Rider VS Snowmobile?

[HOOCH256]

this is my 2 cents, but last year was my first year and i started out on a 2001 zx-chassis 700 ski-dont! i rode with nothing but 800's and turbo'd sleds and they were some amazing riders, i was always getting stuck and they made me do threw some haggard a$$ hillsides and what not! i quickly become a pretty good rider!

Then i bought a new M8 and in my eyes my skill doubled....one guy i was helping get un-stuck told me it wasn't fair that he had only been riding for a few years and that me and my buddies had been riding most our lives! i laughed and told him i was a rookie and he almost chit himself!

 

[flying pig]

our guy's stuck policy is that if its a stupidity stuck, you dig yourself out while the rest laugh at you. Its caused some tension but our group is pretty tight and everyone there is a good rider.
I ride two sleds, a 1200 watercraft and a 800 escape. Simply put if you're on too much sled you'll know it. The 1200 is super fun but I scare myself at an alarming rate, and its fun to boondock because its a big sled, but that can lead to trouble too. I jump on my 800 and feel like I'm God's gift to sledding. So much easier to ride and play on, can do things on that sled that the 1200 would punish me dearly for. But I still like th ebig one better. lol.

 

[AKSNOWRIDER]

we always help each other out on stucks...unless its a stupid stuck...everyonce in a while one guy will get upset about not being able to go where others are and seems like the more upset he gets the more stuck he gets...to the point of several sticks on a easy hill that you can creep up...when he gets like that we just leave him to it(we keep an eye on him) but it gives him lots of time to calm down and regain control...lol

 

[theultrarider]

we always help each other out on stucks...unless its a stupid stuck...everyonce in a while one guy will get upset about not being able to go where others are and seems like the more upset he gets the more stuck he gets...to the point of several sticks on a easy hill that you can creep up...when he gets like that we just leave him to it(we keep an eye on him) but it gives him lots of time to calm down and regain control...lol

Yep, we hate to leave AKSNOWRIDER to sit and dig out, but it beats listening to him whine about him getting stuck again!

 

[AKSNOWRIDER]

Yep, we hate to leave AKSNOWRIDER to sit and dig out, but it beats listening to him whine about him getting stuck again!

lmao.....yea bugs you I can do all that on tabby's trail rmk huh...

 

[BackCountryBob]

Relax your grip on the bars, anticipate your route by extending your forward vison, smooth throttle to reduce track spinninsg/trenching and try not to be last in line as you will always have crap snow to ride on--or--make your own trail and have a snow bungie ready

BCB

 

[FurryCURT]

manlaw # 1.never admit you cant ride

Manlaw #2: never ride with anyone that uses manlaw #1.

 

[ZRman31]

I honestly think that the thing that turned me into a decent rider was my first trip out west, riding a shorty with a 1.7 lug... I was with a group of guys on mountain sleds, that were more then willing to dig me out, and that would pat me on the back for something i did, that they thought couldn't be done on a shorty...

Now, i enjoy taking people out west, and basicly doing the same... I don't expect them to do half the things i can do, but i am more then willing to give some advice when i see something that they could be doing better... Practice for sure makes perfect. I look at the things i can do now on a sled, compared to only 4 or 5 years ago and laugh...

 

[Coldfinger]

I always wanted to ask this question. What makes you a good rider, The type of sled you own or is it the experience? I feel that I'm not even an average rider but i seen the guys i ride with take my stock sled and put it places i never even imagine of trying to go. Is it your riding style or the sled you drive?
Ive watched sledders hit chutes and climbs that makes you wish you had the nutz and capabilities of themselves.

Depends what your definition of a good rider is. If you want to take your sled the same places your buddies can take it, ask them for advice, tips, etc. Watch and learn. Practice, but start small and work your way up.

Just because someone has the nutz to hit a crazy chute doesn't make them a good rider.

 

[Trenchmaster]

A good rider goes places an average rider can't. I started out about 8 years ago on a 580 EXT 136" mountain cat, and got stuck lots. I upgraded to an 02 RMK 800 151" and got stuck in worse places, but went places I never would have tried on the EXT. Last year I upgraded to an 08 D8 163" and only got stuck in really bad places. So I think that my riding skills have improved, but the sled sure helps!!!

 

[Wheel House Motorsports]

starting on a shorted slightly less powerful sled will make you a better ride IMO, you learn how to ride the sled and keep it from getting stuck, and that momentum is your friend. then once you step onto a big sled you can just roll with it.

the 600 144 got stuck so much my first year, but they were in the dumbest spots, mainly cuz i had no control over the sled, like getting taken into creek bottoms, and not beeing able to climb out.

on time, i got sucked into a drainage that went into the trees. and luckily was able to cut my way thru to the bottom. there wasnt any deep pow, i just didnt know how to lay the sled over and carve out, and needless to say, i was scared. now i am able to ride the same kinda stuff, blib the throttle, hang of the side and pop right out. just takes time.

