This happened to my 15 year old son in Sicamous 2 days ago! With between 150 and 160 kms on a new belt! On the way up the hill the belt blew, stopping the sled in its tracks and him half *** going over the bars, Managing somehow to get the end of the handlebar stuck between his pant leg and his boot with the sled wanting to roll down the hill with him stuck to it! He managed to get to his radio mike yelling broke! We were at the top and couldnt see him, we raced down to find him hooked on the sled with it wanting to roll down with him attached to it! I got down and got him unhooked! Could u imagine what could have happened if he wouldnt have been able to keep it from rolling til i got there? Mr Norona u are on here talking safety well how about this as a safety concern? Cmon brp get your head out of your arse and do something about this problem before something realy bad happens! And yes, the belt was broken in correctly! I have 3 850s , a 17 and 2 18s! This is the first belt we have broken so far! I was one of the guys who didnt have any issues with his 17 and was realy happy til this happened! In the parking lot the nxt day my friend was talking to one of the Name guys who ride near sicamous and he just blew a belt at less than 150 kms! Sure spoils your sons ride when he is worried that it might happen again and u can see him riding tentatively going up the mountain now!
Blowing belts a safety concern
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You are a horrible parent for letting your 15 year old ride an adult snowmobile. You should keep him in a padded room playing only video games So he doesn't get hurt before he becomes an adult. People like you shouldn't be allowed to have children for putting him in such a life threatening situation... Of course you go and blame Norona and Ski Doo on a blown belt :face-icon-small-con
Are u freaking serious? Maybe u should watch my son ride! Dan adams and jason blair were sure impressed! All i was doing was letting people know what happened in our situation! Do u think his being 15 had anything to do with what happened?
S
I hope this was meant as sarcasm.
I just posted the same thought on the "what would it take to change brands" thread. People talk about the cost, but the bigger issue is that blowing belts is a huge safety concern. That was part of my cat nightmare. Happened to me twice resulting in near misses for me. Yes, you can have accidents riding sleds. When we do ride or involve our families we are assuming fairly significant risks. We all know that. However, if Doo has indeed put out a product (G4) that has significant quality problems that contribute to situations like this that could no doubt get someone seriously injured where they otherwise wouldn't have been, they should be held accountable and they should fix it. Cat finally did but it took them four model years. I understand quality issues will happen once in a while. What I don't understand is not adequately addressing them. I'm glad your son is OK.
Glad your sons is ok. Unfortunatly we dont live in a perfect world, nothing that is built is perfect, whether its a Ford diesel with head gasket issues or a polaris or Cat without a tether, or a Skidoo with belt issues. Ive seen several people land a polaris upside down and the throttle go wide open, spooky! What if the track flies off? Or how about your boot getting stuck in the footloop rolling downhill? Many issues arise. Man against machine, and mother nature in the steep and deep, we might get hurt.
I was being somewhat sarcastic but you obviously never have read the owners manual or completely disregard it if you are putting a 15 year old on an 850. If anyone of you have ridden snowmobiles for any amount of time you know they blow belts so what happened could have happened regardless of what sled the kid was riding. I'm just tired of society having no accountability. Every belt I have blown came with a lot of warning. To completely grenade one you either have to be not that bright or just not care and keep it pinned. I personally would never put a kid on an 850 but to each their own.
If all you people that gave me a bad rating on my post don't think someone who posts on an open forum about a safety issue that completely disregards the operators manual doesn't look like a complete dumb ***... Well I guess that's the society we live in today. Blame everyone else but yourself....
If all you people that gave me a bad rating on my post don't think someone who posts on an open forum about a safety issue that completely disregards the operators manual doesn't look like a complete dumb ***... Well I guess that's the society we live in today. Blame everyone else but yourself....
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I hear snowshoeing with a helmet on is pretty safe.
Chadly u still havent explained how his being 15 had anything to do with what happened! It could have happened to anyone, just happened to be my son! In regards to being a irresponsible parent by putting my Little 15 year old 6ft 200 lb son on a 850 my bad! Started taking him to the mountains at 11 on a 2013 600 summit! He went every year after that, folowed up by taking him to a nxt lvl riding clinic last year to help to improve his riding ability and tàking dans avy training that comes with the course which was awesome! BUT HEY me being the bad parent what do i know about being responsible! came right from some people with alot more in the know about if he was ready to step up to a 850 than u r that he was ready for an 850 while using mine for some of the clinic! And yes my son did say there was a noise that preceded the belt blowing but he wasnt sure what it was as he was going up the hill being as he has Never blown a belt before! If anyone looks like a dumbass its u and your refusal to take off your yellow sunglasses and see it for what it is! Im as die hard a doo guy as u will find, 49 years old and owned nothing but doo but sometimes u just have to face the facts that doo has a problem with belts with this sled and to step up and get the problem fixxed before maybe even u being the pro u r could have something bad happen to u from a belt blowing unexpectedly! I totally agree that could blow at anytime but in all my years i have never seen anything like this and yes, i did have a belt chewing xp, which i never blew a belt on!
Stating that all belts telegraph themselves before they blow is just plain wrong. They don't. I've ridden sleds for 46 years and that is just not reality regardless of any claims you might make. The point some here don't seem to get is the question: "Is there a significant problem with the G4 belt life?" If there is, it's a lot like a tire manufacturer that has a model of tire that is blowing out or failing prematurely. It should be recalled to address the inherent safety risk and quality issue. The manufacturer has an obligation to fix it not band aid it. Cat didn't for four years. I expected more from Ski-doo. From reading these forums it appears there is an issue. Attacking a guy for sharing his experience and concerns is pathetic.
D
I hit a rock and did the same thing..Been yelling at God about it.
T
It is not in any way brp’s fault your son crashed stop trying to place blame. If you want to put your son in a bubble you should pick a safer sport. Everyone who rides sleds knows belts blow in all brands, you said it yourself this is the first belt you have lost out of 3 sleds,that’s not bad. Breaking in the belt is only half of it, how often do you CORRECTLY adjust your belt not just eye ball it at the bottom of the ribs. I have to adjust my belt every other ride in crap snow and every ride if it’s deep. I have been through one belt so far but i wore it out(ran out of adjustment), it never blew and i had 900 miles on that belt. Out of adjustment belts make tons of heat and that heat kills the belts.
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Pretty sure Tucker Hibbert could've handled an 850 at 15 years old.
Size, skill, smarts and training are what matters, not age. Sounds like this kid had all that.
T
A fine Lesson in cause and affect....” hmm my sled is making a funny noise let’s not stop and try and find out why”....shortly later “my belt broke and it almost seriously injured me should I have stopped and looked at my sled?...no let’s blame skidoo when I already knew something was happening.”
Reading some of these replys cracks me up! If u read the post my son said it made a nosie as he was going up the hill and then the belt broke! Toyota maybe u are way more skilled than most but if im going up the hill and there is a noise and the belt break seconds after , it sure doesnt give u much time to react to it! So your cause and effect idea is a real breakthrough! Just so u know i check all my belts first thing before we ride and adjust if needed! Also i never said he crashed his sled, just stated that it could have turned ugly! Should have known better to come on here and sharing something that happened to us regarding belts! I can see for some its a pretty Hot topic! Last thing i would want to do is point out a problem doo is having and getting bashed for it! But come on, 150 kms on a belt, give me a break, especially when my buddy with a cat is on 1200 miles on his and still going! And yes i know heat blows belts, after owning 12 summits in the last 15 years i kinda have what kills a belt figured out!
