Press Release –

Register at Sneak Peeks to Win Free Trip. Four Lucky Riders Will Win Trips to ‘Assault Camp – Part Deux’

After a high-flying inaugural “Assault Camp,” Polaris is making plans for its second annual backcountry snowmobiling event where four lucky riders join three Slednecks™ pros to develop their riding skills on Polaris Assault RMK snowmobiles.

At “Polaris Assault Camp – Part Deux” next winter, four riders will join Slednecks™ stars Dan Adams, Randy Sherman, and Paul Thacker on the backcountry ride of their lives!

When you attend a Manufacturer Sneak Peek to see the 2010 Polaris snowmobiles, register for your chance to win a free trip to Polaris Assault Camp – Part Deux.

Riders who join the Slednecks experts at next winter’s event will learn high-altitude, backcountry riding tips and tricks from the pros, and each rider will take home thousands of dollars in Polaris gear!

Don’t delay! To register for your chance to enjoy the backcountry riding experience of a lifetime at Polaris Assault Camp – Part Deux, register at one of the Manufacturer Sneak Peek events near you, and be sure to pick up a Polaris Terrain Domination DVD.

Assault Camp winners will be chosen during the Fall of 2009 and Camp will be in session during the 2009/2010 winter riding season.

For a list of event dates and locations, visit www.snowsneakpeek.com.

Press Release –

Polaris snowmobiles not only deliver Terrain Dominating Control, in the hands of high-flying extreme rider Paul Thacker, they deliver world-record flight capability.

On March 26, Thacker piloted a Polaris 600 IQ® on a ramp-to-ramp flight of 301 feet, a new world record for snowmobile distance jumping. He accomplished the feat at the Brainerd (MN) International Raceway. The record-breaking jump was arranged by Monster Energy and Slednecks, who, like Polaris, are among Thacker’s sponsors.

Thacker and the Monster crew endured two days of unfavorable wind and weather before he made the record-setting jump late on the afternoon of March 26. He attained the necessary speed, launched his Polaris off the take-off ramp and landed it cleanly and safely a football field away.

“I got up to 87 miles per hour and hit the take-off ramp,” Thacker said. “When I was in the air I just knew it was perfect. Flew over 301 feet. With the amplitude and the way I landed, I knew we got to where we wanted to be. I was already screaming in my helmet on the down run.”

Thacker broke his own snowmobile distance jump record of 271 feet, which he set on a Polaris in the midst of a snowstorm on February 17, 2008, in Shakopee, Minnesota. Thacker joined fellow Monster-sponsored rider Ryan Capes as the only extreme athletes to jump their vehicles 300 feet. Capes accomplished the feat on a motorcycle.

April 15th is an important date. That’s when the innovative Yamaha Advantage 4-Year Warranty Voucher registration period comes to a close. With no deposit required and no obligation to buy anything, if you even think you might be in the market for a new sled this fall, you’d be foolish not to register before April 15th!

The Yamaha Advantage 4-Year Warranty Voucher program allows you to sign up now for a free 4-year warranty on any 2010 Yamaha snowmobile you buy before November 30th. It costs you nothing. There is no obligation to buy anything. AND you get to piggyback the free warranty on top of the sales promotion offer in place when you buy in the fall.

There are 2 ways to sign up for your warranty before April 15th: You can go in to your local Yamaha dealer and sign up there. If you do that, you’ll get a free Yamaha hat. Or, you can go online and register at www.Yamaha-Advantage.com. If you do that, you don’t get the hat.

Yamaha’s unmatched 4-year warranty proves just how confident Yamaha is in its snowmobile reliability. You get full sled coverage for 4 full years– not just engine coverage, but ski loop to snow flap protection (not counting standard wear items).

The 4-year warranty is fully transferrable with no transfer fee, so you can ride your 2010 sled with confidence for 3 seasons and then sell it on the used market with a full year of full factory-backed warranty. Talk about a competitive advantage when you put your sled in the local paper!

There is no deductible on covered repairs, so there’s no out of pocket for you. Yamaha even offers towing and trip interruption coverage. You’ll have no third-party, aftermarket policy paperwork and, most importantly, no hassles.

So get to your local Yamaha dealership or get online and register today for your free Yamaha Advantage 4-Year Warranty Voucher. Remember, with no deposit required and no obligation to buy anything, if you even think you might be in the market for a new sled this fall, you’d be foolish not to register before April 15th!

This weekend, hundreds of the Worlds best snowmobile racers roll into Horseshoe Valley Resort north of Barrie to compete at the final CSRA snowmobile race of the season, the “Dayco National Snowcross Championships”.

