Wheels of Thunder April 2013

transcript

Vol. 4 Issue 4APRIL 2013

Front Cover Photo by Doug James / Shutterstock.com

Find us on Facebook “Wheels of Thunder” April 2013

Special FeaturesCorry Weller - Shattering Stereotypes ............4Family Driver - Bauerly Race Team ...............16Cole Hoppe - Next Generation ...................24REALLY Fast Food!.......................................44

ReviewsMHi - Moving Forward................................36

Rally’s & ShowsBIR.............................................................22Minneapolis Auto Show ..............................34Donnie Smith Bike Show..............................48ISOC Regional - ERX ...................................50

DepartmentsGarage Built.................................................8The DZL Dose .............................................12Calendar....................................................32ABATE of MN.............................................42Game On!..................................................52

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Photographers/WritersCEAJA PHILP TOM EDWARDS

JESSICA KANKE JENNA OSTERLUNDMATT PETERSON MYLIE LAVOLDKIM NILES JOHN LENTZKOWJOHN KRUEGER STEVE CASPER

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www.WheelsofThunder.net Page 3March 2013

At first glance in the race world manymay place Corry Weller as a spokesmodel, girly girl, or just another

pretty face...quite the contrary! This beauty isnot to be taken lightly as she throws dirt andcatches air better than many of the men in herfield

Written by Ceaja Philp

Photography by Peter Vanderstoep

www.WheelsofThunder.net Page 5April 2013

Corry was born and raised in Arizona andfrom early on was supported by her Dad,teaching her that just because she was agirl didn't limit her to doing what shewanted. If she wanted to be in the garagein her pink Barbie nightgown helpingwrench engines, transmissions, tires, or

more, so be it! It was also another thingthat didn't fit the stereotypically privatechurch elementary through private/reli-gious college girls would seem to be inter-ested in.

As a college student she took Business Ad-ministration with a minor in Pre-Law. Sheadmits not really knowing what shewanted to be at that point in her life, sojust took what she thought would be agood all-around major.

Corry had never really ridden anything(except horses when she was younger) be-fore she bought her first quad. She first setout to buy a dirt bike, but saw the quadsand asked the salesman if they raced quadsin motocross too. They said you could, soshe went that route instead.

Having purchased the quad set her in mo-tion searching for tracks in Arizona. Shefound one that allowed them, and herweekends then became about heading tothe track to ride! The hills, dirt, bangs,bruises, sweat and tears became herteacher.

CORRY WELLERShattering Stereotypes

Corry met Jason (her now husband) at hersecond race ever, which was also his sec-ond race. They actually raced against eachother in the beginner class, and just startedhanging out at the races together alongwith other fellow racers. About a year laterthe two would start dating.

They continued to race quads together forabout 5 years. He went Pro and Corry wasracing in the Interm/A classes. The twoknew they had found a common interestand deep passion and decided to startWeller Racing in 2006, and built their firstrace Rhino. They put a street bike enginein it and planned on racing it in the desert.In 2007, they went to their first short-course race in Chula Vista, and saw theUTV class and the trucks. There was no

doubt they were completely hooked!Corry was so mesmerized by the sights andsounds of 800HP trucks sliding and jump-ing, and how enthralled the fans whocrammed the stands and lined the fencesreacted to watching them.

They sold the desert race Rhino, and builta stock short-course Rhino to race. Corryran that for a season, bone stock, and thenthey built it up into their first Pro raceRhino. At that time, Jason was sponsoringabout 4 other drivers with motors, whichhad him too busy to race himself, makingCorry their racer. In 2010, they started theSR1 Class (R1 motors in Rhinos) andCorry almost won the championship thatyear. In 2011 she would get her day! Shewon, becoming the only female racer to

have won a championship in a professionalshort-course series, and in return gave herthe chance to race in the 2012 Pro 4 class.

That opened up even more doors for her,and she was there to prove herself and howhard she had worked to get there! Shesealed that year winning 'Rookie of the Yearin Pro 4', and now this year they own theirown Pro 4 truck. Corry is anxiously wait-ing for the season to start, working daily tomake sure everything is in place, and mak-ing sure her 800HP Pro 4 short-coursetruck is ready to fight its way to the topagain! You will see plenty of this high fly-ing, all-in, Pro race diva in the years tocome!

She is grateful she has now been able tomake racing and running her race programher full-time job. "I am one of the luckyones who get paid to be a driver. I justnever really knew what I wanted to do withmy life until I discovered racing off-road.Now I can’t imagine ever doing anythingelse." She also has an 18 year old daughterand 16 year old son who give full supportto living the lifestyle.

Corry would like to give a special thanksto the Tilted Kilt, who had sponsored hersince 2009 and stepped up her sponsorshipdollars to get her into the Pro 4 class in2012. She is also happy to have OptimaBatteries on board. Follow her on Face-book at Corry Weller-Off Road Racer

Stock OriginalThis is where it all started!Stock OriginalThis is where it all started!

Sound Familiar?Do you have a story of your custom ride? E-maileditor@wheelsofthunder.net and you could be

featured with your ride in the next issue!

Owner/Enthusiast:Tom Schwartz

1971 Yamaha XS1B“I restored this bike in 2009. It was a one ownerbike that showed its age and was pretty run downwhen I got it. It came from a very nice retiredteacher in Coral Springs, FL who bought the bikenew in 1971 while living in New Jersey. The onlyreason he was selling it was that he was gettingolder, and was having trouble with kick starting it,as these early XS650s are kick start only. He wastotally jazzed that I was going to restore his baby!We became friends and we still keep in touch.”

After I purchased the bike online (Ebay), I was ecstatic! Ihad wanted an XS1B for a long time, and now I had one!!After my euphoria faded I started to get concerned aboutgetting another motorcycle past the CFO of our house-hold.... namely my wife Melissa! With about seven bikes inthe barn already, I knew she would not find the same joyin my new acquisition that had found.

I soon hatched a plan... The idea was to take my wife ona weeklong getaway to Key West (her favorite place), onthe way back we stop in Coral Springs, pick up the bike,and we're on our way. How could she be mad at me after4 or 5 days in the sun? After all, it was mid January andwinter was in full swing....it was perfect. So, the plan wasset in motion, and about a month later we were on theroad in my pick up on our way to the southern most pointin the continental US!

My wife knew I was up to something after a few phonecalls I made to the owner of the bike on the way down,but she didn't know what. I told her we might stop to visita friend on the way back to pick up some parts. I'm al-ways wheelin' n dealin so she just rolled her eyes ever soslightly and didn't say much about it.

We enjoyed 2 days in Naples and 4 days in Key West, itwas great! Then on the way back when we pulled up tothe house, she saw the bike sitting in the guys drivewayand she looked puzzled. When she realized what was hap-pening she said, "I thought we were just picking up parts?"I just smiled and told her that it was parts, a whole bikesworth of parts....Lol! In the end she wasn't mad at all,bless her heart, she is a great girl! Now she loves the bikeas much as I do, and we ride it together often.

Anyway, the bike was in running condition but was nevermaintained the way it should have been, but it was allthere, just the way I like em. I was very anxious to take

my new toy out for a ride so the first warm weekend wehad, I took my wife out for a ride and the bike broke downabout 30 miles from home..... lesson learned there!

I take my restores down to each bolt every time, so I'llsave you the in-depth details. Suffice it to say that Istripped the bike down completely and rebuilt it replac-ing, repairing, or rebuilding anything that was in need,along with a few modern upgrades as well, here is the list.new NOS wiring harnessnew flat style main fusenew modern halogen headlightnew GEL batterynew Pamco electronic ignitionnew coils and wiresnew iridium NGK spark plugs (you should try them, theyare awesome! made a BIG difference and provides a greatreliable spark)new modern solid state rectifier and regulator (great im-provement on these older bikes as the stock units weremarginal at best even when new).new tapered steering head bearingsnew bronze swing arm bushingsnew modern shocksnew O-ring chainnew tires and tubesnew fork seals and fresh 20 weight fork oilNot to mention a ton of smaller parts and hardware, anda lot of cosmetics.

I originally paid $1600 for the bike, and I'm sure I've puta little over $2000 into it, not counting my labor. The bikeruns flawlessly and turns heads EVERYWHERE! It's superreliable now, and like I said before I'm not really doing thisfor profit....I love these old girls.

Recently I was hanging out with my favorite

WOT staffer and was engaged in a deep discus-

sion regarding my feeling of the state of the Mid-

west motorsports scene. Having a lifelong

passion for the scene, enough opinions to fill a

book (or at least a trifold) and the requisite liquid

lubrication to say what I thought I was asked if I

wanted to fill some vacant space in WOT. In this

1st edition of the Dzl Dose I will introduce myself

and briefly describe the mission I hope to fulfill

for the magazine.

I was born in New Ulm, MN (home to world fa-

mous Schell’s Brewery) and raised on a farm in

So. MN. At a very young age I was exposed to my

dad’s street racing background, ability to turn a

wrench, lay a bead with a welder and his love of

snowmobiling and motorcycles. By age 5 we were

routinely attending motorsports of all kinds in-

cluding the Drag Race scene at BIR, NTPA trac-

tor pulling, mud racing, early motorsports

spectaculars with trucks, tractors and the early

Monster Truck scene (aka Bigfoot vs Bearfoot and

the “Grounds Already Shakin!” commercials),

motocross/ATV racing, dirt track racing and

snocross. Naturally growing up on the farm I had

a three wheeler by my 6th birthday, a knobby

tired go-cart a year later as well as a Scorpion

snowmobile which lead to a Honda CR80R, a

125R and 200X ATC and quickly found that they

needed to be modified to satisfy my growing ap-

petite for speed and performance. Modifications

and upgrades were made much easier by having a

full farm shop available with enough tools and

hardware to do 90% of the work myself.

By age 12 the allure of my subscriptions to Car

Craft, Popular Hot Rodding, 4 Wheeler and Hot

Rod outweighed my interest in Dirt Wheels, Mo-

tocross and Sno Goer and motivated me to buy

my first and second cars. A 1976 Buick Skylark

(same body as the Nova) and a Pontiac Catalina

with 400c.i engine were to be my Frankenstein’s

Monster. After 3 years, a whole lot of UPS pack-

ages from Performance Automotive Wholesalers

in Chatsworth, CA and countless hours spent

bothering my local experts in the crafts of engine

building and body work I had completed my first

ride, a Skylark with 400+ HP and an insane top

end of around 150ish…big time for a 15 year old

right? Honestly the process of building then in-

terested me as much or more than turning heads

with a loud and fast car. My dad’s ’76 F250 with

the 390 and 4” lift was the next victim followed

by the numerous choppers, bobbers and rat rods

since some featured in national magazines, a ’47

HD Knucklehead in a private collection in Japan

and most just for my own enjoyment and love of

the sport.

In upcoming issues my goal will be to entertain,

inform and motivate your passion for everything

fast, cool and performance related through rants

and tales of the lifestyle of a Midwest motorhead,

greaser, nitro/alcohol fueled enthusiast and rock-

abilly redneck from So MN from my POV. I have

been afforded a unique forum in which I am al-

lowed the creative liberty to say what I think good

or bad about a topic and get away with it. Keep

in mind these are just my opinions and I’m open

to ideas, topics and feedback via the magazine.

Got diesel to burn…more later! - Dzl

Written by Rev Dzl

If you look up “grassroots racing” in the dictionary,there’s a good chance you may see a picture of theBauerly brothers right next to the definition. Hail-

ing out of Sauk Rapids, MN, the three brothers havebeen running their own snowmobile racing team forover 12 years, with no end in sight. And theirs is cer-tainly not a small operation. At many events they hitthe sign-up gate with up to eight riders, running in avariety of classes all the way from Pro to Junior. Eventhough the team has some loyal on-the-road mechanicsand pit crewmen, most of the riders are responsible forthe majority of building, modifying and maintainingtheir own machines back at their shops.

Written by Steve Casper

“We take pride in how we’ve been able todo all this,” explains team founder andelder brother Chad. “I was the first to getthe racing bug soon after high school whenmy buddies and I started hitting localSnoCross and hillcross races. In ’97 I got ahold of the first Ski-Doo made specificallyfor SnoCross and incredibly I’ve been withthat brand ever since. My two youngerbrothers (Kurt and Paul) soon got into thesport and by 2002 we incorporated into a4-man team after we added our cousinRoss.”

Paul adds, "Growing up watching Kurt andChad race, I always wanted to be able togrow to the level of racing they were at. Istrived to one day be able to competeagainst them and learn from them to get toan even higher level of competition"

From those humble beginnings the teamhas grown into an operation that includesa full-service shop, semi –hauler, and agenerous amount of sponsors, many ofwhich have been with the team for over 10

years. “None of us are in this as a full-timeprofession,” Chad reminds us. “We all havereal jobs we’re responsible for the rest ofthe year. We all have college level businessdegrees so we know how to work with oursponsor partners to make it worth theirwhile to support us. In fact we make spon-sors a high priority in just about everythingwe do and in the end it shows when yousee how loyal some have been to us.”

