Kamm Earns Friday Night Snocross Victory At Canterbury

Defending points champion Kody Kamm earned his first Pro snocross final of the season Friday night, fighting off a challenge from his Hentges Racing teammate on a frosty night in Shakopee, Minnesota, and pulling away to a sizeable victory.

                The win by Kamm came in the season’s fifth final, as the sport’s most dominant driver Tucker Hibbert won the first four rounds – two each in Duluth, Minnesota, and Jackson Hole, Wyoming. Hibbert went into Friday night’s final as the top qualifier after winning his two heats, but a first-lap crash left him with a busted up sled, which he limped around the track while Kamm stormed away to the impressive victory. Tim Tremblay finished third – his best finish of the season after a rough-and-tumble start.

                Below you will find the blow-by-blow account of the race, courtesy of the ISOC Amsoil Championship Series. Before we get to that, though, here some quotes from the three racers on the podium, as heard over the ISOC webcast.

                Recapping the race, Kamm credited his great start for playing a large part in his victory that was earned at a track where he suffered a season-ending injury two years earlier.

              “I just got an awesome start,” Kamm said. “That section over there with the five whoops, every single lap [the crash from two years ago] goes through my head. It’s so icy – how it was that night I crashed – it’s pretty nerve racking being over there in that section that’s basically the same section that it was two years ago. I just tried to put that behind me, and I was leading start to finish, basically, and I just kept peaking over my shoulder and saw Petter [Narsa] was there so I just continued to race smart and finished off the race.”

              Kamm was also quite pleased with the fact that his Hentges Racing Polaris teammate finished right behind him and claimed the second spot on the podium.

               “It’s awesome, especially being here as Shakopee is home to Hentges Racing and there are so many people here cheering us on, it’s great,” Kamm said.  

                Later, Kamm added, “The race was just never ending; that was the longest final ever I think,” Kamm said. “It got to the point where the track was so icy and sketchy out there that I was just trying to ride smooth and not make any mistakes. So, I was just out there trail riding, but I’m happy I ended up here. Not being on the sled much since Jackson Hole, I’ve been riding the snow bike quite a bit, but I’m super happy to be up here.”

                Narsa was pleased with his second place finish after a season and a half of struggles, except at last year’s X Games, where he won the gold medal in snocross.

                “We’ve been working hard for this, last season was a bit of a struggle and this year so far, too, but now we’re finally on the box,” Narsa said. “I’ve got to give it up to the team, they’ve been working hard all year. So have I, but they are amazing.”

                Tremblay is the ultimate podium regular, but this was also his first one of the season after starting the season battling injuries and sickness.   

               “For me it’s been a tough go,” Tremblay said. “Before the first race I got hurt pretty bad [in a practice crash] and tried to race at Duluth. Then I got landed on on the second weekend, so just to be on the box this weekend, it just feels awesome. You know, it was not pretty, the race was kind of long and I didn’t feel good all day, but just to be on the box feels good.”

               Now, here’s the account from the ISOC circuit (below). And, remember, if you’re playing the free, easy and fun Fantasy Snowmobile Racing Challenge, you have until 3 p.m. central time Saturday to make your predictions for Saturday night’s Pro final. Give it a try.

Kody Kamm is #1 at Canterbury Park

Following a long break from the holiday season, Amsoil Championship Snocross Powered by Ram is back in action at World renowned Canterbury Park. Cool temps and brisk winds did not stop the Twin Cities area snocross fans from coming out to Shakopee, Minnesota, for Round 5.

The Pro Lite class has been dominated this season by the all-new 2018 Arctic Cat race sled and that didn’t stop tonight as Jacob Yurk earned his second career victory. Yurk was not fazed by the cool temperatures in Shakopee as he took the double checkered flags with over a 12-second margin of victory.

The premier Pro class showcased the the speed of the Hentges Racing Polaris sleds. Kody Kamm would end the win streak of Tucker Hibbert while his teammate Petter Narsa finished in second. The racing at Canterbury Park is always a fan favorite and Round 5 surely solidified that.

