The Eastern Snowmobile Racing Hall of Fame Inductee Ceremony
The Eastern Snowmobile Racing Hall of Fame is a non-profit organization originated by Paul T. Crane, who along with its board members on May 20th of 2017 at Crane’s Snowmobile Museum, began to recognize our first generation eastern snowmobile racers. Those original “Warriors of Winter,” the ones who started it all.
The Eastern Snowmobile Racing Hall of Fame with Bruce Dunham’s 1972 Ski-doo Blizzard race sled.
The first chapter of the history of snowmobile racing was written right here in Lancaster, New Hampshire, the town that introduced the revolutionary Bombardier Ski-doo to America in December of 1959.
It was here, that the very first organized race was held in February of 1962! The Lancaster Grand Prix, with it’s famous Kilkenny Cup, was considered the biggest, most prestigious in eastern racing during the golden era! A more fitting town could not be considered for an eastern snowmobile hall of fame than Lancaster, nor a better place within which to house it than Paul T. Crane’s museum.
The 2026 Inductee Ceremony is Saturday, September 12th at 1 pm at the Museum in an outside ceremony. Please join us to honor these racing legends.
2026 inductees include:
Joe Clark
Randy LaVallee
Dick Doyle
Bruce Hawes
Morley Lyford Smith
Joe Clarke
Eastern Snowmobile Racing Hall of Fame 2026 Inductee
During Joe’s 29-year snowmobile racing career, solely as a pure independent racer, Joe competed in numerous types of races, spanning across Canada and the United States and achieved many notable wins. He designed, built and funded his own snowmobiles, transported them to every race personally and then drove his own snowmobiles, occasionally driving a snowmobile for another driver/team when needed.
He started off racing in local ice oval races where his parents would drop off him and his 1974 Arctic Cat el Tigre’ in the family station wagon as he was too young to have a driver’s license. He continued his consistent competitiveness in many other classes and forms of snowmobiles racing during his career. He was a consistent competitor in the ice oval and grass drag modified classes. His career highlights are as follows.
1982 Participated in the Waldhelm Saskatchewan World Series 1983 Participated in the very first Grand Prix Valcourt and most years after 1985 World Series finished second in MOD 2 and first in MOD 3 1988 Won 5 of 6 classes at Walton NY State Championship 1988 Overall High Point Champion in ESRA formula 1, Formula 2 and Formula OPEN 1988 participated in the Eagle Rive World Championship Derby in Formula2 1990 Won Two first place wins and Sportsman of the Weekend in Frankfort, NH Grass Drags 1990 Finished in the top five in the Formula 1 Sport Series and finished tenth in overall points in Sport Series 1995 Third place overall top points in Champ 440 2002 Four First place finishes at Eganville Ontario in Vintage 440 and 650 Numerous Grass Drag wins throughout Canada and the United States
Towards the end of his snowmobile racing career Joe’s passion continued into collecting and preserving snowmobiles which he continues to display in numerous vintage snowmobile shows across Canada and the United States throughout the year, maintaining a continued involvement in the sport and hobby. He was known for his competitiveness, friendly personality and helping others on and off the racetrack. During his racing career he fostered many strong relationships, especially with people he looked up to and was mentored by such as the Wahl Brother, Team Abold, Herb Yancey and Lucien L’amoureux.
Joe was supported by his family, especially his wife Sheila, throughout his racing career.
Randall “Randy” Lavallee
Eastern Snowmobile Racing Hall of Fame 2026 Inductee
Randy Lavallee began his snowmobile racing career in 1968. Racing in multiple “backyard races” scattered across New England, his talent stood out. In 1970, Randy joined the USSA Eastern Division with his first race at the historic Lancaster fairgrounds where he took part in the 340 Modified Cross Country event. From this first USSA race he gained valuable experience which he would apply throughout successful racing career.
Randy’s USSA racing spanned 8 years from 1970-1978. His early success caught the eye of Glen Dickinson, the Ski-Doo dealer in Granville, MA. Glen gladly provided sponsorship and sleds for Randy’s early years of racing.
During this time competing in the USSA, he earned 5 Gold Bibs (#24, #28, #55, #64, #70) multiple World Series Invitations (in both stock and modified classes) along with winning 4 State championships.
