Aboard his 2009 Phazer RTX®, 26-year-old rookie snowmobile racer Ryan Greening bested a solid field in the Sport 85 class at the annual USCC ADA 100 snowmobile event in Ada, Minn. on Saturday, Jan. 31. In only his fourth snowmobile race, the longtime motocrosser used his Phazer’s four-stroke power to best advantage, hitting up to 90 mph on the straights and outrunning 11 other sleds in the exciting 45-mile time trial. With the field evenly split between Yamaha Phazers and two-strokes from other manufacturers, the contest really underscored Yamaha’s commitment to building top-performing lightweight four-strokes – and winning.
Sport 85... Seldom have Midwest snowmobile racers witnessed such a large weather shift as that which occurred prior to the event. On Thursday before race day the temperature was a cruel 21 degrees below zero, but a warming trend pushed temperatures over 60 degrees higher by race-day, with the deep snow softening in relatively balmy 40-degree air. Luckily for Greening, he drew the No. 1 starting position for the afternoon Sport 85 race, and with one rider released every 30 seconds, he was guaranteed a clear course – at least for a short while. While Ryan may have started in front of the Sport 85 class, he had plenty of other sleds up ahead in the 600 class. With larger, more powerful engines, they would represent no small challenge to pass. But he found a way to do it anyway, zapping nearly a dozen of them in the process of setting quickest time in his own class.
In cross-country snowmobile races, sleds are flagged off individually and the results are tabulated based on elapsed time over the entire course. Greening knew from his three previous races that while he had the speed, he also had a tendency to ride too aggressively. That’s why for the Ada race, he committed to ride within his limits – instead of over them – and to bring himself and his Yamaha home in one piece. The strategy worked to perfection, and Ryan finished the race positive that he had done the best he could. But it wasn’t until the last Sport 85 sled came in that timing and scoring informed him of his first career snowmobile win. “This feels amazing,” Greening admitted with a grin afterwards. “Prior to this year I had almost no snowmobile experience so I took what I learned from motocross and applied it to snowmobiles, and I am filling in the blanks as I go. The Phazer has made it an easy transition.”
Yamaha snowmobile racing coordinator Jesse Strege likewise praised the Phazer’s durability in the difficult warm conditions the racers faced on Saturday. “This was a very taxing and demanding cross-country course with lots of rough ditches and river sections, and adding to the challenge was the 40-degree temperatures that softened the snow,” he explained. “Fortunately the Phazer is very reliable and solid. It’s at home in rough whooped-out terrain and the four-stroke engine didn’t have any problems with the warm temperatures, whereas the two-strokes suffer a little more when it’s warm. Also Yamaha’s electronic fuel injection helped it to run perfectly.”
Greening turned to snowmobiling after riding his amateur motocross career as high as he could take it – all the way to the Loretta Lynn Amateur Nationals in Hurricane Mills, Tenn. to be precise. But turning pro would cost a ton of money, and when the opportunity to race a Phazer surfaced through Brainerd, Minn. Yamaha dealer Brother’s Motorsports, the new-to-snowmobiling racer took advantage of it. “Cross-country snowmobile racing is a lot different,” he says. “It’s more of a
race against yourself, whereas in motocross you’ve got 20 or 25 guys pushing you to go faster. With snowmobile cross-country, it’s all in your head.”
With the USCC race season at the half way point, the Yamaha Phazer racers now control 4 of the top 5 high-point positions. Steve Emerson continues his lead on his Brother Motorsports Phazer RTX with his first, second and 2-4th place finishes so far. Moving up in points with a victory at the ADA 100 race this past weekend was Ryan Greening – he is now in 3rd place overall for the season. Rounding out the Phazer domination of the Sport 85 class is Tom Clement in 4th and Jayme Paquin in 5th place.
The racing skills of these top Sport 85 racers combined with the 4-stroke power and lightweight agility of the Yamaha Phazer continue to “put the hurt” on the 2-stroke competition. Way to go, guys!!
Sport 85 |
| 1 |
Ryan Greening - YAM |
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| 2 |
Brett Lessman - YAM |
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| 3 |
Timmy Kallock |
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| 4 |
Steve Emerson - YAM |
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| 5 |
Tyler Kemppainen |
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| 6 |
Chris Klie |
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| 7 |
Brad Cierzan |
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| 8 |
Jayme Paguin - YAM |
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| 9 |
Tom Clement - YAM |
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| 10 |
Justin Morken |
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Standings |
| 1 |
Steve Emerson - YAM |
212 |
| 2 |
Timmy Kallock |
192 |
| 3 |
Ryan Greening - YAM |
187 |
| 4 |
Tom Clement - YAM |
166 |
| 5 |
Jayme Paguin - YAM |
162 |
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Pro Open: Round 4 |
| 1 |
DJ Ekre |
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| 2 |
Corey Davidson |
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| 3 |
Dan Ebert |
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| 4 |
Gabe Bunke |
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| 5 |
Bryan Dyrdahl |
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| 6 |
Aaron Christensen |
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| 7 |
Ryan Simons |
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| 8 |
Chad Gueco - YAM |
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| 9 |
Cory Davis |
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| 10 |
Brandon Gerszewski |
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