2021 Arctic Cat Blast and Riot X demo rides at M&M Power Sports

[ezra]

yeah kids sleds,are hard to find in nice shape.
now lets,talk value or what ever was brought up investment lol yeah that was it . in a snomobile conversation no less lmfao investment .
ok any way a new 300 freestyle was like 4200 bucks now 12 yrs later you can't find a nice one for sale and if you do it will cost you 3g.
what is a 12 yr old renegade that was 10g or better going for today ?4grand if you are lucky and it will be for sale for a long long time. investment lol

 

[scoot]

Interesting how people have such strong opinions on what others should buy for the kids/grandkids. I wonder why?
I just sold one of our Kitty Cats for more then I paid for it new, 30 years ago. And I can easily get what I paid for either of our Z120s new, pink or green. I've mentioned before that I've been keeping four mid sized late '70s AC Lynx running for the grandkids for years. This year I called dibs on two new Blasts for next fall delivery. I might even miss mixing premix gas in the overhead tank, twenty gallons at a time.

 

[twistgrip]

I don't know about that . a lot of guys with kids won't think for a second at spending the coin on a true mid size sled for the kid . and a deep snow option to boot the western boys will deff buy those up. you can't put a 10 yr old on a rmk we are in a time when if you ride and buy new,sleds every few yrs you are prob well off and need another excuse to get out of town so 8g to bring the kid with a few times is nothing

I agree 100 percent, I have my 17 year old on a 2020 skidoo 850 154. When I go out of town it doesn't make any sense to have your kid on old iron all the time when you and your buddies are riding new stuff. Trips are to short to worry about breaking down. Besides these kids now a days on these machine ride better then us older guys lol. I am talking about off trail riding if that matters. Wish I was up there I would love to throw a leg over that riot x, looks like it would be a hoot off trail!

 

[chad66]

Not every teenager or younger adult can jump on a full size sled and have full control of it right away and we all know that the gap from a 200 to a 600 is far to great. I hope this turns out to a great model to have in the snowmobile industry. I look forward to to hear from those who ride today...looking forward to riding it myself....hope they have the springs turned up!

Chad@M&M

 

[chad66]

It is an Arctic Cat built engine, basically it's half of the 800 Ctec motor.

 

[1fujifilm]

It is an Arctic Cat built engine, basically it's half of the 800 Ctec motor.

Hello Chad,
Can we ask what one of the Blasts will likely sell for? Not MSRP or an exact quote, but a reasonable market price please.
I believe I have drummed-up quite a few buyers with my opposing viewpoints, maybe I am totally wrong.
I hope they come with checkbooks.

Bear

 

[Eagle River Mike]

better investment? lmfao you are joking right?
go try to find a clean 300 freestyle it will cost you 3g and it will prob be gone before you get there. every one I know who has had a 300 freestyle had a list of guys who wanted it .

I don't think he's talking about a used sled. He's talking about a year-old leftover. This is exactly what I did last spring. I picked up a brand new 2018 Indy 550 for $5200 at Kens. My daughter loves the sled after being on a 2005 Yamaha Venon for the last 3 years. So much easier for her to ride. Way lighter, better handling and better suspension. Sure its a down on power over the Venom but she rides slow. I would say the Indy 550 was a way better deal at $5200 than $8,000 for a AC Blast.

 

[indy_500]

I've called and text and emailed every Indy 340 and Indy lite I seen on Craigslist this year for my kids, I bet over 50 and everyone one was sold with hours.

Agreed. I only wanted a 99-02 indy 340 and I found quite a few and every time I messaged about it there was already somebody on the way. I ended up finding a 99 sport 440 fan a couple weeks ago, which the seat tunnel suspension and track is the same as the 340 but the front half the sled is a normal gen II, kind of unique how they made that model plus its a large enough sled still a small adult could ride it all day. To boot I paid $1200 for it and sold the 20 year old 120 for $1500

 

[old abe]

It is an Arctic Cat built engine, basically it's half of the 800 Ctec motor.

So is this 2 stroke engine a true "Direct Injection", or as the Ctec has now gone to, "SDI", Semi Direct Injection? And a 1 cylinder brings back memories of the Polaris 250 Colt. It would run all day on 3 gal gas, and go anywhere.

Perhaps fuji could be a salesman for Chad now? He is pretty clever on the sales promo's!

 

[kip]

I love the idea of a long track option, that's pretty sweet. Try and find a long track Phazer 485! They love them out west and guys are building them very customized out there!

