February 19, 2010
New Apex Sets World Record
A couple of weeks ago I got a call from an old acquaintance.
“I’m going to take a shot at the Guinness world record for the most miles in 24 hours on a snowmobile. Just wanted to let you know I’ll be riding a Yamaha Nytro“
That’s where it started. Matthew Weidinger is a friend of a friend who I had met a couple times in the past and had picked up a good vibe from him. After a couple more phone calls, and a chat with Peter (my boss) about what I was potentially getting myself into, I made the decision to offer Matt the ‘TY mystery sled’ to ride. Yep, the same 2011 red Apex EPS which was broken in by Supertrax and ridden by the first group of Sled Talkers back in early January.
Bracebridge Yamaha volunteered to prep the sled with some fresh carbides, studs and a set of low snow wheels. Dan at BBY also freshened up the chain-case oil, checked out all the fasteners and fluids then installed a pair of TRIC scratchers that we are currently testing for durability. The only 
mod was the addition of a second throttle lever for his left hand in case of cramping.
I loaded up my sled Wednesday morning and headed up to Big Win Island on Lake of Bays where I was met by Matt and h
is support crew. A local survey company had laid out an exacting 10.3 km oval course around the island. It was well staked with lots of reflectors. A start finish banner was erected in the middle of the front straight with a heated timing booth, 
generator and large construction light off to the side. The 2011 Apex was there, adorned with graphics depicting the different sponsors and Matthew in his new Klim suit (thanks Sue!) was calmly preparing for the longest ride of his life.
At precisely 3:00PM on Wednesday Matt fired up his sled and off he went. I hung out with the guys as he continued to lap in just under 5:00 minutes, until the fuel light came on. He slid to a stop and Stephen dumped in about 28 liters of gas and he was gone. I jumped on my Apex and started following him around lap 15, to discover he was really flying. I was pinning my Yamacharged sled and was not gaining on him. I was hitting over 160 down the snow drifted straights and cornering no lower than 140. The track was snowy enough not to afford consistent traction and it required a lot of attention. Scary pace… Matt was truly in for a grueling ride.
Fast forward about six hours, it’s dark, it’s cold and starting to snow Matt is still cr
anking sub 5 minute laps and taking on fuel every 13-14 rounds, the sled is running great. Johnny is serving us warm, oozing pitas on the ice, while the boys continue to log and video the run for the Guinness 
adjudicators. After another couple of hours I eyeballed the sled (again) during a pit stop, everything looks good, I decide to leave the team and go get some zzz’s. Fast forward another seven hours, daybreak, my cell phone didn’t ring last night, jump in the truck, fingers crosse
d. I arrive at the lake just as Matt is taking his first break, some dry fish, ibuprofen and energy drink. He has been running strong all night and his lap times are coming steadily down. He’s running under 4 minutes 30 seconds now. He’s a machine!
I visually checked the sled again, this time there’s a problem. The outside ski has
only one stud left on the carbide and the inside isn’t much better with only two of the four studs left. The next pit stop we changed the carbides in record time, track was a bit loose but the studs weren’t contacting anything and the new Apex has extroverts… away he went, and cranked his fasted lap 
yet @ 17 hours into the ride. Fast forward to 10:35, the current world record of 2372km set by Dustin Shoemaker of Illinois on an Attak was about to fall, Matt slid under the banner with four and a half hours left to widen the gap. Apparently, Shoemaker was spent/exhausted after his run and could barely lift his arms. Matt got off and looked fresh as a daisy. He took a short break and I pulled the body panels for the first time, adjusted the chain case, checked the oil and coolant and threw on a fresh belt, just because… off he went and cranked a 4:15, he was still going faster! Jump forward to 3:00PM.
Amidst family friends and local media, Matt’s solitary challenge came to an end. He not 
only broke the world record he annihilated it. He finished up approaching 3000km 24 hours. -Think about that for a moment.- He was averaging around 80+mph the whole time. The 2011 Apex required no maintenance or repairs outside of what I have mentioned. Matt gave kudos to the power steering, engine durability and suspension. Hugs, handshakes and a couple of tears. I am sincerely honored to have been a part of this.
