Snow Mobiling

Being from Washington I am well aware of snow mobile enthusiasts, we have many people who enjoy the great outdoors through riding these machines. You can count on that at least one to two people will die each year because they choose to drive their snow mobile up the side of a mountain - where I come from we call the avalanche chutes and for some crazy reason they go straight up it, with a friend filming it because who knows they might start an avalanche and then their footage will be on the Stupidest People of the World TV show.

Crazy isn't it? Yeah drive your vehicle on top of thousands of pounds of wet snow and it shifts and wallah (as they say in Harry Potter) you get swept away and sometimes die. Now this is in no way slamming those who ride safely and responsibility. This is for the few who, well how do I put this politely, shouldn't be reproducing.

This I found on a website for snowmobiling. I have high lighted the parts that give me concern.

Make It A Safe Ride…
Obey speed limits and road/trail signs and always drive within your ability. Reduce your speed when driving at night and watch out for fences, guide wires and other objects that are more difficult to spot at night.

Avoid driving on frozen lakes and rivers. If it can't be avoided, check ice conditions beforehand. Wear a buoyant snowmobile suit. Carry ice picks and make sure they are accessible.

Alright let's start with the first one. If you are riding on a "snow mobile trail" I really doubt that some one for a joke is going to put up a fence or barbed wire just to mess with you. So if you need to be watching out for those things, then I bet ya, just bet ya that you aren't riding on the roads or trails meant for snowmobiling. I haven't done much cross country skiing but what I do know is there ain't any fences or nasty barbed wire on the trails.

Next one - Avoid driving on frozen lakes and river. Is this just me or is this just a no brainer? It's one thing to walk out onto a frozen lake with just your own body weight, but to go out on something that weighs like a lot is kind of silly don't you think? Ok let me put it this way, if you walk out on the ice by yourself and you hear cracking you would know to just get the hell out of Dodge, but how do you hear the cracking of ice when you have your legs wrapped around an engine on skis? Doesn't that once again go against having a "safe ride".

Ah now the last one. Wear a buoyant suit and carry ice picks. Alright I know I am from the Northwest and have a lot to learn about living in the north, but in school, did you all never hear about don't run with scissors? I mean that was planted in our little head from an early age even though the scissors they gave us had rounded ends and you couldn't cut paper with the pitiful things so we ended up using our teeth, but beyond that, we still never ran with scissors. Pencils yes, scissors no. Cause we always heard, oh (insert whatever is dangerous here) that's funny until some one gets hurt and then I always wanted to add - then it's hysterical. But really do you think that driving at 100 khm an hour, on a frozen I mean big frozen ass lake with frigging ice picks in your hands is like a safe ride? Are you all just crazy or is it just me?

Did you not see Basic Instinct? Do you not know what can happen to you if you were riding with Sharon Stone and you cut her off on the trail? You would be so chopped up. Yes, yes I know it was never proved in the movie that she was the killer but she sure knew how to use an ice pick. I myself use ice trays, just seems simpler.


Do I have a witty conclusion to this post? Nope I don't. But I feel much better having shared my feelings about this and no, the trauma caused to me by seeing Titanic 10 times and hearing the love song by Celine Dion for over 6 months has nothing to do with open water and ice.