City to host major snowmobile race this winter

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August 31, 2010

By JOE LoTEMPLIO Staff Writer The Press Republican Tue Aug 31, 2010, 03:05 PM EDT

PLATTSBURGH — The City of Plattsburgh will host a major snowmobile race this winter that is expected to bring in thousands of visitors.

"This will be a very positive event for the city and the area, and our restaurants and hotels will do well, and we should attract a lot of visitors that hopefully will come back to the area," Mayor Donald Kasprzak said Tuesday.

East Coast Snocross and Airborne Speedway will stage the snowmobile race at the Crete Memorial Civic Center on Jan. 8 and 9, 2011.

A course, featuring a twisting, turning track with large jumps, will be laid out on a large tract next to the Crete Center parking lot.

More than 300 top-flight racers from across the country are expected to take part in the two-day event as part of the East Coast Snocross series.

"We are the largest regional race series in the country," Shawn Longbook, director of operations for East Coast Snocross, said at a news conference Tuesday.

The race is shifting to Plattsburgh after several years of operating in Malone. Promoters felt that a Plattsburgh venue would attract more visitors.

The race was originally planned for Airborne Speedway, but Kasprzak convinced Airborne Promoter Mike Perrotte, who is working with East Coast Snocross, to check out the Crete site.

"The mayor pointed out the positive aspects of the Crete, and we think this event here will be a big boon to the area," Perrotte said.

Kasprzak said the Crete's location right off Interstate 87 will make it easier for visitors to attend.

"We hope that having the event near the road that people will drive by and see it and that will attract people as well."

The promoters will pay the standard rate of $1,500 per day to use the Crete facility. The city will provide in-kind services from Public Works, Municipal Lighting, Police and Emergency Services.

"I don't look at this event in terms of whether the city itself will make money; I look at it as being a great event for the area and all of the people in the hospitality industry," Kasprzak said.

In case the weather does not cooperate, organizers will have the ability to truck in snow or make it using water from nearby Lake Champlain.

"One way or another, we will have snow," the mayor said.

Vendors will be on hand inside the Crete building, selling food and drinks and racing merchandise.

The event will also feature the Outer Limits Snowmobile Freestyle Tour, presented by Rave-X and Mission Trailers, which includes skilled freestyle riders launching their sleds off steel ramps, executing big-air stunts, including back flips.