Couldn't agree more. Rider is 95% what makes a sled. It's like skiing....lots of equipment available, but the best equipment won't necessarliy make you the best skier.
I have seen awsome riders on crappy equipment make guys sitting on the latest and greatest all red faced and wanting to go home to pout.
It's not all rider IMO, more like 50/50 or 60/40. I have seen new riders on the best equipment $$ can buy, riding like rockstars, the bigger HP of today's sleds is a huge compensation to make someone look like they can ride, snow is a very forgiving medium, you can make a mistake and still power out of it or save it and look like a hero. The new rider forward positioning helps big time.
As good a rider as say Burandt or Rasmussen are, if they are sitting on a 1994 440 Jag, they are not going to outride someone with say, 3 yrs experience and a 2010 800. Equipment plays a bigger part in sledding IMO.