It's October, which means shorter days, cooler nights, Halloween and Open House time at Arctic Cat dealerships.

This past weekend, I and 500 or so similar-minded enthusiasts attended the Open House celebration at Country Cat in Sauk Center, Minn., where the tradition of anticipation unfolded in all its greatness.

Click to see and read a few thoughts about this event and other like them.

By the looks of this trailer, the One Lunger series of vintage snowmobile films is gonna be pretty spectucular.

Then click the link to see the short film about Brian "Rampage" Montogery, a builder of rat-rod sleds who's straightforward style is pretty darn refreshing.

I'm thankful that after the dreadful game against the Green Bay Packers last night, the Minnesota Vikings mascot took to his snowmobile for some post-game jousting.

I'm thankful the Minnesota Vikings are going to the Super Bowl this year, albeit on a snowmobile.

And I'm thankful it's Friday, Oct. 3, 2014.

Christian Brothers Racing recently announced its 2014-2015 race team lineup, with a two-prong attack featuring snocross and cross-country contingents.

The high profile, satellite team for Team Arctic Racing, Christian Bros. is undoubtedly one of the strongest forces in modern terrain competition.

Click to see who will be force in snowmobile competition this season.

It was another stellar weekend of racing for the D&D/Team Arctic, this time at Eastern Grass Drag Nationals held at Excell Raceway Park in Bouckville, NY.

Nine class wins, additional podiums and class-leading ETs put an exclamation mark on the team’s domination.

Click to launch into the results.

A recent trip to Arctic Cat delivered the usual large number of interesting sights and conversations with my favorite people in the world.

Click to see a slice of what was happening with snowmobiles, ATVs, side-by-sides and the people who make them.

After tough-fought battle with lung cancer, Dick Wanderscheid peacefully finished the human race, and is now enjoying the greatest heavenly victory celebration of them all.

Dick crossed the finish line on Friday, Sept. 26, with his family at his side.

He was the patriarch of the family who operate Country Cat and that has supported the racing success of Team Arctic's four-time World Champion, P.J. Wanderscheid.

Click to read a little bit about the man, with words from P.J.

I'm thankful autumn breezes are blowing in would-be snowmobile buyers to look at my fleet of used sleds.

I'm thankful the tight weave on my leisure suit blocks the chill from such breezes.

I'm thankful I know what it will take to get you into this excellent used snowmobile, for just $50 down and $35 a month for two years.

And I'm thankful it's Friday, Sept. 26, 2014.

With a fleet of Arctic Cats prepped by the indomitable D&D Racing crew, Dylan Roes and Jeff Marks left a nasty mark on the competition at last weekend's 2014 Ohio Snow Bash grass drags.

When the skis touched down, the team scored seven wins and one second-place finish!

Click for an enjoyable reaction time.

The 2014 Sno-Baron's Hay Day's snowmobile event in North Branch, Minn. was SO big, it's taken me two weeks to decompress, download pix and make sense of what I saw.

Click to see a smattering of what went down at the 48th Annual event.

I'm thankful we own an ATV that's powerful enough to get the boys through the mud bog.

I'm thankful for power steering, otherwise the boys would complain about turning this beast.

I'm thankful that someone held my beer so I could snap this photo.

And I'm thankful it's friday, Sept. 19, 2014.

It's a little late in arriving (sorry about that) but the final push of my summer vintage sled road trip with Jim Dimmerman and Tom Rowland saw us meet a legend of sorts: Gordon Rohde.

Rohde is a name that surfaces when talking about the mythical 1982 Arctic Cat prototypes, as well as other rare machines from the early 1980s.

A former Arctic Cat (and Harley-Davidson) dealer, opportunistic salesman, promoter and race fan, Rhode has owned or touched A LOT of historic Arctic Cat machines.

We caught up with him for a few hours at his shop in Wausau, Wis., where he answered a slew of questions about his career and rare Arctic Cats that have passed through his hands.

Click to read the story.

Once a month Arctic Cat distributes info to the media highlighting select new products.

This month the batch includes the 2015 model year Iron Dog Coat, ProClimb Seat options, ProCross front bumper and the humorous Cathead Facemask.

Make the jump to see and read about them.

I'm thankful the guys from Marketing used creative copywriting to compensate for Engineering's carved-from-a-bar-of-soap styling.

I'm thankful I took a Ski Whiz before I attempted to dicker and deal.

I'm thankful that I still see headlines like these through the eyes of my 14-year-old self.

And I'm thankful it's Friday, Sept. 12, 2014.

Kirk Hibbert has been one of the most inventive, prolific suspension engineers in the sport.

Beginning in the late 1980s he started working with FOX SHOX, a pursuit that has helped progress his success, his son Tucker's success, and the betterment of Arctic Cat snowmobiles.

Hell... the betterment of ALL snowmobiles.

This is a cool video from FOX highlighting their historical relationship with Kirk and Tucker.

Over the summer, Arctic Cat engineers gave some additional race-focussed love to the 2015 ZR 4000 RR.

It was at Hay Days in all its potential glory.

Click for an 85-hp dose of key improvements on what was already a sweet machine.

In addition to unveiling the new cross-country race sled at Hay Days, Arctic Cat also took the wraps off of a revised 2015 ZR 6000R SX snocross race sled.

Click to double-jump towards more details.

In its largest wheeled new-model release that I can remember, Arctic Cat unveiled 15 news new 2015 ATV and ROV (side-by-side) machines last night at its dealer show in Las Vegas!

In addition to its new XR ATV line and Prowler XT models, the big news is this all-new 60-in. Wildcat Sport.

Slotting in between the original Wildcat (64-in. wide) and the new-this-season Trail (50-in.), the trio of Sport models hit a sweet spot of performance and maneuverability. Each is powered by the  60-plus HP 700 Kymco engine.

Click for the highlights and specifications.

Arctic Cat released its 2015 ATV and ROV (side-by-side) line last night at its dealer show in Las Vegas.

There are 15 new models, most notably a new XR ATV line, new Prowler XT models and a new 60-in. Wildcat Sport.

Click for the quick download of all the new features on the XR 700 (all three packages), XR 550 (three packages) and XR 500 ATVs.

Arctic Cat released its 2015 ATV and ROV (side-by-side) line last night at its dealer show in Las Vegas. Not everything that happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas, so here’s a Cliff’s Notes version of all that’s new:

There are 15 new models, most notably a new XR ATV line, new Prowler XT models and a new 60-in. Wildcat Sport that slots in between the original Wildcat and Trail models.

Here’s the skinny on the new Prowler 1000, 700 and 550 XT models, which get all-new, automotive-inspired bodywork, plus myriad improvements in rider comfort: