Throwback on the trails: Battlefords launch first vintage snowmobile ride

“I just take it out once in a while and enjoy it still and it still does the job. It hasn’t been out for a ride for quite a while. Yesterday I had to get it tuned up and get it going for today.”

Kurtis rode a 1975 John Deere JDX8 that he’s owned for the past 20 years.

“I got it from a friend from Radisson,” he said. “It was his sled and he gave it to me when I was a teenager with a blown engine, and he said if I rebuilt the engine then I could have the sled.”

He said, the sled typically only makes it onto the trails once a year; it has stayed in good condition with very minimal maintenance.

Last in their group was Russell; he rode a 1976 Massey Storm 440.

“I got it seven or eight years ago from a collector down in Hanley. It’s been restored but as you can see it looks good and hopefully it rides good today. The last time I had it out was a couple of winters ago, and it didn’t quite make the trip,” he said.

The Shultz family heading out on the trails with their vintage sleds.

Another vintage sled that sparked many conversations at the rally’s starting point was a purple and black coloured 1974 Arctic Cat Panther, owned by the club’s ‘trail boss’, Dale Charabin.

Dale Charabin with his 1974 Arctic Cat Panther. (Image Credit: Alyssa Rudolph/ battlefordsNOW)

“My dad bought this brand new in 1974 and so it was handed down to me. So, it’s all original. I went through it two years ago, just got it running and everything,” he said.

He said he was particularly excited to take the old sled onto the trails, just like he did when he was a kid.

Many of the sleds joining the rally only hit the trails every couple of seasons, but Braden Hoiseth’s 1998 Flairstorm K600 already has 1,000 miles on it this year.

Braden Hoiseth with his 1998 Flairstorm K600. (Image Credit: Alyssa Rudolph/battlefordsNOW)

“It runs pretty good,” he said. “It’s all original, original seat, original hood, only a little crack in the hood, all original miles; it’s got over 6,000 miles on it.”

He bought it roughly a year ago as the third owner, and for him, joining the rally meant getting to ride alongside other vintage snowmobiles that also have decades of history.

The riders all buckled their helmets on, and off they went down the trail to the club’s Maude’s House Shelter, with the hope of their sleds making the entire trip.

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Alyssa.rudolph@pattisonmedia.com

by Alyssa Rudolph

Throwback on the trails: Battlefords launch first vintage snowmobile ride

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