Best Can For Your Sled

If you have decided that the riding in your area is over, now is the perfect time to do some upgrades. You now should have much more free time on your hands since you are not on the mountain, and customizing your snowmobile is now the perfect project. One of the first upgrade's you should consider is a exhaust canister. They will drop pounds off your sled, increase the power and performance, and make your sled sound better.



I have rode on many different sleds that had different cans on them, and I by far like the Skinz Super Q Silencer that I have on my sled.




This can gave my 09 Polaris 700 RMK unbelievable power and made it sound great. It made my snowmobile drop 15 pounds which is a huge amount of weight. It was also very easy to install and came with a 3 year warranty. If you enjoy racing, mountain riding or ride in lower populated areas, this can would complete your sled.

If you want to hear the difference between this can and a stock Polaris can, go to:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vaQcLy5lEfY

Spring Riding

Even though the riding conditions have felt like spring riding for the past couple weeks, today is officially the first day of spring. That means there is plenty of riding left to do, you just have to find it. I went riding this weekend and found snow depths ranging from 6 to 8 feet between an elevation of 7,000 to 11,000 feet. That sounds like a good amount of snow but the riding conditions are not the best. The snow is turning to concrete but there is still good riding in trees.

To find good snow, you first need to get your snowmobiles to the snow which is a challenge itself. You will first have to search for the snow.

  

And to get to where the snow is, you might have to deal with this:

If you are able to get the sleds on the snow, it is worth it but if you cant, it is still not time to put them away. Now is the best time to tune up and even customize your sled.

My next posts will talk about extras and upgrades you can add to your sled to make it better for next year.

  

Gear That Could Save Your Life

In my last blogs, I talked about avalanches and what to do in one. Knowing what to do in one still might not be enough to save your life or someone else's, that is why you should have the right avalanche equipment. The main equipment you should always carry while snowmobiling are:

          1. Avalanche Beacon-
You and all your riding partners should always carry a beacon. They send signals to other beacons to help others find where you are buried or help you find someone buried.

There are many different brands to choose from but BCA makes one of the more popular ones which is shown above. This beacon costs about $330.


          2.  Avalanche Airbag-
These bags are designed to keep you closer to the surface in an avalanche.

BCA also makes a very reliable airbag. It is only 5 pounds and easy to reuse once it has been deployed. It also has the trigger on the right shoulder strap so you can give it gas while deploying it. Not only is it a great bag but it is one of the most affordable bags there is, starting at only $500.


          3. Break Down Probe-
Probes are very important to have when you are searching for someone caught in an avalanche. Using your beacon and probe, the person could be located quicker which will increase the chance of getting them out in time and saving them.

 

Klim makes a light probe made of aluminum that extends to 3 meters long which is by far enough length to locate the person. This backcountry probe costs about $60.

 

 

          4. Expandable Shovel-

Once the person is located with the beacon and probe, you will need to have a good shovel to start digging them out. I have the orange version of the Polaris shovel shown below and it is a great shovel. It extends to a full size shovel in seconds and is very durable. I luckily haven't had to use it for an avalanche, but have used it to dig out my snowmobile and it performs great.

 

                                             



What to Do in an Avalanche

No matter the amount of knowledge you have about avalanches, there is still a chance you could come in contact with an avalanche. If this ever does happen, you will need to know what to do in an avalanche.

This ski of your snowmobile could be the last thing you see before you are buried by tons of snow.

If the snow below you breaks loose when you are riding, you need to have the throttle wide open and do whatever it takes to get off the slab and to safety. Try to get to the side of the avalanche if possible because the avalanche might be faster than your snowmobile. To see proof that snowmobiles might not be able to outrun an avalanche, go to:
http://www.keepbusy.net/play.php?id=snowmobilers-try-to-out-run-avalanche

Hopefully you could escape the avalanche, but if you don't try to stay with your sled. The snowmobile is a larger object which will keep you closer to the surface and is easier for people to find you. You most likely will be disconnected from the snowmobile so you will need to swim or roll like a log with the avalanche. You should keep your backpack and gear on because it will have useful gear to help you survive and also will make your body stronger. Try to keep one hand up towards the surface and try to keep track of which way is up. When the snow starts to settle, move your other hand to your mouth and dig a pocket to help you breathe because when the avalanche stops, the snow will turn to concrete. A pocket in the snow in front of your mouth can give you enough air to survive for 30 minutes.

Now you need to calm down and wait for someone to rescue you and hopefully they can dig down to where you are.

Don't Be Fooled

Right now the majority of Colorado seems like it is spring with temperatures nearly reaching 60 degrees every day. This does not mean riding is over. Once you get up to higher elevations it is still cold and there is a lot of snow. The snow isn't the greatest because it is a little crusty, but this should make you ride harder to remote areas in the trees and back country. These spots will be amazing with untouched fresh snow, but will also have higher risks of avalanches. With this risk, you need to know how to avoid avalanches, what to do in one, and have the right gear to save your life.

Almost all avalanches are caused by riders and can be prevented. The top three things you should know about avalanche safety are as follows:

1. Ride up or down onto, or across, steep slopes only one snowmobile at a time; the rest of the group should watch from a safe location until the rider on the slope safely clears it before the next person proceeds.
2. Do not park at the bottom of a steep slope in single file; instead park to the sides of the slope with your snowmobiles side by side and pointed away from the slope.
3. Never go up on a steep slope to help someone who has become stuck, since adding your sled to the slope could trigger an avalanche. 

There are multiple signs to look for if the snow is unstable:

• Recent avalanches (don't play on similar, unreleased slopes)
• New snow (the added weight can overburden buried, weak layers)
• Wind loading (wind can deposit snow ten times faster than snow falling from the sky—as a result weak layers can quickly become overloaded)
• Rain (weakens snow quickly, but causes the top layer to stabilize when refrozen)
• "Whumphing noises" (indicates the collapse of a buried weak layer)
• Shooting cracks in the snow surface that run across the slope (indicates the snow is ripe for fracturing and is beginning to slide downward)
• Hollow-sounding snow (indicates a buried weak layer of snow)
• Signs of rapid or intense warming (the snow will weaken quickly and create unstable conditions — often see small 'pinwheels' or snowballs that have rolled down the slope) 

Even if there are many tracks on a mountain, there is still a chance it could avalanche which is shown in the picture below.

 
This is a crack in the snow which indicates a avalanche could happen.


Avalanches can happen in any size, but any size is deadly.



My next blogs will tell you what to do in an avalanche and what equiptment you should have.