Peer Pressure and Your Sled Choice

[skiroule]

OK, I'm looking for the straight scoop here.

I'm curious about the amount of peer pressure you've experienced regarding your choice of sled brands, whether it be from friends, relatives, whomever, and whether or not it had an effect. This pressure can range from good nature'd ribbing to downright mean-spirited comments - I've experienced both.

I ask because I came from Polaris country and owned Polaris for many years but switched to another brand (Ski-Doo) in 2004. Even though I felt that at the time, the Doo's were ahead of the game, it did cross my mind that I was going to be crucified the first time I took them north (and I was).

Fortunately the Doo's have performed flawlessly for six seasons and thank goodness for that. If they hadn't I would have never have heard the end of it. I'm not particularly brand loyal anymore and I get the feeling that a lot of you aren't but sometimes this attitude isn't well received.

[Firecatguy]

cottage grove is polaris country? I do not know many Polari riders here in town more cat guys than anything.....

My influence was a 1996 cougar that went well over 15,ooomiles with little to no work or care!!!thing would not die....

[skiroule]

cottage grove is polaris country? I do not know many Polari riders here in town more cat guys than anything.....

Firecatguy, you're such a stickler for detail, LOL. Before I moved to prestigious Cottage Grove I lived in Lake of the Woods, Koochiching, and Beltrami counties - definitely Polari country. BTW, impressive mileage on that Cougar (I'll resist any other Cougar comments).

[Firecatguy]

lol

[jr37]

I was never influenced by anyone else. My first new sled was an '89 Exciter, that sled alone influenced me to never by a Yamaha again, lol.

[lesledhead]

OK, I'm looking for the straight scoop here.

I'm curious about the amount of peer pressure you've experienced regarding your choice of sled brands, whether it be from friends, relatives, whomever, and whether or not it had an effect. This pressure can range from good nature'd ribbing to downright mean-spirited comments - I've experienced both.

I ask because I came from Polaris country and owned Polaris for many years but switched to another brand (Ski-Doo) in 2004. Even though I felt that at the time, the Doo's were ahead of the game, it did cross my mind that I was going to be crucified the first time I took them north (and I was).

Fortunately the Doo's have performed flawlessly for six seasons and thank goodness for that. If they hadn't I would have never have heard the end of it. I'm not particularly brand loyal anymore and I get the feeling that a lot of you aren't but sometimes this attitude isn't well received.

Really? Really!?! You would think that any mature adult would let another mature adult make their own decisions. Yes, I agree that a little ribbing is/can be expected when switching brands, but down right mean spirited discussions are just sad. Shows how good of friends you really have.

[ezra]

my first sled was a cat a 1972 kitty rode them kitty lynx puma till I was 11 then got a brand new enticer was like a caddy compared to the bogie wheel cats .I have owned all of the big 4 usually went with the fastest at the time has been cats for yrs.every time I switch I get spanked with a prob sled
ultra/formula 3/mxz/94 vmax every time. so now I toe the line and if a bud gets something better /faster from a diff name I call on my drag buds we quietly work on whatever I am riding at the time and the next trip the pie holes are shut.nothing like killing a bud on a 800 with a 6 or 7 with witnesses.they all make good sleds now days but with out competition and the ribbing that goes with it we would all still be riding leaf spring fan 300s and liking it

[gary_in_neenah]

Peer pressure? Really? Not a chance of that here, besides I feel that all four companies provide a quality machine. Good natured teasing is one thing but if it's nasty or mean, give me a call, I'll ride with you.

Gary

[Firecatguy]

my first sled was a cat a 1972 kitty rode them kitty lynx puma till I was 11 then got a brand new enticer was like a caddy compared to the bogie wheel cats .I have owned all of the big 4 usually went with the fastest at the time has been cats for yrs.every time I switch I get spanked with a prob sled
ultra/formula 3/mxz/94 vmax every time. so now I toe the line and if a bud gets something better /faster from a diff name I call on my drag buds we quietly work on whatever I am riding at the time and the next trip the pie holes are shut.nothing like killing a bud on a 800 with a 6 or 7 with witnesses.they all make good sleds now days but with out competition and the ribbing that goes with it we would all still be riding leaf spring fan 300s and liking it

we must be close in age...lol I started with a 60s suzuki then we really up graded to new enticer 300 in 80 great sleds...then an 89 XL5 nice sled friend got a blizzard 6700 that thing ripped

[mrsrunningbear]

I have been taking a ton of ribbing!! I have been a Polaris rider all my life and because of a great deal and knowing the sled was recommended by a friend I now have a Yamaha and BOY is our group of Polaris friends giving me the what for!! It's ok :) this nice 4 stroke 1000 is going to make me a pretty happy girl, so I can take the ribbing!! I'll be smiling at every gas stop too!!

