1971 Blizzard ****
Models 246, 291, 293, 336, 339, 397, 437, 645, 797
The easiest way to identify the '71 Blizzard in photos is by the large checker flag stripe above the bumper line. The oddity for that year was also one of the most fun Blizzards: the 247. Bombardier stuffed a 250 free-air single into the new Élan body! I'm sure it was a wild ride on the high bank snow ovals of the day. The Blizzard 247 used the standard rubber track, bogie wheel system of the Élan while all of the others rode on the jointed slide system. Either a rubber or cleated track was available.
1971 778 Blizzard
1971 Blizzard Triple
1971 Blizzard 247
I was thrilled to hear from Scott Thomas who grew up in the Rochester NY area and recalls seeing the Élan Blizzard race.
Scott Writes:
"Here is my memory of the first time I saw one of those little terrors on skis. That year, my dad was sporting a 292 Blizzard with our dealer name on it. As a 12 year old, I went to just about every race with our driver Dick Daly. We had been holding our own that season, racing against the other dealers and the likes up until the state championships. That year, the New York State championships were held in Booneville over the second weekend in February.
The weather was perfect, 25 and clear with over 3 feet of snow on the ground; back then snowmobiles raced on snow. Booneville was host to the best of the factory teams with their semis and promotional displays, it was the heyday of factory involvement in the sport. When those "guys" from up north unveiled those little Élan Blizzards, the engines buzzing and the seated striped with bright yellow bands a cry went up in the crowds. Instantly, everyone was calling the sleds "Bumble Bees".
Mod 1 class in the USSA was for 292cc sleds, so these Elans with their 250 engines had to jump a class to compete that day. As they came to the line a show was put on for the crowd. With their tiny skis and the short chassis, these sleds had an extremely tight turning radius. The drivers began to move around and change their line up position. With antics that better resembled the Shriner's parade than a championship snowmobile race, the flag man was hard pressed getting them all back in the line up.
To get to the punch line here, our 292 Blizzard got beat that day by the little Élan Blizzards from the factory. The sight of that lanky Swede, Bertil Siklund on board a tiny Élan Blizzard with his knees in his chest is a sight that few who witnessed will ever forget."
1971 Factory Team
Technical Highlights
First use of a cleated track on a Ski-Doo
First three cylinder engine in a Ski-Doo
1971 Speed Machines *****
By 1970 things were getting serious. There were turbine, rocket and piston engined sleds competing to be the fastest on snow. The X-2R and X-4R were Ski-Doo's entries. The X-2R was powered by two 797cc free air triples, and the X-4R powered by four older 776 free air twins. The X-4R driven in less than ideal conditions by Lucien Lamoreaux achieved a speed of 123.43mph in it's best run.
The X-2R didn't perform very well during the 1971 season, but the following year Yvon Duhamel drove the X-2R to a two run average of 127.3mph. It was finally a world's record for Ski Doo, one that held up for many years to follow.
1971 X-2R
Inside the X-2R
1971 X-4R
1971 X-4R