# A School bus on Skis The Windsled By Ayman | Published 2008-02-23 | Autos Source: Trend Hunter, https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/windsled References: [bornrich.org](http://www.bornrich.org/entry/windsled-a-school-bus-on-skis/) & [nytimes](http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/22/us/22ice.html?_r=2&oref=slogin&oref=slogin) I wish I had such a cool school bus when I was young. The **Windsled** 'bus' carries school children of La Pointe, a remote village on an ice-locked island off the tip of mainland Wisconsin, to classes several weeks each year, with an operating cost of over $20,000 annually. The windsled was built by Arnie and Ronald Nelson as a homegrown solution to their village's tricky circumstances. It is kept light on the skis by its forward motion and the way the design handles its four and a half tons over its 336 square feet. The 9,000-pound ice vehicle can accommodate around 20 students on padded benches and is propelled by its twin fans. ## Trend Insights (Trend Hunter) - Score: 2.4/10 - Popularity: 53% | Activity: 12% | Freshness: 8% - Audience gender: 50% men, 50% women - Primary generations: Millennial - Top markets: North America, Europe ## Categories [Trend Hunter](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends) > [Autos](https://www.trendhunter.com/autos) ## Key Themes ### What Makes This Trend Stand Out - **School Transportation Innovation:** The Windsled demonstrates a disruptive innovation opportunity for transforming traditional school transportation methods. - **Community-driven Solutions:** The homegrown development of the Windsled highlights the potential for community-driven solutions in remote or challenging environments. - **Sustainable Winter Transportation:** The use of wind propulsion in the Windsled presents opportunities for sustainable transportation solutions in snow and ice-covered regions. ### Sectors Adopting This - **Education:** The Windsled showcases innovation opportunities for the education sector in terms of improving transportation for students. - **Transportation:** The development of the Windsled showcases potential disruption in the transportation industry, specifically in the winter and snow-covered regions. - **Sustainable Energy:** The use of wind as a propulsion method in the Windsled highlights opportunities for innovation in the sustainable energy industry. ## Related on Trend Hunter - [All Terrain Electric Skis](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/skwheel-one.md) - [Rugged Off-Road Buses](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/offroad-bus.md) - [School Bus Playsets](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/school-bus-playset.md) - [Sustainable Norwegian Timber Schools](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/oarvemtta-school.md) - [Canadian Standing Snowmobiles](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/widescape.md) - [Snow Scooter Conversion Kit](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/snow-scooter-conversion.md) - [Semi-Amphibious Bus Designs](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/estuary-hopper.md) - [Colorful School Desk Designs](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/clever-school-desk1.md) - [Elevating Skybridge Bus Designs](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/xferry-bus.md)