Kyle Saxton and Maverick Walker added to Arctic Cat Black Cats
Arctic Cat has announced the addition of two new riders to its backcountry team, the Black Cats. Kyle Saxton from Bigfork, Montana, and Maverick Walker from Colville, Washington will join Black Cats OG David McClure and Rob Kincaid’s son, Riley, on the team of factory-sponsored riders.
We haven’t seen much of any Black Cats content over the last couple of years, with the Destination Elevation short film two years ago being the last obvious example. Support for the team has dwindled since that time, and there’s been very little backcountry riding content produced with the exception of some promotional footage of McClure and Kincaid—and starting last year, a few cameo appearances by Riley Kincaid.
But that’s about to change.
It seems the time has come for Arctic Cat to re-invest in its backcountry team, which once had a reputation for being stacked with an elite bunch of hardcore riders. It’s great to see the program come back to its roots with the support of a couple of hard-charging new riders added to the roster.
Black Cats Kyle Saxton, Maverick Walker, Riley Kincaid
Kyle Saxton
Kyle Saxton’s riding style can be described as a new school, do-something-different and hold on way of thinking—if it’s fair to characterize it at all. You can see a lot of creativity in his riding, from “how’d he do that?” bowtie-style maneuvers to rock feature re-entry airs and inverts. He’s exciting to watch and his quickly growing following is a testament.
Maverick Walker
Despite his young age, Maverick Walker has been around the block longer than you’d think. His break came at the age of 13 when he made it into the cut of a Hickshow production. By age 17, he was featured both in 509 Volume 11 and a “Young Buck” profile in our very own Mountain Sledder magazine Fall 2016 issue.
Since then, he’s been charging hard in his own unassuming manner, quietly amassing a following and clearly catching the eye of Arctic Cat.
Riley Kincaid
Last winter, Riley Kincaid joined up with the original Black Cats, his dad and McClure, to ride for a few Arctic Cat product and marketing materials shoots.
Since the official announcement of the return of the Black Cats team, Riley has been named to the team, and it will be exciting to watch his riding style that is much more oriented towards freestyle than the flat-out riding style of his dad.
We’re looking forward to watching the progression of these three young riders as they channel the spirit of the original Black Cats team!
– MS