11-19-05
My dad and I are currently working on putting together a "new" champ sled. There's about a 1-2% chance that it will be done for the first races of the season, in Beausejour, Canada. However, the more likely scenario is that we'll have it togther about mid-December and do a few weeks worth of testing and make the first race of the year the USSA race in Plymouth. Here are some pictures to show our "progress."
Enough about me. I want to talk about ice oval racing as a whole.
I say this every year and every year it's more true then the last. Ovals are coming back. The's a renewed interest in the sport that once held the throne as "KING of WINTER". Something killed it though. Some say it was F1/F111. Some say it was the sport of Sno-X. Still more others say it was the way the sleds themselves were designed. I believe it was an intricate combination of the three. Whatever the case, those days are GONE and the day of the ice oval are back. This is easily seen in all the new buzz out there. John Hooper and his henchmen came up with the idea of Formula 500, a beginner level class that lets the beginner level racer drive something other than the 440 off the factory assembly line that, after the initial investment of purchasing the sled (if you can get one) and sticking even more money in to the parts necessary to make it turn on ice, still needs a MIRACLE to beat some of the factory big wigs (cough*Dustin Wahl*cough). This class lets the beginning racer invest $4000-5000 in a sled and lets them put it together so they can learn the ropes firsthand. This class is taking off like a stripper out east, and even here in the midwest, some guys are throwing there hats in the rings. It will be offered at Beausejour (both December and March) as well as at the Eagle River World Championship Derby, not to mention all the stops along the Eastern Pro Tour.
Another exciting aspect about the upcoming winter is the Millenium Technologies/ V- Force Oval Challenge. As of right now, there is $27,000 being put up by promoters and sponsors for this four race mini-series. Half will go to the Pro 600 class, the other half to the Champ 440 class.
I pulled this off a post on the Snowweek.com forums:
“The 2006 Millennium Technologies and V Force Reed Valve Systems Oval Challenge.”
$25,000 Up For Grabs
Races to be held at Beausejour Manitoba, Plymouth Wisconsin, Eagle River Wisconsin, Valcourt Quebec
• All Four Promoters will put up $2,500 for the race at their track.
• This will be paid out in separate checks from any other purses
• The classes will be the Pro Stock 600 and the Pro Champ
• The pay out for the Pro Stock 600 would be 1st $500.00 2nd $300.00 3rd 200.00
• The pay out for Pro Champ would be 1st 750.00 2nd $500.00 3rd $250.00
• At the end of the fourth race high points would tallied up and the top three in each class would divvy up $15000.00
• That pay out would be Pro Stock 600 1st $3000.00 2nd $2500.00 3rd $1000.00
• Pro Champ 1st $4000.00 2nd $3000.00 3rd $1500.00
• The point system will be 10 points 1st 9 points 2nd 8 points 3rd 7 points 4th 6 points 5th 5 points 6th 4 points 7th 3 points 8th 2 points 9th 1 point 10th
• Points will only be tallied on the class finals.
• Participant must run all four races to qualify.
• Participant must have both sponsors logos on the hood of the sled.
• The pay out will be at the winners associations year end banquet.
Millennium Technologies is on board. And VForce Reed Valve Systems is on board. With The $15,000.00 from theses two great sponsors and the $10,000.00 that the Four Promoters are going to put up,we think this will help kick start the already rebounding oval race program. And what better way to do this than to use the history of the sport and some of the most famous tracks in all of snowmobile racing.
...it's gonna be an interesting year.
