Mountain Riders, very small club

[nuggetau]

Interesting factoid, of the 1.65 Million registered sleds in the US, there are only around 254K in the western mountain states.


Idaho 50,000
Alaska 33,576
Colorado 33,000
Washington 31,532
Utah 27,894
Montana 23,400
Wyoming 19,060
California 19,000
Oregon 16,809
Total = 254,271 (not sure why Nevada was left out)

And, not all of those would be mountain riders/sleds. I knew we were a small portion of snowmobilers, I guess that explains why our mountain sleds are always nothing more than a thinly veiled flatlander sled.

I'm surprise by a few things. That my home state has the most of any western state (I recommend all flatlanders go to Colorado,Montana and Wyoming) , it looks like you will have more room!

With all that deep snow in the Sierra/Nevada range and close to the huge population base, why does California have so few?

Why so few in Colorado, excellent high elevation mountains and good population base, puzzling?



State # Reg. Snowmobiles
Alaska 33,576
Arizona na
California 19,000
Colorado 33,000
Idaho 50,000
Illinois 54,128
Indiana 17,452
Iowa 45,000
Maine 96,600
Massachusetts 13,000
Michigan 301,805
Minnesota 277,290
Montana 23,440
Nebraska 2,100
New Hampshire 73,625
New York 146,662
North Dakota 21,000
Ohio 19,500
Oregon 16,809
Pennsylvania 45,270
South Dakota 11,691
Utah 27,894
Vermont 41,000
Virginia na
Washington 31,532
Wisconsin 232,320
Wyoming 19,060
Total 1,652,754

 

[crazyhick]

new york is third nice

 

[MORSNO]

That is only a small fraction of the sleds in Alaska. The only registered sleds are if they were purchased new in the last few years or if they are used in park lands. Looks like those tax crazy midwest states have the strickest registration requirements.

 

[nuggetau]

new york is third nice

Actually, 4th.

 

[BIG-B]

Colorado is TERRIBLE snowmobiling, no one whos a mountain rider would like it here!!!!

 

[Jaynelson]

That is only a small fraction of the sleds in Alaska. The only registered sleds are if they were purchased new in the last few years or if they are used in park lands. Looks like those tax crazy midwest states have the strickest registration requirements.

Exactly....no one here that buys a sled used ever registers it just to ride in the mountains. Out east where everyone rides on the public trail system (and municipal roads) they are much stricter with regulation of registrations. Safe to say we're still the minority, but going off of registered sleds is definetly not accurate.

 

[nuggetau]

Colorado is TERRIBLE snowmobiling, no one whos a mountain rider would like it here!!!!

Idaho is terrible too!!


But seriously, why are the numbers so low in Colorado? My perception(having never been there) of your terrain is that it is more open than our heavily treed/brush terrain? Colorado has a much higher population than Idaho, so I'm at a loss to explain these numbers?

 

[nuggetau]

Exactly....no one here that buys a sled used ever registers it just to ride in the mountains. Out east where everyone rides on the public trail system (and municipal roads) they are much stricter with regulation of registrations. Safe to say we're still the minority, but going off of registered sleds is definetly not accurate.

Your perception of what it is like here in the lower 48 is skewed by the freedom you still have in Alaska and the Canadian bush!


Alaska is about the only place where you could get away with that for very long. Here in the lower 48 we always have some bureaucrat ready to hand you a ticket for not having the sticker.

 

[MORSNO]

Let Freedom Ring!

 

[bretton_s]

I wonder how many mountain sleds in western Canada? We really are spoiled - registration is not even mandatory here in BC. Only a few elevation restrictions in a few areas to contend with but very little enforcement.

 

[Ak nitro]

Idaho is terrible too!!


But seriously, why are the numbers so low in Colorado? My perception(having never been there) of your terrain is that it is more open than our heavily treed/brush terrain? Colorado has a much higher population than Idaho, so I'm at a loss to explain these numbers?

I think it is weird too, I moved to Colorado from Alaska and cannot believe how good of riding is here. I live in SW Colorado, and there are not many locals who ride around here, but there are so many places to ride. When I lived in Alaska I had to drive at least an hour and a half to get to good riding, now I live on the edge of a desert and it only takes me 20 mins to get to closest local riding spot, which is less crowded than the main Alaska riding areas and has way better snow and more mild temps. The new snowest has a write up about South Fork Colorado, which has killer riding too, this is one of the first times I have seen any write ups about Colorado, most of the time they focus on Idaho Wyoming and Montana.

 

[SNOWBUM101]

Montana is no good either

 

[AndrettiDog]

Keep in mind that those numbers are only registered sleds. You would be surprised how many people don't register their sleds or only register their main sled. Too bad, that money goes to state parks which distributes back to local clubs for grooming and preserving the sport in other ways.

Realize how diverse Colorado is. Probably more than any other state when it comes to winter activities. We have so many ski areas and that drives up the cost of living. Most "transplants" come here to live here because of the ski industry. Us sledders don't tell too many people because we don't want our areas to get overrun by knuckleheads (snowboarders ). I'm sure you get some of the same in other states.

 

[tudizzle]

I think it is weird too, I moved to Colorado from Alaska and cannot believe how good of riding is here. I live in SW Colorado, and there are not many locals who ride around here, but there are so many places to ride. When I lived in Alaska I had to drive at least an hour and a half to get to good riding, now I live on the edge of a desert and it only takes me 20 mins to get to closest local riding spot, which is less crowded than the main Alaska riding areas and has way better snow and more mild temps. The new snowest has a write up about South Fork Colorado, which has killer riding too, this is one of the first times I have seen any write ups about Colorado, most of the time they focus on Idaho Wyoming and Montana.

and this is a bad thing...............sshhhhhhhhh!

 

[KAWGRN]

SHHHHHHHHHH now all those minnisota and michigan peps are gonna find out!!!

 

[Sled208]

I have discovered that old sleds never die. They move to minnesota.(and evidently get registered too)

 

[Ak nitro]

and this is a bad thing...............sshhhhhhhhh!

Yeah I am really giving away some secret info here, when you guys are posting soco riding videos all over youtube and the general snowmobiling section.. I am talking about Mancos and the lizard head area, how many of you guys ride there anyway, I know some people who sure could use some tourist bucks coming in and helping the local economy. There is plenty of snow for everybody, after all, thats what this site is about any way, finding new riding areas and meeting new people, right.

 

[high time]

I have about a hundred frends here in MN that ride Mt. sleds,

and are registered here in MN and ride in MT, ID, BC, MI, CO, WY, so what are you driving at? We like to ride......Period!!!!!

All of these are newer mt. sleds and many are modern mods. and some turbos.

West we come. We pay and we pay over and over again. Ya gotta love all those stickers.

Owen

 

[F-Bomb]

..and only 10,000 of them have Better Boards!

Look at all the work I have left to do.

 

[stopdropanroll]

Looks like those tax crazy midwest states have the strickest registration requirements.

Thats because trail systems cost money to maintain and operate, unfortunately we dont have the vast amounts of off-trail freedom that you guys do, and have to beg, borrow, and rent land to ride on. All that "tax" goes into snowmobiling directly. It takes a ton of volunteer effort to have a trail system, I know there seems to be some kind off "hate" towards "flatlanders" because we don't have the same terrain that you western people do and seemed to be deemed "drunks" but what we have in the midwest is nothing short of spectacular from the stand point of trail systems that can be ridden from N. Illinois non stop to the E. UP of Michigan on 95% private land. Sorry to say but if the midwest didn't buy snowmobiles you guys wouldn't have ANY mountain sleds to ride, green, blue, yellow, and red would be out of business in the sled world.