Snowmobiling trip verses bar hopping

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thunderstruck88

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hey snow no problem I got that at times to lol have a great day to and THINK SNOW we all need to do a SNOW dance even a chicken snow dance lol just no Disco lol
 
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zman

New member
I get real sick of these posts that incite the ride and drink rage. I've been riding WI and MI trails for 41 years and yes once in a while I see a problem but it's not the norm. Considering the volume of traffic some of these areas see the sport is relatively safe. I feel safer on a trail at 10pm than on the road. Furthermore to rage on WI is ridiculous. I was at a bar in Watersmeet MI on Saturday night and there had to be 50 riders pounding shots and beers. I didn't see anyone leave out of control. MI is not immune to barmobiling.

Considering the mix in your party what did you expect? Half of your crew was in the prime of their party life. Maybe you ought to stick to riding with the fifty plus club. Personally, I like riding WI because I have more opportuities to stop and pee... :)
 
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zman

New member
Of course Rogers. Sue was serving up her chile and everyone was having a great time. Have never experienced a problem there. It was heart warming that they were busy, I know it means a lot to them.
 
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zman

New member
Oh ya, one more thing. I was the piss race champion in HS... I think today I could still get a trophy as long as it's cumulative. To do what I could do in HS I have to break it into 5 pieces. LoL...
 
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mride460

New member
xcr440 said:
To chime in again, these are the primary reason's I like to go out at 8am:

1. Its COLDer, sleds run better
2. Better trails, usually this is when the freshest grooming has been done
3. Bars are CLOSED! Usually until noon or so
4. I much prefer daylight RIDING, not sitting in a bar.
5. Usually Done riding by drinking time (3-4pm), and I'm TIRED by then, with 150+ miles and a good day behind me, THEN I (we) can drink
6. If you were out drinking the night before, its less likely you will be on MY trail at 8am.
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I agree 100%!!! We ride the same way, but we head out between 6 and 630am so we can have a good 300 mile day in by about 4pm. Doing this we hardly ever pass a sled till late morning and we have the best trails that the day has to offer. Don't get me wrong. Once we get to where we are staying we park at the room and walk to the bar and have our fun for the evening....
 
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rocketman356

New member
zman said:
I get real sick of these posts that incite the ride and drink rage. I've been riding WI and MI trails for 41 years and yes once in a while I see a problem but it's not the norm. Considering the volume of traffic some of these areas see the sport is relatively safe. I feel safer on a trail at 10pm than on the road. Furthermore to rage on WI is ridiculous. I was at a bar in Watersmeet MI on Saturday night and there had to be 50 riders pounding shots and beers. I didn't see anyone leave out of control. MI is not immune to barmobiling.

Considering the mix in your party what did you expect? Half of your crew was in the prime of their party life. Maybe you ought to stick to riding with the fifty plus club. Personally, I like riding WI because I have more opportuities to stop and pee... :)
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U go Zman,,,,,actually I think they should just closed all bars because it would take care of the problems u all whine about drinking and smoking.Or mayb some people should just give it a rest.
 
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joesnocruzer

New member
Please don't generalize

Boatssleds,
It is true that there are too many people throwing caution to the wind, drinking and riding. Please don't assume that it is like this everywhere in Wisconsin and with every Wisconsin group. My wife and I (Wisconsinites) NEVER drink while riding. We do stop at some bars for food and warm-up, and I am very happy that most riders that we see are not drinking alcohol.

Associating your unfortunate experience with Wisconsinites in general is just like anti-snowmobilers associating bad snowmobiling behavior with all snowmobilers.

That said, I have had several friends die due to drunk drivers (automobiles), and those who think they have the right to drink and ride are dead wrong. I have introduced many people (including my children) to snowmobiling because it is an awesome way to spend the Winter. I just hope that none of these people meets a drunk on the wrong side of the trail.
 
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milkmaker

New member
I ride with a group of males from southern Michigan who are in a age group of 79(me) to about 35. There are 12 of us and essentially we have ridden for many years in Canada and the UP. We never drink until the sleds are put away, and we do have a great time! We come for a week at a time and at least 1,000 miles to ride--not drink. It sounds like we are 'choir boys' but I assure you we are all American!-Ex dairy farmers.plumbers,grain farmers,music instrument makers,precision tool makers,corn handlers, carpenters and retirees. You do not have to booze to have fun.
 
