For many years, we have been pointing out that manufacturers have been abandoning the entry-level model market by focusing most of their efforts on offering us truly powerful and sophisticated snowmobiles. The price of snowmobiles has exploded since the early 2010s, which makes our sport inaccessible to the uninitiated. They then turn to other activities.
Introduce Teenagers and Young Adults to Snowmobiling
Fortunately, the popularity of off-trail and mountain snowmobiles has brought new blood to the snowmobile community. This segment continues to grow, but once again, there is still a segment of the market that needs to be developed to ensure the sustainability of our activity with adolescents and young adults.
Over the past few years, we have witnessed the arrival (or evolution) of the ZR 120, ZR 200 families by Arctic Cat and the SRX120 and Snowscoot by Yamaha. This is a first step in the right direction, but these models quickly became too small when children became teenagers. So, there was still one link missing to the industry’s full-size models. In 2019, Polaris introduced the EVO family to fill this need. Today, Arctic Cat is joining in with a new family of snowmobiles.
The Blast Family
The Thief River Falls manufacturer is not halfway into this segment. Indeed, the three models offered targets very specific uses: off-trail, utility and trails.
Chassis
The Blast family is built on a brand new mid-size and extremely lightweight chassis. It has been designed to offer the snowmobile great maneuverability, regardless of the pilot’s experience. The seat of Blast snowmobiles allows the driver to easily transfer his weight during turn negotiation. In addition, Arctic Cat has equipped its Blast snowmobiles with AMS front suspension and hydraulic twin tube shock absorbers.
Motorization
The Blasts are powered by a new Cat Arctic single cylinder 4000 class engine. This 397 cc two-stroke engine is the first single cylinder in the industry to be equipped with electronic fuel injection.
He develops an interesting 65 hp that is transmitted to the track by a set of CVTEC pulleys. It will be interesting to see the performance of these snowmobiles in the coming months.
Another Family Characteristics
All Blasts are equipped with an electric starter, digital gauges, 41.5 liters (11.7 gallons) tank and heated handles and thumbs.
Blast M 4000
As its name implies, the Blast M 4000 is designed for deep snow lovers, whether in the mountains or off-trail. It has several features of the M 8000’s such as the monorail suspension.
Arctic Cat Blast M 4000
For example, the front (AMS) and rear (Alpha-One) suspensions offer novice pilots an ideal platform to familiarize themselves with driving in deep snow. The travel is 7.2 inches at the front and 12 inches at the rear. The 7-inch-wide G2 Proclimb skis and 146x15x2inch Challenger track complete the package. The spacing of the skis is adjustable between 37 and 39 inches.
The Blast M 4000 is equipped with the same type of suspension as the M 8000.
Blast ZR 4000
This model is designed to bring a lot of pleasure to all family members. For young teenagers, they can shift from children’s models to a model more suited to their size and expectations.
Arctic Cat Blast ZR 4000
For adults who want to get started with snowmobiles, the size and performance are less intimidating, making it easier to learn how to drive and ride a snowmobile.
At the front is the AMS suspension, which provides 7.2 inches of travel. The rear suspension provides 10.7 inches of travel. The spacing of the skis is variable and allows you to choose between 37.5 inches and 38.5 inches depending on the use or preference of the driver. A 4-inch windshield and a 14x121x1-inch track complete the package.
Blast LT 4000
Cottage owners, off-trail lovers or woodlot owners are not always looking for the most powerful or equipped machine. The Blast LT 4000 is therefore an interesting alternative for them.
Arctic Cat Blast LT 4000
At the front is the AMS suspension, which offers 7.2 inches of travel. The XTRA-ACTION rear suspension provides up to 12.5 inches of travel. The spacing of the skis is variable and allows you to choose between 37.5 inches and 38.5 inches depending on the use or preference of the driver. A 15.5-inch windshield provides good protection against wind and bad weather. A 15x146x1, 6” Cobra track provides good floatability and excellent traction.
In conclusion
We are optimistic that the Arctic Cat Blast family of snowmobiles will allow a good number of teenagers and young adults to discover and learn how to ride a snowmobile.
We would like to congratulate Arctic Cat for stepping into this segment of the market that unfortunately does not offer enough options to the uninitiated. By offering these three models in three very specific segments, everyone will be able to find a Blast adapted to their needs.