[mjkaliszak]

I guess at this point in my life , I'm more interested in not getting hurt, or saving face after some manufacturers machine gets the best of me ( LOL ). I must admit I would talk crap with the best of them, back in my late 20's or early 30's ... as I reflect , I'm not sure how that even started. Must have been my " ego " ! I have found most people are run by their " ego " instead of controling it like a well rounded mature human being should.

The only comment that still bothers me " your grand father ( aka Dr Kawasaki ) is rolling over in his grave " with you owning all those NON cats .... that 1 is courtesy of my uncle " UB ". Artic Cat has family ties that go way back to the 60's. What really has been passed on was the love of snowmobiling.

[snowbuff]

I have one buddy in particular who gets goofy about ski-doo. He thinks doo is the only sled out there. I agree, all four make a good product and wouldn't hessitate to buy any one of them. I rode poo for many years, then after rebuilding my Ultra motor a dozen or so times, I bought a new '01 doo. I had a blast on that thing. Pretty much trouble free and sold it with 7500 mi. It's still running today. Then I bought my current sled, '07 Blizzard, I love this sled. But, lately I've been interested in trying a 4s and have been thinking yammi. I may have leaned to the doo from influance from my bud, but I will make up my own mind for what I choose to ride/buy.

[xcr440]

Not really too concerned with what other people think. As noted, I'm pretty sure all 4 manufacturers have good products, as well as a few things that probably aren't or weren't so good. I just prefer to stick with the one that I know and have parts for! (I can't afford new, yet)

[whitedust]

Don't care I ride whatever I think is best for me which is Yam now & has been since 2008. I have had them all over the years some have been real good others not so good for me. It would be nice if Yam lost some weight just for horsing around trailer but other than that Attak has been a great sled for me. I always buy 150hp+ top of line but don't need more than that in 4s power band. I think I could be happy in 140hp 4s zone but would need to push 136 or 144 track & get 18-20 miles to the gallon to drop down in HP. 4s engines last many miles so not sure why & when I should upgrade. I guess I'll know when released & I have test ride. :)

[Skidooski]

I agree that the any of the big 4 have goods points and bad points. My wife and I have been riding Skidoo for a long time. We have so much Doo apparel, accessories, trinkets and crap I can't afford to switch brands and start over.

[whitedust]

I agree that the any of the big 4 have goods points and bad points. My wife and I have been riding Skidoo for a long time. We have so much Doo apparel, accessories, trinkets and crap I can't afford to switch brands and start over.

Rode my Yam with doo clothing then bought everything in basic black non OEM brand. Trouble is you can't get squat for used snomo coats & bibs so keep them for wrenching, give away or hand down. I have been giving stuff away to those who don't have stuff. Seems to me some organization should hold a snomo clothing swap like they do for used skis. I would move some stuff & buy some stuff win/win for everyone.:)

[abner]

I HAD a buddy that is a die hard cat guy, to the point when I got an 02 Doo he wouldnt even take it for a ride. After that and watching all the problems he had with his cats I said I would never buy one because I dont like braking down and I didnt want to fall into the trap of having attitude like him. I know several cat guys that all act like that but after owning several revs and letting them ride mine, I have converted SOME of them and there catitudes. I have owned all brands and just seem to like the Doo's the best, but I am signed up to ride in the Polaris factory demo ride in February. Who knows maybe I will change brands again.

[Administrator]

I think some of the problems are that a person will talk up "their" brand for so long, they think their identity is tied into that brand and if they jump ship, then something was wrong with them all those years they rode their "brand'.

As for the question at hand, I have not had much pressure, not enough friends.

My favorite brand is PolArcDooAha

-John

[abner]

I like your answer John, I guess that you need to get out more to find atleast a couple friends. lol

I ride what I feel comfrotable on and what I have seen has the least amount of problems, if someone else doesnt like my choice then they dont have to ride with me.

A bit of ribbing is fine but as my last post showed in the beginning, if it gets down to downright nasty comments then I have no problem moving on to new friends. Heck sounds like John might need a few.

[swampcat]

One day in Mercer I was suiting up to go, pulled on my Polaris bibs,guy asked, what kinda Polaris ya got ? I said, dont ride Polaris, after which I put on my Doo mod 2 helmet, guy says ,oh you ride a Ski Doo, I laughed and said NO ,but this Cat I have sure is fast, all I needed was a Yami coat and I could go any direction.

