[Ads-l] sled = snowmobile

[Barretts Mail]

FWIW, the one time the topic came up was in the context of recreation, and the Alaskan I was talking to used both “sled” and “snow machine.” My guess was that she used “snow machine” because she knew I was an outsider and then slipped into normal parlance, but it was only one brief conversation, and I think she was a long-time resident, not born in Alaska. BB

> On 7 Sep 2017, at 15:21, Chris Waigl <chris at LASCRIBE.NET> wrote:
> 
> From what I'm hearing first-hand in Alaska, both snowmachine and sled are
> mostly used, though with slightly different distributions. (Snogo, too,
> which I think of as more Canadian, and more rural.) An utility snowmachine
> used for trapping, winter transport and trail work is often referred to as
> a sled. Outdoorsdirectory.com is an excellent source of examples for this
> use. When there's a risk of confusion with a dog sled, snowmachine can be
> substituted. (For example in the dog mushers' association I'm a member of,
> we usually refer to snowmachines available for trail work, not sleds -- the
> term sled evokes dog sleds first. However, if the context is clear, sled
> can be used too ("Did you manage to pull out that sled you jammed in the
> creek last weekend during trail work?" "How do you like the engine on your
> new sled?")
> 
> Usually there isn't much danger of confusion: the difference between the
> two modes of transport is not just the sled, but also the presence or
> absence of a dozen or so dogs, who are usually the salient bit of the
> setup. (So for example you'd say about someone that they use a dog team to
> run their trapline.)
> 
> There's an additional risk of confusion because you can buy a sled to pul
> as a trailer behind a snowmachine. Also from Outdoors Directory:
> http://forums.outdoorsdirectory.com/showthread.php/21399-Snowmachine-Utility-Sleds
> "Would like to get some ideas/opinions from you folks on Utility Sleds. I"m
> wanting to purchase one for my snowmachine, for ice fishing, etc.., but not
> sure what type to get." They're also called pull-behind sleds, or by the
> most well-=known brand names (Otter sled).
> 
> For the recreational machines used by youth to ride for fun, they're more
> commonly called snowmachines -- sled has a connotation of utility use. This
> said, I haven't talked recreational snowmachining with many teenagers.
> 
> Where I sit, using snowmobile is the mark of someone from Outside
> (not-Alaska).
> 
> Chris
> 
> On Thu, Sep 7, 2017 at 9:02 AM, Barretts Mail <mail.barretts at gmail.com>
> wrote:
> 
>> On 2 July 2002, Barry Popik found “snowmachine” for “snowmobile” in an
>> glossary of Alaskanisms (http://listserv.linguistlist.
>> org/pipermail/ads-l/2002-July.txt <http://listserv.linguistlist.
>> org/pipermail/ads-l/2002-July.txt>).
>> 
>> On a recent trip to Alaska, I was told secondhand that “snow machine” was
>> out and “sled” was in, and I found confirmation with use in the wild. Had I
>> not been told in advance, I would have been very confused!
>> 
>> Since dogsledding is still practiced, people use sleds behind their
>> snowmobiles to haul things and children surely still sled, there seems to
>> be lots of opportunities for miscommunication. I don’t know how ambiguities
>> are worked out, though perhaps it’s context like “bike” for bicycle and
>> motorcycle.
>> 
>> 1. http://forums.outdoorsdirectory.com/showthread.php/51079-Best-
>> Trapping-Sled <http://forums.outdoorsdirectory.com/
>> showthread.php/51079-Best-Trapping-Sled>
>> 
>> Thread: Best Trapping Sled?
>> What advice would you give regarding snow machines?
>> 
>> 2. http://cs.amsnow.com/sno/manufacturers/f/16/t/48549.aspx <
>> http://cs.amsnow.com/sno/manufacturers/f/16/t/48549.aspx>
>> 
>> Breaking in a new sled?
>> How would you guys reccomend breaking in a brand new sled (09 600 H.O. CFI
>> SB)?  I have heard not to go over 60 for the first 100 MPH.  But I have
>> also heard that if you baby it the first few hundred miles the sled wont be
>> as fast as if you hadn't babied it.
>> 
> 
> 
> Chris Waigl . chris.waigl at gmail.com . chris at lascribe.net
> http://eggcorns.lascribe.net . http://chryss.eu
> 
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