Obviously, this pick for my “Can’t Wait…” feature is a complete no-brainer. Everyone who bleeds green and all of the enthusiast media are drooling at the thought of getting a pull on the first fundamentally all-new Arctic Cat since the early 20-Teens.
The sled oozes cool and brings with it a claimed ten percent weight reduction. This claim leads us to believe this all-new platform – the CATALYST – is considerably lighter than former comparable ProCross models.
If this is true then the CATALYST is going to be a bonafide trail rocket in ZR trim. Shedding weight requires huge cost and lots of hard work. To move seriously into the realm of shaving weight is, for sure, a gargantuan task taking significant time and serious jing.
The centralized mass principle employed on the CATALYST chassis (in all its iterations) is paramount to taking advantage of the aforementioned weight reduction.
When the drive axle, jackshaft and crankshaft are in tight proximity to one another, the ability to throw the sled around is greatly improved and the feeling of “oneness” the rider gets with the sled is hugely multiplied.
All these nifty engineering nuances and breakthroughs are more or less expected at this juncture in snowmobile history. However, the more ethereal and visual aspects of the CATALYST platform cause us to break into a cold sweat.
The sled is genuinely radical looking and no one at Larry’s Burger Pit and Poutine will stay inside when you roll up on a CATALYST. You’ll be signing autographs.
The Catalyst has a seriously “pared down”, rationalized look that’s aggressive, serious and threatening – all at once. Simply put it’s a Bad Boy.
We’re hoping to get a chance to ride the CATALYST early in the new year. Yep – we can’t wait!
