Don Kitzrow of Hill City, MN, originally purchased his MD-70 Posi-Track loader in November of 1995. Today, that machine is still going strong, and so is Kitzrow, who runs the machine regularly on his land at 86 years old.

As a longtime owner of one of ASV’s first machines, Kitzrow has collected tidbits of history over the years about the company. Now this summer, that history will be celebrated with ASV’s 35th anniversary in business.

The current offering of ASV Posi-Track and Skid-Steer Loaders evolved from its first product, the Track Truck – a rubber-tracked vehicle the size of a pick-up truck yet with ground pressure less than a human on foot. In 1990 ASV introduced the first Posi-Track rubber track loader to meet the needs of construction, agricultural and landscaping industries. The MD-70 blended the power of a steel track dozer with the versatility of a loader-mounted quick-coupler and put it all on a rugged rubber track undercarriage.

Kitzrow purchased his MD-70 after a big storm had blown down countless trees on his 40 acres. He was originally in the market for a wheeled tractor to clear up his land but then received a recommendation from his friend to look at ASV.

“I went over to Grand Rapids to look at the machine and it looked really good,” Kitzrow said. “It had utility, and it had a nice rubber track on it, so I said ‘I’ll write you out a check for that.’”

Kitzrow still uses the loader on his land on a regular basis, and because of his methodical maintenance and storage of the machine, it’s still in nearly mint condition today. He enjoys taking it out for a spin with any of it’s many attachments, including a bucket, grapple bucket, custom tine attachment for pushing trees, a disc hitched to the back of his loader for his pheasant trail, and a winch used to haul logs after storm damage.

ASV will celebrate its 35th anniversary with an Open House on Friday, August 3. The event is open to the public and will feature food, games, tours and more.