Latest News
Thursday, March 4, 2004 - Post Trail Letter from John:
The 1st JP Invitational was completed by John Evingson and Pierre Ostor February 24th at 6:30p.m. in Grand Marais, MN. The 54 hour time period that passed from the start to finish began with 35 degrees, light snow and soft trail in Duluth’s Ordean High School Parking lot. Leaving at 10:45 am Sunday February 22 the duo paced each other over the next 155 miles to finish within 25 minutes of each other.
The weather stayed mild with cloud cover providing a soft trail for the second day. Pushing thru the Finland Hills the trail passed slowly. The second night brought temperatures closer to 20 degrees and by mid morning clouds gave way to sunny skies. Temps near 35 degrees made for t-shirt riding weather and the afternoon brought cooling temps and a firmer trail for a great Downhill run to the finish in Grand Marais.
The trail crossed endless creeks, rivers and gullies. The wide trail always provided room to stop and move over for passing or approaching snowmobilers. This made for non-evasive interaction between the two user groups and provided some confidence in sharing the trail.
The trip provided promise for a great event next year. Late February provides longer day light and a better chance for a firm trail. We tend to favor a self-supported race with every racer providing his own water. We would allow one drop bag at the half way point.
Happy Trails
John Evingson
Sunday, February 29, 2004 - Another Message from Pierre:
"The format changed during the event. We had two slow going days and one good one finishing in Grand Marais instead of Polar Lake. Great finish, five miles down really fast. We will limit the event to 250 K to increase our chances of getting a permit. We got a few middle fingers pointed at us during the trip, but we also found plenty of curious snowmobilers. Also, a shorter distance might increase the number of participants. Setting up anything longer will seriously limit our selection of the entrants because the race has to start on a Monday and finish on a Friday.
See you soon
Pierre"
Monday, January 26, 2004 - We have rules! Check them out under the rules tab.
Thursday, January 22, 2004 - And then there were four. We welcome Matthew Evingson to the roster!
Wednesday, January 21, 2004 - North Shore State Trail info: Local snow depth is 10-24". Groomed miles: 73.0. Conditions: good. Trail base: 4-8". The entire trail is being groomed. The entire trail will be groomed again on both Friday & Saturday night. Trail conditions will vary and please use caution.
Tuesday, January 13, 2004 - Message from Pierre.
"The race start will be February 23rd. We don't have enough snow yet. The trail is wide and groomed twice a week. I rode some sections of it this last weekend for the first time. It's a beautiful trail and I think it will be a challenging event. Better be ready for this one. There is no lodges to warm up or to spend the night except if you are ready to add 20 more miles to go down to the lake shore.
Pierre"