Snowmobile Hand Signals
When operating any vehicle, it’s important to know the rules of the road. That goes for off-roading, too. While riding a snowmobile hand signals are easy to use and can be a very dependable way to communicate they can be important for a safe snowmobile ride, so always make clear, calculated, and meaningful signals with your left arm that can be seen by other drivers behind you or on approaching sleds.
Stop Your Snowmobile
Normally Left arm is raised from the shoulder and expanded straight up over the head with the palm of the hand flat but sometimes the left hand is used for braking and maybe indicate the STOP signal by extending the right arm instead of the left arm therefore watch carefully and be ready to stop.
Turn Left
Left arm extended straight out from the shoulder to point in the direction of the turn.
Turn Right
Your arm should make a right angle. Turn your left arm at the elbow to shoulder height with your hand indicating directly up and your palm flat.
Oncoming Sleds on Trails
While pointing to the right side of the trail over your head guide your snowmobile to the right, signaling to riders after you that they should make sure they are riding on the right half of the trail and are yielding to on-coming traffic.
Slowing Your Snowmobile
Left arm extended out and down from the side of the body with a downward flapping motion of hand to signal warning or caution.
Sleds Following
Raise the left arm with a bent elbow; with the thumb indicating backward in hitchhiking motion, and move the arm forward to backward over your shoulder to guide coming riders that there are other sleds after you in your group. Note that many riders may instead raise a number of spread fingers to indicate how many sleds are following in their group (if five or more, simply hold your five fingers up with fingers spread, or flash multiples of five).
If traffic is serious and you’re riding in the middle of a large group that is spaced relatively close together and if the next sled is clearly visible directly after your sled it is best to keep both hands on the handlebars and focus on driving your own snowmobile rather concerning about this signal since it should be quite obvious that other sleds are following.
Last Sled in Line
The important signal is used to inform coming riders that you are the last sled in your group. Left arm is raised at shoulder height, elbow bent, and forearm vertical with hand clenched in a fist.
Conclusion
Since snowmobile is kind of like scuba diving where verbal communication won’t work and relying on hand signals is very crucial because sometimes you don’t have proper visibility on trials so you have to learn the hand signals. If you know the hand signals you will identify the guiders signal easily and it will help you throughout the ride.
