BY STAFF REPORT
How does a longtime Southern California 44-year-old end up not only getting into restoring snowmobiles but building one of the most eye-catching units in the country?
Those were just the opening questions after Adam Paulson of sunny Long Beach claimed the top prize at the Big East Classic vintage snowmobile show with his stunning 1971 Skiroule RTX 800.
From the raised jugs of the 793cc Hirth free air engine poking out of the hood to the triple exhaust pipes exiting near the right footwell and the brilliant green and gray paint job, Paulson’s Skiroule grabbed the professional judges’ attention and didn’t let go, despite very strong competition.
In fact, the same exact sled also won the top prize at the Vintage Snowmobile Club Of America’s National Show
in June.
The sled was cool. The story behind it was even cooler.
The Big East Classic
The Big East Classic attracted nearly 120 snowmobiles at the Big East Powersports Show in Syracuse, New York, on a sunny first Saturday in October.
The front row of the classy display in the broad parking lot was mostly painted orange, as the “featured sled” brand this year was Moto-Ski. They came out in droves. In fact, the 48 Moto-Skis on display were likely the largest gathering of sleds from that Quebec-based brand in decades.
There was a broad selection of other sleds on display too, from the early 1960s to the late 1990s. Brands we recall (and we’re sure there were more) seeing on display included Sno*Jet, Rupp, Arctic Cat, Polaris, Ski-Doo, Larven, Skiroule, John Deere, Speedway, Alouette, Chapparal, Sno Clipper, Skidaddler, Yamaha, Mercury and Scorpion.
One star attraction was the appearances by eastern racing legends Ron Hall and Jim Fonger – each showcasing re-creations of famous race sleds that were built by others. The 1973 Arctic Cat EXT that Hall brought harkened back to his days winning Adirondack Cups for Abold Racing. The two Sno*Jets with Fonger included his fabulous Thunder Chicken designs – with large dancing chickens emblazoned on the hood.
“That was the highlight for me – having both Jim Fonger and Ron Hall there,” said Big East Classic organizer Ron Fesko. “I believe it was the first time either of them showed those sleds at a show.”
Two oddballs that caught a lot of attention were a Lenko Larven and a 1964 Arctic Cat 1000. The Larven was an odd contraption that the rider straddled and rode while wearing cross-country skis. The Cat 1000, meanwhile, was more or less a cross between an old tractor and what we now call a side-by-side or UTV.
Fesko, Eric Melfi, Tim Scouten and the rest of the organizers were greeted with beautiful weather for the Big East Classic for the fifth year in a row, and the classic iron absolutely sparkled in the sun.
The Flawless RTX
Speaking with a couple of the vintage class judges while scores were being tallied, we were told, “There’s almost too much good stuff – we’re really having to work hard to find flaws of any sort just to separate the ones at the top.”
The one at the very top – Paulson’s Skiroule RTX 800 – didn’t seem to have any flaws at all. It was better than showroom-perfect sitting in front of the Big East Powersports Show site.
Paulson’s California address may throw some collectors off the scent, but his interest in collecting and restoring snowmobiles dates back to his youth in Waterville, New York.
“I got into vintage sleds as a kid pretty big time,” said Paulson. “It started before I was a teen, when I was 10 or 11 years old. I was into buying them and fixing them and selling them. My dad had an automotive repair shop, and that’s where I’d work on them sometimes.”
By his late teens, though, he said vintage sleds faded into the background and cars became his passion. In 2008, his career led him to California, where he currently works as an engineer in the automotive industry.
His interest in old sleds returned “about the time of the pandemic, when I started doing some research on them again and saw how big the community was.”
This particular project started with a fascination with the 793cc triple-cylinder engine, which led to models that carried it – first an Arctic Cat King Cat he restored and then to the Skiroule RTX 800.
For a little over two years, he has been working on the project with his father whenever he returns to Central New York to visit his parents. His father, Kenneth Paulson, helped chase down some parts and such, Alan Paulson said, but the only time work was done on the machine was when the two Paulsons were together.
Combined, the father-and-son duo probably has close to 200 hours invested in the project, he said.
And what were the hardest parts to find?