Another unique aspect of Team BauerlyRacing is the wide range of riders they haveflying under their banner. On any givenweekend they can have up to five riderscompeting in the various National Pro di-visions with the rest going for titles in theSport, Regional, or Junior classes. “We’realways looking to where we’ll be in the fu-ture, so we’ve got Marcus Lang running theJunior 10-13 Class, and Kyle Rau runningthe National Sport classes” says Kurt.“Marcus is a kid who grew up around theteam and we decided to help him along,and Kyle happens to be my roommate dur-ing the winter so they fit well.”

While the majority of riders on the teamhail from the upper midwest, one home-town listed on the rider roster stands apartfrom the rest. ISOC National Pro Litesracer John Stenberg calls Stradalen, Swedenhome for most of the year, but makes thetrek to the Midwest each season to racewith Team Bauerly. “This has been ourthird year with John,” explained Chad.“They have their own family team in Swe-den and over there once you feel that youhave accomplished all you can, many riderslook to the U.S. as the next level of compe-tition. When he made that decision, we allagreed that he would be a good fit on ourteam and I feel it’s been a great experiencefor all of us. “ Not only does John make thetrek across the pond, but most members ofTeam Bauerly have been to Sweden to com-pete as well.

When asked how the 2012-13 season hasgone so far, Chad says he’s glad to reportthat at nearly every race the entire team hasmade the finals, and as the season windsdown several of their riders are in somegood points battles in the final standings.We also saw Paul qualify for the finals atthe ESPNWinter X-Games this year, some-thing he has now accomplished severaltimes. Paul says, "Racing at the pro leveland being involved in the X-Games hasbeen a dream of mine since I was intro-duced to the sport. It has been truly amaz-ing to live those dreams out season byseason."

Chad adds, “What I’m really happy aboutat this point in the season is that we’ve been

able to keep all riders on the track so far.As we all know this sport can be prettyrough as far as injuries go, but none of ourguys has had any downtime this season.

“When people ask me what the keys are torunning a successful racing team I say it’smainly about organization and tying every-one and all the chores together,” Chad ex-plains. “With our guys everyone isresponsible for making sure their ownequipment is ready to race. Nearly all ofour guys are pretty hands-on so there aren’tmany disconnects where things can gowrong. The fact that even all of our crewmembers have raced in some sort of snow-mobile competition over the years reallyhelps this group gel, each and every one of

them know what its like out there and whatit takes to win no matter the situation.”The extensive trophy room at the shopcontains a “Team of the Year” and “TeamSportsman Award” plaques from theWPSANational Circuit days.

So what does a snowmobile team do fortraining in the summer? “We’ve got an ATVtrack out in the back of the shop whereguys can burn some laps during the off-sea-son,” says Chad. “A lot of the same mus-cles and techniques that we use inSnoCross also apply to going fast on anATV.” Most of the guys also spend a lot oftime Mountain Biking, something we allenjoy, even the mechanics and crew. In thewinter the boys do most of their practicingat Quadna Mountain Park (QMP) in HillCity, MN which is arguably one of the bestSnoCross tracks in the country, and alsohappens to be a partnership between theBauerly and Warnert racing families.

One of Team Bauerly's biggest claims tofame over the past decade has been theirexceptional results in Hillcross competi-tions, including appearances by all fourBauerlys at one time or another at the Win-ter X-Games. “Hillcross is pretty similar toSnoCross except the track goes straight upa hill and finishes at the top,” explainsKurt. “We really enjoyed those head tohead competitions and captured severalchampionships. Since 2010 the sport haskinda faded away since a lot of guys startedto use different sleds and engines fromwhat we were using for SnoCross, so itsoon became a cost deal. If the economy

picks up perhaps we’ll see Hillcross comeback to life as it was very popular for awhile. Another thing we really liked aboutit was it extended the regular racing seasonsince they were typically held on ski hillsthat still had plenty of snow even as springwas arriving.”

Though the primary focus of the team isSnoCross, some of the crew over the yearshas participated in grass drags, ice drags,cross country and some snowmobile hill-climbs (those big steep ones where it’s justyou and the hill). “About the only twowe’ve never done is oval racing or water-cross,” says Chad. To find out moreabout Team Bauerly Racing, check out theircool website at www.bauerlyracing .com orvisit them on Facebook at Team BauerlyRacing.

Chad Bauerly, Team Operations Manager

Kurt Bauerly, Team Athlete Manager

Nathan Bauerly, Chief Mechanic/Driver

Chase Marudas, Team Event Mechanic

Jay Rosemeyer, Team Event Mechanic

Vic Macho, Race Shop Mechanic

Paul Greenwaldt, Race Shop Mechanic/Graphics/Special projects

Todd Lachinski, Pit Crew/Mechanic

Tom Rambow, Pit Crew/Mechanic

Scott Haala, Pit Crew/Sponsor Relations/Special Projects

Brian Bauerly, Team Representative/Promotions/Hospitality

2012-13 Team Bauerly Racing Riders#24 Paul Bauerly Milaca, MN ISOC National Pro Open

#675 Chase Rosemeyer Chippewa Falls, WI ISOC National Pro Lites

#259 John Stenberg Stradalen, Sweden ISOC National Pro Lites

#318 Kurt Bauerly Otsego, MN ISOC National Pro Plus 30/Pro Lites

#821 Ross Bauerly Minneapolis, MN ISOC National/Regional Pro Plus 30

#368 Chad Bauerly Sauk Rapids, MN ISOC National Pro Plus 30

#315 Marcus Lang Sleepy Eye, MN ISOC Junior 10-13 Class

#325 Kyle Rau Lawton, MI ISOC National Sport / Regional Pro Lite

2012-13Staff

Fly Racing, AMSOIL,Ski-Doo, Stud Boy,

Digital Ink, 50BELOW, EVS Sports,HMK, ROX SpeedFX,C&A Pro Skis, LiquidIce Energy Drink,LEATT, MurphyChevrolet, ScottSports, St. CloudOrthopedic Sports

Center, Ace Hardware,Mobile Radio, Parker,Kandiyohi PremiumWater, Tiremaxx,

Lehigh, Direct Service,DP Brakes, Team

Industries, Sledbrite,and BE.

