Please help! Advice for left hand side hilling

wjl · Jan 4, 2013

Being a small guy I got the brunt of the do this do that and finally one of my friends said "See that flat field out in front of your house go side hill it"
What he meant was go practice where no one can bother you and learn how to balance your sled and throttle control in a safe area.
I now have a routine for that field to practice though out the season. I first jump side to side not looking down and trying to keep the throttle steady at about 10 to 15 mph, next I balance the sled on the left side going slow and easy. The next stretch of field is the sled on the right side and trying to keep the speed (hard for me because the throttle is there and pushing the bars) and the last leg of the square is riding back to the start thinking about the next loop.
I have a hard time NOT looking at the handlebars, skis, down at the snow, ect.
Looking ahead squares the shoulders and body, easier said than done out in the mountains when the time comes.
Yes it has helped a lot and good luck.

MT rydn · Jan 4, 2013

time for a 2013 ski doo xm ?!

T.O.T. · Jan 4, 2013

Haha! When the horse trailer is paid off

Montana powderhound · Jan 5, 2013

MT rydn said:
time for a 2013 ski doo xm ?!

Or new riding partners that are in tune to your needs :face-icon-small-dis

Montana powderhound · Jan 5, 2013

Montana powderhound said:
Or new riding partners that are in tune to your needs :face-icon-small-dis

Or save him some money and have him buy you a new Pro :face-icon-small-hap and then put a lefty on and ride with our group !!!

foxyrmk · Jan 5, 2013

After reading some of the posts which are good. The first thing I saw is that you have Simmon ski's. They are great down the trail but trying to side hill with them; I had a heck of a time.

I would try something else like the powder pros.

newmy1 · Jan 5, 2013

Move the wrong foot forward back on the board. Same for other side. Sorry if duplicate.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

bholmlate · Jan 5, 2013

After reading all these posts three things stood out. the first thing is about the bar riser. Remember on flat ground having a taller riser will give you more leverage. However when the sled is leaning away from you and it sounds like that is the area you are having problems, raising the bars will make things worse. the bar will actually be further away causing you to reach over the sled even further. you might want to try a little shorter riser to see if that helps. In situations where the sled is leaning away the bars will actually be closer and you wont have to lean as far to grab them. That would in turn keep more of your weight on the uphill side of the sled. Sometimes it more about position then leverage.

The other two things that stood out are suspension setup and clutching. Both are really important on how ridable the sled is. I would look into clutching that had lower engagement so you are able to pop the throttle quickly and have the sled react. Dont have your husband set the sled of for his weight and expect to be able to ride it. Practicing on flat ground is great advice too. if you cant ride on one ski on flat ground with confidence how could you expect to ride on one when it is steep. If you feel that a left handed throttle will work better for you then by all means get one. You may find however that by setting your sleds suspension and clutching up for your weight you may not need one.

mtnjunkie · Jan 5, 2013

I agree about the simmons. They're pretty flat, a ski with more a "V" shape is easier to hold on it's edge, it doesn't fight so much to be flat. Let me look at my notes and I'll let you know what I used for clutching. I don't remember exactly, but I think I had a Dynamo Joe kit and then tuned it a bit for exactly what I wanted.

Woops! · Jan 6, 2013

Agree on the Simmons skis... great for trail, but beat me up on the hills & really grabbed the snow too hard. I tried taller bars in the past too and found that I just used more shoulder/arm muscle & had less leverage, my bars work best for me just below the waist above the hips. Also, one thing no one told me for years is to look where you Want to go, not at what you're trying to avoid....And suspension set up was Huge for me

kaytee · Jan 7, 2013

Thanks for all the tips!
I'm 5'1" and maybe 100 lb with my pack on- the non throttle sidehill is my nemesis lol.
Any other advice for the little ladies would be greatly appreciated

CoyoteGirl · Jan 8, 2013

There is some good information here.

I've not spent alot of time on that sled so I can't really give you much. I'm also 5'10" so, again... my words of wisdom probably will not help.

Lisa's words of momentum into the move that you need to make is one key that gets over looked by many. Most (women) want to pull up to a sidehill, stop, then sidehill. It is much easier to be moving and transition into it. Not always the option. Totally get this. If I'm in a spot where I'm having difficulty from a stop. I will get off my sled, stomp down the snow under my track and the uphill ski and then jump on it to get it more "uphill". Takes a few seconds, but better than the mistake I was about to make.

Another thing I started thinking of last year and tinkered with a bit was shortening the handlebar width. I have long arms, and am tall, but even so sometimes it seems like the bars are just to wide. This will bring that throttle closer to you when it's on that downhill and out of reach area. I sold last year's sled before I really got to test out the bars (cut them towards the end of the season). However, I sold it to a tiny little pixie and I'm hoping that she'll have some feedback on IF it helps at all. But if you think about it, nothing is a one size fits all options. Why would bars be?

AND I'm a huge fan of lower clutch engagement for these situations.

Modedmach1 · Jan 8, 2013

Woops! said:
Agree on the Simmons skis... great for trail, but beat me up on the hills & really grabbed the snow too hard. I tried taller bars in the past too and found that I just used more shoulder/arm muscle & had less leverage, my bars work best for me just below the waist above the hips. Also, one thing no one told me for years is to look where you Want to go, not at what you're trying to avoid....And suspension set up was Huge for me

Adding to my wife's post... :face-icon-small-win

I made the bars narrower too, as CG said.

MT rydn · Jan 8, 2013

...still think time for upgrade sled, 2013 XM or pro :clock:

M7CatGirl · Jan 9, 2013

Awesome thread with some great advise. I ride an M7 with a 2" riser and yes... A lefty! I'm only 5'1 and although I don't always use it, it is great to have when I do need it.

Setting up the sled for u is key. I have the stage 2 fox floats and ride with them a little softer than most but it allows me to roll the sled easier. It's not about strength but position, throttle and your comfort zone on the hill. As mentioned in another post Practicing in a flat area is a great way to get the feel of rolling your sled on each side. Hang in there you'll get it!

powderpilot · Jan 10, 2013

T.O.T. said:
I obviously can't go around making right hand turns all the time so I need some advice from all of you ladies that have been riding mch longer then myself. Though I haven't been riding sleds long I have raced quads, dirt bikes, and asphalt track bikes. I am used to having to get off the side of something using my body albeit the stuff I am used to is a lot narrower. I seem to be having a lot of trouble on the left hand side of my sled. I am not very tall and don't have a lot of weight to throw off the side of my sled. Even to the right to really get it leaned and digging I have to use my mountain bar to jerk it over. Every time I am getting stuck it is in deep snow when I am having to get to the left side of my sled and ususally on a hill where the sled is leaned away from me. I feel like by the time I get ahold of the throttle all my upper body weight is on the wrong side of the sled and I can't throw it all to the left. We have discussed options like a riser to make my bars taller so I don't have to lean so far back over my sled to grab the throttle and also a left handed throttle. No one in the group I ride with has faith in a left handed throttle even though a lot of the girls we run into use them.

What advice can you give me as far as what else I can try with my body or what performance mods have helped you the most? Please help!

Definitely a ton of great words of advice from the ladies on here!

Like Steph said, keep the bars lower so you can pull the sled back over when it gets away from you. Mine sit at about my hip bones with legs slightly bent. It helps you ride more with your body, and less with your arms.

If you are trying to connect a sidehill when you are already starting to fall away from the hill, try stepping further back on your board. This should tip the front end slightly up when you apply throttle, steer to the right at the same time.

Also, don't grab a handfull of throttle. The guys can do this because they are heaviier and they can counter-act the force of the track wanting to pull the sled flat when it spins. Flat on a sidehill means the sled will roll down. If you are engaging high apply gradual pressure to the throttle until you feel your clutch engage. I sometimes look to watch my track start to grab then I increase pressure a bit until I start to move forward. You will find it way easier to maintain a sidehill moving slowly than with a handfull of throttle.