At the time when USSA event participation was at an all-time high (USSA membership exceeding 5000 active members), the stock 340 & 400 classes often fielded as many as 80 to 90 competitors per class. Reaching the final was no easy feat.
IN 1972 he won the “Tug Hill Championship” in Redfield, NY for earning top combined stock points with 1 place in the 340 stock class (against 89 participants) along with placing in the top 3 in the 400 stock class, Later that year, Randy won 15 place at Lewiston, ME in the 400 stock class aboard his Ski Doo F/A against the Cat new 4 EXT Arctic Cats and 400 Rupp’s of the day.
In 1973, he repeated at Lewiston, ME earning the “open Cup: by winning 1s* place in both the 340 stock and 400 stock classes. Accumulating the most points across all stock competitors during the event, he was awarded the “Sim’s Sportsman Award”. Later that year at the Massachusetts State Championships held in Northampton, MA, he won the “Challenger Cup” for winning 1 place in the 340 Stock class and placing in the 400-stock final. Once again Randy earned the most points across all stock competitors for the weekend event. Randy continued his winning ways with 1* in Cobleskill, NY in the 400 Stock class. For his 1973 efforts, he was awarded the #55 Gold Bib for achieving 5″ in highest points for stock class racing.
With success comes disappointment. At the 1973 World Series held in Malone, NY, while leading the stock final with one lap to go, the big end bearing on Randy’s Ski Doo F/A 400 let go causing a DNF and his World Series Championship to slip away. The race gods are not always kind.
During the 1974 season, he continued winning and placing in races in which he attended, earning both Gold Bib and World Series Invitation every year thereafter.
In 1975 he competed in two Sno Pro events in the Central Division against factory racers & equipment gaining considerable experience along the way. Upon returning east, at the next event held at Jackman, ME. Randy won 1st place in the 340-modified class on both Saturday and Sunday.
One of Randy’s most coveted achievements in his extraordinarily successful racing tenure was winning 1 place in the 440-stock class aboard his Mercury Sno-Twister for the 1976 New York State Championship held in Boonville, NY. As a top USSA Driver he has won or placed in over 150 events.
Dick Doyle
Eastern Snowmobile Racing Hall of Fame 2026 Inductee
Dick began his snowmobile racing career on a 1969 Ski-Doo 669 TNT that he purchased from Timberland Machine in Lancaster, New Hampshire. In late 1969, Dick was selected to drive the big horsepower Arctic Cats as part of Jack Lynn’s Aerospace/Analube Synthetic oil Racing team of Berlin, CT. This was largely based on Dick’s many wins in NHRA A/GAS and AA/Fuel Dragster classes. Wearing Bib#1426 for 1970, he entered the two biggest races in Southern New England. At the USSA Eastern State Championship in West Springfield, MA., he finished 1st in MODIFIED-IV. At the USSA Massachusetts State Championship Race in Greenfield, MA., Dick finished 3rd in MODIFIED-V.
For 1971, Dick was selected to pilot one of the two 800cc four-cylinder Kawasaki powered King Kats for Aerospace. Due to the limited use of his right arm and hand, he engineered a system that moved the throttle to the left side facing forward so that he could squeeze it back with his fingers while pulling the handlebar inward to turn left while pushing the right side of the bar forward with his right arm.
Once they had the Big Kat dialed in on nothing but hi-test pump gas (never alcohol) the results were amazing. Four 1st place and two 2nd place finishes in MODIFIED-V, including the Big USSA High Point MODIFIED Eastern Grand Prix race held in Worthington, MA., with an advertised purse of $10,000 prize money.
No other Arctic Cat Driver, factory or independent, in any of the racing divisions in the United States or Canada, had a better record in MODIFIED-V, Dick also won three STOCK-C Races and was invited to participate in the World Series at Boonville, NY, where he finished 5th in STOCK-C. For the 1971 USSA Eastern Division Race Season he finished fourth in total MODIFIED-V points with 54 and tenth in STOCK-C points with 28. Dick was named Connecticut Snowmobile “Driver of The Year” and awarded Gold Bib number 21 for 1972.