“Honestly, it was all hard,” he said with a grin. “I mean, I would say the pipes were probably the hardest, and we really honestly lucked out with that. Also the clutches – the clutches on this are the original style Dayco clutches. It actually has a flat-sided belt on one side. I think Chaparal is the only other company that did that. So it’s pretty hard to find those parts.”
The biggest reward from restoring vintage sleds, according to the soft-spoken Paulson, is in the research that goes along with it.
“For me, the best part is just learning about the history of the machines and how they came about and why certain engines were picked or why they did certain engineering aspects,” Paulson said. “Those are the things that I really like to discover. And we were actually lucky enough to meet the founder of the [Skiroule] company earlier this year at the nationals, Rejean Houle, and ask him some questions about it.”
Big East
Classic Results
Antique 1966 & Older, Restored:
1. Bob Osborn, 1964 Moto-Ski Tin Cab
Antique 1966 & Older, Unrestored:
1. Jeff Mowers, 1966 AMF Ski-daddler; 2. Jeff Mowers, 1966 AMF Sno Clipper.
Vintage 1967-1973, Restored:
1. Jim Blunden, 1973 Chapparal SS III; 2. Jim Blunden, 1973 Chapparal Firebird; 3. Glen Ford, 1971 Moto-Ski Capri.
Vintage 1967-1973, Unrestored:
1. Rick Thomas, 1973 Skiroule RT 340; 2. Roger Rice, 1971 Arctic Cat EXT; 3. Dean Abbey, 1968 Polaris Colt.
Vintage 1974-1985, Restored:
1. Matt Wagner, 1978 Polaris TX-L 340; 2. Matt Wagner, 1978 Polaris TX 340; 3. Gus Vivenzio, 1981 Ski-Doo Blizzard MX 5500 MX.
Vintage 1974-1985, Unrestored:
1. Buffy Moses, 1981 Arctic Cat Pantera; 2. Mark Money, 1975 Arctic Cat Panther VIP; 3. Tom Strate, 1981 Polaris TX-C.
All Free Air Trail Sleds, Restored:
1. Glen Ford, 1973 Moto-Ski S; 2. Bob & Sue Hunt, 1974 Moto-Ski TS 400; 3. Kevin Forney, 1974 Ski-Doo TNT.
Factory Built Race Sled, Restored:
1. Adam Paulson, 1971 Skiroule RTX 800; 2. Jim Fonger, 1972 Sno*Jet; 3. Ron Hall, 1973 Arctic Cat EXT.
Factory Built Race Sled, Unrestored:
1. Mark Money, 1970 Arctic Cat Panther EXT; 2. Bob Osborn, 1973 Moto-Ski SR; 3. Jed Diligent, 1970 Moto-Ski 438 SM.
Mini Sleds, Vintage:
1. Bob & Sue Hunt, Moto-Ski Mini Snow; 2. Genevieve Symka, 1979 Arctic Cat Kitty Cat; 3. Mark Money, 1973 Arctic Cat Kitty Cat.
Combo With Cutter:
1. Ron Kelly, 1971 Skiroule 5400.
Custom Sleds:
1. Zeke Brown, 1974 Arctic Cat Sno Pro Clone; 2. Mike Pelow, 1977 Polaris RXL; 3. Mike Pelow, 1979 Polaris RXL.
Most Unique Sleds:
1. Han Schmid, 1982 Lenko Larven; 2. Rick Thomas, 1981 John Deere Trailfire; 3. Jeff Martinez, 1964 Arctic
Cat 1000.
Classic, 1986-2000:
1. Steven Moses, 1995 Polaris Indy Storm; 2. Buffy Moses, 1996 Polaris Indy XLT Special; 3. Emil Ahmed, 1995 Yamaha Ovation.
Featured Sled:
1. Glen Ford, 1971 Moto-Ski Grand Prix; 2. Jed Diligent, 1970 Moto-Ski SM 793; 3. Bob Osborn, 1964 Moto-Ski Tin Cab.
Oldest Sled: Bob Osborn, 1964 Tin Cab.
Best Display: Bob Osborn
Best Of Show: Adam Paulson, 1971 Skiroule RTX 800