 

[snowchief]

Agreed. I only wanted a 99-02 indy 340 and I found quite a few and every time I messaged about it there was already somebody on the way. I ended up finding a 99 sport 440 fan a couple weeks ago, which the seat tunnel suspension and track is the same as the 340 but the front half the sled is a normal gen II, kind of unique how they made that model plus its a large enough sled still a small adult could ride it all day. To boot I paid $1200 for it and sold the 20 year old 120 for $1500

Is that 99 an Indy front or gen 2? We got a 97 that has the Indy front and also has the Indy lite suspension in the back it's a little hard for the little guy to turn and his thumb gets sore lol but he'll hopefully hit a growth spurt at some point. It's crazy the money they ask for them 99-02 Indy 340s, we probably called on some of the same ones I had every town from Iowa mn wi and sd on Craigslist

 

[ezra]

for your daughter but how old is she ? would you put your 9 yr old on that Indy?

 

[snowchief]

My daughter is 10 and rides and handles the Indy sport no problems, my boy is 6 and does ok on it but a smaller bodied Indy lite I think would be perfect for him next year, he has a 120 but has been riding that since he was walking and seems to be ready to go up, I have always rode with him when he's driven the sport also, I'm sure like a lot of people I was ripping around on an old ski Doo Olympic 340 when I was 5-8 then jumped up to an late 70 early 80 enticer

 

[goofy600]

My daughter is 10 and rides and handles the Indy sport no problems, my boy is 6 and does ok on it but a smaller bodied Indy lite I think would be perfect for him next year, he has a 120 but has been riding that since he was walking and seems to be ready to go up, I have always rode with him when he's driven the sport also, I'm sure like a lot of people I was ripping around on an old ski Doo Olympic 340 when I was 5-8 then jumped up to an late 70 early 80 enticer

Had my kid on a skidoo citation as at 5 but he was a little on the taller size of kids his age at the time and I still have that sled and is a blast to ride because it is so small and can do 60 to 65 mph. And can be unstuck by just about anyone.

 

[chad66]

I felt we had a great turnout and I'd say 99% great feedback, the 400 is surprisingly quick to 55mph with full size adults on it, I hooked up on some hard pack snow and got it to 69mph in a pretty short distance. The LT 146 rides A LOT better for bigger people than the ZR 121 model. They integrated the primary clutch bearing onto the powerbloc clutch so the belt is tight and no belt deflection(adjusting) needed and gives it nice low engagement. Many adults thought it would be a great sled for their teenagers and wives but would also serve as a good backup sled. On tight twisty trails I think you would shock a lot of people! Obviously on the rail road grades you're not going to keep up with the full size sleds.

All in all, I think it's an awesome package with a lot of potential and it fills a huge void in the currently sled line up.

Chad@M&M

 

[Admin]

Stupid finger injury. I so wanted to try these!

 

[old abe]

Had my kid on a skidoo citation as at 5 but he was a little on the taller size of kids his age at the time and I still have that sled and is a blast to ride because it is so small and can do 60 to 65 mph. And can be unstuck by just about anyone.

Yep, a perfect beginner's sled for sure!

 

[goofy600]

Stupid finger injury. I so wanted to try these!

John, should have went and just pretended you were always giving hand signals by riding one handed. Lol.

 

[indy_500]

Is that 99 an Indy front or gen 2? We got a 97 that has the Indy front and also has the Indy lite suspension in the back it's a little hard for the little guy to turn and his thumb gets sore lol but he'll hopefully hit a growth spurt at some point. It's crazy the money they ask for them 99-02 Indy 340s, we probably called on some of the same ones I had every town from Iowa mn wi and sd on Craigslist

It’s a gen 2 front. He has complained about his thumb but that was only after A LOT of laps LOL

 

[JimAndros]

Today (Fri) & tomorrow Pokegama Lawn & Sports in Grand Rapids, MN have Cat demos. I went today, about 35 degrees & sunny. Rode the Blast LT & ZR both. For all the disbelievers out there, in my opinion, the engine & chassis are both spot on. Ride well, turn on a dime, run excellent, reasonably quiet & have good power. Crossing the east arm of Pokegama Lake, the LT hit 65 MPH one way & 67 the opposite way (head & tail wind). The ZR did 70 & 72 MPH.

Could they be improved; Yes. Are they perfect sleds; No and these are my reasons:
As stated in earlier posts, the switches surrounding the steering column are wrong. I'm OK with the handle bar & thumb heat switches being there. I'm even OK with just on/off (no high/low) but they should be larger and perhaps back lit. Same with the reverse switch. The hi/low headlamp switch should be on the left handle bar! When another sled is coming at you down the trail is not the time to take a hand off the bars & fumble for a switch.
The instrument gauge is hard to see when seated. Not too bad on the ZR but the LT & Mountain versions have a higher riser & a center grab loop. Both make viewing it harder. I'm 5'11", so a smaller person will have a worse view. The fix is to change the center console plastic to raise & tilt the gauge a bit.

Would I recommend buying one? Yes