If you really feel a lefty will help then go for it, but it may be a crutch, and might you never learn how to do it wihtout.

Good luck to you!!!!

PowderGirl · Jan 19, 2013

And again, on top of all the great advice already given above.... practice, practice, practice..... go ride, get experience...

But I know I had this same issue often on the older Polaris IQ chassis I used to ride but not so much with the Polaris Pro chassis.

I definitely agree that bar risers can hinder your ability - I ride with mine where my arms bend at about a 45 degree angle fron the elbow down, I get great all around leverage and reaching capabilities this way.

I've also had to soften suspension to make it easier to roll a sled over.

I've not ever trying redoing a clutch but that is something many of my riding partners do to get better / quicker throttle response.

Again, like Brandy brought up - stick with it, don't hesitate in otherwords... it's much easier to roll your sled onto its side when in motion. Also look ahead and pick your lines and like PowderPilot and others mentioned - you can be easy on the throttle, no need to grab a hand full, learn to finess it with the right weight application and stance on your rails (I stand more forward on downhill slopes, more back on uphill, and in the middle everywhere else).

Mess around in the non-consequential areas to practice techniques.

PowderGirl · Jan 19, 2013

And again, on top of all the great advice already given above.... practice, practice, practice..... go ride, get experience...

But I know I had this same issue often on the older Polaris IQ chassis I used to ride but not so much with the Polaris Pro chassis.

I definitely agree that bar risers can hinder your ability - I ride with mine where my arms bend at about a 45 degree angle fron the elbow down, I get great all around leverage and reaching capabilities this way.

I've also had to soften suspension to make it easier to roll a sled over.

I've not ever trying redoing a clutch but that is something many of my riding partners do to get better / quicker throttle response.

Again, like Brandy brought up - stick with it, don't hesitate in otherwords... it's much easier to roll your sled onto its side when in motion. Also look ahead and pick your lines and like PowderPilot and others mentioned - you can be easy on the throttle, no need to grab a hand full, learn to finess it with the right weight application and stance on your rails (I stand more forward on downhill slopes, more back on uphill, and in the middle everywhere else).

Mess around in the non-consequential areas to practice techniques.

PowderCrew · Jan 21, 2013

WYsteph hit on the one thing I thought first.... counter steer. In my humble opinion (not knowing your skill level?) the "wrong foot forward" technique is inter-mediate level to above (no insult intended, im guessing as to your level?) If you wanted to go out in a fresh, deep meadow... would you be able to "counter steer" the sled into a right handed powder turn? Do a doughnut per say with the sled on its edge? If thats the case... how about a left handed powder turn?

...and as was mentioned, look ahead. Look for that off camber that will roll you down to the right a bit before you get to it, be ready in advance to setup on your running boards and counter steer if its called for. It seems when the sled is already off-camber to the right, the struggle is getting it back to the left with your throttle hand being stretched too far? Counter steer will actually bring that throttle hand in closer while rolling the sled to the left.

T.O.T. · Jan 21, 2013

Well, I'm back!
I have been keeping up with this thread from my phone since my laptop crapped out and I was home with the flu for quite a few days. Here is what I have found out... The bf swapped my ski's so I don't have Simmons (oops!) But I have gotten out in the snow with the same setup on my sled as when I first posted this. The guys left me alone to figure some things out and after an outing yesterday in really deep snow this is what I discovered (feel free to tell me if this is bad)....

Let me see if I can explain...When I found myself in deep snow and off camber with my sled tilted away from me if I used a combination of fluttering the brake and then fluttering the throttle with a quick throttle pop while stepping further back on my board it seemed to give me enough dig to once again get myself on track. I often do have to stop and get myself together but it seemed to work. I can only assume this works because without a lot of low end power I can up my RPM's this way. The guys were very appreciative that they didn't spend all day digging me out.

We went to an area that was great for me learning to do a lot of stuff with my sled. I was even catching some air! I am finding my bar height may be okay but maybe a different style and pullback may be in my future.

Thanks to everyone for all the advice and will update as I figure more stuff out!

Please help! Advice for left hand side hilling

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