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World Championship Snowmobile Derby

 

 
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The World Championship Snowmobile Derby is the World championship snowmobile
Snowmobile

A snowmobile, also known in some places as a snowmachine, is a land vehicle for travel on snow that is commonly propelled by a continuous track or tracks at the rear and steered by skis at the front....
 race. It is held at the Eagle River Derby Track along U.S. Route 45
U.S. Route 45

U.S. Route 45 is a north-south United States highway. US 45 is a border-to-border route, from Lake Superior to the Gulf of Mexico. A sign at the highway's northern terminus notes the total distance as 1,300 miles ....
 in Eagle River, Wisconsin
Eagle River, Wisconsin

Eagle River is a city in Vilas County, Wisconsin, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 1,443 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Vilas County, Wisconsin....
 on the third weekend in January. Eagle River is known as the "Snowmobile Capital of the World" because it hosts the Derby. Eagle River is located in the same county
Vilas County, Wisconsin

Vilas County is a county in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of 2000, the population was 21,033. Its county seat is Eagle River, Wisconsin....
 as Sayner, Wisconsin
Sayner, Wisconsin

Sayner is an unincorporated community in the town of Plum Lake, Wisconsin in Vilas County, Wisconsin. The community is the birthplace of the snowmobile, citing a "motor toboggan" built by Carl Eliason in 1924....
, the place that Carl Eliason invented one of the first modern snowmobiles.

first event was held in 1964.






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The World Championship Snowmobile Derby is the World championship snowmobile
Snowmobile

A snowmobile, also known in some places as a snowmachine, is a land vehicle for travel on snow that is commonly propelled by a continuous track or tracks at the rear and steered by skis at the front....
 race. It is held at the Eagle River Derby Track along U.S. Route 45
U.S. Route 45

U.S. Route 45 is a north-south United States highway. US 45 is a border-to-border route, from Lake Superior to the Gulf of Mexico. A sign at the highway's northern terminus notes the total distance as 1,300 miles ....
 in Eagle River, Wisconsin
Eagle River, Wisconsin

Eagle River is a city in Vilas County, Wisconsin, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 1,443 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Vilas County, Wisconsin....
 on the third weekend in January. Eagle River is known as the "Snowmobile Capital of the World" because it hosts the Derby. Eagle River is located in the same county
Vilas County, Wisconsin

Vilas County is a county in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of 2000, the population was 21,033. Its county seat is Eagle River, Wisconsin....
 as Sayner, Wisconsin
Sayner, Wisconsin

Sayner is an unincorporated community in the town of Plum Lake, Wisconsin in Vilas County, Wisconsin. The community is the birthplace of the snowmobile, citing a "motor toboggan" built by Carl Eliason in 1924....
, the place that Carl Eliason invented one of the first modern snowmobiles.

History

The first event was held in 1964. The event was founded by innkeeper John Alward, his wife Betty, and their friend Walter Goldsworthy. Alward's son Jake said "We had a couple of snowmobiles in the garage, and Dad figured more than a few other people did, too. He decided to have a rally." The event was a cross country
Cross country

Cross country can refer to:Sports* Cross country running, a sport in which teams of runners compete to complete a course over open or rough terrain...
 race run on and around Dollar Lake. Many snowmobiles were unable to climb a small hill. The first winner was an eighth grade student named Stan Hayes, who won the marquee race in a 9 horsepower
Horsepower

Horsepower is the name of several non-International System of Units units of power . It was originally defined to allow the output of steam engines to be measured and compared with the power output of draft horses....
 sled. The Alward's held the race at their inn in 1965 before passing it on to the Eagle River Lions Club. The Lions Club trademark
TradeMark

TradeMark is a tall, primarily residential, skyscraper in Charlotte, North Carolina. It was completed in 2007 and has 28 floors. There are 200 hundred residential units....
ed the term "World Championship Snowmobile Derby".

The 1968 derby was broadcast on ABC's Wide World of Sports. Numerous guests attended the event, including Bart Starr
Bart Starr

Bryan Bartlett "Bart" Starr is a former professional American football player and coach. Wearing #15, he was the quarterback for the Green Bay Packers and the Super Bowl MVP of the first two Super Bowls....
, Ray Nitschke
Ray Nitschke

Raymond Ernest "Ray" Nitschke was a professional American football player who played middle linebacker for the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League....
 and Fuzzy Thurston from the Super Bowl II
1967

1967 was a common year starting on Sunday of the 1967 Gregorian calendar....
 Green Bay Packers
Green Bay Packers

The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. They are members of the NFC North of the National Football Conference in the National Football League and are the third-oldest franchise in the NFL....
 championship team. The track was reconfigured to a 0.5 mile high banked oval in 1974.

The current event features 1400+ entrants racing snocross
Snocross

Snocross is a racing sport involving racing specialized high performance snowmobiles on an artificially-made tracks consisting of tight turns, banked corners, steep jumps and obstacles....
 or on the oval track
Oval track

An oval track is a dedicated motorsport circuit, primarily in the USA, which differs from a Road racing in that it only has turns in one direction, which is almost universally left....
 in vintage and modern snowmobiles. 30,000 spectators frequently attend the event.

