Former regional snowmobile racing champion Danny Poirier continued his winning ways over the weekend, sweeping the Pro finals as East Coast Snocross (ECS)completed Round 3 on the nine-race 2012 schedule at the Oneida County Fairgrounds.
Poirier (Bailey Racing/Polaris), of St. Theodore, Quebec, had to work his way up from fourth at the start of Saturday’s Pro Stock final. Lincoln Lemieux (Lemieux Racing/Ski-doo), fresh of his big win in the ECS Challenge at Plattsburgh, grabbed the Holeshot and led the first 11 laps. After Poirier took command at lap 12, Corin Todd (Camara Racing/Arctic Cat) charged his way to third in the closing laps. At the end of 16 grueling laps, it was Poirier, Lemieux and Todd. Poirier’s margin of victory was a mere two seconds.
In Sunday’s Pro Open final, Poirier nailed the Holeshot and checked out for the entire 16 laps. Sunday marked the competitive return of Renaud Alexandre (Damexco Racing/Ski-doo) after an injury in Duluth last November. Alexandre slotted into second behind Poirier and stayed there all but one lap (5) until the finish. Wisconsin native Dylan Martin (Team Southside/Polaris) backed up his Plattsburgh win with a solid third place finish. Poirier’s margin of victory was a whopping eight seconds.
In Saturday’s Pro Lite final, Adam Sedlmeier claimed the Holeshot while Brunelle slotted into second. Michael Pilotte slotted into fifth at the start, blasted his way to the front and took over the top spot on lap 10. The tall, lanky athlete from Fall River, Mass., had the snocross world talking in Duluth when he out-gunned the best Sport riders on the ISOC national tour. Now he’s making a mark in Pro Lite here in the northeast, and his skills are certainly worth noting.
When the Pro Lite riders returned to the track for Sunday’s final, Brunelle was a young man on a mission. The Quebec native’s goals for 2012 include the Pro Lite titles, and he went wire-to-wire up front for 12 laps to help achieve his goal. Pilotte got off to a bad start (12th), but really put on a show as he powered his sled up to third by lap 10. He finished on the podium behind runner-up Jesse James Bonaduce.
Todd Smith picked up a victory in the Woody’s Pro Am final. The veteran racer from Derry, NH, held off a hard-charging Joe Lemieux for top honors, while Newport, Vermont rider Rene Desrochers filled out the podium. In Saturday’s Pro Women final, Steffanie Lemieux prevailed over Melanie Acker and Abby Catlin. Lemieux-Bell made it a clean sweep with another win Sunday, with Acker second once again and New York veteran Paige Calderwood in third.
Other final round winners over the weekend in Boonville include Montana Jess (Sport Super Stock Saturday and Sunday); Connor Roscoe (Sport 600); Cole Fredericks (Jr. 14-15 Saturday); and Vermont racer Nate Newland (Jr. 14-15 AND Jr. 16-17 Saturday, Jr. 14-15 Sunday). Congratulations to all the class winners in Boonville, we know the effort and work it takes to win races.
While we may not have racing on the same weekend as the ice ovals as originally planned, officials at ECS were pleased to bring high-flying snocross action to Boonville for the first time. Crowds were good each day and response to the action was positive. At least the northeast’s finest snocross teams got to kick off what is now two weekends of winter fun in this area. It was indeed an honor.
All of at ECS hope that when the Ice Oval Nationals are held on Feb. 10-12, that weather is perfect and spectators come out for more fun. The original concept of having all that racing together for one big weekend was definitely appealing. The makings for an American version of the famed Grand Prix de Valcourt were all in place had Mother Nature cooperated.
East Coast Snocross would like to thank everyone involved in making Round 3 in Boonville such a successful venture. While the snow had to be made for this event, the track held up well throughout the weekend. Local vendor support was strong, as well making for a fun-filled weekend for fans.
Round 4 on the 2012 ECS schedule is set for this coming weekend, Feb. 4-5, at the Finger Lakes Gaming Center in Vernon, New York. ECS teams will compete alongside teams from the International Series of Champions (ISOC) as they run their Eastern Nationals and fourth event of the season.
East Coast Snocross, presented by AMSOIL and Woody’s Traction, is the sanctioning body for snowmobile racing in the northeastern United States. ECS maintains a regional circuit intended to keep grass-roots snocross racing healthy in this part of the snowbelt, while also cultivating new talent for tomorrow’s factory-backed Pro teams.
For more information, go to www.eastcoastsnocross.com.
