Arctic Cat’s Fiscal 2016 Fourth-Quarter and Full-Year Results

Today Arctic Cat released its 2016 fiscal 4th QTR and full-year results. When I read between the lines, it looks to me like the cost of reducing inventory of non-current wheeled products must cost A LOT.

* Fourth-quarter net sales of $121.4 million, up 22.7 percent over prior-year quarter;

* Quarterly net loss of $1.30 per share versus prior-year loss of $1.66 per share;

* Continued progress made on strategies to reposition company;

* Approximately $20 million operating cash flow generated in fiscal 2016 fourth quarter;

* Revolving bank agreement extended and increased to $130 million, up from $100 million;

* Fiscal 2016 full-year net loss of $0.71 per share on net sales of $632.9 million;

* Company provides fiscal 2017 outlook

Click to read the full results.

Beauty in the Backyard

Last Friday, temperatures here in the Twin Cities flirted with 90 degrees F. I already have a nice foundation for the farmer's tan that my children will tease me about for the rest of the summer. This past weekend I mowed the lawn for the third time this season. The graduation cards keep coming in, reminding me that school will soon be out.

And tomorrow I'll be in the red sand canyons and desert of Moab, Utah, to soak in Rally on the Rocks aboard some Arctic Cat Wildcats.

By every measure it's late spring, and I am truly enjoying it.

But even though I've pickled the sleds for the off-season and the next white flakes to hit the yard are six months away, I still steal a moment or two each day and think of winter. Glorious winter, and the beauty of snow in the backyard.

TGIF: The May 6, 2016 Edition

I'm thankful for extra ground clearance and the log-cutting feature of the drop-down chain.

I'm thankful for the legendary cornering prowess of the famed ZR chassis.

I'm thankful for snow-mo-wheelers and their ability to bring more braaap to every circumstance.

And I'm thankful it's Friday, May 6, 2016.

Ride Longer with ROTOPAX Fuel Can for Arctic Cat Wildcat Models

I have run out of gas before on an ATV ride. Not fun.

It wouldn't have happened had I been a little more careful with my planning, OR if I'd had a 1.75-gallon spare can attached to my machine.

Click to see the latest ROTOPAX Fuel Can option for hauling fuel on an Arctic Cat Wildcat Sport/Trail.

1 Million! Arctic Extreme Mobile App Goes Big with Sweepstakes

Maybe you're one of the people who contributed to more than 1 million downloads of the mobile game app Arctic Cat® Extreme Snowmobile Racing (free for Android and iOS devices)?

If not, there’s a high likelihood your kid did.

Either way, there's new update to the app and a new sweepstakes with a chance to earn 40,000 in Cat Cash (the new, virtual currency).

Click for more info.

Details Please! The Custom Arctic Cat HDX Crew from SuperATV

Custom machines come in all sizes, shapes and creative fusion. Case in point: the first-ever custom 2017 Arctic Cat HDX Crew XT courtesy of the crew at SuperATV.

Shown for the first time at Texas Mud Nationals, this machine stood out among the crowd for size (two rows of seats has a way of saying “Look At Me!”) and its tasteful selection of accessories.

Click to see what’s unique about this six-occupant roost monster.

TGIF: The April 29, 2016 Edition

I'm thankful for heated grips, passenger grab handles and the eye-catching charm of those twin headlights.

I'm thankful for that awkward moment when the company PR hack asks the talent to "Ride this thing together down the beach, flashing us your big smiles."

And I'm thankful it's Friday, April 29, 2016.

Arctic Cat and Chuck Dempsey: Your Ultimate Off-Road Opportunity

Arctic Cat is getting even more serious about shaking up some dust in the desert, as evidenced by its new partnership with off-road racing legend Chuck Dempsey and the forthcoming Ultimate Off-Road Driving Experience

Want to experience an Arctic Cat Wildcat X in the deserts surrounding Las Vegas, including the infamous Mint 400 race course in Nevada, as well as across the border in Mexico, on the Grand-daddy of all race courses, the Baja 1000?

Click to read about this new, cool option.

Team Arctic Claims Top Spots at Crazy Horse Hillclimb

Team Arctic hillclimbers stomped on the final RMSHA event of the season last weekend in Alta, Wyo. Looking down from the top of Grand Targhee, the men and women in green claimed 9 wins, 22 podiums and one King title at the Crazy Horse Hillclimb.

Click to read about it.

Raw and Real: Taylor Fisk on a 2017 Arctic Cat Mountain Cat

What I love about this short, mostly unedited video of Taylor Fisk ripping around on a 2017 Arctic Cat Mountain Cat is that it illustrates how slow and deliberate great boondocking riding is.

Plus, no special effects, no distracting music, just the sweet sound of a snowmobile carving through the trees.

