Snowmobilers in Maine (Dover-Foxcroft, Dexter, Milo: appointed, new house, club)

[Maine Writer]

An 18 year old boy has been arrested. I didn't catch the condition of the man he hit.

[RANGER.101ST]

me and my family all have sleds . its idiots like that guy thats going to make it hard on every person that ownes a sled .thay pass new laws every year becouse of ppl like him.
eventualy you will have to have a licence to ride one .and thats to bad for the young ppl.this guy should never be alowed on one agine.

[BacktoNE]

Originally Posted by Maine Writer

An 18 year old boy has been arrested. I didn't catch the condition of the man he hit.

Good, I'm glad he was caught. What an idiot. I sure hope the victim will be okay.

While I don't like snowmobiles (just too loud for me), I recognize that most operators are responsible. But it seems like every year, there are a handful of idiots who either drive way too fast, too drunk, or both which then results in a senseless tragedy.

[Northern Maine Land Man]

The victim has two broken legs, a broken arm, other broken bones and multiple injuries. He is critical. His 7 year old daughter found him.

Contrary to published rumors, the man had not "recently prohibited snowmobilers from using the airport". It has been prohibited for 38 years. He went out that night to see if he could tell who was running at high speed on the airport. The rider who was arrested had been operating a 1,000 CC snowmobile. That engine is bigger than some cars.

[Bydand]

It only takes a couple to ruin the entire image of a sport. I bet I see 1000 snowmobiles a week and it is those 2 or 3 that are running flat-out and acting stupid that I remember. Human nature I guess, but it still stinks when the VAST majority of participants have to act even better than usual, just to keep an image that isn't horrible to the average Joe/Jane.

Hats off to those of you who ride responsibly, you don't get recognized when you should be the ones people remember. I SHOULD remember the 99.8% of good riders instead of the .2% of jerks, I'll try harder now that I think of it and look at the numbers I know to be true.

[Northern Maine Land Man]

A game warden reported last week that he saw a snowmobile track on the Penobscot River at Howland. The river is definitely not safe yet. Some years it is never safe. I remember one year when the Indians logged some oak trees on one of their islands. The skidder had no roof on it in case it went through the ice and they used a really long cable to pull the logs across to shore.

Back around 1910 they used to run teams of horses and wagons across Penoscot Bay on the ice to Islesboro. Thta's about 4 miles on sea ice. Don't go by the calendar. Ice fishing season opens on January 1. Ask locals before you venture out on the ice.

[Boomerang]

Originally Posted by jac

Snowmobilers struck a Limerick man last night and left him. What is up with this? Are all snowmobilers so heartless that they can't even call an ambulance to help an injured person? I am sure there are many responsible snowmobilers on this board. What do you think about this type of accident?
jac

Pardon my language, but there are idiots out there operating every kind of motorized anything, from snowmobiles to ATVs to dirt bikes to boats to cars. I wouldn't even think of speeding around a public area at night. You never know who or what is going to be out there.

I heard of a problem in the mid-Maine area involving a group of snowmobilers riding trails at night across private land, drunk and disorderly and at high speeds, going off the trails and revving around people's back yards at all hours.
Of course they're too dumb and self-absorbed to understand why the landowners then want to revoke the trail privileges.

Too bad there isn't some kind of ethics & responsibility test that people had to pass before being allowed to operate any kind of motorized vehicle which could injure someone else.

[Maine Writer]

Originally Posted by RANGER.101ST

me and my family all have sleds . its idiots like that guy thats going to make it hard on every person that ownes a sled .thay pass new laws every year becouse of ppl like him.
eventualy you will have to have a licence to ride one .and thats to bad for the young ppl.this guy should never be alowed on one agine.

I agree, and I think you're right about licenses. I'm surprised it's not required already.

Originally Posted by Northern Maine Land Man

The victim has two broken legs, a broken arm, other broken bones and multiple injuries. He is critical. His 7 year old daughter found him.

I didn't know she found him. Can you imagine what that little girl went through? It's too bad the kid who hit this man can't be charged with something for what he's put a child through.

I've heard one report of a snowmobile through the ice. I didn't hear all of the report so I don't know who or where. We came back from Bangor by Rt 2 yesterday and saw tracks on the Penobscot. Unreal. There aren't any shacks on E. Musquash today.

[danpv]

My elderly mother lives in the county and recently expressed her fear for a fatal snowmobiler accident in front of her house.

With the snow banks so high that she can't see over them, and with the wind howling or her head covered from the weather so she can't hear clearly, I can understand her concerns about trying to get out of the driveway.

She tells me that snowmobilers race down her street so fast she's afraid she'll either get killed stepping out of her driveway or that she'll back up her car sometime and not hear them racing down the street and someone will be seriously injured or killed when they collide.

[spaige]

This is an awful thing to have happened. The snow mobilers I know are willing to go hunting for missing folks in the woods and help in any way that is needed. There are always going to be those who have no care for their actions. This is one of those times. Cars hit people and continue to drive on, motorcylclists hit people and continue to drive on. WE hear these stories and cringe. Look at the boater who ran over another boat on Long Lake this past summer and continued on. On to the shore and landed in the trees. People were killed in that accident and drinking was involved.