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Happy 70th Birthday Roger Skime!

arcticinsider
By arcticinsider
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Seventy years ago today, Roger Skime entered the human race. And not once in the years since has he allowed the throttle to leave the handlebar.

Knowing him as I do, I’m confident when I say that Roger has concentrated on the “race” part of “human race” more than anyone else I know, particularly as it relates to snowmobiles and Arctic Cat.

For the past five-plus decades, Roger has shaped Arctic Cat and the sport of snowmobiling in innumerable, immeasurable ways that bring us joy, thrills, comfort, speed, handling and victory.

No matter what brand of snowmobile you ride, it’s a better machine because of Roger Skime. And if you ride an Arctic Cat, it’s thoroughly embedded with the DNA of his personality and work ethic.

Please join with me in wishing him a happy, meaningful birthday, along with the great hope for many, many more.

Happy Birthday, Roger! You’re the greatest.

 

Roger Skime as he looked when he joined Arctic Cat in 1962

Here’s Roger as he looked when he came to work for Arctic Cat in 1962. How fortunate the sport of snowmobiling (and Arctic Cat riders in particular) was to capture the imagination of this young man.

 

Roger Skime racing the 1999 I-500. Photo by ArcticInsider.com

Here’s Roger racing the 1999 I-500, a decision the then-55-year-old made the night before the race (and that required him to borrow nearly all the gear he raced with for the next few days) because he wanted to help figure out some of the carburetion and shock problems that were plaguing the ZR 440 race sled that season.

 

Roger Skime at the 2010 I-500. Photo by ArcticInsider.com

Eleven years later, Roger once again raced the I-500, where he finished 4th overall in the Legends class (despite racing a Sno Pro 500 against competitors who were on 600cc race machines).

 

Roger Skime in Arctic Cat Engineering March 2013. Photo by ArcticInsider.com

Though he is a racer to the core, Roger is first and foremost an Arctic Cat engineer who spent a lifetime improving the breed. Here a shot of him in Engineering following THIS LATE MARCH RIDE aboard pre-production 2014 model Arctic Cats.

 

Three generations of Skimes working at Arctic Cat

Here’s an awesome photo of Roger (right) with his son Troy (left) and grandson Beezer from last summer when Beezer was interning at Arctic Cat. Three generations of Skimes working at Arctic Cat… pretty amazing!

Thanks for reading.

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76 COMMENTS

  8. Well I looked Arctic Cat up in the urban dictionary expecting to see a picture of Roger but no such luck.

    What it said was… the best snowmobile that you will ever find. It has a very reliable engine and is the sled that is the least likely to break down !

    I think this pretty much sums up all the efforts that Roger has dedicated to Arctic Cat over many decades.

    Wishing you many more birthdays Roger !!!

  9. Happy birthday and thanks so much for decades of dedication to the brand and to snowmobiling and snowmobile racing. You are, in my opinion (along with Edgar Hetteen), the most influential person in the history of the sport.

  10. Happy Birthday Mr. Skime!! Thank you very much for all you have done at Cat. Thank you for giving me the passion I have of Arctic Cat since I was a wee little one.

  15. One of my internet accounts asks me for a security question that only I know the answer too.. The question was “What Was Your Most Memorable Promotion ? My answer…Team Arctic. Thank You Roger, and HAPPY Birthday…Jim Dimmerman

  16. Thank you for the surprise birthday greeting! You all made my day!
    My daughter Jodi and my grandkids Kylie and Trandon came to see me, and they told me to check Arctic Insider. I’ve been on the ranch today, and we pushed 400 cows through the chute getting them ready for pasture.
    John, thank you for the kind words. How did you know I was 70? I thought I was only 20!
    Thanks to everyone who left greetings! Keep on snowmobiling!

  20. “Share the Passion” as Roger has done for all these years. I met him at the “factory” where Cat was on vacation to test one of El Tigre’s that would bring Cat out of receivership. Roger never lost hope and continued to perfect the front end that every manufactureer today has copied. Many years Roger!

