Thoughts on opening a rental place?

[overtheedge]

If you were in a area that had no powersports dealer for at least a hour away and they did not do rentals at all. Does anyone think that a rental place of sleds and quads with maybe a option of a guide if priced decently would still be viable option in these economic times for consumers? Or is it just a waste anymore?

I always wonder about this and thought it would do good in our area. As someone used to and did well with it for a long time.
Plus if you could do all your own up keep on the machines.

 

[2Thetopp]

Thoughts on opening a rental place? Reply to Thread

I had a buddy run a rental business ( sleds and cabin) for about fifteen years some years where better than others. Location has a lot to do with how well your business does, as well as reputation which takes a while to build up. I do know that it takes alot of your time and dedication if you want to make money which takes away from your riding time, it's tough to be in the middle of a riding area with 3' of new and not being able to enjoy it because you have to deal with customers or a sled that has too be serviced or rebuilt because it's been trashed by your customers. One other thing to consider is if you have a family your time spent with them will be lessened dramatically. Overall with the dealings with the state, forest service, insurance, parts , maintainance, sled rescues, idiots and all the above stated I wouldn't wish it on anybody. That being said their doesn't seem to be enough rental places to choose from when I want to introduce new people to the sport and I for one would welcome and support anyone taking this on by renting from them.

 

[overtheedge]

I figured it would take a little bit to get established and get the word out. I also realize that people are hard on things as well. No problem on working on stuff just a pain in the butt sometimes. Like you said time away from family or constantly working on stuff. But I would think it would be a pain more to deal with insurance and what not. I think though it might be worth it just kinda kicking the idea around right now. But sure would love to do it as I love sledding and everything that has to do with it.

 

[mtnpull]

I had a buddy run a rental business ( sleds and cabin) for about fifteen years some years where better than others. Location has a lot to do with how well your business does, as well as reputation which takes a while to build up. I do know that it takes alot of your time and dedication if you want to make money which takes away from your riding time, it's tough to be in the middle of a riding area with 3' of new and not being able to enjoy it because you have to deal with customers or a sled that has too be serviced or rebuilt because it's been trashed by your customers. One other thing to consider is if you have a family your time spent with them will be lessened dramatically. Overall with the dealings with the state, forest service, insurance, parts , maintainance, sled rescues, idiots and all the above stated I wouldn't wish it on anybody. That being said their doesn't seem to be enough rental places to choose from when I want to introduce new people to the sport and I for one would welcome and support anyone taking this on by renting from them.

Pretty well said.

Personally (I have over 7 years experience in the rental/guide business) I would wait for the economy to improve. We have seen a huge hit to our numbers over the last two years. This winter is not looking any better at this point. Recreation is one of the first things people cut out of their budget when times get tight. There are a lot of people without jobs that were spending money a few years ago that don't have it to spend right now.

 

[overtheedge]

I figured timing is off a little bit. But as there is nothing like it around plus if you had accessories like oil, googles,etc. It might make it a little better but maybe not. I do agree the economy sucks right now. The guiding part was not even sure about just maybe a option. If the insurance wouldn't kill you maybe a 180 kit yamaha or a pump gas turbo sled as well. But I'm sure it would get hamered on.

 

[m8magicandmystery]

the two rental places up in these parts went completely away from performance/mountain rentals and now only rent utility...the up keep was just way way to much on the performance and i think there insurance rates became alot more realistic with the utility as well...

 

[overtheedge]

I figured if anyone did performance sleds they would get beat good. Plus like you mentioned the insurance could be bad. But when you have trails and lots of mountain riding you would at least have to have mountain sleds around here anyway. I would think with out them you would be hurting really quick.

 

[mtnpull]

Most insurance companies will not insure a sled larger than a 600cc. Even with that insurance rates are pretty steep. It takes a lot of rentals just to pay for the insurance. You are probably going to be charged around $1000 - $1500 per sled for liability insurance and then have to pay additional for theft, damage insurance. Your biggest expenses will be depreciation and insurance. Oh, and get ready for people to damage your equipment and not want to pay, tell you they didn't do it, or just refuse to pay all together.

 

[overtheedge]

Ya I know the times I have rented you sign a paper you are responsible for all damages. Who knows how well that works out. But I can image that plenty of people would say I didn't do it or it was broke etc. I think it would be a lot of work, but at the same time I think it could be fun and being able to help people try the sport out is what it is about.

 

[2Thetopp]

Thoughts on opening a rental place? Reply to Thread

The insurance is probably your biggest obstacle, you'll want more than just liability, add theft. My buddy coming off one of his best years left to go see his family for two days, returned to 10 sleds missing ( no insurance) locked in a storage container, so now you're into alarms, cameras, and a secure building and still there's no gaurantee they'll be there when you get back. Just something else to consider while setting up your business, it's hard to recoop from that, he never did.

 

[overtheedge]

Thieves piss me off that someone would want to take someones elses lively hood or just toys at that. I agree the insurance will be a pain but I will see what they have to say. I know our lady pretty well.

