American Track Truck gaining popularity
CHASSELL -- At first glance it looks like a SnowCat tracked across a field outside of Chassell. But, it was actually a Chevy Blazer outfitted with tracks that drove through two feet of snow. And it never got stuck.
Creators of the American Track Truck in Chassell came up with the vehicle concept to fill a need.
"We were were looking to make the race tracks on Chassell Bay," said co-owner, Dave Mattson. "We needed a groomer. And we couldn't find anything to make the race tracks with, because nobody would let us borrow their full-size SnowCat trail groomers. They felt they'd go through the ice, being 10,000 pounds or more.
The four business partners manufactured track frames to give vehicles all-terrain mobility in snow or mud.
So, if a SnowCat is too heavy or a snowmobile can't pull a groomer, the track truck is an option, inventors hope it will fill a niche.
"The customer jacks up the vehicle, pulls the wheels off, and bolts the track assemblies on," Mattson said. "The whole thing takes an hour. They're real easy to install and there's no modifications to the vehicle outside of that."
Other than advertising online, the fledgling company hasn't marketed the track truck yet. So far they've sold ten track trucks, with one more headed to to Utah next week.
They cost around $10,000, the price of a new snowmobile...and they can pull more weight.
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