Ride Rasmussen Style

Boss Seat

2011-12-27T06:23:00.000-08:00

Let me introduce the new Rasmussen Backcountry seat!

This is still the preproduction version weighing less than 3 lbs. The production seat will be lighter than this since we have a double seat base. This seat is a full 4 inches shorter than the OEM seat and I have freedom to move my legs! I don't feel like I have shackles on my legs any more. I have been riding always in fear that I would trip up on the seat when transferring side to side, because I did every time. This is a dream to ride with, makes transferring across the seat easy and not to bad to sit on either. It includes a small storage compartment. The production version will also have an additional compartment taking up the wedge shaped space at the rear of the seat. The Stud Grip fabric works excellent to pull against with my HMK Team Boa Focus boot as well. You will want to get your Rasmussen Backcountry seat on order today, expect shipments to start late next week. Also if you are waiting for the M8 version it will also be out shortly. Call Boss directly at 801-794-0307. You will be a better rider for purchasing this seat.

Ski Swing Upgrade

2011-12-26T09:42:00.000-08:00

OK...I am ecstatic about the improvements to my ProClimbs M800's. I want to tell you about the ski swing upgrade on the vertical adjustable post models. I am increasing the swing on the skis by 18 degrees when measuring from full stop to full stop. I don't feel like I have dramatically increased steering effort although by speeding up the skis I am sure the steering effort has increased some, I cannot feel it though. Without the upgrade I cannot keep the sled balanced to traverse a side hill let alone turn around in the paring lot. I have no control, I am continually fighting to keep the sled going in the direction I want. The sled seems to want to high side me at any moment. When looping out from a climb I have found myself not able to steer sharp enough to keep the sled in the turn and ultimately rolling the sled.

After in stalling the piece in the bottom of the long steering post I can easily traverse a side hill due the fact that now i can counter steer enough to balance the sled. Instantly my ability to balance the sled comes back. Control and precision in my maneuvers are back.

This shows the steering post ready to reinstall in the sled.

This is the steering post before installing machined piece. It is the bottom end of the long post. It bolts to the lower right of the frame underneath and to the right of the throttle bodies. Not to difficult to get out, but must be removed so that the hole can be re drilled for the tie rod end to be reinstalled in the new arm.

This is the piece that extends the arm and increases the tie travel to turn the skis further.

Back side showing recess machined for the ball joint to be installed. I am seeing some of the ball joints coming loose from the factory because they weren't indexed right.

Installed and ready to be drilled.

I choose to modify this arm because I think it is the easiest and most consistent way to duplicate the dimensions. Zbros will be offering a complete replacement steering post that accomplishes the same thing. We could offer a new bell crank, this would require airbox and throttle body removal and add much more work to the process. Another way would be to relocate the holes in the spindles closer to the center pivot. There is no good way to be consistent with this hole location outside of removing the spindles and jigging them in a mill. I believe I have come up with the easiest method with the arm extension. I have been riding this for several weeks and know that it is strong enough and that it works.

Because I have limited time and am away most of the time I suggest that anyone interested purchase this directly from the machine shop. Contact Mountain Valley Machine at 435-563-3632 or their web site www.mvminc.biz. Ask for the Rasmussen steering arm extender. Sells for $95 and includes all hardware needed for installation.

I have tested this on the lay down style post like the 1100t uses. It seems to make the steering feel more twitchy on the trail. I get this feeling anyway with the laydown steering post. It does improve the turning radius and also helps to balance the sled, but the real problem with this steering geometry is that it is not ergonomically correct for stand up mountain riding. Arctic Cat is offering an accessory vertical steering post upgrade. I wonder when mine will come!

Redneck Handlebar Lowering System

2011-12-03T19:34:00.001-08:00

I know, I know, everyone wants high rise bar risers. Well for those of you who are vertically challenged such as me (I am 5' 9"). I devised a clever way to lower the bar height and keep the adjustable steering post. Using parts that I acquired from RSI, I ended up with my bars 1.5" lower and about 1.25" rearward. It will be interesting to see how this works, I feel like I am a little to far forward and this just might make the difference I am looking for. Another benefit might be that when counter steering the bars will allow the rider to be positioned farther away from the center line of the sled giving him more leverage.

