Riding alone in the mountains?

[Colorado^]

[backstory]
A few years back I moved to the mountains and bought a KTM 300. I'd never ridden a motorbike before, but took that 2t into the mountains in my back yard and taught myself to ride.

I've put over 500 hours on that 300 (99.5% riding solo) and had the time of my life. No major injuries, no break downs.... just pure AWESOME fun!!
[/backstory]

Anyway....

Now I want to do the same thing, but with a snowbike. But winter is obviously a lot more serious, with avalanches, getting stuck in deep powder and -10 deg over night temps etc.

I'm a pretty decent snowboarder, but have zero experience in the back country. Obviously I would do an Avy course, carry a beacon and probably buy an avy back pack.... currently using a inreach for dirtbiking...

I'd also take it pretty easy to begin with. Mostly sticking to trails and flat-ish open areas.

Lucky me, I work from home and can take 3-4 hours off in the mornings if it dumps.

What do you guys think? I'm I gonna die, or is it an acceptable level of risk? Do guys think it's a lot more risky than dirt biking alone?

 

[Tuesday]

[backstory]
A few years back I moved to the mountains and bought a KTM 300. I'd never ridden a motorbike before, but took that 2t into the mountains in my back yard and taught myself to ride.

I've put over 500 hours on that 300 (99.5% riding solo) and had the time of my life. No major injuries, no break downs.... just pure AWESOME fun!!
[/backstory]

Anyway....

Now I want to do the same thing, but with a snowbike. But winter is obviously a lot more serious, with avalanches, getting stuck in deep powder and -10 deg over night temps etc.

I'm a pretty decent snowboarder, but have zero experience in the back country. Obviously I would do an Avy course, carry a beacon and probably buy an avy back pack.... currently using a inreach for dirtbiking...

I'd also take it pretty easy to begin with. Mostly sticking to trails and flat-ish open areas.

Lucky me, I work from home and can take 3-4 hours off in the mornings if it dumps.

What do you guys think? I'm I gonna die, or is it an acceptable level of risk? Do guys think it's a lot more risky than dirt biking alone?

Pretty sure most of us will agree on a sled or snowbike alone is not worth the risk. Injury, breakdown, pinned etc are all solved with riding with at least 1 extra rider. Solo up and down the main trails is one thing but anything back country is trouble. In the summer a guy can walk out and live a long time but in the winter all of that becomes unlikely.
cheers and stay safe.

 

[M5-]

There were 2 separate solo riding deaths in the Revy/Sicamous area last season. Bottom line is NO don't do it, its really a bad idea.

M5

 

[Yaeger34]

Terrible idea. Also a beacon really isn't going to do any good when there is no one there to see that they even need to search for someone in the avalanche. Sure would suck to break a leg or even less and die cause you can't get out by yourself when your buddies could have fairly easily got you out of that situation, etc. All in all not worth the risk. Plenty of people on here to find riding partners. Or go to the trail heads and start asking around if you can ride in someones group and make friends etc. Plus safety aside way more fun with friends. Sucks to do something really awesome and not be able to even talk about it or share the memories with buds.

 

[wwillf01]

Agreed... With above I assume your in Colorado... I have the same situation I can take off and ride whenever... That being said I make friends with fire fighters, plane mechanics and police officers that get flexible schedule... If you still insist on going by yourself... Buy a sat. Receiver or phone but still they are not 100 percent I. Canyons... Also pack snow shoes.... And supplies to spend the night .

Sent from my XT1585 using Tapatalk

 

[Colorado^]

Well that's not good news.

So mountain riding it out, but sticking to trails is OK?

There are a lot of trails around my area, but the snow sucks, since it's windy and has a southern exposure. But there are days when we get fresh powder and I could have a lot of fun ridding from my door.

If trails are OK to ride solo, does that include trails covered with 1ft of fresh powder?

I'm guess riding stuff like in the video below is OUT?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pbAq4BN2qqE


I really don't want to deal with trailer-ing up to ride, and there's not really anyone here to ride with... I live in the middle of nowhere. Taking 3-4 hours is OK, but adding on another 4 hours of driving and it's not going to happen.

I could ride trails into summit county, from my house, and meet up with riders over there (currently don't know anyone who rides though). But that would still involve going over Georgia Pass (on trails) solo.

Winter here at 10,000ft is 6 months of the year, and I'm sick of sitting on the side lines. It's driving me nuts.

 

[Calvin42]

Never ride in the mountains alone......period

 

[Colorado^]

Agreed... With above I assume your in Colorado... I have the same situation I can take off and ride whenever... That being said I make friends with fire fighters, plane mechanics and police officers that get flexible schedule... If you still insist on going by yourself... Buy a sat. Receiver or phone but still they are not 100 percent I. Canyons... Also pack snow shoes.... And supplies to spend the night .

