It’s November, and that means the snowmobile racing season is truly just around the corner. In fact, the season-opening Amsoil Duluth National on the ISOC Amsoil Championship Series is now just 22 days away. Most race teams have already received their race sleds, so general machine prep is in full swing in shops and garages across the snowbelt. But there’s nothing like getting those sleds and their drivers some real time on an actual snocross course.
That’s where places like Planet X come in. The test facility in Aurora, Minnesota (90 minutes north of Duluth) is owned by the Scheuring Speed Sports team, and team owner Steve Scheuring said today that it will be open and be ready for action starting Friday, November 15.
“We started making snow on October 11,” Scheuring said. Every year it’s a bit hit-and-miss with the weather, as it’s got to get and stay below freezing in order for the snowmaking machines to do their job, but a cool fall has allowed Scheuring’s team to get a great start on an enlarged track this year, he said, that will be longer and deeper than in years past.
“We try to make our track the same length as Spirit Mountain and the same layout,” Scheuring said. “We need to have the snow deep enough so the holes don’t get down to the dirt.”
The Scheuring bunch also has developed a “holeshot area” where teams can practice their all-important starting line setups, plus a test course for the 120-class youth sleds.
Starting November 15, the track will be open from 9:30 a.m. until dark every day leading up to the Duluth National. After that, it will be open every day the Scheuring team is back in town (so, not on race weekends or the travel days leading up to a race). Practice time at the track costs $100 per day per driver, or a season pass is available for $500.
“This is an incredible deal if people knew how much snowmaking costs,” Scheuring said. The Scheuring team, currently headlined by drivers Robbie Malinoski and Tim Tremblay, has been making its own test track for more than a decade at the site, but they opened it up to all of his competition 8 years ago.
“I wanted the young racers going to Spirit Mountain to have a great experience at their first race,” Scheuring said. But increasingly top pro teams come and test right along side Scheuring high-profile team.
“Having the premiere snocross teams in the world here makes this test track deliver true racing conditions,” Scheuring said, before joking, “plus, if I don’t take the other teams’ money, someone else will!”
For details or updates, visit www.Scheuring-Speedsports.com
