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I can still hear Don Jorstad echoing in my head as I write this.
I’ve reached that lonesome age. At 43 I’ve hit the point in life where I start to lose people I love, people I grew up admiring; icons that will never be replaced. But as Hunter S. Thompson once wrote, “Buy the ticket, take the ride.” It’s just sometimes the ride gets a little rougher as you get older.
In the snowmobile world, each year it seems like I read about the loss of another old racer, an industry giant or just a familiar face around the business. Guys like Edgar Hetteen, whose finger prints will forever be on this sport, pass from this world and leave behind a legacy without equal.
There are a lot of behind-the-scenes people too that impacted the sport of snowmobiling. Anonymous faces or names that have played major and minor roles between freeze-up and thaw. One of those people was Don Jorstad, a name and face not so anonymous with me, but perhaps not immediately familiar to others.
For someone growing up in northeastern North Dakota or northwestern Minnesota, Don was the voice of cross country snowmobile racing. Whether it was the I-500 race, in one of its many formats or the old Iron Man 250, my ear would be pressed against an AM radio listening to Don rattle-off the positions of the riders I worshiped. Names like Hibbert, Pake, Haikonen, Hyde; all annunciated to perfection and with their elapsed times included down to the tenth of a second. Everything mattered to Donny J. In a cross country race, there was no such thing as too much information. Like Ernie Harwell and Mel Allen were some people’s voices of summer, Don Jorstad was my voice of winter.
Don was a dyed-in-the-wool member of, what many consider, a bygone industry: he was a hardcore radio man. Studying broadcasting at the famous Brown Institute in the Twin Cities, Don worked in 13 different radio and TV markets in his career. I will always remember him, however, as a radio staple of a famous snowmobile city: Thief River Falls, MN. Don worked for KTRF radio as a broadcaster, manager, and salesman; still on staff at the time of his passing at only 76 years of age. I read a quote on KTRF’s website that said, “Don believed in radio; he lived it and breathed it as a battle ground of true community, free thought and free ideas.” In the age of satellite radio, massive corporate radio operations, and radio stations without a single human being in the building for hours on end, Don was the last of a breed.
Unlike many legendary radio personalities, Don didn’t possess the eccentricities and antisocial distance of some of his contemporaries. Don was a good man, always sporting his signature “high ‘n tight” military-style flattop haircut, perfectly trimmed mustache, and easy smile. I especially remember how kind and generous he was with my young son, Sean, when he would win a trophy in the 120 races. He treated every victor, pro or amateur, like a big deal.
Don was doing USCC races in his late 60s and early 70s and he confessed to me, on more than one occasion, that the driving and schedule tired him out sometimes. But Don loved the camaraderie; being around the racers, swapping stories, finding out what went wrong and what went right that day.
In 2008 I raced my first I-500 and I was sitting alone in the buffet at the Seven Clans Casino outside of Thief River Falls having breakfast on the first morning of the race. I was nervous as hell, stewing over my eggs and bacon when I noticed Don had sat down alone across the room. As soon as he saw me, he instantly invited me over to join him. I have come to realize one of Don’s favorite things to do was to break bread with friends and acquaintances. Especially, I’m told, if there was a buffet involved. I admitted that I was nervous and Don did the best thing he could have done: he talked about everything except snowmobiles and racing. It got my mind off the race and I actually enjoyed my breakfast. The perfect remedy.
The snowmobile industry has its gatekeepers and support staff, some remain and some are gone. True personalities. Guys like Ted Otto still grace our world, while legends like Hay Days’ Lyle Hazeltine have gone to the Tiltin’ Hilton in the sky. Don Jorstad has, unfortunately, joined Lyle to call the races to perfection from a different vantage point. Cross country snowmobile racing will never be the same again.