Ladies I need your help! I am taking my Girlfriend on her first sled ride.

my first suggestion is to make sure it is an easy trail.... no side hills or steep hills that will scare her. Chose a day when the weather is favorable. If you can go to a cabin to warm up part way thru the day for a hot lunch ( melted ham 'n cheese sandwiches ?? ) is alway an enjoyable break to warm the hands and toes if they are cold. I would also not recommend to many miles as she will probably be tense so she will be tired after only a few hours. Take lots of breaks along the way to chat and enjoy the scenery.... make it a social event!!! HAVE FUN!!!

Sounds like you are set on the gear and that she enjoys being out in the cold. Thats a good start. Maybe stick to the trails for a while until she gets a feel for the sled and how it handles. If during your stops she is enjoying it and is getting the hang of it, ask her if she wants to find an open field. Then you can show her some of the things that can be done off the trail. If your wanting her to go with you more often, than she needs to see and know that its not all trail all the time. Let her decide when she has had enough. Talking, encouragement and lots of laughs during the day will help for a fun day and maybe even more days of riding with her.

T

If you can find an open field to play in, that would be great. Like said above, let her know it's not just trail riding all the time. Playing in powder is my favorite, she'll probably enjoy it if she's a snowboarder. Give her some pointers, basic moves and how to carve and such. But don't hound her in every little detail she doesn't get. When she gets stuck just laugh and don't make a big deal out of it. Ask if she wants tips, and then tell her how great she did when she gets it.
Lots of snacks and drinks are nice too, even a hot meal from the muffpot. Take extra gloves in case they get wet. I would see how she does and probably not set a certain number of miles you need to do or anything, but more of an anything goes kind of day. Play around and let her get used to the sled and how it handles. Don't put her on anything steep. Maybe take some pictures of her doing something well, carving or something.

Not sure if I'm too late...

BE PATIENT!!! My first season my husband took me on some difficult terrain and I hated him by the end of the day. Make the day solely about her and don't push her to do anything she is not comfortable with. The last thing you want is to get her super stuck and have her digging out on her first day - she will be very hesitant to go back out! Oh and 50 miles would be a bit of a stretch I think - I would leave things up to her on the distance - she might be over it at mile 5

ARMYSLEDER said:

SO I said 1 more and DONT FOLLOW ME OFF THIS JUMP well she thought I said FOLLOW ME so after I landed I turn around and see her flying through the air and about 20 feet in distance she came down hard smacked her chest on the bars seperated her cartlidge from the sternum. We ended the ride with search and rescue and a ride to the E.R. she is doing good and luckly not too bad of injury. She said she wants to go again just not jumping. Oh and she says her sled is the summit XP so much for a new sled.

Thanks girls for the post above and hopefully this next season when she is feeling better we can get her out there in the mountains!

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Ouch......... Glad to hear she is doing good and wants to go again. That's one ride she'll never forget.:face-icon-small-sho Don't forget chest protection for the next ride.

ARMYSLEDER said:

I thought I would update all you snowest ladies and let you know how are ride went.

Ok, So I took all your advice and took her out on a nice easy ride in Island Park. We unloaded at the warming hut by big springs road over fed the ducks and played in a few open meadows. She was having a good time in the powder and was a natural at balance.

So she saw me hit a few rollers and wanted to try jumping so I found a little hump and she was getting like 6 inches of air and I was like ok cool she cant hurt her self. SO I said 1 more and DONT FOLLOW ME OFF THIS JUMP well she thought I said FOLLOW ME so after I landed I turn around and see her flying through the air and about 20 feet in distance she came down hard smacked her chest on the bars seperated her cartlidge from the sternum. We ended the ride with search and rescue and a ride to the E.R. she is doing good and luckly not too bad of injury. She said she wants to go again just not jumping. Oh and she says her sled is the summit XP so much for a new sled.

Thanks girls for the post above and hopefully this next season when she is feeling better we can get her out there in the mountains!

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Army, not a lady but before you take her out again...get both of you into some protective gear..tekvest and shin pads would help alot and may have saved her the pain of that first trip..plus if she knows she has some protection she wont be so worried on future trips.........

