Gentlemen, Start Your Engines (Part 2)
MINNEAPOLIS, MN=The most anticipated snocross race of the season didn't disappoint, as thousands of fans in attendance and tens-of-thousands more online watched newly signed Motorfist rider Ross Martin capture the early-season momentum with a pair of drive-away victories over Thanksgiving weekend.
With a mixture of rain, sleet, snow, and driving winds, conditions for the 20th annual Duluth National Snocross were anything but ideal. The legendary race has set the tone for the season time and time again, and if the performance by Martin is any indication of things to come, the competition has been warned.
Martin's weekend started off with a mega-pay-day Friday, as he bested long-time rival Robbie Malinoski in the new single-elimination Dominator race held under the lights. Up for grabs was $10,000 and Martin stuffed those greenbacks deep into the pockets of his Motorfist race gear after he beat out Malinoski in the final head-to-head battle.
Saturday was greeted with a steady rain and persistent north winds for the opening round of ISOC races. The show marched on however with Malinoski edging out Martin in the finals.
Sunday brought cold winds and a frozen track that proved to be even more challenging than the day previous. The weather however was impervious to Martin's resolve as he tore through qualifying, gaining top honors, and then proceeded to walk away from the field in the final, including his arch nemesis Tucker Hibbert, winning Pro-Open in convincing fashion.
It was a kick-the-door down start to winter for Motorfist, who after capturing the attention and respect of the western snowmobile market and its riders, looks to do the same in the performance trail riding markets of the Midwest and East.
SnoWest Newsletter - December 1, 2011