I was at the Snowmobile Hall of Fame in St. Germain, Wisconsin, over the weekend, where winter delivered a few glorious inches of snow to announce the beginning of winter at one of my favorite places in the world.

Click to see a few pix of what's happening at the SHOF, including the brand-spanking-new display museum.

Snowmobile Show season is coming to an end in North America just as Winter is nicely beginning to introduce itself (a light dusting of snow is on the ground outside my window as I write this).

For as long as I can remember, hitting the closest autumn snow show was central to the yearly snowmobile experience. It was THE place to grab trail maps, brochures of cabins and resorts that catered to sledders, as well as catalogs from every company doing business in the sport.

Recently I ran across a few photos of one of the early first-ever Wisconsin Snowmobile Show while perusing some of the historical artifacts at the Snowmobile Hall of Fame in St. Germain, Wis.

Click to see some pix and read a few thoughts on the matter.

Now entering its second year, the Arctic Cat ZR 200 has even more going for it than being a sweet sled capable of giving young (and old) riders an awesome and very real snowmobile experience.

The "more" I'm talking about is sweet accessory/custom options for those so inclined. Like a Snocross Handlebar Kit, Speedometer, Heavy-Duty Suspension Kit and more.

Click to see four of the newest and coolest. 

Frank couldn't figure out why, after he left the kids home alone for the weekend, the garage smelled like burning rubber and the track lugs on his Thundercat were ground to shreds...

Waaaaaaaaaaayyyyyy back 27 years ago on Halloween, Mother Natured delivered one of the all-time great weather events for a large swath of the Midwest. Dubbed the Halloween Blizzard (10 inches of snow fell that night), it was a trick-and-treat of epic proportions, with upwards of 30-40 inches of snow that eventually blanketed parts of Minnesota and Wisconsin.

It paralyzed cities and caused hardship for some. But it gave snowmobilers the greatest candy of any Halloween ever.

For two days friends and I snowmobiled all over the Twin Cities. On freeways, highways and throughout neighborhoods where snowmobiling wasn't legal. It was incredible.

This happened in the days before decent storm prediction, and the weather people completely missed this one until it was already happening. Thus nobody was ready for it, myself included. It was a gift for winter lovers, and a scary-as-hell fright for everyone else.

Nothing like that predicted for tonight, however I'm hearing reports of snow up north this coming weekend.

Winter's coming, happy Halloween!

Now click to see some pix of the great blizzard.

Autumn was in full swing during my 2-day trip to Arctic Cat and Textron Off Road in Thief River Falls last week.

New snowmobiles, new dirt toys and familiar faces make trips like this my favorite days of the year.

Click to jump into this brief factory tour with me.

It's been 40 glorious years since Arctic Cat launched Cat's Pride club. Tens of thousands of Arctic Cat fans can count themselves as members during those four decades, participating in various events and contests, reading the former Cat's Pride magazine and proudfully wearing clothing emblazoned with the club's name.

While the club and its offerings have evolved since 1978, Cat’s Pride Club remains the longest operating brand snowmobile club in the world, with members across the globe.

Celebrate the history and join (or renew) the famed club with the 2019 edition Cat’s Pride Club Member Kit.

The 2019 edition kit features pre-shrunk flannel shirt with the embroidered Cats Pride Club logo; a premium collector’s hat; and membership pin. These items are designed exclusively for members and not available anywhere else. Buying the kit makes you a member as well as renews a previous membership.

Click HERE to become a member and enjoy free shipping with each kit. Join today for $49.99 U.S./$66.99 Canada.

Jeremy Houle sent a powerful message to the high performance off-road this past weekend, taking first place at the Lucas Oil Off Road Racing Series short course race in Chandler, Ariz., aboard his Speedwerx-prepped Wildcat XX.

Houle qualified first overall with his XX and drew position six for the main event. Off the start, quickly moved into third place while going into the first corner and then made a pass for second where he settled in for most of the race. With two laps to go, Houle passed the leader and held the field off to take the checkered flag.
 
It marked the first win for both Houle and Textron Off Road Racing in the Lucas Oil Off Road Racing Series, as well as the second podium for both this season.

Congratulations to Houle, Speedwerx and TOR Racing on the big win (we’re looking forward to more for next season)!

See what makes the premium Ranch Edition Prowler Pro...er, ranchy, in this 65-second hero edit.