2012-13Sponsors

Photo provided by Wayne Davis Photography

F or a racer in any sport, there was a time and a place

where it all started. For Cole Hoppe, it started in the

backyard when he was 4, with dad. Now the 8-year-old

snocross speed demon shreds by those his age and older and stands

on the podium nearly every weekend. Because of that effort, he

finished as champion and runner-up in his two classes this year.

Cole holds his first-place plaque at theISOC year-end banquet.

Still, it wasn’t just nerve-racking for Coleat first. His parents, Kevin and Sherri, ofCorcoran, Minn., had a bold decision tomake. While most other neighborhoodkids were perfecting skills on their bigwheels at 4 years old, Cole was learning toride his 120 cc snowmobile around theyard, and eventually the track. That’s notevery mom’s dying wish, but Sherri soonembraced it. She’s happy she did, and so isKevin. The kid can ride.

“As soon as we bought the sled, we hadhim driving it around the yard,” Kevinsaid. “He really took a liking to it, and that’swhy we took it to the next level.”

After only a month, Cole was racing Thurs-day nights at ERX Motorpark in Elk River,Minn. Still, that was another challenge initself. In his own backyard, every youngboy is a champion. The first real race,though, that’s always a different story –often a frustrating one, too.

“We had some frustrating times at first, justthe other kids around him, passing him,”Kevin said. “Obviously, it’s not like it was inthe yard.”

Cole didn’t understand why he wasn’t thefastest, Kevin said. He was brand-new tothe sport, but even 4-year-old boys knowwhat winning means.

“It was tough,” Kevin said, “tough compe-tition out there.”

Cole wasn’t the only one who felt the pres-sure. Kevin and Sherri felt it, especiallySherri. Like showing up to a formal eventin casual attire, Sherri had that awkwardfeeling as if everybody was staring. She hassince learned the racing community isn’tlike that, but she felt out of place back in2009, the year Cole started racing. Shewon’t forget that feeling, and summed it upin one word.

Cole Hoppe #121“The Kid Can Ride!”Written by Matt Peterson

Kevin and Brian Hoppe see continuous improvement in Cole's technique.

In his first heat on a 500, Cole Hoppe battles for positioning against Taylor Cole at Glyndon.

“Scattered,” she simply said. “Getting histech vest on, I was so intimidated out there.I just thought, ‘Oh my, these people are se-rious about this, and here we are, the new-bies out of the back of a pickup.’”

Finding a Comfort Zone

The frustration didn’t last too long forKevin, Sherri or Cole.

“The second season he came out, he basi-cally was a brand-new kid and ready tocompete – not intimidated or shy or scaredof the competition or any of that,” Kevinsaid.

Youngsters soak up information almost tooquickly, and Cole absorbed the feel of thesnowmobile – how it accelerated, deceler-ated, handled in corners, and not longafter, how it floated in the air. Year no. 2dramatically changed for Cole.

“Just more training and more seat time isbasically what it comes down to,” Kevinsaid.

Perhaps Cole is a little ahead of his time,too. Kevin not only said the 8-year-old isbig for his age, but he’s focusing on properriding technique, such as when to be onthe gas, where to be in the corners and howto lean.

“He does have a unique riding style all ofhis own,” Kevin said, “a stand-up rider onpretty much a sit-down sled.”

While some of that may be natural talent,

Cole receives some coaching, as well.

“To get faster, you have to let your legs ab-sorb the bumps,” Cole repeated after his fa-ther.

Even Cole’s uncle, Brian Hoppe, has en-tered the formula for success. PerhapsKevin and Brian are living a little vicari-ously through Cole, like other fathers, un-cles and their youngsters. Like Kevin, Briandidn’t have much opportunity to race whenhe was younger, so it’s fulfilling to see aneager, speed-hungry kid get the chance – ayoung racer who continuously sponges upthe tips Kevin and Brian throw at him.

“It seems like he grasps that stuff and doesuse it when he’s out on the track,” Briansaid. “It seems like he’s progressing fromrace to race. We seem to get a lot morefeedback from him on what the sled’s doingand what we need to do.”

Last year, Cole won the 120 Stock 6-7 classand finished second in the 120 Champ 6-12 class. Cole finished the ’12-’13 seasonfirst place in ISOC Racing’s 120 ImprovedStock 6-7 and again took second in the 120Champ 6-12 class. Many of the racers areolder and in some cases have been racinglonger. But Cole holds his own, and holdsplenty of trophies, too.

“He always felt like he can never competewith kids that age,” Kevin said. “I’m like,‘You can do it.’”

Toward the end of this season, Cole andKevin considered the next possible move: a500 Arctic Cat SnoPro. That’s a lengthyjump from a 120, and the elimination of a

300 transition class could make the situa-tion a little dicey. Once again, against oldercompetition, Cole did well when he fin-ished second in his first heat race. Unfor-tunately, he later landed awkwardly andtweaked his back, so Kevin may decide towait a little longer before forcing such ajump. Regardless, Cole will move up a classnext year to 8-12 Improved Stock and con-tinue to run 120 Champ. Kevin is confi-dent in Cole’s abilities. So is Cole.

Family has the rhythm

The Hoppes keep stepping up their game,whether on the track, under the hood or inthe pits. They’ve gone from the awkward-feeling family in the pickup to working outof a nicer race trailer. They were at theraces every weekend throughout the win-ter, dedicated, as they attended every re-

Cole rides behind his sister, Kaitlyn, as she learns the ropes.

Cole rips his 120 Briggs and Strattonat Glyndon.

Cole gathers with the Hoppe Motorsportsteam and family.

gional snocross event and five nationalevents in the Midwest. Even young Kait-lyn, Cole’s 5-year-old sister, recentlylearned how to ride a snowmobile. Perhapsshe will race someday, too.

“We have the rhythm,” Sherri said. “We re-ally have the schedule and the routine.”

Cole is fortunate to have an uncle and fa-ther who are both passionate about toolsand engines, especially a father who is wellsuited to be a motorsports mechanic. Kevinwent to school in Arizona to work onATVs, motorcycles, snowmobiles and othermachines, so he is by no means scratchinghis head between races.

Furthermore, the Hoppes are true to thesport. Where Cole succeeds, others maynot. Some struggle. Others are just begin-ning and feel like the Hoppes did whenthey started. But success in the sport is re-ciprocal. The Hoppes and others want tosee all the kids do well. After all, the sportwouldn’t be great if it weren’t for competi-tion and a loving community of racers andfamilies.