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playhard

New member
It can happen to you

In 2008 I was snowmobiling with a group of 12 men. This trip ended in one of my friends being killed. What I learned:
1) know who you are snowmobiling with.
2) Have a meeting to talk about rules and safety.
3) Have a plan of where you are going and the responsibility of the leader. He sets the pace for the rest of the group. Talk about drinking.

That night changed my life forever. Our leaders was a 21 year who had his own agenda and safety was not one of them. Half of the group was intoxicated. We did not have a plan and we made some bad decisions. When you make a stop and have a drink over the course of the day those drinks add up. I never thought anyone in our group was drunk or even close. I was surprised when I learned the driver of the sled that crashed had a blood alcohol level of nearly twice the legal limit.

I just returned from a great trip up north. We did not drink while snowmobiling, we did not ride at night and we talked about safety before we started. We had a designated non drinking driver for our nights out on the town (by car). One interesting thing I did here from one of the bar owner was that the snowmobile traffic at night has decreased in recent years and she has noticed more and more snowmobilers drinking soda or water while on the sleds.

After the accident I thought about selling my sleds. I decided to keep snowmobiling and practice safe snowmobiling. I like to have a few beers, now I just wait until the sleds are parked.

I see the impact a poorly planned snowmobile trip can have. Everyday I see the impact drinking and snowmobiling has had on my friends family. We all miss him and his wife and children struggle with his absence everyday.
 
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olsmann

New member
playhard said:
In 2008 I was snowmobiling with a group of 12 men. This trip ended in one of my friends being killed. What I learned:
1) know who you are snowmobiling with.
2) Have a meeting to talk about rules and safety.
3) Have a plan of where you are going and the responsibility of the leader. He sets the pace for the rest of the group. Talk about drinking.

That night changed my life forever. Our leaders was a 21 year who had his own agenda and safety was not one of them. Half of the group was intoxicated. We did not have a plan and we made some bad decisions. When you make a stop and have a drink over the course of the day those drinks add up. I never thought anyone in our group was drunk or even close. I was surprised when I learned the driver of the sled that crashed had a blood alcohol level of nearly twice the legal limit.

I just returned from a great trip up north. We did not drink while snowmobiling, we did not ride at night and we talked about safety before we started. We had a designated non drinking driver for our nights out on the town (by car). One interesting thing I did here from one of the bar owner was that the snowmobile traffic at night has decreased in recent years and she has noticed more and more snowmobilers drinking soda or water while on the sleds.

After the accident I thought about selling my sleds. I decided to keep snowmobiling and practice safe snowmobiling. I like to have a few beers, now I just wait until the sleds are parked.

I see the impact a poorly planned snowmobile trip can have. Everyday I see the impact drinking and snowmobiling has had on my friends family. We all miss him and his wife and children struggle with his absence everyday.
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Im sorry to hear about the loss of your friend, Im glad you learned from it and you didnt sell your sleds. I bet your buddy would not have wanted you to do that. Were you guys stayin at parkview in twin lakes when this happened?
 
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skidoodoug

Member
bryan t said:
SHAME YOU FOR BLAMING WISCONSIN!!!! Sounds like you need better friends!!! I see your from Illinois, is that correct?? You really don't want me to start on Illinois people coming up here (northern wisconsin) and making azzes of themselves in the bars, do you ??? I used to tend bar in the UP in Twin Lakes (8 years ago)...and believe me there were just as many drunks on the trails there as in wisconsin...I refused to serve overly drunk people. But they got drunk somewhere. It's true there are less bars on the trails in the western U.P...but you need to remember the northern wisconsin bar owners are the guys that developed the trails, and the trails system...so yes our trails go to many bars...but with out those bar owners we wouldn't have a trail system. Don't blame the bars, when somebody over drinks...whena re people gonna start taking responsibility for themselves and start using their head??? We go on many sled trips in both wisconsin, and the western UP...and we do have a couple while out..BUT WE KNOW WHEN TO SAY WHEN...and yes when we get back to where we are staying, we let her snap.
The sleds are parked for the night, and don't move until the next day.

