According to the Det News article:

-There are more than 390,000 snowmobiles registered in Michigan :banana:

-There were 26 snowmobile-related deaths in the 2004-05 season

-that was the safest season since 1989, when 10 deaths were reported.

-There were 29 deaths reported in the 2003-04 season.

-In the 2002-03 season, for example, 46 people were killed.

-Part of the decrease in deaths may be attributable to public safety campaigns aimed at preventing the use of alcohol while using snowmobiles. (Most of the decrease is due to the slow cleansing of the gene pool!)

Now, the PSCs didnt start until a few years ago. I remember riding in 89, seemed a whole lotta drinking going on... but only 10 deaths, and that is the safest year! Maybe they should study what happened in 89? (BTW, I put more miles on that year than any other year, so it wasnt lack of snow).

-About 57% of last season's fatalities were related to drinking.

-Nineteen of the 26 deaths last season occurred in the evening hours, typically after dark. (Thats 73%)

-Most snowmobile deaths were attributed to speeding or hitting trees or other stationary objects.

-Michigan is regarded as one of the nation's top snowmobiling states. The state has about 6,200 miles of designated snowmobile trails.

I agree with you. There was a lot more drinking back then. I remember a Shnapps bottle shattering in my trunk and still pulling glass pieces out three years later.

I think the biggest difference is the speed of the sleds back then. They were still pretty fast, but not like todays sleds. Todays sleds are fast now fast. Also, the sleds weighed a lot more back then. I remember plowing over trees with the 2 ton Wildcat I was riding like nothing. Those same trees today would fold my Firecat in half!

Doesn't seem like there was as many of us back then as there is today. I was already almost in a head on last weekend(November still!) by a guy coming around a turn on the wrong side of the trail. :frech32:

Here is a link to the report they got their info from: http://michigan.gov/documents/Dec1603_80602_7.pdf

kinda interesting...

They also have the reports from the past years that are very detailed, but I can't seem to find any on DNR's site...

Bluelake. I hate to hijack this post but-- Love the car! Is it f-6? Looks like it has a blck interior. A guy at wprk has a real f-6 a-12 bee. His has a green interior though. Here is my car. Kevin

Thanks Kev. Love yours too. I came real close to buying a 67 GTX, gold with the black stripes, before I bought the A-12.

Your right, mine has a black interior, and yes, that's F-6. Where do you work? There's not a whole lot of real A12 cars rolling around, and I can't remember seeing one with a green interior around town. Does he ever take it out?

Steve

Click to view attachment

Nice Hoopty Steve.........

I see you are back to your same old ways with returning Phone Calls.......