The International Snowmobile Racing Hall of Fame was the brainstorm of Mike Trapp, C.J. Ramstad and Loren Anderson in 1983. Having all been a part of the exciting history of snowmobile racing, either as participants or enthusiasts, they felt it was necessary to preserve that history in some form. So the Museum of unique and exciting sleds was founded, and the Racing Hall of Fame began.

On the other hand, the International Snowmobile Hall of Fame is a little younger. It's first ceremonies were held in 1990. Its focus is, of course, much broader, encompassing all areas of snowmobile recreation and the industry itself, which it does through a Museum and Hall of Fame as well. Another important aspect of ISHOF, however, is its involvement in snowmobile safety and education.

But what of the history that led to the establishment of these two separate groups? It has been said that "the first snowmobile race was held the day they made the second snowmobile." Indeed, snowmobiles have been raced on snow, ice, water, dirt, asphalt and even on wood chips; also up mountains, across ravines, over rough courses and down rivers.

The "snowmobile" was officially patented and named in 1913 by a Ford automobile dealer named Virgil D. White in West Ossipee, New Hampshire. It was essentially a car with a caterpillar-type tracked unit mounted to the rear axle and skis for the front end, as well as independent suspension arms. The Canadian version was first built by fifteen year old Armand Bombardier in Valcourt, Quebec nine years later.

Bombardier's machine was more of a motorized sleigh. It used the motor from a Model T Ford car, and a rough frame with four ski runners. The front runners turned with a rope, and the engine was mounted at the rear. A hand-carved propellor provided propulsion, and a seat was placed in front of the motor for the driver. But when it made its trial run in December of 1922, Armand's outraged father ordered him home to disassemble it!

Finally, in 1926, Carl Eliason of Sayner, Wisconsin, built the machine that most resembles the snowmobiles of today. It had a single chain track with wooden lugs under a frail craft assembled from a wooden toboggan, and was powered by a 2 horsepower Johnson outboard motor. Eliason was granted a patent on this first "motor toboggan" in 1927. For him it provided a way to hunt and fish throughout the winter, since he had been born with a club foot that made snowshoes awkward for him to use. For the rest of North America is was the birth of a sport.

Indeed, it was in 1926 that the first snowmobile race in history was held. This momentous event took place on Rangeline Lake near Three Lakes, Wisconsin. As a feature at Three Lakes first winter sports carnival, a grudge race was organized between two owners of the Ford Snowmobile type machines. Bill Neu drove a a car named "The Tramp" that had been specially tuned by Badger Garage in Three Lakes. His opponent was Harold Hanson of Eagle River, driving for Strong and Manley Ford Agency.

This first race drew a crowd of two hundred spectators, showing that the interest in snowmobile sports was shared even then, as it is now, by onlookers. However the race wasn=t even close. Neu=s car, with it=s top down and windshield raised for less air resistance, easily drove away from the overheating Hanson vehicle.

It was in Canada, however, that organized snowmobile racing first got its foothold. Originally put on at The Pas, Manitoba, during the Trapper's Festival, by Polaris Industries in 1959 to draw the interest of trappers away from the dog teams to their new snowmobiles, these races became an annual event. Within a few years there were cash prizes and merchandise coupons for the victors, and serious competition had begun. So had the use of snowmobiles for work.

In 1962 the Beausejour, Manitoba, Lions Club, decided to add a special event to its annual winter Ablow out@. Beausejour=s first race track was on the school grounds in town. Six daring drivers raced around a snow semi-circle defined by hay bales. Their estimated speed was fifteen miles per hour! Thus began the formally registered Canadian Power Toboggan Championships (CPTC) which have run nearly every year since 1962.

In addition, Sunday, February ninth, 1964, was the beginning of what is considered by most racers to be the most prestigious event in snowmobile racing - the Eagle River World Championship, although the title was not officially registered until the following year. Organizers contacted the media, and the excitement spread through the Midwest newspapers, radio and television stations. Soon everyone was talking about the marvellous new machine that drove over snow.

With over 100 manufacturers of snowmobiles throughout Canada and the United States by 1970, snowmobiling was a big industry and snowmobilers were becomming more and more innovative at ways to race their machines. Already popular were ice or snow oval and drag tracks, speed runs, up-and-down hill slaloms, cross country, and endurance runs. In 1969 grass drags were added to keep snowmobiles racing all summer.

It's important to note that the history of the snowmobile was still very closely tied to the history of snowmobile racing. Many of the developments in technology have been credited to the ingenuity of racers on the track, and the desire by manufacturers to have their product in the winner's circle in order to increase sales. Perhaps the last big change in the evolution of the snowmobile occured August 19, 1971, when the Outboard Marine Corporation broke a few snowmobile records.

Using a sleek, needle nosed snowmobile named Pegasus, which was powered by two OMC V-4 two cycle outboard engines, the Outboard Marine Corporation did a speed run at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah. First off, a new record of 140.625 miles per hour was set. But perhaps, more important to future snowmobilers, they had designed a track that didn't fly apart at 100 m.p.h., a feat which had earlier been said to be impossible.

As well, new fads in racing were still popping up. In 1977 racers began driving snowmobiles for distance over open water. Over the years this expanded to include oval and drag races on lakes and rivers. Trying to capture this summer audience, the promotors of Eagle River's race track went out on a limb and held the first ever, Wood Chip Classic, July 5, 1986. The banked oval track was covered with wood chips that were sprinkled with water. In addition, manufacturers soon developed special skiis to allow drivers to race on ashphalt during the summer.

So how can two things which appear to be as closely intertwined as the development of the snowmobile and the growth of snowmobile racing be separated? In many ways they can't be. However, the Snowmobile Hall of Fame also recognizes the importance of activists who strived, not towards the improvement of the machine, but towards the responsible use of it by riders everywhere. At the grassroots level it was club organizers, volunteers, public service officials, and many others who worked to build the network of snowmobile trails used all over North America today.

It has taken the efforts of many thousands of snowmobilers, many of whom will never be recognized by either Hall of Fame, all over Canada and the United States, to bring the sport of snowmobiling to contemporary standards.

Visit:

International Snowmobile Hall of Fame -- ISHOF

International Snowmobile Racing Hall of Fame -- ISRHOF

Looking for something in SnowRider's archives -- click HERE.