Arctic Cat will celebrate its 50th Anniversary this summer in Thief River Falls, Minnesota; the company’s hometown.
Two days of activities are planned for July 29-30. Highlights will include factory tours, the world’s largest Arctic Cat product display called “Years of the Cat,” which will be open to all Arctic Cat-related products regardless of model or year, a swap meet exclusively of Arctic Cat products, ATV and UTV demo tracks, autograph sessions with Team Arctic racers, race truck displays and more. The celebration will be open to the public and all events are free.
The buildup to Arctic Cat’s milestone began in 1961 when Edgar Hetteen founded Polar Manufacturing in the northwestern Minnesota town. There he began producing snowmobiles that reflected his dreams. One year later Hetteen changed the company name to Arctic Cat, and began a series of innovations that transformed bulky snow “machines” into small, playful snowmobiles. Arctic Cat started producing ATVs in 1996. Interested in showcasing product in the swap meet? Contact Joel Hallstrom at Arctic Cat.