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Torn Between Which Cat

Motorhead Mark Lester
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Dear Motorhead:

I’m torn between going with a 2-stroke procross XF800 LXR  which I know has the shorter track (I presently run a 04 F7) or the procross XF 1100 LXR which is a 4 stroke and has the longer track.

I’m concerned as you have mentioned before that a longer track would give a better ride. Another issue is I’m reluctant to go to the new 4-stroke (non turbo) because I fear I may be disappointed with its performance vs. my present f7 performance.

Do long tracks such as the new cats have a tendency to push through the corners on the trails. 90% of the time I would be riding on the groomed trail not bon docking in powder.

Any suggestions you could make would be greatly appreciated. 

Thanks again,

Lew

Reply:

Howdy!

I would highly recommend after riding the new AC sleds you go for the 128-inch “F” model with the 800 2 stroke mill. The XF’s are excellent, but the ride quality – in your situation being so important – is not as plush as the 128 F’s.

The sled handles incredibly well in either F or XF variant. However, I am convinced for someone prioritizing ride first the 128 inch chassis is the ticket.

These are really good sleds with excellent handling, great ride and superb power-to-weight ratios. Go with the 800 if you’re coming off a 700 FireCat. There is no way you can compare the new sleds to the old “F” chassis.

Hope this helps. 

Motorhead Mark

TEAM ARCTIC’S SIMONS WINS USCC PRO CHAMPIONSHIP

Press Release
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Hibbert, Thomsen and Pallin Dominate ISOC Snocross Elko National

In three different racing disciplines, during two days of fierce competition, Team Arctic racers climbed farther, raced faster and flew higher to claim an astonishing 33 class victories, including the coveted USCC Pro Championship.

Even for a team so familiar with the winner’s circle, this was one March weekend that won’t soon be forgotten.

In the final two races of the USCC cross-country season, Team Arctic/Christian Bros. Racing teammates D.J. Ekre and Ryan Simons proved why they are among the fastest cross-country racers of a generation, with Ekre taking his third win of the season while Simons claimed the Pro High-Point Championship.

Their exploits were bolstered by the kind of dominance that has typified cross-country racing in recent years, with Team Arctic racers winning 21 separate classes during the two-race weekend in Warroad, Minn., including podium sweeps of the Pro 600, Semi Pro 600 and all 85-hp classes.

A similar story unfolded at the penultimate round of the ISOC National Snocross Series in Elko, Minn., where Team Arctic/Monster Energy’s Tucker Hibbert delivered another double-win weekend, taking both the Pro Stock and Pro Open classes to bolster his championship points lead heading into the final races of the season.

Factory Team Arctic’s dynamic-duo of Cody Thomsen and Kyle Pallin put on a veritable clinic in the Semi Pro classes at Elko. Thomsen took victory in the first final on Saturday, with Pallin taking second, then traded places with Pallin winning the Sunday final ahead of Thomsen. Like Hibbert, Thomsen appears locked-in to win his class championship next weekend in Lake Geneva, Wis.

At the David Sheppard Memorial Hillclimb in Lost Trail, Mont., Team Arctic’s high-mountain men and women notched eight class victories aboard their M Series machines, taking wins in the 600, 700, 800 and Open classes.

“Winning a total of 33 classes in the three premier race circuits during a single weekend of competition is a remarkable performance,” said Mike Kloety, Team Arctic Race Manager. “I’d go so far as calling it legendary. It was especially gratifying to see Ryan Simons claim his first season championship, taking the Pro 600 title in USCC. Winning a championship is the dream of all top racers, but it’s an accomplishment experienced by a select few. Ryan and his crew battled through injury to prove their strength and constancy, which is something we’re all proud of.”

BOSS Racing Sponsors Rally Behind Jordan Addis

Press Release
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In early February, BOSS Racing learned the story of a 14 year old snocross fan named Jordan Addis, from Burlington, Wisconsin.

Jordan was diagnosed in June of 2010 with rare T-cell Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia. He received a bone marrow transplant from an anonymous registry donor on January 28, 2011 and spent weeks in intensive care, reeling from the side effects of chemotherapy and radiation.

A co-worker of Jordan’s father reached out to the BOSS Racing team because of Jordan’s love of snocross and motorsports as a whole. The team quickly got to work in rallying its allies and the response has been overwhelming! The initial wave of support came from BOSS sponsors; Lucas Oil, Stud Boy, 509 Goggles, DP Brakes, Wahl Brothers and Ski-Doo.

Within a day, word spread to more industry companies, teams and individual racers. Support came from athletes in Snocross, Hillclimb, Cross-Country and Watercross. Several racers are now running stickers on their sleds to honor Jordan’s fight and carry him to a metaphoric victory.

