redline hits the kill switch

AmSnow has learned that after pausing production of its 800 Revolt this spring due to financial problems, Redline has filed for bankruptcy.

The California-based company declared Chapter 7 bankruptcy Aug. 27. All officers and directors have resigned except for CEO, Mark Payne, who stayed on simply to handle court paperwork, according to reports.

Initially Redline had said the spring pause in production was needed to re-evaluate supplier issues, and AmSnow was told that work was slated to begin again in mid-September. Plans at time were to pump out only the Revolt 800 sled, despite the firm's initial announcement of four models.

Redline reported a loss of $8.8 million in its last fiscal year, which ended in March. This blow seems to have knocked out Redline, despite a $10 million infusion of capital in 2003 at their initial product offering.

Redline had recently hand-picked 53 dealers to represent its sleds, which have boasted incredible engineering emphasis on suspension and performance.

Unfortunately, the company shipped only 54 of the $12,000 sleds to dealers this spring causing more doubt to be cast on the company's future.

Additional money was needed to keep the 25-person company in gear, but it wasn't secured.

Redline shares are no longer trading on the American Stock Exchange, and calls to former Redline representatives have not been returned.