Tom's Hardware: Topic First ride of the season!
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Well, I'm back from the first ride of the year!!! Sled & I both took some abuse. Sled may have been pissed at me, for all I know.
I was sitting here at the house Thurs. morning & my buddy, Greg, calls & says lets go U. P. do some riding for a few days. I hadn't even planned on going sledding until today. The long & short of it, got packed, sled up & the trailer & took off about 1 in the afternoon. By the time we met up & swapped my sled onto his trailer, we got to Newberry & our room about 7:30. Got in some riding (30 miles) before curfew. They have a curfew in Newberry, no sled traffic between 11 pm & 7 am in town.
Got up bright & early on Fri. about 6 am & it was -11 heading to a high of +8, cold & going to be cold. No sweat, last year when we were up it was -18 to -24, so we weren't worried. There was 2 1/2 feet on the ground with a 18" base. Excellent conditions. Gassed up the sleds & violated the am curfew to get on the trails.
I was having some trouble with the handling, skis were biting to hard in the turns & it was getting thrown side to side in the other tracks. We'd adjusted the track & the ski pressure in the off season & this was the first trip on the trails to fine tune it. So I'm trying to figure out just what I ought to do.
It was just getting some gray light in the dawn, my shield was fogging on me (so I was really struggling to see in that light) & Greg was throwing up a snow cloud in front of me that didn't help any. I came in to hot into a sharp curve that I didn't see right or read right & blew the corner. I was between 25 or 30. I hooked a ski in the hard, froze bank & rolled my sled 1 complete time. Oh yea, swell!!!! I was on the ground on my belly & watched her go over & land back up on her feet. I was pissed at myself for that stupid mistake. It busted the windshield off, tore off a mirror & put a crack in the hood. So here we are, less than 20 miles into the day & I'd busted up my sled, it happens!! Don't get me wrong, with riding the way we do & covering the miles we do, things happen. 15 minutes either side of when I rolled it, it probably wouldn't have happened.
Well, no damage to anything that would stop it from being ridden. On we went. I was having some trouble with the cold getting into my neck without the windshield. I didn't realize how much wind it blocked when it was there. I was freezing my chin & neck. I wear a head sock that just the eyes are open on, that tucks into my shirt, under my helmet. Then my jacket neck tucks in my helmet. Right there is where all your breath is venting out of the helmet & freezing on the screen under your chin. Course, you've got some adrenaline going from riding & your breathing hard, thus causing more freezing. We'd stopped 3 or 4 times & I tried to adjust things to make it better, but it was getting no better.
Got to Grand Marais (81 miles from the motel) at 11:30 for lunch. I knew I was in trouble when my breathing net & head sock was froze to my chin. I knew if I yanked it, it pull off skin & do damage, like your Toung stuck to a frozen fence post. So I had to go into the bar & stand with my chin over the fire to melt it a bit. Got it off fairly soon, but my chin from my goatee back to where my helmet strap was frost bitten real good, swelling & turning blackish. Feeling was gone out of it & as it was thawing it felt like it was wet to me, even though it was dry.
Greg wasn't fairing all that much better. He weighs 230 & has a lot of insulation on him, but his feet & knees were froze. To top it off, he goes to unzip his bibs & the zipper breaks. Now once he pulls it, it not going to zip up again. Next time they come off, they go in the trash. He's stuck in his bibs, I'm frost bit, but the trails were so fast & groomed. We had only seen 6 or 8 sleds in 81 miles. We'd planned on going west to Munising & then back to Newberry, but that was defiantly out of the question at this point, IMO. It must have been more humid or something this trip. It actually felt colder than -18 to -24 to both of us. We've always ridden in real cold before.
We change up & took the trail to Seeney & then back to Newberry & got back to the motel at 2:30. We'd put on 142 miles & if we weren't all tore up, we could have had a 200 mile day easy, dam!!! No sense in staying, I wasn't going to be able to put on a helmet with my frost bite & Greg had no bibs to ride in. We loaded em up & headed home to Greg's cottage like whipped dogs. Don't get me wrong, we'd road hard & covered a lot of trail, but it had taken it's toll on us this trip.