  21. Best wishes for a very HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!! and many more to come, to a very special man. Keep moving those cows – love the pictures! Go Arctic Cat!!

    Vickie Radel
    USXC Racing

  22. Happy Birthday Roger. Thank you for everything you have done for Arctic Cat and snowmobiling. You are one of the greats of the snowmobile industry.

  23. Roger everyone at King Kat Racing wishes you a Happy Birthday. Thanks for your work and dedication to Arctic Cat! They are better sleds because of you

  24. Happy Birthday Roger!! Thanks for all the fantastic things you have done for the sport. And most importantly Arctic cat we are all in your debt!!!

  27. Happy Birthday Roger and I sincerely Thank You for all that you continue to contribute to the Arctic Cat brand that so many of us are so passionate about.

  29. Happy birthday to the man who made me who I am, and who my kids will be. John– I once told you I favored your Blair story’s, any story about Roger is a good one too. Thank you both

  31. Happy Birthday Rodger!! One thing I will remember about this guy is, A friend and myself were up touring the Arctic Cat factory, And the tour guide took us up to the Engineering department. We were just standing there listing to the guy giving the tour. And wouldn’t you know it here come’s Rodger. He stood beside me and put his arm around my shoulder, He ask my friend and I what we ride we told him and, he thanked us for riding cat. Vary humble. I’ve read a lot about Rodger in the magazine’s since my first Cat in 1981. Always wanted to meet this person in real life. And he made me feel like we’ve been friends for years. Keep up the good work Rodger, your the best and I wish you many more young fella! 🙂

  32. Happy birthday Roger from the flat central Michigan farm country. You have been an inspiration to many of us who continue to ride at 60 years of age and beyond. You have assembled an amazing group of people who seem to share the vision you have for making Arctic Cat the gold standard for performance snowmobiles. Keep up the good work!

  35. Happy belated birthday Roger!! Talked with you many times and you ALWAYS had time to talk no matter where it was. You are Arctic Cat!!

  36. Happy Birthday, Roger! Great to see you at Pam’s retirement party, I would’ve wished you an early Happy Birthday had I known. You have been a fantastic friend to my family and we admire you dearly.
    Errin Kolden

  37. Happy Birthday Uncle Roger! You have really made a GREAT name for yourself over the years with Arctic Cat! You have always been near and dear to me personally and you always will be!

  38. Happy Birthday Roger! Thank you for your dedication to Arctic Cat and all those who use them! When I think of Arctic Cat, your the first person I think of. Hope you had a great day!!

  39. Happy Birthday Roger from our team and family. You are an inspiration to me and I am proud to call you our friend. I will never forget riding with you at the first Hometown Tour back in 2001. Is it race season yet?

    Shawn Hopkins (and family Barbara Hopkins, Sean Campbell, Megan Campbell #563 and Lyssa Hopkins #527)

  47. Congratulations Roger!!!! Only 70!! That means I have plenty left at 60!! I second Shawn at 563 Motorsports about the absolute pleasure of meeting and riding as your wingman at the Hometown Tour in ’01. Still have the T-Cat in 440 Sno-Pro clothes that I rode back then. Hope to see you soon. Thanks for EVERYTHING you do for the sport.

  48. Happy Bday Roger, many memories from K&K Sports in Alex. 1972 to 1996! Racing schools, Clinics, Winnipeg to St Paul Races, Ovals, Cross Country’s, SnowCross races etc. You put AC on the map & keep Em competitive! Congrats!

  49. Happy Birthday Roger And thank you for all you’ve contributed to the great Arctic Cat snowmobiles ! Keep up the great work !

  50. Happy Birthday to you Roger, You are the best, You are my hero & my inspiration!
    From on of your favorite Racers. Ha Ha

  51. Happy Birthday Roger you are truely a i-con of the sport and Artic Cat. Wishing you many more years of good health and prosperity.BLESSINGS!
    From the Abrahamsons Brainerd MN.