I used the 2" pivot risers on a pivot tube that is mounted in the stock handlebar location. Then I pivoted the risers back and down and slid the tapered RSI bars through. Doesn't look so bad either. I can tell you that it even feels much better in the shop compared to the OEM version.

Replaced the throttle block with the RSI version as well. Looks much cleaner, notice the reverse and shut off switches next to the throttle block. Now I need to ditch the switch block on the left side and install some dash mounted heater switches. The smaller diameter grips feel great.

Intake Air Ducting

2011-11-26T21:47:00.001-08:00

The air intake on the ProClimb does an exceptionally good job. It is located in the most logical place to prevent blocking with snow. It even pulls air from underneath so that snow can't pile up and block it that way. Unfortunately, the engine is a reverse flow design and the throttle bodies are on the front of the engine so the ducting has to run from behind the windshield all the way over the engine and down to feed the throttle bodies. The ducting is an integral part of the hood design, so it makes modifying somewhat complicated. I disassembled the hood to find out what was going on in there to create so much weight. Including the windshield, windshield bag, speedometer, headlights, wiring harness and miscellaneous other plastic parts the assembly weighs in at 21.3 pounds.

This is the baffling inside the air box used to restrict noise coming back to the operator. Not really a good way that i know of to remove the baffles.

This is what it looks like after my handy work. I left a few of the baffles in place to allow reassembly using the strategically places screw stand outs. Once I had it completely assembled I found that I was only able to reduce the weight by 1.3 pounds. The assembly now weighs 20.6 pounds. There certainly is and probably are some after market companies that are going to offer some kind of light weight filter kit to replace all of this. The problem is that if the intake air is pulled from in front of the sled it will have a very inconsistent air supply due to submarining in the snow. Outside of a turbocharger kit I am not willing to accept an intake system that doesn't pull air from the right place, behind the windshield. I'll be riding this week so I can report if there is any undesirable noise associated with this modification.

Update

2011-11-22T07:31:00.001-08:00

I have been frantically working with vendors to develop components to enhance the sled and its handling characteristics in the back country. First, Boss has nearly completed the seat project and you can expect to see pictures very soon. Yes Boss is currently taking orders and should be able to ship product by mid December. This will be a unique product in function and comfort, even has storage!
Zbros are working on the new steering post and I expect this by the 1st of Dec. It will have a "T" top design and I am working with RSI to provide bars and bar risers. This will allow a lot of adjust ability as in fore and aft positioning and using different risers will allow higher and lower bar height adjustment. The post is designed to use a 5" riser to maintain stock bar height at the lowest setting. I will be using a 3" riser resulting in a two inch lower bar height.
With the ski swing issue Zbros are also working on this project. I have tested the prototype pieces and waiting for the production stuff. The skis now turn a full 74 degrees just like the M series chassis does. This WILL make a huge difference in the back country ability of the sled.
I will be posting pictures as soon as i have product, stay tuned!

Running Boards

2011-11-10T06:05:00.001-08:00

I received some running board inserts from Eric at Fast Lane the other day. These are of a composite design and are extremely easy to clean. Snow and ice simply will not stick to this product. If snow piles up on the boards it is just a matter of stepping down and the snow is gone.

Because of the thickness of this product it takes away the feel of the running board edge and because the edge is still metallic it will tend to ice up. For the 2009 to 2011 M series I developed and designed a product that would enhance Fast Lane's foot bed insert. By adding a composite piece to the edge it raises the edge and gives me back the feel I lost from the thickness of the foot bed.

These pieces work very well together and are available on my store at www.riderasmussenstyle.com. The problem I am faced with on the ProClimb, because I am cautiously trying to enhance and improve the sled for my style of back country riding, I believe the running board width is to much. In measuring out the dimensions I find by measuring from the outside to the outside of each running board I am almost 3 inches wider than the M series. Because of the double thickness design of the tunnel sides and the extra width of the running boards themselves the overall width is excessive. What this creates is a problem when traversing an extreme side hill by pulling the track out of the snow when the running board edge contacts the snow. Of course a narrower design won't contact the snow as early therefor allowing a steeper slope to be traversed.

