10 minute read
INDUSTRY NEWS
01
HAYDAYS ATTRACTS LARGE CROWDS SEPTEMBER 2021!
The 54th Annual Haydays in North Branch, Minnesota returned in 2021 and attracted tens of thousands over the weekend of the event. Haydays saw miles of foot traffic, where hungry powersports enthusiasts came out to enjoy and see exhibits, grass drags, mud bogs, Snowmobile and ATV freestyle and of course the famous swap meet. Be sure to mark your calendars for next years event, a must do for any bucket list. www.haydays.com
02
HISUN INTRODUCES NEW COLORS
HISUN is introducing an entirely new color lineup for the Sector Series, including Tactical Tan, Destroyer Grey, Fresh Avocado and their new signature color: HISUN Red! HISUN has also partnered with TrueTimber, one of the leading camo brands in North America to deliver a fresh look, utilizing the Viper Woodland Camo pattern. While reimagining a new palette of color choices, HISUN decided on a more aggressive aesthetic. The bold new look includes sleek new graphics, blacked-out emblems, and the introduction of their new HISUN Badge. www.hisunmotors.com
03
ALL TERRAIN CONCEPTS UTV LEGENDS CHAMPIONSHIP HEATS UP THE DESERT
The 2021 All Terrain Concepts UTV Legends Championship had over 200 UTVs, Motorcycles, and Quads showed up to compete on the semi-short, super-tough 17-mile desert course set up near downtown Laughlin, Nevada along the scenic Colorado River. Despite hot days with temperatures over 115 degrees, racers, fans, and staff had a great time watching some of the best in the industry go head-to-head for double points to go toward the coveted season-long Best In The Desert Series Class Championship.
Action kicked off Thursday afternoon with Time Trials for the UTV Turbo Pro and UTV Pro Open Class. Red Bull’s Mitch Guthrie let everybody know he was ready to race with the fast time of 3:24:828 followed by Bruce Binnquist, Ryan Piplic, and Dustin Jones. Top Pro Open was Mitch Alsup, finishing in ninth place overall.
Race 2 would feature the ultra-competitive UTV Rally Class, UTV Pure Stock, and UTV Sportsman classes. They would go six laps around the 17-mile course, getting rougher by the minute. In the end, #U987 Mikey Kelly came home with the overall and Rally Class win in 1:50:52. Coming home second place, in yet another impressive race finish was Jack Olliges-led team which included Mike Bollig and Dustin Orth. The final step on the podium would be occupied by UFC Legend Donald Cerrone who came home third in the Rally Class. The “Cowboy” has been steadily improving, each race quickly becoming a threat for the overall win in his first full season of racing.
Race 3 featured the UTV Unlimited, UTV Pro NA, and UTV RS1 NA Classes, and they did not disappoint. Defending BITD UTV Unlimited Series Champion Michael Isom came out on top of a dogfight for the Unlimited Class win just ahead of Michael McFayden and Chris Blais with barely one minute separating the top three in class.
In Pro NA competition, Kawasaki’s Carson Wernimont, and Reid Nordin proved once again why they are the cream of the crop in Pro NA competition taking home the class win over Jimmy Rodriguez and Richard Sain in a time of 2:30:24. First in the RS1 NA class and first overall in Race 3, went to Brayden Baker in a time of 2:27:32. Brayden was on the gas all day finishing over seven minutes ahead of second place RS1 NA finisher Johnathan Mcvay and three minutes up on Isom in second overall position.
The final race of the day proved to be more than worth the wait. A talent-laden field of the fastest UTV Turbo Pro racers in the world lined up to claim bragging rights as UTV Legends Champion. Mitch Guthrie pulled the hole shot and led for the first four laps, but it didn’t come easy. Ryan Piplic, Dustin Jones, and a host of other Turbo Production racers were pressuring Mitch like a freight train. The Brett/Christian Sourapas team got caught up in a first-turn pile-up and had to work from a pretty big deficit, playing catch up all day. As the race entered the final laps, Guthrie unfortunately blew a shock causing him to fall back. From there, Ryan Piplic took over the lead with a very determined Dustin Jones hanging on to his tailpipe. This would go down to the final two laps until Jones lost his power steering, giving Piplic just enough of a cushion to sail home with the win. Sourapas, meanwhile, put in an impressive charge to come back to take third overall.
Piplic’s winning time for eight laps around the super-tough Legends course was 2:19:35, followed by Jones in 2:20:21, and Sourapas in 2:21:42. Bruce Binnquist put in a great race as well, coming home fourth in 2:22:40. Fifth place overall and first in the Open Pro UTV division went to Mitch Alsup finishing in 2:25:50.
The racing activities finished up with Sunday’s Short Course races which were won by Brayden Baker in a time of 46:18:928. Braden took home the UTV Production 1000 Class and the overall with Jeremiah Wagner taking the win in UTV Production Turbo and finishing second overall. “Cowboy” Donald Cerrone put in another great race taking second place in UTV Production Turbo and third overall, just three minutes off the overall winning time. The UTV Production 900 Class was won by Ryan Prosser.
