The historic Scheuring Speed Sports snowmobile snocross team is shifting gears.

From the early days of Justin Tate and DJ Eckstrom in the late 1990s through famous riders including Tim Maki, Chris Vincent, Darrin Mees, Tim Tremblay and Robbie Malinoski and up to Lincoln Lemieux, Logan Christian and Hunter Patenaude and many more, the back Amsoil sleds have focused virtually exclusively on young, dedicated racers from North America.

Some thought owner Steve Scheuring’s patriotism drove the trend, others thought it had more to do with the team’s long-standing sponsorship from the U.S. Air Force that caused the unique focus.

But as Scandinavian drivers have grown to become almost half of the Pro field on the Amsoil Championship Snocross series, Scheuring stuck to his North American focus.

Until now. The Scheuring team announced this week the signing of Swedish rider Gustav Sahlsten as their sole Pro driver for the upcoming 2024-25 season. He will replace Vermont-native Hunter Patenaude as the lead driver for the Ski-Doo-based team.

The break-up with Patenaude was not unexpected. He didn’t visit the Pro podium a single time last year and in fact never finished higher than 6th in the overall results on any race night. That left him 10th in points overall when the season ended in a class that regularly only had 13-14 regular racers. We don’t know where the blame falls between the driver and the race team, but either way it was still far, far below Scheuring’s historic standards.

At first glance, given both his Swedish heritage and his own results from last season, the signing of Sahlsten was a bit surprising. His own best finish in a regular points race was a fourth, and he finished 11th in points in an injury riddled season that included missing three nights of racing due to injury when competing for the Elite Motorsports Ski-Doo team. But Sahlsten has flashed some potential in Scandinavia, where he won Swedish and Snocross European championships. He also competed here in North America in the 2022-23 season for Green Mountain Motorsports and looked fabulous in the Amsoil Dominator race early last season.

Patenaude’s future is unknown, but he left with a classy social media post that stated the following:

“I’d like to thank the whole Scheuring Speed Sports team for the last 7 years of my career. I made I lot of great relationships and memories that I’ll never forget. Being able to work with two of the best mechanics in the sport, Elliott Burns and Steve Thorsen, is something that I’ll never take for granted. I learned so much from them about testing and everything in between. Unfortunately all good things come to an end, whether it’s mutual or not… With that being said, I am excited for next season and I can’t wait to share with you guys what my plan is for the future. More to come.”

The Scheuring announcement also stated that second-generation racer Anson Scheele will be back competing for them in Pro Lite, where he finished third in points last season.

Below is the text from press release that Scheuring posted online. And here’s a link to a video interview with did with Mr. Steve Scheuring last year.

Scheuring Speed Sports Announces Snocross Driver Lineup

“To say I am excited about the upcoming season is an understatement!” said team owner Steve Scheuring.

Pro Snocross

Scheuring Speed Sports has signed Gustav Sahlsten. Gustav showed his raw talent and speed last year, winning both Dominator type events. An early season injury last year kept him from showing his full potential. “We have been working with a trainer since May and the hunger Gustav has is what we want on our team.” [We’re guessing that quote was from Steve Scheuring.] Gustav had this to say about his new team: “I am really glad to have signed with Scheuring Speed Sports. His team has a great reputation and some of the best mechanics in snocross, and it will be really exciting to see what we can accomplish together.”

Pro Lite

Anson Scheele is returning after a great inaugural season on a Ski-Doo last year. Finishing in the top three in points and multiple podiums showed that Anson will be running for the championship again this year in Pro Lite. “Anson has the work ethic and drive that I embrace in a driver,” said Steve Scheuring. Anson had this to saw about the upcoming season. “I am very excited to get back to work with Scheuring Speed Sports and build off of what we accomplished last year. The Ski-Doo race platform fits my riding style and we will be in a great position this year to run for the championship. I can’t wait to see everyone at Hay Days in a couple weeks.”

Sport Lite

Scheuring Speed Sports will support racer #517 Jimmy Stanisich. Jimmy won the trasition class last year as well as taking second in Juniors. “It will be exciting to watch Jimmy develop his talent as he climbs the ranks in snocross,” Steve Scheuring stated.

Cary Daku, head of U.S. racing for Ski-Doo and Can-Am, had this to say. “Scheuring Speed Sports has always been a top team on the snocross tour for many years. Their team focus has always been winning and for 2025 there is a lot of speed in their lineup. With their refined program and some of the best tuners and mechanics in the industry, we look forward to seeing their Ski-Doos on the top step next winter.”

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