A federal judge in Wyoming who in the past has supported higher numbers of snowmobiles in Yellowstone National Park  ruled earlier this month that he could not overturn the National Park Service's decision to cap daily snowmobile numbers at 318 this coming winter.

In his brief ruling, U.S. District Judge Clarence Brimmer said that because the matter specifically before his court had been appealed to the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, he had lost jurisdiction over it.



At issue was Interior Department Secretary Ken Salazar's decision this past July  to direct the Park Service to follow a course that would limit recreational snowmobile use in Yellowstone to 318 machines per day, along with 78 snowcoaches, for each of the next two winters while the Park Service crafts a viable winter-use plan for Yellowstone and Grand Teton national parks.



Secretary Salazar's directive was the most recent that has ping-ponged the allowed number of snowmobiles in Yellowstone back and forth.

In November 2007, after the latest round of environmental studies, the Park Service had decided to allow up to 540 snowmobiles and 83 snowcoaches into the park on a daily basis. But the predicted legal challenges to that decision resulted in a federal judge -- U.S. District Judge Emmet Sullivan, who is based in Washington, D.C. -- to scold the agency for ignoring science and running from its conservation mission.



While Judge Sullivan tossed that winter-use plan, thus seemingly leading the Park Service back to the drawing board, Judge Brimmer trumped his Washington, D.C., colleague. While Judge Brimmer noted that he couldn't overrule his cross-country colleague, he could direct the Park Service to revert to 2004 winter-use regulations if it couldn't come up with a new rule before the 2008-2009 winter season began. That opened the door for the Park Service to halt work on the interim rule and turn back the hands of time to 2004, when as many as 720 snowmobiles were allowed into the park on a daily basis.



After Secretary Salazar's directive prevented the 2004 limits from being reinstated, Wyoming officials went back to Judge Brimmer with a request that he once again direct the Park Service to return to the 2004 temporary winter-use guidelines -- although they wanted to bump the daily number up to 740 snowmobiles -- until a final winter-use plan is adopted. On Thursday the judge said he had no authority to alter the snowmobile numbers, since his earlier ruling had been appealed by the National Parks Conservation Association to the 10th Circuit.



"The decision is procedural, but allows the National Park Service to move forward in providing winter access and enjoyment at Yellowstone that better protects park resources," said Patricia Dowd, NPCA's Yellowstone program manager. "It's a step in the right direction. NPCA welcomes the court's decision."

Thief River Falls, Minn. (Sept. 21, 2009) – For the second weekend in a row Arctic Cat’s new CFR 800 showed that it’s dominate 800 class wins at Haydays were no fluke.

Piloting 2010 CFR 800s, Team Arctic’s Glenn Hall of Gordon, Wis., and Scott Moser of Lowville, N.Y., smoked the competition with wins in both the Stock 800 and Stock 1000 classes at the Ohio, NY SnowBash.

As well, Team Arctic’s Ron Gilland competed at the NSDRA grass drag in Jesup, Iowa and won both the 1000 stock class and Top Stock Shoot Out aboard a CFR 800 and took second in 800 Stock. Kelly Schilts was close behind on his CFR placing second in Top Stock.

“The 2010 CFR800 is proving itself weekend after weekend as one of the World’s Fastest Snowmobiles,” said Mike Kloety, Team Arctic Race Manager. “Consumers should be confident this sled will live up to its 160hp claim.”

Team Arctic Ohio, NY Results
1st 800 Stock - 2010 CFR 800  Scott Moser
1st 1000 Stock - 2010 CFR 800 Scott Moser
2nd 1000 Stock - 2010 CFR 800  Glenn Hall
1st 1000 ProStock - CFR1000 Scott Moser
1st 700 Stock - F7 Glenn Hall
1st 700 Improved - F7

Team Arctic Jesup, IA Results
1st 1000 Stock - 2010 CFR 800 Ron Gilland
1st Top Stock Shootout - 2010 CFR 800 Ron Gilland
2nd Top Stock Shootout - 2010 CFR 800 Kelly Schilts
1st 800 Stock - Jade Gilland
2nd 800 Stock - 2010 CFR 800 Ron Gilland

Minneapolis, MN (September 2009) The 2009‐2010 AMSOIL Championship Snocross Series will feature four new race venues to compliment five established Nationals from seasons past.