I stayed at the cottage Fri. night & pulled home yesterday. Wife called me on my cell wondering why I hadn't called her & I said I'm almost in the drive. She said what happened, you should be riding the sled yet. I said I'll be home in 2 minutes. I knew that I was in for the nursing routine & you dumb bastage treatment when I got there, anyway.
Wife took one look at me & said your going into the hospital. Dumb bastage would be mild compared to what I got!! I was to beat & wore down to even deal with her, so I had to let her take control & drive me to the hospital. All I wanted was food, hot shower & bed. Said it's second degree, like a second degree burn, however with frost bit it can change a lot, depending on how deep it went. Want me to get looked at again next week. got some burn salve to keep on it & see what it does. About 7 pm last night I got some food, shower & bed. Today, I don't feel to bad, kind of like I just been abused is all. Every muscle in my body is hurting. It's a good hurt though.
Dr. said no riding until it's fully healed!! Wife says no riding, like the Dr. said. Me, I'm going & getting a better hood sock with a thick wooly attached to the outside of it that goes on your neck & chin. New windshield will be here this week. I'll be good to go next weekend. I'm not loosing a season for a little frost bite, I'll tell you that right now.
Man, were those trails awesome. So much snow hanging in the trees, you'll never see that sitting around the house in the winter. It's all I can think about now that I've been to the U. P. again!!! It will be that way the rest of the winter. We're going Feb. 8th through the 15th for our long ride of the the season!!! 
Dazzle them with Brilliance, or Baffle them with BS! 
Nice to see you got out. Too bad about your sled.
Funny reading about you freezin everything. Reminds me of some quick runs I've had on the lake thinking, I don't need to suit up much I'm just booting 2 Kms to my cousin's house. Only to freeze some body part I want to keep. That and skating on the lake for hours on end.
My experience with Frostbite, warm (not hot) water over and over again. move the extremity as well after long soak.
If it's bad, you may always be susceptible in that area. I heard that's the case, but never got that from myy experiences with frostbite.
Hope your feeling 100% in no time.
- You need a licence to buy a gun, but they'll sell anyone a stamp <i>(or internet account)</i> ! - <font color=green>RED </font color=green> <font color=red> GREEN</font color=red> GA to SK 
That's a good idea for riding bikes, don't think it would work for sledding though. Just like I did, un ass the sled, you'd probably ruin the cord to say the least. We do run heated shields on our helmets. I don't have one of them yet. That contributed to rolling the sled. I was fogging & icing up on my shield & didn't have good visibility. I'm going to get one of them as soon as I can. Greg was wearing one when he hit that curve & he almost blew it himself, but he had better vision & saved it. Me, I lost it!
It's the one spot everyone that rides has trouble keeping warm, between the helmet & the neck on your jacket. I've always had some problems there, along with everyone else. I don't get cold anywhere else. My feet didn't get cold a bit. My core is usually hot enough that I've got to unzip vents to let the moisture out. It will freeze on the outside of the vents where it's wicking out the moisture. Even at 70 or 80, it wasn't' bothering me anywhere except my chin & neck.
We did run gauntlets that day as well & that didn't help either. I'd never ran them before & it restricts access to the break lever, somewhat. They're huge woolly lined nylon, that velcros on the handle bars. You stick you hands & forearms in them. They are nice, but I'm not sure if they are entirely safe, at this point. I think I had the break on, but it happened so fast, couldn't tell form the marks in the snow. Gauntlets might have caused me just that much less of a reaction time. I'd only had them on 20 miles when it happened.
We have handlebar heaters & thumb warmer for the throttle thumb. They keep your hands plenty warm. If mine are on high, it will just about burn your hands, they get so hot. They end up forming your gloves into claws over time because of the heat they're putting out. Most times we stop, your gloves are steaming
No, nothing hurt but the Pride IMO
Dazzle them with Brilliance, or Baffle them with BS!
I feeling better tonight, for sure. I slept so much during the day that I woke up here in the middle of the night & can't get back to sleep.
I don't ride anywhere without being suited up. I've learned that before. You can't judge the wind chill. I almost froze my ears a week ago here. Thought I'd take a spin around here & didn't put my helmet on. The next day both of my ears were wind burnt & I wasn't on the sled 20 minutes.