What a great accomplishment for Matt and testimony to the QDR of our newest snowmobile. 23 hours wide open and not a single issue to be addressed aside from ripping the carbides off in the corners. Congratulations Matthew and congrats to our engineers, Nakano-san you built us one heck of a sled!
cheers cr
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What a great story Chris,only a Yamaha four-stroke could do that without breaking a sweat(or piston).Love to trade my mileage(120km so far this winter on frozen water)for matts mileage on that 2011 Apex.Great thing about living near frozen bodys of H2O is that you can get a few rides in a low-snow year(as long as the ice thickness is safe to support a snowmobile).Any truth to a post i was reading on TY that the Bravo will be sold in the U.S next season?With ski-doo releasing a 60hp four-stroke for 2011 it looks like the air-cooled two-stroke is on its last bag of oats(Glad Yamaha came up with the 80hp 500cc four-stroke motor,still ahead of competition).
February 19th, 2010 at 12:25 pmHi Chris,
Congratulations on the accomplishment. I heard that the guy who set the previous record on the Attak a few weeks ago was supposed to ride a Doo but it broke on the start line….
Anyways, will there be a consumer show this spring to see the sleds? The Blue XTX is growing on me, but want to see it in person. I can’t find anything on your site.
And a question for this week(I did give you a week off). Do you forsee any issues with Yamacharger compatibility on the 2011?
Hey Dane, The guy in the US was given a new Skidoo to attempt the record. I was surprised to hear he jumped on an older Attak (Warrior?) at the start and broke the old record with it, have not heard what happened to the sponsored Skidoo but I can guess. Also wonder if it was the new 800… anyway doesn’t matter his main purpose was much greater than snowmobiling as he was riding in ssupport of his ill daughter, hats off.
February 19th, 2010 at 4:59 pmYes there is a spring tour, I believe the dates are on our web-site and I plan to make a new Apex available to Gilles for Yamcharger fitment the end of March. I see know problem but he’s the expert.
cheers
cr
wow,what a story,i was smiling while i read it,looks like the new apex will be like all other yamaha’s,super reliable,if you think about it,its kind of a unproven sled but with 3000 km in a day,i’d say its good for the long haul,denis at ag nor was kind enough to invite me to test the new sled in our area on march the 10th if weather permits,iM defenatly going,i’m not in the market for a sled but my wife will be in a season or 2,you never know,dont forget about the driveshaft breaking question i asked you in the last post,many on ty are experiencing this,would be nice to know if the shaft were changed in 09-10 model year,thanks chris,great post as usual
pat
I’ll inquire about the shafts next week, not sure what if any changes…
February 19th, 2010 at 5:23 pmcheers
cr
oh my god.
I don’t know what to say. I’m in awe.
That’s completely insane. What an amazing accomplishment! Unreal.
Nice job writing that up too – I was on edge reading each line faster than the one before it!
I’m so blown away…
February 19th, 2010 at 11:14 pmI can only picture this event.
February 20th, 2010 at 10:55 amReally cool. Totally awesome.
Proud of all. My hat’s off.
And yes, I bow to Nakano-san.
Wonderful to be a part of
Yamaha engineered and inspired snowmobiles.
Chris, please contact me. We would love to help spread the word about this. Great job.
February 22nd, 2010 at 11:35 amI forwarded this story to everyone I know who is into sledding. What an accomplishment!
February 22nd, 2010 at 12:13 pmHEY BOYS MATT HERE THANKS FOR ALL THE SUPPORT, CHRIS WAS AWESOME AND THE TEAM WAS GREAT !!!!I TALKED TO DUSTIN ( THE GUY THAT BROKE IT A WEEK BEFORE ) AND HE SAID THAT SKI DOO WAS GOING TO GIVE HIM A FOUR STROKER BUT CLOSE TO THE ATTEMPT THEY TOLD HIM DUE TO FINANCIAL REASONS THEY WEREN’T GOING TO HELP HIM OUT WITH A SLED, GUESS THEY WERE SCARED IT WOULD BLOW UP
HE WAS THEN GOING TO USE A HIS OWN 08 600SDI BUT THAT BROKE DOWN SO HE WOUND UP USING THE 06 ATTACK ( DIDN’T SAY WHO’S IT WAS )BUT ANYWAY ALL THE BEST TO YAMAHA AND THE BOYS AND LIKE CHRIS SAID NAKANO SAN YOU BUILT US ONE HELL OF A SLED!!!! CHEERS
February 22nd, 2010 at 12:20 pmAmazing speed later on…did the surface not mogul up?