Horseshoe Valley Resort still has tons of snow on the slopes for this weekends events. The races will feature over (600) International racer entries from across Canada and the USA. Racers will compete for National Championships, the CSRA #1 Plate, and thousands of dollars in Cash and Awards.

Saturdays events will feature non stop racing action as competitors try to qualify for Sundays National Finals. Qualifying racing action will start at 10:00 AM. with the final “Blair Morgan Inspiration – Pro Open” race taking place at 4:00 PM. Saturday.

On Sunday, Pro and amateur races will take place all day starting at 10:00AM.
The Dayco National Pro Finals, and Vintage Snowmobile Racing will all take place between 1:00 – 5:00PM on Sunday.

The event will include a large vendor area with many snowmobile and ATV products. Spectators will have opportunity to try a Free test ride on new Yamaha snowmobiles.

For those new to the sport of Snowmobile racing, Snowcross racing is similar to Motorcycle Motocross. Racers will compete on a challenging ¾ mile, snow race course featuring a large hill climb starting line, huge jumps, drop offs and moguls.
Racer’s will often jump their race sleds over 100’ feet through the air as they race for the number one position at the finish line.

The forecast for the weekend is lots of Sunshine and warm temperatures.

Horseshoe Valley Resort still has a solid base of snow 5’ – 15’ feet deep.

The snowcross race course will be set up on the Ski slopes so spectators can view all the action from the base of the hill or from the comfort of Horseshoe’s Go West Grill Restaurant and Crazy Horse lounge facilities.

The winners of our 2009 Increase Your IQ Contest are pretty buzzed about receiving their new 2010 Polaris sleds!

The US winner is Kathy Eckenrodr from Michigan and the Canadian winner is Laurier Dargis from Alberta.

Interestingly, both winners are avid snowmobilers and diehard Polaris riders.

Congrats from everyone at Polaris and Supertrax International!

Press Release –

TJ Gulla Wins Pro Open Crown, Levi LaVallee Wins Super Stock Title

After battling through eight races on the ISOC circuit’s National Tour, three Polaris snocross racers on the Hentges Racing team made history by finishing 1-2-3 in Pro Open points. TJ Gulla led the way, winning the class title ahead of runner-up Brett Bender and third-place finisher Levi LaVallee.

In Pro Super Stock, LaVallee rose to the top with a tremendous final race and won the season points title while Gulla finished third in points. LaVallee’s title-clinching Pro Super Stock victory came at the ISOC circuit’s final race, March 20-22 in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin.

Other Polaris snocross racers who won ISOC points titles were Andrew Lieders (Lieders Racing) in Sport Super Stock 2 and James Johnstad (Avalanche Racing), who won titles in two Junior classes.

PRO OPEN: Bender Wins at Finale to Create Historic Finish

Brett Bender of Colden, N.Y., won the Pro Open race at the Lake Geneva season finale, giving him Pro-class wins at the final three races on the schedule and pushing him 3 points ahead of teammate LaVallee in the final points standings.

Gulla, who is from Jericho, Vermont, finished third at Lake Geneva to end the season with 230 points while Bender had 210 points and LaVallee, who is from Longville, Minnesota, had 207.

Five Polaris racers finished among the top 11 in Pro Open points. Following the top three Polaris racers were: Matt Judnick (Judnick Motorsports) in eighth and Shaun Crapo (Amsoil/US Air Force) in 11th.

Andrew Johnstad (Avalanche Racing) finished 14th in points, followed by DJ Eckstrom (Amsoil/US Air Force) in 16th, Ross Martin (Judnick Motorsports) in 17th despite running just three races before suffering an injury, Parker Brown (No Limits Racing), 20th, Lee Butler (Royal Distributing/Bourque’s Polaris, Canada’s Polaris Snocross Team), 21st, and Danny Poirier (Hultens Speed Sport) 22nd.

PRO SUPER STOCK: LaVallee Powers to Win & Points Title

Heading to Lake Geneva, Levi LaVallee was tied for first in Pro Super Stock points, and he remained deadlocked following the weekend’s preliminary rounds of racing. That made it essential that he excel in the final, and LaVallee delivered, pulling away to win the race and secure the season points title.

LaVallee was followed across the finish line by his teammate Gulla, who finished third in class points. Fellow Polaris racers in the top 10 at Lake Geneva were Eckstrom in seventh and Judnick in 10th.

