Sad to say

[nards444]

Got rid of the sleds the last month. Just wasnt worth it anymore. Here in upstate NY the trail system has gradually gone to chit the 4-5 years and the new theme is no snow all winter long. Just wasnt making sense anymore to pay for fall maint, reg, insurance etc. Said and done with two sleds it was a $500 bill at least that before the season even started and with gas prices, towing to the woods and gas in the sled, and food while out it was a $100 day. Plus having a sled is another liability that just depreciates and another assest to wash, clean, store, etc.

Gonna miss it and its not that I am broke but cost effective and joy no longer met my expectations. I may be back somebody but well see.

 

[MNUser]

Man do I understand where you are coming from. Last winter we got ONE snowfall. We rode for a total of one time and 75 miles. It was an utter joke. This is my last winter. If we have a repeat they are both gone. I love riding and winter is my favorite season! It kills me. My son and I are going to take the money from the sale and we are both going to get dirt bikes. Riding dirt bike is OK just not the same. Busting drifts and running across a lake with new snow is the best! 12 more years and I can retire. I'm moving out west where my chances of a winter are in my favor. MN winters are a thing of the past. Bummed! BIG TIME!

 

[benjamingvsu]

You can always rent.

I sold my sleds a couple years back when the maintenance got to be more of a pain than it was worth, I didn't enjoy them anymore so I unloaded. I still plan to buy when the money is available, but for now renting is nice. No maintenance, no trailering, etc. Biggest downside is that I can't get insurance on my rental sleds which makes me nervous, also some rental places have limited selections ( although I have been able to rent a vector and 600 e-tec) and I can't go for a quick ride close to home. But I have a blast the couple of times a year I rent!

You better find something to fill your time, otherwise you'll go stir crazy! I took the kids sledding a couple times last year, also bought myself and my dad some nice snowshoes so we can at least get outdoors in the winter instead of just sitting around.

 

[FJR1300]

Its the same in Wisconsin but maintaining 32 miles of trail and signing and taking down. Thats another 100-150 hours of time. But just in case.

 

[yamadoo]

Remember guys this was the warmest winter, least snow "since" and then they name several yrs. Hey we had many great years after those years.

I am not ready to give up on winters or sledding. But I understand the financial strain and risk, we each have to make our decisions. I keep telling myself it will snow again, freeze again and I will ride again. So as long as I am not taking from my familys needs and charitable giving for others less fortunate then the risk and loss of $ is mine.

All that said IT BETTER SNOW lol

Yamadoo

 

[thor452]

Remember guys this was the warmest winter, least snow "since" and then they name several yrs. Hey we had many great years after those years.

I am not ready to give up on winters or sledding. But I understand the financial strain and risk, we each have to make our decisions. I keep telling myself it will snow again, freeze again and I will ride again. So as long as I am not taking from my familys needs and charitable giving for others less fortunate then the risk and loss of $ is mine.

All that said IT BETTER SNOW lol

Yamadoo

AMEN Brother!!!

 

[sleddog66]

nards, I went through the same thing back in 07". couple of crap years, Job was slowing down, sled was getting older. I bought me and the 2 kids quads, got rid of the sled, and started renting sleds on 1 or 2 trips a year. Well the quading is a blast, and the kids enjoy it. As for the sledding, I really missed having a sled set up to run the way I like it. Also cant stand the fact that when you rent, you are kinda stuck to staying near the rental place, and they dont get you going until like 11:00am. Then on last day, you need it back at like 5pm......2 wasted days it seems. Well by 2010 I was missing it enough that I switched brands, got a 4 stroke, and have been spending $ like crazy ever since.LOL. No, my job is slow as ever, maybe it will pick up some day, but this is like an addiction to me. The mistake I made was buying a used sled. I have always bought new, and for what I have spent in maintence and repairs, I beleive I am only a couple grand from what a new sled would have cost me Oh well. Now I am enjoying sledding again the way that I used to. Besides, what else would I spend the extra $ on? I dont drink or smoke.

 

[Roost 'Er]

We too in Southern Ontario have had some rough winters, last year the local trails didn't even open yet we had one of our highest mile seasons yet. We are prepared to trailer to ride and are extremely fortunate to be able to take off any given weekend and ride all weekend within 3-4hours.

I guess it all depends on how committed you are. For me i couldn't give up sledding for the world, so we trailer to where ever the snow is. Sure wish this year we open up locally.

