[billp]

Last week 3 of us were on Tug Hill riding toward Brantingham and as I pulled up to a road crossing there were 10 sleds waiting to cross. Normally i would wait behind them until they all crossed and follow them. As I approached the group 2 of the guys were standing next to their sleds, 1 didnt have a helmet on and they didnt appear ready to cross so I pulled up along side them to cross with my 2 other guys. 1 of the guys in their group apparently did not want to be passed so as I pulled up to the road he kept trying to cut me off. He kept doing it to the point that he actually rubbed his sled against mine. I shot over the bank and got in front of him hoping the other guys in my group would follow me. the second guy in our group was my 17 yr old son and I couldnt see because of the terrain but he said the guy did the same to him and pushed him off the trail (out of the marked area). In 40+ years of riding I have NEVER had anyone so ignorant as to rub his sled against mine to prevent me from passing him. I don't know why a group of 10 wouldnt let a group of 3 pass them anyway, even if we didn't pass them at the road crossing we would have passed them on the trail. I was pissed that he rubbed my sled, but when my son told me he ran him off the trail I was furious. Anyone else have this happen and what would you have done about it? My first thought was to fly off my sled and tackle the guy.

 

[YamahaRider24]

Last week 3 of us were on Tug Hill riding toward Brantingham and as I pulled up to a road crossing there were 10 sleds waiting to cross. Normally i would wait behind them until they all crossed and follow them. As I approached the group 2 of the guys were standing next to their sleds, 1 didnt have a helmet on and they didnt appear ready to cross so I pulled up along side them to cross with my 2 other guys. 1 of the guys in their group apparently did not want to be passed so as I pulled up to the road he kept trying to cut me off. He kept doing it to the point that he actually rubbed his sled against mine. I shot over the bank and got in front of him hoping the other guys in my group would follow me. the second guy in our group was my 17 yr old son and I couldnt see because of the terrain but he said the guy did the same to him and pushed him off the trail (out of the marked area). In 40+ years of riding I have NEVER had anyone so ignorant as to rub his sled against mine to prevent me from passing him. I don't know why a group of 10 wouldnt let a group of 3 pass them anyway, even if we didn't pass them at the road crossing we would have passed them on the trail. I was pissed that he rubbed my sled, but when my son told me he ran him off the trail I was furious. Anyone else have this happen and what would you have done about it? My first thought was to fly off my sled and tackle the guy.

This is actually a good story to bring up.. Well, sorry that this happened to you.
But, what is the proper trail etiquette on when you should let ppl pass and what not?
Or, what/how is the appropriate way to pass? I don’t think anyone addresses this as much as they should. Obviously, the guys you ran into are morons. I would’ve gotten very furious on that and probably gotten into a very heated verbal altercation.

 

[sleeping_dragon]

OH boy passing threads usually get good.
Anyways as far as Im concerned I dont care if guys ride 5mph but they should move the hell over and let you pass .The next option is TRY to keep me from passing and get roosted to shit when I do go by.I just had a guy and his wife not let me by yesterday so he got passed in the first opening with my skis as high as his hood.
I dont understand why people try to block??Do they do this when people try to pass them on the road?
In your case,it was especially stupid since they had a big group.If Im leading a group I can ride fast but the group might be moving slow.If I see another group has caught us at a stop sign I hold my group and let them pass.

 

[BigE]

What happened here is complete bullshit. I have was in a somewhat similar, but less aggressive situation a couple years ago. It's probably better for all that you didn't realize what happened until it was too late to matter. I doubt any good would have come from a confrontation when you were with your son and severely outnumbered. Even if it didn't get physical, an asshole is an asshole and there's no changing them. I'm glad that you all made it through this without any additional bullshit.

Sent from my Pixel 2 XL using Tapatalk

 

[scott0700]

With all of the new people to the sport this year and no required class to ride a sled, I’m sure there is a lot of this this year. Teaching safety and etiquette isn’t a bad thing. I’m not a fan of more govt reach, but maybe it’s needed. Off trail riding also comes to mind. On a positive note, with all of the new riders, at least a lot of the bars were closed or had limited hours this year.
People are becoming more selfish. I fear the new people don’t understand the camaraderie the sport has always had. I’ve made a lot of friends over the years on the side of the trail. I would certainly miss that.

