The Corbin Carrier: A Wood Hauling Ski Sled

By Ron Morrison
Published on January 1, 1979
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The author posing with his finished ski sled.
The author posing with his finished ski sled.
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A load of wood secured to the ski sled.
A load of wood secured to the ski sled.

Last fall, the southern Maine “rainy season” lasted with soggy consistency tight up until early December, when it gave way to a snowstorm that dumped 14 inches of picturesque white fluff on top of the already saturated ground. Because of the freak weather, my winter’s supply of firewood was stranded several hundred feet from the farmhouse, and even a helpful neighbor’s tractor couldn’t haul that fuel in.

I was pretty much resigned to spending a cold winter (except for the sweat I worked up every time I carried in an armful of wood). That some of my neighbors were also caught short of firewood made me feel somewhat less foolish, but it didn’t warm me up.

There the situation stayed until my good friends Ray and Sally Landry arrived at my homestead from central Maine for a Christmas visit.

The Landrys had recently built a log cabin in the woods and were stuck with a six-mile carry every time they had to bring in supplies. But, though ordinary sleds just bogged down in the deep snow (and they couldn’t make or afford a toboggan) Ray and Sally had solved their hauling problems. A friend taught them how to build a wood hauling ski sled out of old wooden skis. Though only a simple cargo hauler, it sneered at the deepest snow. The Landrys call the device a Corbin carrier after the man who introduced the easy-to-make sled to them. And, now that I’ve brought in my wood supply on my own ski-sled, I can understand Ray and Sally’s enthusiasm for this great little inexpensive workhorse.

Here’s How to Make It

Corbin carrier construction begins with an old pair of wooden skis. If you don’t already have these items stuck back in a garage or attic comer, check out your local ski exchange, Salvation Army, or Goodwill store. In the Northeast, at least, these outlets usually have plenty of worn-out wooden skis–often disguised with gaudy plastic coatings–that they’ll either give away or let go for less than a dollar.

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