AKIQPilot Posted October 8, 2019 Share Posted October 8, 2019 So here is something interesting. Probably doesn't deserve it's own thread yet but I wanted to get @Zambroski and @Ez ryder attention. Not one single Cat team in the Iron Dog this year. Three more weeks until signups are over and the likelyhood of a Cat team in this years race is waning fast. It's no surprise really when you consider how poorly Cat has done in this race over the past decade. In other Iron Dog news: Some big name teams have broken up this year. Aklestad and Johnson (likely the fastest riders in the race) have split the sheets. Aklestad is not racing with Nick Olstad. Nick has won the race a couple of times and been a podium finisher many. Johnson is partnering up with Brad George who is a very fast rider with a few podium finishes. Robbie Schachle and Cody Barber are teamed up this year. Both super fast riders. 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zambroski Posted October 8, 2019 Share Posted October 8, 2019 So now it’s poo racing doo in a race so little care about anyway? That’s not good. Having just two manus race in any race isn’t good. I’m curious to see what the field looks like in Duluth this year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1jkw Posted October 8, 2019 Share Posted October 8, 2019 The new cat makes so much power they are afraid to win by too large a margin. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AKIQPilot Posted October 8, 2019 Author Share Posted October 8, 2019 2 minutes ago, Zambroski said: So now it’s poo racing doo in a race so little care about anyway? That’s not good. Having just two manus race in any race isn’t good. I’m curious to see what the field looks like in Duluth this year. Yea Duluth will be interesting for sure. I have a feeling it will be mostly Yellow all season in SnoX. That new RS is bad to the bone. The Polaris won't have anything for it at all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gold Member BOHICA Posted October 8, 2019 Gold Member Share Posted October 8, 2019 I would say the lack of any incentive to field teams in a race of a Motorsport that is dying is the large reason.... iron dog will not last another decade. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AKIQPilot Posted October 8, 2019 Author Share Posted October 8, 2019 1 minute ago, BOHICA said: I would say the lack of any incentive to field teams in a race of a Motorsport that is dying is the large reason.... iron dog will not last another decade. Yep. Cat quit giving their sleds away so guys decided it wasn't worth buying them just to lose. No big surprise. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zambroski Posted October 8, 2019 Share Posted October 8, 2019 Just now, 1jkw said: The new cat makes so much power they are afraid to win by too large a margin. Maximum is 600cc for a 2s. Derp. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AKIQPilot Posted October 8, 2019 Author Share Posted October 8, 2019 Just now, Zambroski said: Maximum is 600cc for a 2s. Derp. Cats 600 makes almost 120hp. Same as they did back in 1995. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zambroski Posted October 8, 2019 Share Posted October 8, 2019 7 minutes ago, AKIQPilot said: Yea Duluth will be interesting for sure. I have a feeling it will be mostly Yellow all season in SnoX. That new RS is bad to the bone. The Polaris won't have anything for it at all. I expect results to be about the same as last year. Doo running away, Cat trying to answer and Poo still trying to figure out jetting. I’m curious to see how the stifling of the Cat racing teams will affect sleds. I know the 2018/19 AC SX sleds are rare to find for sale now. I’m watching a few Cat riders that jumped to Doo to see how they finish compared to last year. Should be interesting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gold Member BOHICA Posted October 8, 2019 Gold Member Share Posted October 8, 2019 1 minute ago, AKIQPilot said: Yep. Cat quit giving their sleds away so guys decided it wasn't worth buying them just to lose. No big surprise. Iron dog seems to have lost its luster since Tesoro pulled the plug.... I think there was a year were they weren’t even sure if it was a go until the last minute due to the lack of sponsorship for the race. Cat pulling out is pretty much a death sentence to snowmobile endurance racing Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zambroski Posted October 8, 2019 Share Posted October 8, 2019 4 minutes ago, AKIQPilot said: Cats 600 makes almost 120hp. Same as they did back in 1995. Pretty sure they are all 125+ now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hayward Posted October 8, 2019 Share Posted October 8, 2019 11 minutes ago, AKIQPilot said: Cats 600 makes almost 120hp. Same as they did back in 1995. We can probably thank the epa for that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AKIQPilot Posted October 8, 2019 Author Share Posted October 8, 2019 3 minutes ago, BOHICA said: Iron dog seems to have lost its luster since Tesoro pulled the plug.... I think there was a year were they weren’t even sure if it was a go until the last minute due to the lack of sponsorship for the race. Cat pulling out is pretty much a death sentence to snowmobile endurance racing Tesoro pulling out hurt for sure but the Iron Dog came back pretty strong in subsequent years. They raise a lot of money and the prize money is just incredible. First place prize in the ID is more than all other snowmobile racing put together. Cats are super popular is short distance endurance racing but they haven't been real popular in long distance racing for quite a while. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1jkw Posted October 8, 2019 Share Posted October 8, 2019 20 minutes ago, Zambroski said: Maximum is 600cc for a 2s. Derp. I thought maybe they felt sorry for cat and let them run the new 800 it's about the same hp as a poo 600. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zambroski Posted October 8, 2019 Share Posted October 8, 2019 9 minutes ago, 1jkw said: I thought maybe they felt sorry for cat and let them run the new 800 it's about the same hp as a poo 600. Oh. Ba-zing! USXC. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angry ginger Posted October 8, 2019 Share Posted October 8, 2019 19 minutes ago, AKIQPilot said: Tesoro pulling out hurt for sure but the Iron Dog came back pretty strong in subsequent years. They raise a lot of money and the prize money is just incredible. First place prize in the ID is more than all other snowmobile racing put together. Cats are super popular is short distance endurance racing but they haven't been real popular in long distance racing for quite a while. explains zamzams love of cats given 40 miles is a long day for him. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zambroski Posted October 8, 2019 Share Posted October 8, 2019 6 minutes ago, Angry ginger said: explains zamzams love of cats given 40 miles is a long day for him. 40 isn’t long. It’s normal. 100+ is long. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AKIQPilot Posted October 8, 2019 Author Share Posted October 8, 2019 8 minutes ago, Angry ginger said: explains zamzams love of cats given 40 miles is a long day for him. Yep. 40 miles would be pushing it on the stock tank unless he's riding like a girl. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Woodtick Posted October 8, 2019 Share Posted October 8, 2019 33 minutes ago, AKIQPilot said: Tesoro pulling out hurt for sure but the Iron Dog came back pretty strong in subsequent years. They raise a lot of money and the prize money is just incredible. First place prize in the ID is more than all other snowmobile racing put together. Cats are super popular is short distance endurance racing but they haven't been real popular in long distance racing for quite a while. The local Chicago pipe fitters Union I’m in,sponsors a team. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AKIQPilot Posted October 8, 2019 Author Share Posted October 8, 2019 Another interesting Iron Dog twist this year. They are starting the race in Fairbanks and racing back to Willow. The race will start out with several hundred miles of high speed river racing. Then at Koyuk, the race will go overland and race to Kotzebue and back to the Norton Sound before heading to Nome, the half way point. This little detour adds over 400 miles to the race. 400 miles of rough overland trails. And finally the teams will had south through Interior Alaska for the finish in Willow. The most difficult part of the race will be the last 2 days of racing. It will be a very interesting year for sure. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AKIQPilot Posted October 8, 2019 Author Share Posted October 8, 2019 Just now, Woodtick said: The local Chicago pipe fitters Union I’m in,sponsors a team. Very cool. Any idea which team? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Woodtick Posted October 8, 2019 Share Posted October 8, 2019 5 minutes ago, AKIQPilot said: Yep. 40 miles would be pushing it on the stock tank unless he's riding like a girl. That’s ok,he identifies as a girl when he rides. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Woodtick Posted October 8, 2019 Share Posted October 8, 2019 1 minute ago, AKIQPilot said: Very cool. Any idea which team? Don’t remember. I do remember a pic of there trailer having a giant UA sticker on it. The former president of our local,is now the president of the UA. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anler Posted October 8, 2019 Share Posted October 8, 2019 As far as I am concerned the Iron Dog is the ONLY race that matters. If a sled can stay together long enough to finish is testament enough let alone win. This is a race of true grit. Brutal conditions over several days running day and night. And if racers are putting in their own time and money they want to run the best. And look what they pick.... 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AKIQPilot Posted October 8, 2019 Author Share Posted October 8, 2019 6 minutes ago, Anler said: As far as I am concerned the Iron Dog is the ONLY race that matters. If a sled can stay together long enough to finish is testament enough let alone win. This is a race of true grit. Brutal conditions over several days running day and night. And if racers are putting in their own time and money they want to run the best. And look what they pick.... 6 Doo teams and 13 Poo teams so far. Probably be a few more teams sign up before the Nov 1 deadline. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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