“We are very excited about the new race venues for this season,” said ISOC CEO John Daniels. “We’ve worked very hard to find locations which will lend to success for not only ISOC, but most importantly our racers, fans, sponsors and the entire sport of snocross.”

ISOC’s goal when adding new venues is to make sure they fit a certain criteria to benefit everyone involved with snocross and will expand the sport of snocross. Among other factors, the evaluation process weighs the combination of race track set‐up, community population, expected event media coverage, local commitment to support the race to ensure success and long‐term potential for growth.

The schedule for the 2009‐2010 AMSOIL Championship Snocross Series is below. New National events for this season are noted by an asterisk (*).

2009-2010 National Snocross Schedule:
Nov 27th‐29th - AMSOIL Duluth National Spirit Mountain, Duluth, MN
Dec 19th & 20th - Potawatomi National* Milwaukee Mile, Milwaukee, WI
Jan 9th - Western Nationals* Rio Tinto Stadium, Sandy, UT
Jan 23rd & 24th - Air Force National Canterbury Park, Shakopee, MN
Feb 5th & 6th - Eastern Nationals Finger Lakes Gaming & Casino, Farmington, NY
Feb 13th & 14th - New England Nationals* Rockingham Park, Salem, NH
Feb 20th & 21st - Canadian Nationals* Hiawatha Horsepark, Sarnia, ON, CA
March 6th & 7th - Hayward 300 LCO Casino, Hayward, WI
March 19th‐21st - Nielsen Enterprises Grand Finale Grand Geneva Resort, Lake Geneva, WI

The five venues which were part of the ACSS schedule last season will again be the focal points for the season.

Arctic Cat Press Release - Thief River Falls, Minn. (Sept. 16, 2009) – The annual kick-off to winter also proved to be a kiss-off to the competition at the Sno-Baron’s Haydays grass drags, with Arctic Cat’s new CFR 800 delivering the “World’s Fastest Snowmobiles” message with unmistakable clarity.

In the capable hands of Team Arctic’s Glenn Hall of Gordon, Wis., and Scott Moser of Lowville, N.Y., the CFR 800 nailed commanding wins in both the Stock 800 and Open Stock classes at the famed summer event in Forest Lake, Minn., effectively ending any debate about which brand owns the big classes.

“We built the CFR 800 to continue the Arctic Cat tradition of being the quickest, fastest and most potent snowmobiles in the sport,” said Mike Kloety, Team Arctic Race Manager. “Finishing one-two in Open Stock and crushing Stock 800 at Haydays made that fact perfectly clear to the thousands of spectators who witnessed the wins.”

The victories are also a clear indication of the power produced by the new 800 H.O. engine. Pumping out 160-hp with a 4.3-lb. lighter crankshaft that revs quicker, the 800 H.O. brings class-crushing performance to the 2010 CFR 800, F8, Crossfire 8 and M8 models.

In addition to the victories by Hall and Moser, Jamie Edwards led a Team Arctic sweep of the Stock 700 class.

“It’s always good for the team to do well at Haydays,” said Team Arctic Drag Racing Coordinator, Al Shimpa. “It’s the biggest drag race of the season, and they all worked very hard to be at their best, especially with limited time aboard the new CFR 800. This sled is going to get even better throughout the season.”

Minnesota Discovery Center in Chisholm, Minnesota, opens a new exhibit “Iron Dogs: Snowmobiling in Minnesota” September 19. The exhibit runs through November 29. This homegrown effor features more than 15 snowmobiles from different eras, including a replica 1918-1920 era "wheel thing" and an original 1951 Eliason. Other machines include the 1962 "Polar," the precursor to Arctic Cat, a 1964 Trailmaker and the 1968 Ski Doo used in the first successful snowmobile expedition to the North Pole. See the 1966 Scorpion that went from Crosby to Anchorage and the 1989 Arctic Cat JAG that traveled from Minnesota to Russia. View many other machines by Polaris and Arctic Cat, plus a Ranger, a Model T on skis, and much more.