In Pro Super Stock points, there were five Polaris racers in the top 10 and eight in the top 13. After title-winner LaVallee and Gulla in third, the top-placing Polaris racers were: Crapo in fifth, Eckstrom in eighth, Bender in 10th, Judnick in 11th, Andrew Johnstad in 12th and Bobby LePage (Hentges Racing) in 13th.

SEMI-PRO & SPORT CLASSES: Lieders Wins Sport SS2 Title

Andrew Lieders and Stephen Edwards (Leighton Motorsports) finished 1-2 in the Sport Super Stock 2 race at Lake Geneva, which helped Lieders clinch the class points title and put Edwards third in points. Other Polaris racers in the top 10 in Sport Super Stock 2 points were: Joe Fallen (Fallen Racing) in fifth, Kyle Fiebelkorn (Avalanche Racing) in sixth, Brian Ludwig (Ludwig Racing) in seventh and Ben Lindbom in ninth.

In the Semi-Pro classes, Bobby LePage finished third in Open points and Derek Ellis (Avalanche Racing) was sixth in Super Stock points.

In Sport Women’s Super Stock at Lake Geneva, Kendra Dallmann (LePage Racing) and Stephanie Schmidt (Schmidt Racing) finished 1-2, which meant Dallmann ended the season second in class points while Schmidt was third. Taylor Achterberg (Amsoil Eagle River Derby Track) was fourth in points and Janae Johnson (Triple H & J Racing) was fifth.

In Sport Super Stock 1, five Polaris racers finished in the top eight in points, led by Fallen in second. He was followed in the standings by Lieders in third, Fiebelkorn in fourth, Ludwig in sixth and Lindbom in eighth.

James Johnstad swept the points titles in the top two Junior classes, Jr. 16-17 and Jr. 14-15. Other top 10 Polaris racers in Jr. 16-17 were Brett Nastala (Redline Racing) in second, Jake Jorgenson (No Limits Racing) in sixth, Kyle LaCoe (LaCoe Racing) in eighth and Trevor Leighton (Leighton Motorsports) in 10th.

Along with Johnstad, other Polaris racers in the top 10 in Jr. 14-15 points were Brandon Herheim (Triple H & J Racing) in fourth, Colton Lampi (Lampiracing) in sixth, Jake Jorgenson (No Limits Racing) seventh and Trevor Leighton (Leighton Motorsports) ninth.

The latest episode of SnowTrax Television is now online! Watch the entire episode for free via the Woody’s Video Portal.

This episode features an inside look at Ski-Doo’s 2010 snowmobile line up. Plus the crew heads off to Haliburton, Ontario to take part in a special ALS ride to raise funds in memory of our great friend John Massingberd.

In Test Ride Luke hits the trails with the Yamaha Phazer RTZ and the Real World Sled of the Year is unveiled.

All this and more on North America’s most watched snowmobile show.

Visit www.SnowTraxTV.com and click the link under Woody’s Video Portal!

Press Release –

It started out as a season filled with promise and hope for Team Sportech. During the off-season the team matured, aligned itself with some of the best sponsors in the industry, acquired a top-shelf mechanic and spent hours upon hours training and practicing in preparation for the season to come.

By mid-season the hopes had turned to reality as both Andrew and Taylor Carlson were demonstrating incredible growth on the track, garnered a few podiums both on the regional and national stage, and we’re poised to make a run for their respective year-end point championships.

But then fate stepped in; first with a season ending knee injury to Taylor Carlson after she was pitched from her machine while competing at Brainerd, Minnesota during a national competition; and later with a similar injury to Andrew Carlson as he was poised to make a run for the Semi-Pro Super Stock crown during the last race of the ISOC Minnesota Regional series in Thief River Falls, Minnesota. “You always know injuries can be a part of this sport,” said father and team owner Chris Carlson. “You just never expect to have it happen to both of your riders at virtually the same time.”

Strong Start to the Weekend for Andrew Early in the day during qualifying action in Thief River Falls, Andrew was once again riding with consistency. Qualifying efforts were solid in all three Semi-Pro classes and he had the momentum and the stage set to capture the Semi-Pro Super Stock #2 year-end title in the final the following day by beating current point leader Devin Bertoch in two of three qualifying rounds.

But then during the final race of the day, on the last lap with just one corner to go, Andrew overshot a double and was pitched hard into his sled. As on-track medics assessed Andrew, it was quickly learned his race weekend was over and so too were his championship hopes.

