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Random Photos, February Edition

I’ve been gathering more photos for my book project, so naturally there’s some rejects that still deserve some attention. And not always for the right reasons.

Arctic Cat Babe

I’ve been around the block enough times to know that fashion comes and goes and comes back again. So my question is, will this “look” make a reprisal? Perhaps for Arctic Cat’s 50th celebration?

 

Darrel LaPlant on a T/S Special

Gotta love the old MRP Racing days, when you’d have ice lemans races in which someone with a full-on ice sled would match up agains someone with a pure stocker. In this case, Darrel LaPlant is on one of the sweet T/S Racing sleds that kicked serious booty in the ’91 season, paring off against Rolf Otterness on a ’90 Indy 500. I haven’t seen Darrel or Rolf in years, wonder what they’re doing these days?

 

Return of the Howler?

As long as we’re rolling down Prowler Lane, how about this highly hyped Howler!?! A creation of the Black Magic crew prior to Arctic Cat offering the Wildcat, I heard lots of big claims about this machine but never actually rode one. I wonder what one of these babies would fetch on evilBay right now?

 

Brian Nelson on a '90 EXT Special

I’m probably going to make some enemies with what I’m about to say, but it’s late and I can’t help myself. The sled above is the ’90 Arctic Cat EXT Special, which won the Jeep 500, a mess of classes at Eagle River and on the USSA circuit, as well as countless smaller events. Arctic Cat went from this amazing machine, to the Prowler (Special) for the ’91 race season. That was a pretty big step backwards in terms of race/performance sled competancy. I remember riding Rex Hibbert’s ’90 Special in Driggs, Idaho, late that season, and absolutely loving the sled like no other Arctic Cat that came before it. And then I remember racing the ’91 Prowler Special in the ’91 Jeep 500, and wondering what the heck happened! I know the guy racing the sled above — Brian Nelson — wasn’t much of a Prowler fan, either.

 

One cool mutha...

Well, Arctic Cat more than redeemed the Prowler period when the hit us with the amazing ZR. All was forgiven. A bonus sticker selection to the first person who can name the football player, er, guy above AND name four additional people on their CMF team. But please, no writing what CMF stood for.

 

Swordfish and Hollywood

I included this photo for the following reasons. One, it’s Brian Sturgeon as I will always picture him, adorned in Team Arctic leathers and a Super Seer-equipped helmet. Classic. Two, Joey Hallstrom is wearing one of the swankiest get-ups I’ve ever seen. Problem is, he’s holding up that damn check so we can’t see the billboard-of-white that is his Arcticwear suit. Three, though it’s difficult to see at the resolution we have here, Ted Otto is flashing a seriously creepy look. And four, I wanted to include some mention of Fox gas shocks (who is a great sponsor of this Website) just so Charlie Plueddeman can email me later and give me crap about it. Charlie also loves the nice beer selection in my refridgerator whenever he stays at my house, but somehow he doesn’t connect the dots.

 

2012 Arctic Cat M Series?

You’re looking at the 2012 Arctic Cat M Series sled. Problem is, you’re looking at it cross-eyed.

 

2012 Arctic Cat M Series?

And who said that the Ski-Doo Twin Tracker had no practical application to modern snowmobiles? Oh, right. I did once in a Snow Week story I’d written, which resulted in a serious butt-chewing from Ski-Doo, followed by another from my boss (who claimed he hadn’t proofed my column before it went to press.) Ah, the good ol’ days of unpolished/youthful exuberance…Snow Week magazine employment… and getting “talked to” weekly by my then-boss.

 

Mr. Ski-Doo Man

Frankly, I used to get “talked to” a lot by Ski-Doo (and my boss) when I worked at Snow Week/Snow Goer. At the time, they built crap consumer sleds (anyone who’s ridden a ’90-’91 Formula over a single 4-in. stutter bump will confirm my opinion), and I would often times say that (with more flowering language, of course) in the stories I wrote. I even got a phone call from the then-president of the company, Pierre Beaudoin, essentially telling me I was wrong, which of course intimidated the heck out of me. But I stuck to my guns and felt vindicated when they started copying the Polaris Indy and built some good sleds beginning around 1996.

Anyway, I included the above photo because, when I used to get those phone calls, I’d sometimes imagine that the Ski-Doo guy on the other end of the call was actually Mr. Ski-Doo, the creepy mascot in this photo.

 

Arctic Cat Bearcat Testing

Wow, this post really meandered into some memories of my old magazine days. Hmmm…

Well, I’ve grown up. And since my Snow Week days 20 years ago, I’ve learned that snowmobiling is a serious matter, and not to be joked about. The clowns above apparently didn’t get the memo.

