Category Archives: Racer News
Lemieux sweeps Pro finals at Titus Mountain for East Coast Snocross, Presented by AMSOIL and Woody’s Traction Poirier, Hunter Patenaude earn 2014 class titles
Lincoln Lemieux
MALONE, N.Y. (Mar. 26, 2014) – Vermont veteran Lincoln Lemieux made a triumphant return to northeastern regional competition last weekend, sweeping the Pro Open finals as East Coast Snocross (ECS) completed its 2014 season finale at the Titus Mountain Family Ski Center.
The series finale was run on Friday night and Saturday, with the year-end awards banquet held following the last race on Saturday. While Lemieux was setting the pace in Pro action, it was Quebec native Danny Poirier (Ingles Performance/Ski-doo) celebrating his fourth championship at day’s end.
Poirier claimed five final round wins during the season and was never far from the podium. At 34, he still has the speed, agility and determination to outgun the competition. After riding a Polaris the past few years, Poirier returned to Ski-doo last winter and hooked up with the powerhouse Ingles squad. The result was a reinvigorated former champion with his eyes set squarely on the top prize.
“The biggest challenge I faced was making the switch back over to Ski-doo,” Poirier said in a radio interview Tuesday evening. “I had to work twice as hard as normal to learn the sled, but once I figured it out and got it dialed in, we were in great shape. Ski-doo’s new race sled is amazing; I was able to push very hard and it took the punishment easily. It feels great to win another title, both for me personally and for the Ingles family. I’m happy with how well we did and look forward to 2015.”
Following Lemieux across the stripe in Friday night’s Pro Open final was Leo Patenaude, who tested the waters in Pro Open after winning the Pro Lite final. Michigan native Kevin Wallenstein was rock-solid in third, while Mike Bauer and Mike Pilotte completed the top five. On Saturday, Poirier capped his title run with a second place finish, with teammate Mathieu Morin right behind him in third. Bauer and Pilotte capped their 2014 campaigns with fourth and fifth place finishes respectively.
Patenaude led his brother Hunter across the line in Friday night’s Pro Lite tussle, with veteran Jason Boron (Team Southside/Mystic Lubricants Polaris) filling out the podium in third. Boron made an emotional return to victory on Saturday to the delight of everyone associated with ECS. Jason is a real “Ironman” in this sport and has battled against athletes half his age all winter long. Both Leo and Hunter looked up to him in their early days, and now, they can say they’ve raced a legend and won.
In Sport class action at Malone, Connecticut native Cody Paolella capped a career-best season with victories in Super Stock both Friday and Saturday. Paolella and teammate Bruce Gaspardi Jr. have dominated this highly-competitive class all year, with Gaspardi winning the combined Sat./Sun. points by one marker over Paolella. It’s the tightest finish in series history, and it couldn’t have been contested between two nicer riders. Congratulations to “Captain America” on a well-deserved championship.
Other winners over the two-day outing in Malone include Megan Brodeur (Pro Women Sat/Sun); Patrick Brodeur (Pro Am); Bruce Gaspardi Jr. (Plus 25 Sat/Sun); and Marco Travaglini (Jr. 16-17 Sat/Sunday). With snow in the air at Malone, the season concluded in a very winter-like fashion.
East Coast Snocross would like to thank the staff and management at Titus Mountain for being such gracious hosts last weekend. For the second straight year, the season finale was a success thanks to an excellent venue and that warm Malone hospitality. We enjoyed our stay once again and hope to return in 2015.
With its fourth season now in the books, ECS would also like to thank everyone who worked so hard to make the 2013-14 season a success. Weather conditions proved to be a major challenge, yet the staff rose to the occasion and the races were held. Thanks also go out to all of our racers who endured less than ideal conditions at times yet kept on racing. Without such a wonderful core of racers, the series would be pointless. We wish you all a safe and rewarding off-season.
East Coast Snocross, presented by AMSOIL and Woody’s Traction, is the eastern affiliate of International Series of Champions (ISOC), the national sanctioning body for snocross. ECS strives to maintain a healthy level of grass-roots snocross in the northeast, while cultivating new talent for tomorrow’s factory-backed Pro teams.
For full results from Malone or more information, go to www.eastcoastsnocross.com.
Ingles Performance riders cap stellar season on the podium in Malone
Leo Patenaude
MALONE, N.Y. (Mar. 25, 2014) – In one of the most dominant overall team performances witnessed in nearly a decade, the snowmobile snocross athletes of Ingles Performance/Ski-doo landed on the podium again last weekend at the 2014 East Coast Snocross (ECS) season finale.
The event was held on Friday night and Saturday at the beautiful Titus Mountain Family Ski Center. This was the tenth round of what has been a grueling, yet very rewarding winter for everyone involved with the veteran snocross squad based in Phoenix, New York.
On Friday night, Ingles-sponsored rider Leo Patenaude, of Hartland, VT, competed in Pro Open after winning Pro Lite and finished an impressive second behind Lincoln Lemieux. Ingles rider Kevin Wallenstein, of Cadillac, MI, was also on hand after his successful campaign in ISOC and filled out the podium in third.
Quebec native Danny Poirier capped one of the best seasons in his lengthy career with second place in Saturday’s final. That locked up
Danny Poirier
Poirier’s fourth Pro title (2004, 2009, 2012, and now 2014) and gives Ingles/Ski-doo reason to brag. Poirier, 34, is like a fine wine – he keeps getting better with age. Ingles rider Mathieu Morin capped a strong 2014 season (five wins) with a third-place run on Saturday.
In Pro Lite action Friday evening, Patenaude led his younger brother Hunter across the stripe with longtime veteran Jason Boron a solid third. On Saturday, Leo was leading the final but cased a jump and came off his sled. Boron snuck past to claim the victory, with Hunter and Leo second and third. Hunter had a simply incredible rookie season, earning the championship against all odds.
All in all, it was one of the most successful seasons in recent memory for the Ingles squad. In a winter where clean sweeps were almost the norm, these results are both gratifying and satisfying. For team co-owner Robin Ingles, the effort and energy put forth has yielded an almost unimaginable return.
Hunter PatenaudeW
“To go out and claim both the Pro Open and Pro Lite championships in the same season is absolutely amazing,” Ingles said. “Mike and I are so proud of the whole team. It was an amazing year where everything just clicked. We all worked hard, but we also had a lot of fun. We couldn’t have asked for a better effort from the entire team.”
Adding to the strong finishes the team enjoyed all season was a solid third place finish by Chris Ingles in the Sport class. Chris matured a great deal on track this season, no doubt learning from his veteran teammates at every opportunity.
Ingles Performance would like to thank our great sponsors for their continued support; Ski-doo, Woody’s, C&A Pro Skis, ROX Speed FX, DP Brakes, VP Racing Fuels, Fly Racing, 139designs.com, Moto Tassinari, NGK Spark Plugs, SPI (Speed Punk Images), the Ale-n-Angus Pub, and RFH’s Restaurant and Motel.
For more information, please go to www.inglesperformance.com.