Bottomline is: Ride with people who ride like you do..take care of yourselves
and Be responsible..blaming a bar/bartender for somebody being drunk is like blaming a gun for shooting somebody.
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AMEN Bryan...I agree with you 100%, I would ride with you any day
 
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whitedust

Well-known member
Best Post

playhard said:
In 2008 I was snowmobiling with a group of 12 men. This trip ended in one of my friends being killed. What I learned:
1) know who you are snowmobiling with.
2) Have a meeting to talk about rules and safety.
3) Have a plan of where you are going and the responsibility of the leader. He sets the pace for the rest of the group. Talk about drinking.

That night changed my life forever. Our leaders was a 21 year who had his own agenda and safety was not one of them. Half of the group was intoxicated. We did not have a plan and we made some bad decisions. When you make a stop and have a drink over the course of the day those drinks add up. I never thought anyone in our group was drunk or even close. I was surprised when I learned the driver of the sled that crashed had a blood alcohol level of nearly twice the legal limit.

I just returned from a great trip up north. We did not drink while snowmobiling, we did not ride at night and we talked about safety before we started. We had a designated non drinking driver for our nights out on the town (by car). One interesting thing I did here from one of the bar owner was that the snowmobile traffic at night has decreased in recent years and she has noticed more and more snowmobilers drinking soda or water while on the sleds.

After the accident I thought about selling my sleds. I decided to keep snowmobiling and practice safe snowmobiling. I like to have a few beers, now I just wait until the sleds are parked.

I see the impact a poorly planned snowmobile trip can have. Everyday I see the impact drinking and snowmobiling has had on my friends family. We all miss him and his wife and children struggle with his absence everyday.
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Playhard: This is one of the best posts I have read in along time. I mostly ride alone but have been persuaded to ride with others lately & was surprised by some of the riding styles on public trails. Some guys have to race bumper to bumper & when I saw that I just backed out of the snow dust & let them go at it. Pretty much went on all day on & off so I either lead mostly on grades or swept on twistys just not comfortable with a sled on my bumper. This was just adding 1 rider to the bunch that I never rode with before. It is that simple to change riding behavior even after I reviewed rules of trail. 1) know who you are snowmobiling with is indeed important!! You can't always control who is in the group so figure out what is the best spot for you in the pack & respect the other guy's style. It was a great day on the trails 260ish miles no drinking great conditions. I expressed my opinion of that day to my other buddy & we agreed it was a matter of styles & he did not know the new guy was on his bumper all day until he passed him & was too hot in a turn locked it up went off the trail & back on without hitting anything.....thank goodness!!
So what I learned is adjust to what is happening out there on the fly & be safe even if others in your group are acting stupid. You just can't fix all the stupid people out there but you can make yourself safe. All in all riding alone is not that bad. If I have a breakdown at least I can walk out on my own. lol
 
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Banks93

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If you look at the map of all the deaths in the last 10 years on the dnr website it shows the major spots for deaths are in the high snowmobile traffic counties. I would agree drinking may cause more of a risk for accidents but I would say wrecklessness is more of an issue than drinking and when you put them together that is when you have big problems and maybe a death.

I would agree with the prior post about know who you are riding with and set the pace with a responsible leader. When you have a wreckless person in your group this is the saying we use. It isn't if they are going to crash it is how and where will they crash. You can't teach common sense.
 
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whitedust

Well-known member
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Banks93 said:
If you look at the map of all the deaths in the last 10 years on the dnr website it shows the major spots for deaths are in the high snowmobile traffic counties. I would agree drinking may cause more of a risk for accidents but I would say wrecklessness is more of an issue than drinking and when you put them together that is when you have big problems and maybe a death.

I would agree with the prior post about know who you are riding with and set the pace with a responsible leader. When you have a wreckless person in your group this is the saying we use. It isn't if they are going to crash it is how and where will they crash. You can't teach common sense.
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I say something at lunch like "this sure is a real good burger" "I wouldn't be enjoying this burger right now after cleaning all your blood & hair off that tree if you crashed in the twistys back there". "Plus I would have to be on the phone right now telling your wife what happened". Usually followed by groans "Oh Gross" but gets the point to the perp to slow down & get it under control & think about it if nothing more. If doesn't change then last ride with that guy.
 
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