 

Arctic Cat F8 Sno Pro

Here’s Jared Hibbert, ripping it up on a 2010 Arctic Cat F8 Sno Pro near Grand Lake, Colo. He’s being serious, which is good.

 

Arctic Cat ZR with handlebar riser

Speaking of serious, how about the neighbor down the road who seriously put a 10-plus-10-equals-20-in. handlebar riser on his ZR 600? That’s some serious riser, baby.

 

Arctic Cat ZR with handlebar riser

Here’s another look at it from the backside.

 

Todd at Union

Speaking of local neighbors… I received an impromptu invite from this guy, Todd Ulschmid, to join him and some other New Prague, Minn., sledders on a ride last weekend. Todd hangs out on this site a lot, yet despite living 15 minutes apart, this was the first time we’d met in-person. He was sporting the first-gen ArcticInsider decal on his F8, but only because it’s part of the sponsorship deal we worked out.

 

Explaining to Rob the virtue of puking during a MTN Bike race

I’ll finish this post up with some serious insight into what makes a winner.

Want to know the secret to Tucker’s success? Me too, which is why I’m always stalking him in the Monster Big Rig between races, hoping to gleam a nugget of insight into going fast. When this shot was taken, Tucker had fallen asleep to a conversation about puking during a MTN bike race that Rob (left) and I were having.

I never learn much about going fast when I hang in the Monster Rig, but I get lots of energy drink and a few cookies.

See, that’s serious stuff.

Thanks for reading.

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16 COMMENTS

  1. great pictures, and maybe ski-doo actually listened to you and just chewed ya out to save face… lol
    My first fire belching & backfiring Ski-dud just about killed me when I caught on fire… went to a Lynx in 78, single 250, then a 292T in 80… sweet and light little machines that lasted YEARS… went off to school and after a few years ended up on Diomede Alaska… got an AFS sled there, great machine!

    I loved my AFS sled too, and skipped the prowler era, ended up with a POO 650 RXL triple piston eater-go fast in a straight line for 10 minute-belt eating boat anchor…sold that in Koyuk, to a POO lover… promptly bought a NEW 580 EXT when I had the chance, and 17 sleds later I have never looked at another brand, ridden a few, yet never “feel” the love… so to speak.

    Thanks for the momentary lapse into the past… good to remember the old to appreciate the new!

  2. Nice pics John I think you should do an arcticle on the T&S involvement in arctics race domination. I dont think they were given the credit, they deserve. Also has anyone younger than Steve Thorson ever been inducted in the hall of fame. Then concider all he has contributed after that. most hall inductees have completed there work by the time they go in. thanks Marv

  3. Hey, where can I get one of those 20″ riser blocks for my F8??? LOL! Number 92 was Jeramy Fyle. And the football player? Chip Lohmiller? That’s all I got…
    Great meeting you last weekend. Good time! Bring on the next snow storm! We definitely need it!

  4. really? what was so bad about the Prowler style chassis? Although i also skipped that version and went from AFS to ZR in 94 (you gotta love Sturgeons 94 580, what an awesome sled), knew a few guys with prowlers they seemed to be great, the only bad thing i ever heard was broken spindles in some cross country races. Now I’m curious, someone fill me in. And where is Sturgeon now?

  5. Ted Otto’s look is funny because he has a black Eye from being hit by a sled in a previous race.Luckily thats all that happened.

  6. Tim, you beat me to it. Ted Otto was run over by a sled the weekend before at the USSA show in Plymouth, WI. They hauled him away in the ambulance, he hit the ice pretty hard.

  7. LMAO at the creepy Ski Don’t mascot.
    LOL at Pierre Beaudoin calling you, I’m sure he believed what he was telling you because they don’t have moguls in Quebec, they must of finally sent someone to the UP in the 90’s who figured out we had big ass moguls and that we ride on them for fun 🙁

    Nice photos and great commentary John, oh I cheated and Googled cmf football, the result………………http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qd1259WkXa8

  8. Actually…I don’t beleive Tim Otto is of human form! The pic of him you have is the only time I have EVER noticed he was wearing gloves. He NEVER wore a hat either. Mind you…Eagle River is normally a gazillion degrees below zero! Pretty sure he doesn’t have blood coursing through his veins! Not sure how that happens with a guy that flew in from California for each race?

  9. Looking for Amber’s hair stylist. Need to hook my wife up! Haven’t found anyone who can do feathering like that since…the 80’s!

  10. Nice pic of my second cousin Joey Hallstrom’s white snowmobile suit. Too bad that check is in the way or we could see the whole suit.

  11. I was looking for a Brian sturgen picture of a ZR with a 600 triple. I know I have seen one before just can’t find one. Anymore in the collection?

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