The idea for the SnoCaps product started in 1992. Our founder, Duane Smith, had just
bought a new snowmobile and was headed to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan for a long
weekend of riding. As he drove, he looked back in the rearview mirror and thought about
how happy he was that the dealer had thrown in a new cover for his sled. Unfortunately,
he found out firsthand that covers don’t do much to protect sleds from the roads.
When Duane arrived in Michigan, his brand new sled was COVERED in road slush and sand;
salt and corrosive chemicals were all over it! This experience led him to create
SnoCaps.
As a former parachute rigger in the U.S. Navy, Duane knew that a fabric-covered trailer
would work to protect his snowmobile because the early airplanes used a wood-braced wing
covered in fabric to stay aloft. The planes achieved speeds in excess of 200 mph, not
including their dives, so he believed traveling down the road at 60-70 mph
wouldn’t be a problem. He just had to figure out the specifics.
It took Duane awhile to get everything down and work out the bugs while creating
different models of SnoCaps to explore options and problems. After two years, he finally
created the original SnoCaps Trailer Enclosure. Some of Duane’s original
prototypes and original SnoCaps are still on the road today! After finalizing the
design, Canvasworks applied for (and were granted) a patent and trademark.
After all that, it took some time to sell the first SnoCaps Trailer Enclosure. People
didn’t want to believe that a fabric cover could do the work of a traditional
trailer enclosure. Then one day, C.J. Ramstad drove by our shop and saw our SnoCaps
sitting in the lot. He was intrigued and stopped in to talk about the product. C.J.
loved the SnoCaps, and with him and Midwest Sports Publishing Network (MSPN) pulling our
SnoCaps, we were able to break into the industry. From that point on, the SnoCaps
Trailer Enclosures product started selling – and selling well.
Several years later at HayDays, Duane met a buyer from the largest distributor in the
Powersports industry and asked how to get a product into their catalog. The distributor
gave Duane some names to call, and he managed to land an appointment to show them the
SnoCaps. When the time came for the appointment, a buyer came down to look at the
trailer enclosure and find out the specifics. He wanted to know if there was a speed
rating, how many Canvasworks had made, and if we had any references. Duane told him we
regularly hauled our SnoCaps down the road at 75-plus mph in high winds, and that we had
sold about 900 SnoCaps around the country, mostly in the Midwest. Duane also told him
C.J. Ramstad and MSPN had been a great sounding board for Canvasworks while developing
the final product. Finally, the senior buyer came down and said that they would like to
discuss buying 500 units.
Once everyone was in the office, the fun started. The buyer wanted to know what the
retail cost was for a 10-foot tilt trailer. Duane told him it was $999, but that he
could sell it to him for $680, drop ship them, and give 30 days to pay. To Duane’s
surprise, the buyer told him that it wasn’t done that way and proceeded to explain
the normal procedure. According to the buyer, their company would get the first 33
percent, the dealer would get the next 33 percent, and the manufacturer would secure the
remaining 34 percent.
Duane told the buyer that those numbers would work out to Canvasworks making the product
for $390, but at the time, we had $460 in materials going into each SnoCaps –
before any sewing, bending, or welding. Duane could see the deal falling apart in front
of him, so he asked the buyer how other manufacturers made it work. The buyer told Duane
quality materials had to be replaced and work exported. Basically, he said the product
had to be made in a foreign country with cheap materials, then imported and sold for the
same price as the original, higher quality product.
Duane knew that a SnoCaps wouldn’t be able to go down the road at 75-plus mph
during high winds or take a 20-inch snow load if Canvasworks used .090 wall aluminum
tubing or .058, like one of the national sewing companies tried; their tops came off
going down the road. Duane wasn’t willing to downgrade his patented idea in such a
manner. Our SnoCaps stay put protecting your sleds. Our skins are made from road-tested
materials and are designed to withstand the test of time. You aren’t going to find
that kind of quality cheap. So Duane decided he would keep making SnoCaps his way
– and we still are today.