[grub]

I am located 65 miles from the Pol factory and 70 from the AC factory. I have been riding Yammies since '03. When I was in my 20's everything around here was AC and Pol. I had my share of each. Always the big horses. Thundercats,Rxl's,ZRT's, the dreaded Storms etc. Me and my buddies destroyed a lot of equipment back then. Wide open in ungroomed ditches with limited suspensions tends to be expensive no matter what you ride. As I have aged it is no longer strictly any one brand anymore. There are lots of Doos around here now. There were none 25 years ago. I have one of the few Yammies but I catch very little crap over it. Most folks around here know me and understand my choice. Every new sled has its good and bad points. It comes down to what is important to a person. If I were young again I would probably run out and buy a new AC. Thinking back the brand loyalty ran a lot deeper when I was young.

[skiroule]

Finally! Grub weighs in. Knowing where you live and what you ride, you'll certainly never be accused of bowing to peer pressure.

Boy do some of these comments hit home. I like the one about not even being willing to test ride a "friends" machine if it is another brand. I've known guys that won't even sit on another brand. Not sure what motivates some people. Maybe it's insecurity (psychology wasn't my strong suit) or maybe they're just afraid that someone will take a picture.

The comments about clothing and trinkets are pretty funny. I'm still wearing my Polaris jacket - too good to not use. Got a similar comment to swampcat's one day. On one ride, one of our group that was obviously of Scandinavian descent says to me " I takeit da jacket didn't come wit ta maaachine". Priceless.

MsBear, you'll have your day. The machine will do the talking. On more than one occasion, performance has silenced some of those critical of my ride - the silence is bliss and Gary, be careful of what ask for. You may someday find yourself in the riding company of a large fellow riding a machine with a Halloween color scheme.

John, one word - Facebook

[lenny]

Been lucky to not get pressure but see it a lot. I'll buy whatever I believe is to be good and right now I would buy any one of the big four.

[bearrassler]

In our area Cat was the sled to have in the 70's, then Polaris came on strong in the 80's and 90's. The last 10 years Ski Doo has been strong even though the Cat factory is only 50 miles away and the Polaris plant is 120 miles away. There is always peer pressure to ride the popular brand but I think it is stronger with the younger riders. When you get older you don't care what others think near as much. I was a Polaris dealer from 1989 thru 2001 and had a neighbor that worked as a sales manager at Arctic Cat at that time. We rode together quite a bit and some of my customers at the time couldn't believe that I would ride with the enemy. I thought it was funny as I will ride with any brand, it has never made any difference to me. The last couple of years I have been on a few rides with 3 friends and it has been one of each brand.

[polarisrider1]

Got my first sled for Christmas in 1972. A Polaris Colt 175 (brand new). Rode Poo until 1980 when I got a brand new 1981 Scorpion Sting 440 at the going out of business sale to Artic Cat (yes Cat bought Scorpion) Went back to Poo until 1985 When I bought a Yamaha SRV, rode that until 1987 went back to Poo until 2006 getting a new sled each yr from Poo(long run, avg. 4 Poos at all times in stable). Then bought a Skidoo Renegade for 2006 (they had it going on and fusion was not for me). Back to Poo in 2008 and just got a new 2012 RMK Pro with no signs of going back. I do have Skidoo gear in XL that I should list. (but never know?).

[mjkaliszak]

I think some of the problems are that a person will talk up "their" brand for so long, they think their identity is tied into that brand and if they jump ship, then something was wrong with them all those years they rode their "brand'.

As for the question at hand, I have not had much pressure, not enough friends.

My favorite brand is PolArcDooAha




-John


How about " YamPooCaDoo "...... Or " PooCaDoYa "
I think I need snow.

[Skylar]

Never any peer pressure, but a lot of good natured crap giving when I went from Cat to Yammy in 2001. After my Cat dealer closed up, I realized I was dealer loyal not kitty loyal. LOL.

Loyal to the sport, not the brand!

John, if you need some harrassment, let me know! I am pretty good at it. :D

[mride460]

No peer pressure in our riding group. A few good natured weight jokes thrown the yammy riders way but thats about it. We have about a dozen that ride all 4 brands.
I rode cats until a dealer issue with a burn down. Rode Doo's from 05 through this spring when I sold my 07' 500ss with 13000 miles. Ive got 3 smaller fan cats that the kids ride and am currently looking for a set of new ski-doos. Having a hard time dumping $25000.00 on 2 new sleds, but cant find what I really want used.
I did, however find a great deal on an 800 crossfire so I might be a cat guy again at least for this winter!! Either way I will be sporting my ski-doo gear because its way to good not to use...