NB Racing - Beausejour MB Dec 2-4 2011

[WopOnTour]

Well I'm happy to report that Alberta's (Nagel-Butz Racing) fared pretty well during the oval racing season opener in Beausejour Manitoba this past weekend

NB Racing team member Curtis Pederson's #52 1979 SRX ran very strong as he managed to win the vintage (leafer) 440 Modified class on Saturday , then just got a bit loose in the final corner Sunday only to be caught and had to settle for 2nd place- but taking home a couple of nice cheques.

Another AB race team also did very well with Warburg's Warren Liba placing 1st and 2nd (Sat/Sun) in the very hotly contested vintage 440X IFS class with his beautiful (and ultra-rare) 1982 Moto-Ski "offfset" racer.
Gotta love a man willing to put a rare-bird like that out on the race track! Congrats to Russel, Warren and the rest of Liba Racing!

NB Racing's #88 F500 sled was plagued with some final drive issues and failed to place over the weekend

Additionally due to lack of twin-track entries at BJ, the NB Racing Formula 340 TT was not in competition. However it IS expected to get into the fray over the next couple of race events as some seriously significant contingency money has been recently added to attract some more vintage twin-track sleds out of the woodwork. A dozen or so of these amazing race sleds are expected for Eagle River in January.

Our 250 SnoPro IFS Scorpion is also expectd to be race-ready in time for the next event!

Below is a photo of the team and sleds from the pits at BJ.
(Hopefully we can get the wrap on the trailer before the next event)

Special Thanks to Al Enno @ SnoPro Unlimited, HMK, , and NGK Spark Plugs for their valued sponsorship assistance

WopOnTour

PS> The event in Beausejour was unfortunately marred by a horrific wreck during the 440 Pro Champ feature race and a young Canadian driver Curtis Boivin was seriously injured necessitating he be chopper lifted into Winnipeg. Our prayers go out to him and his family.

 

[snopro]

Great post Alan! Brings back alot of old memories when we were full of pizz and vinegar and went into those corners with our hair on fire. Lol.

 

[WopOnTour]

Great post! Brings back alot of old memories when we were full of pizz and vinegar and went into those corners with our hair on fire. Lol.

Thanks Ken.
Yea, riding into those glare corners of ice at WOT isnt for the faint of heart! (and best left to the young! lol)
It's a privilege just to be involved in this team and getting back into racing action after all these years, even as a crew chief. (it generally takes a bit less pizz and vinegar!)
Sure wish there was some way we could get oval racing going again in AB!
I guess we need to replant some grassroots!
Below is some oval tracker porn from this past weekend's event at BJ
Enjoy!
WopOnTour

PS> The last image is of Curtis Boivin #19B the young racer that was seriously injured in Sunday's Pro Champ final. He is currently still in a coma. We're all praying for his full recovery.

 

[snopro]

Not getting any pics there Alan....

 

[WopOnTour]

Not getting any pics there Alan....

Refresh (I added them after)
WOT

 

[WopOnTour]

Here's a few more

 

[WopOnTour]

Below is a video of the Pro Champ 440 Sunday Final from lastweek's event at Beausejour
On the 3rd lap it shows the wreck young (18 yo) Curtis Boivin #19B (Fort Francis ON) was involved in.
The driver in the sled in front of the 19B was thrown from his sled coming out of #2 and Curtis appeared to attempt to bail from his own sled that was (at the time) on a collision course with the overturned sled but unfortunately Curtis' body slammed into the first sled and he was knocked unconsciousand sustained serious head injuries (even while wearing the best of the best safety equipment including a LEATT neck brace)


While Curtis is still in an induced coma at a Winnipeg hospital, apparently there has recently been some encouraging signs that his brain injury might be subsiding.
The entire race community has come together in praying for this young warrior of the ice
A fund has been set up to help Curtis and his family through this ordeal
Contributions can be mailed directly to the Canadian Power Toboggan Championships at:
CPTC
Box 22
Beausejour MB
R0E 0C0
c/o Curtis Boivin

These kids risk life and limb to compete at an extremely high level in sport they love and in the spirit of competition go full out.
Like any racer they accept the risks and teams work together with the sanctioning bodies to make the sleds and rules as safe as they can be, but there's always the outside chance something like this can happen at 180km/hr
Events like this help to remind us what's really important and what this great sport of snowmobiling is all about
Please ride responsibly and stay safe out there!

WopOnTour

 

[fourplugger]

the danger is out there and tghe only thing that anyone can do is use the proper safty gear and pray. if thats not enough be a crew chief. i was at the race it was an ugly sight and nobodys fault. on another note the sled that my dad and i built ran awesome for its first time out. we had a few handling issues on sunday. that was only beacuse i was chasing and finaly drove the sled hard lol. we are working hard on tunning it up for the march race at beausejour. we are trying to get another sled ready for then(82 ski-doo offset)and run it in the 440x vintage class.

 

[WopOnTour]

the danger is out there and tghe only thing that anyone can do is use the proper safty gear and pray. if thats not enough be a crew chief.
i was at the race it was an ugly sight and nobodys fault. on another note the sled that my dad and i built ran awesome for its first time out. we had a few handling issues on sunday. that was only beacuse i was chasing and finaly drove the sled hard lol. we are working hard on tunning it up for the march race at beausejour. we are trying to get another sled ready for then(82 ski-doo offset)and run it in the 440x vintage class.

Hey fourplugger (nice type 454-440 rotax bred handle BTW)

Welcome to the S&M forums. I'm pretty sure I know exactly who this is as I had already gave you and your pops "props" for your excellent showing at BJ in my original post. Below is a photo of your fine ride, again with CONGRATS (but feel free to let me know if I'm wrong! lol) So what did you think of the new Pro Outlaw 600 class??

