE VS. THE SNOWMOBILE
You can sure tell we are in the middle of election season huh? Constant ads, signs everywhere, water cooler debates...

The nomination of Alaska Governor Sarah Palin has brought about some of the most spirited discussions I think I've heard in a very long time. Those that love her are really excited about her, and those that hate her seem to have a whole new level of animosity towards a single politician that I haven't seen since, well, Ronald Reagan.

But no matter if you plan to vote Republican or Democrat in the November, I think we can all agree that Governor Palin, because of her husband Todd, has brought snowmobiles out of the media scrap heap and into the forefront in a way we have not seen since the hysteria around what was then a new and exploding sport in the early 1970's.

Sure, snowmobile racing has gotten some coverage over the years - most notably at the big events, and SnoCross has been covered a lot, but still you don't hear or see much about snowmobiling or the industry on television. Enter Todd and Sarah Palin, and you have a whole new interest in snowmobiling from the media. Todd's racing was covered in a report on FOX news. Snowmobiles got mentioned at the Republican national convention. Every news cast in America has introduced Todd Palin as a 4 time world champion snowmobile snow machine racer.

Photo from AP Photo by Al Grillo

Even Saturday Night Live did a skit last weekend that featured a snowmobile in part of it - but politics reared its ugly head and many saw the skit as thinly veiled attempt to portray Todd Palin as an incestuous child molester.

Suddenly, snowmobiles are everywhere and the hot debate is all about "Snow Machine" vs "Snowmobile".

This debate started when she first mentioned the phrase snow machine in her acceptance speech, and has intensified since Sarah went back to Alaska and delivered a speech in which she said the whole world now knows it's a "snow machine" not a "snowmobile".

Being a proud resident of "fly over country", I was scratching my head when I heard this. I remember my grandfather speaking of them as "snow machines", but I didn't realize Alaskans had such a preference for the phrase - and where did it come from?

It was pretty easy to figure out. In the discussions I've been fortunate enough to have with David Johnson from Polaris and Edgar Hetteen from Polaris, then Arctic Cat, I recall both of them sometimes using the phrase "Snow Machine".

Now recall that in 1960, Edgar took some snow machines to Alaska and made a 1,100 mile trip across the state. It was a pivotal point in the history of snowmobiling. It got national press for snowmobiles for the first time and helped Polaris establish a market there for the machines. Edgar viewed it as a huge marketing coup for the company. However, the investors in Polaris at the time lead by my grandfather, Herb Borah, viewed it as a $3,000 company paid vacation for Edgar.

The net result of that disagreement meant Edgar leaving Polaris and eventually starting Arctic Cat.

So could it have been that trip that Edgar made that is causing the great debate today? It was the first time Alaskans had seen the contraptions, and if Edgar introduced them as 'Snow Machines" then it is no stretch to imagine that Alaskans have just always called them snow machines, and will continue to do so.

Whatever anyone calls it, it can't hurt to get some more exposure for the machines - I know I sure like it anytime they get a mention on the little screen.

Now if we can just move the focus from the new machines to the old ones. That would be fun.

Photo Credit: Eric Lars Bakke/Shazamm/ESPN Images

9.22.2008
BLAIR MORGAN SERIOUSLY INJURED
Just got word - Blair reportedly severed his spinal cord in a motocross accident in practice a track in Canada. He has had surgery, but word is he will be paralyzed.

I know this is not vintage, but I'm sure Bliar Morgan will be the next generation's Yvon DuHamel or Bob Eastman. All the best to Blair, his family and friends.

DOUGLAS, EAGLE RIVER REPORTS
If you missed either event this weekend, it sure sounds like you missed a good time. On the Bull Sessions, there are plenty of eyewitness accounts from both events.

9.19.2008
JEFF MOYLE TRIBUTE
I don't think anyone could have said it better than brothers Andy and Gary: "Of all the things that we didn’t say to you while you were here the most important is probably that we love you. Being brothers that just isn’t something that was repeated too often."

Read the full message to Jeff from his brothers at Moyelracingusa.com.

WACONIA MEMORIES
In putting up the Waconia auction items below, I couldn't help browsing through my photos from Waconia last year, and came across this cool little Yamaha, one of the very first Yamaha racers, and one of the earliest sleds with tuned pipes. This 1969 Yamaha SL 351 Racer is owned by David Matten in Minnesota. Very nice Davd!

Click on the photo to see a larger version.

9.17.2008
ANOTHER CHANCE FOR WACONIA MEMOROBILIA
We just posted another box full of Waconia memorabilia on Evil Bay. An autographed poster from last years show, featuring autographs from Polaris legends Eastman, Grahan, Bernat, Hedlund, Howe, Lindblad, Baker, Johnson, Ray Monsrud and Andy Wells. It also has dash plaques, and Xtra Large T-shirt and an Xtra large sweater, as well as pins from the show.

