Officials announce 2014-15 event schedule for East Coast Snocross,
Presented by AMSOIL, Woody’s Traction and FXR
FREMONT, New Hampshire (Oct. 11, 2014) – Officials at East Coast Snocross (ECS) have announced a nine-race event schedule for the 2014-2015 season. The new schedule was announced today at the New Hampshire Snowmobile Association’s annual Grass Drags & Water Cross at Peterson’s Brookvale Farm.
The schedule will take the series and its teams from New England north to Quebec, and on to the western-most reaches of New York. Highlights include a companion event with International Series of Champions’ (ISOC) AMSOIL Championship Snocross Series; a long-awaited return to Maine; and a return to the prestigious Ski-doo Grand Prix de Valcourt, in Valcourt, Quebec.
ECS will also sanction between one and three Hillcross events this season, beginning with a debut at the Granite Gorge ski area, on Dec. 6-7, 2014, just outside the city of Keene, New Hampshire. A second Hillcross event is tentatively scheduled for Dec. 20-21, with a third possible on April 4-5, 2015.
Snocross teams will see the green light for their official opener on January 10-11, 2015, when ECS makes its debut at Bass Park in the Queen City of Bangor, Maine. Bangor has a rich history in snowmobile racing, dating back to the 1970s when the old USSA Eastern tour ran ice oval races at Bass Park. Maine fans have waited years to see sanctioned snocross return to the Pine Tree State, and they’ll see an action-packed season opener in January.
The series will also make stops in Schaghticoke, NY; Louiseville, QC; Turin, NY; Salamanca, NY; North Adams, Mass.; Valcourt, QC; and Findley Lake, New York. The ninth and final site yet to be confirmed is tentatively set to host ECS on March 7-8, 2015.
“I think we’ve put together a nice mix of recently added sites and old venues from the past,” ECS general manager Shawn Achilles said. “I’m hoping our Hillcross events will do well; it’s really a great place for former snocross riders or even aggressive trail riders to compete. Today’s new sleds can easily handle the rigors of Hillcross, and it isn’t as physically demanding as snocross.”
Achilles is also hoping the mix of new venues and a return to some familiar ones from the past will be well-received by race teams. One new venue in particular has him and others revved up.
“I’m excited about getting the series back into Maine,” he added. “In the past, they’ve welcomed us with open arms up there; they love sleds and racing. I know folks in Bangor are excited about having us there, and I know our riders will put on a big show. That should be a great event for our series.
“Our return to great venues like Snow Ridge (Turin) and Peek ‘N Peak (Findley Lake) is a good thing, as well. We know those sites are well suited for us, and local fans turn out. If we get another winter like last year, and all forecasts indicate we will, I believe we’re all in for a very fun and exciting season.”
After what should be a thrilling lid-lifter in Bangor, the series will head for the friendly confines of the Schaghticoke Fairgrounds, in Schaghticoke, NY, on January 17-18. The old RMR tour used to stop at this fine venue years ago, and local fans turned out to catch the action. We believe they’ll return in 2015 to see just how far this sport has progressed since they last hosted a touring series.
Round three will see a trip north to Louiseville, Quebec, on Jan. 23-25, as part of the 2015 Triple Crown Series with SCMX teams. This international rivalry has produced some of the hottest racing in years, and will do more of the same in 2015. On Jan. 31-Feb. 1, the series will head west to Turin, NY, to compete at the Snow Ridge ski area. Snow Ridge is a fantastic facility to host snocross, and receives ample snowfall every winter.
On February 6-7, the series will join the AMSOIL Championship Snocross Series at the Seneca Allegeny Casino for their only eastern appearance. This has proven to be an excellent venue for ISOC in western New York, and ECS is proud to compete alongside the sport’s greatest stars.
Last season, the series debuted in Berkshire County, Mass., at a wonderful facility known as ‘The Range’ in North Adams. On February 14-15, ECS returns to North Adams for the sixth stop on the 2015 campaign. We hope snowmobile enthusiasts in western Massachusetts will join us once again for another weekend of high-flying competition.
On Feb. 20-22, teams in the Pro Open, Pro Lite and Sport classes will head north to compete in the prestigious Grand Prix Ski-doo de Valcourt. Outside of perhaps the AMSOIL World Championship Snowmobile Derby in Eagle River, WI, the ‘GPV’ is without argument the biggest race of them all.
Following an event at a yet-to-be-confirmed site on March 7-8, the 2015 ECS snocross season will conclude at the Peek ‘n Peak Resort on March 28-29. This fine facility has first-class amenities for teams and fans alike, and will serve as the ideal backdrop for our season finale.
East Coast Snocross, presented by AMSOIL, Woody’s Traction and FXR, is the eastern regional affiliate of ISOC. ECS strives to maintain a healthy level of competition in grassroots snocross, while also cultivating new talent for tomorrow’s factory-backed national teams.