Iron Dogs was made possible with assistance from the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, the Vintage Snowmobile Club of America, the Antique Snowmobile Club of America, the Antique and Classic Snowmobile Club of Canada, Antique Snowmobile Society, International Snowmobile Hall of Fame, Eagle River, WI, the World Snowmobile Headquarters, also in Eagle River, the Snowmobile Hall of Fame at St. Germaine, WI, the Eliason Family, area snowmobile clubs and private collectors.

This exhibit is included with general admission to Minnesota Discovery Center, located at 801 SW Hwy 169 in Chisholm, MN. Contact us for more information: 800-372-6437.

Snowmobilers know that the weekend after Labor Day is always significant. Not only does it mean that winter is just a few months away, it also is the weekend when the Sno-Baron's host the ever-popular Haydays Grass Drags & Swap Meet near Lino Lakes, Minnesota.

This year marks the 43rd year of the event. For more than four decades, Haydays has been the place to be and be seen, and every year the event gets better. The 43rd iteration promises to be just that. Attendees can find nearly everything they ever dreamed of at the event with the hundreds of vendors, the swap meet, freestyle show, raffles, grass drag racing and more going on. It also is the place to witness the 2010 snowmobiles from all four major sled manufacturers.

Like every year before this one, Haydays is a can't miss event. So if you haven't made plans to attend, you better now. It happens in just a few short days (September 12-13). For more information about Haydays, visit www.snobarons.com.

You might want to give your sled a tune-up early — the Farmers' Almanac is predicting a cold winter for many.
 
The venerable almanac's 2010 edition says numbing cold will predominate in the country's midsection, from the Rocky Mountains in the West to the Appalachians in the East.
 
Managing Editor Sandi Duncan says it's going to be an "ice cold sandwich."
"We feel the middle part of the country's really going to be cold — very, very cold, very, very frigid, with a lot of snow," she said. "On the East and West coasts, it's going to be a little milder. Not to say it's going to be a mild short winter, but it'll be milder compared to the middle of the country."
 
The almanac, which has been published since 1818, issues annual forecasts using a formula based on sunspots, planetary positions and the effects of the moon.
 
This winter, the 200-page publication says it'll be cool and snowy in the Northeast, bitterly cold and dry in the Great Lakes states, and cold and snowy across the North Central states.
 
It says the Northwest will be cool with average precipitation, the Southwest will be mild and dry, the South Central states will be cold and wet, and the Southeast will be mild and dry.
 
The almanac's forecast, however, is at odds with the National Weather Service, which is calling for warmer-than-normal temperatures across much of the country because of an El Nino system in the tropical Pacific Ocean, said Mike Halpert, deputy director of the NOAA Climate Prediction Center in Camp Springs, Md.
 
"The stronger El Nino becomes, the more confident and the more likely it will be the northern part of the country will have a milder-than-average winter," Halpert said.
 
The almanac and the Weather Service agree on their predictions of warmer-than-usual conditions across much of the country next summer.
 
The Farmers' Almanac, not to be confused with the New Hampshire-based Old Farmer's Almanac, has a circulation of about 3.5 million.

Welcome to the new Sledder.net website. Yeah, we know, the cyber world is already teaming with several snowmobile websites, each claiming to be an all encompassing source for everything snowmobile related. Some do an admirable job, while many more are here today and gone tomorrow, or at the very least collecting dust as the content begins to sour. At Sledder.net we don’t proclaim to be such a site, nor do we want to be. Instead we developed Sledder.net to be your once a day stop for snowmobiling news and events with simple, clean navigation and daily updates.

