The steep downhill sidehill - what's the trick?

[Blk88GT]

You know what I mean. You're coming down a steep downhill trying to control your speed. There's a number of green needled friends down below just waiting to eat a set of your A arms and turning your day into a recovery mission.

What's the trick to getting the sled to stay on it's edge, but maintain a straight line and a manageable speed? And what's the best way to transition it the opposite direction of the sidehill if you have to? Or are you better off keeping the sled flat and just controlling speed with the brake and dealing with a direction change once you've gone down a fair ways and the speed is low?

I'm comfortable in most situations I encounter, but no matter what I do this situation always makes me nervous.

 

[byeatts]

You know what I mean. You're coming down a steep downhill trying to control your speed. There's a number of green needled friends down below just waiting to eat a set of your A arms and turning your day into a recovery mission.

What's the trick to getting the sled to stay on it's edge, but maintain a straight line and a manageable speed? And what's the best way to transition it the opposite direction of the sidehill if you have to? Or are you better off keeping the sled flat and just controlling speed with the brake and dealing with a direction change once you've gone down a fair ways and the speed is low?

I'm comfortable in most situations I encounter, but no matter what I do this situation always makes me nervous.

throw your weight forward and transfer it over the inside ski as you countersteer, Certain chassis will do this effortlessly,you can side hill or turn uphill with ease, Skis make a big difference in the ease of this.after practice you can do this on totally set sno as well.

 

[Jaynelson]

Really steep techy stuff where you know the brakes won't do anything....Get it rolled over as you're coming over the "lip" or "crest" of the hill if possible. I find doing it right at that point makes it easier.

I hold the brake (stopped), wrong foot forward, and then a quick "brake-off stab the gas brake back on" thing to get the sled on edge without any appreciable forward progress. From there, with a little practice...it's just a balancing act of counter steer, and how much you stuff your spindle and foot into the side hill. You can do it in "steps"...brakes/countersteer/foot in snow to get it to drop the arse and slow down. Skis in line with hill/less lean + throttle if needed to get moving again.

If the snow is deep enough and/or the slope is a little mellow-er....I'd probably skip all that just ride straight down it, then lean the thing over press down on your bars and foot on the side you want to turn toward, and just carve whichever way with countersteer and throttle.

 

[Himark]

You know its steep when you can carve your way down with a dead sled! makes for fun practice too.

 

[Ryan-41]

It is so hard to explain how to do technical riding over a thread on SnoWest, I would say if you really want to learn, you should go ride with someone that does clinics like Burandt or Matt Entz. Or if you can't afford that, buy the Schooled videos, the forth one would be the best one for learning how to do steep side hills and technical riding.

Hope this helps,

RYan

 

[byeatts]

You know its steep when you can carve your way down with a dead sled! makes for fun practice too.

Yes learn to toss sled on its side / slide to slow downhill and avoid relaying on the brakes. without this skill its pretty dangerous in the steeps where brakes do nothing.probably the most used maneuver ever ride .

 

[aebsledder]

The trick is to...

Practice it. Fall off. Lose your sled down the hill and have to chase after it. Smash it into a tree and hope it doesn't total it.

That's how I learned!

Seriously, when I first started I would read about and watch the guys on videos do things I wanted to do. I never was able to do them until I just tried it myself. Like my dad said when I started skiing "If you're not falling, you're not trying"

 

[theultrarider]

It takes two things. Confidence. And commitment. And to get those takes practice! Not hard. Just always way more scary downhill than up.

 

[FriscoProx]

4 Minutes in:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6pwXQTIPmk8

 

[Blk88GT]

It is so hard to explain how to do technical riding over a thread on SnoWest, I would say if you really want to learn, you should go ride with someone that does clinics like Burandt or Matt Entz. Or if you can't afford that, buy the Schooled videos, the forth one would be the best one for learning how to do steep side hills and technical riding.

Hope this helps,

RYan

I've got the videos and have ridden with Burandt. BBA is not designed as a "how to ride" clinic, I can assure you

Thanks for the tips guys, I'll give it a try. Maybe my new sled will behave differently than my old one. It certainly seems to require less drastic input to make it do what I want.

 

[phatty]

as much as no one wants to admit it, certain sleds hold lines better while others will want to drop down hill, and others will want to cut up hill. That's not to say those sleds are bad, just different in design and features. The skis play a huge role in this too.

