You’re right! Weather does not always cooperate and, as with most
winter sports, good conditions won’t always be available.
It could be worse! Consider the dilemma of thousands of snow mobilers and cross-country
skiers here in New England. Some
winters have so little natural snowfall that local opportunities are rare
indeed. Ice boaters have even
more uncertainty. They need wind on
days when a large expanse of ice is clear.
It’s obviously not practical to clear trails for sailing.
Unless global warming
accelerates,
weather cold enough to freeze lakes is almost guaranteed ... with or without snow.
Skis could be considered in place of runners on
relatively flat, packed snow [sort of a “Ski-doo lite” J].
Preferably, an extra-wide tire (or 4” wide belt) with deep treads would
be used and the wheel would be totally retracted between strokes. Note that the wheel would operate in the
track from the forward ski.
All is not lost for those still wanting to go
fast on runners .…
·
If
the snow cover is patchy, the vehicle’s maneuverability and narrow width will
permit dodging around the slow areas … in fact, this would probably add
to the fun! And at speed, one should be
able to blast through or over small snowdrifts … like a toboggan. More fun!!
·
With
2-3 inches of snow, the runner and wheel design should still permit use,
although somewhat less efficiently
— like sailing iceboats.
·
With
more snow, trails would have to be cleared. For this, I envision a snow mobile with a small plastic plow
attached to the ski mounts. The plow
would have its own runners and be designed to throw the snow well away from the
track when used at 20 MPH or so. Who
knows … trail clearing itself may be such fun that a network of interesting
trails would soon evolve! Trails could
have straight-aways, challenging turns, passing, and rest areas. A width of 10-12 ft should be enough. Narrow trails with snow banks may even add
to the fun and excitement of “driving” fast!
·
No
lake? No problem. Maybe!
Given a snow-covered field of a few acres (preferably gently rolling),
snowmobiles could first pack down a suitable trail. Then, they could melt the snow by towing a steam
generating/smoothing device and let it refreeze (or at least spray it with
water).
Or, perhaps even irrigation
canals on that local farm could be put to winter recreational use!
Well, the above scenarios
may not all be practical. However,
there is little doubt that a way could be found to make iced trails when needed
… given cold weather, snowmobiles, and sufficient incentive. And, with good ice, there’s little doubt
that this vehicle would provide exciting performance, lots of fun, and healthy
exercise throughout most of the winter.
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