When Aerospace Racing disbanded after the 1971 season, Dick began racing Polaris in MODIFIED-IV and STOCK-C for Ray Machine out of Terryville, CT. With several wins and many top five finishes mostly in STOCK-C on a TX-335, he was awarded Gold Bib #58 for 1973.
In 1974, he traveled to Matamoras, PA., and won the Pike County Championship in MODIFIED-II. Due to a season ending injury, Dick decided to retire from snowmobile racing and focus on NHRA Drag Racing.
Bruce Hawes
Eastern Snowmobile Racing Hall of Fame 2026 Inductee
Bruce “Flying Mailman” Hawes started racing Ski-Doo in 1965 for Bunnell Sales and Service in Colebrook, New Hampshire and some independent race teams, Moto-Ski and Rockwell.
During his racing career Bruce raced in Maine, Vermont and New Hampshire. Balsams Cup NHTI Class C 3 place. Manchester jumping 49ft 9 inches and many other races. He raced just about every weekend. Hawes was a mail carrier in his hometown, hence why they called him the “Flying Mailman.” He won the Kilkenny Cup two years in a row.
In 1967, he raced at the Grand Prix held in Lancaster, NH at the Fair Grounds. He won 1st Place Class A with 32 points. Bruce won 2nd in Cross Country, 3d in Speed Obstacle and the next day 1st in Speed Race and 1st Jumping Event with 59 ft 10 inches. Bruce won the Kilkenny Cup.
In 1968, he won 1st place Class B with 43 points. 5″ place for Cross Country, 2°d place Speed Obstacles and 3d Place for Speed Run Finals. Again, he won the Kilkenny Cup.
In 1969, Bruce made a strong attempt at his 3° International Grand Prix Snowmobile Title aiming to claim permanent possession of the Kilkenny Cup. However, he fell short of achieving this goal.
Bruce’s Lancaster, New Hampshire wins put him in 3d place in the New England Snowmobile Associations points standings.
As time passes, many of the records, stories, and memories of this era of snowmobile racing have faded. At the time, races held at “Snowmobile City” brought together hundreds of competitors and spectators.
Morley Smith
Eastern Snowmobile Racing Hall of Fame 2026 Inductee
Morley Lyford Smith, born March 22, 1938, in Mineola, New York, grew up in Hicksville and later Muttontown on Long Island New York. In 1962, he graduated from Syracuse University with a Bachelor of Science in Industrial Design.
In 1968, Featherweight Corporation, a Montreal based firm, controlled by Bill Holtzman, hired Morely to design its Aloutte snowmobiles. When he began designing Alouette snowmobiles, he saw an opportunity to develop machines that were more user friendly, more functional, but over all more fun to ride. From the start, Morley’s design demonstrated his sleek and refined ascetics along with an understanding of the mechanical aspect of things and excelled at marrying that with a deep understanding of the user’s experience. From 1968-1974, he was the one responsible for designing all the snowmobiles made by Alouette apart from Big Al and the Villain. All Arlberg snowmobiles (1969-1970) and Starcraft snowmobiles (1970-1971), made by Alouette, were equally designed by Morley.
In 1972, Morely was given the task of designing an entirely new race sled for Alouette, the 1973 Super. The same year, Gilles Villeneuve was hired to race the Super That came in 3 versions, 340, 440 and 650. During the 1973 season, the Super chalked up many first finishes with Gilles as its driver. The prestigious World Championship at Eagle River Wisconsin in 1974 was won by Gilles on an Alouette Super. Together, Morley and Gilles worked on the design and development of what was to become the 1974 Alouette Twin Track, a revolutionary racing snowmobile that also came in 3 versions, 340,440 and 650. Today, the Alouette Twin Track, along with 1973 Alouette Super, remains some of the best looking snowmobile designs ever made.
In the mid 1980’s Transport Canada, conducted a study to consider the possibility of developing a snowmobile more suited to northern needs and northern terrain. As a result, Morley Smith was commissioned to design 3 types of snowmobiles. They became the Samak 428, a heavy-duty utility snowmobile, the Samak 220 lightweight floating snowmobile and the Samak twin track concept. Both the Samak 428 and Samak 220 were constructed and test driven by GSM Design.
