After Elias Ishoel wrapped up his fourth consecutive points championship on the ISOC Amsoil Championship Snocross series in March, an intense debate was initiated among Snow Goer family and friends about where this young racer fits among the greatest to ever participate in the “modern” form of snocross racing – meaning the deep-snow, big bumps sort of racing that the sport evolved into in the early 1990s.
That discussion blossomed into this: The Top 10 Snocross Racers Of All Time list. It was created after polling many top snocross industry “insiders” including select race circuit officials, factory race directors, major team owners, media personnel, aftermarket industry leaders and others who were involved very directly in the sport over the past 30 years. We combined their input with an intense review of past race results and points standings to finalize our rankings. In addition, we also created an online poll and let fans create their own list. Read about No. 6 on our list below, then check out the write-ups on No. 10 Dennis “DJ” Eckstrom, No. 9 Kirk Hibbert, No. 8 Chris Vincent and No. 7 Robbie Malinoski by clicking on their names. Also, make sure to check back to see the rest of the list as it is unveiled over the next week.
No. 6: Tim Tremblay
Not very often, but sometimes top-level racers seem to appear from seemingly nowhere. Some stars rise through the Juniors or Sport classes, allowing fans to follow them through their teens and early 20s as they work their way up to the Pro ranks. And then there are guys like Tim Tremblay, No. 6 on our list of the best all-time snocross racers from the modern era.
Tremblay didn’t even try snocross racing until he was 20 years old: His focus was on motocross. But after just four races on the SCM circuit, he caught the eye of Ski-Doo race officials. He signed a contract, raced just one year of Semi-Pro on the national circuit and then jumped up to the Pro ranks, where he quickly proved to be one of the best to ever take to a bumpy track.
SNOCROSS CLAIM TO FAME: The path from non-snowmobiler to snocross superstar occurred quickly. After finishing second in points in Semi-Pro Stock his first year, the Drummondville, Quebec, native turned Pro with Warnert Racing for the 2009-10 season and claimed the Pro Stock championship, closing the season with two victories and four consecutive podium finishes in the last four rounds in Stock, plus another victory in Pro Open.
Another points championship would come in 2012, with top three in season points scored in 2011, 2013, 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2019, and only injuries kept him out of the top three in the other years. (Check out an interesting story on his path to the 2012 championship here.)
Tremblay’s career included 17 victories and an incredible 90 trips to the podium racing first for Warnert and then for Scheuring Speed Sports. In an era when seemingly everybody would ask “Who can challenge Tucker Hibbert?” Trembley was there, time and again on his No. 11 Ski-Doo. And as the races got longer, the racer repeatedly called “the big strong Canadian” by circuit announcer Mike Schroeder would work his way through the pack and toward the front. He is also a two-time winner of the Amsoil Dominator specialty event and collected a bronze X Games medal. Tremblay retired after the 2018-19 season.
MOMENT IN TIME: Tremblay’s first win was a memorable won, as he broke up a Tucker Hibbert winning streak and won on his third weekend of racing. The big win occurred in Pro Open in Utah, a track that apparently suited Tremblay very well, as he also took second place in Pro Stock that weekend. We’ve posted the Sledhead24-7 video recap of the race below.
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