THESE ARE THE SLEDS I HAVE OWNED

OVER THE YEARS

This is a picture of our first snowmobile, (okay, I didn’t own it, dad did) back in 1964 or 1965. It is a Hus-ski, made in Montreal. I am not sure, but I think dad paid somewhere around $600 new. He saw an ad in the newspaper one Saturday morning, so he and I jumped in the car and went to the next town to where a dealer was (It was a car dealer). One of the salesmen put on his coat, went outside and fired the thing up. He drove it across the parking lot as fast as it would go (~20 MPH) and bounced it off of a 3 foot pile of snow at the end of the parking lot that had been left there by a snowplow. The ensuing jump was hideous, but the old man was impressed, and so was 8 year old Rob. He bought it right there on the spot, and we loaded the two halves in the trunk of the Buick and went home with our new toy. The driver in the picture was a friend of the family, and the passenger in the middle is Dickie Moore, who used to play hockey for the Montreal Canadians. He was the master of ceremonies or something like that at our local winter carnival in Ile Perrot, Quebec. It was powered by a 140 cc JLO engine, which drove the two tracks you see in the front. 

The rear section was pulled along behind like a trailer on two long flat wooden skis which served as the footrest for the driver and passengers. The padded seat doubled as a lid for the large storage area beneath. The second picture is from the New Hampshire Snowmobile Museum Association. Bolens (USA) ended up buying Hus-ski, and this model became the Diablo Rouge. You can see one on the right side of the picture. 

These photos came from a sales brochure, but are very similar to one we used to own. Dad was no longer interested in snowmachines, but my friend had one and I bugged and bugged until we got one. I was about 14 or 15, and we rode our machines day and night. it was a 1969 Skiroule S300, with a Sachs 297 cc engine (20 HP). I think dad paid somewhere around $500 for this one (used). When I look back, I now realize just how good my father was to me while I was growing up. $500 was a lot of money back in 1970, but I don't think he ever gave me anything that I appreciated more than this sled. It was officially mine, not his, not my sisters, not the family's. I don't know how many miles I put on this thing, but I rode it every chance I got, for about 3 or 4 years.

1981 SRV

I paid $2250 for this 81 SRV in November of 1982. It had been ten years since I last rode a snowmobile. Quite a difference. I didn’t get out on it much, I lived in Edmonton, and didn’t have many snowmobile friends. Never even heard of mountain riding. As it turns out, it was probably a good thing.

1994 V Max 600

I bought this sled new in October of 1993 for $7400. I was never really happy with this sled, although I can’t say it was a poor machine. It just didn’t excel in anything, of all the 600’s my friends had, it had the least power and the worst suspension. I did, however, think that the styling was cool, not to mention the color. Snowmobilers can be a vicious bunch, especially the bunch I hang out with. Here I was, relatively new to the sport (I hadn’t owned a machine in 13 years), and my friends never let me forget that my machine and I both sucked. Next year, things are going to be different!

1995 Mach 1

I am going to have to say that this 1995 Mach 1 is the best snowmobile I have owned to date. I am not saying that it was the fastest/quickest/lightest/best handling/best suspended machine of 1995, but it was by far and large the best built machine I have ever driven. After two years of POUNDING on this thing, it didn’t squeak, creak, sputter or fart. The only noise that came out of this thing was from the dual exhaust. It cost me $11,300, options and tax included. It was fast, maybe not the fastest, but it beat all my friends’ machines, including Ultra 680. Sometimes we look back and say why did I ever sell that car/truck/boat/bike/sled/whatever? I know why I sold this one, but I do regret it. I took this behemoth to the mountains, and it definitely is not the lightest. I affectionately refer to it as the Mach One Ton. The motor seized on New Years day, due to manufacturing problems. Warranty covered it.

1996 MXZ 583

I got a good deal on this one. It is a 96 MXZ 583 and it cost me $7700 total, tax included. I picked it up in Sept. of 1995. I was really happy with the handling/suspension. I crashed it into a culvert early on in the going, but replaced every single part that was damaged, scratched or bent. From now on, I always get collision when I get insurance. I seized this one too, cold seizure. Ski-doo covered it anyways.

1997 SUMMIT 670

I decided that I needed a ready to go mountain machine, so I bought this Summit 670 in Sept. 1996 for $9600. I still own it, and have added Gagne pipes, mountain bar, SLP skis, a 2" track c/with 8 tooth drivers, and stiffer springs in the rear. I have also changed the helix and ramps to compliment the pipes. Does it go better? I’m not sure. At first, it went slower, so I had to change the gearing to get some top end for taking a run at the hills. I gutted the airbox on the recommendation of a mechanic, waste of time. I will say that it does go good, and is extremely reliable. I do have some trouble with the carbs icing up if the temperature/humidity is right, but this only happens at the beginning of the day. I can’t blame it on powder. I seized this one with only 800 km on it. Covered by warranty.

1998 MXZ 670

This one hasn’t seized (yet). It is a 1998 MXZ 670, and this is the easiest starting sled I have ever owned. I stiffened the rear end, installed SLP Ultralight skis and also installed handlebar turndowns. I installed a Rave Link on this, but the intent was to make it go faster, not slower, so I took it off. I paid $9213 for it in Nov. 1997. I’m still wondering why this one hasn’t seized yet….

2000 MXZ 700 MILLENNIUM SPECIAL

I took delivery of this MXZ 700 the first week of November. I had this one snowchecked, and our local Ski-doo/Harley dealer went into receivership just before it came in. I didn't loose any money though, I picked it up in Edmonton from Riverside Honda/Ski-doo. As we were loading it up, there was another one beside it and the guy who worked in the yard told me that the guy who bought the other one did not intend to drive it, he was a collector. I paid $10.800 for this one. I put 1000 miles on it this winter, and I have to say it is a serious contender to the '95 Mach 1 for best built machine. As far as performance goes, it kills the old Mach.

2002 Summit HiMark 800

I paid big bucks for this one ($12,092). I shopped around the Edmonton area and could not get a deal of any type, all of the dealers told me the same story - they are running out of Summits. This one is the regular sport version, 800 with RER, a gas rack and temperature gauge. This is the first snowmobile I ever bought where I wasn't given a spare belt, I had to buy it! Nevertheless, it sure does climb, it took me higher than anything I have ever ridden before. And I will never buy another Ski-Doo without that RER, it's great.

2004 MXZX 600

I bought a 600 for riding around McMurray because I was hoping to get better mileage than the 800. While this is true, I did not get the mileage I hoped for. The 600 motor likes to run at high RPM, and it is intoxicating. I had zero problems with this machine, with the exception of the decorative windshield. I put a higher one on. I can't say enough about the REV chassis. It would be difficult to go back.

2004 Summit 800 151"

I bought this Summit 800 at the same time as the 600 MXZX above. The 16" wide track really made a big difference in the lose powder. Seeing as how I bought two machines at the same time, I decided to have electric start put on this one, as one of my freebies for spring ordering. At first, all my buddies laughed at me, but before the first trip of the year was done, they were mumbling about getting electric start on their next new machine.