Those looking to break in to success,though – the ones who keep showing up

every weekend, learning, building bettermachines and wondering when their timewill come – they’ll get there, too.

“The biggest thing is doing the time,”Kevin said. “You’ve got to do the time.You’ve got to endure the bad times to getto the good times.”

Cole isn’t quite sure how long he’ll race,perhaps another two years, he said. Thenhe and Kevin will reevaluate their situa-tion.

Right now, however, all signs indicate thefuture has plenty in store.

Cole claims first place at the national in Deadwood, S.D.

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Every year in March the automotive in-dustry invades the halls of the Minneapo-lis Convention Center for the annualMinneapolis Auto Show. While I focusmainly on the aftermarket side of the in-dustry, I still find myself taking the shortjaunt downtown to see the newest offer-ings from my favorite manufactures, andsee what everyone else is up to. As usual,there were a few cool surprises inside, andof course the chance to get up close andpersonal with the latest and greatest carsand trucks for 2013.

The nice thing about the auto show is thatit takes up the three main halls of the con-vention center so everything is wellspaced out. It also makes for good exer-cise, haha! When I first walked into thespacious halls, I was greeted by BMW'sbooth which is always one to stop by.Most certainly the highlight car (for meanyways) in their booth is the new F60M5. BMW's flagship sedan now boaststwin-turbo V8 power, great styling, andthe refinement we've come to expect fromBMW. Oh, and the sounds, the wonderfulsound! I had the pleasure of getting to

watch one of these being tuned at a shopin Chicago, IL, that handles one of my carbuilds, and the M5 put down some veryhealthy numbers.

Another booth that was drawing a lot ofattention was Lexus. Despite an impres-sive display of cars (and I'm not being bi-ased because I have two of them!) theobvious center of attention was Lexus'super-car, the LFA. The F1-inspiredsuper-car had show-goers stopping tocheck out the car in person, because withonly 500 ever built, you're not guaranteed

Minneapolis Auto Show 2013Written & Photographed by John Krueger

to see one on the road, and despite costingeither $375,000 (for the base-model), or$425,000 (for the Nurburgring Edition),Toyota still loses money on the car. Thecar is automotive engineering at its finest,and a must-see sight at this year's autoshow.

Mercedes also had a rather special car ondisplay. The Concept Style Coupe wasfront-and-center in their booth showcas-ing the (hopeful) future of the German au-tomaker. Staying in Germany, a trip overto Audi's booth is also recommended foran impressive line-up, including their new

S7 sedan. The A7 gets a boost in powerthanks to a twin-turbo'd V8 under thehood, and some more aggressive stylingcues which made it the car I wanted totake home the most from the show. Mit-subishi had a cool display too, showcas-ing two cars from Minnesota road-racerRyan Gates; the Gates311 Evo X, and hispersonal Evo X race car.

On the American side of things, Chevrolethad a nice-sized display, the highlightsbeing the ZR1 Corvette, ZL1 Camaro, anda Hot Wheels Camaro concept. Also inthe GM camp, Cadillac had an impressive

line-up including all three variants of theCTS-V. I've always loved the high-perfor-mance sedan, and have had first-hand ex-perience with a couple of modifiedexamples. They're a great combination ofluxury and performance, rivaling offeringsfrom BMW and Mercedes. Jeep had a re-ally cool section too letting attendees test-drive Jeeps on a hill-climb setup in theconvention hall. All in all, it was anotherimpressive year for the auto show. It'sworth the $10 entry and $8 parking tocome and see what is undoubtedly an-other Minnesota tradition.

A Minnesota Automotive Tradition

Like so many, do you have a dirt bike in thegarage that won’t see the light of day untilsummer? How would you like to own a

snowmobile, too? Matt Halseth is introducing oneof the coolest products to hit the mid-west inyears. It’s the Mountain Horse Snow Bike kit.

Written by Mylie Lavold

In only a couple of hours, you could installa snow kit and turn your current bike intoa snow bike, arguably something even bet-ter than a snowmobile. The snow bike, al-ready quite popular in Idaho and Montana,has enthusiast Matt Halseth bringing thiscrossbreed machine to the Red River Val-ley. Based in Moorhead, Minnesota,Halseth’s company, MHi, is the exclusiveMountain Horse dealer in Minnesota.

Halseth started MHi in 2010 to serve the“snow industry”, his company offeringeverything from snow removal to snow-mobiles. In 2013, Halseth joined up withTimbersled of Idaho and began selling theirMountain Horse edition of snow bike kits.Timbersled, founded in 2001, specializes inbuilding lightweight snowmobile productsdesigned for mountain sleds. They thrive

on innovative designs and quality prod-ucts.

“Out west, Timbersled has kind of revolu-tionized the industry,” says Halseth. “Whenthey introduced the Mountain Horse kit in2010 it took things to another level. Thereare other kits out there, but nothing likethis. Other kits utilize the rear bike frameinstead of taking out the whole sub, limit-ing performance compared to the Moun-tain Horse. The kit fits on most any stockbike, including Yamaha, Suzuki, Kawasaki,Honda, KTM, Husaberg and Husqvarna. Itfits on bikes 250cc and larger, though450cc is recommended, and most kits re-quire a 13 tooth engine sprocket. On mostbikes, you can expect to hit about 50 milesper hour. It comes completely assembled inthe crate and can be installed by the buyer.”

As for assembly, Halseth explained, “It tookNick Trapp (friend) and I just over 2½hours to disassemble and reassemble thetrack and the ski. It was pretty simple. Wetook the tires and chain off, enabling therear suspension to come off and the new kitto go on. You connect it using the existingbolts, attaching the rear skid in place.Then, you utilize the existing front fork toattach the spindle and ski.” If you aren’t theDIY kind of rider, Halseth offers installa-tion service and advice.

Halseth recalls the first ride he took afterassembling his own snow bike. “It wassomething to be remembered. It was afterdark, about 9:30pm. There’s no headlight,but we just couldn’t wait. We had about afoot of fresh powder on the lake, so wewent for it. The way you could come into a

“When I rode the MHI moun-tain horse snow bike I wasamazed. The floatation of thebike was unbelievable, it easilymade lines I wouldn’t even haveimagined riding a snowmobile.The weight transfer is amazing,allowing for some good side-hilling and excellent handlingin some tight trees. Definitelyan A design that put my deci-sion to buy a new sled on hold.The MHI will be my new ride. “Derek B

corner and just lean your bike and dig in,you could almost touch your hip to theground. It was really fun.”