For the record: EPS, 14-inch machined aluminum wheels with 27-inch Maxxis Bighorn 2.0 tires, a premium cut and sewn bench seat, LED accented halogen headlights, a hard top, 4,500-lb. WARN winch, front brush guard,rear bumper and a very cool Atomic Copper color treatment.

And as I will forever say about any Prowler Pro model, a test ride (or listen) is a must because it's the ultra-quiet and smooth manner that sets them apart from other utility side-by-sides.

Blessed with a few inches of fresh snow and a projected high of just 31 degrees, Arctic Cat engineers got an early jump on winter today by laying down some tracks in the ditch outside of the factory.

Piloting just-built 2019 ZR 8000s, Jeff Olson and Wes Selby are spending the day breaking-in some of their test units, gettiing the sleds through Stage One of the procedure (wonderfully ironic in light of yesterday's post) so they're ready for bigger days ahead.

Snowmobile tracks in fresh snow in TRF on Oct. 11...just like that, everything's right in the world!

Thanks to Joey Hallstrom for the sweet pix! Click to see a few more.

A fresh coat of snow blanketed Arctic Cat in Thief River Falls today, bringing smiles to everyone there who loves winter.

No, it's not going to last. And yes, warmer days are ahead.

But it's a beautiful reminder that winter is bearing down upon us.

(Thanks to Rhob for the photo.)

Buy a brand-new Arctic Cat 6000 or 8000 Series snowmobile and on it’s first ride you want to see how much wood is in the fire, right? So you slam the throttle to the handlebar the first chance you get, right?

Right. Which is why you’ll be rewarded with decidedly tame acceleration and top speed. In fact, your buddy on the 3-year-old 600 will blow right past you.

Arctic Cat engineers definitely understand our desire to pin the throttle to the bars. Consequently they programmed all C-TEC2 engines with an automated Break-In Function to protect us (and the engine) from such tendencies, and to ensure the best possible performance and durability for the engine’s lifetime.

Click to read exactly what this Break-In Function entails.

"After racing, nothing goes down as smooth and easy as Old Style Beer. Whether you're racing or a spectator, take a case along to your next race."

That was the message hitting readers of Snow Week magazine waaaaaaaaay back in 1983.

I suspect there are some people who take great offense to these ads. Such as those who drank/drink Busch Light, Zima and Bud Dry.

One thing's for sure: Snowmobilers do it with style.

Serious question: Is there any piece of clothing GREATER than a T-Shirt?

I can't think of one. But I can thing of some T's that are greater than others.

These are some of the Pulitzer and Nobel prize-winning options available from Arctic Cat.

Engineered, tested and proven by the Black Cats team, the new BC Rear Bumper and BC Running Boards are some sweet custom options for many Arctic Cat sleds.

Check 'em out.

A SUPER cool video that shows the highlights of how Arctic Cat snowmobiles are produced, including the St. Cloud Engine Facility and final assembly in Thief River Falls, Minn.

In addition to the new Prowler Pro Crew models, Textron Off Road today announced the addition of a Ranch Edition model to the Prowler Pro line-up for 2019. It's the machine on the right in the above image, and it gets EPS, 14-inch machined aluminum wheels with 27-inch Maxxis Bighorn 2.0 tires, a premium cut and sewn bench seat, LED accented halogen headlights, a hard top, 4,500-lb. WARN winch, front brush guard and rear bumper. It comes in Atomic Copper.

In the four months since TOR officially unveiled the 2019 Prowler Pro models, they've quietly and smoothly become instant favorites.

Click HERE to read my review of the machines.

Then make the jump to read the latest news on the full line for 2019.

New 2-row, 6-passenger Crew models join the Prowler Pro line-up for 2019, bringing added versatility to a family that started a quiet revolution.

Click for the details on the newest models from Textron Off Road.

When you get the hottest sled in the world and can't wait for snow...

One thing is for sure: the new Arctic Cat M 8000 ALPHA ONE walks on water.

Four years ago the core of Team Arctic's legendary Sno Pro team reuinited for the first time in more than three decades.

Larry Coltom, Dave Thompson, Bob Elsner, Jim Dimmerman, Roger Skime, Bill Ness and Bill Decker gathered, told stories and relived a part of their lives that was as magical as it was magnificent. 

Well, they did it again a few weeks ago...this time in Eagle River, Wisconsin.

And once again Dimmerman takes us there and shares the story with us.