SAULT STE. MARIE, MI-- After the grueling nine hours spinning around the oval track, there is a new king of snowmobile racing in North America. In the closest finish in the 54-year history of the I-500, Joey Burch led the #19 sled from Tommie Bauer Racing to a .0001-second victory over Ross Erdman, who was racing the #29 for D.L. Racing.
With a couple laps left, the yellow caution flag was waved on the track. Burch had lost his ability to steer and asked the pit if he could get fresh skis. Without losing position, the team got Burch new skis on the Polaris he was riding, setting him up for a finish for the ages.
Out of the pit, Burch was able to pass the Cadarette Collision Racing #21 sled, putting him into a battle down the stretch with Ross Erdman’s #29 sled from D.L. Racing.
“We were neck-and-neck down the front stretch and he bumped into me a couple of times and thought I was going to hit the inside bank, but I was going to go for it no matter what and luckily it paid out,” said Burch.
Burch narrowly edged out the #29 sled by .0001, claiming victory for Tommie Bauer Racing, exactly 17 years after his father, Joe Burch II, passed away from a heart attack while racing on the same track in 2006.
You can see the full replay from the epic finish from FloRacing, here.
The green flag was waved at 10 a.m. as sledders embarked for 500 miles of riding around the one-mile ice oval. This was the 54th running of the International 500 Snowmobile Race, with sleds reaching speeds of 100 mph-plus. The race is considered to be the most grueling - and prestigious - snowmobile race in the world.
After days of frigid below-zero temperatures, fans came out in droves to watch the race with temperatures in the low 20s and scattered snow showers throughout the day.
RELATED: $2M grant will renovate U.P. track, home of I-500 race, for year-round use
Thirty-seven race teams from around the world participated in the event, with each team featuring multiple riders throughout the duration of the race, which typically runs seven to 10 hours.
Troy DeWald and the #21 sled from Cadarette Collision Racing team, who was I-500 pole award winner, finished in third place. The #8 sled from Kolbus Racing finished in fourth and the #57 sled from Mickey’s Sled Racing came in fifth place.
Click here to see full results for the I-500.
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