After the conclusion of racing on Sunday, Andrew still netted a second overall in Semi-Pro Super Stock #1 and #2 and finished third on the season in Semi-Pro Open. “The injury not only dashed our hopes for titles at the regional level,” said Carlson. “But we were hoping for strong finishes at the last national race in Lake Geneva as well.” Chris Carlson Sweeps Last Regional; Claims Year End Titles in Both Plus Classes Despite the injury to Andrew, Chris Carlson regrouped and looked for more positive results in the Plus 30 and Plus 40 classes. Chris entered the weekend leading both classes and simply needed a strong showing in both to take home the year-end titles.

Never willing to simply settle, Carlson hit the track with guns loaded and swept both classes, easily claiming both championships. Taylor and Andrew Remain Positive and Focused It should come as no surprise that despite their injuries, both Taylor and Andrew were seen trackside during the final AMSOIL Championship Snocross Series race of the season in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin. After watching Chris finish second in the Plus 40 class during the invitational Showdown at Sundown action on Friday, Taylor and Andrew were on hand for the Sunday evening awards banquet to receive their year-end trophies in national competition.

In Pro Women, Taylor finished the season in fifth, despite missing the last four races of the season. And Andrew took home seventh and fourth place hardware in Sport Stock #1 and Sport Stock #2 respectively. Currently both riders are ahead of schedule with physical therapy as they prepare for surgery in the coming weeks. And most recently, Andrew received great news from his doctor – in that his injury is not as severe as originally diagnosed and his expected recovery period has been greatly improved. Both Andrew and Taylor are fully committed to being 100% prepared for the season opener at Duluth, Minnesota, November 27, 2009.

Next Up While the snocross season is over and both riders face a summer of rehabilitation, Team Sportech is poised for even more success and perhaps some exciting changes during the summer months.Visit the newly updated website at www.teamsportechracing.com to stay abreast of the latest happenings.

Press Release –

Front row qualifying positions and a top-five finish proved to be the highlight for Yamaha Factory Racing at the final Pro-Open race of the AMSOIL® Snocross Championship season, held in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin this past weekend.

Both Steve Taylor and Iain Hayden successfully put their FX Nytros® through the paces in their qualifying heats to advance directly to the main event with fourth and fifth place finishes respectively.

In the final, Hayden and Taylor expertly harnessed the explosive four-stroke power of their FX Nytros® to peg a lightning fast start out of the gate. By the end of the first lap both were in position to challenge for the lead. With Hayden running strong in second place, and Taylor equally secure in third, it looked like the teammates were both on their way to a podium finish.

Unfortunately, a hapless Taylor found himself flying off the demanding Lake Geneva track after being T-boned by another rider on the 3rd lap. By the time he got back into the fray he was at the back of the pack and finished 13th on the day.

“This was a very disappointing finish to the end of the season, as I believe I was well on my way to giving the team a podium finish,” said Taylor. “Everything was in place for a top finish. I was feeling really pumped to end the series on a positive note, my injured foot was cooperating well, and my FX Nytro® ran like a charm.”

Hayden, meanwhile, held on to his position for the greater part of the race until the unrelenting pounding dished out by the extremely rough track took its toll on his still tender shoulder, an injury he has had to deal with almost the entire season.

By the time the checkered signaled the end of the 14-lap event, Hayden found himself giving up three positions in the grueling race. He still managed to hang on to a respectable fifth place finish, however.

“Considering everything, it was still a good finish for me. My FX Nytro® ran flawlessly. I know I was riding a winning machine, but physically I was unable to use the sled’s power towards the end of the race” said Hayden. “It would have been nice to capture another podium like at the Hayward race, but it just wasn’t in the cards for this weekend.”

Despite the tough-luck finish to the season, team manager Andre Laurin took it all in stride, focusing instead on the developmental progress made with the FX Nytro® over the course of the eight-round ISOC sanctioned championship tour.

“We knew that proving the 4-stroke potential running against the best snocross teams would be a challenge. But we also knew that only Yamaha has the 4-stroke technology to develop and produce the revolutionary FX Nytro®,” said Laurin. “We made improvements to the sled every time out, and at every race the racer’s skill and the team’s hard work paid dividends. While we certainly had our fair share of bad luck when it came to injuries and crashes induced by other riders, we also showed that the FX Nytro® has what it takes to be competitive out on the snocross race track. The Yamaha 4-stroke power is just amazing.”

Everyone at Yamaha Factory Racing would like to congratulate and thank the entire snocross team for their dedication and hard work. Special notice goes to our drivers Steve Taylor and Iain Hayden, and our technicians Adam Robinson, Steve Simms, Jeff Torgerson and Jim Burton for their amazing work behind the scenes.