Someone got my blood boiling the other day. They said, “All the snowmobiling magazines are the same.” We’re not!
Hey, most of our media competitors are good folk. We all get along. Most are knowledgable, hardcore riders. Some of the mags have been around a long time, some less so. Some are family run and some - like us - are part of a large publishing company with a collection of other magazines.
Some mags - like us - concentrate solely on snowmobiling. Some split their focus, and expertise, between snowmobiling, ATVs and/or motorcycles.
Some mags - like us - charge you for their magazine, making YOU our primary customers. Some magazines are free to readers, subsidized by advertisers or government agencies in some cases. THOSE are their primary customers, not you.
It’s true we all accept advertising to help pay the bills. Otherwise we’d have to stick you with a bigger price-tag for a subscription in order to pay for the paper, ink and, well, we all like being paid.
Some magazines adjust their news coverage and opinions of certain products based on the amount of advertising they receive. Sometimes these “unbiased” stories run directly opposite the ad for that product. Hmmm... interesting.
A few - like us - base their coverage on news and honest info. What’s news?
To us, it’s what’s new, different or interesting, not just BNG.
We also know you want, and value, independent info like that in our
Real World Shootout you’ll find, starting on p. 32. There’s truly no bull here. We don’t play favorites in these tests. We don’t doctor the results. Whatever sled is fastest we’ll tell you. Like it or not, these are our results.
We also tell you how to work on your sled, give you high quality tech data, AND where we ride. That’s why we run travel stories like the one about
Alpine, Wyo., on p. 52, in nearly every issue.
We tell you about interesting people and events like the feature on dealer/race team owner/snocross sponsor Ted Nielsen on p. 44.
We write about vintage sleds EVERY issue in our
Backtracks column (p. 58). There is a difference and we thank you for recognizing that for 25 years.
* * *
Finally... the off season is near, but you can keep up with the sled-scene until next fall at www.AmSnow.com. We keep it fresh, even in summer. Sign up for our
e-mail newsletter at the site too or renew your subscription easily online!