Michigan could require them as a condition to be on the trails, or make the trail permit number 3" tall. Self-policing is great, but these days who's going to approach a group of riders and tell them to stop what they are doing? Seems like you are asking for trouble by doing so. Better to snap a picture, hopefully get the registration number and turn them in.
Military Hill Issue AGAIN!
- Thread starter mrsrunningbear
- Start date
Michigan could require them as a condition to be on the trails, or make the trail permit number 3" tall. Self-policing is great, but these days who's going to approach a group of riders and tell them to stop what they are doing? Seems like you are asking for trouble by doing so. Better to snap a picture, hopefully get the registration number and turn them in.
groomerdriver
New member
Local law enforcement may/will ask "do you agree to appear in court if it goes that far?" What do you think 99% of folks are going to say?
mezz
Well-known member
This is only a partial solution to the State of MI, what about other states that register sleds? Again, each state will have their own rule on size & placement. This issue is not isolated to only Michigan registered sledders, this issue surrounds all in this sport. Good luck with a nation wide mandate on registration display. Again, we need to police oursleves, if the responsible riders don't, who will?-Mezz
r/l groomer
Member
Not to get off topic, but I met some riders in Wisconsin last year and was at an intersection resting and talking with felow riders and up came a group of four sleds, two were off trail riding around a clear cut area and two stop at the intersection, pa and ma. Walked over and asked if the two riders were with them and they said they were there boys. I explained that they were not on the marked trail and might be on private property, Wow, did I get put in my place by pa. He even tells me he is an instructor in the Shawano area, I explained that I was also, but he should maybe pracitice what he teaches, was NOT a good out come.
I wish we could do something as a group to stop the problems every where.
Sorry for this,but it's every place, Dane county last year was bad.
Thanks
Howie
I wish we could do something as a group to stop the problems every where.
Sorry for this,but it's every place, Dane county last year was bad.
Thanks
Howie
T
Team Elkhorn
Guest
I'm here to tell you the 3" registration numbers are far better than nothing. Which is what there is now to ID moving sleds. When my brother and I were young, we had to take the dreaded police car purp ride to apologize to a landowner for cutting across his property. He got our numbers. After that, it NEVER happened again. I couldn't imagine the mayhem on the streets if cars didn't have licence plates. To me this is a no brainer. All the states should get together and require the 3" numbers again. Anyone that would argue against them has a reason. And its not because of the silly sticker graphics that come on sleds today.
As far as trying to educate and police ourselves goes, More often than not I've had the same experiences as Howie. Especially when you're calling out someone's precious little snowflakes. Even recently, when the trails closed down here due to warm temperatures, I walked down to the trail to try and flag down some of the people still out riding and give them a heads up. Of the 8 or 9 sleds that rode by while I was out there, not one stopped. In fact they all avoided eye contact and sped up. One even gestured that I was number one. They knew the trails were closed. Again, if we all had registration numbers.........
As far as trying to educate and police ourselves goes, More often than not I've had the same experiences as Howie. Especially when you're calling out someone's precious little snowflakes. Even recently, when the trails closed down here due to warm temperatures, I walked down to the trail to try and flag down some of the people still out riding and give them a heads up. Of the 8 or 9 sleds that rode by while I was out there, not one stopped. In fact they all avoided eye contact and sped up. One even gestured that I was number one. They knew the trails were closed. Again, if we all had registration numbers.........
Of course everyone would say no to that. But it would at least provide some deterrent where this is absolutely none now to the mountain rider wannabee to stay on trail. How else could you possibly catch someone? "I saw a yellow ski doo off-trail over there. Guy was wearing a black Klim jacket."
Most people aren't going to confront other riders either. These days you just don't know what you are getting yourself into if you do so.
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polarisrider1
New member
What's a Klim jacket have to do with it? They make trail rider gear also.
I am the 1% who would go to court, done it on a case with quads tearing up snowmobile trail.
If the DNR wanted to stop it, they would. They will lay in the bushes for a week to catch a guy trying to kill deer illegally. If they hid somewhere near that hill when the snow was good, in short order they would be arresting people. This is a big problem, and the authorities have the capacity to solve it at this location. ( easy access, high visibility, and not very many escape routes). Other more remote areas are a different matter.
Nothing at all - I was just trying to make a point that it's tough to provide a description of a snowmobile without a unique registration number, since there aren't that many different kinds of sleds and you can't really describe the rider either, because many people have the same kind of gear also.
To be clear, Klim and Ski Doo do more to help the sustainability of the sport than anyone else, along with the MSA and other state groups, and the Blue Ribbon Coalition, so I wasn't inferring anything about Klim or Ski Doo. Ski Doo give big bucks towards trails.
LOL...yeah I meant to say either green cat or yellow doo. That makes no sense! I'll edit it.
vx700xtc nailed it on the head. If the DNR know this is a problem area just post somebody up. A few tickets later and the word would be out, problem solved. I have been out in my bow stand in the middle of nowhere and have been checked by them not sure how they cant find the people on the side of highway.
cuzzinolaf
Well-known member
Yea
cuzzinolaf
Well-known member
maybe leave some Butterfingers out there too to bait a squatch.
All jokes aside, the point about DNR being able to stop it seems like a valid one. I mean, they will sit on an illegal bait pile for weeks on end to try and catch a poacher. Why aren't they staking out the hill and writing tickets? This is just a question, so please don't jump down my throat, is it possible they are not writing tickets because the hill is "technically " legal to ride, since its USFS owned? Would a ticket hold up in court?