who's goin down first?

srx_eh said:
I'd personally like to see more company's dive into the fold (Honda perhaps).
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I'd love to see honda dive in to, 'cause it'd stir up something fierce at big blue. but the realism of the whole thing is that there only appears to be enough marketshare for 3 OEM's at this rate

I agree, the competition is what keeps it all afloat, and without it we'd still be on wooden ski's
 
I don't think any of the remaining OEMs are going anywhere soon. Frankly, in the past few years, the name that I've heard is getting out of sleds has always been Yamaha. I always laugh since Its always whenever I'm in another brand's dealer and it makes me think less of them as business people.
 
ya I've heard alot of rumours about yamaha backing out to, was worried for abit, but with the amount of money they have spent on the new line-ups, they're not going to back out anytime soon, and I don't think we have to worry about YMC going bankrupt anytime soon, lol
 
yea i used to worry about yamaha getting out of it too, especially when they originally started talking about the new emissions regulations, but from what they have displayed in the past year or two, i really dont think they are going anywhere, and they have been gaining market share.
 
I'm not going to publicly speculate on this beyond the point I feel that Yamaha is going to be moving up noticeably. I know what I'm expecting to happen and I'll just shut up and watch and see where it goes.
 
I wonder if Polaris simply got involved in too many other powersports... when they were launching the Victory they really did have a stranglehold on the sled market. But I believe they're in trouble on snow right now and the Fusion, besides being an engineering nightmare (unbearable vibration being, too heavy etc.) really is ugly.

That said, I too would hope nobody folds - I don't miss leafsprings (even when they did have "shocks") or 2 3/4" travel, bogey wheel rears. Competition is good.

Go Blue!
 
I'm glad i never had to experience the agony of the riding a leaf spring/bogey sled on the trails as the only option.
 
my first sled was an 81 excell 3 yamaha. it was a bit bouncy and really didnt handle at all, but seemed like a blast at the time lol!
 
Junior said:
the realism of the whole thing is that there only appears to be enough marketshare for 3 OEM's at this rate
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Let's hope the market share is growing, ...the following is an article from snowest, ...manuf. assoc. so take with a grain of salt.

March 3, 2005
New Folks Are Discovering Snowmobiling
Ed Klim, International Snowmobile Manufacturers Association




--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

This has been a great snowmobiling winter thus far and it's only half way into the season. I have met more new snowmobilers on the trails and in local restaurants than any previous year. It's exhilarating to witness the enthusiasm of new snowmobilers when talking to them at the trailhead while they share their new experiences with you.



We all know the snowmobile industry is competing in the marketplace for our discretionary income. Some surveys show the No. 1 competitor of snowmobiling is the cruise line industry. Many families sit around the table discussing how they will spend their discretionary income. Winter cruises are often on the list, but thankfully many folks are choosing a snowmobile, which is a healthy lifestyle investment encouraging family fun and activity for many years, not just one short week in the middle of the Caribbean.



Recently I met a group of 30-year-olds out snowmobiling for the first time. Our conversation went from snowmobiling to professional hockey. It is an interesting story as to how these young men ended up in the middle of the snow-covered northern woods having the time of their lives. The four guys I met were all hockey fanatics. They've had season tickets for professional hockey games for the past six years and attended every home game. While talking with them, I learned of their displeasure with the NHL "lockout," so they decided to do something else with their money during the winter. Each of the four are frustrated with the NHL. They cancelled their season tickets and went out and purchased new snowmobiles. They noted the season tickets, driving to the game, food, parking and after game festivities cost them each a minimum of $10,000 over the hockey season. The NHL strike and their love of the winter helped them make a common sense decision to invest their NHL budget into some brand new snowmobiles. They now spend weekends getting exercise and enjoying the great outdoors themselves—rather than watch someone else play a game.



Each of these young men were pleased with their decision and wished they had made this decision earlier. Professional sports may be good entertainment but it is getting very expensive and the entertainment value is becoming more questionable with every game. Snowmobiling provides ever-improving equipment, related services and high quality trail grooming. These ex-NHL ticket holders are now supporters of a snowmobile club, members of a snowmobile association and converts to our great winter recreation lifestyle. They claim they will be bringing more of their non-snowmobiling friends with them in the future.



Yes the competition for the winter recreation dollar is challenging. I am happy to let folks know that winters of snowmobiling outperform a week-long cruise or sitting in a sports arena watching multi-millionaires any day.
 
Ouch. As a lifelong fan of both snowmobiling and hockey, I hate the hear that kind of talk coming from "ex" NHL fans. Totally unrelated to the original topic - but that talk should scare Goodenow & Bettman...
 
srx_eh said:
Let's hope the market share is growing, ...the following is an article from snowest, ...manuf. assoc. so take with a grain of salt.