Sledder.net is also home to some of the best snowmobile publications in the business. Every month you’ll find the latest publications for some of the most prominent snowmobile associations in the United States, along with programs and yearbooks for some of the biggest events in the industry. You’ll find magazines for Minnesota, Wisconsin and Illinois snowmobile associations along with programs and yearbooks for the Duluth National Snocross, Sno Baron’s Hay Days Grass Drags and the International Series of Champions National Snocross Circuit. Unlike other sites that offer just a tease of their published book, these electronic publications are complete from cover to cover, with all the photos, reviews, club news, events and advertisements for you to enjoy in a simple flip-page format.

We have a lot more in store for Sledder.net as we move into the season and we encourage you to drop us a line by clicking the Contact Us tab at the top or bottom navigation and let us know what you’d like to see. Until then, add Sledder.net to you favorites and make us your once a day stop for snowmobile news and events.

After months of rumors and speculation and Polaris offering a mixed bag of 2-injector and 4-injector engines in 2009, Polaris recently announced all 600 engines in all 2010 models will employ Clean Fire Injection (CFI) with four injectors versus two as previously indicated. The four injector design utilizes injectors mounted in the cylinder as well as the case. No word yet if calibrations will remain consistent with previous four-injector models or is all new for 2010.

Also announced was a Service Bulletin engine package for all 2008 and 2009 800 Liberty twin engines.  The Service Bulletin was released on August 27, 2009 to improve durability and drivability issues experienced by some customers under certain conditions according to Polaris. The Bulletin includes hardware and software updates based upon 2010 models. Parts and service included in the bulletin are:
o    RMK – New head, 2-ring piston, revised fuel injection software
o    IQ and Switchback – New head, 2-ring piston, silencer, revised fuel injection software
o    Parts are shipping to dealers now.

•    All updated units will receive an extension of a Polaris  limited engine warranty to June 1, 2010.
 

The Polaris family and the snowmobile world is coming to grips with the death of Rick Ward, perhaps the greatest hillclimber in history and one of the best gentlemen on the Western racing circuit.

The longtime Polaris hillclimber, cross-country racer and manager of the company’s Western racing program, died Tuesday, September 1, in a motor vehicle accident near his Sugar City home. He was 47.

Ward’s name had become synonymous with the term “King of the Hill.” During his long hillclimbing career he won 18 world championships, countless class titles and numerous King of the Hill honors at events throughout the West. He was not only a successful racer but a mentor and inspiration to many younger racers who admired the way he prepared his sleds, the way he rode and the way he graciously accepted the outcome.

Win or lose – and it was most often “win” – he was a sportsman. He celebrated victory with dignity and was always ready to congratulate competitors.

“This is a tragic loss of a great friend and an amazingly talented snowmobile racer,” said Polaris Racing Manager Tom Rager, Sr. “He was a tremendous asset to our racing program and he set an outstanding example, particularly for Western racers.”

Scott Swenson, Vice President of the Polaris Snowmobile and PG&A Division, said the entire Polaris family of employees, dealers and snowmobilers is saddened by Ward’s death. “Rick was a tremendous hillclimber and a great leader for our Western program,” Swenson said. “Our thoughts and prayers go out to his wife Michelle, their three children and his entire family.”
Ward, who made his living as a farmer, was a multi-time winner at the Jackson Hole World Championship Hillclimb and was a fixture in the Rocky Mountain Snowmobile Hillclimb Association. He raced exclusively on Polaris snowmobiles, and in recent years served as the manager of the company’s Western racing program, with a focus on hillclimbs.

As recently as 2007, Ward was still winning titles at Jackson Hole. That year he added to his legendary Jackson Hole resume, winning three classes and leading the Polaris racers as they won a dominating 45% of all classes at the event.

In 2006, Ward won Stock King of the Hill honors at Jackson Hole after winning the Pro Masters Stock and Pro 600 Stock classes.

Following that 2006 victory, Polaris Racing Manager Tom Rager, Sr., said, “Our strong showing was the result of a total team effort that was led by Rick Ward, one of the best-organized and most-successful competitors in hillclimb history. Out West, Rick is in charge of our hillclimb program, and this World Championship success is testimony to his leadership skills.”