Hey Bob, it did get rougher on the straights but the corners got faster as he blew all the snow from the apron which formed a small berm, it was pretty grooved and sketchy but Matt was able to drive through it, he was ripping the carbides off in the corners!! cr
February 22nd, 2010 at 6:40 pmNice article in Bracebridge Examiner Newspaper…unfortunately the brand name and Bracebridge Yamaha support was left out…too bad..after all the effort..
Amazing feat still…I’m wasted after ½ hour on my unplowed 1/3 mile lake oval track…
ssshhhh its a secret, I think Skidoo must’ve paid them off
cheers cr
February 25th, 2010 at 7:37 amown four apex Attak 2006-2009 just broke two jack shafts on 2007 at 3200 miles and 2008 at 4100 miles not covered had to pay. front main arm in rear suspension for transfer rod broke welds fell down wreaked track not covered on 2006 with 3200 miles on it got price to sell or trade in for 2007 4600 trade sell price 4900. 2008 trade in 4900 sell 5210 resale value stinks in new york got price in Canada to sell on 2007 for 6900.
Sorry to hear that. When you say ‘jack -shaft’ do you mean the shaft which the secondary clutch is attached to or the main drive shaft which engages the track. Reason I ask is both the main axle shaft and W-arm issues have been addressed on the newer machines but haven’t heard of jack-shaft failures. Probably delving into stuff I am not prepared to deal with on Sled Talk (please see terms of use tab at page top) but a little fact finding at this point can’t hurt.. Thanks cr
February 25th, 2010 at 11:19 pmHey Chris, I forgot to ask how the ice scratchers held up on the world record run? Were they down the entire time and how did they do?
I’m back in YK now – thanks again for the blast in Ontario. I picked up the Nytro MTX last night and am going to take it for its first ride since the rebuild in a couple of hours. I managed to ride in Kenora, Ontario on the way back (much more snow there) and ride in Manitoba and Saskatchewan as well. No more groomed trails for me now, i’m gonna miss them I think, but lots of snow hear by the looks of it.
Another question on the Nytro XTX, correct me if i’m wrong, but to install a 1.5″ lugged track you have to remove the tunnel protectors, right? But I noticed they are welded to the heat exchanger (on my 2009)…so do I have to replace that as well? The ripsaw just doesn’t cut it in the powder, and i’ll have to put wider ski’s on the front end. (I have a pair of powder pro’s collecting dust that i’ll get the mounts for)
Nice youtube video on the world record!
http://www.youtube.com/user/YamahaCanada#p/a/u/0/lK2bseBJurg
Cheers,
YK
Hey YK, we broke the outside scratcher at about 1500km but discovered the reason why and have made the appropriate mods, the ones on my sled are holding up great, we’re back in production.
February 28th, 2010 at 8:35 amYes you have to remove the front bulkhead exchanger protectors for the 1.5, be careful, grind the welds ABOVE the exchanger where they penetrate the actual protector (the exchangers are quite thin and you do not want to touch them with the cutter), once removed you can grind any sharp edges off the remaining weld but don’t try to take them down flush with the exchanger, not necessary. You should consider the 1.75in back country as you will now have enough clearance. cheers cr
Way to Go Matt,Chris and your whole Team that put all this together.What an amazing addition to your launch of this most incredibly enginerred snowmobile ! I Believe in Yamaha,I believe I’m going to buy a blue one. Weener
March 1st, 2010 at 7:29 pmDid Guinis ever issue the record? Is this a real record now or just a great promotional effort to try to beat?
October 22nd, 2010 at 8:43 am