AmSnow.com is now SnoWest.com
Truth is, everyone makes mistakes, but mistakes make for the best stories! So every few years I like to share some of my favorite “snowmobile mistake stories.” Here are a couple more notable ones for your entertainment…
Gas Cap, Oh Crap! – I’m sure we’ve all forgotten this ONCE. I was on a packback trip, in the dark, when I realized the cap was off. I had to use my spare pair of socks to plug/stop the gas coming out of the tank while I scoured the trail, re-tracing my path. It was three miles back to the gas station. Miraculously, I actually found the cap on the trail. Whew!
SnowHawk Spin to Win! – The first time I rode a SnowHawk, I heard it wasn’t as difficult as riding a dirt bike or a stand-up jet-ski, so I figured it would be easy. I got on the bike on the side of a mountain in Idaho and as I descended, I tried to turn back uphill, the one front ski caught quickly and my leg got pulled off the peg in the deep snow. I remembered my motorsports Jedi training: “When in doubt, throttle out!” No, that’s not always the best idea, because as I did that, my whole body got swept back off the bike. No worries, I still had steel grip on the handlebars! As I tried to pull myself back up onto the bike, I twisted the throttle even more to full-on WOT. I was caught in a death-spin with my legs flailing off wildly behind me. I was trying not to crash, but too stubborn to let go. After three or four full circles, I actually managed to pull myself back up on the bike while still in motion and point it downhill again to get re-situated. When I came back up the hill the entire crowd that was watching was clapping and whistling, all the while thinking that I was showing off and did it on purpose. Dang right I did!
Mark Boncher, Editor
mboncher@kalmbach.com