How do you handle a dirt bike in snow?Halseth explains “riding a Mountain Horsesnow bike is a lot like snowmobiling butwith its own unique characteristics. A bikeand a sled can go similar places, but theleaner bike can take a completely differentroute. A snow bike can go places a sledsimply cannot fit. Though a sled can anglestraight up a hill better than a snow bike,because of the horsepower they have andbeing lower to the ground, they have tocome straight back down due to their lackof maneuverability. On a snow bike youcan zigzag up and get better lines. It makesfor a more enjoyable ride. Sleds are muchheavier and have a planted ski whichmakes them hard to ride on a side hill andtougher to turn. Snow bikes are about 200pounds lighter and much easier to handle.Balance is not really an issue, once you getused to it. It’s kind of like riding a stand-upjet ski.”

Halseth comes from a background ofsnowmobiling, mountain riding and mo-

torcross, but he says you don’t have to nec-essarily have a lot of experience to get thehang of riding a snow bike. “Like riding abike, as your balance progresses, you canquickly learn to take turns and cornerswith no problem,” Halseth says with asmile. Modifications can also be made tohelp riders feel more like they are driving asled than a bike. Halseth took the footbrake off his own bike and converted the

right-hand front brake to a rear brake.Halseth notes, “If other riders are inter-ested in doing the same, we have a kit forthat, too. Again, it’s an easy conversion,whatever makes you feel most comfort-able! ”

“I was skeptical at first of how well thebike would work, but being a lifelong mo-torcycle and snowmobile rider I knew Ihad to try it. The first five minutes on thebike were fairly easy to adjust to. Afterthat I really began to like the way it rodeand how well it worked, especially in

deep snow. After the first few hours of rid-ing I began to wonder why I would evenwant a "normal" snowmobile again. It's

just fun being different!” Tom S

The true abilities of the machine shine indeep powder. “In about 3-4’ of powder, thecornering and maneuverability is amaz-

ing,” says Halseth. “If you are consideringYellowstone or any back country riding,this is the machine you want to have. Youcan literally stop and get off the bike whenside-hilling. And it‘s far easier to get un-stuck when you’re in a jam than tugging ona heavy snowmobile too.”

MHi offers three models of the MountainHorse kit – the Short Track (ST) $5,200,the Long Track (LT) $5,900 and the SnowCross (SX) $6,100. Prices do not includefit kits which can range from $300-500.The track on the ST and LT versions is 12½ inches wide. For most riding, Halsethrecommends the ST. “It performs greatboth in powder and on hard pack, makingit very versatile. If you are primarily ridingin deep powder I’d recommend the LT, butthat one works best on a 500cc or largerbike.”

If you want racing circuit performanceHalseth recommends the Snow Cross (SX).It has a narrower track, about 10 ½ incheswide. It performs well in the powder and,with the narrower track, it has better rac-ing capability. The Fargo-Moorhead areahas yet to see snow bike racing, but if youare willing to travel, Halseth notes there aretracks to the west where you can see snowbikes race on snocross tracks. Halseth hashad conversation with Kevin Nathe, ownerof Buffalo River Race Park, so don’t be toosurprised to see snow bikes racing in Glyn-

don in the not so far off future.

Once you decide which model is for you,MHi has a variety of Mountain Horse ac-cessories to choose from. Examples in-clude:

T/S (Timbersled/Simmons) Back-Country Ski ($375)

This ski comes standard on the Mountain

Horse kits. It is a custom designed andbuilt tri-keel ski that is like no other ski inthe snowmobile or snow bike industry. Itis the only ski in history that is specificallydesigned for snow biking. The ski is builtby Simmons, Inc. and has been designedby Timbersled. There are similarities tosome of the other Simmons skis, but thishas a totally different function specific tothe handling needs of a snow bike

• 10” wide with 3 keels allowing for preci-sion handling and best possible floata-

tion in powder.

• 3-1/2” of space between keels. This al-lows enough space to prevent freezing orplug up of snow.

• Front outer edge of the ski has a 1/4”ridge leading from the front of the outerkeels to the ski-loop. This makes the skirespond instantly in soft snow whensteering into a side hill without slippingto the side.

• Front leading edge of the 2 outer keelsare farther forward of the leading edge ofthe center keel. This adds steering re-sponsiveness and eliminates front endpush in soft snow.

• This ski is available as an upgrade toyour existing Mountain Horse kit, or anysnow bike, using a Polaris ski mount.

All/Terrain Wheel Kit ($450)

This unique wheel system is designedspecifically for snow bikes, fits all snow

bike brands, and makes moving your snowbike hassle free. The front wheel securelyattaches to the ski and is tightened downwith a ratchet strap. The back wheel sitsdown into the lugs of the track and self-aligns. The system can be installed in a fewseconds allowing you to easily move yourbike on any surface without tipping. Youcan also use this to move your snow bikeup a ramp into a truck bed and to ride yoursnow bike in and out of the trailer or downgravel drives.

3.3 Gallon Tunnel Mount Gas Can($135)

The can mounts to a track system boltedto the tunnel in a factory predrilled hole lo-cated on the top of the tunnel. Once thetrack is mounted you can simply slide theunit on and off the track with no otherstraps needed to hold it in place. This itemis highly recommended.

Snow Bike Jack Stand ($300)

The jack stand is a must for the MountainHorse snow bike, because it is mandatory

to lift and spin the track and drive systemwith the engine running to properly lubethe chains and check adjustment of bothchain and suspension tuning. It is designedto lift the back of the tunnel with one pushon the handle. It has a lifting fork that fitsthe width of the tunnel and fits the alu-minum bumper tube. It then has a liftingcam that lifts the back of the tunnel andcams over center to stay up. A safety pinlocks it in the up position.

5 Foot Brake Line ($75)

The 5’ brake line allows you to connectyour stock hand brake lever and mastercylinder to the snow bike brake caliper.

Custom Paint

Do you want to stand out from the pack?Mountain Horse kits come standard black,but you can choose from several in-stock

colors or a customized color can be createdto match the shade of your choosing.

