Growing up in Minnesota, hockey and snowmobiling are a way of life. Trent Maurer found himself having a love for both of these winter activities. As Trent grew older he had to make a decision on what direction he was going to go. He choose Snocross, and has been involved in the sport for many years now. Trent has played many roles in the snowmobile racing industry from racing, to media, and now Team Bauerly Racing mechanic . We caught up with Trent to learn more about his story in the world of AMSOIL Championship Snocross.
Trent, tell me about yourself.
My name is Trent Maurer, and I am a mechanic for Bauerly Racing. This will be my fifth year with the team. When I am not working on snowmobiles I work for Fastenal fulltime Monday through Friday. I work 45 hours a week as a sales representative for them, then after work I head to the Bauerly race shop to do whatever needs to be done for the team. I started out racing when I was a kid while also playing hockey. I was always better at hockey then I was at Snocross but an injury to my hip ended my goalie career. After that I started to get more involved back into Snocross. Coming back into it was not as easy as I expected it to be. I struggled having the speed it needed to be able to run with the young guys. And that’s when I found I was better at working on machines and a love for photography.
What is your role with Bauerly Racing?
I started out by helping Kurt in the Pro Plus 30 class, in the shop on weeknights and the race weekends. Three years ago I started to work on the Pro Lite sleds for the team. Then I started working with Shane Sewell a few years back. That was a good building block for me as now I am the mechanic for Kevin Wallenstein.
Kevin Wallenstein had a great season last winter, what is it like to be a mechanic for a Championship contender like Kevin?
Kevin is a very nice kid and his family is awesome, they help out lots on the weekends. I definitely think he is underrated in our sport. He is a very consistent rider and if you watch his lap times as the race goes on he only gets faster. He is just one of those guys that if you listen to him ride, his Ski-doo is wide open all the time.
When you started in AMSOIL Championship Snocross, who were some of the guys you looked up to?
Some of my idols in Snocross were Tucker, Levi and Blair. Back in the day watching these guys bang bars was awesome. I looked up to these guys because of there presence on and off the track. These are professional guys who sure are fun to watch. Also it was a lot of fun watching Ross start out, he’s an awesome rider. Even though I am very loyal to Ski-doo, I like all these guys because they did such great things to help and grow Snocross.
Are your riders at Bauerly Racing mechanically sound?
The guys, Marcus, Kevin, Kurt and Paul will all grab a wrench and help out anytime. Marcus is actually a very well rounded mechanic, I think there is things that he can probably do better then I can (laughs). But yes all of our riders know how to work on their snowmobiles so that makes me job a little easier.
What track last season brought the most challenges to you as a mechanic?
I would have to say Michigan. We had a bad incident in the mud but we bounced back with a lot of help from other guys and others teams. Another team let us use their pressure washer which is great in this sport, seems like everyone is always willing to give a helping hand. But after our debacle in the mud we bounced back and Kevin won the next heat race so that was pretty special.
You said you have a passion for media. How do you balance doing media and being a mechanic for the team?
That’s the hard part. Its hard to find time to be able to do both. This year we will be having someone else do the media so I can solely focus on working with Kevin and hopefully battling for a championship. I find lots of joy in both and I think I am pretty good at both but this year I am going to be fulltime mechanic.
You have worked many roles in this industry, which one is your favorite and why?
Racing is always what I wanted to do. I always wanted to make it to the “big show”. The feeling of getting on the podium or if you are lucky to win a Championship, the feeling is like no other. But I still do feel these things now as a mechanic. The joy to see Kevin and the entire doing well is worth all the hard work. The joy we share as a team, working hard, working together makes everything so much better. When Kevin goes out there with good equipment and he runs well and gets the results he wants, for me that is just as good being the one racing.
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