the little skipper

In 1968, in Southington, Connecticut, the owners of Lori Engineering
Corporation, Andrew Meade, David Florian and Robert and John Simone, began developing a recreational snow vehicle using the mini bike concept. Their goal was to build a low cost, miniature snowmobile that would be safe for children to ride.

Construction began immediately and soon a prototype was sitting on the
floor of the engineering department. It was introduced in February of 1970 at a snowmobile rally in Plainville, Connecticut, and the response was very encouraging.

Lori Engineering then constructed a 7,200 square foot building to produce the new product. This building allowed the company to set a goal of more than 1,000 Little Skippers for the 1970-'71 season. All machines built that first year were sold in the New England area, but plans were made to establish dealerships in Canada and the Midwest for the next season. A new production goal for the 1971-'72 season was set between 3,000 and 5,000 units.

This was a snowmobile designed to be easy to start and easy to maneuver. Due to its weight, it was light enough to put in the back of a station wagon or the trunk of a standard vehicle, thus eliminating the need for a trailer.

It was available in three models- yellow fiberglass with black skis,
red metal flake with black skis and gold metal flake with chrome-plated
skis. It was powered by a Briggs & Stratton 4,000 rpm engine and had
a recoil starter. The track was made by Goodyear and was nylon-reinforced molded rubber. It was ten inches wide, which allowed a ground pressure of .3 pounds. The suspension was four spring-actuated bogie wheels. The drive system was by "centri-matic," which consisted of a clutch with a single drive chain to the driveshaft. The body, chassis and skis were all welded steel and the cowlings were made from molded reinforced fiberglass. The seats were molded foam rubber.

The fuel tank had a three quart capacity, which allowed riders about
three hours of driving fun. The throttle and brake controls were mounted on the handle bars, just like the larger snowmobiles. The overall length was 49 inches and net weight was about 100 pounds. Speed range was up to 30 mph. Seating capacity was two children. Retail price varied between $375 and $399, depending on the style.