New ruffian

[Hawkster]

We already understand your ability is limited, but the details are entertaining.

If you don’t need the back of your boards you’ve never been in tight ravines.
And yes, been there with bikes who stuffed the nose for lack of power and pegs keeping them too far forward.

Oh, and when the snow is deep I definitely side hill with both feet planted on both boards on the alpha.

First sled I bought new, 74 340 SS Colt which doesn't mean crap but the point is I'm not new to this rodeo nor am I selling anything.

I was just trying to have a conversation since I do ride all machines mentioned.

If those bikes were really stuffing the fronts in the ravines maybe you should ride with people that know how to ride ravines with a one ski.

If they were taking sled lines that's as stupid as a sled taking a one ski line.

Just for you I need to put pegs on that Alpha because you can't even fathom the idea.

You brought up a really stupid argument.

 

[IDspud]

Feedback from the dirtbike guys that prefer sleds to bikes in the snow is all I’m echoing.
And you’re making an assumption there was more than one way through the ravine.

 

[Hawkster]

It's difficult to go from one to the other when you are seriously committed to one.

When you ride both your habits have to adjust, you start loosing your edge.

Its like racers, they can't hop on another ride and do their best run.

At least that's how it works for me, sled brings bad habits to the one ski, again that's what happens to me.

I'm trying to make that Alpha ride like the one ski, it'll never completely happen because it's a battle of wills. It wants to stay planted.

It's just a commitment I made to it long time ago, a challenge.

I get the ravine, just can't say I know what kind.

One skis don't side hill, they do not have to lean to hold a line.

Sleds have to lean to hold the line and sooner or later they have one of two directions they have to take.

I cut and taped my own tracks, 154

 

[IDspud]

 

[IDspud]

We are on opposite sides of this ravine.
Bottom is about 400 yards below, waterfalls and logs, only about six feet wide.

 

[GlennRMK]

I question whether you’ll ever find handling on pegs.
My riding and those who tend to go places is always all over the boards.
So much change from front to rear, etc through constant variations.

Boards are not needed on a snowbike. It would just make it wider and make it easier to get stuck. The bike is around 200 lbs lighter than a sled and you don't need any leverage for side to side with only one ski. Very little little from front to back. Occasionally I might get up on the front of the seat for a steep climb or lean way back to wheelie, but beyond that, you are pretty planted on the bike.

 

[teal_210]

Idaho isn’t high?
My house is 4900.
Mtn out front is 10,300.

They were riding at Trestle Creek in North Idaho, parking lot is 2,800'

 

[eric82930]

They were riding at Trestle Creek in North Idaho, parking lot is 2,800'

Sorry about the comment about altitude. There is definitely high stuff in Idaho but a lot more lower stuff that gets good snow than we get here. Kind of jealous of the hp we always had to add weight and bigger main jets back in the sled days. Snow below 8k that's rideable is hard to find where I live. Clutching is always way off from East Coast snow too. Trenching through powder just doesn't tolerate even slightly wrong clutching. It will shut the rpms down real quick and fall on its face.

 

[IDspud]

I had no idea northern ID was that low.

 

[AllHatNoCattle]

Reading these comments I have an honest question from those guys who have ridden sleds and bikes. I have never even sat on a sled before, so I am admittedly limited in my knowledge.

Currently the way we ride our bikes is that we dive into the trees at every available opportunity. It seems that the guys I ride with take particular pride in only seeing sled tracks on the trail when we leave the parking lot and the occasional time when we cross an open area to hit more trees. We end up in tight, gnarly stuff where you need to turn very quickly and tight or you are screwed... pretty much all day.

So picturing a bigger, heavier machine just seems like the opposite of what I would want. I could see it stuck half in a treewell and all my buddies are gone and now I have to try and dig it out alone (happens more often than I would like to admit).

Or would having all this extra power and climbing prowess mean that we change the way we ride? Are we going uphill more and getting stuck less? I watch videos of these guys on sleds where I am awed at the control they have through sidehilling/climbing and trees and they go uphill the way we never could on our bikes. So they take different lines and blow through stuff that would capture a bike.

So are we riding the same but on better bikes with this new Ruffian? Or are we changing the way we ride and unlocking new stuff?

 

[NEWDUCK]

Or are we changing the way we ride and unlocking new stuff?

This^^.

 

[Sheetmetalfab]

For what it's worth the ruffian appears to be 2' shorter in length than a snowbike kit attached to a dirtbike.

 

[eric82930]

The ruffian is not going to climb like a sled because the power isn't going to be any more at the track than what we already have.
But the geometry looks better in the pics the rider weight is on the track not the ski so it will get stuck less often and feel more like a bike other than no shifter... I don't see the point in trying to make a bike go as fast as a sled straight up. It will have to be heavier to have a lot more power and that's just not worth it. We just never want to ride that way. The new sleds are so good if you really want to go mach 1 up a hill just get a sled. They are way better on trails and can almost go anywhere a bike can go if it's super deep. Just have to sweat more to do it.

 

[eric82930]

Does the ruffian have electric start and a counter balancer?

 

[IDspud]

Every rider I know that rides both say bikes are absolute hell on trails.

 

[Sheetmetalfab]

Does the ruffian have electric start and a counter balancer?

Counter balance yes.

Unsure on Estart.

 

[AK_SNOWBIKE_CO]

Been following this build for some time and the few little spoilers that aren’t really spoilers because it’s talked about in other pages are the following:

The weight is nearly half of a snowhawk. Early claimed weight so far was in the 267lb range which is freaking light when you compare an average 450 snowbike build is somewhere in the 310-340lb range. The over size does look 3/4 size compared to the height of a snowbike. I don’t see that as a bad thing. Easier to get on and off, easier to loan a newbie friend to rip, lower center of gravity and might handle really well. All speculative on my part.

The motor is not a sled motor and was designed by Ruffian mostly with the other components designed by an Italian parameter company.

All I can say is it has some real potential. The idea of it is along the right track but hopeful they can tune the motor to make 80hp+ or more and get the clutching right so it’s nice and snappy. I like that they have been developing this for years and are not taking peoples orders on them yet. Working out the kinks and refining and not burdening the consumer with something that hasn’t been well thought out and tested. Keep your eyes on them, they are coming into the game soon I imagine.

 

[GlennRMK]

Every rider I know that rides both say bikes are absolute hell on trails.

Bikes are no problem on groomed trails with plenty of snow. Bikes are not good on glare ice or dirt and rocks. Whoops also suck on the bike. I always found the trail so boring on a sled, but with a bike it just makes the trail a little more interesting!

 

[M5-]

What's a trail?

M5

 

[IDspud]

Especially what is a groomed trail with plenty of snow?