Tucker gets it done – five straight PRO OPEN wins in Duluth, MN.

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Contact: Mike Roth
PR Director, ISOC Racing
mike@isocracing.com

SPIRIT MOUNTAIN – DULUTH, MN. (November 28, 2015) – Only a few short weeks ago there was green grass on the race course, but today it is only the glorious white snow that paints the landscape. If you have anything to do with snocross, you know you are pumped to get this day started. Another beautiful day on hand for the record crowd with Round 1 of AMSOIL Snocross Championship 2015-2016 season getting underway. Who will load up the sled as the victor of the day, will it be the reigning champ Tucker Hibbert defending his 2014-2015 National Title, who has penciled in 9 National Championships. Riders will be at their best with the hopes to capture the first win of the year and possibly a season championship.

PRO LITE

Four full heats of action as the PRO LITE riders get ready for Round 1 of the 2015-2015 Season. A few changes for some of the riders in this division, one of the biggest changes is Zak Mason getting onboard with the Levi LaVallee team and other riders from 2014-2015 make the transition this year to the PRO OPEN ranks. No doubt we will see bar-to-bar exciting action in the first rounds of the year.

ROUND 1

HEAT 1 – Off the line is Maxime Taillefer(144) taking the early lead with Elias Ishoel(200) nipping on the rear bumper and Jake Angove(177) not far behind. Eventually Ishoel (who is throwing down lap times close to PRO OPEN rider Tucker Hibbert’s practice times) reels in Taillefer and blows by on the Air Force Fly Away Jump and goes on to take the win.

HEAT 2- Clean start off the line Daniel Benham(221) takes the early lead but is quickly challenged by Montana Jess(765) with Travis Muller(436) not far behind. As Benham approaches lap traffic with only one lap to go it is Muller who would move into second, however he will later get passed by Montana who will take the 2nd place finish, Muller(436) will hold on to 3rd and Benham in the top spot.

HEAT 3 – Race number fifty six on the day is PRO LITE Heat 3. Off the line they go, it’s the LaVallee Team rider Zak Mason(63) in turn one first as he stayed clear of several sleds getting bunched up at the approach to the Air Force Fly away jump. Three riders in total are victim of the incident however the battle for second rages with Nick Pattyn(98) and James Johnstad(14). Heading towards the RAM Runaway on lap four, the leader Mason who was unable to finish last year’s season due to an injury, almost loses the sled but is able to regain control and heads towards the FXR Turn. Big battle for third with Kris Holm(610), James Johnstad(14) and Christian Huber(191) with Holm coming out the victor to take the third place finish, Pattyn in second with Mason getting the first win of the season.

HEAT 4- Final heat race of PRO LITE Round 1 squares up on the line and green we go. Tyler Adams(705) with the holeshot followed by Jordan Kraus(105) and Cole Cottew(21) is in third as they approach the CAT Turn. Rider Travis Kern(201) appears to catch an edge and go off track but is able to regain the sled and continue on. As a huge battle for first is shaping up, the Yellow flag is thrown for rider Shane Sewell(219) who goes down hard on the back stretch. The ISOC safety crew throws the red flag to stop the race and attend to Sewell. After a long delay, the remaining riders line up in single file for the restart, crack of the throttle and off they go. Cottew goes off the track on the restart but is able to quickly get back in the grove as Kraus takes the lead. Kraus will hold on to win the heat, followed by Brady Love(444) in second and despite going off the track, Cottew comes back to take the third spot.

PRO LITE – ROUND 2

HEAT 1 – There is sure to be no shortage of action in the second round of heat races for the PRO LITE riders on deck. Zak Mason(63) puts on a show taking the lead on lap three and holds the lead for the win with Maxime Taillefer(144) in second and Jake Angove(177) holding onto the third spot.

HEAT 2 – Despite some trouble out of the gate by another rider, it doesn’t stop Jacob Gervais(151) from getting the early lead. Rider Luke Wollenberg(23) makes quick work to take over the lead from Gervais and leads the race until the final lap when Kevin Wallenstein(122) makes a hard charge and works his way to the front for the lead.

HEAT 3 – Early bumping and banging battles in the field develop but Montana Jess(765) is the dominator and leads every lap to take the checkers. Marcus Ogemar Hellgren(58) moves into the third spot and starts to challenge for second but falls short giving James Johnstad(14) the spot.

HEAT 4 – Final heat race of the PRO LITE division shapes up quickly with Martin Moland(751), Cole Cottew(21) and Daniel Benham(221) showing the way to the rest of the field. Moland with very little challenge takes the checkers, Travis Kern(201) lays down some great laps and works his way up to the fourth spot but it is Cottew and Benham who round off the top three.