I will be working to develop a product that will replace the entire board with a narrower and composite design. I expect the narrower board to pull the side plastic in and make the front of the sled narrower as well.

SLP Silencer

2011-11-05T08:26:00.000-07:00

The good guys at Starting Line Products have hooked me up with exhaust silencers to replace the OEM resonator on all of my non turbocharged sleds. This piece fits exceptionally well and is quiet with a slightly deeper tone than factory. It comes with a powder coated ceramic finish that resists rust and looks nice, it also helps to keep the heat in the exhaust system and not under the hood. Most exciting is the weight reduction! I weighed the stock piece as you saw in a previuos post at 20.8#. This time I weighed it complete with hardware and mounting components at 21# even. The SLP silencer comes in at 9# including all the necessary mounting pieces for a total weight savings of 12#.

Three Priorities

2011-10-30T19:52:00.000-07:00

So...I have identified three priorities that I think I will need to address with my ProClimb's before it snows. First is the steering post height, to suit my ride style and compliment performance in the really technical riding I need to loose 2" of handlebar height. Granted if I am tooling around in moderate terrain with both skis down on the snow I will be more comfortable with a taller steering post, but where is the challenge in that? Second is seat height. This a no brainer, if I am walking back and forth over my high rise seat I'll be worn out by lunch time. I'll go without the seat before I let this happen! Third, Ski swing. Let me say that in this blog I am critiquing each component of the sled in such a way that it will allow me even the slightest edge. I make my living on this sled and I like anyone else would like to make each day at work as easy as possible. Thus subtle changes to my sled make a big difference in day to day life for me. For the average rider it will be less noticeable. I need the skis to swing further even at the expense of increased steering effort.

In addition to these changes I'll be reducing weight as much as I can. This is no different than I have been doing on all of my sleds for the last 30 or so years. It's what I do and as readers I hope you will find it interesting at least and entertaining at most. I don't intend nor expect for everybody to do everything just the way I do, but when you run into a situation with your new ProClimb that you are uncomfortable with, maybe this blog will shed a little light and give you an understanding of what you are experiencing. Additionally as I get time on the snow to develop ProClimb products that suit my ride style, I will share this information.

Actually the wrap is the highest priority!!

Steering/Ski Swing

2011-10-29T21:11:00.000-07:00

Due to excessive steering effort on the M series Arctic Cat slowed down the ski swing on the ProClimb by putting more leverage advantage into the steering linkage geometry. The steering effort is very low and easy on my arms, problem is that when I need counter steer advantage while in steep terrain to maintain balance during a side hill maneuver, it's not there. The skis simply do not swing far enough. The M series skis turn a full 25 degrees from lock to lock as the image below indcates, the angle iron is parallel with and along side the track.

The next image shows the ProClimb skis at full lock, this represents 16 degrees stop to stop.

As you can easily see the difference of 9 degrees, this is a big sacrifice to me for less steering effort. For the extreme terrain that i have to maneuver in I must be able to swing the skis further than the 16 degrees offered by the ProClimb. The fix is easy really, I've just got to figure out how far to move the hole in the arm on the steering post. Wish I would have paid more attention in geometry and trigonometry!

The image above shows the lower steering post with the hole for the ball joint. This hole will need to be moved outward to speed the ski swing up and increase the stop to stop radius. It's the distance that I need to move the hole that I haven't figured out yet. I am going to start with a full hole and see where that gets me. Hope to have this done in the next day or two.

Having the skis swing further faster will allow me to control the sled in steep terrain by keeping it balanced and on edge. While the sled is on edge I have control of direction and speed and ultimately allowing me to complete a line without disaster.

Just to be clear, most riders, probably 95% won't know the difference. I'm just saying that i will need the skis to swing further for my taste. Remember why Cat did it, to reduce steering effort. That is what most riders are interested in. The ProClimb steers 8 degrees each way as near as i could measure. Point is I am missing 9 degrees from my prior sled.