March 3, 2005
New Folks Are Discovering Snowmobiling
Ed Klim, International Snowmobile Manufacturers Association




We all know the snowmobile industry is competing in the marketplace for our discretionary income. Some surveys show the No. 1 competitor of snowmobiling is the cruise line industry. Many families sit around the table discussing how they will spend their discretionary income. Winter cruises are often on the list, but thankfully many folks are choosing a snowmobile, which is a healthy lifestyle investment encouraging family fun and activity for many years, not just one short week in the middle of the Caribbean.
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hmmmmmmm that's a different way of looking at it. I've never looked at snowmobiling as an industry in that light before (as a competitor against other discretionary expenditures) when you put it in that light, maybe the market isn't shrinking, we're just being beaten out of market share by competitors.

thanks for the different point of view.
 
yamaholic22 said:
I'm glad i never had to experience the agony of the riding a leaf spring/bogey sled on the trails as the only option.
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It wasn't that bad. Until we started to get lots of travel and deep lug tracks the trails didn't get as rough quite so fast as they do now. I used to ride a LOT more when I was younger and I remember nothing but fun. I remember one ride in particular that was mondo rough but those trails were never groomed as the sponsoring club didn't have a groomer then. There also was not as many people on the trails back then either. People can say what they want but nothing has necessitated long travel more then deep lug tracks, well that AND traffic volumes. I had lots of fun on my old Exciter leaf springers. I fabricated new shock mounts and stuck a longer (and better) SS 440 rear shock in my Exciter and had custom leafs made that were a bit stiffer and longer travel. If I can talk my brother in law out of his old 84 SS 440 I WILL have a leaf spring/blower sled again too.
 
Well said Jeff, ...I get a real kick out of these ol' schoolers. Whenever I take out the old 73' GP, I get thumbs up from sledders of all brands (nastalgia is greater than brand loyalty).
 
just an update on who's going down.......

so who do you all think is going down now ? From what I've read in the mags it looks as if Polaris isn't going anywhere with all the good reviews they have gotten for 06' models . I was talking to a friend who is a Polaris guy about the new Yamaha and talking them up a bit , he had all these excusses for why he didn't like them , heavy , slow , blah blah blah . Then I told him they weighed 40 lbs more than his equivalent Polaris MNT. sled compared to the 06' Apex he then said well i just don't like 4 strokes , Then he said , " You know whats exciting though" , I said whats that , he said, " the new 135 horse Polaris turbo 4 stroke thats really cool" , As i thought to myself what a DUMB SHIT ! I said to him , LOL , you serious right ? It's just as heavy as a Yami and has less horse power , with the turbo and thats exciting????? He didn't have a smile for long , then I said OH thats right , but it's a POLARIS , right ?
>>>
So I just had to share this experience with this EX FRIEND , I can't be friends with someone that anal retentive and ignorant . What a stupid FUK ! Sorry just had to vent . Seems like everyone I've talked to is Jealous of the new Yamis , (I mean other brand people) , so all they can do is bring up the same stupid shit then when you give them the comparison they all huffy and puffy then have another stupid response . Oh how I'll be saying I told you so in a few years when you see as many Yamis as DOO-DOOs on the trails or mountains . I ecspecially don't care for the most of them (doo-doo riders) . I can't wait to get the Apex MNT> and put them to shame with my "lead sled" , as they call it ....... LMFAO . Thats all :yam:
 
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I have an engineer friend who loves polaris. you know why??? he says they come apart easy so he can tinker and modify. he thinks yamaha is pretty nice though, he ORDERED an apex GT. says from an engineering standpoint that the fusion is a complete flop. he is a smart and well educated man, thats why he says the new yamahas are well made and an engineering feat :)
 
03viperguy said:
I have an engineer friend who loves polaris. you know why??? he says they come apart easy so he can tinker and modify. he thinks yamaha is pretty nice though, he ORDERED an apex GT. says from an engineering standpoint that the fusion is a complete flop. he is a smart and well educated man, thats why he says the new yamahas are well made and an engineering feat :)
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I have an mech engineer friend who only rides yamaha and has since the early 70`s.he still has his first sled in perfect condition 74 gpx 338.he is the best tuner i have ever met.I grew up driving the old leafies ,they taught u how to ride and how to take the bumps todays sleds are far more forgiving :yam:
 
isnt it nice knowing someone that REALLY knows there stuff?? my friend started and still runs a dyno company and supplies all 4 manufactures and a LOT of the aftermarket guys with dynos :) he has been doing it long enough that if I ever have a question of whether or not something works, he KNOWS. he has truly been there and done that! he has even made a fuel injection setup for his drag sled, burns his own chips and programs for it, and runs it off a camcorder battery :) soooo neat to listen to him talk of his past and current ventures in tuning. he told me a few days ago about his first sled he really tuned. had a polaris 500 tripple, made it up to 112hp on dyno and it was his trail sled :) done a few setups for world records too. enough babling, just saying it is neat to hear cool stories from people that you KNOW they know what they are talking about :)
 
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