Ward was extremely talented at building hillclimb sleds, and he had extraordinary riding skills that helped him optimize the sled’s performance regardless of the conditions on race day. When Polaris racers traveled west for events such as the Winter X Games or snocross racing at West Yellowstone, Montana, Ward helped them tune their engines to perform at high altitude.

Each year when new Polaris Deep Snow sleds were developed, Ward dissected them to learn how they could best be set up for hillclimbs, and he shared that information with Western Polaris racers.

Survivors include his wife Michelle, two daughters and a son. Funeral services will be held at 3 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 5, at the Sugar City LDS Stake Center. Visitation is Friday, Sept. 4, from 6-8 p.m. at the Flamm Funeral Home in Rexburg, and Saturday at the Stake Center from 1:30-2:30 p.m. Additional details are available, and online condolences may be sent to the Ward family, at www.flammfh.com.

The International Snowmobile Hall of Fame (ISHOF) is now located in the World Snowmobile Headquarters (WSHQ) in Eagle River, Wisconsin. Elmer Cone and his family, who founded the program and kept it going for 20 years, have decided to “retire” from the administration of ISHOF and pass the duties over to the World Snowmobile Headquarters.

All phases and administration of ISHOF will now be handled from the Eagle River facility including induction ceremonies.
  
“We are excited about the move to Eagle River and pledge to continue to promote and give credit to the people and machines that have created and maintain the great sport of snowmobiling,” states Scott Eilertson, newly elected president of ISHOF and a 2005 Inductee.

"It is extremely impressive to see the photo plaques of the 74 very important and dedicated people that have done so much to create and develop our sport. They deserve a great place of honor and the new location showcases their induction into the very prestigious International Snowmobile Hall of Fame," Eilertson adds.

Newly elected ISHOF officers (and their induction dates) are: Scott Eilertson (2005), president; Tom Anderson (2002), vice president and secretary; Dave Carmichael (2005), treasurer. Directors are: Jerry Bassett (1996), Russ Davis, Dave Guenther, Dave Johnson, Larry Koch (1999), Les Ollilia, DeLyle Pankratz, Steve Pierce, Bill Schumann (1997) and Joann Smith.

ISHOF was founded in 1984 by Elmer Cone to honor the people who were instrumental in the development of the recreational side of snowmobiling and has been located in Bovey, Minnesota. Health issues and the desire to bring more exposure to ISHOF is the reason for the move to Eagle River. Elmer was inducted into the Hall in 2007. Special recognition is given to him for his insight and dedication in the creation, development and operation of the program. He now serves as Director Emeritus of International Snowmobile Hall of Fame in their new location in Eagle River.

Opened three years ago, the World Snowmobile Headquarters is already home to several other snowmobile organizations.

“Right from the start of the 'HQ' project, we learned of other groups interested in exposure in the facility. Now, seven more groups or organizations are showcased. They are: World Championship Snowmobile Derby Walls of Fame, Antique and Vintage Snowmobile Clubs, International Groomer Operator of the Year, Iron Dog Brigade, Women on Snow, Kitty Cat Racers and Thirsty Dogs. We finished off the project with a large snowmobile oriented gift shop and video viewing room," states Tom Anderson, World Snowmobile Headquarters president.

“The concept of having several groups under one roof gives snowmobilers more to see and learn as they wander about our multi-faceted facility,”  Anderson explains.

On display in the museum rooms are over 85 antique and vintage sleds, all under the watchful eyes of the 74 inductees into the International Snowmobile Hall of Fame. Over 250 photos from past Derby races are also on display.

Visitors can explore the 6,250 square feet of displays that provide a look back into the history of snowmobiling and the pioneers of the sport. The gift shop offers scores of snowmobile related items ranging from books, magazines, clothing, videos and other novelty items. All this with free admission.

The ISHOF and World Snowmobile Headquarters are located at 1521 N. Railroad Street (Highway 45 North just 200 feet north of the Derby Track) and open six days a week from 10 am-4 pm (closed Sundays). Telephone: 715-479-2186 or check out the website at: www.worldsnowmobilehq.com.