Another tip, when you decide to venture out with a few other people.
My wife had a 2008 Nytro, she road it several times, climbed a few smaller hills, rode some powder, even a little sidehilling. She did VERY well, and was quite comfortable. Th second year, we went with some friends of hers and mine, and was doing well, but then because of hard snow and a little more tril riding where she tired her arms out half way, she started to have problems.The other ladies were quite experienced and after a few small stucks and flopped over once, basically stopped, she was done. After, we headed back, and somehow, she drifted right off the main trail (wide) and down a steep incline into the trees. It scared the living hell out of me, but she was ok, sled was flipped over in the thick of it all.I could have cared less about the sled any day, as long as she was not hurt.
It was almost a marriage ender, she was just pissed, but because she was tired and trying to keep up with the others, beyond her means. I tried to help all I could, but she was more concerned of looking bad in front of others.
Be careful who you ride with, make sure they know her limits, or it can be a bad day.
My wife won't ride again, and it's too bad, but if she is happier to be home, one can't force anyone to do what they are uncomfortable with.

Oh no!!! Sorry to hear it went so badly.... maybe in time she will want to go again, but I would recommend if she will go again that you go with just the 2 of you so there is no pressure to keep up with the others. I remember the frustration and anger when i first started to ride.... and i'm sure i swore i would never go again.... that was 15 years ago and now i love it.... don't give up on her!! Good luck!!

No, no, no.....thing is, we had gone out a few times ourselves and a couple times with the guys I ride with, and all was fine.This time, it was a ride with HER friend, husband and the others I just happen to also know.She underestimated the others riding ability,wouldn't listen to a word of advice to avoid embarrassment, so she made silly mistakes all day until she was tired out.
It's too bad, but she won't go out again.After the final crash down the trees, I don't want to see that happen again either, it's her decision, not mine. I don't want to have any blame or guilt on my shoulders for it to happen again, if not worse, if I tried to ever convince her to ride again.It was terrifying to watch a loved one pile up like that, and come out unhurt.

ARMYSLEDER said:

her flying through the air and about 20 feet in distance she came down hard smacked her chest on the bars seperated her cartlidge from the sternum. We ended the ride with search and rescue and a ride to the E.R.

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Well that stinks! But she tried, she was having fun and wants to go again... Thumbs up! Hope she heals fast! :face-icon-small-hap

Like GP said, a little protection goes along ways!

Holy cow.. :face-icon-small-sho <?xml:namespace prefix = v ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:vml" /><v:stroke joinstyle="miter"></v:stroke><v:formulas><v:f eqn="if lineDrawn pixelLineWidth 0"></v:f><v:f eqn="sum @0 1 0"></v:f><v:f eqn="sum 0 0 @1"></v:f><v:f eqn="prod @2 1 2"></v:f><v:f eqn="prod @3 21600 pixelWidth"></v:f><v:f eqn="prod @3 21600 pixelHeight"></v:f><v:f eqn="sum @0 0 1"></v:f><v:f eqn="prod @6 1 2"></v:f><v:f eqn="prod @7 21600 pixelWidth"></v:f><v:f eqn="sum @8 21600 0"></v:f><v:f eqn="prod @7 21600 pixelHeight"></v:f><v:f eqn="sum @10 21600 0"></v:f></v:formulas><VGlad to hear that she was not hurt worse and that is up for trying it again.

<OMy suggestion would be to have some agreed upon hand signals in the future so no confusion regarding her following or not...<O

Hey, this is a good thread. Lots of great suggestions.

I have been in this situation a couple times. (not numerous wives or girlfriends, but working with new riders)

I do just like other have said.

Pick a nice day, groomed trails, and don't push a new rider to do something "they" aren't comfortable with.

And as an experienced rider teaching a new rider you can tell what their skill level is. You also know the person very well. I wouldn't put my wife in a situation where she feels all eyes are on her and it's do or die.

Example: A wind drifted area on a groomed ride. Some side hill, not real tough but I know my wife well enough that she would be uncomfortable with the situation. So I simply stop, get on her sled ride it across and walk back to mine.

I use the same principles when teaching a new male rider also. As an experienced rider you can feel when a novice would be having trouble.

And another thing keep the rides pretty short so they don't get fatigued and make mistakes.

If you have a person that is on the fence with the entire sledding thing. One mistake will push them over. And it is nearly impossible to get them back.

Again good post, keep it positive, supportive and take some control when you know they are getting in over their heads.