BOSS Racing has invited Jordan and his family to Lake Geneva for the final round of the ACSS and ISOC Racing has joined us in honoring Jordan ( aka ‘The Boss’) at this event. All of us at BOSS Racing wish to extend our heartfelt thanks to those in the snowmobile industry who have supported Jordan in his fight.

The Boys @ BOSS are looking forward to an exciting weekend of racing in Lake Geneva and a chance to send a message of support to Jordan and his family. Jordan is now recovering at home and in spite of his progress, he still has a long road ahead of him.

2012 SWITCHBACK 136: POLARIS STRETCHED THE RUSH

Staff Report
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2012 SWITCHBACK 136: POLARIS STRETCHED THE RUSH

Although Polaris doesn’t really want us to describe the new Switchback 136 as a “Stretched Rush”, that’s pretty much exactly what it is.

The engineers have done an amazing job of throwing a design curve at the ProRide platform by doing more than just adding a longer track to a very good shock-outside-the-skid design.

What the new 600 and 800 Switchback 136 offers is a four to five-inch longer chassis to accommodate the jump to a longer track.

You can tell the difference when you check out the side view and see the longer running boards and their less abrupt angle at the rear. Also, the rear shock and subframe assembly is more exposed than in the 121-incher.

The look is very balanced and the net result is pretty spectacular. This longer tracked model handles and rides almost exactly like the 121-inch RUSH. While in Montana, some of our testers commented they actually preferred the trail riding qualities of the new 136-incher to the shorter version.

When it comes to off-trail riding, the SW 136 is right at home. In powder snow (there was plenty in West Yellowstone) the sled floats easily and handles dead starts out of the deep stuff without hesitation. Hey, it’s not a mountain sled but neither does it profess to be.

This is a very good definer of what a Crossover snowmobile is intended to be – capable off-trail and a very comfortable, smooth riding sled that handles corners when you’re trail riding.

Read more about our rides on this sled and all the 2012 Polaris models in the Online Edition of Supertrax (Volume 22#5) available right now on ZINIO.COM. Download your copy right now for only $3.99 or subscribe and get 15 issues for only $15.00!

BEST TIME TO BUY A 2012 SKI-DOO IS NOW

Press Release
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With exclusive products, special options, guaranteed best deals and a new premium ownership program, BRP is making this Spring the best time ever to buy a Ski-Doo snowmobile.

Sledders must order a new 2012 Ski-Doo sled before April 17, 2011 to take advantage of all these benefits.

Spring Exclusives

The most exciting 2012 Ski-Doo snowmobiles are only available if ordered during the Spring – most notably the MX Z X-RS and MX Z X-package models with the breakthrough rMotion rear suspension and the Freeride extreme mountain sled, now available in three different track lengths (137, 146 and 154 inches).

The Spring-exclusive sleds are:

– MX Z X-RS
– MX Z X
– Renegade X
– Renegade Backcountry X
– Summit X
– Freeride
– Expedition SE

More Customization Options than Ever

Ordering during the Spring also enables buyers to further customize their sleds. On MX Z X-RS and MX Z X sleds, riders can add the trick Quick Adjust system to the rMotion suspension, putting rear spring preload and shock damping speed controls on the running boards. Many models offer track options, while others can have electric start added.

In all, there are more than 340 configurations for 2012!

And as always, ordering in the spring guarantees a buyer gets a Ski-Doo sled with just the model, package, engine and color they desire – eliminating the chance that their local dealer does not have their dream sled in stock next winter.

Guaranteed Best Deal in 2011

There’s also no reason for consumers to wait to buy in the fall anticipating more generous incentives, as BRP guarantees the Spring offer will be the best deal they will offer in calendar 2011.

If the company offers an incentive or rebate that exceeds the Spring offer,BRP will give the spring buyer a credit for twice the difference.

The marquee incentives are up to three years of engine coverage or up to three years of bumper-to-bumper coverage. Yet consumers have choices, such as free rMotion Quick Adjust system, free electric start and free wrap kits in radical designs from BRP designers.

Elevating the Ownership Experience

BRP and its dealers understand that snowmobilers committing to buy months before taking delivery are special. So those ordering a 2012 Ski-Doo snowmobile during the spring become Platinum owners, a ground-breaking program that takes the ownership experience to a level never before seen in the industry.

Platinum ownership includes guaranteed early delivery, a dedicated BRP customer service hotline, priority dealership service, discounts on riding gear/parts/accessories on store.ski-doo.com, free gifts, VIP invitations to BRP events and more.

For full details on the 2012 Ski-Doo snowmobiles and all these programs, go to www.ski-doo.com.

2011 POLARIS 800 IS A WINNER!

Staff Report
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2011 POLARIS 800 IS A WINNER!

This year’s focus on Ski-Doo’s 800 E-TEC has probably overshadowed the new 800 Cleanfire 2-stroke Polaris introduced for 2011.

We’ve ridden this engine thousands of klicks already this year and we can honestly, without hesitation, endorse it as one of the best engines of 2011.

