DCHP-2

snowmobile [< Snowmobile, a trademark snow + automobile] DCHP-2 (November 2016)

• 1 n. & adj. — Transportation, Outdoors, especially Prince Edward Island

  a personal over-snow motor vehicle equipped with skis at the front and a treaded endless track at the back (see Image 1).

  Type: 5. Frequency — As seen in Chart 1, in the North American context snowmobile is far more frequent in Canada than in the US. There is evidence that in the urban centres snowmobile has pushed back skidoo, the original Canadian form, which is still the most common form in the North. The smaller version, compared to the bigger cargo models (see meaning 2), is the most common model today. Given the evidence from Chart 2, snowmobile can be considered a PEIism.
  See also Gage-5, which marks all meanings "Cdn"; not marked in ITP Nelson and COD-2.

  See also: bombardier ((2))  motor toboggan  skidoo  

  • 1963  Those who didn't travel to fishing spots by snowmobile or other powered equipment had to go by snowshoe.
  • 1964  These sports-car model snowmobiles cost from $600 to $1,500, depending on power and accessories -- which even include mufflers.
  • 1966  I would put the snowmobile down as the greatest single factor in the public use of the winter outdoors. . . .
  • 1989  Located near Bedford, N.S., a three-hour drive from Halifax and an hour from Sydney, in an area known for its white-tail deer, black bear and freshwater salmon, Tales & Trails has something for everyone. Delegates can meet part of the day, then take off to hunt, fish, canoe, hike and golf on an 18-hole course that winds along the coast. During the winter, the area offers excellent cross-country ski and snowmobile trails. 
  • 1999  Moving to a somewhat faster mode of transportation, our two sons, with their boundless energy, looked forward to a snowmobile experience offered through the village Nickel Plate Adventure Company. Clad in full skidoo attire, and after brief instruction, we set out on our guided tour. Reaching our Apex summit destination an hour later, with its 365-degree panoramic view, was like being on top of the world. 
  • 2013  When ice forms on our lakes, it is wise to be cautious. Every fall you hear of anglers plunging through the ice and losing their lives. To be safe, follow these guidelines before venturing out on the ice. There should be 10 centimetres, or 4 inches, of ice to support a person walking. You need at least 20 centimetres, or 8 inches, if travelling on a snowmobile. For vehicles, 30 centimetres, or 12 inches, of ice is required. Allow thicker ice for larger trucks. 
  • 2016  Tadoule Lake is located about 300 km northwest of Churchill in one of the most remote regions of North America. The only routes to this part of Dene traditional lands in the mid-20th century were by snowshoe, dog team or air. Today, there are winter roads and snowmobile trails.

• 2 n. — Transportation, Outdoors

  a large tracked vehicle designed to carry persons and cargo across country over snow and ice (see Image 2).

  Type: 4. Culturally Significant — In Northern Canada, bigger cargo snowmobiles are an important mode of transport.

  See also: snow tractor  

  • 1934  . . . this season a . . . Snowmobile is being shipped to Coronation Gulf for inspection work next winter.
  • 1935  Mr. Gibson travelled as far as Kugaryuak by snowmobile, where engine trouble developed and he took to the slower but surer dog-team pending repairs.
  • 1953  In the heart of Moosomin, Bob Fudge has a snowmobile manufacturing plant, possibly the first anywhere. His experimentation period began in the late 1920's. In the early 1930's, when contraction rather than expansion was the rule, he began production. His early work had trials. Just when things were going nicely, a rural municipal convention passed a resolution branding snowmobiles a "menace" to horse-drawn vehicles.
  • 1961  In winter a great deal of timber is transported by snowmobiles and trailers to the depots and waterways. . . .
  • 2006  Operation Jupiter was to be an assault on northern Norway to neutralize or destroy the Nazi aircraft that were menacing the convoys to Russia. As the plans progressed, the British put out a call for a snow-traversing vehicle that could carry a Bofors gun or several tons of cargo or personnel. In response, the Canadian military's first act was to buy a pair of commercial B12 models from Quebec's Bombardier for study. Eventually, the Canadian company Cusson-Freres would be engaged to produce more than 100 modified versions of these half-track, half-ski machines, designated as the B-1. The B-1 provided over-snow transport but no armoured protection or capability to fight from the vehicle. The Canadian Armoured Snowmobile, which was meant for fighting, sprang from efforts of the Canadian Army's engineering design branch to come closer to the British criteria. [...] To limit the crew's exposure and improve carrying capacity, the armour was stripped off and roomy, duralumin cabins were installed. Eleven of these now "unarmoured" snowmobiles traversed the route between February and May 1946. 
  • 2014  Canada had once been the pioneer in marginal terrain vehicles with its 2-man armoured snowmobile of WW2 era. Post war, this was developed into a larger unarmoured Penguin I and II model. 
  • 2016  “There were the snowmobiles themselves, dubbed Penguins”—Bombardier-style snowmobiles with heated cabins—“which would transport the men of tomorrow across the iron-hard, blizzard swept tundras of Canada’s vast northland. The vehicles would be equipped with every device known to science to surmount the obstacles of ice and show and penetrating cold.”