Balaclavas… and so much more

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 11/12/2004 (7690 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

WITH the holiday season, there are plenty of gifts for the snowmobile aficionado on your list.

For the more obvious choice, you can buy something totally useful (and expensive) that every rider needs — like a spiffy new jacket or pants, toasty warm boots or a fog-free helmet. You can never go wrong with the basics.

For the more daring gift selection, go ahead and buy something your snowmobiler doesn’t think they need. Something they would never buy for themselves, but once they have it, they’ll wonder how they ever got along without it…

Saving face on a windy day: Unwind Balaclava ($50)

For a face covering that is 100 per cent wind-proof, get the Unwind Balaclava. While balaclavas are often made from fleece or polypropylene, and are good at whisking moisture away from the skin, they tend to let the wind through. But not anymore.

The Unwind consists of a three-part lamination system made from thin material called Stedair, creating three layers — one to whisk moisture, the second to allow moisture to escape, and the third to block the wind. So you’ll see frost build-up on the outside of the balaclava, but won’t feel any cold or discomfort on the inside.

Joanne St. Jean from J&M Cycle and Snow calls them the most protective garment available, and insists they will keep you warm and frost-bite free. Even at temperatures of -40 C, travelling across an open expanse like Lake Winnipeg, with the wind blowing full blast, no warm-up shack in sight, and nothing else but the great outdoors.

Warning: Not suitable to wear indoors, especially when going to the bank or any other financial institution.

Safety device for fragile ice: Icescape ($20 to $45)

If your snowmobiler likes to travel on ice, and that makes you nervous… Give the gift that will give you peace of mind. Icescape is a safety unit that hangs inside the jacket, consisting of a long strap and gripped handles with ice-picks. If you should hit open water or fall through the ice, this tool gives you the leverage and hold needed to pull yourself up and out of danger, and still make it home in time for dinner.

Note: Upper body strength not included.

Protecting the thing that protects your head: Helmet Bag ($20)

A plush fur-lined (or faux fur-lined) bag will keep your snowmobile helmet from getting bounced around when it’s not on your head, and provide scratch-free storage during the off-season. The bag has a zipper for easy helmet insertion and access, and comes with a pocket on the outside where you can keep the cord for the electric shield, the wind-proof balaclava, or anything else you like to store with your helmet.

Caution: Failure to remove helmet bag before wearing helmet may cause temporary blindness.

Moving the sled when there is no snow: Sled Dolly Wheels ($80)

This handy little three-piece dolly unit allows you to move the snowmobile around the garage or shed during the storage season. One platform with wheels is placed under each ski, and the third is placed under the track, so you can roll your machine around as much as you like, while you silently pray for an early snowfall.

Effectively eliminates the off-season excuse “I can’t fix that broken thing, because I can’t find my tools, because they’re stored somewhere behind the snowmobile…”

For all you do, this stuff’s for you: Misc. Memorabilia ($10 and up)

Snowmobilers seem to be a dedicated bunch — faithful to their sport, committed to their culture, and loyal to their brand. That is why any die-hard rider would LOVE to have something boasting their favourite brand name and logo all over it. Take for example the Arctic Cat brand…

Doug Dejonckheere is Parts Manager at Transcona Trailer Sales, an Arctic Cat dealer. Besides machines, parts and clothing, they sell a variety of novelty items that show the Arctic Cat colours and make great gifts.

They have useful functional items like windshield ice-scrapers/snow brushes ($10); playing cards for poker games in the warm-up shack ($11); or milk crates to keep in the shed filled with things like tools and oil cans ($13).

They also offer plenty of just-plain-old-fun items, like a remote-controlled pick-up truck (why it’s not a snowmobile, we may never know… $50); scale replica models of different machines ($70), or even golf balls, just to be sure you keep snowmobiling in your mind even when it’s grassy outside ($15).

Then there are the usual vanity-type items, like T-shirts and sweaters that display various sayings ($20 and up), or those sport-team-style flags that you fly out the window of your vehicle and in the face of everyone who drives a different kind of machine than you ($17).

Finally, you can even get things like house slippers shaped (of course) like cute little snowmobiles ($40), or wind-chimes that blow in the breeze and annoy even the nicest of neighbours ($22). Especially those neighbours who drive a different kind of machine than you.

Other gift ideas:

* Hydration packs for drinking water ($40 to $100)

* Leatherman tool ($40 to $100)

* Windproof butane lighter ($40 to $90)

* Saddlebags ($80 and up)

* Compass ($10 to $100)

* GPS ($200)

Send your snowmobile events to:rascreative@yahoo.ca