ECS Racing Weekend Dominated By Patenaude Bros

While record warmth dominated the center of the country this past weekend, it was definitely still winter in Vermont, where the East Coast Snocross (ECS) race circuit was holding another round of high-flying snowmobile racing action. Below is a press release from the race circuit with the results from Feb. 18-19.

Leio Patenaude
Leo Patenaude racing in Vermont.

Patenaude brothers sweep Pro finals in Bennington for ECS Conx2share Series, Presented by Woody’s Traction and FXR

BENNINGTON, Vermont (Feb. 20, 2017) – Vermont veterans and talented brothers Leo and Hunter Patenaude made a clean sweep of the Pro classes over the weekend, as East Coast Snocross (ECS) completed Round 3 on its seven-race 2017 schedule at Willow Park.

Leo Patenaude (Ingles Performance/Ski-doo) kicked off his impressive weekend with a strong run in Saturday’s Pro Open final. The older of this skilled brother act from Hartland, Vermont, slotted into fourth at the start, took the lead on lap seven and pulled away for top honors. Hunter finished three seconds back in the runner-up spot, with Kristoffer Holm (Team Southside/Polaris) filling out the podium in third.

Hunter Patenaude (Ingles Performance/Ski-doo) found redemption with a win in Saturday’s Pro Lite final over his brother. Rising star Marco Travaglini put in a huge effort to claim third in the highly-competitive class.

Hunter Patenaude
Hunter Patenaude won in both Pro Open and Pro Lite.

On Sunday, it was Hunter’s turn to steal the show. The 2014 ECS Pro Lite champion held off Holm and last year’s Pro Lite king Cody Paolella (Team Southside/Polaris) to claim Pro Open, and absolutely dominated the Pro Lite final to sweep the day. Ryan Dupont finished a distant second (over nine seconds back), while motocross veteran Jared Gessner completed the top three.

Alissah Ashline powered to victory in Saturday’s Pro Women final, holding off Maine’s Kassie Thibodeau for top honors. Sabrina Verville kept her strong start to 2017 intact with a solid third-place finish. On Sunday, Thibodeau (Team Southside/Polaris) prevailed over Ashley Baird and Verville. The Women racers continue to impress in 2017, having raised the standard of performance from last year.

In Southside Sales/Team Southside Sport class action, Wyatt Hoffman turned heads with a weekend sweep. The talented young athlete from New Berlin, NY, held off Jeff Roylance (second) and Nikos Soklaropoulous to win Saturday’s Super Stock final. On Sunday, Hoffman outgunned veteran Bruce Gaspardi Jr. and rising star Tucker Kierstead to complete the sweep.

Wyatt Hoffman
Wyatt Hoffman earned a weekend sweep.

The ECS Sport class is loaded with young guns on the rise, and it’s a blessing for the future.

Action in the Junior classes was competitive, as well. Brandon O’Neill made it a clean sweep in Jr. 16-17 Stock 600, winning the finals on Saturday and Sunday. Trevor Parent (second) and Gavin Fleury (third) followed O’Neill across the stripe both days, with an identical podium roster.

Fleury bounced back to claim Saturday’s Jr. 14-15 final, with Dillon Powles and Bryce Little second and third, respectively. On Sunday, Powles notched the win over skilled rivals Fleury and Little.

Other final round winners over the weekend in Bennington include Tristan Huey (Plus 25/35 Saturday); Nathan Bourassa (Plus 25/35 Sunday); Caden Dufour (Jr. 8-10 Fan Sat. and Sun.); Adam Ashline (Jr. Novice 10-13 Sat. and Sun.); and Ryan Earle (Transition 8-10 Saturday and Sunday).

East Coast Snocross would like to thank the local business owners and fans in Bennington for supporting our second annual visit to Willow Park. While keeping track conditions suitable for racing in such warm temperatures was a challenge, ample natural snow and sunshine made for an excellent weekend in Vermont. ECS would also like to thank the Woodford Sno Busters for their support, easily one of Vermont’s biggest and well-respected snowmobile trail clubs.

Next up for ECS race teams is a visit to Plattsburgh, NY, this coming weekend, Feb. 24-25, for two nights (under the lights) of racing at the Clinton County Fairgrounds. Gates will open at 4 p.m. on Friday and at 12 noon on Saturday.

The East Coast Snocross Conx2share Series, presented by Woody’s Traction and FXR, is an ISR-affiliated sanctioning body for snowmobile racing in the northeastern United States. ECS maintains a regional circuit intended to keep grass-roots snocross racing healthy in this part of the country while also cultivating new talent for tomorrow’s factory-backed national Pro teams.

For full results from Bennington or to learn more, please go to www.eastcoastsnocross.com

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