 

[Doomxz600]

I am often amazed by the way people act on the trail almost like they own it.

 

[Sneeuwscooter]

A-holes!

 

[Rubrsidedown]

The more sledders the more this happens and if the said sledders are young and feel like the trail is all theirs it only gets worse.

We ride at a good clip and I'm usually leading, if I happen to see headlights creeping up on us I usually slow down and ride the ditch until they pass.
Doesn't happen often but it does happen. It's called proper trail etiquette.

Trail etiquette really needs to be on everyone's mind when they ride.



Jeff B In Maine

Sent via my US Cellular rotary dial device.

 

[billp]

What happened here is complete bullshit. I have was in a somewhat similar, but less aggressive situation a couple years ago. It's probably better for all that you didn't realize what happened until it was too late to matter. I doubt any good would have come from a confrontation when you were with your son and severely outnumbered. Even if it didn't get physical, an asshole is an asshole and there's no changing them. I'm glad that you all made it through this without any additional bullshit.

Sent from my Pixel 2 XL using Tapatalk

Believe me I was pissed, but at the next stop when my son told me the guy did it to him I wanted to go track him down and beat his ass. My son is a good rider and was able to maintain control of his sled even after getting pushed off the trail so I guess Im just happy for that. The other option would have been 3 against 10 and most likely me spending a night in jail

 

[Doomxz600]

Showing self-control in front of young people is better than telling them about it.

 

[Swtchbkrdr]

The problem is people are way too comfortable being able to talk shit behind a phone without the repercussion of getting punched in the fuckin mouth. That's why they act like this.

 

[billp]

The problem is people are way too comfortable being able to talk shit behind a phone without the repercussion of getting punched in the fuckin mouth. That's why they act like this.

thats part of why I rode away, because I know for a fact if I said anything to him the only possible thing he could have said to avoid it escalating would be "Im sorry" and I'm guessing he wasn't the least bit sorry about his actions. I have a hard time controlling my temper some times.

 

[cadillac_al4]

The dude was probably packing heat so wasn't worried about his actions and waiting for somebody to make his day. Sometimes I ride fast and have to pass people and some days I ride slow and let everybody pass me. You have to be a jerk to not let people pass.

 

[Hardcoresldr]

Similar story here - except I came up to a solo rider - going quite slow. So i followed for a bit, waited until I could pass nicely (I had my wife and 70yr old father also behind), he crept over to the left and I slowed down and tucked back in behind. Maybe he didnt SEE me? ...then, i watched him look in his mirror and he moved to the middle left side of the trail to block me. Ahhh...ok?! Not sure what his plan was, so i burped the throttle so he could hear me that I wanted to pass...he gave me the finger and hugged the left side. K...i got mad. He was rude and tried to hurt my feelings (lol)...so i pulled up dangerously (for me only) to the left and rode side by side - we exchanged words (that's how fast he rode)..i asked him what his problem was, again..the finger....so...i blasted past him and roosted him. Then i slowed down to make sure the rest of my group got by him...i watched him run my wife off the trail...so I put it in reverse and backed up the 100yds(furious).... by the time I got there, she had verbally beat the daylights out of him and he was in a verbal chokehold...he got the whippin of his life at that moment hahaha - my dad (who may be older, but no slouch) calmly rode past him, and now this muck got chuckled at..pointed at and then the bird. I felt had I got off the sled, he would have gotten hurt - for no reason other than being a douche. So it worked out - kinda. I am aggressive on the trail, but I will slow down and respect others and pass only when safe - for them and me and my group. I have never seen someone with intent before ---then i have also never seen someone run a woman in a pink striped suit off the trail with intent either. Class Act i guess. Hopefully he learned not to mess with a scorned woman.

 

[Rodeo Rider]

Showing self-control in front of young people is better than telling them about it.

Situations like this can get out of hand in a heartbeat.

