The ground is white in some select areas of the Snowbelt, and snowmobile activities are springing up all over the place for this weekend – whether that means racing, riding or reliving memories while celebrating the sport.
RACING KICKOFFS
On the racing front, the oval sprint segment kicks off this weekend like it has so many years in Beausejour, Manitoba, with the Canadian Power Toboggan Championship (CPTC) event on December 11-12. The hosts of the event have been posting pictures of the ice-making prowess on social media – the big track is looking spectacular from what we can see.
The CPTC was cancelled last year due to the closed US/Canadian border caused by COVID restrictions, but this year the race is going forward (albeit with some restrictions). Racing is scheduled to get rolling each day at 10:30 a.m. and wrap up by 3 p.m., with competition in a wide variety of classes – from the Champ and Formula III sleds to Kitty Cats and vintage classes and pretty much everything in between. Fans can certainly attend in person, but if you’re too far away you can catch coverage online (for a fee) through cooldowntv. Check out the CPTC website for details.
For those unfamiliar with the event, the races in Beausejour are truly historic – the event dates back 59 years, and the purpose-built snowmobile racing facility is unlike any other. Plus, it’s annually where race fans get to see the coming winter’s top oval racers compete head-to-head for the first time.
Meanwhile, the snocross season gets kicked off with a “regional” event at the Red River Valley Raceway near Fargo, North Dakota. This isn’t a points-collecting national, but it will get a bunch of the sky pilots off of the practice tracks and competing side-by-side, so it’s definitely worth keeping an eye on. Practice laps start at 9 a.m. each morning, with live racing to follow.
VINTAGE EVENTS
S.N.O.W. Fest, the annual kickoff to sledding season in central Minnesota, will again be hosted at Muggs in Wahkon, Minnesota, near the shores of Lake Mille Lacs. Whether there’s local snow or not (and this year, there’s a little so far) the event brings together sledheads to get folks fired up for the winter. It always includes a big display of vintage sleds, the showing of snowmobile action movies, price drawing, a silent auction and much more.
S.N.O.W. Fest has some competition in its own state this year, as the Polaris Experience Center in the company’s hometown of Roseau, Minnesota, is hosting a celebration to recognize its 20th anniversary. It’s a great time to go take a tour of a truly iconic museum of snowmobiling history while also enjoying the product presentations, drawings, refreshments and more. And the David Johnson Vintage Sno-Cat Spectacular will be held in conjunction with the Experience Center 20th celebration on Saturday, December 11.
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