EPA

2011-10-26T09:55:00.000-07:00

So this is what the government is doing to protect us from ourselves! 20.8#

Steering Post

2011-10-19T06:41:00.000-07:00

The industry trend is to endorse the ape hanger style handle bars. What is this all about, I'm not on a chopper. I simply want a functional, ergonomically correct snow vehicle that allows me to ride back country w/o fighting against the grain. It should be a wonderful experience carving through the tress and over the modulating terrain all while totally in control of the sled. The bar height on the ProClimb with the vertical steering post is a full 2" too high for my preference. In Arctic Cat's defence the RMK Pro from Polaris has the same problem. Even Chris Burandt modifies his sleds by lowering the bars. This sounds somewhat odd, but if you want to be a better rider you must ride with bars at the correct height. Standing with your feet rear of the stirrups with slightly bent knees your elbows should be straight while holding the handlebar grips.

This shows the vertical post in it's lower position.

This is a front view showing the linkage between the vertical post and the horizontal post. Not really horizontal, but for purpose of discussion I'll refer to it this way. The standard model ProClimb uses only the horizontal portion with the handle bar mounted directly at the end of the extended shaft, similar to the Ski Doo design.

This image shows both the horizontal and vertical shafts removed. The adjustable vertical shaft is substantial in weight. I'm thinking that I might pay a visit to Zbros and discuss the possibility of building a shorter non adjustable shaft in the interest of weight reduction. This will better conform to the discipline of back country mountain riding, Rasmussen Style!

Seat Height

2011-10-14T01:05:00.000-07:00

So I know that my short seat design is not for everyone, I'm talking about the Ryan Harris types here! For the average back country, off trail rider, he is going to need to get across the seat in a hurry and without waisting a lot of energy. It seems that the industry trend in mountain sleds is to build taller and taller seats, it's almost to the point that I don't even have to sit, the seat is that tall. I am 5' 9", not the tallest guy in the world i admit, but also not the shortest either. For trail riding the taller seats are fine. For off trail I really don't need a seat but it does come in handy for lunch time. As I said earlier i need the seat out of my way enough that i don't trip up on it while crossing over and if i have done about three in a row of the patented Burandt hop overs I am not going to get another one pulled off if I have to jump that seat hurdle again. It's to much work. So...my 2011 Boss designed seat measures 16.5" from the running board to the top of the seat at a point 19" behind the steering post.

This Rasmussen/Boss seat is 3" lower than the stock Arctic Cat seat.

This shows the oem seat. It can be argued that the rider can swing his leg around the back of the seat. Most of the time it doesn't work.

The 2012 ProClimb seat shown here is another inch taller than the 2011 M series seat. highest yet at 20.5". It weighs in at 9.6#. My 2011 Boss seat comes in at 4.5#.

So the challenge here is ti get the seat height down and keep the fuel tank! Previous models didn't have the tank running full length under the seat. My goal is to create a seat that will be as low as my 2011 Boss seat and not feel like i am sitting on a 2 x 4. The nice thing is that it surely will be light, cause there won't be much to it. I'm going to get Jim Atherly on the phone right away, there is no time to waist. I am thinking 2#! Can it be done?

Complete with stomp grip and a nifty fold out storage compartment this Rasmussen/Boss creation weighs a total of 4.5#, I can get over the top repeatedly and it is still comfortable to sit on.

Shown with the storage compartment stowed.

This seat is available and I am currently taking orders.

Chain Case Cover

2011-10-11T08:30:00.000-07:00

As I look at the sled I am looking at every part that could possibly save a few ounces. Starting with the chain case cover/oil tank, it looks large and bulky. In Arctic Cats defense they have used a real high tech material in magnesium which makes it very light. My problem is that I don't need a 4 quart oil reservoir for 2 cycle oil. Knowing that this is the same tank used on the four stroke version as a storage reservoir for the crankcase oil, due to their dry sump crankcase system, I believe that I can reduce the volume by 2 quarts or at least a quart and a half. I typical day ride never takes more than two quarts of oil. Just need to make sure that it is topped off each and every time I ride. Each quart of oil weighs 1.75#.

This piece is tucked in between the resonator and the foot stirrup and takes up all of the space.

This view shows the tank with plastic and resonator removed.