While currently I am a but lowly "crew chief" I can assure I know ALL about the risks and rewards.
I've got roughly 5000 laps of professional oval racing under my belt.
In that time I've unwillingly participated IN and witnessed many dozens of serious wrecks, many with significant consequences including loss of limbs, paralysis, and even 1 untimely death.

Yes, pushing 350 lbs of metal around an ice oval at 100+ mph can be hazardous to your health, but I agree a combination of prayer and safety equipment/rules CAN make the difference if/when things go from bad to worse!

WopOnTour

PS> The Boivin family has reported today that Curtis is still in a coma but showing signs of reduced pressure on his brain. Still prayin...

 

[Puba]

Keep us up to date on Curtis if you don't mind please.

 

[WopOnTour]

Keep us up to date on Curtis if you don't mind please.

Today, after 18 days of being in an induced coma, and with the pressure on his brain subsided, Curtis was weaned off the barbs and has opened his eyes. Still too early to know how seriously this brain injury has affected him, but it is clear his recovery is going to be a long and challenging one.
Thank you to the entire sled racing community for providing such tremendous support to this family.
WOT

 

[WopOnTour]

Keep us up to date on Curtis if you don't mind please.

When we were in Beausejour last weekend for the Canadian Championships, there was obviously a lot of discussion about the Curtis Boivin situation which was still very fresh in people's minds, despite being 3 months prior.
There were numerous fund raising initiatives present at the Beasuejour race, that were very well supported.
Numerous other race events throughout North America also held fund-raisers
Today the his father Al left the follwoing post on Curtis Facebook page:

Dear Friends,

On Dec. 4 2011 in Beausejour, Curtis started on the outside of the front row of the champ final. On lap 3 he was involved in a terrible crash and our lives have changed forever. He was diagnosed with a diffused brain injury. This is a very serious condition that involves damage to several areas in the brain.

After 100 days Curtis is still struggling. The Doctors and nurses say that his recovery has been remarkable but the hardest part is yet to come. Curtis is not cooperating or following instructions. He says the odd word but is not talking. He isn't swallowing so he cannot eat. Curtis has lost almost 40 pounds.

He's showing good signs of strength but cannot walk yet. He has no control of any of his bodily functions. Curtis’s recovery will not be 100% but we're hoping for enough to get him home.

Carol & I have been by his side almost every day assisting with his care and encouraging him. We've only been home to Fort Frances for one day since the accident. We're now looking for an apartment in Thunder Bay and will stay here until he's ready to come home. I'll have to go back to the Fort at the end of April to work and take care of the house. I will travel to Thunder Bay for 3 day weekends until he can come home.
Carol will stay.

We're under a lot of stress because of what has happened, but one of the burdens has never been a factor - the financial support from friends, strangers, family members and snowmobile racing groups from all over Canada and the U.S.. It has been unbelievable. The funds that have been given to us are being used to keep us here and close to Curtis. They'll also be used to purchase equipment and house renovations for him when he gets home.

We hope to someday make it back to the track. Not as competitors but as support for other racers who may need a helping hand or some advice and a cup of coffee. We blame no one for what happened and have accepted the hand that was dealt to us that day and now must try to make the best of it.

Thank you everyone for the support and kind words on snowgoer, facebook, texts, e-mails, cards and letters.

Curtis Boivin Racing #19B
Al, Carol, Curtis and the entire Boivin/Roy family

 

[Puba]

When we were in Beausejour last wekend, there was obviously a lot of discussion about the Curtis Boivin situation which was still fresh in people's minds, desite being 3 months prior. T
here were numerous fund raising initiatives present at the race, that were very well supported.
Today the his father Al left the follwoing post on Curtis Facebook page:

Dear Friends,

On Dec. 4 2011 in Beausejour, Curtis started on the outside of the front row of the champ final. On lap 3 he was involved in a terrible crash and our lives have changed forever. He was diagnosed with a diffused brain injury. This is a very serious condition that involves damage to several areas in the brain.

After 100 days Curtis is still struggling. The Doctors and nurses say that his recovery has been remarkable but the hardest part is yet to come. Curtis is not cooperating or following instructions. He says the odd word but is not talking.
He isn't swallowing so he cannot eat. Curtis has lost almost 40 pounds.

He's showing good signs of strength but cannot walk yet. He has no control of any of his bodily functions. Curtis’s recovery will not be 100% but we're hoping for enough to get him home.
Carol & I have been by his side almost every day assisting with his care and encouraging him. We've only been home to Fort Frances for one day since the accident. We're now looking for an apartment in Thunder Bay and will stay here until he's ready to come home. I'll have to go back to the Fort at the end of April to work and take care of the house. I will travel to Thunder Bay for 3 day weekends until he can come home. Carol will stay.

We're under a lot of stress because of what has happened, but one of the burdens has never been a factor - the financial support from friends, strangers, family members and snowmobile racing groups from all over Canada and the U.S.. It has been unbelievable. The funds that have been given to us are being used to keep us here and close to Curtis. They'll also be used to purchase equipment and house renovations for him when he gets home.

We hope to someday make it back to the track. Not as competitors but as support for other racers who may need a helping hand or some advice and a cup of coffee. We blame no one for what happened and have accepted the hand that was dealt to us that day and now must try to make the best of it.

Thank you everyone for the support and kind words on snowgoer, facebook, texts, e-mails, cards and letters.

Curtis Boivin Racing #19B
Al, Carol, Curtis and the entire Boivin/Roy family

WOT, thanks for posting.