Sent from my XT1585 using Tapatalk

I bought a -25 deg down sleeping bag and have camped out in the worst of nights on my property. It's pretty big to pack along, so maybe a -10 bag would have to do.

Can you pack a bit of stuff on the track (next to where you carry extra fuel) on a snowbike?

I would have no issue buying a sat phone and snowshoes. Whatever it takes to minimize risks.

 

[capulin overdrive]

I ride alone 90% plus of the time. Carry a Sat phone or inreach, and stuff to survive a night. Snowshoes strapped to the skid, even better.




May be stupid as hell, but I'm a pathetic old single guy who lives in the middle nowhere. If I wasn't snowbiking, I'd be in Thailand or Mexico banging hookers. So not a lot safer!


For me, the risk is worth the reward.




As for vs summer, suppose there's more risk. But after reading some stories of guys dumping their bikes on single track alone, not a whole bunch.




As mentioned hit up people at the trailhead, or join the nearest club.

 

[M5-]

I understand where you are coming from and your keenness to ride but IMO no one on here who has spent much time in the mountains is likely to give you their blessing and say "Yah no problem it'll be fine go for it, sounds like a great plan" because no matter how you slice it its a bad idea period. No matter where you ride or how well prepared you think you are. Weird unpredictable $hit happens all the time. You could smoke a log or rock or ...... lots more than just avys to think about. Sorry but you are going to keep getting the same answer which I don't think is the one you were hoping for.

M5

 

[Colorado^]

Yeah, I realize that no one is going to give me their blessings.

No one thought that a someone with zero experience on a motorcycle should go out and buy a 300 and go riding solo in the mountains at 9-12.5Kft, either! I ride in the snow, the ice. I've dumped my bike and crashed countless times and I felt OK with this risk. It gets plenty cold enough in may and October that a night out could having you dead from exposure.

That's the thing. Risk is a personal thing. I will take on risks, that I can mitigate with good judgment, skills and experience. But relying on luck is no way to go through life.

I get that himarking in the back bowls behind keystone is going to be out, but what about my local, relatively flat trails, after a good dump? Is that still to much risk, provided I kept close to home, and was equipped to walk out and/or spend the night out? Yeah, I could get pinned under the bike, but that could happen in dirt too. Is it significantly more likely to happen in snow?

Here's my local loop that I do a ton all summer/fall . It's pretty high risk riding with all the rocks and the huge exposure. Is trail riding a snowbike THAT much more dangerous? Really, I'm not trying to be argumentative... I just want to know if I can do any kind of riding alone, if mountains are out. Hell, I can ride around my neighborhood (private roads, so it's legal), but I don't want to spend $15K on a snowbike just to do that lol.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_TRAk5bfr1c

 

[Drewd]

There was a solo snowbiker killed on his "first" (test) ride at Cottonwood Pass last winter. Small AVI took him out.

Personally, I wouldn't even ride trails alone. Too much can go wrong. Even a mechanical breakdown 10 miles from the trailhead could be problematic.

If you go out against all recommendations, a Spot GPS tracker in addition to a sat phone would be ideal. If you are badly hurt and unable to use your Sat phone, your friends and family can look up your location transmitted by your Spot tracker.

Had a buddy, Jerry, almost die riding his dirt bike solo last summer. He took a pretty bad dive on his dirtbike which resulted in broken ribs, broken collarbone, a collapsed lung, and other injuries. It was a miracle that he made it back to the trailhead where he collapsed and was found by other rides who called for a flight for life. Even riding solo in the summer is not wise.

I got to ride my first dirt bike ever this past summer at Taylor park. While riding our UTVs, we can across a guy from MN who broke his wrist. We were about 45 minutes from the Taylor Park Trading Post. After we splinted him up with duct tape and a homemade sling, he got to ride my UTV back one-handed and I rode his dirt bike back. Although it was July, it gets cold at TP at night and he had no survival gear and would have suffered from exposure if he had to spend the night.

Riding alone either in Summer or Winter is something that could have very serious consequences.

 

[roo]

Number one rule in my book is to ride with a buddy.
I have seen way more snowbikes riding solo than sleds. It is just a bad idea.
Lets all do our part to keep ourselves alive and our loved ones from grieving.
Hooking up with a group at the parking lot can even be sketchy. Basically trusting your life with someone you dont know.