Custom 800cc 2-Stroke Arctic Cat Wildcat Sport from Speedwerx

Speedwerx and Arctic Cat made themselves heard loud and clear at the Highlifter Mud Nationals in Jacksonville, Texas, at which they unveiled a custom Wildcat Sport powered by a Speedwerx-tuned 170-hp Suzuki 800cc 2-stroke engine from an 8000-Series snowmobile!

Holy (two) smokes!

Amidst a veritable sea of lifted, jacked, blaring and otherwise custom side-by-sides and ATVs, the 2-stroke Wildcat turned more heads and elicited more dropped jaws than anything else that I saw during my three days there.

The explosion of views, likes and shares on that ol’ barometer of interest we call Facebook underlined the fact that this buggy captured peoples’ imaginations. Yep, it went viral, baby.

So what EXACTLY is this tire-smoking beast that Speedwerx built, and what’s its future?

Click and roost on.

RIP

Custom Arctic Cat HDX Crew Built by SuperATV.com

Get dirty with this sweet custom 2017 Arctic Cat HDX built by SuperATV.com and featuring 4-in. Portal Lift, 32-in. Terminator skins and an array of Arctic Cat accessories. More to come on this machine here in the next week! 

How To: Hood & Side Panel Removal on New 2017 Plastic

How quick and easy is it to remove the side panels and hood on the new 2017 Arctic Cat 9000 Series (and 6000 RS Edition) snowmobiles? This easy!

Ignore my verbal mistake of calling the hood's HALF-TURN fasteners, quarter-turn fasteners.

The hood and panel reinstall just as quickly and easily.

Thanks to Roger Skime and Larry Coltom for their help, and for not laughing at me.

Ride Tested! Jim Dimmerman Rides the 2017 Arctic Cat Turbo

After penning a thoughtful editorial about the new 2017 Arctic Cat 9000-Series turbos here last week, Jim Dimmerman was given a chance to ride the new 180-hp rocket on Lake of the Woods this past Tuesday.

In addition, he compared it with a 2017 9000 turbo with the Suzuki engine, including a series of drag races against his longtime friend and former Team Arctic teammate, Larry Coltom.

Click to read Dimmerman candidly discuss the new 9000 turbo, the "old" 9000 turbo and whether or not the Thundercat has earned its namesake title.

2017 Team Arctic Snowmobile Race Application

Want to be a part of Team Arctic for the 2016-17 snowmobile race season, including getting the inside line on the 2017 model race sleds?

Snocross, drag, cross-country, hillclimb, enduro...no matter where you race, there's a chance you can do so as part of the best team in the sport.

May 1 is the dealine to apply.

Click for more info, including a link to the race application.

Once & Future King: Dimmerman Talks about the Mighty Thundercat

Jim Dimmerman is the one rider who's name is synonymous with the original Arctic Cat Thundercat of the 1990s. The former Team Arctic legend and World Champ was the first and highest-profile pilot to pilot the iconic T-Cat to a series of NSSR World Speed Records beginning in 1993.

Dimmerman raced, sold (via his former Cat dealership) and otherwise exalted the mighty Thundercats until Arctic Cat discontinued the model after 2002. He patiently waited for its return ever since.

Now that it has returned, Dimmerman checks in with some interesting background and opinions about the new, 180-hp boosted rocket. What he has to say might surprise you.

Click to read Dimmerman dissect the newest T-Cat.

TGIF: The April 8, 2016 Edition

I'm thankful there's a way to extend the snowmobile season into spring (and even summer).

I'm thankful for this whole, new snow bike craze that has everyone fired up.

I'm thankful that if you have to ask, you wouldn't understand anyway.

And I'm thankful it's Friday, April 8, 2016.

What OSM Magazine Has to Say About Arctic Cat's 2017 Sleds

What can sometimes get lost in our insatiable desire for all-new stuff, is the top-level performance and calibration that occurs on machines that have been around the block once or twice.

To wit, from the editors at OSM Magazine:

"In fact, after our second go around with the sleds during the annual spring Snow Shoot evaluations and photography session in West Yellowstone, Montana, it was Arctic Cat who delivered the most consistent ride quality and handling characteristics over any other brand when viewed from top to bottom. No matter the sled grouping or category, our riders pointed to Arctic Cat as the one sled to consistently perform with predictability and comfort…a bold statement and no small feat given today’s broad swath of models."

CLICK HERE for their full story about the 2017 Arctic Cat snowmobiles.

Vintage Arctic Cat Snowmobiling in West Yellowstone

This beauty from Arctic Cat circa 1976 about snowmobiling in West Yellowstone is funny, nostalgic, weird and wonderful.

Definitely worth watching, even though it cuts out at about 10 minutes!