New film from Thomas Opre:

Cory Davis' track failed on the first leg of Day 3. He said when it started ratcheting he thought he might have a belt problem so he stopped and ripped all his body panels off to try to find the problem. He left them behind to save time.

Our friends over at arcticinsider.com took the time to get to the bottom of the mystery of the track failures thatplagued some of the top running Arctic Cat riders at the 2010 I-500.

Track failure took out D.J. Ekre, the leader on Day 3, Cory Davis, Ryan Simons and Chad Kyllo. The failures were a mystery with perhaps the only clue being all the riders had Camoplast Ripsaw tracks while race winner Dan Ebert used a Camoplast Cobra track.

The failures were heartbreaking for Ekre who had a comforatble lead on the reast of the field as well as for Kyllo who was leading the Semi-Pro class.

Click over to read AI’s interview of Rod Foss, the engineer who oversees track development up at Arctic Cat.

http://www.arcticinsider.com/Article/Why-Tracks-Failed-During-the-I-500

FLINT, Michigan — Diane Miller never had a problem finding a snowmobile race to go to. But she had plenty of trouble finding competition and entering events.

Women’s sports were in their embryonic stages in the 1970s and it was unheard of for women to compete against men.

When the New Lothrop resident would arrive at an event, sometimes traveling in excess of 500 miles one way, it wasn’t uncommon for the girls’ race to be canceled because there were not enough participants to field a race.

And she was never allowed to race with the men.

“Women were still treated a little different,” Miller said. “It was frustrating for all of us, and there was nothing you could do about it.”

Over the course of her 14-year career on the snowmobile racing circuit, she would break down several barriers.

Read the rest here:

http://www.mlive.com/sports/flint/index.ssf/2010/07/new_lothrop_resident_diane_mil.html

It’s been almost two years since Blair Morgan broke his back at a motocross race in Montreal.

“I was laying on the ground and I knew I was hurt really bad,” Morgan recalled of the Sept. 20, 2008, accident. “I knew I broke my back.”

In the world of motocross, what happened to Morgan’s front and back tires at the Montreal Supercross is referred to as cross-rutting.

Both tires became momentarily caught in ruts on the track during a qualifying lap, and he was launched from his seat.

He severed his spinal cord upon impact with the ground. Doctors in Montreal told Morgan he was paralyzed from the chest down.

“I had a bit of a hope that maybe something could happen where the doctors could be wrong,” Morgan said. “But after months and months, you accept it. It was almost like a dream, everything is different, and after time it sinks in.”

Read the rest here:

http://www.paherald.sk.ca/Sports/2010-07-23/article-1602474/Morgan-adapting-to-life-after-accident/1

Johan Lidman's from Sweden and he's fast.

One of the most talented, up and coming snocross stars in the world is coming to race against the best of the best in the International Series of Champions (ISOC) National tour this winter. Nineteen year‐old Johan Lidman (pronounced, “leed‐man”) will join the Team Sportech Racing effort for the 2010‐2011 season and will compete in the pro ranks for the entire ISOC National tour.

Johan is no stranger to success, having won both the Swedish National Championship and the Swedish Super Stadium Snocross Championship last season. But despite those impressive year‐end accomplishments, North American snocross fans may best recognize Johan for one race in particular during the FIM Snocross World Championship in Mala, Sweden this past April. It was here, where another accomplished racer, Tucker Hibbert, was abruptly introduced to the speed and ability of Lidman, when Johan rocketed past Hibbert for the lead in the second round of racing. While Hibbert eventually went on to win the race and the World Championship, Lidman finished second overall and almost instantly became a global snocross sensation with his impressive showing.

“Johan really captured our attention with his outstanding performance on the track last year,” said Team Sportech Racing owner and manager Chris Carlson. “There’s no question in my mind that this young man can compete with the best riders in the sport.”

Read the rest of this entry »

VANCOUVER, BC, Jul 21, 2010 Environmental Control Corporation is pleased to announce that it has recently partnered with Michigan-based Vconverter Corporation to design a catalytic muffler for high-performance snowmobiles.

Over the course of the project, EVCC and Vconverter will be designing an exhaust system based on EVCC’s patented Reverse Flow Catalytic Muffler technology. The catalytic muffler will be manufactured by Vconverter and shipped to a University for initial testing. Performance parameters being evaluated will include: emissions, durability, sound attenuation, and engine performance.

Albert Hickman, President and CEO of EVCC, comments: “We are very pleased with the prospects of this latest project. The snowmobile industry in North America will be facing new emission standards in 2012 — making this a timely venture for the company. Furthermore, given the close relationship between the snowmobile and ATV industries, a breakthrough in the snowmobile industry would offer great exposure to the ATV segment as well. We look forward to the timely completion of this project so that we can market our technology to key players in both market segments.”

Read the rest of this entry »

USCC has new rules regarding tracks, helmets, numbers and refueling.

The United States Cross-Country Snowmobile Racing Association has released its rule changes for 2010-2011. New rules include: all 600cc classes must run a 1.25-inch track, updated helmet certification, sled numbers must be a contrasting color and easy to read and there will also be a new set of refueling rules. There have been some changes to the USCC vintage racing rules as well.

Read the rest of this entry »

Hibbert's been down the knee surgery road before. We're guessing it won't keep him away from his favorite post-race hangout spot.

Update from Team 68:

“July 3, 2010 - After seeing no improvement in his knee since his Memorial weekend crash, the decision was made by Dr. Paul Reiman and ATC Eddie Casillas for Tucker to have arthroscopic knee surgery. On Wednesday, Dr. Reiman successfully fixed the damage in Tucker’s right knee and said he is on schedule to resume his regular riding and training late August.”