The solution? Like with driving anything car, bike...err on the side of SAFETY.

Now I agree it's annoying when people play these games on the trail. And well I'm going to just type it; this is a guy thing. Not a girl thing....

Women in all my decades riding are not riding aggressively..for the most part. Yes there are young women who have a "certain mindset" but that's the minority.

Guys are, guys. Competitive. Aggressive. Overtly so. And much quicker to anger.

My suggestion? Decide amongst your group that you ride with where you fall in that spectrum. And how you handle things like....slow people on the trail. Or as is the case with the op....assholes.

Fight or flight. That's what this boils down to.
One results in problems for you.

I don't give a shit anymore about people like the ones in the op's story. I can't change them. And neither can you.

 

[b.lee]

I wonder how I would react to someone trying to block me from passing at a stop sign... I mean we have tons of people that just don’t look back when they stop, or even look next to them... some people look back and just take off anyways at the stop sign. I’m used to those scenarios, but someone intentionally trying to stop me from passing while their group is sitting at a stop sign with a few helmets off.

If he rubbed or bumped my sled I’m not sure how that would play out... my sled is older with high miles and has seen some shit, a few more scars or bruises is ok by me. I’d probably have to return the favor...

 

[Doomxz600]

Similar story here - except I came up to a solo rider - going quite slow. So i followed for a bit, waited until I could pass nicely (I had my wife and 70yr old father also behind), he crept over to the left and I slowed down and tucked back in behind. Maybe he didnt SEE me? ...then, i watched him look in his mirror and he moved to the middle left side of the trail to block me. Ahhh...ok?! Not sure what his plan was, so i burped the throttle so he could hear me that I wanted to pass...he gave me the finger and hugged the left side. K...i got mad. He was rude and tried to hurt my feelings (lol)...so i pulled up dangerously (for me only) to the left and rode side by side - we exchanged words (that's how fast he rode)..i asked him what his problem was, again..the finger....so...i blasted past him and roosted him. Then i slowed down to make sure the rest of my group got by him...i watched him run my wife off the trail...so I put it in reverse and backed up the 100yds(furious).... by the time I got there, she had verbally beat the daylights out of him and he was in a verbal chokehold...he got the whippin of his life at that moment hahaha - my dad (who may be older, but no slouch) calmly rode past him, and now this muck got chuckled at..pointed at and then the bird. I felt had I got off the sled, he would have gotten hurt - for no reason other than being a douche. So it worked out - kinda. I am aggressive on the trail, but I will slow down and respect others and pass only when safe - for them and me and my group. I have never seen someone with intent before ---then i have also never seen someone run a woman in a pink striped suit off the trail with intent either. Class Act i guess. Hopefully he learned not to mess with a scorned woman.

Just yesterday I saw a light in my mirror well behind me but closing. Kept an eye on it until the sled made my snow dust the raised my hand and slowed to give trail. I wave as it passed and they waved back. Isn't that what we should be doing for each other ?

 

[Hardcoresldr]

Just yesterday I saw a light in my mirror well behind me but closing. Kept an eye on it until the sled made my snow dust the raised my hand and slowed to give trail. I wave as it passed and they waved back. Isn't that what we should be doing for each other ?

You would think/hope. I appreciate people like yourself and ALWAYS give a wave ..then a finger gesture of how many are still behind me...then a follow-up wave. Not sure if they appreciate or notice the efforts I am also doing - but I have done that for decades - rarely have confrontations. Anyway - be safe out there guys and enjoy what's left. Cheers

 

[Highmarket]

You cant figure out what people think. No trail etiquette. That guy was thinking that you are messed up for passing. The same thing as how can someone come at full speed on wrong side of trail in a totally blind corner. It is scary out there.

 

[sudocrushms]

You cant figure out what people think. No trail etiquette. That guy was thinking that you are messed up for passing. The same thing as how can someone come at full speed on wrong side of trail in a totally blind corner. It is scary out there.

This is what slows me down on the trail 90% of the time. Blind corners scare the hell out of me. Just waiting to hook skis with someone not staying right...