The frost bite hasn't changed the way it looks so far. That's what they told me to look for, a change in color. That's why they want to see me again the end of the week. It's still numb though. Don't know how long it will take for the feeling to come back into it though.
In all my years snowmobiling, I've never gotten frost bite before. Just when you think you have things figured out, something comes up to bite you, I guess.
My only real worry is getting this healed up before next weekend for riding again. Season is so short as it is.
Dazzle them with Brilliance, or Baffle them with BS!
No Flamey, drinking & sleds don't mix, at least the way we ride. I may on occasion have 1 or 2 beers for lunch & even that slows me down a bit on speed & judgment.
No, you ride yourself to death out on the trails, then break out the drinks & beer to do some parting before & during dinner. However, it's all I can do to eat dinner most nights. Some of the guys I've ridden with can't even make it to dinner because they've been rode out before we get back to the motel.
Nothing I've found gets you in shape for it. You just have to ride yourself into shape as the season goes on. Usually I'm in my best shape of the winter after our annual trip. We usually put on about 1000 miles in that week.
Dazzle them with Brilliance, or Baffle them with BS!
Well my bouts of frost bite have been mild, usually from LONG days skating on the lake, and from a few winter treks. The worst was actually my first time cross country skiing over the lake (to my Granny's house). I didn't know what to expect from X-country ski boots, and in fact had them too tight and cut off circulation to the toes and lower extremity. On the way there it hurt a bit taking them off and all that and they were red, but all seemed fine. The bad part was skiing back after dinner in the slightly colder weather after having already started a little damage. By the time I got back home my feet were now purple. My DAD was smart and said, luke warm water and sit by the fire, not hot water (damages more than heals). It took about a week or so before full feeling and colour returned, still felt numb on occasion (especially after sleeping) for about 2 weeks after that too. But no permanent damage or even permanent suceptability to cold. I think I was lucky. I hope you are too.
I often find myself getting a little wind burnt when I go skiing at Sunshine (Goat's Eye [the pic of the jump/drop in the THGC Album]) It gets very windy there, and I forget to put on good sunburn cream w/ moisturizer which would avoid it. Then for a week I look like a Racoon at work because of my sunglass or goggle outline. But I never do seem to learn with THAT. I always protect my ears, don't know why but I always have at least a headband (I have a Rugby one [put tape on overtop of them] that's very thin and easy to store one in all my jackets [and they cost like 79cents each). I guess I think it's too easy to get frostbite on them without thinking about it and I'd sure hate to lose a tip of the ear, at least you can hide a missing toe.
Have you though of getting heated grips, and heated extremity wear? I just got some new cutt-off longjohns and man I can't wait to use them (not enough new snow to justify an escape to the hills [too icy and skiied-off after the holidays]).
Rest up, drink a little red wine and such to thin the blood and dialate your blood vessels to improve circulation. Did the doc tell you to take anything like advil or such? I know Advil thins the blood, but I can't rememebr if it's a vasio-constrictor or dilator.
In anycase focus on getting better, there will be other days of sleding and more seasons to com, but jeopardizing your recovery is serious.
I know you don't need to be told what to do, just a friendly reminder of the important things.
Get/Be Well!
- You need a licence to buy a gun, but they'll sell anyone a stamp <i>(or internet account)</i> ! - <font color=green>RED </font color=green> <font color=red> GREEN</font color=red> GA to SK
IronMike, yea, I do play & did play hard up north. I'm not ready for a rocking chair yet. Sometimes, like last Thurs. night, I wonder if I can keep it up though. The body was wore hard, for sure. I'm still sore.
Sleds can always be fixed or sold. If you want to keep your sled like it's new, keep it in the garage & don't take it out on the trails IMO. I've just decided to sell my 96 Cat, she was only ridden once last year. My windshield hasn't came in yet, hopefully today. We're looking at 6" today & I'd like to have it to block the wind off my chin & neck.
I rode Motocross back when I first got out of the service. I was the same, work on them all week, race all over the state on the weekend, & then work on it & heel up the next week getting ready for the weekend. I raced 1 entire season & placed 22nd in the division. Wore out a brand new Yamaha 360 MXer in that year. That's the only season I raced the circuit. I had my oldest son the next summer, couldn't buy a new bike, & that ended the the major racing I was going to do. Might have been a good thing, I'm still carrying scars form that season racing, who knows!
