Stuntman Attempts to Prove His 170 hp Polaris Snowmobile Can Wheelie Across a Lake |

A snowmobile doing wheelies on water is something that never crossed my mind. The guys over at Stunt Freaks Team, however, make this look easy and a whole lot of fun. As the rider gets ready to start this amazing show, I wondered how many snowmobiles have sunk to a watery grave trying this?

From the moment, the Polaris Switchback Assault 800 hits the water the game is on. It is such a powerful machine that water becomes as though it is a solid to this beast. That is because of the combination of the super powerful motor that is combined with a chaincase drive system that propels the wicked propulsion track. The entire reason that this snowmobile can do wheelies on this lake is because of the power output of the engine coupled with the size of the track. The track on the 2015 Switchback Assault 800 measures 15 inches wide by 144 inches by 1.35 inches thick. Without the precision of the chaincase drive system, and the transfer of power from the engine to the drive track, it is very likely this beast would sink instead of trekking across water in a tenacious fashion.

The History of Snow Travel

Seeing the Polaris in action was amazing. A myriad of images came to mind in a connect the dots kind of way. One such though was about how people survived in the backcountry during winter. The old way was to strap on snowshoes and hoof it wherever you needed to go. If you needed to go hunting, you snapped on your snow shoes and slung a rifle over your shoulder. If you were lucky maybe you had a dog sled and could go mushing. Those are the very beginnings of where snowmobiling began. What we see is pretty much the pinnacle of where snowmobiling has gone.