CARIBOU, Maine — A new event celebrating The County’s snowmobiling culture began only last year, but organizers are already expanding the festivities and anticipating huge crowds.
Last March, the first-ever SnowBowl attracted at least 8,000 people to Caribou for a weekend of races, stunt shows, rides and tours, sled parades and groomer rodeos. The festival helped jumpstart a revitalization of Spud Speedway, now entering its 60th year, and boosted Aroostook’s trail system, a popular destination for out-of-state riders.
This year, Spud Speedway co-owners Troy Haney and Jim Gamage have expanded the SnowBowl from four days to five and will include venues outside Caribou to better promote recreation throughout the region.
New events will include a performance by Las Vegas magician Kent Axell on Friday, March 1, at Caribou Performing Arts Center at 7 p.m. and a vintage snowmobile parade and race circuit at Spud Speedway on Sunday, March 3.
The SnowBowl has also partnered with organizers of the Can Am Crown International Sled Dog Races in Fort Kent to promote both events and area snowmobile trails.
“We want to be inclusive and bring the whole County into the SnowBowl, not just Spud Speedway,” Gamage said. “It’s a win-win for everyone.”
Gamage said the exact attendance numbers won’t be known until after the events, but he has received word that several Caribou hotels are sold out for the SnowBowl.
“One business group plans to bring 90 people. They’ve booked 50 hotel rooms in Caribou,” Gamage said. “They brought 30 people last year and had so much fun that they’re making it an annual business trip.”
Haney, who has owned Spud Speedway since 2009, thought about selling the venue before starting the event. Once he partnered with Gamage for the SnowBowl, the new friends saw more interest in Caribou’s historic speedway.
Gamage and Haney are now co-owners of the speedway. The SnowBowl is the first of 11 planned events this year, including the second annual DustBowl in September and the new MudBowl and BikeBowl events to be held in June and August, respectively.
Fans can expect last year’s SnowBowl favorites to return to Spud Speedway, including a RaveX stunt show Saturday, March 2, at 4 p.m. and Northeast SnoCross snowmobile racing March 2 and 3, starting at 10 a.m. Thirty-five food vendors will be set up throughout the weekend.
The Brian’s Ride snowmobile tour starts at Spud Speedway at 10 a.m. March 1 and will make stops at the former Loring Air Force Base arch hangar, Gateway Snowmobile Club in Van Buren and throughout the St. John Valley.
Though lower-than-normal snowfall might present challenges for the Can Am races, all SnowBowl events will take place as scheduled, Gamage said.
“We were a little concerned because of rain and warmer weather recently, but we’ll be bringing in some snow for the race tracks [at Spud Speedway],” Gamage said. “We won’t know exactly how many inches we’ll need until we get out there.”
Promoting Aroostook County’s 2,300-mile snowmobile trail system has become a crucial part of the ever growing SnowBowl, Gary Marquis, superintendent of Caribou Parks & Recreation, said.
Marquis oversees the Aroostook County Trail Report, which updates snowmobilers on current trail conditions. He said that the SnowBowl has given snowmobile enthusiasts more reasons to visit the region.
“The SnowBowl provides what people have been looking for when it comes to activities around snowmobiling,” Marquis said. “The added activities this year are certainly a plus.”Tickets and registration information for all SnowBowl events can be found on Spud Speedway’s website.
This story was updated to remove a reference to a postponed event at BigRock ski area.