AND.... we do something similar, if somebody is being stupid trying stuff (mainly me) then nobody helps them getting unstuck.

 

[KevinW]

If you can follow me all day long, your a great rider on a great sled.

Come on dude...honestly? Anyway I think that a descent rider will become a good rider once they move to a newer sled. I know when I went from a 01 cat 800 to an xp I learned how to do a lot of new stuff...and very quickly. A great sled will definetly mold a good rider. Natural talent is always a bonus...like dmkhnr for example.

 

[dooitinthesnow]

Strarting out on a lesser sled does help you out. When I first started out i learned on a yamaha phazer. That phazer taught me more about reading my snow conditions and looking for old tracks and the occasional tree. The sled didn't have a lot of power so you learned what your capabilities were pretty quick. I now ride an xp and when the snow is deep and i am on the edge of getting stuck i go back to what I learned riding the phazer. But knowing when you are on the edge of getting stuck and making the right decision is the difference between someone that has rode a lot and a beginner. The more saddle time you have the more confidence you'll have because you know your limitations as a rider and you'll know what your sled can and can't do.

 

[SLEDIOT]

I always wanted to ask this question. What makes you a good rider, The type of sled you own or is it the experience? I feel that I'm not even an average rider but i seen the guys i ride with take my stock sled and put it places i never even imagine of trying to go. Is it your riding style or the sled you drive?
Ive watched sledders hit chutes and climbs that makes you wish you had the nutz and capabilities of themselves.

I say it all boils down to a good set of balls. Seriously! You've got to be willing to try the things you don't think you can do and be willing to wreck a few minor parts trying. Your buddies all went thru this. It is so much fun scarin' the livin' piss outta myself when out for a ride. I try and I try and I try until I accomplish what I see other guys doing. Anybody can point a sled at a steep pull and push a sled to it's max, turn out come down and puff out their chest. How many of these same guys can push that sled to it's limit, dodge in and out of the tree's pull a wheelie up thru a small cornish, thru untouched pow, throwin' the nastiest roost out the back like there is no tommorrow? And everybody says "did you see that?!!!" Lot's is the answer because of sacrifice and balls. You don't have to do anything stupid right off the hop, just work yer way up. Put some scratches on it.

 

[HANDSOME]

Having endless cash helps tremendously . Myself before kids and responsibilities had a blast doing stupid stuff and have seen lots of other guys do the same thing usually in the first 2 -5 years of riding like I did and that is the greatest entertainment there is. I have a heavy sled and a lighter sled and I too feel like a pro on the light sled but the heavy one challenges me and I like the power so when I can ride the big one as good as the small one I will too be a good rider.

 

[Jaynelson]

I really dunno....sledding's not a contest for me, I just go out and have as much fun as possible. You'll get better the more you go and work your way up to bigger stuff. Lines that looked stupid a year ago are now run of the mill. The guy's who are in over their head's are the one's who ride 3 times a year because they wad it up evertime.

Some of the "good" riders are nothing more than average, except they simply don't care about busting equipment, getting in an avy, etc

 

[Snappy Sledder]

last 2 years ive had a crash. first time i hit a tree going down a trail to fast and missed a corner. second was i didnt see a drop and went off of it and dropped about 15-20 ft till i hit ground. both times wer with a club my dad and i belong to and both times the helped me. you learn from you mistakes and ride with people that will help and will challenge you.

 

[Clarke673]

If you can keep up with me you have some if not all of the following.

1. Go see a doctor, your dumb
2. Suicide is on your mind quite often
3. You cheated
4. You own a Polaris
5. Track poacher (don’t F'ing lie, i know you seen tracks under the snow)

Just kidding, well not really lol.

I like ot go out and push my self. I go watch a sick sledn' movie and say, im going to go do that till i get it down. As a back country rider that goes ridn'n solo half the time, i do some sick stuff that no one will ever see or know about but that’s just how it goes!

I would say im a above average rider on an above average sled.

This year i will have about the best sled on the snow that you can build.

05 polaris race chassis, 03 800, twin crank shop pipes, nitrous, 151'" track, low gearing running the race Walker Evans and a boss seat.

470 pounds wet
150-165 hp? on nos possibly 170-180

Should be a fun year! Especially when spring rolls around and i put the 121 back on!

 

[HANDSOME]

I really dunno....sledding's not a contest for me, I just go out and have as much fun as possible. You'll get better the more you go and work your way up to bigger stuff. Lines that looked stupid a year ago are now run of the mill. The guy's who are in over their head's are the one's who ride 3 times a year because they wad it up evertime.

Some of the "good" riders are nothing more than average, except they simply don't care about busting equipment, getting in an avy, etc

Well put.

 

[Weekday Warrior]

Talent, Time, Cash

not neccessarly in that order