Wicked Screamer sold!

It was the surprising news around 2 1/2 weeks ago. On the 25th of November, the Screamin' Bobcat Pulling Team from Ijsselmuiden in the Netherlands set their 2023 light modified Euro Cup winning tractor called ''Wicked Screamer'' for sale. For sale was the rolling chassis of the tractor, which included the rear axle housing with the CAT spindles, the 2 bar chrome-moly roll cage, the carbon fiber fenders, the complete hitch construction, and wheelie bars, the engine plates for 2 BAE Hemi blocks and 100kg moveable weight. Further parts, like drive line components, the crossbox, or engine parts could be discussed with the team. Now the light modified tractor was sold to a new owner somewhere. However, it is currently not known who has bought the chassis.

The first thoughts about the sale of the Wicked Screamer chassis were, maybe for most people, they are building a new light modified machine for the 2024 season. But this time not. The team will say goodbye to the light modified class after 14 very successful years. During those 14 years, they won in total 25 titles in the light modified class on national and international level. Between 2009 and 2023, the Screamin' Bobcat Team around Bertus and Berrie Boer won 10 Euro Cup titles, 10 European Championship titles, and 5 Dutch Championship titles. Alone, 10 of those 25 titles were achieved with the Wicked Screamer in the light mod class. 

The Wicked Screamer was the second most successful tractor of the team after their first built light modified and modified tractor called ''Double Screamin'', with which they competed with between 2009 and 2017. The Wicked Screamer was built by the Screamin' Bobcat team during the winter of 2014/2015. In 2015, at the second round of the Dutch Championship in Loerbeek, the Netherlands, the light modified with Berrie Boer in the seat did his first meters in front of the Keep Moving Orange sled. The first big victory with the tractor was then achieved at the Euro Cup and Dutch Championship round in Made, Netherlands. 

But it took a while before the team won their first title with the Wicked Screamer in the light mod class. The first big international title was achieved in 2017. The first big achievement was the Euro Cup title in the light modified class with the tractor in 2017. 

The 2017 Euro Cup was a team internal fight for the title between the old tractor ''Double Screamin'' and the new one ''Wicked Screamer''. In the end, the team had the upper hand with the Wicked Screamer in the points race for the title. The next big title with the Wicked Screamer was achieved just a few weeks later at the European Championship in Stroe, the Netherlands. Mechanic and driver of the team Jordi Riezebos won the title with the machine there, ahead of Eurol Bandit and Green Monster 5 Mitas Edition. In 2018, they won another Euro Cup title and achieved their first Dutch Championship title with the tractor in the light mod division, after they missed the title close for the previous 2 years. The European Championship title couldn't be repeated, by the team with the Wicked Screamer in 2018. Driven by team boss Bertus Boer himself, he as the penultimate starter set the new distance to beat with 91.32m. 

It was a good run, but at the start was still one rival which was over the season all the time in the Euro Cup rounds close behind the Wicked Screamer, it was the twin Allison V12 powered tractor called ''Green Monster 5 Mitas Edition'' from Germany.

Like the Wicked Screamer, the Green Monster 5 Mitas Edition had a great start and with a lot of speed, the twin Allison passed the black and white checkered flag of Wicked Screamer by a little bit more than a meter. That meant Wicked Screamer was beaten for the first time this year at an international competition, and the Screamin' Bobcat Team was beaten in the light modified class of the European Championship for the first time since 2009. 

Bertus Boer wasn't disappointed about his 2nd place, but was also happy for the Green Monster Team about winning the EC title in the light modified class because the Screamin' Bobcat team has had a great friendship with the Green Monster Team for years.
Maybe the most successful season for the Screamin' Bobcat Team with the twin BAE Hemi V8-powered light mod machine was 2019. In that year, they achieved with the win of the Dutch Championship, the Euro Cup, and the European Championship title the triple. 

But to win the Euro Cup title was in 2019 not more so easily as in the 2 years before. 

As the EC 2018 showed, with the twin Allison V12 powered tractor called ''Green Monster 5 Mitas Edition'' from Germany, they got a new arch-rival for the round victories and the title for the upcoming years. That competition against the Green Monster Team also liked the Screamin' Bobcat Team very much. During the winter of 2019/2020, the team started to make some major changes to the Wicked Screamer for the first time since the tractor was built in 2014/2015. They changed the whole front end of the tractor with a new front axle and smaller front wheels, built new engine brackets, and moved both engines and the crossbox more forward on the chassis for a better weight distribution and balance in the future. 

Also, the old crossbox was replaced by a new one and the Firestone Puller 2000 HP tires were replaced by a set of new cut Mitas Powerpull tires. The goal for the team was to get the tractor ready for the pull in Füchtorf at the end of April 2020. 

But then came Covid-19, and the whole rebuild of the Wicked Screamer came to a halt. Due to the pandemic situation all national and international events were canceled for 2020 and the team then decided not to stress about the rebuild and to finish everything in a relaxed manner. 

The rebuilding of the Wicked Screamer was finalized during the winter/spring of 2021. There the pandemic was still raging in 2021, it would take until summer before the converted Wicked Screamer was able to drive in front of a sled for the first time.
The rebuilt Wicked Screamer did its maiden voyage at the tractor pull in Brande, Denmark, where the Danish organization had organized an International competition with light mod tractors from Denmark, the Netherlands, and Germany. 

