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Must watch..Mike Trapp & Yamaha Win 1971 Eagle River World Championship

Getting back on track with Yamaha racing.....Tim Bender and Steve Houle going at it with their mod Phazers at Eagle River:

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Those were the glory days of Yamaha snowmobile racing.
 

Probably one of the best pictures that I've been able to dig up with Tim Bender racing his unbeatable mod VMax 540 at Eagle River...

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What is Tim Bender doing these days? Just enjoying retirement?

Tim Bender retire? I think the lad has Klotz running through his veins. He's been the team manager for quite a few years for one of the most competitive Polaris teams (Hentges Racing) on the National Sno Cross series. Kody Kamm has been their top dog (he sat out last season due to an injury).

It's good to see that he's still applying his talents and competitive spirit to the sport. He probably will forget more than most of us will ever know about sleds.

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Speaking of Tim Bender....another pic that I dug up of his FIII Terminator Exciter back in 1988. He won the FIII class that year at Eagle River and also the World Series with that sled. His little mod 570 motor was able to take on the mod Indy 650's and Wildcat 650's that raced in that class.

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Speaking of Tim Bender....another pic that I dug up of his FIII Terminator Exciter back in 1988. He won the FIII class that year at Eagle River and also the World Series with that sled. His little mod 570 motor was able to take on the mod Indy 650's and Wildcat 650's that raced in that class.

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Love the Red/White/Black colour packages.
Yamaha should do a special edition Bender colour package someday, but they probably won't given he's heading a competitor team.
 
What is Tim Bender doing these days? Just enjoying retirement?

I saw Him at camping with his unbelievable motor home a few years back. He told me he had been doing guided snowmobile tours out west, I wanna say Jackson Hole, Wyoming?


I know if I were retired that would be an awsome gig!
 
I believe he’s probably out there after the race season is over. I can’t see him doing tours during the race season.
 
Probably the best racing sled that Yamaha ever made...1974 SRX 440 Sno Pro...

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And the sexiest racing sled they ever made.....1978 SSR 440

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I remember that day well, as I was a senior in high school. I was in the locker room getting ready to play a varsity basketball game when a teammate came in and told me that Yamaha had just won Eagle River. He knew I would be excited as we both had 1968 Yamaha SL351. That was a great sled for its time with the oil injection. Funny how Yamaha went from one of the lightest sleds to the heaviest. Great Video.
 
Good point Farmer 73. I'm with you and still think that there is a future for the strut front suspension with no A-arms or trailing arms in the way in deep snow. Just a simple and clean design. Keep it simple and get the job done.

It's hard to believe that Ski Doo still makes a sled with the front strut suspension, their Tundra model...

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Check out this old school Phazer carving through the deep stuff...

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With some extra time on my hands with everything that's been going on in this world I've been working on bringing an old school Phazer up to todays riding standards as a spring/summer project. There's a lot of untapped potential in that platform I feel.

We'll see how it turns out. :dunno: :hide: :sled1:

Sorry to get so off track on this thread, but I guess we're talking about the old Yamaha days right?
How about some more pics of this project Phazer and your ideas.....?
 


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