We are thinking of becoming snowmobile owners, my wife and I. I would call us Novice Snowmobile Riders, but not absolute newbies. We both had snowmobiles growing up. My family shared a Polaris something. It was the smallest engine they made back in the early 80’s, likely a wise choice by my father as I’m sure we were a bit reckless. Growing up outside the city limits of Brandon, Manitoba, we had plenty of snow and plenty of open territory and often my brother and I would set up a course and have timed races, one at a time. Sometimes we could borrow the neighbour’s Artic Cat El Tigre. I believe it was a 440 and much faster than ours. My wife grew up with a family cabin at a a lake south of Swift Current, Saskatchewan and a family friend had a Yamaha store so there was a ready supply of snowmobiles and dirt bikes to play on for her and her two older brothers, but sometimes the SK snow pack was a little thin so the riding could be bumpy. [add old images of pics if any]
Now the times and technology definitely have changed. The last time either of us were on a snowmobile was at least 15 years ago. We have friends and neighbours at the lake that have snowmobiles and we are eager to join them on the winter trails. But first we need to make a purchase or two. As we are still a few years away from retirement, we do not want to over invest and have them sit idle, parked in a shed at the cabin. We want to make an affordable entrance into the world of snowmobile riding and gauge how much time we have for the next few years. So, new is off the books and we are considering just a single machine for this winter then one more in the fall. She has a limited number of weekends available this winter so two machines may be overkill. I have a much more flexible schedule to go riding as well take the snowmobile out to the ice fishing spots.
We are definitely newbies when it comes to the purchase of snowmobiles. As I scour Kijiji and AutoTrader, it is quickly evident there is nothing for me on AutoTrader but a pretty good selection on Kijiji. I am faced with the newbie overload of information, specs, dimensions, options, packages, features. So I have turned to an expert to sort out some of the terminology. A friend of ours has a few snowmobiles and is an enthusiastic gearhead, lots of mechanical knowledge. With his help I have begun to understand the differences between between snowmobile types: mountain, trail, crossover. I have no known plans to head to the mountains to ride so the longer track mountain machines are off the list. Our riding will be ditches, fields where we have permission, frozen lakes, and some groomed trail riding. Engine size, heated visor plug-in, electric start, reverse, heated handles, lugs, track length, kilometers, so many things to consider and the tradeoff of $’s for options. I also have done a few Google searches and asked Chat GPT a few questions to ensure I understand a few things better. I did learn that Ski-Doo has about 50% market share, followed by Polaris with about 30%, Arctic Cat in 3rd place, Yamaha a distant fourth. Given plans to buy used machines, we want to stick to the top two brands to ensure availability of parts in the future if/when repairs are needed.
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We don’t think we are adrenaline junkies but we are not putt putt drivers either. If the way we ride our Sea-Doos is any indication, we will gradually trend towards some more aggressive driving, but not maniacs. So we want machines with enough power to have fun and maneuverability for turns.
As of today, I have enquired about a couple of snowmobiles a Ski-Doo and a Polaris, both sold quickly, so I have not been out to “kick the tires” or “kick the skis”.