 

[montanasledder]

I know a guy here locally that rents rafts,atv's and tried sleds. He said sleds were the hardest to make pay for themselves so he got out of that part. Sucks cause now we have no one local to rent from

 

[AZ800]

If you could keep your initial investment down (no PG turbos for rent!), say buy a bunch of used low mi sleds. I think anyone, including me that knows anything about sleds would rather rent a few year old Summit 800 or M8, M7 whatever than a new 09-10 600 or 550, what most rental outfits have.
If you could get some good machines for $5k each or less, might work out.
Don't see alot of outfits that rent good mtn machines. Got a dlr here that will rent out his used for sale sleds for $150-200 a day depending on if he knows ya or not. It's great for when my buddies come out riding. Get a 800 or 1000 for $150/day!
Think you'd need to get about 30 days/yr for 2 yrs out of a $5k sled to make any decent money on it. And get a credit card and check the limit on it from everyone that rents. Make sure they got the $$ to repair or replace it if it gets busted up.

 

[overtheedge]

Makes sense on the older Mnt sleds. Nothing wrong with that at all in my book as long as they are in good shape. Cause who really wants to run a 5-600 in the hills (not me). I think maybe 2-3 5-600's for trail riders or new to sport type people. But the experienced riders that just couldn't bring their sleds along would rather ride 7-800's and go where they want to in the mountains. I think you have a really good point AZ800 as I always thought new, but who cares if it's a 2-3 yr old sled that is Mnt specific and still rips.

 

[UtahEdge]

If you do start your own rental company make sure that you take care of your machines. My M1000 burned down so last thursday I rented an M8 for me and an M6 for a co worker that had never ridden before, from a very large and well known rental place here in Utah. I spent more time fixing those two sleds than I did riding. The m8 shredded a belt about 1/2 mile from the truck and then when I returned the sled they tried to charge me for the belt. I will never rent from them again. Just my 2c.

 

[overtheedge]

Man that sucks. I would make sure the sleds ran good and were taken care of. I would even test run them before anyone got to take them out. No one wants to rent something and have it not work or have to work on it. Somethings just happen but if you take care for your stuff it should be good to go.

 

[sdsnocop]

Rental operations are popular and are a great way to recruit new riders to the sport. However they are a lot of work and you need to know what you are getting into. I am a snowmobile patrol officer in the Black Hills of SD. I deal with the rental operators and their customers on a daily basis. Rental snowmobile account for 60-70 percent of the accidents I deal with, 3 of 4 last weekend. They also account for 50% of the fatalities. They also account for the majority of my search and rescue calls. The largest factor in these accidents is the inexperience of the operators. Many renters will tell you they are "experienced" riders when in reallity they have no idea what they are doing. Their "experience" may be running the JD Trailfire around the pasture. You do not want to rent anything that will take somone further than you are willing or able to retrieve it. I have assisted rental companies many times in finding their sled that was stuck in a location the renter did not know how to get to or describe where it was at. Every day I am pulling out a renter who was stuck and did not have the knowlege or physical ability to get themselves out. Keep in mind these are more mild Black Hills condition not serious ID or MT mountain conditions. Also when somthing does go wrong with the sled it is usually blamed on the rental company even though improper operation or outrite reckless operation caused the problem. The idea of buying a fleet of used snowmobiles may save money just make sure they are the same or similar brand and model. You will need to keep an extensive inventory of parts on hand especially since you do not have a dealer nearby. When you are booked solid back to back days and a sled goes down either mechanically or was wrecked it needs to be fixed so it can go out the next day. I have seen owner of rental companies send out their personal sleds to customers because they had a sled go down they couldnt fix in time or it was left on a mountain somewhere and they had to honor a rental reservation.

Good luck, this is a needed service but takes a lot of work and dedication.

 

[overtheedge]

You bring up some vaild points that many people say they are experienced when in fact they are to proud or whatever to admit that they have little to zero experience in the hills let alone on a snowmobile. We all start somewhere and most people borrow or rent to get into the sport. I know things will probably happen with the sleds at one time or another but you do what you can to prevent this from happening. I also realize that close to the same sleds would be good to keep parts to a minimum. I think it could be fun and rewarding but at the same time a challenge at times. We'll see how it goes as I'm still working this out.

 

[rockinmranch]

You will find that old sleds and new sleds do not depreciate that much differn'tly when clutch rebuilds and maintenance is factored in. Rent somebody crap and they will treat it like crap. Location and a destination to send your renters to is important. If you have a good destination such as a lodge or warming hut to get to, to occupy a the bigger portion of the day, that will eliminate wrecks. If there is no great trail sytem or specific destination the renters will find there own, tree gully, fence post etc. Insurance is not as bad as you may think relative to other costs. It is the greater yearly depreciation these last few years due to our economy that is making the rental buisness tougher.

 

[overtheedge]

Yep new or used the both depreciate quickly. I'm not saying I would rent a 2 yr old hunk of junk that wouldn't even get off the trailer. That is no fun for anyone involved. I agree you need to point them in the right direction before they make their path that might end badly.