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Edgar Hetteen, Grandfather Of Snowmobiling, Dies

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

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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.

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