Near death! Life changing

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reaper969x

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I was 4 foot off trail and got ripped off my sled by a BARB wire fence! As I lay in the snow trying to get my **** together, I reached up to take my helmet off and felt Barb wire around my neck. I'm ok. A little skun up and my head is kinda screwed up, seeing as 9 out of 10 times you die in that situation. Things will look different tomorrow, things will taste different tomorrow. Be thankful for what you have. Kiss the ones you love and tell them that you love them. Praise GOD for the life you have cause it can all end in the blink of an eye! Be safe and live life to the fullest!!!!
 
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fcat700

Member
Congratulations, you did beet the odds. My brother lost, he past away while we were riding 3 years ago on Lake Gogebic. Heading back there today for a 4 day ride. Life changing for sure. Ride safe.
 
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cmharcou

Member
A few weeks ago, taking off from indian River Michigan, just had jumped onto the railroad grade I think its trail #7. Trail was highway smooth, cold and crisp. I couldn't help but to open my Attak up and get her up to speed. I looked down at the dream meter and looked back up and saw a deer jump right in front of me and the nose of the deer clipped the right side of my sled. No damage and no injuries but that was some scary stuff! A split second faster or slower it would of been over.
 
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trailblazer

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Can you tell me what your first problem was?--------------Why were you four feet off the trail?-------------I'm sorry but you are not suposse to be there. People getting hurt on snowmobiles are going to fast, not knowing where they are, ect. PLEASE STAY ON TRAILS. Now when the land owner finds out you went through a fence on his land, he will get worried about people suing him, and that trail will not be there next year. GLAD your alright, (but)--- people need to use there heads while doing this sport. I was grooming yesterday, and almost all the sleds would stop and wait for me to go by, ALMOST all--one guy went 20 feet on the other side of two markers at about 70mph so he would not have to slow down, he too could have been killed. (Wire, rocks, fence, fence post). When we mark trails we do not look to see what is 4 or 20 feet on the other sides of trail markers. PLEASE USE YOUR HEADS, your wrecking it for everyone.
 
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luke_duke

Member
I would change that name by the way...it's way too close to Grim Reaper who is the guy who came to visit you.

Trailblazer- Little rough on the guy for not knowing if he was in an area where he was able to legally ride off trail, even though your probably right. I am sure you see a lot of stupid stuff. By the way, thanks for all your efforts and for grooming!!
 
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whitedust

Well-known member
Don't know where you were riding but if in corn fileds there is barbed wire everywhere. I used to try to pull the stuff away from groomed farm fields trails & thought Ok but if anone darts off the trail thay are dead meat. Did what I could & left it at that. Look for the stuff it is out there.
 
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reaper969x

New member
OFF TRAIL? maybe I should re-phrase that. My right ski was still in the left ski groove so not even four feet off the trail. I agree that you should not ride off trail and don't as a normal practice. I've ridden in ILL for 15 years and barb wire is everywhere, this I know. This barb wire was perpendicular to the trail with no caution markers at all. Typically the trails around here are marked very well, and when there is ANY kind of obstruction near the trail is it marked. Yes it was my fault for being "OFF TRAIL" and am not blaming anyone, just wanted to share with some fellow snowmobilers my experience. I'm glad you could use this for your personal soap box trailblazer.
 
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reaper969x

New member
By the way trailblazer, the landowner was notified and has already marked the trail accordingly. He also called to see if I was ok.
 
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trailblazer

New member
Soap box? Sorry, but the truth hurts. To many younger people going to fast and not knowing the trails they are on. Maybe not in your case, but it is true.
There are alot of younger people with sleds that have no respect for the trails, the people riding them, and the people that take care of them. Again I'm not saying that you did anything wrong, and sorry it happened to you. Maybe when these people that are teaching the safty classes should spend a couple of hours teaching this to our kids, instead of teaching them hand signals.
 
skiroule

skiroule

Well-known member
Reap,

"Off-trail" in your case might be somewhat of a misnomer. I don't think most people think of your experience, while possibly unadvisable, as off-trail. It seems to be more of an instance of being in the wrong place at the wrong time and was either lucky or unlucky, depending on your perspective. The question is, should you buy a lottery ticket this week?
I had a similar experience a few years back when riding in an area that is well known for off trail riding. While moving at a slow speed, I stood up to peer over a knoll and found myself doing a backflip off the back of the machine. The culprit was a 50 ft. stretch of old telephone wire. Had I been sitting down, I would have missed it. Had I been going faster, the outcome may have been quite different. I've still have the scratched helmet as a reminder to always be alert. Before anyone thinks I'm a young hotshot, I was around when the Polaris Sno-Traveler was a new machine - enough said.
Both on and off-trail (where permitted) have inherent risks, whether it be fences, stumps, trees, idiots, inconsiderate or intoxicated riders - this list goes on. Your outcome is obviously a fortunate one and it reinforces the need to be as safe as possible.
 
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duane9835

New member
Great story reaper969x and i am glad all is well with you to. I to had a life changing snowmobile accident last year 1/30/09 with no one to blame but my own ignorance. When i woke up after hitting a tree at an unrememerable speed i drug myself to the trail in hopes that some one will see me that is when i realized i had broken my leg and who know what else!! And after spending a year between a hospital bed, walker, crutches, a couple surgerys, and lots of therapy i am almost done!!! It has really woken me up with having a very loving wife and 4 kids at home it really changes your outlook on things.

I also thank god everyday and will never take things for granted like i used to.

Also thanks to Arctic Cat for quality helmets!!!
 
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lenny

Guest
Trailblazer, you gonna harp on Duane for going to fast and say he is wrecking it for all. Your out of line in a thread like this. If you have a problem, pm the guy or start your own thread because it's not all about you and saving the trail system. You would do much better in understanding the motive of the person who started the post and have a little compassion for a unfortunate situation. You are correct in you words but it is in poor taste and poor timing. Remember, it is titled "near death! Life changing." Nobody needs a "I told you so or why you doing that" sort of mentality. There is proper time, place for correction and rebuke.
 
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