100 Mile Snow Safari Forum

We just completed yet another weekend of awesome riding on the 100 miler. I could not believe how well the trails were maintained over the last weekend. I was expecting heavy traffic and some soft trails due to the warmer weather. The past few weekends were very cold, so I figured most people would finally be out in the nice weather. They were, but you would never know it. I met all 3 groomers out and about, keeping up with the trails. I went out early in the morning Saturday and Sunday, and was the 1st one on 30 miles of double groomed trail. I thought that would be it for the day, but the groomers were still out! What a great job! I did see 1 group on Saturday destroy the great job the groomers did on the trail from Laona to Johnnies. I was up riding with the family this weekend, so we were taking it easy. we let a group of about 8-10 go past us, and I then followed thier "wake" for 8 miles. I like to "let 'er snap" too when I ride with the fellas, but I have never seen a more destructive trail wrecking in 30 years of riding. Every corner was blown clear off the trail, down to the ice. that trail never fully recovered, even after grooming, it's still icy. It made me mad to see the hard work that was done on the trail be destroyed by 8 thoughtless individuals. I don't know why people think spinning the track and dirt tracking the corner makes you go faster. Sure it's fun, but every corner for 8 miles was bare! Let's all go have fun, but have a little consideration for the guy coming the other way, the trail that has to stand up for the other riders, and the guy grooming it. Way to go 100 miler, (and LMT) job well done! We couldn't have asked for better!

Hey they dont care they wont be going back that way!

I once mentioned to a group of cowboy riders,

If you want to impress people with your awesome driving skill,
And show everyone how radical your sled is,
Try riding all day on YOUR SIDE of the trail
And dont p*** people off with your driving habits
The result will be, everyone will be impressed.



They did not find any wisdom in this!!:rolleyes:

Had 3 close calls last weekend:(

We also were up for a ride thurs. and fri. to find beautifull trails, well done by all.:thumbup:
rode 400 miles of smooth trails!!!!
We met some of those professional rides to, they were in a big hurry to pass, but for some reason they would stop and take a break, and we would pass them up! go figure:lol:

I've only had 5 close calls all year. It's amazing how far one of those hot roders can slide side ways down the trail. Then they think its all my fault for being there.

Im sorry to hear everyone has these close calls. those riders are the guys that need to compensate for something. Now im not gonna lie, our group is probably one of the fastest ones on the trails. we try not to piss people off, but sometimes it does happen, but sometimes its not our fault....everyone thinks its the fast guys fault (which most of the time it is) but we have also come up on riders that have no clue what they are doing. they are going 30mph and taking a left hand turn on the inside or a right hand turn on the outside on the bank, then they just stop on the wrong side of the trail or right in the middle when a fast guy comes around the corner at them and you get the bird.

the trails are all of ours, from "professionals" to slower scenery people. what really makes us mad is when we come up on a group and they keep looking at us in their mirrors and sway all over the trail to not let us pass, like they think they own the trail. now we all know the trails are not anyones in particular...but courtesy has to be shown by everyone from fast to slow.

I know how you feel buckshot, I used to be and sometimes am the same way, when people block the trail trying to police it or some such nonsense,. Most of the time slower riders look for the next spot to pull over and let us by, as we do when a real group of professionals comes up on us.
You just have to take a deep breath and realize that at most you will only have to follow them for a few minutes ,or the next crossing. If they still don't let you by at a crossing/stop sign, then I guess you have to do what you have to do.

The point of my original post was not to complain about fast riders, as I can keep up with the best of them. What I have no tolerance for is the destruction of the trail. They do go hand in hand to some extent. Smooth trails mean fast trails, but you can go fast without blowing all the snow into the next county. I have followed guys that are hanging off the side of thier sleds with the throttle pinned in every corner, and taking off from a stop sign and piling up a 2 foot snowbank, almost smoking thier track as they cross the road, and I keep right up with them without doing either. Anyone who sits in a groomer for 10 hours at a time will have a much different attitude towards keeping a nice trail in nice condition. I have often thought about traction control on sleds and how many millions of dollars it would save each year in grooming costs. Any racer knows that a spinning wheel is actually loosing traction, and the guy who "hooks up" is fastest. 30 years ago, trails were groomed 1-2 times a week and held up well because the machines didn't have the power to blast thru to the base. You gotta "feather the throttle" a llittle to save the trail. "You can still pin it, just don't spin it"

I hear ya RED. Im just as fast as my buddies and all they do is track spin and wash out corners. then they all complain about there bent and ripped out studs and lugs missing. I just go well if you wouldnt rip across roads with massive spin maybe you wold be fine. or pinning it sideways out of a turn. Ik from my racing snocross, traction is key to a start and coming out of a corner. if your not hooking up at the start you are not getting the holeshot!

It upsets me sometimes, when they don't give me any hand signals to let me know if/how many riders are behind them. Whether I'm in the groomer or on the sled. Now, if you can't SAFELY hand signal, then by all means-- keep BOTH hands on the sled. But I don't think that's the case for most of them. But to me.... if you don't give me a signal, you might as well be giving me the finger! Maybe it was that group of 'professional riders'. :rolleyes:

Keep Right and Ride Safe! :thumbup: