Trailblazing Snowmobile Innovation at SAE Clean Snowmobile Challenge

Millions of snowmobilers take to the trails each year, making the sport a primary contributor to winter tourism here in the Upper Peninsula and across the country as well.

At one time, the machines were nearly banned in our National Parks, but because of an initiative that became an annual event that is now hosted in the Keweenaw, riders today are able to experience places like Yellowstone in a way that only a snowmobile can offer.

For the future designers of not just snowmobiles, but all things mechanical, its an exciting week in the Keweenaw with the arrival of the 20th annual SAE Clean Snowmobile Challenge.

“Students like that they can come out of college with experience like this that is invaluable to them and when we’re looking for those new technologies that we can take and maybe implement into a car,” said Todd Fletemier, who is Vice President of Midwest Technology for Fourecia, a sponsor of the event.

Jeff Derosier, a Student of North Dakota State University said, “Our sled is different because it has the OM 660 three cylinder turbo diesel, and we also have the feature of electronic power steering.”

A diesel snowmobile?

“We have a class for gasoline. That’s a traditional snowmobile.  And we have a class for diesels. That’s more of a utility sled, so they run little bit different series of tests. They still have to be clean and quite,” said
Keweenaw Research Center Director Jay Meldrum.

Currently there is not a diesel snowmobile in production, so to make one these kids need to be creative. 

“It’s very tough to turn now that we have this heavier motor. That engine adds about 100 pounds from the stock engine,” said Derosier.

To combat the extra weight and difficulty turning, this team from North Dakota State created a power steering system that makes turning nearly effortless. Applications for such a vehicle would include utility and rescue, and with a diesel engine that was once in a Smart car, the machine has plenty of power for towing disabled or derelict sleds to safety.

The collegiate competition is now in its 17th year at the Keweenaw Research Center, 20th altogether, and can be directly attributed to the continued allowance of snowmobiling on federal lands.

“About 20 years ago, there was controversy about snowmobiles in our National Parks. They were noisy, they had a lot of oily smell to them. The industry responded with ‘No, we can do this.  We can fix this.’ So they started working on laws to make them cleaner, laws to make them quieter, and at the same time, people from Yellowstone got together and started this completion with SAE International,” said Meldrum.