This shows the chain case cover that I received from Black Diamond Xtreme for my project. This is a billet aluminum piece weighing 1.7# compared to the 4.7# of the magnesium cover and tank. As you can see it will include the mounting area for the speedometer pick up unit. My molded plastic oil tank will be mounted high on the cover...hmm better get a hold of Seth at Trail Tanks for this project. Also you will notice there will adequate room for my tunnel exit exhaust.

4.7# for the oem cover/tank and 1.7# for the billet aluminum. The production piece will also be magnesium and should bring the final weight closer to 1#.

Each piece is weighed at 2.5# for the tank and 2.2# for the cover.

The sleds are here

2011-10-06T20:40:00.000-07:00

Been a while since I posted, but it has been summer and the backcountry riding is a little rough. I have received my ProClimb M 800's. All 153's. My plan is to disect the sleds and determine piece by piece which parts can stand to lose some weight. I'll be looking at chassis parts, suspension parts, shafts, plastic pieces and feul tank and seat. Hopefully I can find time to update every day or two.

Agilety and Nimbleness

2011-04-22T00:34:00.000-07:00

I would like to address the nimbleness of the new Proclimb chassis. Because of the higher center of gravity and more centralized mass the sled is much easier to move. In an attempt to explain, I will start by saying that any mass, if the weight is distributed equally will change direction at a given rate. If the weight is concentrated at the ends or outer reaches of the mass it will naturally resist the ability to change direction; on the other hand if the weight or mass is concentrated centrally, the ability to change direction is greatly improved. This is where we have a great advantage with the new mountain chassis, because the heavy components, the engine, the fuel cell and the cooling system and even the rider are all moved to a more central location. This is why we have a more agile and easier to move sled. Personally I prefer the 153” track over the 162” for the same reason. The 162” only lays 4.5” more rubber on the ground, but this puts the rear axle 4.5” further away from the center point of the sled and effectively slows down the willingness of the sled the move. This of course requires more rider input will tire the rider sooner.

This leads me to the higher center of gravity issue. Arctic Cat chose to change back to the traditional chaincase drive system as opposed to the gear drive unit we have enjoyed for several years. The most noticeable characteristic that I see here is in fact the higher cg, so how does this affect the sled and its balance? I find that initially the sled is easier to tip or roll up to its edge, the down side is that the balance point is somewhat smaller and makes the sled a little less forgiving. For advanced riders that can keep up with the sled this can actually be a benefit. It’s when I get behind the sled I find that it is much harder to catch up to or when I make a mistake I may not be able to recover as easy as with the M series. For this reason I am forced to ride more aggressively and ride ahead of the sled, this requires that I anticipate more of what the sled will be doing before I get there. Accordingly I then can set myself up to react to what I expect will happen next.

So then what is the real reason that we have a chain case? Primarily due to the Torque Control Link (TCL). Incorporating the TCL with the gear drive system was not possible. The TCL greatly improves belt life by reducing clutch misalignment. Now the engine and driven shaft are mechanically separated , when the engine torques under acceleration the driven shaft must move with it. The clutch center distance cannot change and parallelism is maintained. As well as belt life, the engine feels rippier also. Because the clutch center distance cannot change, the track is driven more positively and responds quicker to throttle input.

Other features include a larger 10.75” driven clutch, magnesium case construction and longer clutch center distance.

I am not sure yet where we stand as far as weight savings, but I will be reporting on this as soon as I have some time to do some disassembly and weighing of componets.

Air intake

2011-04-08T00:38:00.000-07:00

I am on a plane to Svalbard, Norway and thought I would report some more of my ride evaluation thoughts.

The air intake on the Proclimb is very effective in deep powder snow. I certainly had occasion to test this as for two weeks I floundered around in over the hood snow. My conclusion is that by pulling air from the higher portion of the cowling is as good as it gets. The original design pulled air from the console in front of the handle bars in such a manner that air fed downward through a finely messed screen. This allowed snow to sit on the screen and restrict the air flow. The final design uses this besides adding intake screening underneath the plenum, this improvement allows the snow to fall away and air flow is no longer restricted. This design allows as well for the operator to easily brush the snow off the top screen as he is riding.