04
WHEEL PROS WELCOMES DRIVEN LIGHTING GROUP
Wheel Pros has acquired the Driven Lighting Group (DLG) and is bringing it under the Wheel Pros brand family. DLG is an industry acclaimed designer and online retailer of aftermarket automotive and off-road lighting products. This acquisition will serve as a significant addition to Wheel Pros product portfolio. DLG’S proven track record and performance-forward philosophy, paired with a reputation for quality, aligns perfectly with Wheel Pros’ commitment to their brand.
“We’re excited to join the Wheel Pros organization and leverage their design expertise, scale and operational footprint to accelerate growth. We’ve witnessed what they’ve been able to do in other adjacent categories such as suspension, and we believe together we can rapidly grow lighting in the large enthusiast market,” said Brian Reese, CEO of DLG. www.wheelpros.com
05
KAWASAKI RAMPING UP NORTH AMERICAN OFF-ROAD PRODUCTION
Kawasaki announced that construction will begin on new production facilities at its Mexican subsidiary Kawasaki Motors de México S.A. de C.V. (KMX). The new production facilities will be added to the current Kawasaki Motors Manufacturing Corp. (KMM) facilities which will also build new, enhanced production capabilities at the Lincoln, Nebraska facility.
Kawasaki will be investing a total investment around $265 Million for production facilities at KMX and KMM. KMX will expand Kawasaki’s production capacity and start producing off-road vehicles in fiscal 2023. In addition, KMM also plans to increase its production capacity for new models by March of 2023.
In addition to off-road vehicles, KMM’s production for consumer products such as personal watercraft and general-purpose gasoline engines includes Lincoln, NE, Maryville, MO as well as the Boonville, MO plant scheduled to start operation and production of generalpurpose gasoline engines in 2022. The new KMX plant will bring the number of Kawasaki production facilities in North America to a total of four. www.kawasaki.ca
06
One day only – Grass Roots Of Sledding - SLEDARAMA Snowmobile Show & Swap Meet, presented by DAYCO Canada, and sponsored by OnSnowMagazine (OSM), and Snowmobiler Television (STV) Sunday, November 21 the doors open at 8:30am. Walk the show spanning over two buildings, and comb through the famous Swap, amazing finds with amazing deals, vintage gold found around every corner. Vintage Snowmobile enthusiasts DON’T MISS OUT! Be a part of the show and join the famous SWAP at the 24th Annual Sledarama Snowmobile Show, Swap Meet and Show & Shine – Peterborough Memorial Centre & Morrow Building. “Grass Roots of Sledding” - SLEDARAMA is known for its famous Snowmobile Swap Meet and Show & Shine. Register today space is limited, call 905-722-6766 or email info@ sledarama.ca to request a registration form. November 21st, 2021, planning is underway... Don’t miss it!
NEW SLEDS AND GEAR PARTS AND ACCESSORIES HUGE SWAP MEET SHOW & SHINE COMPETITION VINTAGE DISPLAY CLUBS AND TRAIL PASSES ATV CLUBS
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(905) 722-6766 or (888) 661-7469 • Email: info@sledarama.ca www.sledarama.ca
ARGO WELCOMES INDUSTRY VETERAN BRIAN DICK, AND ANNOUNCED THE EXPANSION OF U.S. HEADQUARTERS
07
Many industry insiders will recognize the name Brian Dick, as he was previously leading a number of engineering, research and development initiatives at Arctic Cat. Brian’s role at ARGO will be Product Team Manager reporting directly to Mark Esala, VP of Engineering. Brian expressed his excitement by saying, “It is refreshing to be working with an OEM that values the differentiated needs of their customer base and a leadership team that prioritizes their network of established dealers. The team of engineers at ARGO have taken tremendous steps forward and I am happy to contribute to the progression this company has demonstrated.” Excited to be expanding his team with such a credible veteran such as Brian, Esala happily remarked, “We have a strong team of engineers, and the addition of Brian symbolizes ARGO’s commitment to becoming a driving force making lasting impacts within the powersports industry.” ARGO celebrates its first anniversary in the Thief River Falls, MN facility and now staffs multiple departments including Engineering, Parts Inventory Management, PG&A Development, and Promotions. The office space recently concluded extensive renovations that cater to the growing company. ARGO has experienced a year with record sales, new staff and new products. When asked about the growth ARGO has shown in the past year and the expansion of the US headquarters, President and CEO, Brad Darling responded saying, “We are working to expand the business through multiple avenues. In doing so, we must also expand and enhance our resources made available to our teams. By investing in the right people and the right work environments, we believe we can continue to take this company to new heights.” ARGO has experienced a year with record sales, new staff and new products. When asked about the growth ARGO has shown in the past year and the expansion of the US headquarters, President and CEO, Brad Darling responded saying, “We are working to expand the business through multiple avenues. In doing so, we must also expand and enhance our resources made available to our teams. By investing in the right people and the right work environments, we believe we can continue to take this company to new heights.”
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