PRO LITE – LCQ

Only five will transfer in the show, so there is little time to waste in an attempt to get to a spot on the line for the final. Elias Ishoel(200), Travis Kern(201) and Kristoffer Holm(610) take the top three transfer spots and Jordan Kraus(105) gets the final transfer spot to finish the PRO LITE Final field.

 

PRO LITE – FINAL

They have been waiting all Summer and Fall for this moment, the PRO LITE riders are on deck for the first Final of the season. After a full day of racing and some action packed heats, you know the final line up of riders are ready to throw it all down and see who has the last word of the day. The ISOC AMSOIL Championship Snocross Official starter stairs down the field, checks with each rider for the okay, with the crack of the throttle the field flies down the back stretch towards the Air Force Fly Away jump.

It is Montana Jess(765) who gets the Stud Boy Holeshot award and maintains the lead as the pack heads down the hill for the first time. Daniel Benham(221) who has been strong all day on his Arctic Cats slides into the second spot followed by Cole Cottew(21), Travis Muller(436) and Zak Mason(63) rounding off the top five. Seven laps in the books, it is still Jess in the lead but the hot shot of the day is Elias Ishoel(200) who comes from the back row starting in the 11th sport is now in the battle for 1st. Ishoel who made his snocross debut in 2014-2015 is showing the crowd he knows how to pilot his Ski-Doo sled around this Duluth course.

Ishoel makes a classic move on lap eight and takes the line away from Jess to move into the number one position. As the laps wind down closer to the white flag, Ishoel continues to extend his lead. A tight battle between Jess and Benham for second is shaping up, in the end Jess takes 2nd followed by Cottew in third, but it is Elias who is the man of the hour that takes the checkers.

PRO LITE FINAL – RESULTS

  1. Elias Ishoel (200)
  2. Montana Jess (765)
  3. Daniel Benham (221)
  4. Travis Muller (436)
  5. Zak Mason (63)
  6. Kevin Wallenstein (122)
  7. Martin Moland (751)
  8. Maxime Taillefer (144)
  9. Travis Kern (201)
  10. Jordan Kraus (105)
  11. Jake Angove (177)
  12. Kristoffer Holm (610)
  13. Eetu Karialainen (555)
  14. James Johnstad (14)
  15. Cole Cottew (21)

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PRO OPEN ROUND 1

HEAT 1 – A great line up of riders approach the line to take the green, sitting back in anticipation, are the Polaris Executives who are onsite to witness the results of three years of hard work on the newly designed Polaris sled. Kyle Pallin(324) dominates the race from the drop of the green flag and takes the win. In a big battle for second between Petter Narsa(54) and Tim Tremblay(11) that continues for several laps, it is Tremblay taking over with an inside pass on lap five. Tremblay unable to reel in Pallin (who has a four second lead) finishes in second followed by Adam Renheim(311) making a last minute move into third on the last lap.

 

HEAT 2 – Early battle takes shape between David Joanis(115), Justin Broberg(168) and Christian Logan(43). Lap one in the books and Joanis checks up and Broberg is there to take the lead spot with Logan not far behind for the battle. Logan makes the move and gets the top spot on lap four. Final lap down the hill and Logan is seeing the checkers in his sights, only 50 yards from the finish, Logan gets tangled up with a downed rider and over the bars he goes, first place finish will fall in the hands of Joanis followed by Broberg and Corey Watkinson(173) in third. Logan is able to get back on the sled and salvage a fifth place finish.

 

HEAT 3 – Stacked field of riders stand ready for the command to go as the ISOC starter points to the field, down goes the green flag and it is Kody Kamm(53) with the holeshot and early lead. Tucker Hibbert(68) gets tangled up in the back stretch and drops back to eighth place on the first lap. Kamm on a rail, continues to extend his lead from second place rider Ross Martin(837) with John Stenberg(259) settling into third. On the pipe is Tucker as he is the man on the move making his way to fourth place by lap three and would eventually make a pass on lap nine to take the third spot from Stenberg. Taking the checkers across the AMSOIL Finish Line is Kamm, Martin and Tucker lands in third.

 

PRO OPEN ROUND 2

HEAT 1 -Following an action packed first round of racing, no doubt it will be an exciting last round of heats for the PRO OPEN riders. As they funnel into the corner it is David Joanis(115) who gets the holeshot and the early lead. Tim Tremblay(11) challenges Joanis for the lead early, but is unable to make the pass. Ross Martin(837) makes a move on Tremblay(11) on lap three for second. As the race continues to shape up it is Tremblay that is gunning hard and battles with Martin to finally take the runner up spot on lap nine, it will be Joanis with the win followed by Tremblay and Martin rounding up the top three.

