Snowmobile: Bombardier's Dream Machine

In 1922, when Joseph-Armand Bombardier was fifteen years old he built his first snow vehicle. He had always loved to tinker with motors and make things go, and he dreamed of building a vehicle that could go over snow. His first attempt, using a Model T Ford engine and a wooden propeller, worked well. To Joseph-Armand’s mind, anyhow. Not so much his father, who made him take the contraption apart. Over the years, Joseph-Armand dreamed of becoming a great mechanic and inventing machines. But when his young son died of a fever because it was impossible to get to the hospital over the snow-covered roads, Joseph-Armand applied his single-minded determination to building a vehicle that could go over snow. It took years, but he accomplished his goal.