 

[SteepNdeep450]

I see where you are coming from on the dirt side but I feel like snowbiking is an extremely different animal. You could say you are going to ride trails but lets face it we all start riding and on a trail and 5 out of 6 of us are going to leave it real quick and start sidehilling and wandering a bit. You'd have to be constantly reminding yourself to stick to the trail. Getting unstuck by yourself can be a bit of a job... although I have basically no sledding experience. And yes I do think its way more probable of you getting pinned under your bike in the snow and snowbikes can be a bear to get turned upright again by yourself on a steep uphill. Dirt bikes are a bit easier to get out from under, they stand up easier and aren't as heavy. Not only are the weather conditions more of a concern, I feel like the mistakes could cost more. I never had an issue on remote singletracks in all the years I've been riding till this summer. Put a stick through my radiator. Had to hike 6 miles out in riding boots can't imagine walking out in snow and freezing temps. Just my two cents from the little snowbiking experience I had last year.

On another note if you do decided to do it I'd go with what everyone else is saying about a spot tracker or sat phone. Also if you have facebook theres a timbersled page that has tons of members from all over you could get on there and ask around to see if theres any others around you as well.

 

[GlennRMK]

Find some buddies to ride with!

IMO, the snowbike learning curve is 10 times faster then a dirt bike or snowmobile

For most people it takes years of riding to be proficient on a dirt bike, especially on technical mountain single track. Same goes for riding a snowmobile off trail.

So I can understand the allure of riding alone but IMO its not a good idea.

On the snow, you can pick up snowbiking in a few hours. I had never ridden one before, hopped on and instantly felt comfortable

 

[capulin overdrive]

Yeah, I realize that no one is going to give me their blessings.

No one thought that a someone with zero experience on a motorcycle should go out and buy a 300 and go riding solo in the mountains at 9-12.5Kft, either! I ride in the snow, the ice. I've dumped my bike and crashed countless times and I felt OK with this risk. It gets plenty cold enough in may and October that a night out could having you dead from exposure.

That's the thing. Risk is a personal thing. I will take on risks, that I can mitigate with good judgment, skills and experience. But relying on luck is no way to go through life.

I get that himarking in the back bowls behind keystone is going to be out, but what about my local, relatively flat trails, after a good dump? Is that still to much risk, provided I kept close to home, and was equipped to walk out and/or spend the night out? Yeah, I could get pinned under the bike, but that could happen in dirt too. Is it significantly more likely to happen in snow?

Here's my local loop that I do a ton all summer/fall . It's pretty high risk riding with all the rocks and the huge exposure. Is trail riding a snowbike THAT much more dangerous? Really, I'm not trying to be argumentative... I just want to know if I can do any kind of riding alone, if mountains are out. Hell, I can ride around my neighborhood (private roads, so it's legal), but I don't want to spend $15K on a snowbike just to do that lol.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_TRAk5bfr1c

Red Cone?

 

[Yrocmoto]

I rode solo a bit late season, mostly getting things dialed, but yeah, the risks are higher. As far as avalanches go, I have an airbag and really don't think chances for survival are much higher with others (unless you are all together and following avalanche rules, like only have one out on a slope at a time) But my group is REALLY BAD with this. We get separated all the time etc....

Anyway, I have a Delorme Sat device, so if I breakdown, I have buddies that could get to me within an hour.

Either way, it's much more dangerous, you have to weigh all the factors, and make smart decisions, but if I have to decide between riding solo or not riding, I'd rather get out, even if it's dinking around in the flats...

 

[KMMAC]

It only takes one bad ride, I wouldn't road ride without knowing someone in the parking lot.

 

[Uncle si]

Unlike a lot of posters here, I ride alone frequently.

Know that your inexperience in the backcountry increases the risks and especially the probability of a bad outcome if anything goes wrong.

You will die of something, some day. Most of us want that to be years in the future, not in the next storm cycle.

Riding alone, nearly all the risk is to yourself. Your call!

 

[AZ800]

I don't ride alone much anymore and when I do, I keep it pretty mellow. Not like I'm Chris Effing Burant to begin with anyway.
Risky? Yes.
So is 20 years of being in heavy construction, flying 100klb loads in the air, working on the side of the freeway in the rain at 2am when the drunks are coming home, or hunting alone 5 mi from the truck.
I say use your head and go have fun.
But as many have said, prepare yourself and as far as no back country experience? Go get some. Plan some overnighters "stranded" with what you bring riding. Build a fire, keep it going all night, snow cave, whatever.
If it gets too bad you can always fire up the bike and ride back home.

Haven't done it alone, but a buddy n I did this when we got into back country riding after thinking about the options. Was fun for us. Ended up in a bonfire and some wiskey, but good experience nonetheless.
The biggest take away was whether you think you need a saw or a hatchet, bring both! Had to cut a chit load of wood to keep warm...