Land Rover Defends Territory With Huge Snow Drawing

Land Rover turns 70 years old this year, and in celebration it has marked its turf in the French Alps with a massive snow drawing that recalls the shape of its original model, the iconic Defender.

The British maker of upscale SUVs is known for grandiose marketing gestures, but this may literally be its biggest yet: it commissioned "snow artist" Simon Beck to create the Defender snow drawing, which is 820 feet - 250 metres! - long.

Beck, who apparently specializes in "creating geometric snow art on foot," was plopped on a snowy mountainside near the ski town of La Plagne, France - at more than 2,700 meters elevation - where he walked 16.5 km (or 20,894 steps, for those who swear by their Fitbits) to create the Defender outline, which is surely visible from a significant altitude.

The original Land Rover - the model that came to be known as the Defender - was first shown by parent company Rover at the 1948 Amsterdam auto show. While Defender has since given way to the brand's more modern models, like the Discovery and Range Rover lines, the Defender remains a coveted vehicle among enthusiasts and spawned a limited-run final edition this year as part of Land Rover's 70th celebrations.

The company also announced earlier this year it plans to launch a new Defender, but hasn't confirmed when that will happen.