UPDATE: Friday Night From Eagle River World Championship

A familiar front row qualifier, some big-air, paint-trading snocross racing and a notable comeback marked an action-packed Friday Night Thunder program at the 48^th Annual Eagle River World Championship Snowmobile Derby in Eagle River, Wisconsin, January 14. Let’s get right to the action.

Wanderscheid Seeks Fourth Title

PJ Wanderscheid, seen here driving his sled away from an interview, goes into Sunday as a favorite. He'll likely where a helmet then!

For a split second, three-time World Champion P.J. Wanderscheid jokingly held up four fingers Friday night while posing for photos after winning the Sweet 16 Qualifier that will allow him to advance directly to Sunday’s final. He was asked to do it again for a photo but grinned instead, refused and stuck to holding up a single finger while two sponsoring Amsoil representatives held up the four fingers behind him.

            Apparently the popular PJ didn’t want to jinx himself as he seeks to become the sport’s first four-time champ at Eagle River.

            Wanderscheid was close to flawless Friday, first streaking away with his qualifying heat race on his Hooper-powered Arctic Cat mod, then winning the final on a snowy night in northern Wisconsin. He was the only competitor to run a sub-18-second lap, clocking a best-lap speed of 17.914 seconds on the banked oval – a full three-tenths faster than the nearest competitor. His margin of victory was a cool 2.367 seconds – would have been more, but his brakes were fading late in the race.

            For his efforts on Friday, Wanderscheid earned a huge $1,000 check from the sponsoring World Snowmobile Headquarters – and, most importantly, is the only competitor guaranteed a spot in Sunday’s big race. Everybody else will have to roll the dice in today’s qualifying races.

            Bottom line: Wanderscheid is wearing the “favorite” crown right now.

The starting line for Friday's Sweet 16 final.

            Asked about his sled after the race, Wanderscheid told Snow Goer that it’s all-new this year.

            “It’s a little bit lighter and it has a little bit different geometry,” Wanderscheid said. “It’s made to win Eagle River…. The sled is working awesome.”

            It should be noted, however, that Wanderscheid found himself in the same position last year when he claimed the Friday night qualifier, but he came up short on Championship Sunday, finishing second to winner Matt Schulz.

            Speaking of that defending champion, it was Schulz who finished second in the qualifying race Friday night, and Schultz was also the fastest qualifier in Thursday’s time trials on the Champ sleds. He won last year on a Polaris-powered machine but has switched to Rotax/Ski-Doo power for 2011. Do not count him out.

            Gary Moyle is looking for a third World Championship, and also looks strong. He won his heat race Friday night and was second fastest in Thursday’s time trials, but he ran in the middle of the pack in the final Friday – finishing fifth, 10 seconds behind Wanderscheid. The unanswered question was whether the cagey veteran was truly giving it his all, and the flying snow created a lot of snowdust.

First-year pro Justin Broberg beat a star-studded field in the Pro Open final Friday night at Eagle River

            Malcolm Chartier finished third in Friday’s final on his Houle-built Ski-Doo mod, followed by Nick Van Strydonk on a Polaris mod.

            The Wahl Bros team of Dustin Wahl and Brandon Johnson has been really fast elsewhere this year, but they haven’t showed well so far here in Eagle River.  

            Qualifying continues this afternoon — check back tonight for a full report on today’s heat, plus read our fictional odds for Sunday’s World Championship.

A Snocross Split

Schuering Speed Sports’ Robbie Malinoski claimed the Pro Super Stock final on the snocross course early in Friday night’s program, surviving a slugfest with Ross Martin on the bumpy infield course. Martin made several charges on his Polaris, including slamming hard into Malinoski’s Ski-Doo in turn three coming to the white flag, but Malinoski fought back and held the spot to the waving checkered flag.  

            In the Pro Open final a couple hours later, Malinoski got the jump again and led early, but Martin provided the night’s biggest entertainment on the snocross course. The first lap, he was totally out of control, coming up the front stretch completely crossed up and bouncing off competitors on both sides of him. He miraculously saved it, but couldn’t do the same in turn two – he came off hard and had to re-mount while the rest of the 9-sled pack pulled far away.

            Martin remounted and raced with anger, flying farther and charging harder than anybody on the track while working his way back up to fifth.

            That was entertaining, but there was real action to watch up front, as first-year-pro Justin Broberg was keeping Malinoski honest by riding in his shadow. Then, 10 laps into the 15 lap final, Malinoski had the lap from hell – nearly dismounting three times by his own recollection after the race. Broberg streaked into the lead while Malinoski struggled to get his timing back and slipped to third when the hard-charging Brett Turcotte claimed second.

