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How to tow a downed sled???

MadMax

MadMax

TY 4 Stroke Master
Joined
Jun 17, 2004
Messages
1,196
Location
Gobles,mich.
Wondering about the proper way to tow a downed sled off the trail.. I have tow straps, luckily I've never needed them.. I know you need to remove the drive belt, but if you do that how does the crippled sled slow down when going down a steep hill??????? Please advise.. Thanks. MM. :Rockon:
 

OK......... As long as the primary chain is good to go then....Thanks again.......... MM,.
 
I have seen sleds in which the track doesn't turn due to damage get towed with a sheet of heavy duty plastic mounted under the track. This way the track does not dig in. The sled slides pretty easy, except for crossing bare roads. In this case the sled has no brakes.

So far, I have only had to tow Arctic Cat and Polaris sleds, never had to have any of my Yamaha sleds towed and never towed a Yamaha either!!!
 
Had to do my first tow out this last year. (Apex towed out the phazer). Luckily I was prepared and had a tow rope. We just took the belt off, hooked the tow rope to the skis and had one guy on each sled, so that the brake could be applied. Worked pretty good, we had to go 30+ miles like this. Towing a sled really takes a toll the sled that is still working.
 
I saw a guy that had a large rental operation tow in a down summit by himself.He tied the ski loop of the down sled up tight to the rear bumper of the good sled and took off! Looked goofy but worked GREAT! Jay
 
If your towing on a trail and there are others with you, have them spot stop signs and such so the tow sled does not have to stop and start (saves teh belt) If towing a long distance, helmet communicators are a plus, especially when the tow sled is in the air and out of shape... just spike the brake and hang on
 
I have towed many broken sleds over the years. Sometimes the terrain is good but mostly it is really rough & hard on the tow sled. Longest tow was almost 80kms using my old 380 Touring to tow an older Panther 440. It was a pretty warm day & the 380 worked like a dog but did the job. Now that 380 was a bullet-proof motor for Bombi. Anyway besides removing the belt on the broken sled I always cut a stick and place through the ski loops so that when I tow it is from the centre of the skis and it pulls a little upward on the skis making it a lot easier on the sled doing the towing. There is no worry about tearing of a front bumper or doing damage by towing from just one ski. Obviously the stick has to be large enough to bear the strain and must be tied so that it doesn't slide out fom between the skis. Next trick is to be careful how you tie the tow strap so you don't end up with a knot that gets so tight that it can't be undone. Mine has eyes in each end so one end is easy, just slip one end of the strap through the loop after running it around the bumper on my sled and on the other end I use a small shackle - I wrap the sling around the stick between the skis of the sled that I am towing and affix the shackle by letting the strap rest in the throat of the shackle and catch the eye of the strap with the pin of the shackle. This works great & I have never had to cut a tow strap because I could not untie the knot. I have towed sleds out of some pretty hard spots like this and it has always worked well for me.
 
Safety Sean said:
I have towed many broken sleds over the years. Sometimes the terrain is good but mostly it is really rough & hard on the tow sled. Longest tow was almost 80kms using my old 380 Touring to tow an older Panther 440. It was a pretty warm day & the 380 worked like a dog but did the job. Now that 380 was a bullet-proof motor for Bombi. Anyway besides removing the belt on the broken sled I always cut a stick and place through the ski loops so that when I tow it is from the centre of the skis and it pulls a little upward on the skis making it a lot easier on the sled doing the towing. There is no worry about tearing of a front bumper or doing damage by towing from just one ski. Obviously the stick has to be large enough to bear the strain and must be tied so that it doesn't slide out fom between the skis. Next trick is to be careful how you tie the tow strap so you don't end up with a knot that gets so tight that it can't be undone. Mine has eyes in each end so one end is easy, just slip one end of the strap through the loop after running it around the bumper on my sled and on the other end I use a small shackle - I wrap the sling around the stick between the skis of the sled that I am towing and affix the shackle by letting the strap rest in the throat of the shackle and catch the eye of the strap with the pin of the shackle. This works great & I have never had to cut a tow strap because I could not untie the knot. I have towed sleds out of some pretty hard spots like this and it has always worked well for me.
Click to expand...

I'm glad I've led a sheltered life....MM. ;)!
 
Look into the tow kit from snobunje - it is around $18 and is a 4 point system . . . we used one to tow a Cat out of the Snowies this year, I was amazed the sled in tow was so close to the rear bumper but it would not allow it to rear end the other sled. We were moving at a good clip, it was around 80 miles we had to tow it!! I bought one as soon as I got home, hopefully I never need to use it.
http://snobunje.com/store.php?crn=83&rn ... how_detail
 
I agree, spend the small amount of money and buy a actual tow rope or tow kit that is made for towing. Just don't through a rope in your sled and call it good, like others have sled you will be happy you have it. Also got to love all the other joys that going along with towing, such as people pointing and laughing. Really makes you feel good about your decision to take the sled on a ride today.
 
I always carry a tow rope while riding. Actually, most of my riding is done with one of my sons so both sleds have tow ropes. We've used the tow ropes to pull other sleds out of some pretty nasty places like a sled which slid off the trail down a 6 ft. slope and into a shallow stream. I use the tow ropes which have the metal hooks on each end, not just a piece of rope. Well worth the money and is easy to carry.
 
The ski tips are a BAD place to attach a rope. A good place to attach your ropes is to the a-arms close to the bulkhead. This minimizes the stress on the arms themselves and won't ruin your skis. Even if you put a stick or 2x4 through the ski loops, you're still going to be twisting them in a way they are not intended to twist, and particularly with skis that have softer loops, like simmons for example, you could actually do significant damage to the ski that way.

For towing trailing arm sleds, do the same as for a-arms. For pogo-stick or leaf-spring suspensions, attach to the spindle.


Regarding the tow-line material.... something with a bit of stretch can make it much easier and smoother, but if you're not going to go all out and buy a tow bungie as recommended above, a good quality piece of braided nylon rope (white boat rope) is all you need, just make sure you know how to tie a good knot that can be untied when finished, a bowline for example http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bowline . Do NOT use polypropylene rope -- it deteriorates very quickly under abrasion and doesn't hold a knot very well.
 
I've hauled many a sled out of the woods (All brands). I believe the older Arctic Cat tow strap is the best I've every seen. It has 2 nylon straps. #1 is a double ended strap (loop on both ends). Which you loop around the "towing" sled rear bumper. And a second strap #2 which you feed through the other end of the double loop strap. The ends of the second strap go around the ski spindles with a special loop & "T" bar system. The in-tow sled track right behind. No knots to untie, No stress on the ski loops or front bumper. Doesn't mess up the toe-in. And it comes in it's own 4"x4"x2" nylon bag.
I hope the explanation is understandable...I wanted to post a picture, but the picture in the 2009 AC book is a defferent strap.
Sorry!
 
my warrior got towed this year in northern ont,we were about 25 km from kapuskasing in the bush,broke the drive shaft so we couldnt have the track turning,where do you find a sheet of plastic in the bush,took my wifes sled and went towards town to get somethin,2 km from my broken sled was a clubhouse,we found some crazy carpets inside,gave $20 to the guy and i was saved,couldnt believe it,it worked great except for the bruised ego,we tied close to the bulk head like lazy b said,it was a long ride to town so i got time to think about my doo days,when we got to the motel there was a bunch of guys watching in the lobby,god i hate it,still love my yamaha though,it had 11000 miles when it happened
 
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