Pro Lite 

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Round 1

With the sun starting to set, the Pro Lite riders took to the elevated starting line for their first round of qualifying. The first heat saw Martin Moland grab the holeshot and lead the entire seven-lap qualifier. Andrew Lindholm and past Champion Aki Pihlaja would battle early for the second and third place positions. Pihlaja would get the best of Lindholm in this heat and finish second while Lindholm dropped down to fourth. Max Talleifer charged hard from the fifth position to finish Round 1 in third. The second heat race of the first round also showcased the speed of the new Arctic Cat race sleds. Alexander Berglund was the first across the start line while Korbyn Anderson and Evan Daudt were close on his tail. The Arctic Cat of Berglund led the entire race while Anderson and Daudt crossed the Amsoil finish line in second and third. The final heat race in Round 1 featured Marcus Ogemar pulling an upset win over past race winners Daniel Benham and Jacob Yurk. Benham and Yurk have had a great year thus far this season being in the top two positions in the points standings, but the Ski-Doo rider of Ogemar was too much to handle.

Round 2

Red plate holder Daniel Benham continued on his success in the first heat of Round 2. Benham grabbed another holeshot and was able to lead the entire race from flag-to-flag. Benham stayed ahead of the hard charging Nisse Kjellstrom and Korbyn Anderson. Kjellstrom out dueled Anderson to solidify the second place position forcing Anderson into third. Pro AM Plus 30 rider of Andy Lieders had a hard off during the start off the race but was luckily okay. The second heat of the Round 2 saw Alexander Berglund nail his second first place start of the day. Berglund battled early with Kevin Wallenstein but was able to hold onto the lead early in the race. Max Taillefer rode towards the front again in the third position during Round 2. With two laps to go in this qualifying race the top four were separated by a mere 1.9 seconds. Alexander Berglund held onto the lead while Wallenstein was in second, Taillefer in third and Cole Cottew in a very close fourth. The final heat race of the day featured a three-way battle for the lead once again. Andrew Lindholm had the early lead over Jacob Yurk and and Aki Pihlaja. Pihlaja and Yurk would pass Lindholm for the top two positions before the two tangled and forced Pihlaja to have an off. Yurk led the remaining parts of the race while Hunter Patenaude was second and Zak Mason was third. 

Final

The Pro Lite class this season is most definitely one of the most exciting in years. The class this season has been dominated by the Arctic riders and once again Alexander Berglund and Jacob Yurk took their Arctic Cats to the lead early in Round 5.

Pro Lite points leader Daniel Benham received the black flag on lap two due to jumping the start. Benham was forced to drop to the rear of the field. After five laps of the 15-lap main event Yurk continued to separate from the field while Berglund ran second and Marcus Ogemar in third.  Pro Lite rookie Hunter Patenaude settled into the fourth position making this his best performance of his Pro career at this point of the race.

At the half way point in the race, Marcus Ogemar started to reel in the second place Berglund. While the battle for second was heating up Patenaude caught up to and passed both racers and moved directly into second. Championship contender Martin Moland had an off early in the race, taking him out of the final and causing him to finish the race in the 15th position.

As the laps wound down, Yurk continued to separate himself from the rest of the field and took home his second win of the season. Patenaude charged hard from a back row start to his first podium finish in the Pro Lite class in second. The final spot on the podium was rounded out by Ogemar. Cole Cottew also charged hard from the back row to finish fourth while Nisse Kjellstrom rounded out the top five.

 

1.#727 Jacob Yurk

  1. #208 Hunter Patenaude
  2. #58 Marcus Ogemar
  3. #21 Cole Cottew
  4. #27 Nisse Kjellstrom
  5. #128 Aki Pihlaja
  6. #114 Alexander Berglund
  7. #63 Zak Mason
  8. #122 Kevin Wallenstein
  9. #17 Korbyn Anderson
  10. #144 Max Taillefer
  11. #221 Daniel Benham
  12. #413 Evan Daudt
  13. #37 Mike George
  14. #75 Martin Moland

Pro

Round 1

The Pros embarked on Canterbury Park where Logan Christian and Tucker Hibbert picked up on their success this season in Round 1 heat one. Christian pulled the early lead but was passed early but the 10-time champion Hibbert. Hibbert led 8 laps of the 10-lap qualifier, edging  Christian by 11 seconds. Ryan Springer had his best heat race of the season by finishing third. Polaris riders Kyle Pallin and Kody Kamm jumped out to an early lead in the second heat race of Round 1. Pallin got the holeshot and led the early stages of the race before the reigning champion Kamm charged hard to the lead. The two veteran racers took the top two positions while Pro rookie Leo Patenaude rounded out the top three.