As for the exhaust outlet I was impressed with very little restriction from snow blockage. When in the deep snow I expected some blocking of the exhaust outlet, but encountered zero. This is the situation that would create a problem because when I need to count on the sled to preform enough to get me out of trouble before getting stuck, I need to trust that the sled will perform. It has a bottom outlet as opposed to the front outlet found on the M series which worked very well. I found in heavy, almost slushy conditions with enough snow to sink to the side panel, I could create a condition where the sled would hesitate or lose power when side hilling on the right. I encountered this only on one day and it did not cause me any stucks.

1100t compared to the M1000

2011-04-03T08:14:00.000-07:00

I don't think that it would be a fair comparison, the 1100t against the M1000. A 4 stroke turbo against a naturally aspirated 2 stroke. OK, I'll compare them anyway. The M1000 in the old chassis was by many deemed heavy, to heavy. That's why the M8 continued to take sales away from the M1000, the 8 was considerable lighter and almost as much power, so the 8 had a better power to weight ratio. In the new comparison the 1100t even has a better power to weight ratio than the old comparison. The 2 stroke engine is allot rippier, but runs out of power. The 4 stroke has much more power when it starts to come up on boost and accelerates all the way up the hill, but I find i am waiting for it at low speeds. I have learned to work the throttle in such a way that i can keep the boost up at low speeds and then it is quicker to accelerate. The 1100t is a power house in the deep snow and if you can keep the momentum up there will be no stopping it. Many Nytro and Apex owners will find this package very attractive as it is much lighter and being turbocharged will deliver much more power. The M1000 simply will not perform against the horse power of the 1100t. I expect that we will see a number of after market suppliers getting creative with light weight components for this sled allowing an even stronger power to weight ratio. The Proclimb 1100t is balanced very well with a much better centralized mass than the competition. If you preferr the steering can be converted to a vertical post. And it is easy to add horse power dependably.

It's hard to think about summer activities when I have all this snow.

2011-04-01T21:08:00.000-07:00

I stopped by the consumer show in Boise, ID last night and talked sled talk with 100's of people. Had a great time and answered a lot of questions. Everyone was interested in the new Proclimb chassis, the 800 two stroke as well as the 1100 turbo. Based on the comments i think we'll be seeing alot of 1100t's on the snow next year. So...the most often asked questions. 1. How does it compare to the 2011 M8? 2. How does the 1100t compare to the M1000? 3. How much power is the 1100t capable of? 4. Can i get the 1100t a verticle steering post? 5. Do the tall spindles hinder the deep snow performance? 6. An problems with capping the exhaust off? 7. How about the air intake, how well does it work? 8. Why did Chris Burandt switch to Polaris? 9. Why did Arctic Cat loose the Diamond drive? 10. Has anyone turboed the 800 yet? I will answer these questions and more during the next few days. Check back tomorrow.

Deep snow action.

2011-03-30T07:25:00.000-07:00

Go to this link for 2012 Proclimb in action.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AFqOm5th6_Y

2011-03-29T21:56:00.000-07:00

Are you kidding, thats a lot of snow!!

It just keeps snowing

2011-03-29T08:49:00.000-07:00

I'll be at the consumer show in Boise on Thursday courtesy of Loyal at Moto Tech. Hope to see you all there and answer questions regarding the new sleds

Proclimb 800

2011-03-28T07:56:00.000-07:00

Great snow and awesome sled.

