Snowmobile on water

[glashole]

Wish me luck

as we all do when we have been thinking (drinking) :bonk: I have committed myself to running my snowmobile down the Murray Canal

If anyone is familiar with my neck of the woods the Murray canal is a passage way between Lake Ontario and The Bay of Quinte

Total on water distance is about 5 miles

This is happening tommorrow night ( right before April Fools day none the less) at 5:30

I will post some pictures when I get them

[boxy]

Good luck Shea, don't forget the Javex bottle, and 30 feet of light line, so you can find it if you happen to go down..... :D

[Carl C]

Just don't let off the throttle. Remember the #1 rule: When in doubt, gas it!

[boxy]

Actually Carl, that's the quickest way to the bottom, if you spin the track to fast, it sucks you down, and you lose lift...

[Carl C]

Actually Carl, that's the quickest way to the bottom, if you spin the track to fast, it sucks you down, and you lose lift... But I've seen sleds cross open water by spinning the track and we used to do the same on 4 wheel ATVs but you can't go as far! OK a sled might need a little more finesse w/the throttle.

[boxy]

you need to spin it, but there is a fine line, the throttle needs to be feathered, hold it WFO, and you are going for a swim....

[kjly63]

I remember when I tried this by accident around 20 yrs ago. I was traveling down the lake in mid January on a calm day. I didn't realize I was approaching open water until it was too late. I floored it and got to about 94 mph when I hit open water......................did not make it and found myself swimming in 45 ft with full winter gear on a 10 degree day by myself.

If anyone has ever tried to climb onto ice it is almost impossible. Well I made it and was found by someone in their backyard after I passed out.

Long story short..............got rid of all 3 snowmobiles and the friend who said it was safe.

:hyper: GOOD LUCK

Kenny

[Woodsy]

This isn't your run of the mill 100-200 yard water crossing. If your going to go 5 miles, do some planning!

Keep as much of your weight on the skis as you can.

Be careful of another sleds wake....

Make sure you use a new belt... brand new! no exceptions! Breaking a belt over water can get really expensive really quick!

Remove the studs from your track... The less reciprocating mass the better.
it helps to have a 2" paddle track or a long track sled

New spark plugs... fouling a plug can be as expensive as breaking a belt.

Tape up any holes on the bottom of the sled with duct tape... any water on the belt and your done for...

Wear a helmet... do not tie your chin strap... you want to be able to remove the helmet quickly

Wear a PFD... the water is cold and if you go swimming you can get
exhausted REALLY QUICK. Quicker than you think.

Wear lightweight clothes you can easily move in... sneakers are better than work boots for swimming!

If you know your not going to make it... steer towards shore. Hit the kill button before the motor goes under... it will save you some $$ later.

You probably know all this stuff... but a reminder can't hurt.

Have fun! Show us the video!

Woodsy

[glashole]

Snowmobiler TV is coming down to film the whole deal

we are duct taping all of the holes to stop the belt from getting wet and caulking any possible cracks etc..

new belts and good running sleds are a must obviously

I have heard different opinions on the track

a paddle type track makes sence but also puts undo stress on the belt

a regular track will keep you up and also be easier on the sled

studs yes and no

I say leave them in as it will be easier to get a last bit of traction before the water and onto the ice (granted there isn't a slot of ice left at the start or finish

I am going to wear a wetsuit with PFD and dirt bike style helmet

we have a jet ski in the water and a big commercial fishing boat for plucking the unsuccessful out of the water

all of the sled will have a long rope and javex bottle

[Woodsy]

It will be good to see you on tv....

Woodsy

[Carl C]

OK, I read the first post a little too quick. I thought you were talking about riding on thin ice with the risk of crossing some open water. 5 miles on water!:eek: :eek: Is that doable?:boggled: I think you need a few more beers and think about it some more.:superman:

[CHACHI]

Shea, a gentleman last name Beeda, covered 100 or so miles on the Welland Canal many years ago. five miles should be a piece of cake. Good luck. Ken

[mrfixxall]

Wish me luck
as we all do when we have been thinking (drinking) :bonk: I have committed myself to running my snowmobile down the Murray Canal
If anyone is familiar with my neck of the woods the Murray canal is a passage way between Lake Ontario and The Bay of Quinte
Total on water distance is about 5 miles
This is happening tommorrow night ( right before April Fools day none the less) at 5:30
I will post some pictures when I get them

wana use my sled lol ,,,did you loosen the front limiter straps on the front a arm on the suspension,this should keep the skis from digging in..

good luck....

