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¦ Shop wet weight and in-field wet weights
For the shop wet weights, we take the sleds as they are, stock, and top them off with fuel, oil and coolant and put them on the scale.
In field wet weight tests, after a three-hour ride in 18 inches of new snow, each sled gets weighed from an old game-hanging roost without brushing any snow off. We received a lot of help from Zbroz, a sled accessory manufacturer, and appreciated their added input and expertise.
Last year, with sticky wet snow, this test showed remarkable differences in weight as the snow that hung onto the sleds was heavy and plentiful. This year, it was blower Utah champagne snow, meaning the snow didn’t stick to the sleds because of its low moisture content. Utah claims to have the best snow on Earth, because it is light and fluffy.
Important Considerations: As a turbo, the Sidewinder burned the most fuel during the ride which most likely contributed to its remarkably low weight gain in the field. However, the Sidewinder also generates more track speed so it is possible this too contributed to the low gain.
The RMK and Summit were within just a few pounds of each other, and as the Ski-Doo had the longer and wider track it would make sense that it would hold a little more weight.
The Alpha proved itself to be a snow-shedding machine. There is simply less for the snow to hold on to with a single beam suspension. Additionally, the single beam helps the Cat with a low starting shop weight, so the innovations Arctic Cat has implemented are multidimensional.
The fleet of snowmobiles this year was nothing short of impressive, and we are still out riding and gathering data. Follow us on your favorite social media platform or AmSnow.com for all the latest action.