300 mile update

2011-03-28T06:20:00.000-07:00

After a couple of days rest I thought I should comment on the general performance of the new mountain sleds from Arctic Cat. The 800 cc two stroke is outstanding. Very dependable and apparently it likes to be pressure charged based on Tapios performance at the Jackson World Championship Snowmobile Hill Climb. Tapios were running Boondocker turbochargers. The report I received is that they are considerably faster on the new chassis with less boost than on the old chassis, I'll try to follow up on this with some boost numbers.
My sleds had over 1000 miles on them when i picked them up and plenty of riders had previously shaken them out. I don't think that anyone ran them as hard as I did given that we were riding in a couple feet of new snow each day. I pushed both sleds extremely hard in the deep snow and extreme terrain. I have to say that they come out in reasonably good shape. Only lost the 800 once and the tree could have been a lot harder on it, a little bit of duct tape and i was on my way again.
As I reported earlier the suspension is second to none, absolutely remarkable. Might play around with some different settings on the shock pressures if I get enough time. I would like to see a little more firmness on the front end to improve the cornering on the trail.
With the help of the Power Claw track the sled seems to get up on the snow just fine. Being in fresh snow as we were this can be a big challenge, the sled was predictable in this sense and didn't trench out until I completely lost momentum. At this point it was easy to turn out and save a stuck for someone else.
I felt that i could build more track speed than the old M series, the sled definitely has more legs and can build more speed on a run in to the hill. This has got to come from the drive train being more efficient at higher speeds.
I enjoy the running board width. Plenty of room for even the biggest of feet, easier to clean than the M series and I like being able to get further forward on the sled. The stirrups allow the rider to get forward in line with the track drive shaft. The instrument mounting is great. I can actually see the thing from a stand up riding position. Arctic is using the same controls as the M series, OK but I am finding the hand and thumb warmers are continually being shut off when I lean forward. This is an easy fix however, Arctic offers an accessory switch guard to protect the warmer switches as well as the emergency shut off switch from being shut off inadvertently. Mountain handle on the handlebars functions well. I like how the master cylinder reservoir is located below the highest point on the handlebar. This offers some protection from damage when the sled is upside down. Skis are good, the addition of the traction nubs on top of the ribs are nice for the times when i find myself trying to stand on the ski to help right the chassis. Ski loops allow both hands to pull without pinching fingers, great idea.
I've been reminded that some riders prefer the horizontal steering post as it comes on the 1100t and the standard model 800. Tapios prefer the over the motor post for uphill racing and do very well by it. I agree that if your ride technique causes you to generally be straddle of the seat as opposed to both feet on the same running board then the horizontal post will work just fine. It's the extremely steep and technical terrain that when the rider finds himself on one running board or the other that the vertical post makes a huge difference. Over the last several years i have converted a number of Ski Doo riders to the vertical post concept, and I must say it did not come easy. However after giving it a chance those riders, you know who you are, can push harder in steeper terrain. I am not saying that the vertical post is for everyone, but I am saying that you have a choice. Arctic Cat is offering the vertical post kit as an accessory item for those models that don't come from the factory so equipped.
Got to run for now, still working on pictures.

North Murphy

2011-03-26T00:41:00.000-07:00

So we had another 18" of snow on top of what we already had. How can we be getting all this snow so late in the year? It's so awesome to have this kind of snow to test the 2012 sleds in.The Arctic Cat mountain sleds have never been known as having extremely plush suspesion. Things have obviously changed with this sled. Thanks to the suspension team at Arctic with asistance from Todd Tupper, this sled rocks in the bumps. The trail into North Murphy is about 8 miles of rough moguls. First section is wide groomed chop about 8 - 10 inches. The M 800 will eat these up comfortabley at 90 MPH plus. Got to say I was pleasantly surprised. The next section is a narrow groomed trail with 18 inch chop. This ca be negotiated at 40 MPH with out any feed back from the handlebars nor any kick or bottom out from the skid. next we experienced a single wide ugroomed section with 2 1/2 foot bumps. This was much slower and I could bottom out when pushing to hard. However, much better than anything I have ever ridden from the factory.The one issue was cornering at speed in any one of these situations, the sled tends to roll. Not to much of a problem to deal with, after all it's not designed to be a trail sled.
Comparing to Chris Burandts' new Polaris RMK Pro, I saw no difference in performance in a powder hill climb. It was who ever got the best line.

Prater Canyon

2011-03-25T00:04:00.000-07:00

Today was epic. More new snow and the Pro Climb M 800 did not fail. Powers through the deep powder covered slopes with ease. Can't wait to get this baby turboed up cause there will be nothing stopping it. I like how the sled tips up with little effort, rider position is forward and i don't have to crowd the handlebars like when on the M series. It's time to sign off so i can get rested up for tomorrow because I've got to school Burandt.

