By Bruce Hagevik, NewsRadio 830 WCCO

GRAND RAPIDS, Minn. (WCCO) — Edgar Hetteen, co-founder of Polaris snowmobiles and founder of Arctic Cat snowmobiles, has died at the age of 90.

“He was a wonderful person — very well loved and respected by the snowmobile community,” said Polaris Industries spokesperson Marlys Knutson.

NewsRadio 830 WCCO’s Bruce Hagevik Reports

Hetteen was the son of Swedish immigrants and grew up on a farm near Roseau, Minn. He and his brother-in-law founded Polaris in 1954.

After leading a convoy of snowmobiles across Alaska in 1960, he left Polaris and founded Arctic Cat. Polaris now has annual sales of nearly $2 billion.

Hetteen passed away in Grand Rapids, Minn.