For those of you who missed out on Season I of SledGirl here’s a little walk down memory lane…
“If we’re moving to the country we’ve got to have the toys”
Translation: We’re buying snowmobiles.
There are 2 kinds of snowmobilers, the ones who have been doing it since they were knee-high to a grasshopper and those introduced to it through these folks. I am the latter. This is my story.
Having just moved from the big city, my husband had the daunting task of setting us up for our new northern recreational experience. Apparently this consisted of purchasing a high performance snowmobile for him and what I like to refer to as a highly amusing performance snowmobile for me.
Looking back at these earlier days I question his motives but have been since assured that it was solely for trial purposes to ensure my enjoyment of the sport before taking any unnecessary monetary risks. Interesting concept.
The earliest memories I have of snowmobiling include being shaken so violently by the rock hard suspension that my ability to form entire sentences was put at risk. Or what about laughing hysterically as I ran after my snowmobile following my unanticipated ejection? This caused by the 5-foot snowdrifts on Lake Scugog that I had my sled barreling through blindly because my visor was fogged right over. Finally, there was the time that I was greeted with “what took you so long?” having just finished kicking my front left ski for the 6 th time in a span of 500 meters in order to unlock the front suspension. One can understand why motives would come under scrutiny with these conditions.
Unbeknownst to me it was at that point that I would experience my defining moment in sledding. Taking the ‘refusing to go another 2 feet on THAT sled, I don’t care if I have to carry my helmet 20km backwards up an icy hill’ stance. I took possession of my husband’s snowmobile. Well, the lake was my carpet and the sled my recliner. Speed was fun and the feeling in my right foot was starting to come back.
With some pointers on proper foot placement, a helmet fitted with a heated visor and an SXR700 Triple, SledGirl was emerging.
It would only get better from here!
