Common courtesy and common sense!

jmvette427

Active member
rest area ahead

If its too much to ask that people pull off to the side, maybe we can set up parking meters and use the up and coming trend of snowmobile trail parking to pad the trail fund.
Trails are for ridin', not parkin'.

new signage and rest areas ! maybe with the extra trail pass $$$
 

dmsrx

Member
I don't get the whole thing about stopping on a trail and taking a break then complaining about someone riding close to your feet hanging in the trail. Trails are narrow, what do you expect? You are stopped in a travel lane, find a spot where you can get off the trail or stop at an intersection where almost all the time there is a lot of room to be out of the way. There are always safe places to pull of and take a break. Worst you have to do is ride a little more. I mean do you stop your car in the middle of the road to take a break??
 

jmvette427

Active member
dmsrx:we had pulled off the woods side of forest trail . the oncoming sled had plenty of room to avoid coming close to me. also what about slowing down when approaching other sleds ?
 
I have been riding for years now. Put a lot of miles on and rode 75% of Michigans trails. Some day hope to say 100% but that's for me to work on. One thing I see happening more and more as this sport get more popular and more people enjoying it, is that common sense is not so common, and common courtesy is becoming a thing of the past. I can't believe how many times when we/I are/am riding, I come across people STOPPED right in the middle of the trail and also STOPPED blocking an intersection. Saturday was riding Petoski's trail and came to intersection of trails 760 and 765 and there were about 25 sleds stopped in the intersection blocking the whole intersection. We had to zig zag around the sleds to get through! I have several choice words for people like that, but I respect this forum, so I will keep them to myself. So, if any one that reads this forum was in that group Saturday at 3:10 in the afternoon, please for common courtesy use some common sense and pass it on to your riding friends to stop doing this IDIOTIC behavior! Thanks for letting me vent. RIDE ON!


I just got home from a week of riding in the western UP, stayed behind Pat's in Greenland. I rode this week in all directions. My pet peeve is with some approaching on coming riders......SLOW DOWN, use hand signals to tell the opposing group how many are left. If you have three more riders behind you in your group put up three fingers, slow down and move to your right until everyone is passed. The last guy makes a closed fist saying I am the last rider. Don't hog the trail crowding on coming riders while you have the throttle pinched like some kind of crazed idiot. I'd say almost 50% of the riders I approached were like this. I started warning these riders by swatting them on the helmet as they passed me. If you got swatted that's why I did it. Slow the heck down, move over and get some etiquette. Otherwise get off the public trails! Nobody needs to get killed because you were a selfish moron trying to prove your manhood because you bought a big fast machine.
 

dmsrx

Member
Jmvette, your original post reads like you were pulled over on the trail. If you were off the trail that's a good thing. Its not uncommon for people to stop right on the trail and usually their choice of stopping places put them and approaching riders in danger. Why he didn't slow down who knows but if he was startled to see you and had to lock his brakes because he thought he was going to hit you I can only guess you weren't very visible. I wasn't there so I don't know and take your word as it happened.
 

polaris62

New member
Journeyman I've encountered the same thing countless times. Last year meeting a oncoming group I slowed as I always do no hand signals which was probably a good thing since he seemed to be on the verge of losing control. I moved as far right as I could ski against the berm but he didn't budge on a pretty wide trail. As he passed we hit skis thankfully didn't hook otherwise would of been really bad. Slow down when meeting sleds on the trail especially if you're riding faster than your skill allows.
 

Skylar

Super Moderator
Staff member
I just got home from a week of riding in the western UP, stayed behind Pat's in Greenland. I rode this week in all directions. My pet peeve is with some approaching on coming riders......SLOW DOWN, use hand signals to tell the opposing group how many are left. If you have three more riders behind you in your group put up three fingers, slow down and move to your right until everyone is passed. The last guy makes a closed fist saying I am the last rider. Don't hog the trail crowding on coming riders while you have the throttle pinched like some kind of crazed idiot. I'd say almost 50% of the riders I approached were like this. I started warning these riders by swatting them on the helmet as they passed me. If you got swatted that's why I did it. Slow the heck down, move over and get some etiquette. Otherwise get off the public trails! Nobody needs to get killed because you were a selfish moron trying to prove your manhood because you bought a big fast machine.