[glashole]

I'm not sure what you mean by limiter straps but there is a good friend of mine kind of looking over the prep process of the sleds to make sure we have the best chances


My plan is pretty simple

1) try not to sink
2) if I sink, try not to drown
3) party hard afterwards regardless of the results

Shea

[boxy]

The Guinness record was set in 2004 at 15.7 miles

http://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/index.asp?id=58570

Henry Bieda's sled seems to be modified, but 100 miles is still cool...

http://www.biedaspowersports.com/henry.html

[glashole]

what started this all with the TV crews and what not is a set up for the big one a friend of mine wants to do

Across Lake Ontario and back which would be 120 miles from Brighton to Rochester and back without touching land for the Guiness Record

Obviously the conditions would have to be perfect etc.... first thing in the morning and so-on

it could obviously be done on a pond somewhere and just go around in circles but the Lake would be pretty cool

anyways one step at a time

[joel3078]

The limiter strap is that leather loop strap that's in the front part of the slide suspension. Tighten it - make the loop shorter and it limits the ski lift during acceleration. You want ski lift on water - so loosen the strap a couple notches or so.

An important thing to remember is you are doing this in warm weather so it's much easier to burn down a cylinder. Don't rejet the carb so lean that you are on the harry edge, leave it a little bit fat/rich. If you have a 600cc sled or higher that runs great, you should have plenty of power. I remember the best skipping sleds would be out there forever and then all the sudden the motor quit and they sink pronto. Cause - hole in the top of the pisiton and/or melted ring skirts. It's like all engines, they sound the best right before they blow up.

[CHACHI]

Take the stock seat off, the foam holds water,lots of water. sit on the tunnel or fabricate a less absorbant one. Ken

[Ranman]

If you've never done any serious water crossing before, don't ecpect to make it. Even if you are going in a straight line it is difficult to keep your balance, maintaine constant forward motion and steer.

The whole thing is kind of like rsurfing. Very loose and easy to lose balance until you get the hang of it. To steer you have to lean into the turn, but turn the handlebars in the opposite direction. I don't know how else to explain this, but it's not easy. Good luck!

[mrfixxall]

Glashole, what type of sled do you plan on using???????

And did i read your doing this at night????

[SideshowRob]

Aaaah the good old days, although we never ran 5 miles, we did run our share, and the share of many other people. Here’s what I learned along the way; a .75 studded short track works perfectly (studs are definitely necessary for that last bit of traction) Once you’re on the water you can move around a fair bit and it doesn’t matter, I say this becuase after the 3rd pass I was getting bored and actually trying to move the sled. Hitting the water at 100mph had no adverse affect on my crossing, within about 40 feet you feel the sled slow to around 40, although speedo is still up around 80 (This did seem to shock the local Polaris dealer, who was also the water crossing guru. When I saw how he looked at us, I got nervous… :eek!: glad we had already done it). The first of our big runs was a bit scary, mainly because in about the middle we realized we were running about a ¼ mile…. Did I mention there was 2 of us on the sled, and I was carrying my dad’s $1500. camera. (Damn Kids!:tongue: ) As for the wakes of other sleds, I used to think the same thing, but our friends proved that to be wrong. We switched off after playing for a while and our buddies took our sleds. See pics.
I am surprised that Snowmobiler TV is interested in this, as they seem to be very much against water travel.
We haven’t run too much water lately, partly because the police are quick to slap a reckless driving fine on you, which for those of you who don’t know, goes directly on your ‘car’ driver’s license. Also because I now ride a Yamaha, and rumour is the SRX doesn’t like water.
You’ll do fine, but I think the beer will taste better once you’re back on land. Damn I’m getting old. :beer:

[SideshowRob]

Don't listen to the negatives, as the swoosh people say, JUST DO IT!
I would say this though, daylight is better.
Almost every watercrossing fatality includes the same two things; Night and booze.
Plenty of time for drinks after.
I am curious as to the sled you're riding too.

[glashole]

we are leaving at 5:30 which will give us lots of light for the 15mins or so it will take

doing something like this at night is obviously not a good idea

I am running a 2000 formula deluxe 600 my buddy is using a 670 MXZ same general year

the others vary but are all above 600 and are the older style sleds ( apparently they are supposed to be better on the water)

there is one Rev 600

[dr]

OK, as a southern boy I’m not certain if this is intended as the equivalent of a snipe hunt for our benefit or not? Are we talking about a snowmobile running on ice, thin ice, water or just gotcha?

