Bone-chilling temps, impending storm didn’t stop die-hard racers, fans from enjoying weekend
This year’s Maritime Snowmobile Championship Races (MSCR) in Woodstock had a few hiccups, but that didn’t hamper the weekend’s success for organizers, racers, and fans.
The 2025 MSCR were held from Friday, Feb 14 to Sunday, Feb 16. The races were scheduled from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Friday and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday. However, Sunday’s program was adapted to fit the forecasted snowstorm, which called for 30 to 40 cm of snow starting Sunday and progressing into Monday.
“Some teams chose to leave early because of the storm forecast for Sunday, but we still managed to get the most of the schedule done,” said MSCR chair Kendall Leech
While this year’s spectator attendance was down due to weather conditions, MSCR was still able to sell 3212 tickets. The overall tally ended with 395 advance tickets sold (43 for Saturday, one for Sunday, and 351 weekend passes). ‘At the door’ ticket sales also increased, with 171 purchased on Friday, 699 on Saturday, and 75 on Sunday, with 606 weekend passes sold at the event.
There were 88 racers registered for the weekend, with many local racers participating for the first time.
Sydney Hianes is a racer for the New Star team, a program started by Gord MacDonald to bring local racers to the oval track at the Connell Park Raceway. This year was Haines’ first time driving and racing a snowmobile.
“It was a great experience that I look forward to continuing next year,” said Haines.
Due to some problems, Haines and her team had to tweak her sled on Sunday morning. Despite the weather and some sled malfunctions, Haines said the weekend went very well for her, seeing improvement with each race.
Haines says she is pleased with the track despite the mechanical rollercoaster ride.
“The track was in excellent condition, and the organizers did an amazing job with the event,” said Haines.