 Fontaine Returns, And Wins!

A year ago at Eagle River, the nastiest-looking crash of the weekend was experienced by Trevor Fontaine. The young racer lost the handlebars going into turn three want went hard into the haybales, severely damaging his left, including a dislocated foot and a broken femur. Eight days in the hospital and multiple surgeries followed.

            It’s been a long year, but Fontaine is back, and he completed his comeback Friday by winning the Semi Pro Champ final on his No. 3 mod late in the program. While he was being interviewed over the P.A. system, several of his competitors were loudly cheering him on – it was a very popular victory.

Hibbert Takes National Win No. 50 Saturday Night In Milwaukee

This just in, Tucker Hibbert is human – and he was actually beat at the snowy and windy Milwaukee National.

Tucker Hibbert took Pro win No. 50 in his career at Milwaukee

The problem, at least for the competition, is that Hibbert’s defeats came in heat races. When it was time to chase the cheese, Hibbert again schooled the field in both Pro Stock on Friday night and Pro Open on Sunday night.

            For Hibbert, the driver who swept every Pro weekend last year before leaving the circuit to chase his motocross dreams, it was another weekend sweep to start this season after doing the same thing last weekend in Duluth, Minnesota. It was win number 50 on the national snocross scene – between WPSA and ISOC – for Hibbert.

            Saturday night, Hibbert again scored a come behind victory. The holeshot and early lead was claimed by Brett Bender on the No. 19 Polaris of New York, Bender held the point for the first three laps in the 22 lap final before being passed in the air over the main tabletop jump by Hibbert. Hibbert again methodically pulled away on his Monster Energy Drink Arctic Cat, pulling away to a 9 second victory.

            On the podium, Hibbert said about the only problem he has was with the roost, reporting that one time he got a mouthful of snow when pulling up behind a sled he was about to lap that made it hard for him to breath. From the outside, though, nobody could tell, as Hibbert again looked close to perfect.

            Bender held second the rest of the race – fellow Polaris racer Ross Martin closed within .8 seconds a couple of times, but he never got close enough to truly challenge. Those two took the last two spots on the podium.

            “Right before the race I was telling my dad [hall of fame racer Tim Bender] and everybody [on his team] that if I just got through the first corner I’d be excited because it seems I haven’t got through that first corner yet this year,” said Bender, who had gotten tangled up with riders early in the other three finals this year.

            “As soon as [Hibbert] got by me, I though, OK, just calm down and try to stay with him and see what he’s doing,” Bender said. But Bender bobbled a couple times and allowed Hibbert out of his sights.  

            Hibbert, meanwhile, admitted being human on the podium, saying that sometimes he struggles to find the motivation to keep training for riding. But, between devine inspiration for the religious rider, a desire to not let his team down and the threat of competitors sneaking up on him, Hibbert continues to push to improve.

            “I’d like to say thanks to the fans, the whole team, and thanks to the guys on the podium for giving me the motivation to keep working hard,” Hibbert said.

            Robbie Malinoski (Pol) finished fourth, followed be Brett Tucotte (Doo), Cory Davis (Cat), Tim Tremblay (Doo), Emil Ohman (Doo), Dan Ebert (Cat) and Paul Bauerly (Doo). Crowd favorite Levi LaVallee struggled deep in the pack before coming off his ride with about five laps left.

            Earlier, Logan Christian claimed a very entertaining Semi-Pro Stock victory.

Hibbert Completes Pro Sweep In Duluth

The T-Train kept rolling Sunday at Spirit Mountain in Duluth, Minnesota, as Tucker Hibbert rolled over the competition in the Pro Open final.

Hibbert, 25, was unbeaten last year in ISOC racing action, and he started this season with the same dominating style, winning every time his Arctic Cat sleds took to the track. He now has 48 wins as a Pro on the national circuit.

Originally slated for the traditional Thanksgiving weekend but postponed due to unseasonably warm weather, weather today on the shores of Lake Superior was cold, making the racetrack hard and fast with thick snowdust that challenged the racers.

The early lead in the 22-lap Pro Open final was claimed by Robbie Malinoski, riding his first weekend as part of the Amsoil Schuering Speed Sports team in the Amsoil sponsored Pro Open class at the Amsoil Duluth National on the Amsoil Championship Snocross Series across the harbor from Amsoil’s headquarters in Superior, Wisconsin.

Pressure? Maybe, but the real pressure was being mounted by Hibbert. Within a couple of laps Hibbert moved into the lead and never looked back. He ended up winning the final by eight seconds, but it was never close, as he built a full straight-away lead within the first eight laps and then held it through lapped traffic.

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