Two inches of powder, three rests and four days of a sore back. Then I saw what my 67-year-old neighbor was holding.

Last January it took me three rests to clear a driveway I used to finish before my coffee went cold.

I've shoveled that driveway for 26 winters. That morning my lower back locked up halfway down, and I stood leaning on the shovel while my wife watched from the front window with her phone in her hand.

It was two inches of dry powder, the kind of snowfall I wouldn't have thought twice about at 50. It took me 45 minutes, and my back felt it for four days.

My neighbor Gus is 67, and his driveway two doors down is as long as mine. That same morning he was done before I'd finished my first pass, and he never picked up a shovel.

I'm 63. Every snowy morning went the same way: coffee at the storm door, a long look at the driveway, then the shovel from the garage to the street.

What I couldn't work out was what Gus had in his hand. From my driveway it looked like a cordless drill with a fat barrel, and wherever he pointed it, the snow lifted off the concrete and blew onto his lawn. The next morning I walked over with my coffee and asked him about it.

A shovel moves snow by lifting it. Every scoop is weight you pick up, twist and throw, and I'd guess a two-car driveway is a couple hundred of them.

Most of what lands on my driveway each winter is light, dry stuff, an inch or two overnight. Fresh snow like that weighs very little until boots and tires pack it down, and while it's loose, a strong blast of air will move it.

Gus had bought his blower to dry his truck after a wash. On the first snowy morning he tried it on the front steps out of curiosity, and by the end of that week he was doing the whole driveway with it. He keeps his shovel and his old snowblower for the heavy, wet storms, and he told me he'd only needed each of them a couple of times since he got it.

Gus is four years older than me, and he was finishing his driveway with one hand while I rested on my shovel.

Gus answered all four standing at the end of his driveway, and I went home and looked the rest up.

Most of that comes down to lifting snow by hand. Fresh powder weighs almost nothing, and air can move it off the driveway while you stand up straight.

It's called the VortexHaus MACH. I ordered one the week after that first conversation, picked the DeWalt® fit, and slid in one of the packs from my drill.

With a pack on, it's about the size of a cordless drill, with a red trigger and a red honeycomb intake at the back. I keep a shovel by the door for the heavy, wet storms. For the inch or two of light, dry snow most snowfalls leave, the MACH does the whole job.

It lives on the shelf by the garage door, with two charged packs from my drill on the shelf beside it. On a snowy morning I clear the driveway from the garage down, then do the steps and the car before I back out.

Five things I like about it after my first season:

The size. It sits on the shelf next to my drill, so it's always where I can grab it.

The car. Loose snow comes off the windshield, roof and mirrors without anything touching the paint.

The rest of the year. In summer it dries the truck after a wash and blows the dust out of the garage.

The warning lights. Five electronic protections, each with an LED alert, so it tells you what's wrong and steps the power down before anything quits.

The guarantee. 90 days to send it back for any reason, even used, plus a 1-year warranty.

My first morning with it was clumsy. I held the nozzle straight down and blew a cloud of powder back onto my boots. Gus walked over and showed me three things.

1. Get out there before anyone walks on it

Fresh powder moves best before boots and tires pack it down, so I go out while the coffee is still brewing.

2. Hold it low and sweep toward the lawn

I start at the garage door with the nozzle angled low and a little forward, and walk the snow down and off the side in long sweeps, the same motion as clearing leaves. Working with the wind helps.

3. Do the steps and the car last

Once the driveway is clear I do the front steps and the walk, then the car, aiming everything at the lawn.

Last winter I used the MACH on light snow 12 times and picked up the shovel twice, both for heavy, wet storms. My wife has stopped watching from the window.

Once I stopped lifting light snow, the driveway went back to being a 15-minute job I do before breakfast.

"Bought it for the driveway. Ended up using it on my keyboard, the vacuum canister, the pollen on the porch furniture. It has become the thing I grab for everything. Quiet enough indoors too."

Pamela K., Tennessee

"bought it to dry the car and now he uses it more than i do. garage floor, the deck, even the dog beds. light enough that my wrist isnt sore after, which the gas blower never was."

Connie H., Kentucky

The MACH handles the light, loose snow most snowfalls leave. Keep the shovel for the big storms and let air handle the rest.

Runs on the DeWalt®, Makita® or Milwaukee® 18-21V packs you already own, with 90 days to try it at home.

TRADEMARK DISCLAIMER: DeWalt®, FlexVolt®, Milwaukee® and Makita® are registered trademarks of their respective owners. VortexHaus is an independent company and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by these trademark owners. Products are designed for compatibility only. The MACH works with genuine 18-21V slide-in packs and is not compatible with 12V, 40V, FlexVolt® or stem-style packs. Battery not included. The MACH is meant for light, loose snow; use a shovel or snowblower for heavy, wet or packed snow and ice. The story on this page is illustrative.