Round 2

In Round 2 Kody Kamm, Dylan Hall and Leo Patenaude went over the finish line three wide on the first lap. Kamm would edge the other two Pro riders early and slowly start to extend his lead. Hall ran a solid second while Patenaude, Jake Angove and Adam Renhiem battled for the third position. As the checkered flag flew, the #1 of Kody Kamm earned his second heat race win of the day. Dylan Hall was second and Leo Patenaude third. The final heat race of the day for the Pro class was exactly what Tucker Hibbert was looking for. He pulled a huge holeshot over a stacked field. Christian started the race in second but was passed early by the Amsoil rider  Lincoln Lemieux. Lemieux would put a hard charge on the race leader Hibbert, but would fall short to Hibbert’s dominance. Christian would finish third in the final Pro heat race of Round 5 at the Pirtek Snocross National Presented by Jimmy Johns.

 

Final

It was the moment all the fans have been waiting for; the Pro final for Round 5 at the Pirtek Snocross National. As the seats were full at Canterbury Park the light went green and the Hentges teammates of Petter Narsa and Kody Kamm jump out to the early race lead. The Arctic Cat rider of Dylan Hall got off to another great start and rounded out the top three after lap one.

The reigning Champion Kody Kamm was able to pass his teammate early in the race and move into the first. After the lap five mark the top two remained the same as Adam Renheim moved into third, Tim Tremblay in fourth and Jake Angove in fifth. Tremblay made an aggressive move to get past the #311 of Renheim and move into a podium position. At the half way point of the race the Hentges teammates of Kamm and Narsa still run in the top two positions. Amsoil rider Tim Tremblay still ran in third while Lemieux and Angove round out the top five.

Lemieux had a mechanical issue on lap 11 taking him out of podium contention and out of the race. Tucker Hibbert was involved with an accident on the start of the race causing his handlebars to break in half. Impressively Hibbert still was able to limp around the racetrack although having to hold onto the broken handlebar.

With five laps to go, the Polaris Pirtek riders of Kamm and Narsa were still running up front with Tim Tremblay 9 seconds back. With the mechanical issue of Lemieux, Logan Christian moved into the fourth position. Kyle Pallin has battled through the snow dust and the field to move into the top five. Angove ran in the 6th position with 4 laps to go, and as a rookie this would be his best career finish.

With only one lap to go the field of drivers remained the same. Kamm ended Hibbert’s win streak to earn his first victory of the season. Narsa crossed the finish line in second also giving him his first podium of the season. The final spot on the podium was filled by the #11 Tim Tremblay. Kyle Pallin and Logan Christian rounded out the top five in Round 5.

1.#1 Kody Kamm

  1. #54 Petter Narsa
  2. #11 Tim Tremblay
  3. #324 Kyle Pallin
  4. #43 Logan Christian
  5. #52 Johan Lidman
  6. #177 Jake Angove
  7. #311 Adam Renheim
  8. #421 Dylan Hall
  9. #541 Ryan Springer
  10. #248 Brett Nastala
  11. #68 Tucker Hibbert
  12. #98 Nick Pattyn
  13. #13 Lincoln Lemieux
  14. #27 Leo Patenaude

Pro AM Women

Malene Anderson once again crossed the AMSOIL Finish Line in the first position while Megan Brodeur in second. Taven Woodie earned her first Pro AM Women’s podium Friday evening in the third position.

Pro AM Plus 30

The Veterans of the sport took to the track for Round 5 where Paul Bauerly earned the victory and extended his points lead. Multi time CSRA Pro Open Champion Iain Hayden was the runner up at Canterbury Park. #193 Matt Pichner also got onto the box at the Pirtek Snocross National Presented by Jimmy Johns with a third place finish.

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