Jennifer "Jen" Julien, of Houghton, competing in the World Championship Snowmobile Hillclimb in Wyoming. (Photo courtesy of Jen Julien)

Michigan’s fantastic system of thousands of miles of trails is often touted as being among the best in the country – this is especially true of snowmobile trails.

Residents and visitors alike know the potential Michigan brings for prime riding conditions amid breathtaking scenery and miles and miles to ride on interconnected and wide-ranging trails.

It’s impossible to know where early introduction to outdoor recreation experiences like trail snowmobiling might lead, especially when it comes to impressionable youth, coupled with world-class opportunities.

Jennifer “Jen” Julien is one prime example.

“I grew up snowmobiling my entire life. Instead of school break trips to Florida, my family would take snowmobile trips to northern Michigan and the Upper Peninsula where the trail riding was often the best conditions in the Midwest,” she said. “We would put on hundreds of miles in a weekend with our family and their friends.”

From those early beginnings, the Hemlock, Michigan, native recently made it to the finals for the World Championship Snowmobile Hillclimb in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. She was the oldest competitor in both of her races and the only finalist from Michigan.

“This is my third time competing in the World Championship Snowmobile Hillclimb Race, returning after 12 years. The first time I competed, I was 21 years old, and coming back to this race as a 35-year-old mother of two was so incredibly motivating,” she said. “I actually placed in the finals in both of my races, placing fifth in Women’s Pro Stock and Women’s Pro Mod, which is better than I performed in my 20s.”

It was on a family snowmobiling trip when Julien was in middle school that she discovered Michigan Technological University in Houghton, telling her parents she wanted to attend classes there someday.

“I ended up attending Michigan Tech for both my bachelor’s and master’s engineering degrees and had brought a snowmobile with me,” she said. “It turns out the snowmobile parking is free on campus, so it was justified.”

During her time at Michigan Tech, she joined the university snowmobile club. Her friends convinced her to race in a local hill-climb race.

“I won that race, which happened to be the Midwest qualifier for the world championships,” she said. “I found sponsors to help me get there, and it was at the world championships that I met Bunke Racing, a Midwest Polaris team who eagerly took me on as a professional woman rider in the cross-country circuit for many years, while I attended Michigan Tech.”

Julien said cross-country snowmobile racing was right where she belonged because it was exactly how she grew up riding – jumping culverts, riding through ditches, racing on icy lakes and long-mileage trips.

“Once I graduated from Michigan Tech and started a family, I took a break from racing to focus on my children and my career,” she said. “I built businesses in Houghton with my husband.”

Julien stayed away from the sport for a decade.

“Once a year over those 10 years, I’d borrow a friend’s snowmobile for a few hours on a deep snow day just to make sure I ‘still had it,'” she said. “We get an average of 300 inches plus of snowfall in Houghton, so it’s a way of life for many here.”

She said she never lost “the fire for racing.”

She had just redirected that same drive into her businesses and her family. But then, she decided to return to snowmobile competitions to prove to herself and her girls that you can go after your dreams at any stage of your life.

“This year, I picked up a sled from a Polaris engineer who set it up for me for the race, and let’s just say snowmobiles have definitely come a long way,” she said. “The 900R Polaris mountain sled made it easy for me to jump right back into hill climb racing.”

Bunke Racing helped her reenter the sport.

“I qualified again – at the same race I first won 13 years ago for the Masters Racing Circuit that started it all,” she said.

Julien said it was an honor to represent Michigan in the hill climb championships.

“When people hear I’m from Michigan while competing in Wyoming in a hill climb race, they often say, ‘There are no hills in Michigan. How’d you learn to ride?” she said. “It’s an honor to represent our trail system and snow conditions (especially in the Keweenaw and the Upper Peninsula) to show the world that Michigan is among the best in the world for snowmobilers.

“And we have so many riders who grow up with the fabric of the snowmobile industry as an important part of their lives. They look forward to it all year and chase the snow conditions all winter long.”

Julien said the snowmobile industry works tirelessly in Michigan to provide the sport to hundreds of thousands who enjoy the state’s beauty in ways that are only experienced on a snowmobile.

She thinks snowmobiling has given a lot to her personally.

“Snowmobiling was an important part of my childhood, and I’m convinced that it is the reason I live with the grit and determination that I do to excel in my businesses and career,” she said.

Julien said she spent so many long days on trails with her family, sometimes wet and cold, sometimes encountering bumpy riding that left her sore, learning so much from those trips.

“Racing felt normal for me as I knew the machine so well and had been through so much with it as a child,” she said. “Picking up the sport after 10-plus years away was something that just felt right at home for me.”

Julien said she is so happy to be back in the racing scene.

She said, “I hope I am able to inspire not only my own little girls, but women everywhere who want to pursue their dreams while raising their families.”