Qualifying

The riders with the sixteen fastest qualifying speeds during the Thursday night qualifying race in two heats on Friday night. The top five finishers in the two heats advance to a qualifying race. The top finisher in the ten competitor qualifying race starts on the pole position
Pole Position

Pole Position is a racing game video game released in 1982 by Namco. In this game, the player has to complete a lap in a certain amount of time in order to qualify for an Formula One race at the Fuji Speedway....
 for the world championship feature on Sunday. The other nine competitors keep their seed for in a series of heat races, quarterfinals, semi-finals and consolation races to qualify for the Sunday world championship event.

Winners

  • 2009 Brian Bewcyk(ski doo)
  • 2008 Brian Bewcyk(ski doo)
  • 2007 Gary Moyle(arctic cat)
  • 2006 P. J. Wanderscheid(arctic cat)
  • 2005 Gary Moyle(arctic cat)
  • 2004 Larry Day (arctic cat)
  • 2003 P. J. Wanderscheid(arctic cat)
  • 2002 P. J. Wanderscheid(arctic cat)
  • 2001 Jeremy Johnston(ski doo)
  • 2000 Mike Houle(ski doo)
  • 1999 Mike Houle(ski doo)
  • 1998 Terry Wahl(ski doo)
  • 1997 Dave Wahl(ski doo)
  • 1996 Dave Wahl(ski doo)
  • 1995 Dale Loritz(ski doo)
  • 1994 Dale Loritz(ski doo)
  • 1993 Al Fenhaus(ski doo)
  • 1992 Gary Vessair(ski doo)
  • 1991 Greg Goodwin(ski doo)
  • 1990 Dave Wahl(ski doo)
  • 1989 Bruce Vessair(ski doo)
  • 1988 Bobby Donahue(ski doo)
  • 1987 Chuck Decker(ski doo)
  • 1986 Jacques Villeneuve
    Jacques Villeneuve (elder)

    Jacques Villeneuve Sr. also known as Jacquo or Uncle Jacques is a Canadian racer. He is the brother of Gilles Villeneuve, and uncle to Jacques Villeneuve ....
    (ski doo)
  • 1985 Michael Gingras(ski doo)
  • 1984 Jim Dimmerman(arctic cat)
  • 1983 Brad Hulings(ski doo)
  • 1982 Jacques Villeneuve
    Jacques Villeneuve (elder)

    Jacques Villeneuve Sr. also known as Jacquo or Uncle Jacques is a Canadian racer. He is the brother of Gilles Villeneuve, and uncle to Jacques Villeneuve ....
    (ski doo)
  • 1981 Brad Hulings(scorpion)
  • 1980 Jacques Villeneuve
    Jacques Villeneuve (elder)

    Jacques Villeneuve Sr. also known as Jacquo or Uncle Jacques is a Canadian racer. He is the brother of Gilles Villeneuve, and uncle to Jacques Villeneuve ....
    (ski doo)
  • 1979 Bobby Elsner(arctic cat)
  • 1978 Steve Thorsen(polaris)
  • 1977 Steve Thorsen(polaris)
  • 1976 Ed Schubitzke(yamaha)
  • 1975 Jim Bernat(polaris)
  • 1974 Gilles Villeneuve
    Gilles Villeneuve

    Joseph Gilles Henri Villeneuve was a Canada racing driver. An enthusiast of cars and fast driving from an early age, he started his professional career in snowmobile racing in his native province of Quebec....
    (alouette)
  • 1973 Bob Eastman(polaris)
  • 1972 Mike Trapp(yamaha)
  • 1971 Mike Trapp(yamaha)
  • 1970 Yvon Duhamel
    Yvon Duhamel

    Yvon Duhamel is a French-Canadian professional motorcycle sport and father to current AMA Superbike roadracer Miguel Duhamel. He won the World Championship Snowmobile Derby in 1970....
    (ski doo)
  • 1969 Roger Janssen(arctic cat)
  • 1968 Steve Ave(ski doo)
  • 1967 Duane Frandsen(ski doo)
  • 1966 Steve Ave(ski doo)
  • 1965 George Gensler(evinrude)
  • 1964 Stan Hayes(polaris)


SKI DOO-26 World Championships* ARCTIC CAT-9 World Championships POLARIS-4 World Championships YAMAHA-3 World Championships ALOUETTE-1 World Championship SCORPION-1 World Championship EVINRUDE-1 World Championship
  • It's important to note that from 1982 until the late 1990s, Ski-Doo was the only manufacturer making machines specifically for oval ice racing.


3 Time World Champions:

Jacques Villenueve-1980, 1982, 1986 Dave Wahl-1990, 1996, 1997 P. J. Wanderscheid-2002, 2003, 2006

2 Time World Champions:

Steve Ave-1966, 1968 Mike Trapp-1971, 1972 Steve Thorsen-1977, 1978 Brad Hulings-1981, 1983 Dale Loritz-1994, 1995 Mike Houle-1999, 2000 Gary Moyle-2005, 2007 Brian Bewcyk-2008, 2009

Additional resources

  • Of Ice and Engines (book), chronicle's the first 25 years of the Derby
  • Decades Of The Derby (video), chronicle's the first 40 years of the Derby


External links