To get the sled on its side, countersteer, blurp the throttle and the sled should come right onto its side. From there, you want your weight as far forward (to the front of the sled) and uphill as possible. Your first time I would recommend just WALKING the sled down (wrong foot forward in the stirrup, with steps by the foot off the running board uphill in the snow) nice and slow to get a feel for it. If you feel the back end start to slide down hill apply a little brake. If you feel the nose start to slide downhill apply a little throttle.

As for switch directions, depending on how steep the hill is and how much powder you will either need to do it super fast, or have the ability to slowly walk through the direction change. 1st you want to stop the sled if you can (not always an option on super steep slopes) 2nd hop over the sled into the other wrong foot forward and plant your off the sled leg firmly in the snow and put your weight on this leg ( you will pivot the sled around this leg). Commit the sled to the turn, by countersteering the sled to the new direction, give it some throttle and let the sled go downhill, then tip back up hill in the new direction. Careful here as too much throttle will send the nose too far up hill and get you stuck, and to little throttle will send the sled downhill with you only half on the sled.

Practice on some not so steep and tree free slopes first in a foot of powder. Hope that helps.

 

[Coldfinger]

Another technique may be to use your reverse if you have it. If you suspect you will gain too much speed by using your brake alone, stop before descending and put your sled in reverse and don't rev your engine. If you find you're gaining too much speed (don't wait till you're out of control), hit the brake so the track locks, then apply throttle till clutch engages and release brake and spin your track backwards.

I can't attest to the long term consequences on the drive system, if any, of using this procedure as I've only done it a few times but I'm relatively certain it beats hitting a tree or boulder.

(if you have to change directions drastically, reverse will not be the answer)

 

[Blk88GT]

Thanks phatty! I think part of my problem is actually using my foot to "walk" and not stuff it in the snow and lose my balance. The brake/throttle thing makes sense too, although it's not easy to think of when you're nervous to begin with.

I can get around most terrain just fine, but I want to master this as I think it'll help me get to the next level.

I appreciate the reply.

 

[Blk88GT]

4 Minutes in:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6pwXQTIPmk8

The maneuver I'm looking for begins at 12:53. Thanks for the link!

 

[Ryan-41]

I've got the videos and have ridden with Burandt. BBA is not designed as a "how to ride" clinic, I can assure you

Thanks for the tips guys, I'll give it a try. Maybe my new sled will behave differently than my old one. It certainly seems to require less drastic input to make it do what I want.

I would agree to that, riding with Burandt is you learn by trying to keep and and not focusing on individual techniques! I take it your new sled is the 14 XM in your sig, that will be a major help to learn and achieve new skills!! Good luck!

Ryan

 

[Deep Powder Guy]

Really steep techy stuff where you know the brakes won't do anything....Get it rolled over as you're coming over the "lip" or "crest" of the hill if possible. I find doing it right at that point makes it easier.

I hold the brake (stopped), wrong foot forward, and then a quick "brake-off stab the gas brake back on" thing to get the sled on edge without any appreciable forward progress. From there, with a little practice...it's just a balancing act of counter steer, and how much you stuff your spindle and foot into the side hill. You can do it in "steps"...brakes/countersteer/foot in snow to get it to drop the arse and slow down. Skis in line with hill/less lean + throttle if needed to get moving again.

If the snow is deep enough and/or the slope is a little mellow-er....I'd probably skip all that just ride straight down it, then lean the thing over press down on your bars and foot on the side you want to turn toward, and just carve whichever way with countersteer and throttle.

Why are you holding the brake if you know the brake won't do anything ? Riding downhill is no different than riding uphill. You still have to read the hill and pick your lines

 

[Blk88GT]

Thanks for all the tips everyone. I got plenty of opportunities to practice this in Alpine a few weeks ago and am proud to say I think I've got it under control. It's much easier on the new XM than it was on my M sled. I'm converted!

 

[Jaynelson]

Why are you holding the brake if you know the brake won't do anything ? Riding downhill is no different than riding uphill. You still have to read the hill and pick your lines

As in the brake wouldn't do anything if you just pointed the sled down the hill. But it will definitely do something with the sled pointed across the hill. I think the idea of the thread was to go across a steep downhill while descending....so you maintain control....as opposed to just sliding down it and hitting whatever's at the bottom.

 

[Deep Powder Guy]

All technics require your body to be in the correct position. What works for one person might not work for the next. Learn to find the sweet spot of your running boards while using you body weight to allow the sled to perform. Throttle is key

DPG

 

[allied1]

Throttle and body position. Watch the sequence and see where the rider is during this maneuver. He's all over the place. BTW, this is my son Chuck riding my sled in 18''-24'' of fresh spring snow. This is harder than it looks! I would have been down in the trees picking pine needles out of my a hole!