A sled thread.

“After two FYAO's and watching you guys with sleds I thought about something I'd read. It's in 'Espaces' magazine which is distributed free in sporting goods shops (in French) up here. There was a good article in the November issue about climbing Mt. Katahdin the previous wintewr and they talked about the gear they used. One piece of equipment was a Blanchon sled - I think it's made in France. They have an English version of their website (click on English) and, while the translation is a little rough, their product is interesting.

Check it out on www.blanchon.info.”

“Nope, looks like they're made here in Quebec, or at least in Canada (Cdn $).”

“Those look pretty cool gremlin. I bet I could modify mine to be similar to the small. The dimensions of my sled are almost the same.”

“blanchon

where do you see the price?”

“What were the problems people were having with their sleds? Did people experience the same types of problems?”

“I like the design of those.
I always meant to make a cover for mine, but can't seem to get to it.”

“I'm thinking of getting a dry bag to place inside mine. If it doesn't work I can still use it in the canoe.”

“wicked !”

“I think the problem was just the old weight-displacement ratio.

You want something that will "slide" on the top.

Problem is the narrower it is, the less weight you can put in it so that it doesn't cut into the snow and plow. So if its small and narrow, you can't carry a lot of weight. If you have a lot of weight the sled needs to be wider unless you make it real, real long and then it may be unmanageable in the woods.

So it's like snowshoes, you need to displace enough weigh to stay on top, but if you make them too big, then it's too tiring to go any distance.”

“I suspect that sleds are like garages and packs - you always fill the available space. Getting a larger whatever can create more problems than it solves.”

“Yep!”

“I think in general sleds aren’t made for use in hilly wooded terrain. They’re at their best in flat open country.”

“Anyone know if there are any distributors of that Blanchon in the US or anyplace where there are prices listed?

Know I can't afford one but I am lcurious.”

“I'd go the 'Conact us' route, Red.”

“I'm very pleased with the design of my thread. I don't think I would change a thing on it. The problem at FYAO was not the sled, but the conditions. No sled is going to do well in deep unbroken snow on a hilly trail with many turns.

When we did the Maine trip last winter, we saw a bunch of people with sleds in the Abol parking area. It was interesting walking around and checking out different designs.”

“design of my SLED, not thread. LOL! I've never designed a thread before.”

“Yes the sleds were many and varied. Some had nylon runners and sat quite high. Would work well on hard pack. Most were kids style sleds. Varies harnesses. It made you feel like Tim the tool man Taylor to check them out after having built one.”

“here's my sled

it works very well”

“That wouldn't have worked very well at FYAO IV. There was a big sign that said no snowmobiles beyond this point.”

“http://www.inquiry.net/outdoor/winter/gear/sleds/index.htm

If you are making a sled this scouting site has 21 plans for making sleds .”

“It's a sleigh? And this whole time I thought I was pulling a sled.”

“A sled thread

A thread for a sled

I'll build a sled says I

I'll build a sled, says he, with a sigh

It will be a good sled

It will be a tough sled

It will hold all my gear

IT WILL, I'll never need fear

Bruce almighty, Gremlin, and a Twigeater, too

A monkeyboy, Artex, and Skeetah bait too

All will have sleds, hauling their gear

All will have fun in the woods this year”

“pretty slow day in New Hampshire I reckon? ;o)”

“LOL!

o(=D

Hey monkeyman, why aren't ya skiing in all this nice new snow?!”

“*sniff*

monkeyboy...I feel left out.

I built my sled today.”

“you didn't ski today either?
well why weren't we all out hiking then!

How much snow did you get skiracer?
(or should we change your name to sledman, LOL)

o(=D”

“Not much, twigeater. They were calling for 4-8", but we only got about an inch. We was robbed! Looks like Maine got the brunt of it. Hope it lasts awhile for Baxter Snow Ball.”

“ya mon! last I looked it was still snowing - wahoo!”

“Actually, we skiied Saturday at Saddleback, and took out our new crosscountry skiis to Bradberry State Park and did about three miles over hill and dale.

I can't believe I got a blister from the boots.....”

“I forgot to mention that the advert in the mag gave a list price of Cdn539$ for the intermediate sized sled which is just about bang on US400$.

Sleigh/sled, their English is pretty weak on their site.”

“The latest to announce a new sled is Skiracer

He can go fast on skiis, a real pacer

He's anxious, with weight, to drag his sled

After he's done, it's straight to bed

A new experience, he's ready to try

With Twigeater's fish, we'll have a fry

There'll be chili and comraderie for all

And as we klimb, we hope none will fall”

“Thanks, monkeyboy. I feel much better now. :-)”

“Keep me away from Dr. Suess books and movies.....”