Meet J. Armand Bombardier, innovator and businessman, who changed the way people live, work and play.

Born in 1907, J. Armand grew up in Valcourt, a small village in Quebec. Like many places, his rural home town was often cut off from the world after winter snows made the roads impassable. As a teen, Armand made his first attempt at a vehicle that could get through snow. It didn’t work very well, but Armand didn’t give up. When he was older, his dream of making a snow machine became a serious ambition after a family tragedy. He persisted after many failures — until he did it! His B7 snowmobile kept people and goods moving no matter the weather. It saved lives.

But Armand didn’t stop there . . . he was only getting started!