More items are available online. Visit thewebsite for details on these products andmore. www.MHi-SNO.com

If you want to check out a snow bike foryourself, Halseth is more than happy togive you a test ride. He has done severaltest rides in the Detroit Lakes, Minnesotaarea where there is a variety of terrain andpowder and also at his Moorhead location.Halseth is convinced that riding is believ-ing. “It’s cost-effective, and it just makessense to be able to use your toys year-round. This definitely turns some headsgoing down the trail! Once you ride one,it’s hard to go back to a sled.”

“I was a little timid to ride the bike at firstbut after many offers from Matt I did. I wasamazed how easy it was to ride, how you

can go through the deep snow with ease. It’sa blast to ride.” Mark P

If you are considering a purchase, Halsethrecommends acting sooner rather thanlater. “If you wait until fall you may be out

of luck, as supplies are limited. SnowCheck is the best way to insure you will geta kit for next winter by putting one on holdnow. The process is pretty straightforward.Snow Check for snow bike kits works thesame as for sleds. There is a $500 nonre-fundable deposit. The Remaining balanceis due when you pick up your kit in the fall.We are currently offering $200 toward ac-cessories and custom color upgrades when

ordering off-season.” Halseth is takingSnow Check orders now.

The entire concept seems logical in thearea, and Halseth is confident that snowbikes will become as popular here as theyhave been across the west. “In my opinion,it’s the best thing to happen since snow-mobiles, and my wife is happy to have oneless toy in the garage. I expect to see thisthing go to the next level."

I belong to a number of motorcycling or-ganizations that defend the rights of streetriders and read their newsletters cover tocover. My favorite, of course, is theA.B.A.T.E. of Minnesota publication, RoadNoise. Second favorite is the MotorcycleRiders Foundation’s newsletter, MRF Re-ports. So there I was with the MRF Reportsin one hand and a cup of coffee in the otherwhen the headline "Possible MotorcycleBan in the Vosges" not only caught my eyebut jumped off the page and hit my brainlike a hammer blow. This was part of a re-port from the Federation of European Mo-torcyclists Association (FEMA), theoverseas equivalent of the MRF.

A little background (and please note I amnot a military historian, but know enoughabout the battle waged in these mountains

to be offended by the thought of local au-thorities restricting freedom of any kind).The Vosges of eastern France in the fall andwinter of 1944-45 was a very intense placefor American infantrymen inWorld War II.The Nazi army threw everything they hadleft at defending the Vosges, a sure pathwayfor the Americans into the heart of Ger-many. Thick forests, rain, sleet, snow andheavy fog made the fighting very close. Asnap of a twig would unleash a cross-fire ofmachine gun rounds. Men literally weregoing insane due to the constant pressure.“You saw men get killed right beside youevery day. You soon realized your life wasgoing to be very short” said George Courlas(The Liberator by Alex Kershaw). Casualtyrates were incredible. The US Army paid aheavy price to secure the Vosges on theirway to Germany. In the name of freedom.

So you can see why that headline led me toask myself; what more do the haters of free-dom want from us? Will they not be satis-fied until we all comply with their one sizefits all world? Until we sign a pledge to notpass on our motorcycling heritage to ouroffspring? Is there not a line that motorcy-clists will draw and say "no more"? Then Iwondered what is that line - when will wesay no more? At what price will we stopcontributing to our own future? $20, $30,$50? At what point will the time commit-ment become such a bother that we stopdoing what we know works to protect ourmotorcycling way of life?

Ladies and gentleman, think about thosesoldiers in the Vosges of 1944. Think abouttheir commitment to freedom for all. Thenthink about how, only 69 years later, thelocal French government casually tossesaside that freedom, paid for with Americanblood, by proposing a ban on motorcycles.Then I ask you to please redouble your ef-forts and urge all of your riding friends andfamily to join and support A.B.A.T.E. ofMinnesota and the Motorcycle RidersFoundation. And FEMA if they live in Eu-rope!

Yours in freedom,Mack Backlund, State CoordinatorABATE of Minnesota

THE PRICE OF FREEDOM

F ast food companies and fast race cars are a marketing match that is hard to beat. In McDonald’s case,having their quarter pounder crews provide sponsorship support for quarter mile drag racing teamswas a great fit. McDonald’s Racing team owner Joe Gibbs won 3 Super Bowls as a head coach when he

was with Washington, so whether it’s football or auto racing, he knows what it takes to field winning teams. InPro Stock, he had Jim Yates at the wheel. That worked out well with Yates and his team earning NHRA ProStock World Championships in 1995 and the following season. The Funny Car pilot was second generationracer Cruz Pedegron. Rounding out the 3 car team was Cory McClenathan behind the wheel of the McDonald’sTop Fuel dragster. Ed “The Ace” McCullough, after a successful stint as a Funny Car driver that included 5 winsat the biggest drag race of the year, the U.S. Nationals at Indy, also went on to drive the McDonald’s top fuelcar. The Ace was the Car Craft magazine Funny Car Driver of the Year for the 1973 and 1988 seasons. LarryMinor was also at the helm as team owner during McDonald’s years in the world’s fastest motor sport. After 6years of NHRA racing, Coach Gibbs shifted his interest in motor sports from straight line racing to NASCAR’scircular approach. During his time in drag racing, Joe Gibbs earned 33 wins.

Written by Tom Edwards

In 1993, John Andretti, nephew of racinglegend Mario Andretti, was at the wheel ofthe Taco Bell Express Top Fuel dragster.Once again, a member of the “stick andball” world of sports, former baseball starJack Clark, a 4 time Major League BaseballAll Star, entered the world of drag racingas team owner after his playing career.Clark played in the 1985 and 1987 WorldSeries so, like Joe Gibbs, he had winningin his background. During the 1994 NHRAseason, Clark took a turn at driving the carwith his debut at the Mile High Nationalsnear Denver. He was on a drivers list forthe Taco Bell cars that included AndyWoods, Doug Foxworth and Ed McCul-lough.

For those that prefer to add some zest totheir tacos, the 1993 Darrell Gwynn Rac-ing La Victoria Salsa dragster would havebeen just what you were looking for.Gwynn selected Mike Dunn to drive thecar; always a good choice. During the ’91

season in a Funny Car, Dunn finished inthird place. Mike was the first Funny Cardriver to surpass the 280 MPH barrier, afeat he accomplished in 1987.

The In ‘N Out Burger chain has been in-volved in drag racing for years. In 1999their Top Alcohol dragster driven byMelanie Troxel finished in second place forteam owners Darrian and Meadows, long-time NHRA racers. During the 2011 and2012 seasons, In ‘N Out was the primarysponsor for Melanie Troxel’s Funny Car. In2010 she drove their Pro Mod 1963Corvette. An In ‘N Out Burger Pro Mod carwas also driven by Leah Pruett. At the sea-son opening 2013 Winternationals inPomona, Leah was driving a Top Fueldragster.