I'm getting cracking today to get ready for this weekend. Son it kind of ticked at Greg & I. He didn't get to go on this trip because he had to work. Greg is laid off, like myself, so we took off on him. He didn't like being left behind. Then for all that happened on this trip, he said he's letting us wallow in our own ineptness before he's going to abuse us. Oh yea, we'll pay for that one. I did feel bad that he wasn't with us though 
but not bad enough to stop us form going!! So son hasn't had his first ride this year. We'll do something, or hell kill me. He's off tomorrow & with this new snow, in the middle of the week, we might get some fairly close riding.
Dazzle them with Brilliance, or Baffle them with BS!
I'm healing up nicely, I believe. No color change in the frost bite area & it's not peeling or anything. Go to the Dr.'s tomorrow morning, so we'll see what he has to say about it. I'm feeling fine though. Cold doesn't seem to bother it, but I've been careful to keep a high collar around it while I'm out.
Funny thing though, where my goatee is, It didn't frost bite. Once I start wearing my head sock & helmet, mustaches & goatees don't work to well. So I always whack back the goat real short, & trim it out further on my chin. I frost bit from the edge line of my goat to the front line of my helmet strap. When I shaved yesterday, I didn't want to shave the injured area, so I shaved around it. It's about the same line now that it usually is before I trim it down for the season. I don't think I'm going to trim it like that next season IMO
I'm fine in the cold though. I've got great clothing that won't let wind or water through. My weak spot is between the helmet & neck. I'm fixing to cure that right quick!! Other than that, I don't get cold. I do have heaters on the handlebars & thumb warmer on the throttle. So hands aren't a problem. As for feet, I'm in the best!!! I wear the once famous, not out of business, Canadian Sorel boots!! Best dam felt pack boots ever made IMO. I wish they were still being made. I heard that RedWings bought up what they had left. Don't know what I'll get when these wear out.
Dazzle them with Brilliance, or Baffle them with BS!
Crashman, did you feel a tremor when I pulled through Mt. Pleasant last Wed. & Sat? LOL. Was up at the cottage on Wixsom lake to load out & then stayed Fri. night. Always go to Yackies for seafood buffet on Fri. IMO
Lake is making a lot of ice. Shanties are going out all over. They will be riding it this weekend I'd bet. We won't be up there this weekend though. Probably the next weekend. Greg is going on a GF ride in the U.P. this weekend, so we're on our own. Otherwise, we'd all be up there.
Dazzle them with Brilliance, or Baffle them with BS!
Auburn's right, I'm not loosing more weight!! Head stays on!! [gulp]
Dazzle them with Brilliance, or Baffle them with BS!
Just FYI Sorel is now PArt of Columbia, I'm sure you would be able to find something soon. I have a pair with ankle buckle and a pair of Eddie Bauers (just rebranded Sorel I think). I Don't like the Moon-Boot style (feel to ungainly for me), but they do seem VERY popular with the SkiDoo crowd that's for sure.
Just thought you should know that the Sorel products should be around for quite some time, even if the name fades into Columbia after some time. You could also check with Canada's Mountain outfitter, <A HREF="http://www.mec.ca" target="_new">Mountain Equipement Co-Op</A>, if supplies are limited near you. They usually have them at the stores and I think they deliver to the US (but not sure).
BTW, I like Baffin too (also made in Canada), and <A HREF="http://www.mec.ca/Products/product_detail.jsp?FOLDER<>folder_id=710549&PRODUCT<>prd_id=662511&bmUID=1074115600058" target="_new">THIS</A> will likely be my next pair to replace my Sorels with the buckle which are getting a little raggedy after 5 years.
