Dorset Puddle Jump Article

[revrnd]

For a change here's a good story about us in the paper:

Things to do in Dorset

Every weekend, snowmobilers gun their machines across patches of open lake. Some even make it. Those who don't pay up to $925 to have their sleds fished out. At the Fiery Grill, it's a spectator sport

By ANDREW WILLIS
Saturday, January 17, 2004 - Page M1

This weekend, hundreds of snowmobilers will ride into Dorset, Ont., to renew a winter passion, watching brave, or foolhardy, colleagues crank up their machines and run a wide stretch of open water leading into frozen Lake of Bays.

Those who dare the frigid channel are known as water skimmers or puddle jumpers, and Tony Aymong couldn't be happier to see them return. For more than 30 winters, the ardent scuba diver has been capitalizing on the joie de vivre -- some might say insanity -- of snowmobilers who insist on gunning their sleds across patches of open lake and river. Ski-Doo, Arctic Cat, Polaris and Yamaha build many wonderful features into their chariots, but they haven't bothered to make 'em float. If your sled ends up on the bottom, and many do, chances are you'll be calling on Mr. Aymong to winch it out.

It was an accidental but lucrative second career for the 53-year-old retired Toronto fireman. Mr. Aymong first fished a snowmobile out of the water near Peterborough, Ont., in the mid-1970s, for free, as a favour for a friend. Word got out, and slowly but surely came more calls for his services. Those early dives were made in a wet suit, not the warmer dry suits Mr. Aymong now employs. "You had to be a bit nuts to put up with that extreme cold," he recalls.

Now, he and his wife, Carol Moffatt, run a year-round scuba business, The Diving Co., from their home just south of Dorset, about 200 kilometres north of Toronto. They do underwater construction in the summer, then recover snowmobiles once the lakes freeze over. If things go according to plan, younger members of the crew will do more of the diving this winter, and Mr. Aymong will spend more time running things from up top.

Last year was slow -- just 12 sleds needed to be pulled out of the deep. The winter of 2002 was more typical: Mr. Aymong reeled in 40 sodden snowmobiles at up to $925 a pop. He says: "I once went down for three sleds, lost by one group, and came up with four."

Nothing but common sense saves snowmobilers from their open-water impulses. The Ontario Provincial Police, the Ministry of Natural Resources and the Canadian Coast Guard turn a blind eye to water skimming. The OPP says accidents are rare; booze, speed and nighttime riding are bigger concerns. Puddle-jumping enthusiasts keep hypothermia at bay by wearing special snowmobile suits that float. When sleds do end up on the bottom, very little gas and oil tends to leak out, so civil servants are content to let them rust.

"We like to encourage this myth that there are big fines for leaving a snowmobile underwater, but it's not actually true," Ms. Moffatt says.

However, puddle jumping can be a game with deadly consequences. Mr. Aymong says it has been seven years since he had to pull out a snowmobile that was involved in a fatal accident. "I'm a volunteer fireman here," he says, "and there have been times when I went in one day for a body, and the next day for a sled."

While the public may be free to puddle jump, strapping on scuba gear to recover a snowmobile is heavily regulated. The Ministry of Labour set standards in recent years requiring permits for each rescue, in part because divers searching for golf balls under ice got lost and drowned. When Mr. Aymong shows up to retrieve a sled, he brings an all-terrain vehicle with a robust winch, a top-quality dry suit, plenty of rope and two helpers -- a backup diver and a tender.

Finding a sunken snowmobile is straightforward. They leave big holes when they go through the ice, and head straight to the bottom. Mr. Aymong goes down the same opening, finds the machine and then runs a line through its skis and front suspension. Then he pops back up and the team starts reeling. Once everyone is on the surface, they take a few simple steps to resuscitate a machine -- water is drained from the engine and exhaust system before it freezes. Then the snowmobile goes onto a trailer and is returned to its owner.

The average rescue takes two hours, including about 20 minutes under the ice.

What's it like descending into the dark, near-freezing depths? "In winter, the water is the most peaceful retreat you can imagine," Mr. Aymong says. "I can't spend enough time down there."

And what does it cost to bring back to life a snowmobile that might cost up to $12,000 brand new? One of just three companies in Ontario that provide this service, The Diving Co. charges $325 to pull out a snowmobile if it can still be seen under the water. If the rescue diver has to go a little deeper, the bill will run to $650. Once he's down more than 15 metres, owners must fork over $925.

Past 30 metres, a depth that's easily reached in Northern Ontario lakes, a snowmobile is gone forever. The scuba equipment needed to work at this depth is just too expensive. However, most sleds are lost in fast-moving, shallow water, where riders are puddle jumping or surprised by thin ice.

Once a snowmobile is back on dry land, a couple of hours in the workshop and another $300 to $500 are needed to get it back in shape. The hardest part of the operation is drying the water out of the padded seats -- the engines are surprisingly durable.

If riding a Ski-Doo at 60 kilometres an hour or more across water seems an offbeat way to spend a winter day, you likely haven't been to Dorset. The cottage-country town with a winter population of 400 straddles "the narrows," a stretch of fast-running water that rarely freezes and is linked to the snowmobile-trail-rich Lake of Bays region. It's Canada's unofficial puddle-jumping capital.