If your tastes run to something other thanhamburgers, tacos and salsa, Don Schu-macher had just the cars for you. TheWonder bread sponsored Wonder Wagon

Chevy Funny Cars were the toast of thetrack on several occasions. When it cameto covering a drag strip in a hurry, therewas no loafing around for the Wonderbread entries; frequently upper-crust racecars. The paint schemes matched the red,yellow and blue balloons on the breadwrappers. In the 1970’s Don could drivewith the best of them. He was a 2007 in-ductee into the Drag Racing Hall of Fame.As the team owner of Don SchumacherRacing, two of his nitro powered cars,Antron Brown’s Top Fueler and “Fast Jack”Beckman’s Funny Car won NHRA champi-onships for the 2012 season.

Drag racing fans with a sweet tooth havehad a number of cars to follow over theyears. In 1991, Otter Pops frozen treatssponsored 2 of the biggest names in dragracing history. “The First Lady of Drag Rac-ing” Shirley Muldowney drove their TopFueler and Ed McCullough drove the colormatching fuel coupe; both Larry MinorRacing cars. If you were looking for acandy sponsored nitro car, no problem.The Snickers Funny Car driven by MikeDunn would have been a good fit. The JollyRancher cars would have also provided a

great choice. Lori Johns drove a JollyRancher Top Fuel car in the early 1990’sand in ’91 and ’92 they were an associatesponsor of the John Force Funny Car. Loricompleted her second year in Top Fuel in1990 and had a successful season qualify-

ing for 18 of the 19 races, finishing infourth place. Jolly Rancher was the titlesponsor for the 1993 NHRA race in Seattle.That event featured a Jolly Rancher wheelstanding van. They have also backed awheel standing stage coach. You don’t seeone of those every day.

If these assorted dining pleasures havemade you thirsty, straight line race carshave you covered. As the largest selling softdrink in the world, it isn’t just race fansthat enjoy an ice cold Coca-Cola to quenchtheir thirst. Their Funny Car was always atough match-up for other drivers. Onceagain, the Atlanta based company, with itsMello Yello brand, is the series sponsor theprofessional categories of NHRA Champi-onship Drag Racing this year. Any dragracer will tell you that after the pre-stageand stage lights are activated on the Christ-mas Tree, “Go on yello”! Long-time dragracer Roland Leong was well known for his“Hawaiian” Funny Cars. It made sense tome when Hawaiian Punch became the pri-mary corporate sponsor of the race teamowned by the man they call “The Hawai-ian”, Roland Leong. What a great fit. For

adult fans that are so inclined, if a more“adult beverage” is what you enjoy, in mod-eration, of course, then Budweiser, KennyBernstein’s backer for 30 memorable sea-sons, was an option. Their “Beer Wagon”wars with the Larry Dixon driven DonPrudhomme Racing Miller Beer cars is thestuff of legend; frequently very close races.

If any of these cars drove to their sponsorsdrive up windows in their race cars, I don’tbelieve it would take long for them to getthrough the line. They had a lot in com-mon; they were all fast, some record settingand, based on the shirts and hats my wifeCathy and I saw in the stands, they had alot of followers. As a fan of the sport formore than 45 years, it’s nice to see majorcorporations providing financial supportfor race teams. More than a few studieshave shown it is a great return on their in-vestment.

26th Annual Dennis Kirk

Donnie Smith Bike Show

Photography by Keith McKenna 612-718-6910

ISOC REGIONAL AT ERX MARCH, 2013

G reetings again Wheels fans! Spring has sprung andGameON! TV is excited to be back with you again!This issue of Wheels of Thunder continues to do

what no other magazine does. It captures the excitement forrace fans with its great pictures, interesting stories and in-side information. You can only get here or at the track! Atthe same time, GameON! TV continues to grow& reach somany of you with our sports programming and we have ex-panded to the Dakota’s and western Minnesota via MidCoSports Network. As you know, GameON! loves sports, fromthe variety of professional, college & high school sports toall the outdoor events that dot our regional landscape.GameON’s partnership with Wheels of Thunder is strongand just like you, we also enjoy the most comprehensiverace magazine and website to be found! Wheels of Thun-der magazine gets it and gets you the latest information,amazing pictures and all those terrific stories to the mostpassionate motorsports fans in the country!

Looking ahead, there’s more special events and momentsahead for GameON! Each and every week GameON! comesto you in crystal clear full High Definition and available viaour new APP (it’s free for Apple & Android phones).GameON! TV is now offering a weekly PODCAST available@ our show website www.GameOnTvMN.com. It’s full ofbits and pieces of sports from the region and what’s ahead onour weekly TV show. GameON! still serves as the lead-in tothe award winning FOX NFL pre game show on FOX’sMY29 here in the Twin Cities during the NFL Season.

GameON! does what no other TV sports interview show (inthe region) does. We offer a diverse and entertaining halfhour of TV as we bring you the most visible and popularMinnesota sports figures. From the Vikings, the NBA Tim-berwolves, the NHL Wild, the Twins and we visit with theLacrosse Swarm. There’s NASCAR and we’re all over yourfavorite drivers now that snow racing is in full swing.GameON! has featured your favorites including X-Gamesstud racer Levi LaVallee, up and coming Kody Kamm andrecently, veteran racer now broadcaster Tony Schimmel.

This show is interactive so we’d love to hear from you!Please visit our Facebook site (friend us @ GameON onfacebook), our website @ www.gameontvmn.com and24/7on twitter #gameontvmn. And we’re always planningbigger and better shows at the best Irish Pubs in the world,Kierans, The Liffey, The Local and Cooper! You are alwayswelcome to visit our live tapings and each week we listguests and updates on the GameON! website as well as ourFacebook site. Get upclose and personal with us!!

We also partner with the one of the largest Vikings fan sitesin the world, www.PurplePride.org. I’ve said it before andI’m saying it again! Get off the couch and get yourGameON! Be a part of the exciting effort we're putting on!Here’s to the spring sports season and the thaw that’s arriv-ing! Hope to see you at an upcoming GameON! taping andyou can also catch me on 96.3FM KTWIN radio for Twinspost game reports during this 2013 American League sea-son!!!Keep your GameON!

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