- You need a licence to buy a gun, but they'll sell anyone a stamp <i>(or internet account)</i> ! - <font color=green>RED </font color=green> <font color=red> GREEN</font color=red> GA to SK
| Quote : you don't fall off every time you ride do you? |
No, not all the time. I've never rolled my sled. That was a bad situation I got into. Last year, I fell off once lake racing. My first year riding, I couldn't see a turn coming up & missed it, do to lack of experience. It was a flat field & the curve I missed was the only bridge over the drainage ditch. Couldn't see the ditch, looked like a flat field, until you went in. I dropped into the ditch & planted my skis in the mud in the creek at the bottom. I came over the handlebars & planted my helmet into the other bank. As I did that, my legs took off the windshield. Now that was a bad happening. I was hobbling around the rest of the winter & half the spring. It bruised the dog sh-t out of me that time. Son couldn't find me. He drove right on by looking for me. He didn't know the ditch was there or that deep. When I came staggering out of it he saw me, he said where's the sled?? I said down there. He couldn't believe it. Snow will play tricks on your eyesight & depth of field with your vision. Let me tell you, it's a thing you constantly fight as you ride.
| Quote : I had kinda pictured snowmobiling as being like streetbiking on snow, not dirtbiking, but I quess I was wrong. |
It's more like dirt biking, only harder. Track & ski stance is quite wide so it's a lot wider than a bike. It took me quite awhile to get used to how wide a sled is. I was used to dirt bikes & they've gotten real narrow at the gas tank. I use that on a dirt bike to put my body english on them. My sled is 3 times wider at the tank. I tried to ride it like a dirt bike, but it doesn't equal out.
Sleds have all the acceleration that a bike has though, some more, depending on how they're souped up. Sleds have less braking though. Especially if they aren't studded. Sleds without studs are real dangerous IMO! You lock up my track & I've got probably 50 studs biting in to stop me. (I run 122 studs). Same conditions without studs & you've got your hands full bringing her down.
No we get out there to run what the trails will bear. The other day I was out, I hit stretches of the trail that I could run 90 on. Other stretches were so twisted & turned that 35 was tops. Beyond that & you'd be pushing it in those sections. Lets face it you can't put on 200 miles a day going 35.
All in all, the reason that I run sleds, is the speed. I don't think there's another form of motor sports out there that I can run like I do, except on a sled. I can't run dirt bikes like that. Road bikes, I'd end up loosing my license riding like that. A lot of times when I set up a turn, I plant the sled in the turn & hammer the throttle, I'm coming out with one or the other skis lifting up off the ground & carrying more speed out than I took in.
It's not an easy sport to take up. I don't see many my age that can ride like I do. I really don't see guys my age riding out there at all. Course, I bring up the rear. I can't keep up with the young guys with the 800's, such as my son & Greg. My 500 is about all I can handle. Those 800's are to quick for me & they weigh to much to throw around. If I didn't have all the racing experience that I had when I took it up, I think I wouldn't have been able to pick it up at my age.
All said & done, snowmobiling is dangerous. If your worried about getting hurt, it's not for you. Sh-t happens when your pushing & putting pressure on the trail. Trees are the worst thing you've got to worry about. They will kill you. 46 died in MI last year on snowmobiles. Every trip up north, we see people with broken legs, all the way to death. 9 times out of 10, they just came from the bar & think they're 10 foot tall & bullet proof. Last year we saw a guy kill himself in front of the bar that we were going in for dinner. He was from Indiana. Hit a phone pole on the main street in town. He'd just left the bar from having his last dinner.
I truly don't know how long I can ride. Last Fri. took a lot out of me. I'm still muscle sore from it. I'm not ready for a rocking chair yet, though. I also know that it's a matter of a few more seasons & I'm going to be finished. I took it up with my son's, but god, I'd love to have 20 or 30 years back. Until then, I only know 1 thing, Hammer down & carve those turns!!!
Dazzle them with Brilliance, or Baffle them with BS!
Something I've been meaning to tell you about road bikes. The guy I told you about with the Dyno in his shop for bikes. Well we were both designing engineers & can to about anything in solid models. I gave him my Unigraphics software & he's went to town designing a new engine that your going to here a lot about. The prototype is being assembled at his shop right now. It's a 2500 cc with about 180 horses. Don't know the exact horses yet. Got to get it assembled & dyno it. It could push more or less. He's patented it. Might be the next big bore on the bike circuit. He's in cahoots with my other buddy we worked with that created the Baker Transmissions. Baker now has a multi million dollar Trans.'s business & Baker Trans.'s is the rock right now.
The cases for the engine are sweet. They have his logo NC cut into them. Sure is exciting seeing it come together. Can't wait for the dyno results IMO
Dazzle them with Brilliance, or Baffle them with BS!
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