All are packaged in a single box, and 100% of the proceeds go to help the Snowmobile Hall of Fame in St. Germain Wisconsin.

Bidding starts at just $20 and there is NO RESERVE. Bid early, bid often, and have fun!

9.16.2008
NEW RACING PHOTO BOOK ON THE WAY
Just caught wind that the Snowmobile Hall of Fame in St. Germain is close to having a new photo book ready. Details are a bit thin at this time, but it's coming out in honor of C.J. Ramstad, and contains some of his photos. We'll make more details available as we learn them.

9.15.2008
JEFF MOYLE KILLED IN PARASAILING ACCIDENT
Jeff was the president of Moyle Construction and the primary sponsor of late model racer and World Champion Gary Moyle. Moyle was attempting to parasail from the shore near the camp when he became airborne and lost control in the strong wind. He fell approximately 50 feet from the air and struck a tug boat parked at a dock in the canal.

Funeral arrangements are by Erickson Crowley Funeral home in Calumet Michigan.

I had talked to Jeff several times over the years over some of the issues in late model snowmobile racing. He was a very smart guy, very friendly and very positive about his ambitions in snowmobiling. Our thoughts and prayers are with the family and friends today.

9.13.2008
WRENCHMAN'S 2ND ANNUAL VINTAGE SLED GIVEAWAY
Pipe builder and nice guy Dave Crumb, aka "Wrenchman" is going to give away two vintage snowmobiles to some young sledders. You can win the sled by writing an honest, true and from the heart essay on why you love snowmobiles and why you should win the contest. It should be greater than 150 words.

The winner in the ages 7-12 bracket will win the Sno*Jet pictures here, donated by Pete Kemp.

The winner in the 13-18 year old bracket will win a 1972 Ski-Doo TNT!

Essays will be posted in the Bull Sessions (some are already up now) and all the Bull Sessions members will vote for their favorite essay.

Essay's must be in by end of day, September 17th, the winners announced on September 21. Please note the winners or winners parents must arrange transportation of the sled.

Follow this link to the thread that will tell you all about the contest - an good luck!

9.12.2008
MORE ON RALPH PLAISTAD
This article from the Associated Press tells more about Ralph. Good read. Also heard today that the book C.J. Ramstad was working on was about 90% complete, and several people have been working on getting it finished and we all may be able to read it someday soon.

NEW SLED RUMOR MILL
This post was deleted. Man 'o man. I really ruffled the feathers with that post. Dang. Get your own tots.

Photos courtesy of SnowPod.com

9.11.2008
RALPH PLAISTAD PASSES
C.J. Ramstad was working on a book about this man and his adventures before his untimely passing. Ralph and his expidition made it all the way to the North Pole in 1968 on their then brand new Ski-Doos.

Ralph was a VIP guest at the 2000 Ski-Doo Reunion and the crw at Waconia had invited him for this years festivities at Waconia 2009. Ralph began riding sleds in the early 1960's and recognized the vehicles potential.

After riding from Ely Minnesota to St. Paul on a machine, he began planning the trip to the North Pole. More information is available from the St. Cloud times.

9.10.2008
86 SOO I-500 AT EAGLE RIVER FALL SHOW
An anonymous contributor sent in this photo of the 1986 Soo I-500 winner driven by Dan and Jim Kirts. This rare gem of an 82 Ski-Doo SnoPro has recently been restored, and will make its debut at the Eagle River track fall show on September 19th & 20th. Anyone one know the first two ladies on the left? They look very familiar.

Update: We had a photo of the sled mentioned above, but the owner of the photo requested it be removed. That makes it a little tough to tell the site readers about a really cool sled, but I respect the wishes of the photo owners.

NEW STUFF ON THE WAY!
So since I can't really talk too much about that sled, I'll talk about this. Over the last few weeks, I've been pretty quiet on here. That's because we are working hard on a redesign of the site. Lots of new features that have been under wraps for some time, and I'm dying to show them off. But you'll just have to wait till they are ready. Sorry!

The traffic on the site has rocketed upwards again last month. It happens every year about this time, but this year, it went way up from what it was the year before, and the year before that. Yes, lots of the traffic is people looking at the classifieds and the bull sessions over and over again. But the new traffic... that is unique visitors coming to the domain vintagesleds.com is up... again.

Direct traffic, (people who type in www.vintagesleds.com) is 65.71% of our traffic. Referral traffic from other websites is 11.80% and the search engines send us about 11% between Google, Yahoo and MSN. That would indicate that a lot of the growth of the site is still word of mouth. Very cool. We are very much honored and humbled by that.

The site has grown to a point where we have switched to faster bigger fast servers a few times - the last time having been last weekend. Some of you may have seen a strange message instead of the home page for a bit. From the time the move started till it was cut over, we lost a few posts on the Bull Sessions and classifieds, but other than those two items (we apologize if there was any inconvenience), the switch went smooth.

Stay tuned. Much, much more to come.