DCHP-1 Online

skidoo [< Ski-doo, q. v.]

• n. a small over-snow vehicle equipped with skis at the front and powered by a motor driving a treaded endless track. [See picture at motor toboggan]

  See also: motor toboggan  

  • This form is fast replacing the original trade name, for the word is becoming something of a generic name for motorized toboggans; the pronunciation is doubtless influenced by that of skidoo "go away fast," the connotations of which, along with those of ski and do, were implied by the manufacturer in coining the term.

  • 1963  Fishermen . . . were getting to the choice spots the easy way, using skidoos, power toboggans and aircraft.
  • 1966  A trapper with a fast skidoo is able to cover his lines in a third of the time that it took him to do it by dog-team.
  • 1966  Today's prospector is likely to be seen loading his "skidoo" for his journeys into the wilds. That's a type of snowmobile using tank-like tracks and short ski-runners for steering.