The debut for the rebuilt Wicked Screamer was successful there, and driver Berrie Boer achieved a nice runner-up place behind the twin Rover V12 powered tractor called ''Gators'' from Denmark and ahead of ''Uncle Duck'' from the Netherlands.

The Dutch Championship for the light mod class in 2021 went over 4 rounds, where they won 3 of 4 rounds with the tractor and also the Dutch Championship title.
The Dutch Championship title was repeated with Wicked Screamer in 2022, but the Euro Cup title couldn't be defended of 2019, due to some bad luck during the season. The year in the point standings of the Euro Cup of the light mod division was finished in 3rd place, behind the 2022 Euro Cup champ Green Monster 5 Mitas Edition and the runner-up Russian Roulette XL.This year, the Screamin' Bobcat team drove a scaled-down program with the Wicked Screamer and focused more on the Euro Cup series than the Dutch championship. In the Dutch Championship, they competed at just 2 rounds. The 2 rounds in Putten and Lochem were won by the Team.

More exciting for them was the Euro Cup season in the light mod class. In the first round of the season in Füchtorf, Germany, Wicked Screamer was beaten by the 2022 champion and arch-rival Green Monster 5 Mitas Edition from Germany by over 7m. But the Screamin' Bobcat Team with the Wicked Screamer turned the blade again on the next round and won all 4 Euro Cup events in a row, but sometimes close over their arch-rival Green Monster 5 Mitas Edition. 

With 4 wins in a row, the Screamin' Bobcat Team won with the Wicked Screamer the 2022 Euro Cup title for the 4th time with the tractor. The weeks later after the win of the Euro Cup title in Great Eccleston, Great Britain, the team did their last outing with the Wicked Screamer at the European Championship in Brande, Denmark. They tried again to defend their European Championship title from 2019 (after 2019 was no further EC anymore) against the best tractor from all over Europe. In the end, they couldn't repeat the EC title from 2019. 

The qualifying run as well the final run were not perfect, due to maybe a little bit misjudged weight distribution. Berrie Boer gave everything what he got and hammered the Wicked Screamer down the track in the finals. But in the end it wasn't enough, he missed the EC title by just 1m 21cm and finished runner-up behind the 2023 Dutch light mod Champion MPM Seaside Affair and ahead of the 2023 Euro Cup arch-rival Green Monster 5 Mitas Edition from Germany. With the runner-up place at the 2023 European Championship and the 2023 Euro Cup title, the Screamin' Bobcat team ended their successful time after an amazing 14 years in the light modified class. 

The decision to step out of the light mod was already made by the Boer's in the late summer/early fall this year, and it wasn't an easy decision for them to make that step after so many years in the class and after their great fights with the other competitors in the past. After the end in the light modified class, what will the Dutch team around Bertus Boer do next? 

Most of the people maybe think now they are building a second heavy modified tractor because of their long heritage in modified pulling. If you thought that now, then you are totally wrong. The next project will not be a 2nd heavy modified tractor or will have anything to do with a modified tractor. The Screamin' Bobcat team will do something with a hood on the chassis and will have a multiple turbocharged 6 cylinder inline engine with 10.5l capacity. The Screamin' Bobcat Team will hit the tracks in the Netherlands and Europe with a super stock in 2024. The super stock will be built not by the team himself due to the now less experience with the class at the moment. In the past, Berrie Boer has already developed and drawed on CAD super stock and limited super stock chassis for other teams, like Blue Thunder and Brothers Toy (now Cobra XL) in the past. The team has decided to first gain experience with a proven super stock tractor, before they are starting to built their own super stock. But what is the history behind the switch to the super stock class?

Berrie Boer told us, the story behind the super stock adventure is that the team is seeking for a new challenge. So the Screamin' Bobcat Team found a team in the USA with a Super Stock which were also seeking for a new challenge. So the Screamin' Bobcat Team didn't bought a Super Stock tractor but they are trading tractors with each other. So both Teams can see if this new challenge is what they are looking for! 

For the pulling tractor swap, the Screamin' Bobcat Team will be build a new light modified tractor for the swap with the US Team. The light mod will receive a brand new chassis according to the NTPA technical rules (like length, weight, roll cage etc.) and the driveline components (like the crossbox etc.) and the complete engines will be taken over of the Wicked Screamer.

But now to the biggest question, which super stock tractor will receive the Dutch Team in that swap?

Currently, the Screamin' Bobcat Team didn't want to say something about that because it's still secret, but we think the team will published the secret soon or in the coming winter weeks or better said before the new 2024 season starts!

 

The successes of the Screamin' Bobcat Team in the light modified class: 

The EC titles between 2009-2023:

2009 with Double Screamin'

2010 with Double Screamin'

2011 with Double Screamin'

2012 with Double Screamin'

2013 with Double Screamin'

2014 with Double Screamin'

2015 with Double Screamin'

2016 with Double Screamin'

2017 with Wicked Screamer

2019 with Wicked Screamer

 

The Euro Cup titles between 2009-2023:

2010 with Double Screamin'

2012 with Double Screamin'

2013 with Double Screamin'

2014 with Double Screamin'

2015 with Double Screamin'

2016 with Double Screamin'

2017 with Wicked Screamer

2018 with Wicked Screamer

2019 with Wicked Screamer

2023 with Wicked Screamer 

 

The Dutch Championship titles between 2009-2023:

2014 with Double Screamin'

2018 with Wicked Screamer

2019 with Wicked Screamer

2021 with Wicked Screamer

2022 with Wicked Screamer

 

For further information, check here: https://www.facebook.com/screaminbobcat/