Found on http://vintagesleds.com/photos/2011/oct/65prototype.jpg
the 1st 1956 Polaris snow mobile:
http://here4now.typepad.com/here4now/2011/07/minneapolisst-paul-mn-part-iii-minnesota-state-museum.html
In the U.S, Edward Hetteen’s Polaris Industries, originally a Minnesota-based farm machinery manufacturer, got its start in snowmobiles when some employees built one using a grain elevator conveyor belt track and a Chevy bumper ski.
The eventual result was the Sno-Traveler.
The light blue 1959 Sno-Traveler on display in Hershey features full-length wooden skis and a rear crank to winch the tracks off the surface in the event it became stuck and some traction enhancement needed to be inserted underneath it. Powered by a rear-mounted 9-1/2 horsepower Kohler single-cylinder four-stroke engine, the gas tank on this model does double duty as the driver’s backrest.
http://www.lancasterfarming.com/B1207-vintage-snowmobiles#.Vifxz36rSM8
It is a real pic-- I have a copy of the original. But it has been doctored. It's popular lately to photoshop vintage photos by slamming the vehicles in them.
ReplyDeletethanks! I haven't seen that trend pop up yet on old photos... just new photos of old cars. They did a good job!
Deletecan you email me the original? jbohjkl@yahoo.com so I can compare the photos for the phone number?
DeleteThe snowmobile looks like an early Polaris, which had the engines mounted in the back. I was just at Polaris in Roseau, MN last week, and they have a small museum and visitor center there. They had a few snowmobiles like this on display. The wheels and stance on the truck look photo-shopped to me.
ReplyDeleteI'll ask one of my contacts if he's seen this picture before.
thanks Marc!
Deletehttp://vintagesleds.com/polaris-protoype/
ReplyDeletethanks! Excellent!
DeleteThe second machinevpictured here is NOT the first Polaris snowmobile.
ReplyDeleteit is carefully labeled, the 1st 1956 Polaris. Now, it's not the earlist Polaris, it's the 1956 sled that came off the line 1st. See?
Delete