Ice Racing 101

Ice Race in Harris, MN. Photo credit: jdando, mercurymarauder.net

It’s cold. Really cold. There’s four freakin’ feet of snow on the ground, and every time you walk outside, your snot freezes. If you go outside, you have to spend 30 minutes bundling up, and by the time you actually walk out the door, you’re sweating. Providing, of course, that you didn’t pass out from exhaustion trying to tie your boots. It leaves us wondering: is there anything good about winter??

Although winter is certainly not the most appealing, attractive, or even liked season for us motorheads, cursing the cold and snow because your motorcycle is in hibernation isn’t the only thing you can do in the winter.

Enter: ice racing.

Some of you may be more than well-versed in converting our favorite dirt rides into lean, mean ice racing machines, but for those of you who are unfamiliar with the sport, let us drop some knowledge on you. Racing in the winter isn’t just for snowmobiles on snow tracks. With a few hundred tire studs or a studded track, some cold weather and protective gear, a couple ice picks, and a helmet, you can be well on your way to never experiencing unpleasant riding withdrawals ever again.

Here at Dennis Kirk, you know we are all things powersports, and ice racing is no exception. We carry the studs, screws, helmets, gloves, carbides, tech vests, elbow and shin guards, and just about anything else you might need to make your ice racing debut. If you prefer to race on a machine with a track instead of tires, we carry what you need to ice race your snowmobile too.

If you’re looking for a place to watch or try ice racing, check out local and state clubs or associations. For our fellow Minnesotans, we have the Minnesota Ice Racing Organization, the Stud Club. Or for our neighbors in Wisconsin, there is the Central Wisconsin Ice Racing Association. Around here, you only have to drive a few miles to see a lake with a track on it in the wintertime, but other events are held at indoor rinks. Winter inevitably comes around every year and stays for at least a few months whether we like it or not, so we might as well make the best of it, right?