[glashole]

running on water

if you look at the pictures posted earlier they are not modified for anyones benefit

keep in mind this does not always go good :)

Shea

[joel3078]

OK, as a southern boy I’m not certain if this is intended as the equivalent of snipe hunt for our benefit or not? Are we talking about a snowmobile running on ice, thin ice, water or just gotcha?

Yup on water AND in the middle of summer. The lake is very small and only 4 feet deep or so. If ya go in, you just stand up on the bottom of the lake and wait for the pontoon boat with the crane style lift to come over and pick your sled up out of the water. Slings and ropes are used.
http://www.grantsburgwatercross.com/

It's amazing what kind of entertainment you can come up with when your state has beer as an icon. Go cheeseheads!

Yellow lake/river in Danbury, WI is the winter version of this. Involves even more beer typically. I did this one about 10 years ago. Lots of fun and if you do go in, lots of people will help you get the sled back on shore, pull the plugs, tilt sled on its side, pull rope about 20 times to burp water out of cylinders, tip sled back up, give each cylinder a good shot of starting fluid, put plugs and wire back on, start sled. After sled starts - may take another 50 pulls or so, run it for 1/2 hour and engine will be good and dried out. Start water skipping again. I'm sure the tater salad Ron White could do a fantastic skit on this lil ditty.

[SideshowRob]

I agree that the older ones are better. A arm front ends and long travel rear skids creates a lot of turbulance. I think for such a long run some staggering of the sleds would be a good idea, because it is unlikely you will all be travelling the same speed. This might sound kinda dumb, but it will probably help to have a low windshield, or no windshield at all.
It must really seem ridiculous to our southern friends, not only the fact that this happens, but that there are enough people who have done it, that we can offer advice.
Now if I just get the Donzi to run in 3' of snow :biggrin:

[Carl C]

We used to cross a pond at Silver Lake dunes on our quads. You must hit the water flat out in high gear and keep your weight back. It's harder than with a sled but really cool when you buzz across the top of the water. Sometimes you start to sink and then you get drenched. Max. distance was about 100 feet.:lightning

[McGary911]

Sounds like it's going to be a ton of fun. Here's my fav pic of a snowmobile on the water. Looks like he just passed a 32' Sunsation. One of the 2 sunk later that day...and it wasn't the sled......but that's another story.

[tiger lily]

We used to cross a pond at Silver Lake dunes on our quads. You must hit the water flat out in high gear and keep your weight back. It's harder than with a sled but really cool when you buzz across the top of the water. Sometimes you start to sink and then you get drenched. Max. distance was about 100 feet.:lightning


oh yes, i was the moron on the 250R a few years back that tried to go the long way, came up about 50 feet short, the quads when they slow down they start to bounce side to side, then the front dives, needless to say, i need a new flag, handle bars, and visor for my helment from dune land after that..

[Carl C]

I told you it can be done in a wheeled vehicle! The tires make the coolest buzzing noise too! Driving a sled five miles down a canal? Someone needs to get a PWC.:)

[glashole]

Pictures will be ready soon

of the 5 sleds 2 made it the distance
I was not one of them

the water was dead calm the entire day and the weather was great until
about 10 mins before the run the wind picked up and it started to rain

with all of the spectators and cameras etcc we said what the F@#K lets just give -er

anyways in the bay before the canal we had about 1ft or better chop which was ultimately the end for the majority ( I was actually catching air and have a picture to prove it)

I made it about a mile out in the rough water and the three others were varied from there

the guys who made it to the canal had it made because the water was calm there

we had about 150 people there watching and the party afterwards was well worth it

I will post the pictures as soon as I have them

Shea

[glashole]

the show finally aired last weekend on Snowmobiler Tv :)

the coverage was alright but it didn't show very much of the running on water more of just the bunch of us before and afterwards

I am still waiting for the pictures they took to be sent :crossfing

anyways

if you are in canada you might be able to see it in reruns

or wait till this year for more picture of this year's run :boat:



Shea

[glashole]

not the good picture but it will do :wink:

[glashole]

this is after they dug us out of the water

[Tim Morris]

Only in Canada.

[Sofa King]

Don't forget your drysuite.

[SideshowRob]

Yeah I watched it on TV last weekend. None of your buddies had faith in you. I had to agree with the no tape rule though, gotta have some air moving in there. Maybe one year I'll join you. Not with the SRX though.

[glashole]

March 24th next trip :boat:


there is ice to and from the canal right now so the water portion will only be about 5 miles but it is always calm so it should be a little easier :)


any takers are welcome to ride or just watch from the sides of the Murray Canal


Shea