Snowmobile Racing in the County

Episode 199

February 11, 2018

Caribou Snowmobile Club drag racing results

The Caribou Snowmobile Drag Race was held January 28 while I was covering the Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona. I received the results recently thanks to Nick Morrill. From what I heard, there was about 650 spectators at the event and the weather was great for racers and fans.

Partial Results from Caribou Snowmobile Club Drag Race January 28. Nick Morrill photo

Pro Mod 700 second place was cut off in the photo. Dusty Glasscock was the second place finisher. Nick Morrill photo

Note the Kids Races were trophies only and were not listed. Nick Morrill photo

Kids 120 sled class at Caribou Snowmobile Club Drag Races. Prizes were handed out by Miss Caribou Sheridan Blackstone. Photo courtesy Jim Leighton Black Dot Photography

Caribou’s Mallory Willey continued to demonstrate her prowess as a snowmobile drag racer with two first place finishes (Improved 500 & Vintage Multi-cylinder) and a second in Stock 500. Her husband Philip Willey (left) and father Jay Thompson (right) help prepare the sled for another run. The sled is a 1980 Polaris Centurion. Photo courtesy Jim Leighton Black Dot Photography

Official started Darren Tilley prepares to send off another class of racers. Tilley filled the role of starter for the entire six-hour race time. Volunteers like Tilley are an essential part of events such as this. Photo courtesy Jim Leighton Black Dot Photography

Woodland’s Ethan Rossignol,Team OCD Racing, Arctic Cat on the move at Caribou Snowmobile Drag Races. Rossignol placed 1st in Improved Stock 600, 700, and 800. 1st in Stock 500, 800 & 1000. 2nd in Stock 600. Photo courtesy Jim Leighton Black Dot Photography

Team OCD Racing left to right Ethan Rossignol, John Holmquist, and Kurt Dumond. Missing from photo Sebastian Marquis. Robin Holmquist photo

Competing in his first snowmobile drag race, Matt Whitten, Caribou, aboard his 2017 Polaris XCR 800. Whitten a junior at Caribou High School, is the son of Jeff and Kathy Whitten. He placed 2nd in Stock 1000 class and 4th in the Stock 800 class. Good showing for the rookie. Photo courtesy Jim Leighton Black Dot Photography

On hand to support their daughter Miss Caribou, Sheridan Blackstone, were her parents Dan and Sheri Blackstone. Dan is the 2018 Maine Potato Board Young Farmer of the Year recipient. Robin Holmquist photo

Kyle Anderson, Caribou guns his SkiDoo off the line at Caribou Snowmobile Drag Races. Anderson had a second place in Pro-Mod 800 class and 3rd in Stock 800. Photo courtesy Jim Leighton Black Dot Photography

Brian’s Ride Cancer Fund Snowmobile Race in Caribou 

Spectators cost $10 for adults, $5 for students and racers entry fee $20 per sled.

March 17, 2018 will be the season finale for the Tame the Track Tour 2018. The race will be held behind the Northern Maine Brewing Company in Caribou with registration at 8:00 am and races starting at 11:00 am.

Tame the Track “Mega Meltdown” event map for March 17, 2018. Subject to change.

The Brian’s Ride fundraiser is named after Brian Caldwell, a self-employed carpenter who died May 22, 2014 a little under a year from being diagnosed with cancer.  The fund is set up to make a positive difference in the journey of cancer patients at the Jefferson Cary Cancer Center. Over $40,000 has been raised over the past two years.

Race organizer, Jere Humphrey, commented, “The Mega Meltdown will be the Grand Finale of Vintage and Kids Endurance Races for 2018. It is the last of ten various snowmobiling venues, brought to you by the organizers of Tame the Track Tour, to decide fourteen points championship titles before the long off-season.”

“A portion of the proceeds of the snowmobile racing venue will go directly to ‘Brian’s Ride’ charity, named after Brian Caldwell who lost his battle with cancer. Several awesome additions to the race venue will be added along the way. Mark your calendars and make plans to finish the snowmobile race season out strong right here in Northern Aroostook County.”

Fort Kent’s Pelletier meets success in SnoX

File photo of Joe Pelletier in action with Jere Humphrey looking on. Toni Lane II photo

Joe Pelletier, an owner-operator woodsman from Fort Kent, displayed his snowmobile driving talent at the Lincoln Snohounds Snocross races this weekend. The veteran driver drove his 2007 SkiDoo MXZX 440 to a third place in the Pro 500 class. In the Pro Open , Pelletier drove his 2014 SkiDoo 600 RS to the class win.

