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| Art
Bilous of Yorkton sits abroad his pride and joy, a 1984
Ski-Doo Formula of racer Jacques Villeneuve. Centre: a
1969 Scorpion Mark 128occ. Right: 1965 Ski-Doo Olympic
247cc. |
OLD
SLED ZONE
Saving
racing history
By Brian Coombs
Building a vintage snowmobile racer museum was not only
a way to preserve the history of this thrill-a-second
sport for Art Bilous of Yorkton Distributors in Yorkton,
Saskatchewan, but it was also a way for him to express
his love for the sport.
“For every dollar I’ve spent over the past 20
years, I know that I’ve been repaid 10 to 20 times
over,” said Bilous. “I’ve had the opportunity
to work with people that I’ll never forget.”
Bilous has snowmobiled for nearly all of his life but
it was during his involvement in the creation of the Saskatchewan
Trail System that the seed was planted for a vintage racer
museum.
But starting out on this project was not an easy matter.
“It took me two years to prove my credibility,”
said Bilous. “Some of those guys would not even sell
me a washer.”
But it was perseverance and a good name in the snowmobiling
community that enabled Bilous to purchase his first vintage
racer some two years ago.
From this humble start, Bilous has collected some 15 sleds,
which include a 1979 Ski-Doo Super Mod with a 340cc Rotax
Aaen Performance Super Stock Engine which was once raced
by Bobby Donahue, a well-respected racer.
There were only two of these sleds ever produced, with
Bilous owning the only surviving one.
The machine that pleases Bilous the most however, is a
1984 Ski-Doo Formula, which carries the famous number
96 of racer Jacques Villeneuve. “I’ve said before
that I really respect Jacques Villeneuve. He’s been
racing since he was 17 and I guess he’s 48 now.”
Contacted
just before the start of the racing season, Villeneuve
said that he was surprised that someone actually found
one of his old sleds.
He also talked about why he chose the number 96. “No
matter which way it is sitting, it is always 96.”
And it is because there is a connection between real
racers and their machines that makes Bilous want to
share his collection with the rest of the province,
if not with the world.
He has constructed his museum outside of Yorkton, just
one kilometre off of the Trans-Canadian Snowmobile Trail.
“Just about everyone in Saskatchewan knows where
to find us,” said Bilous.
In the future, Bilous hopes to increase the museum’s
collection to 40 or 50 sleds in an effort to not only
share his love of the sport and the machines, but for
another reason as well. “For one thing, it’s
probably cheaper than seeing a psychiatrist.”
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