So you swatted people on the helmet as they went past you, st a combined speed of, let's say 60 mph? That really must have hurt your hand?
 

russholio

Well-known member
I just got home from a week of riding in the western UP, stayed behind Pat's in Greenland. I rode this week in all directions. My pet peeve is with some approaching on coming riders......SLOW DOWN, use hand signals to tell the opposing group how many are left. If you have three more riders behind you in your group put up three fingers, slow down and move to your right until everyone is passed. The last guy makes a closed fist saying I am the last rider. Don't hog the trail crowding on coming riders while you have the throttle pinched like some kind of crazed idiot. I'd say almost 50% of the riders I approached were like this. I started warning these riders by swatting them on the helmet as they passed me. If you got swatted that's why I did it. Slow the heck down, move over and get some etiquette. Otherwise get off the public trails! Nobody needs to get killed because you were a selfish moron trying to prove your manhood because you bought a big fast machine.

I hope you're joking about this. I'm right there with you about oncoming riders slowing down and moving over, but taking physical action makes you just as wrong as them and could be construed as battery. Not to mention, if you're getting so close that you can reach them, who's the danger now? Again, maybe you're just joking and I've taken this out of context. I hope so.
 
I hope you're joking about this. I'm right there with you about oncoming riders slowing down and moving over, but taking physical action makes you just as wrong as them and could be construed as battery. Not to mention, if you're getting so close that you can reach them, who's the danger now? Again, maybe you're just joking and I've taken this out of context. I hope so.

I think you are misunderstanding the situation. These people are getting too close to me. If I slow down, have my sled hugged as tight as I can go to my right rubbing the side of my sled on the snow and they crowd me to the point of almost hitting my left side they are the ones getting to close. They are over on my side and traveling at a high rate of speed. I didn't punch them, it was a tap on their helmet, nothing too physical as you describe but a warning to slow down and move over. A tap...........maybe wrong words on my part.
 

Woodtic

Active member
That's a heck of a idea. I'm going to start carrying a fly swatter from now on. This could also help with the Deer on the trail. Give them a smack on the butt as I go by. I'm going to start carrying a ruler as well. Those that don't give me hand signals will get a smack across their fingers. We need more Nuns on the trail to keep order.
 

whitedust

Well-known member
I just got home from a week of riding in the western UP, stayed behind Pat's in Greenland. I rode this week in all directions. My pet peeve is with some approaching on coming riders......SLOW DOWN, use hand signals to tell the opposing group how many are left. If you have three more riders behind you in your group put up three fingers, slow down and move to your right until everyone is passed. The last guy makes a closed fist saying I am the last rider. Don't hog the trail crowding on coming riders while you have the throttle pinched like some kind of crazed idiot. I'd say almost 50% of the riders I approached were like this. I started warning these riders by swatting them on the helmet as they passed me. If you got swatted that's why I did it. Slow the heck down, move over and get some etiquette. Otherwise get off the public trails! Nobody needs to get killed because you were a selfish moron trying to prove your manhood because you bought a big fast machine.

Yeah I don't let this get under my skin anymore you can swat them, 1 finger salute & won't matter on grades. I can haul grades faster than most but when passing on coming sleds I slow way down just the right thing to do imo. Thursday night some knuklehead centers up to come across bridge on 2 while I'm in the middle crossing nothing I can do now but lock it up hold right as far as I can then let off roll by hope for the best for last 10 feet of bridge. No idea if he/she was inexperinced or plain stupid but passed 2 breast without incident. It was pitch black so maybe that had something to do with it ...just don't know?
 
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