Two racing superstars, one legendary race-oriented engineer and designer and a man who dedicated himself toward keeping snowmobile racing fair for all competitors will be inducted into the Snowmobile Hall of Fame as the Class of 2016 in February.
The racers are Steve Houle and Brad Pake. Houle and his No. 44 race sleds could often be found at the front in the 1980s and 1990s, no matter what
sort of racing he competed in. He was successful in oval sprint, snocross, ice lemans/cross-country racing and enduro over the years, mostly on Yamaha and Polaris sleds. Now, many people know him as the man behind Hot Seat Performance and Speedwerx Performance, and the lead wrench behind Tucker Hibbert’s successful domination of snocross.
Pake rose to prominence in the early 1990s on the lake-top cross-country focused, original ISOC race circuit, racing No. 53 Arctic Cats. He was a multi-time winner of the cross-country I-500 and won ISOC points championships before transitioning to snocross racing and
winning multi races in that format as well.
The honored wrench is Hubert Fixsen. He most known as being the man behind legendary racer Brian Nelson’s success in cross-country racing when Nelson won his two cross-country I-500 races, one on an Arctic Cat and the other on a John Deere snowmobile. That duo is
credited with bringing many innovative ideas to snowmobile racing, particularly in suspensions, and through that to production snowmobiles.
The fourth inductee is Tom Zernia. Together with Olav Aaen and Dick Gokey, Zernia founded and ran the International Snowmobile Racing (ISR) rule-making body that truly makes snowmobile racing possible — from working with race circuits to set rules to keep racing safe and fair for all competitors to getting insurance for race circuits that put on the races.
Below is the full press release from the Snowmobile Hall of Fame and Museum.
SNOWMOBILE HALL OF FAME ANNOUNCES 2016 INDUCTEES
Hubert Fixsen, Steve Houle, Brad Pake and Tom Zernia to be Honored During 2016 Ceremony in St. Germain, Wis.; Fans are Invited to Participate in Ride With The Champs
St. Germain, Wis. (Aug. 14, 2015) – The Snowmobile Hall of Fame and Museum in St. Germain, Wis., announced today its four inductees for 2016: Hubert Fixsen, Steve Houle, Brad Pake and Tom Zernia. These four honorees will be inducted into the SHOF on Feb. 13, 2016, in St. Germain, coinciding with the annual Ride With The Champs and other events to which all fans are invited.
Hubert Fixsen, of Willmar, Minn., was a prolific race-focused engineer for Arctic and John Deere who invented many trend-setting ideas and technologies for snowmobiles, as well as a mechanic whose drivers notched wins in two Winnipeg-to-St. Paul I-500s, an ICCSF Championship and dozens of other cross-country victories.
Steve Houle of Forest Lake, Minn., was a premier, multi-discipline racer for Yamaha and Polaris who captured wins and championships in the most prestigious oval, snocross and cross-country events of the 1980s and 1990s, and later built Speedwerx into a championship-producing aftermarket powerhouse.
Brad Pake of Felton, Minn., was a dominant Team Arctic terrain racer in the 1990s who captured two International 500 cross-country wins, an ISOC championship and victory in multiple snocross and cross-country events.
Tom Zernia of West Bend, Wis., was a founder of International Snowmobile Racing, the governing body of rules making for snowmobile competition since 1979, and for which he served as Technical Director while creating and enforcing fair and safe rules for all forms of racing.
All race and snowmobile fans are invited to the 33rd Annual SHOF Induction Ceremony and Ride With The Champs event, where they can meet, talk and ride with many of the sport’s biggest stars. The weekend includes various modern and vintage trail riding opportunities, plus a wonderful dinner and induction ceremony. In addition, the Snowmobile Hall of Fame Museum is open for all enthusiasts to see many legendary machines and memorabilia.
Go to www.snowmobilehalloffame.com for more information about the 2016 Snowmobile Hall of Fame and Ride With The Champs, as well as the museum.