Black Mountain Ride 2k

2011-03-23T23:24:00.000-07:00

It's good that Tony brought a paper towel to wipe the smile off my face. You Cat fans who are ready for an upgrade can rest assured that this will qualify for your next ride. I spent all day and about 48 miles in deep heavy,power robbing snow. Ran out of gas twice and nevr got more than ten miles from the truck. I stayed in the trees all day long hill climbs, descents, side hills, down hill u turns. and i must have been pinned nonstop. The Pro climb 800 is easy to transition to, after you find gthe balance point, the rest falls into place. The 800 cc powerplant is the same old dependable package that Cat has has used since '10. I think the torque link between the engine and the jackshaft is what makes the engine so rippy, now the track will spin imedaitly instead of the engine rocking back.
Going to get some video done tomorrow. Maybe get some pictures and video posted when i get better internet service. Got to go now. Check back for report tomorrow.

Black Mountain Ride

2011-03-22T22:56:00.000-07:00

I've got to tell you, I am taking everything back that I have ever said about four strokes. This thing rips. Three feet of fresh powder and point the 1100 t at a hill and nothing had bettter get in it's way cause there is nothing stopping this boosted Cat. Up hill through the trees and around the side hill as well. A stock M8 is not going to negotiate the three foot trench it leaves nor will the M8 follow making it's own track. I guess that shows the difference in the boosted horse power rating of 177 against the M8's altitude ajusted horse power rating of about 125 or 130(estimated of course). Now a boosted M8 might show a different result, but that is not what we are talking about here. What I am talking about is that this 1100 4 stroke has got some serious potential. I wonder what the possibilities are with a Boondocker Hijacker box? Rocky, are you listening?

OK, now I've got to get a little critical. The horizonal steering sucks if I can be brutally honest! The sled has some power, doesn't come some extra pounds. The steering just makes it feel heavier than it really is. I've been told that maybe Arctic Cat is releasing an accessory verticle post kit. I've got one thing to say, awesome. If those engineers put their minds to it they can come up with pretty cool stuff. I am sure that this sled would be veery managable with this upgrade. The thing is the horizontal steering is not ergnomically correct and it wore me down in a hurry, not to mention the damage it does to my elbows during a side hill manuever. So how about it, have you guys at Arctic got a post for my sled so we can put this to rest. Really this is what makes the difference in a mountain sled and a sit down trail sled. Which brings up the next issue, the seat. I know, I know,consumer demand has been for high rise seats and they have been getting higher and higher each year. So lets ask mountain consumers since this is a mounatin sled and this should return a different result. I found that i was tripping over the seat all day long. This takes alot of extra energy and wear a guy down in a hurry especially if you find yourself fighting the steering as well. Now I am certainly not a short guy, but I am not real tall either. My inseam is 31", 32" with cowboy boots on and I am sure the 6'4" and taller crowd will be just fine with the stock seat(I'm talking about you Ryan Harris). Don't worry, for those of you who are interested I will for sure have a Rasmussen backcountry seat available for your new ride.

I had a few guys out today to help with the shake down, among them was my good friend and protege' Tony Jenkins. He has been on a M8 turbo all year and I got to tell you that he wasn't just a little bit impressed. Infact he rode it for most of the day. The1100t came with no fuel for reserve, i guess you have got to feed the power.

Check back tomorrow for a report on the Pro Climb 800.

Picked up new 2012 Cats today

2011-03-21T21:29:00.000-07:00

So...Arctic Cat sent me a Proclimb M800 162" and HCR 1100 turbo 162" to do some testing and evaluation with. I think I'll head over to Alpine, Wy tomorrow and shake them out a bit. I have had a lot of inquiries as to how the new sleds work. Now I hope to be able to let everyone know first hand how I feel about the Proclimb chassis. Everything is new except maybe the 800 2-stroke engine and of course the Power Claw track. What I know is that the suspension rocks in the bumps, the 800 mill is snappier and even pulls harder on the big end. Oh ya, the 1100 turbo is fast on the long pulls, we'll see how it plays out in the technical stuff. Stay tuned for more info coming soon.

Bret