Thunder

My wonderful boyfriend has bought me a M6 Cat and I love it. He made sure I had all the right gear also. My first riding experiance with this type of riding would be at Vail pass. It is fairly simple and I have only been out 3 times and starting to already climb. I would suggest that try trails first and bring some other woman that ride that can give her some advice on how they ride. Compared to men I think us woman ride a bit differently. Also I have notice a great difference from a regular seat and my boss seat. I would suggest what ever sled is lighter. I rode with a couple of people yesterday and there was a girl that had only been out a few times and her boyfriend put her on a yamaha 800 and she couldn't do anything on it. Way to heavy. Hope this helps and if you need riding buddies we would love to go.

This will help her out ---

Communication and patience, patience, patience!!!!!!

My BF took me out early in the season into a pretty aggressive area. I was riding a stock 800 146" with a bunch of turbo's and modded sleds in deep snow. Everyone struggled with the first technical climb, and there were a few roll-overs and plenty of stuck sleds which left myself and one other girl a little concerned about the climb. She hopped on her boyfriend's turbo M8 and he doubled her up to the top, while my guy stayed with me until I made it to the top. After about an hour, 5 attempts, 3 stucks, and two turnouts I made it up. I can't tell you how awesome it felt to break through the cloud cover, sit in the sunshine, and look down on the mountains from the top. It gave me so much more confidence, and made me feel so priviledged to have a riding partner that would stick by me and help me through the tough spots.

It is the end of the season, and my riding has improved leaps and bounds because of my guy. I have switched over to a 163, and have several first female ascents in our riding area.

If you can stick by your woman, and put her needs first when she rides with you, pretty soon you won't have to worry about her at all, and you will both be happier riding for it. Not to mention sledding is a great relationship builder, and you will always have a riding buddy ready to go.

Army,

Glad to hear the healing is ongoing, give her our well wishes. Here is a copy of a post I made last year, share it with your bride. Maybe it will give her a laugh. Good luck this year.

Chaos


"Last year was the first year for my wife and I in the mountains of Colorado. Before then, I had ridden maybe ten times "back east" in upstate New York, and she had never tried the sport. Earlier in the year I bought a couple of used tanks (05 & 03 MXZ's w/142") and we were bound to have a good time. First ever ride was up around Cottonwood Pass with two other couples who had their act together and offered to show us the ropes. As you can imagine it wasn't long before the first exercise in digging came along. When I got done with my introduction as to how to get a sled out, I was hot, sweaty, and near collapse. I figured it was a brute strength thing and I quickly learned that at those altitudes you take your time and proceed smartly! I am a retired Marine and must be beat a couple of times before things make sense... Long story short, we practiced the dig out another 10-15 times that day and nearing physical collapse and wanting someone to put a bullet in my head to put me out of my misery, we headed back to load up. I have a tilt trailer and believe me when I say I begged my experienced friend to put her on. I was absolutely drained. Now realize I am 53 and my wife is 50. Everything on our body hurt; my gosh, even our thumbs hurt from throttling! She looked at me on the way home and for the first time in her life she said, "honey, do you think we're to old for this!!!" We both laughed so hard it hurt. We decided at that point that we would hang in there for at least another ride or two and if the next few rides were as miserable, we would sell the sleds. Honest.

When we walked into the house we must have shown the wear and tear because the kids, without saying anything, began laughing uncontrollably, they could see we were beat bad. It was a race at that point to see who could get to the tub first for a hot soak, and the bottle of Motrin in the closet. All you could hear were moans and whimpers as we could hardly walk at this point.

The event was a true test of our will and what I will call a trial by fire. However, it was the kindness and the "patience" of our companions that to this day, made us stick with it for another try. They are responsible for what has become an almost weekly run from COS to the mountains to enjoy our machines. So much so I upgraded to a newer mountain sled in less then a year to enjoy the sport that we now can't do without. We found all we have to do is contact one of the local clubs and ask to ride along to explore new ground being honest about our evolving experience level and we always have offers to tag along. We have made some great friends and it all began with some folks willing to share the experience and be understanding about what the newbies endure the first fews times out and the challenges that everyone has to work through.

I am very glad to say that a friend and his wife are going to tag along in the near future and I can't wait to share what experience I have to date in order to take them into the mountains to enjoy the sport and to enjoy the thrill of Colorado snowmobiling and to share the incredible scenery, etc. One thing I will do for them that I wish others had done for me is that I will put a bottle of Motrin in my pack-up...!

HiMark, good on you for sharing. I'll buy you an adult beverage of your choice if we ever happen to meet... It's up to all of us to make sure our sport prospers and sharing is the best way. I just hope I continue to get that chance and I never forget the learning curve I went through with others who were patient enough to work me through it.

Semper Fi, safe riding.

Chaos"