In Dorset, watching snowmobiles run up to 1.5 kilometres of open water in the narrows, or sink in the shallows, is a spectator sport. Sunny winter weekends can see hundreds of people perched on their own idled machines, taking in the fun from the shoreline and lake. This can be a tough crowd.

"We watched one guy come through the narrows last year with his kid on the back of the machine," Ms. Moffatt says. "We all gave that idiot the thumbs down."

Dorset's riverside Fiery Grill does a roaring winter trade in Cajun food for up to 100 patrons who get a warm, front-row seat for the show -- there are often three or four sleds skimming across the water at any one time. Waiter Jennifer Sisel has been at the restaurant for years. "I've never actually seen a sled sink," she says. "When one does go down, everyone runs to the windows to watch, and they block my view."

Fiery Grill owner Gillian Douglas tracks what goes down outside her windows. She draws up a chart showing all the different manufacturers. Every time a Ski-Doo, Polaris or Arctic Cat vanishes beneath the waves, Ms. Douglas puts a mark beside the name. A total of two- or three-dozen sinkings in the narrows mark a typical winter.

And how does one stay afloat on a machine that was never meant to go near water? Mr. Aymong says wide skis and lots of power are essential to successful puddle jumping. Hitting docks or the Dorset bridge's foundation, as one rider did last year, takes away from the fun. And those who want to avoid submerging should also steer clear of Arctic Cats. The brand features cooling vents on the underside of the engine that suck up water and kill internal combustion. Aymong says: "You'll get one water run on an Arctic Cat, maybe two, but by the third, you're calling me."

When it comes to reasons for ending up with a sled in the drink, Mr. Aymong has heard dozens of stories. One first-timer was almost across the Dorset narrows when he raised a fist to salute his buddies on the bridge, accidentally pulled the kill switch on the machine, and promptly sank, to the delight of his pals. Another chickened out, hit the breaks, spun and slid into the narrows backward. Then there was the guy on the Polaris who thrilled the crowds with several high-speed runs, then got laughs when he ran out of gas and turned submarine.

Gender seems to weigh heavily on whose snowmobile goes for a swim. "There's a lot of male bravado in water skimming," Mr. Aymong says: "In all my years of doing this, I've only seen one female rider sink her sled. And she would have made it across the narrows if she hadn't lost her nerve at the very last moment and eased off on the throttle."

Age is less of a restriction when it comes to water running. One of Mr. Aymong's colleagues pulled a sled out of the narrows last winter, then Mr. Aymong had to plunge in for the elderly driver's lost dentures. He says: "I joked that the teeth were going to cost another $650, and the poor old guy actually believed me, and said he'd pay."

No one needs to risk getting wet in front of the Fiery Grill. There's a solid, well-marked trail around the open water, blazed at considerable expense by the Ontario Federation of Snowmobile Clubs. In fact, killjoys have suggested putting a halt to the stunt riding in Dorset by running a net across the narrows. But with puddle jumpers bringing winter tourists into what was once only a summertime cottage town, there's little support for such a move. With that attitude, Mr. Aymong's chilly source of winter income seems secure.

[permafrost]

Great Article Kris , thanxs for sharing that one. We will be going by Dorset on the saturday of the SW ride when it is at full swing.

[The Hossman]

That's a good article!! And one of my favorite places to spend a sunny winter afternoon.

It's nice to read an article about snowmobiling that doesn't discuss fatality statistics, or even use the words 'excessive speed' or 'alcohol involved'. Rare, but nice.

I think the reason for just the 12 recoveries last year was the cold weather. The 2 times I had been to Dorset last year, the narrows were completely frozen, much to my disappointment.

For those that haven't been - it's well worth the trip.

[revrnd]

Jeff, that's a good idea :thumbsup: I was thru there last winter on the way to the sno x races in Huntsville & there wasn't a soul there. First time I've been thru Dorset in the winter in daylight & nobody was skipping I'm usually only thru there in the summer.

A felloe sledder passed that along to me.

[ravine rat]

Last year the OFSC S.T.O.P. officers with assistance from OPP laid charges and got a conviction against a guy fro running open water. I think they still have it on their web site in the news releases.

RR

[Spanky414]

Very cool article.

My question is if they are running out in open water isn't it ALOT harder for the divers to find exactly where it went down? And when they do how do they recover it? Lots of line? Barge with a winch?

Sounds like a lucrative business.

[LadyK]

What a great story Kris. :thumbsup: I have emailed the Globe & Mail about this story. Thought I should email someone some praise as I spend alot of time emailing in defense of snowmobilers.

[ZR Rider]

Dorest is one of my favorite places to go to in the winter... Fiery has great food and the trails up there are awesome!! Lots of elevation change, twisties and nice and wide!!

[MikeD]

I've spent many sun soaked hours there over the years, always fun!

[mx416]

Good story except for the Arctic Cat part. All the Cats I've had have been awesome on water once you get the clutching worked out.