  53. From Oakbluff Manitoba, hope you had a great one. Where would we be without you?? I shudder to think what I would have been doing for the past 45 yrs. if I didn,t have Arctic Cat to keep me amused. Keep er going……….

  54. Roger, what can be said that all these people haven’t all ready said. All I can say is just keep being ROGER. Congratulations.

  55. Happy Birthday to the one and Only, “ROGER!” There will never be anyone ever as special as you are to the “Eberts.” Take good care!

  56. Happy Birthday to the coolest, nicest guy in the industry. I have been around the industry for a few years and even though I have never raced for Cat, every time I see him, he always takes the time to chat and exchange trade secrets! Happy Birthday Rog!

  57. Hope you had a great birthday. Punching cattle on the ranch sound like a great way for an ol’ cowboy to spend it!

  58. Happy 70th birthday Mr. Skime! And thanks for letting us know John.

    Favorite Roger Skime story: He was on the “Ride with the Champs” in 2008, and I sat at his table with the Hayes brothers, Jon Carlson, and Joey Halstrom. Some of the conversation was about the future of fuels, as I work with hydrogen. Chose my works carefully there.

    Roger wanted a side of chowder with his lunch, but my lunch came with one. So I offered it to Roger:>) And on the way up there Joey traded me a new F1000 for my Z-440 Sno Pro for a bit, what a blast. Then we had a slow race across a lake between Joey on a Z-570 and my little fan cooled Sno Pro (I won by ~1 mph). Next time I will take out the hill cross gears…

    I’ve run into Roger at the I-500, HOF and while on a factory tour. Best memory was having him autograph my “50 Years of the Cat” book at the 50th celebration. A very tallented, yet very humble man. Thrilled and honored that I had the good fortune to meet and ride with him.

    -Joe Rainville

    PS: I will leave our the part of how I almost rolled that new unstudded F-1000 on a sharp corner…with him a few lengths behind me. When in doubt, throttle out!

  59. Roger:
    Happy Birthday and many more. I won’t forget when my brother, nephew and I had breakfast with you and Joey at Waconia at the “Year of the Cat”. You even came over to the show, looked at our sleds, and visited with us. You are in inspiration to all and make us all proud to own Arctic Cats.

  60. Happy Birthday to the youngest 70 year old I know…. Roger I just want to thank you for your support to the best sport in the world !! You make it easy to be a Arctic Cat fan….. Its been a pleasure working with you over the years !! Enjoy your day….

  61. Happy Birthday Roger.

    Thanks for the commitment and passion you bring to our sport. It is appreciated by all of us who throw a leg over our cats knowing that it was designed and built for the rider by a dedicated team of diehard sledders.

    Best Wishes,

    Scott

    “Lead by example, it all begins with you!”

  62. Usually when someone has a birthday, you give them a card and a present, but in this case, you have given me, my friends and family the best present of them all. A lifetime of fun and culture on the brand you helped shaped.
    But in any case, Happy Birthday to you, and PLEEEEAAAASSSSSEEEE, don’t even THINK about retiring!!!!

  64. I don’t have anything clever to say or have any Roger Skime stories to tell. I would just like to wish you a belated happy birthday and thank you for your creativity that has spawned a hobby, a sport, and a lifestyle that many people (including myself) enjoy.

  65. Hey Roger! Happy belated birthday, 70 years young, when you are young at heart you never grow old, will be in TRF at end of July , hope to see you then! and thank you for all you do for Cat, and the industry!

  67. Happy birthday Roger!! to say you impacted my life is an understatement!!! and if I say you are the greatest supporter of advanced technology and process driven engineering as opposed to cut-and-try-and fail way of engineering – it would be the greatest understatement!!!!