Worst case you could always downgrade a bit. I have a couple 80s Yamahas i use for local riding, something like that would still satisfy the itch

 

[UNH Hockey]

Boy, I think about it all the time. I do all my riding in Quebec and managed 4,500 miles last Winter. I have tags in ME, NH and Quebec good for $450.00. $250 for insurance, $500 minimum for annual service, and $4000 to $6000 every 2 to 3 years for a new sled. I usually get 15 days of riding in Quebec every Winter at a cost of $250 per day for fuel, food and lodging. That does not even include the money invested in my truck, trailer and gear. I have 3 daughters at home 4,7, and 9. The only reason I can ride is because of the great support at home. I can afford to do it but sometimes it makes me stop and take a pause about how fortunate I am to be able to ride. That is why at 46 I never have a bad day on the sled.

 

[ViperTurboPete]

I hear ya on the snow situation. I live north enough to enjoy taking off from my yard regularly in the winter. I do notice the winters starting later and ending earlier. So to make the transition I am researching the idea of buying a high performance Yamaha PWC to rip around the lake at camp. Most of my sled riding is at the camp and the lake is 40 miles long so I am hoping that would keep me occupied and not dreading spring/summer.

 

[sorenson1610]

I think the biggest thing about sledding is the anticipation of the snow......other motorsports really don't have that like we do. Wrench and tweak for 8 or 9 months to hopefully get some riding in on the remaining months! I really don't think I will ever sell my sled anytime soon and I seem to sink more money into the sled every year passing which for me is a absolute blast!!! My friends really think I am crazy working on the sled all summer but then again I am the only one that doesn't break down all winter haha

The snow situation lately has sucked balls.....if you aren't willing to trailer you aren't riding. Hopefully this season won't be like that or I'll have to trailer again

 

[Off Trail Mike]

Keep the faith guys...it'll snow again.

I am no expert by any means but with 45+ years of "memorable" winter and despite global warming, winters seem to swing dramatically on a decade longish cycle. Recently we had 2 back to back epic years in 2010/2011 and duds in 2012/09. But overall, since 2000 winters have been better than average. I remember in the 90's where we had good years, but mostly marginal snow and low precip for years on end. It killed sled sales. Then around 2000, snow showed up everywhere, sales boomed.

If you look at sled sales over the last 2 decades you can see both economic ups and downs but more consistently, snow upturns and downturns.

So are we heading for warmer winters....probably. Does it mean less snow....maybe. Does it mean the end of winter? Likely not. Even this past year everyone in NA whined about lack of snow (save AK and BC....lucky buggers), but Scandanavia and Russia got pounded. So it snowed...and alot.... but just not here.

Here on the east coast, the prediction is wetter and warmer with global warming, and our weather station at work would seem to suggest this is the case, however, we are now getting much more precipitation in Jan/Feb which were traditionally very low precip months, but still friggin' cold (so snow). But our season is shorter....it didn't start until January, and it turned 25deg C (80ish F) in March for a week whick killed it. In between, it was pretty good but still an off year for us.

My bet is shorter seasons for sure, but maybe, just maybe, better snow in winter, while it lasts! I just refuse to think those "Artic Highs" that plunge in from Canada and freeze the plain states are simply going to give up.

Here's to snow

OTM

 

[whitedust1]

I'm going to ride the best of the best not concerned about miles this year. Managed 2000 miles last year in UPMI & WI. Thinking I will stay in WI keep it to 1 trail permit & shorter rides. $4.00+ a gallon gas is also a ball buster so shorter rides this year save some bucks here & there but still have some fun riding. Going to kick back relax it if snows great if not probably will get out next year & sell my stuff too.

 

[Suckur]

Here on the west coast of Newfoundland we are pretty much guaranteed snow. Last winter sucked (because we didn't have fresh pow every day) but it was still a 100 day season. Had to settle for the 1.75" track and keep the 2.5" in the garage, lol. We're a long way from no winters here and if any of you guys want to do the drive, its worth it...the terrain here is incredible. You would have to go to BC or AK to beat it, its that good. Anyways, hopefully only another 12-14 weeks to go!

 

[Eagle1]

I think the biggest thing about sledding is the anticipation of the snow.....

Ha, ha, No doubt!!
It's also the biggest let down after 3 months of wrenching and watching videos when we have winters like last year.