Is this sport becoming inaccessible?

[Daranello]

You can sled for free your CDN, buy in the USA ride then sell. I bought my wife a MINT Attak for $4,200 in New York that I found on TY. I'll sell it next year for 5500-6000 all day long.

Few years ago I bought a new from a dealer Attak for $6,990. Rode it for a year then sold it on kijiji for $10,500.

I LOVE Yamaha Canada, keep the new prices high.

 

[stevewithOCD]

I figure i spend $500 to $1000 a year on maintenance, upgrades & bling. $1800 on house rental. $1000 for sled gas (hopefully more) & maybe $1000 in truck gas getting to Maine. It is expensive, but i spend as much on my boat that i hardly used this year. There's only 3 things to do in the winter. 1) ski 2) snowmobile 3) bitch. I sold my bassboat & selling saltwater boat so i can keep riding. I'd sell my son, dog & ex-wife to keep riding....well maybe not the dog...

 

[ahicks]

It's nice to go first class, but there's certainly more economical ways to go. It's all about priorities. Been at this a long time, and have done it both ways. Those days when a 100 mile trip (or less!) took all day were just as much fun as today's trips running much further!

No getting around it in the end though. It is expensive, but it's ALWAYS been that way...

 

[Super Sled]

It's all about priorities.

Couldn't have said it better myself. I've given up/ cut back on a lot of other hobbies/ interests for sledding because this is truly my passion -- to be on the sled riding.

 

[Rockmeister]

I like things being expensive. It keeps my stupid inlaws from wanting to ride with me.

Hhahahahha!

I love it...


Like many have said, like boating, the sport has always been expensive.
Have been doing it since I was a kid, & it has never been cheap, ever.
(When I was a kid, I would save money for MONTHS to buy ONE PART so I could ride when the snow came.)

You are just now noticing the cost because you are now footing the bill yourself.
Should be thanking your parents for paying all those years!

As far as making entry level, low cost sleds, most of the manufacturers have tried, unfortunately you & I, and most like us, don't want them, and don't buy them.
So most quit making them due to low demand.

One of the best way to get the costs down is to get more people into the sport.
More people buying trail permits, sleds, gear, etc cause production to go up & drive production costs down.

So basically, the more people WE get into the sport, the better it is for all of us.
WE have control of the outcome here.

If you look at it from a ROI standpoint, there is only one: The enjoyment.

Rock

PS As ahicks said, you decide what level you want to play at and go from there.