Snowmobile
Levi Lavallee, the progressive freestyle snowmobiler behind Red Bull New Year No Limits, and now Full Circle, breaks down his trusted sled.
Levi Lavallee has been at the forefront of freestyle snowmobiling for decades — checking off unimaginable feats year after year.
As a veteran member of Team Polaris, Lavallee relies on a custom racing sled when he’s completing his daring maneuvers. From backflipping across the Tower Bridge in London, to setting a world record distance jump at Embarcadero Marine Park in San Diego, and most recently, completing the Full Circle in Québec City, Polaris technology has proven that it can conquer any feature he throws at it.
Join Levi Lavallee as he plans his next mind-blowing feat in Episode 1 of Full Circle:
10 min
The journey
With a crew of engineers at his side, Levi LaVallee plans his next feat – conquering the loop.
Watch the full series here
Bombproof design
Throughout the Full Circle project, Lavallee rode the exclusive 600R snocross snowmobile. This model comes equipped with a 600 race engine that’s purposely built for powerful and lightning fast response; Polaris Race Front Suspension and RX2 Rear Suspension for strong and lightweight travel; and Walker Evans Racing Velocity shocks that offer more bottom out resistance on big hits.
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In preparation for the loop, Lavallee made several adjustments that are unique to the maneuver. Firstly, he adjusted the position of the throttle to avoid grabbing more throttle during the forceful compression of the loop. Additionally, he stiffened to counteract the heavy g-force, and he swapped his carbides for wear bars to increase slide-ability on the metal feature.
Learn how the snowmobile evolved from a fan-propelled “oversnow” concept, to a high-performance snow-sports machine in the the player below:
15 min
Révolution de Braaap a Zap
Explore the uniquely-Canadian evolution of the snowmobile.
Throwback aesthetics
Despite the risk, fear, and extreme nature of the sled loop, Lavallee isn’t the first rider to complete this daring maneuver on a snowmobile. The iconic feat was originally trademarked by the Polaris Thrill Team in the early 1970s — a travelling group of freestyle athletes who performed at snowmobile races and festivals across North America. Members of the infamous Thrill Team would hit jumps, fly through burning walls, perform barrel rolls, and at the end of every show, run the full circle.
“I wanted to show my appreciation for what these guys did back then,” explained Lavallee, who replicated the original Thrill Team sled designs onto his own 600R.
Lavallee’s sled features a full red seat, sky blue bottom, all white top, and a Thrill Team decal in front of the handlebars — mirroring the old school aesthetics of the original showmen.
Levi LaVallee sits on his snowmobile for a photo
© Joseph Roby
Levi LaVallee sitting on his Thrill Team snowmobile
© Dan Mathieu
Levi LaVallee on his snowmobile on the top of a roof
© Dan Mathieu