It’s performance is right there with the E-TEC and, if the EPA info we’ve been getting is correct, this is a super-clean engine too with very little smoke emitted at warm-up and while riding it.

Polaris did a lot of late season and spring testing of this mill in Chile last year and it must have really paid off. The way the motor starts and runs and its consistent uber performance is a big payoff for the extra work the engineers put into it.

We’ve evaluated the engine both in the RUSH and in the Assault Switchback and in all kinds of different temperatures and snow conditions.

Its variation in power output and in the way it runs is nearly nil. We gotta give a big-hats-off to Polaris for this effort.

Certainly, the whiz-bang hype of direct-injection gets a lot more press and sizzle, but this motor is a big breakthrough and will inspire a lot of confidence in the Polaris brand.

SNOWMOBILERS CARE DEEPLY ABOUT TRAILS

Staff Report
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Hey, just when you thought snowmobilers were only concerned about their snowmobiles and nothing else, along comes the results of our most recent online poll.

The question was: “What’s your biggest snowmobiling gripe?” Surprisingly, our readers came back with two answers almost completely unrelated to the snowmobiles we ride! Instead.

89.5-percent said the thing that bugs them most about snowmobiling is other riders who abuse trails. Second on the list at 24.4-percent was a lack of signs on the trails.

This poll result tells us two things: one, snowmobilers are pretty happy with their sleds the way they are – even when it comes to things like windshield choices (16.6-percent), suspension settings (5.03-percent) and absence of electric start (5.03-percent).

The other conclusion was that snowmobilers are out there riding – a lot – and don’t like to see people wrecking the hard work the clubs and volunteers do in keeping trails in good condition. This is a very encouraging result and speaks highly of the level of responsibility snowmobilers feel toward their riding areas.

With this in mind, it sends a clear message to those riders who think it’s okay to mess with signs, trespass, wreck a freshly groomed trail or to make unnecessary moguls by track sliding, track spinning or just goofing off where other people ride.

The message is clear. Grow up and act responsibly or you may find yourself in the middle of a brawl on the trail!

2011 Yamaha Apex SE Review

Mark Lester
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2011 Yamaha Apex SE Review

Motorhead Mark evaluates Yamaha’s 2011 Apex SE featuring the hyper-potent 998cc, 4-cylinder, 4stroke engine.

Engine Braking On Cat’s 1100 4-Stroke

Kent Lester
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Dear Motorhead:

In reference to your articles about the Arctic Cat 1100 4-stroke, how does the engine braking compare to a 2-stroke?

Jon

Reply:

Jon:

That’s a very good question and to be honest with you I never thought about it until I read your email. The answer absolutely has to be that the new ProCross 1100 has a built in engine braking release setup similar to what last year’s Z1 had.

Very little was said about this feature in the AC tech sessions but when riding the sled it freewheels just like a 2-stroke. There’s no “fetch-up” or “over-the-bars” feeling when you let off the throttle – a common reaction with early 4-stroke snowmobiles.

Some of this may be related to or made better by Cat’s new Torq Control Link system that ties the primary and secondary clutches and jackshaft together so the center to center is always constant.

This new feature is really important in making the sled decelerate smoother and particularly when you’re accelerating out of a corner with the clutches partially shifted up. It’s very smooth.

Kent Lester

Should I Upgrade To An E-TEC?

Motorhead Mark Lester
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Dear Motorhead:

Its time to upgrade my 04 MXZX 800HO as it has 15000 kms on it. I’m looking at a barely used (2000km) MXZX 600 E-TEC. Am I nuts, is this too little power and will it be heads and tails better than my previous REV?

I’m 200lbs, and ride southern ontario trails (aggressively) with some ditch banging. Any help or advice you could give would be great, my old sled has been good and I’m affraid of the next generation, but I know its that much better. I had thought of a Renegade with a 600 E-TEC, but thought that would be under powered and really my shortie never left me digging.

Thanks again for the help in advance.

R

Reply:

Thanks for your email!

Okay, you have to decide if you can live with a 125 HP 600 after honing trails with a 150 HP Powertek 800. I can’t do this for you you but I can give you some rationale.

First, the XP chassis is 50 pounds lighter minimum than your “old” original Rev – you get full measure for the 125 HP the E-TEC delivers. The E-TEC is a superb running mill with great manners, excellent power and amazing drive-ability including stupid 20 plus mpg. The chassis handles better than what you’ve got, rides better and is all round more competent than the original Rev. However, you will be going down in power.

In practical terms (when was the last time you met a “practical” snowmobiler?) I would take the new E-TEC 600 over the 800 you’ve got in a heart beat – but I’m not you.

Maybe you should look around for a low mileage 800 E-TEC? That would solve the problem – wouldn’t it?

Hope this helps – and good luck!

Motorhead Mark

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