I'm researching a safty product that addresses the problem of sled/groomer accidents. Any stories or pictures are most welcomed. By the way, our sport stinks without the service you all provide. Thank you 100 times!

I've been hit lots of times. Average 3 to 5 times a year. Believe it or not, most of them are in the rear. It's strange how people can ride on an untouched ribbon and not realize something is up ahead of them making that trail so smooth. Lots of sled damage, but no one has ever been hurt hitting me in the rear.

The front is another story. Fewer of them, but they usually get hurt to some degree. Funny thing is, it isn't usually the leader. He ends up stopped or out in the woods and then everyone else slams into him or they hit me trying to avoid him. I had one accident last year that ended up with six wrecked sleds, but only two of them actually hit the blade.

In our area many of the trails are exactly as wide as the groomer. There isn't any room to spare. I'm doing 7 mph in one direction and the sleds are coming at me at 40 to 60 mph. It doesn't matter if it's in the front or rear. At that speed they usually can't stop in time.

I always win.........

Remember, the groomer ALWAYS has the right of way!

Knocking on a forrest of trees.........


I've had a few close calls, but no hits yet. It is not something I am looking forward to having happen.

Only had one encounter with a snowmobile running in to the drag. There was a group of 5 sleds passing the groomer. One of the guys was waving to thank us and slammed the drag. .

I talked to the operators of the groomer in the southwest part of our county. About 10 years ago they were hit head on. The sled stayed hung up in the blade, but the snowmobiler went right through the windshield of the LMC. Broke both of the sledders arms and took the groomer out of service until they could get the windshield replaced. Obviously it messed up the sledder, but it really shook up the operator too.

Same here, I have had lots of close calls but never been run into YET !!! In 8 years of grooming I try to go out late at night when there aren't many sledders out and it is much easier for me to see them and vice versa, Our groomer has a warning beacon that is heard if the sledders have comunicaters they will hear it beaping before they get to me, if they don;t they will have to rely on my bright lights and strobes to see me coming

I am not an operator, but as an officer in the club speak with most of them. The episode you related is what most operators fear the most, especially if your using the blade after decent snow, because that new snow being pushed makes a ramp right up to the windshield. Most of our drivers, therefore, if they had time in a close call of someone coming at them out of control would raise the blade to prevent an unwanted guest in the cockpit. Sounds brutal, but what else could you do to protect the driver?

Most of our drivers have stories of close calls, where somone bent out of shape "appears" suddenly and goes out sideways in an atempt to regain some level of control. Most times this results in a dramatic "high side" roll over that stops just short of the blade. Sometimes the driver chooses the trees and if they avoid most, end up burried in unbroken snow almost invisible. :banghead:

Somehow, someone has to come up with a way to slow people down, because it has a very bad psycological effect on anyone that has gone through a hit, or near hit! We don't have enough good groomers now and we simply can't afford to lose good ones over the actions of inconsiderate motorheads! :frech32:

pathfinder58 :cn:

We ride with Coletts and it is the best...we ride Quebec and Ontario plus Mich and New York and Pa...I wish all groomers had the signal cuz it really does work...closest one we had was in Gaspesie ..with the mountains and curves signal does not work until you get around the corner...Whoa! but the leader stopped and yelled "stop ..Stop"....Wakes you up...and Yes YOU DO WIN!!...I liked the story that the guy waves to ya and then hits ya....Duoo!!.. Really respect what you guys do...I'll wave Too but hopefully not hit ya!! Thanks Guys!! :div20:

Thanks all. Please keep it coming as time allows.

Story about fathertucker's pic please???? :div20: :div20:

Look's like the groomer was on the wrong side of the trail , grooming on the wrong side will spell disaster everytime,it also looks like a blind hill :frech32:

I always groom against traffic on the wrong side, You can make the trail wider this way as you are right next to the trees on the laft hand side while grooming so you can get closer without hitting them (the trees)..

Im not trying to bash how you groom ,but at our club we groom with the traffic(specially on blind hills) night grooming is not as dangerous because of lighting but i still wont groom on the on coming lane's .to me it just seems like an accident waiting to happen

I never groom during daylight hours so... Only night trips for me, best time to groom anyways, it sets up faster....

This is exactly how I was trained to groom twenty years ago. We quit doing it during daylight hours a few years ago, but the last couple of years we had to stop doing it all together. There were just too many close calls.

Here is a quote from the Grooming Manual produced by the International Association of Snowmobile Administrators:

Stay to the Right
Always groom on the right side of the trail with the direction of snowmobile traffic. Take the right side of the trail and stay there. Then reverse the grooming direction the next time to widen the trail, rather than grooming against snowmobile traffic on the wrong/left side of the trail. Never groom against traffic on a one way trail.

I'm guessing this document will become the bible for Groomer Training Classes and will also be used as a "standard" in legal action against us.

Ya I suppose it will. I do groom on the right side during daylight hours to avoid problems, but being I groom at night in the dark if a sledder cannot see me coming he has to be blind, it looks like daylight in front of me with all the lights on and a super bright yellow strobe on the roof that can be seen for miles in the woods, I see it that if they hit me at night they are most likely way to drunk and shouldn't be out riding anyway

I feel its the safest & best way to groom as well, can you imagine what would happen if they plowed roads & highways going against traffic :frech32:

Thats a scary thought for sure.. I'm not too worried tho as I will continue grooming at night, it is so peacefull and still out there at night I really like it...

i groom on the wrong side at night also, its soooooo much easier.

Ya way easier to get close to the trees and not worry about hitting them on the blind side

I do it that way too,but I dont teach newbees to do it that way. In addition to getting closer to the edge,I find that grooming "against" the moguls offers a little less jarring in the tractor and seems to alow the blades to cut easier due to being on the back side of the mogul.
Its definately not a safe practice in the woods during the daylight hours,but then if you are pulling corner berms downin a right hander, you have to be on the wrong side.

Yes there are times when you have to be on the wrong side no matter what time of day it is in order to fix a bad spot. When I get enough snow I use the front blade to fill the holes before the drag even gets to them, sure does make for a smoother ride in the groomer for sure going on wrong side tho..

It happened on Tug Hill in NY near the Flat Rock Inn. The operator didn't like the way the guy was destroying his trails so he pinched him.

He got a ticket for it also.