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It's not that often you see or even hear about a 2-up side-by-side twin track rear engine snowmobile from the '70s, or any other decade for that matter. The Alsport Tracker has it all though and can go anywhere, or so the company claimed.
Brian Fradkin of Fox River Grove, Ill., is the happy owner and restorer of one of these year-round amphibious creatures that will take you and a close friend (literally, you'll be touching elbows) across snow, ice, water, sand, pavement, any surface really, with two interchangeable wheels/skis up front. He has had his Tracker for 2½-3 years, bought from a fellow in Wisconsin who started some bodywork restoration but had thrown in the towel. Fradkin, never actually seeing one himself, got the 2-up running again based off of pictures he had, finding and making parts he couldn't find. Riding around on the snow with his new toy, Brian's snowmobiling senses were not too impressed, and he's pretty sure he'd have to fish it out with some of his strongest buddies if he ventured into the water, but it sure is a curious machine.
Snowmobile and ATV/UTVMade from 1970 to 1972, the Tracker was sold mainly in gun shops and hunting stores, and many it seems were sold through ads in outdoor magazines. Marketed for the all-around sportsman, there was little snowmobile dealer interest in selling them. Fradkin is not sure how many exactly were made, but with a price tag like $2,195 in the '70s and at 625 lbs., probably not a lot of folks were jumping up to buy them, even though they were said to be "engineered to perfection," something Fradkin says is not quite the case.
The machine's design is primitive and maintenance intensive with a power frame that is difficult to get at, likely leading to an early death. All mechanicals are in the power frame, the rest of the Tracker is a fiberglass tub, built very much like a boat, with a top half and a bottom half that can be separated.
The two main models were the 2/10 with two 10½-in.-wide tracks, which is what Fradkin restored, and the GT-15 with two 15½-in.-wide tracks. Fradkin's 2/10 deluxe has a single-cylinder, JLO Rockwell 396cc engine. A CCW 399cc twin was an option, standard on the GT-15. The GT-15 Sportster was the top-of-the-line with a 634 Hirth engine.
The Tracker ran on three loop chains, not a chaincase, that were manually adjusted and lubed. The machine's only gauge was a fuel gage, no odometer or speedometer. You could go up to approx. 40 mph but it felt like you were going a lot faster, and with no room to lean on turns and riding low to the ground, hopefully folks took turns slowly. "It drives like a go-cart," says Fradkin. The GT-15 Sportster went up to 65 mph on land and 5 mph in water. The track was the only thing providing propulsion in the water and with little lugs, there was not a lot of tread pattern. In the snow, it was best to run in hardpack conditions, as it could easily get stuck in drifts or powder, and at 625 lbs. (the GT-15 Sportster weighed 760 lbs.) you may need more than your buddy sitting next to you to set it free again. It ran the best on pavement with wheels.
Perhaps it never really was meant as a trail-rider's machine though, as there were no break lights (it did have tail lights though) and it was 5 ft. wide, too wide to be legal on most trails. To get an idea, it was 106 inches long and 41 inches tall.
The track on the 2/10 had a differential in the middle and a left and right brake. One track could turn without the other, like a skid-steer, and turn around. Brian placed a welded differential on his 2/10 tracks so one wouldn't spin without the other. Some 2/10s had just a solid shaft. The GT-15 had a Sprague clutch that would lock with levers to do steering, if you turned the steering wheel, it would unlock the clutch so you were able to turn a corner sharper.
The Tracker had a forward and reverse transmission, a steering wheel and an interesting feature was standard on all models, a cigarette lighter. Some of the different model options included the Rally Pack, which gave you a speedometer, tachometer and a wood grain dash. Other options included a rear cargo rack, a trailer to pull behind it and a gull-wing door convertible top.
A little historyAlsport was founded in 1968 by Bob Warner, known for starting the powder coating industry. Based out of Norwalk, Ohio, Alsport was mainly a recreational manufacturer of dirt bikes, mini bikes and trikes (3-wheelers). In '72 they acquired the Boa-Ski, a snowmobile built by another manufacturer that was more of a traditional model compared to the Tracker. Alsport also may have built or supplied the Alsport Tracker to be sold under the Gehl name as the "Gehl Blazer," which is an identical machine. In '73 Alsport also acquired Steen, a dirt bike and mini-bike maker and built those through 1977.
The one other snowmobile that Alsport manufactured was the Sno-Sport, but Brian is not certain as to whether this model made it to production. It was able to sit four passengers in a front and rear style bench seat, like a "snowmobile taxi." It was to be made strictly as a snowmobile, mentioned in a June 1971 DealerNews for $1,495.
Alsport closed up shop by 1978 with a few '78 models hitting the shelves.
Fradkin's own Alsport Tracker took first place at the Jefferson County Antique and Vintage Snow Show in the '70-71 class (his is a '71 he believes) in Jefferson, Wis., last year. He says he is a kid of the '70s, attracted to the toys of that decade. "The 'silly factor' is very high on the Alsport Tracker. You can't not smile in one of these," says Fradkin, "or when you see one on the trail." He would have friends clamber in it and as soon as they started scooting around they were all smiles and laughing within a few minutes.