At the EMCC Foundation Dysart’s  Professional East Coast Snocross Association’s race at Speedway 95 January 27 & 28, Pelletier placed a solid fourth in the Plus 25 class.

Super Late Models preparation going on

Though winter may seem to have a stranglehold on Maine and western New Brunswick, that does not mean race teams are sitting idle as the 2018 season approaches. A couple of teams that I will once again follow in 2018, RYAN Motorsports, Harvey, New Brunswick, and WAR out of Ellsworth sent photos of their super late models in the shop.

RYAN Motorsports purchased this super late-model and have stripped it to the bare chassis in preparation for the 2018 racing season. RYAN Motorsports photo.

RYAN Motorsports will be concentrating on the Speedway 660 Pro Stock points race at Geary Woods, New Brunswick with a couple of travelling races.

WAR new Clattenburg Racing Fabrication super late-model chassis going together at their race shop in Ellsworth under the direction of team owner Brett Alexander and crew chief Bob Alexander. WAR photo

WAR (Wyatt Alexander Racing) will make an effort to race at some of the bigger shows at Wiscasset  Raceway in Maine as well as the PASS South Tour. Their first race of the 2018 season is the PASS race at Dillon, South Carolina at the end of March.

How’s that “give-away”vintage tractor coming?

As mentioned in a previous episode, the Northern Maine Antique Tractor Club (NMATC) is restoring a 1952 Cockshutt Model 30 to be raffled off and given away at their November 2018 Annual Meeting. The restoration team has made great progress since I was there last.

With only a few more sub-systems to install the NMATC Cockshutt 30 is almost ready for paint. To the left you can see the freshly sand-blasted rims from Ken Westin’s Woodland, Maine shop. Norm Driscoll in background preps the choke rod. HTF Motorsports photo

Dan Raymond (in photo), Caribou, and Paul Beaulieu, Limestone, spend most of a day preparing the seat which utilized a series of rods, levers, and monoshock/spring set up that I thought was a clever design. HTF Motorsports photo

My Daytona 500 picks

After an 0 for 3 Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona picking the winners effort, I am totally not sure that I am any more qualified to pick the Daytona 500 winner. Despite that shellacking at the 24 Hours race here goes:

  1. #42 Kyle Larson will be in Victory Circle saying, “I won the Daytona 55. I won the Daytona 500!”
  2. My sentimental pick is for Trevor Bayne to win his second Daytona 500 in the #6 Roush-Fenway Advocare Ford.
  3. And since good things come in threes, my “more than likely to win if Larson does not” pick is Brad Keselowski in the #2 Penske Ford.

Let me know how dumb my picks are by emailing me with your own picks which are more than likely just as a guess as mine. My email address is thale@reagan.com

Sad news from Indiana

My dear friend, Pastor Mick Saunder’s wife Alice, went home to be with the Lord Wednesday February 7, 2018 after a fight with cancer. I remember her as a family oriented woman who was very hospitable to me when I would stay at their home in Rushville, Indiana while covering the Brickyard 400 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

Mick Saunders on left with his wife Alice and daughter Amanda Saunders Niedrach at the hospital in Indianapolis where Alice received chemotherapy and excellent care. Amanda Saunders Niedrach photo

I thought you might like to hear the Mercedes F1 engine firing up. Some different from the Chaparral 2J engine from last episode. Judging from the large number of people in the engine room, I can see why F1 is expensive!

https://youtu.be/4i1cmaHACr4

Sam Heckman, Plaistow,New Hampshire placed second in the ProMod 600 class. Photo courtesy Jim Leighton Black Dot Photography

Winter Olympics have Maine men and woman competing

Do not forget to follow the Maine Winter Olympic team members, Russel Currier, Stockholm (biathlon),  Clare Egan, Cape Elizabeth (biathlon), and Troy Murphy, Bethel (moguls) as they compete over the next few days. Check NBC Sports for event coverage.

Let’s Go Racing,

Tom Hale

Soli Deo Gloria

Tom Hale

About Tom Hale

Tom wrote 14 years as freelancer for the Bangor Daily Sports covering motorsports in Maine. Now blogging and concentrating on human interest stories about people and places in racing. He races Champ Karts and owns HTF Motorsports in remote Westmanland, Maine