Ultimate Snowmobiling Thread 2005!

[klaucke]

Some of you other pelicanites must have the sledding bug! I know I need something to give me a speed fix during the 5 months without my 911 and dirtbike.

Lets see some pictures of what you guys are riding!

[der Mond]

Here's my 14 y/o ersatz nephew/snowmachine fanatic Kai on my Skandic Sport 500 fan deep in the White Mountains outside Fairbanks. It's a great inexpensive tour sled, especially since I put a 1.25" deep track on it. It's the only thing that could keep me from driving my other fan-cooled vehicle that day...

[motion]

Just got back yesterday from sledding in West Yellowstone! Did the Yellowstone Park loop on Sunday and 100 miles of trails on Saturday. I now have a yearly/winter excuse to go to West Yellowstone!

A typical view of the (beautiful) world going by:

[klaucke]

That's me on the black 1995 Polaris XLT, and my friend on the 2001 Polaris
XCSP-700. In case you were wondering, he's only doing about 18-20 mph when
he hits the water, then just pin the throttle! However, with that
technique, you're slowly sinking so you can't do open spots that are
really long, but it looks cool with the skis up like that in a wheelie!
Our friend with the green sled is going about 45ish, and at that speed and
above you can go just about as far as you balls with let you attempt, as
long as there are no waves to get you bouncing. I've seen these two
friends go as slow as 12mph, but one sank after hitting the ice on the
other side of the water gap (green sled went for a swim)!





[img]

[klaucke]

[DubyaFartsBlood]

Hum, I thought this said the ultimate snowBALLING thread...

[fuelie600]

Klaucke, dude, you are nuts!

I don't have the guts to try the watercross yet! Last year we were in St. Ignace Michigan crossing the ice bridge to Mackinac Island and 2 sleds went in right before we crossed. The water was 295 ft deep!

We crossed it the year before. It's a wild ride across 3.5 miles. Here's a pic. The xmas trees in the background mark the path...


Here's the view from the island:



I didn't get any action shots this year, but here is a trail shot:



Here's my ride:



It's a 2002 Arctic Cat ZL600 SS EFI. I'm getting the itch for a new one next year. I made the mistake of riding a new SkiDoo SDI REV while I was in Michigan. That thing was freakin awesome. I have never considered switching brands before, but that sled is amazing.

[klaucke]

Evan, the water crossing is super easy. Me and my friends will go out for an afternoon on a local lake, and the trails are either bad or get boring quick, so we need something to keep us occupied.

The trick is to pin the throttle when you hit the water, you'll be surprised how much traction you can grab on the water. If you go across and hold the throttle steady at the same amount as you have coming at the water, its much easier to start bouncing, which is bad. I'd say try it at 40ish and its easy to do.

Earlier this year, we were on the other side of the lake doing an open spot about 100ft. I don't have any studs so it was sketchy trying to get speed and keep her straight while coming at the water, but talk about a rush! For sections where you're skimming a lot, the sleds throw water on top of the ice which freezes, making the entrance super slick, so studs help a lot.

"Tunnel" pics to come (think open water, 7 lanes of highway, and a 10 ft wide tunnel under the traffic)! That first time we do it each year is super scary!

But I recommend some small water crossings, super fun!

[fuelie600]

Very cool!

I'm getting too old for that kind of fun!

[85eurocarrera]

Nice pics. I have no desire to cross any un frozen water on my sled. I am just gettin back into the sport, been away for about 10 years. Picked up a 01 skidoo mxz 700. This thing is a blast! Just got back from a trip up north, put on about 350 miles in 2 days. I was just telling my friend that I think this is more fun then my car at the track. I am hooked! Heading back up in another week.
Joe

[MikeCT]

Hey get pics keep em coming.

[klaucke]

Ok, here are some more pics, I have more but they are on my friends camera, and he has most of the good ones. Also check out a video of , approx. 160 ft.tunnel pond skimming .

[klaucke]

In case any of you guys were wondering what type of power these sleds have, I found out mine (black one) supposedly has 103! The red one is 6 years newer and must be in the 125-130 range, for sure, not to mention better throttle response and smoother torque. Mine max's out at about 90, the red will pull 110 with ease.

Here are more pics though: