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I thought I would take this opportunity to show a couple of pics of my son Derek who is 7, and his "new" '78 Jag. I also thought that this might strike up some memories from those of you who are around my age, and maybe some thoughts about a great need for a medium size sled.
Let me explain- I believe to this day that the Kitty Cat was the single best idea that AC ever had. Those of you who grew up in the seventies and later and were lucky enough to hop on one probably attribute bleeding green (or purple) to these "kids's toys." I guess what I am saying is the Kitty Cat created a whole generation of Cat loyal IMO (like me). My son has been riding one since just before his third birthday. That was 4 years ago. Then the inevitable happened, he grew! He has been complaining for a about a year that he is too big for the Kitty. So, the next logical step would be a 120, right? Yes, except that he is already plenty big for a 120, and could only ride one for another year or 2, at most. I personally cannot see spending the big $$$ for something that does not really go any faster than the Kitty (yes I know how much better the 120 chassis is, and can be modded for even more $$$), but it is not big enough or powerful enough for kids like 7-10. I guess that my thinking is that for the kind of money you have to spend for a 120, you should get something that is another step ahead, not just a 2000- something vintage Kitty Cat with "some" suspension. Yes, I believe the 120 is a great starter sled, but for less money. Where I am going is that there needs to be an intermediate sled that doesn't cost a small fortune.
This past year, I have thought about what I could put my son on next to keep him interested in snowmobiling until he can handle a big sled. It had to be a Cat (since he is already brainwashed,,,,, oops......), and I had been thinking about a late 70's Lynx (or Jag), because they were compact and easy to drive. Lynx's are almost non- existant. So I thought about a Jag..... I grew up riding with my father on his couple of Doos and Poos as a kid and when he was converted to Cat in about '76, there were Panthers and Jags in the garage. We also had much more fun on these, because they ran and were not broken all the time, go figure. Panther was too big and not fun for a kid. Jag was light and fun to ride.
I found a '78 Jag in December from a guy who owned it since it was a year old, and it was in great shape with 2200 miles on it. I bought it (for 1/3 to 1/4 the cost of a 120) and gave it to my son at Christmas, however the weather has been crap sice then. Yesterday's snow changed all that! We spent hours teaching him what he already knew anyways- but he was a little intimidated by the "bigger" sled at first. He did a wonderful job, he followed every direction he was given; he rode with dad; rode with mom; rode by himself. He said it is much easier to handle and steer without (225lb) dad on the back!!!! Then he was ready to go on a ride and follow me. I spent a couple hours riding 20 mph on my F5 with the Jag in tow. I never thought I could have so much fun riding 20 mph...... Just to clarify, we were just cruising fields and woods around the house and he will NEVER be on ANY trails until he is the right age, and I have the Jag limited to 25 mph through throttle limits I put on the sled.
Sorry aout the long post but my points are 2:
1) These old, smaller, sleds can be a great teacher for kids...and
2) Cat really needs a TRUE INTERMEDIATE- for those too big for a 120, but too small for a big sled, and AFFORDABLE. And, I do not mean a Freestyle or Phaser- they are still too big for a kid and both are uglier than the midwest weather this past December!!!!
Let me explain- I believe to this day that the Kitty Cat was the single best idea that AC ever had. Those of you who grew up in the seventies and later and were lucky enough to hop on one probably attribute bleeding green (or purple) to these "kids's toys." I guess what I am saying is the Kitty Cat created a whole generation of Cat loyal IMO (like me). My son has been riding one since just before his third birthday. That was 4 years ago. Then the inevitable happened, he grew! He has been complaining for a about a year that he is too big for the Kitty. So, the next logical step would be a 120, right? Yes, except that he is already plenty big for a 120, and could only ride one for another year or 2, at most. I personally cannot see spending the big $$$ for something that does not really go any faster than the Kitty (yes I know how much better the 120 chassis is, and can be modded for even more $$$), but it is not big enough or powerful enough for kids like 7-10. I guess that my thinking is that for the kind of money you have to spend for a 120, you should get something that is another step ahead, not just a 2000- something vintage Kitty Cat with "some" suspension. Yes, I believe the 120 is a great starter sled, but for less money. Where I am going is that there needs to be an intermediate sled that doesn't cost a small fortune.
This past year, I have thought about what I could put my son on next to keep him interested in snowmobiling until he can handle a big sled. It had to be a Cat (since he is already brainwashed,,,,, oops......), and I had been thinking about a late 70's Lynx (or Jag), because they were compact and easy to drive. Lynx's are almost non- existant. So I thought about a Jag..... I grew up riding with my father on his couple of Doos and Poos as a kid and when he was converted to Cat in about '76, there were Panthers and Jags in the garage. We also had much more fun on these, because they ran and were not broken all the time, go figure. Panther was too big and not fun for a kid. Jag was light and fun to ride.
I found a '78 Jag in December from a guy who owned it since it was a year old, and it was in great shape with 2200 miles on it. I bought it (for 1/3 to 1/4 the cost of a 120) and gave it to my son at Christmas, however the weather has been crap sice then. Yesterday's snow changed all that! We spent hours teaching him what he already knew anyways- but he was a little intimidated by the "bigger" sled at first. He did a wonderful job, he followed every direction he was given; he rode with dad; rode with mom; rode by himself. He said it is much easier to handle and steer without (225lb) dad on the back!!!! Then he was ready to go on a ride and follow me. I spent a couple hours riding 20 mph on my F5 with the Jag in tow. I never thought I could have so much fun riding 20 mph...... Just to clarify, we were just cruising fields and woods around the house and he will NEVER be on ANY trails until he is the right age, and I have the Jag limited to 25 mph through throttle limits I put on the sled.
Sorry aout the long post but my points are 2:
1) These old, smaller, sleds can be a great teacher for kids...and
2) Cat really needs a TRUE INTERMEDIATE- for those too big for a 120, but too small for a big sled, and AFFORDABLE. And, I do not mean a Freestyle or Phaser- they are still too big for a kid and both are uglier than the midwest weather this past December!!!!
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