HEAT 2 – Making a hard charge to the front on lap one is Peter Narsa(54) but gives it up to Justin Broberg(168) who makes a clean pass in the CAT Turn. Broberg can’t hold onto the lead for long when strong runner Kody Kamm(53) takes advantage of a mistake by Broberg. Winding down to the checkers Kamm extends his lead with Narsa in second and Broberg finishing out the top three.

HEAT 3 – Coming off a third place finish in Round 1, Tucker Hibbert(68) is sure to dial it in with hopes to make quick work of this second round. Off the line they go and again Hibbert gets pinched off in the first turn while Logan Christian piloting the number 43 sled rockets to the lead and Kyle Pallin(324) not far behind while Corin Todd(36) lands the third spot. In classic “T-Train” fashion, Tucker Hibbert is hard on the gas and makes his move on lap two moving into the second spot after Pallin finds trouble and falls back in the pack. Hibbert continues to make up ground getting by Corin Todd and setting his sights on Christian. As they race bar-to-bar over the AMSOIL Finish Line, Hibbert sets up the pass for first and makes it stick through the FXR Turn. Pallin would make his way back to fourth with Todd in third, Christian in second and Hibbert with a 4.5 second lead, takes the checkers.

PRO OPEN LCQ

It is either hammer down and race, or load it up, your night is done. Green flag drops and they are off, over the Air Force Fly Away jump and into the CAT Turn it is rider Peter Narsa(54) who snags the lead. A number of riders are taken out of the race after a pile up early on, however Narsa goes onto take the first transfer spot followed by Corin Todd(36), Ryan Springer(541), Andrew Lieders(857) and Colby Crapo(999) grabbing the final transfer spot.

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PRO OPEN FINAL

It all comes down to one race, the PRO OPEN Final, the one that everyone is waiting for, the fans are on their feet to watch their favorite riders go toe-to-toe and ink their names in the book and take home the hardware as the winner of night one, round one of the AMSOIL Championship Snocross Series final race of the night. Will it be Tucker Hibbert(68) defending his 2014-2015 National Championship or will it be the hot shot Kyle Pallin(324) who has been fast all day long, but then again, it could be any one of these top fifteen riders who claim the top spot on the box, there is no shortage of talent in this field.

Green flag in the air, the field races for the Stud Boy holeshot in hopes for the early lead. It is Kyle Pallin(324) with Ross “The Boss” Martin(837) in second followed by Justin Broberg(168) rounding up the top three. A huge battle up front on lap two when Martin challenges for the lead and takes it over, but only for a moment as Pallin fights back to reclaim the honors. Lurking in the shadows it is Tucker Hibbert(68) who is watching and waiting for the right moment to make his move, and make his move he does on lap nine. Pallin attempts to hold off the defending champion but Tucker sets up the pass on the inside of the FXR Turn forcing Pallin to the outside.

Lap after lap Tucker extends his lead on the field, with no contention, he goes onto win his fifth straight PRO Open in Duluth, followed by Pallin in second and Kody Kamm(53) who came through the field to pull off a third place finish. Kamm was penalized after jumping the start and sent to the back row starting position, for his efforts he will also win the Fox Great Ride Award including a $150.00 check for passing the most riders, Kamm explains “On the start I got really excited and made the biggest mistake of my life and jumped the start, and had to start back row, I just kept charging through the pack, I had no idea what place I was in the whole time.”

Standing on top of the box is no strange place for the number 68 rider, Tucker Hibbert. With over 100 feature wins, Hibbert always finds a way to get it done, Hibbert explains “The whole team is working hard, it is good to get these wins, it feels really good especially the first race of the year.”

PRO OPEN FINAL – RESULTS

  1. Tucker Hibbert (68)
  2. Kyle Pallin (324)
  3. Kody Kamm (53)
  4. Justin Broberg (168)
  5. Ross Martin (837)
  6. David Joanis (115)
  7. Adam Renheim (311)
  8. Corin Todd (36)
  9. Petter Narsa (54)
  10. Ryan Springer (541)
  11. Colby Crapo (999)
  12. Andrew Lieders (857)
  13. Corey Watkinson (173)
  14. Tim Tremblay (11)

 

UP NEXT

The AMSOIL Championship Snocross Series finishes off the opening weekend on Sunday 11-29-15 with Rounds 2 of PRO Open and PRO Lite starting with Opening Ceremonies at 12:00pm. Watch all the action by tuning into the LIVE Stream at www.snocross.com/livestream. For a complete list of results visit the official AMSOIL Championship Series Snocross website – https://snocross.com/race-results/

 

About ISOC Racing
The International Series of Champions (ISOC) is the premier snowmobile race sanctioning organization in North America and sanctions national AMSOIL Championship Snocross, in addition to affiliating with nine regional circuits. Visit www.isocracing.com for more information, fan and racer memberships, schedule details and more.

 

Photos by: Rodney Hoffman