Snowdog or not to Snowdog?

[MACMAN]

It's getting tougher on the knees and back to haul all the ice gear any distance from the shore and any amount of slush makes it nearly impossible to venture out without fearing a heart attack.  Been thinking about taking the plunge and buying some type of machine to drag the sleds.  I would greatly appreciate any comments, suggestions, pro-cons of Snowdogs vs snowmobile, etc. Anything I should be aware of before final decision.  Thanks

Dan

I have a snowdog and grew up with snow machines. Here’s my POV- a SnowDog is a tool that fits my specific need of not having space to store machines, another trailer and ease of hauling to the lake. If I had an additional garage, a snowmobile trailer and an extra 25k to purchase all that, I would have machines, otherwise the snowdog gets the job done. The snowdog pulls an incredible amount. I regularly tow 5 sleds with 4 adults without issue. I’ve been in up to 12-15” of fresh snow with no issues. I would say it has performed exactly how I thought it would when I bought it 3 seasons ago. I don’t take it every time I go, but it is really nice when I need it. I’m in it about 5k with the extras and sleds, which the Snowdog sleds are worth every penny. I have 3. Now the cons- it’s a little jankey on how it’s put together. It kind of seems Frankenstein assembled in a garage. You need to know a bit about maintenance to keep it operating optimally (not unlike snowmobiles).  I have yet to break down or be stuck, even in moderate slush. Some small things like turning the gas off at each stop, killing the motor to shift from reverse to forward, etc. kind of get old, but manageable. My biggest issue was a stuck wide open throttle backing it out of the bed of my truck. That was harrowing. I am now a little scared of my dog. I will always start it so if it wants to bolt like that again, it will run into a stop and not take off. That almost ended in a trip to the ER, possibly in a helicopter. It’s a known problem they have not addressed. If you buy one, get the biggest model they offer and get reverse for sure. If a major manufacturer can put some R&D into a snowdog, it would be incredible. I would love a Polaris snowdog.