Earlier in the season, I posted a ride story with Willie Ewing who is going to attempt logging over 1,908 miles, on a single snowmobile, with a single rider, in a 24 hour time period. Ewing’s world record attempt is a fundraising effort with 100% of the proceeds going towards providing the opportunity for kids to attend a life-changing bible camp no matter their financial ability. A large team of volunteers and sponsors are making this possible including professionals in the snowmobile industry (Pro Racers, Engineers, Technicians, Computer Technicians and Clubs)
Willie is an Arctic Cat enthusiast at heart, and I spent a day at his Shock Shop recently installing a 98 Rewind Wrap on both his 2022 and 2021 Arctic Cat Thundercats dubbed, “ThunderOne” and “ThunderTwo” respectively.
Weather and Conditions permitting, Willie will attempt his record next week in Grand Marais, MN on an 11-mile lake course.
I arrived at Willie’s Shock Shop (He rebuilds shocks if you are looking for that type of service) in Becker, MN to find two prepped Thundercats. (L-R) 2022 Thundercat with ATAC and EPS (ThunderOne) and 2021 Thundercat (ThunderTwo)The goal for me was to apply a 98 Rewind Wrap kit to both Thundercats which played off the retro Thundercat theme, but incorporated both reference names. (ThunderOne and ThunderTwo)It was fun to have Willie in the shop and a nice chance to have him talk about the work he’s put into these two Thundercats.Willie’s goal is to start the record attempt around Noon, so he has some daylight to start and finish the world record attempt. With 100mph avg speeds, it was important to Willie to light up the course during his night stretch, so he added two Rigid Industries LED lights. Adding the best protection from the elements (Wind/Cold/Snow) was one of the big focuses to reduce fatigue over a 24hr riding period. Willie found the RoxSpeedFX ASG Gauntlet was the best to protect his hands and forearms. The All Season Gauntlets work seamlessly with Rox Flex-Tec plastic backbones and billet mounts. They install easily and the large interior area allows easy access to controls. I snapped a candid photo of Willie sitting on ThunderTwo as he explained all the countless hours of testing he’s done alone on finding the best windshield.Willie shared a photo on 1day4Kids Facebook page showing all the different windshield variations he purchased and tested to find the perfect height to protect him. Willie chose the tall windshield with some modifications to venting and additional protection.The concept here is one much like those used on UTV windshields. The venting system Willie created helps minimize snow swirl.It’s not sexy, but it is extremely effective…Willie utilized a clip-on, multi-adjustable wind deflector from the motorcycle industry to help eliminate additional wind hitting his helmet. He claims it works incredibly well and eliminates helmet bolstering during high speeds. One more way to reduce fatigue on his head and neck. Another look at the clip-on wind deflector. A pretty ingenious solution for those of you looking for more wind protection. These are available from various sources from $50-70 each.Much like a cross-country race, every second counts in a 24hr mileage attempt. Willie spent plenty of time crafting this quick-fill neck on fuel tank. Willie said crafting this quick-fill neck was an extreme act of measuring many times before cutting. The execution was flawless though. Willie called in a few favors from some aviation engineering friends who helped supply a special epoxy from the aircraft industry to bond and seal the tank neck.I don’t remember the exact specs, but this filler neck setup can drain the 5 gallon jug in several seconds.Venting was added to both chaincase and clutch sides to assist in cooling these components when running 100mph for 24hrs.Communication for the World Record attempt are incredibly detailed. The fine products from Rugged Radios help keep Willie connected to the crew.The final details not shown in these photos were for Willie to reinstall the seat backrests created to help his lower back under acceleration, and the attennas for the Rugged Radios. Good Luck Willie and Crew! Follow them 1day4kids.com.