  68. Every year some Chicken Little screams about all the Arctic sea ice metling.Of course — in 2008 and 2009 — the Arctic sea ice .And, the media — always true to — are silent when it comes to reporting that 89% of the world’s land-based ice .But, even if all the Arctic sea ice actually did melt, my reaction would be to yawn. and know why.

  69. Every year some Chicken Little screams about all the Arctic sea ice metling.Of course — in 2008 and 2009 — the Arctic sea ice .And, the media — always true to — are silent when it comes to reporting that 89% of the world’s land-based ice .But, even if all the Arctic sea ice actually did melt, my reaction would be to yawn. and know why.

  70. Shouldve used a bit of cling film to spread it matey. Shoulnt cause too much drmaas but its best to avoid the possibility of contaminating the AS5 with the oil from your hands. Can you give us an update on whether the MB ran cooler. Im doing mine today. Same Macbook.? http://vfbplx.com [url=http://ejwbolotm.com]ejwbolotm[/url] [link=http://merjoezwp.com]merjoezwp[/link]

  71. Shouldve used a bit of cling film to spread it matey. Shoulnt cause too much drmaas but its best to avoid the possibility of contaminating the AS5 with the oil from your hands. Can you give us an update on whether the MB ran cooler. Im doing mine today. Same Macbook.? http://vfbplx.com [url=http://ejwbolotm.com]ejwbolotm[/url] [link=http://merjoezwp.com]merjoezwp[/link]

  72. Shouldve used a bit of cling film to spread it matey. Shoulnt cause too much drmaas but its best to avoid the possibility of contaminating the AS5 with the oil from your hands. Can you give us an update on whether the MB ran cooler. Im doing mine today. Same Macbook.? http://vfbplx.com [url=http://ejwbolotm.com]ejwbolotm[/url] [link=http://merjoezwp.com]merjoezwp[/link]

  73. I don’t really have an oionpin about the white vs. the red Coke cans. The polar bears are cute. I am not sure what all the fuss is about.I do think the whole save the polar bear global warming stuff is a big buncha hooey. But that won’t keep me from buying the white cans. It’s just a polar bear on a white can. Why make such a fuss about it. If you like Coke then continue to enjoy it no matter what color the can is or whether Coke has bought into the nonsense of global warming . PS Even Al Gore, the original poster guy for global warming, has admitted the hoax.So just have a Coke and a smile. http://wdwvehlletp.com [url=http://hpqevzkx.com]hpqevzkx[/url] [link=http://vmuiusatmu.com]vmuiusatmu[/link]

  74. I don’t really have an oionpin about the white vs. the red Coke cans. The polar bears are cute. I am not sure what all the fuss is about.I do think the whole save the polar bear global warming stuff is a big buncha hooey. But that won’t keep me from buying the white cans. It’s just a polar bear on a white can. Why make such a fuss about it. If you like Coke then continue to enjoy it no matter what color the can is or whether Coke has bought into the nonsense of global warming . PS Even Al Gore, the original poster guy for global warming, has admitted the hoax.So just have a Coke and a smile. http://wdwvehlletp.com [url=http://hpqevzkx.com]hpqevzkx[/url] [link=http://vmuiusatmu.com]vmuiusatmu[/link]

  75. I don’t really have an oionpin about the white vs. the red Coke cans. The polar bears are cute. I am not sure what all the fuss is about.I do think the whole save the polar bear global warming stuff is a big buncha hooey. But that won’t keep me from buying the white cans. It’s just a polar bear on a white can. Why make such a fuss about it. If you like Coke then continue to enjoy it no matter what color the can is or whether Coke has bought into the nonsense of global warming . PS Even Al Gore, the original poster guy for global warming, has admitted the hoax.So just have a Coke and a smile. http://wdwvehlletp.com [url=http://hpqevzkx.com]hpqevzkx[/url] [link=http://vmuiusatmu.com]vmuiusatmu[/link]

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