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iceman
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Rough go in the Saguenay today. It's on up there. She is in St. Bruno on the RT169 between Hebertville and Alma. Got truck in the ditch there where she is. Schools are closed throughout the region. Also a power outage has affected many including the Hospital in Alma. Zero visibility throughout the region including the RT175 through the Parc Laurentides. 

 

Edited by iceman
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12 minutes ago, Trailblazer said:

I remember that episode Bill, very lucky guy Andy was.

I remember reading Andy's description of events back in the day when we were on trailconditions.com.

 

About once a week I ride by the site where he had made a wind break out of snow and I think about him that night.  Some things you never forget, that is one for me.  I believe his buddy who was with him that night, gave up riding.  Not 100% sure of that but 90% sure.  Andy's previous training, as a pilot, kicked in that night.  He was so cool headed when he was on the phone with me.  The other fellow didn't have that training and he was like I would have been, scared sh**less.  I spoke to him several years later at Andy's house and he had not gotten it out of his system.  If any of you are ever thinking of riding east of the lake in a blowing wind storm, don't,  put in at the first place you find.

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33 minutes ago, Saguenay Bill said:

About once a week I ride by the site where he had made a wind break out of snow and I think about him that night.  Some things you never forget, that is one for me.  I believe his buddy who was with him that night, gave up riding.  Not 100% sure of that but 90% sure.  Andy's previous training, as a pilot, kicked in that night.  He was so cool headed when he was on the phone with me.  The other fellow didn't have that training and he was like I would have been, scared sh**less.  I spoke to him several years later at Andy's house and he had not gotten it out of his system.  If any of you are ever thinking of riding east of the lake in a blowing wind storm, don't,  put in at the first place you find.

Bill

I do remember that night. We were all happy that they were ok.

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1 hour ago, Daniel said:

Bill

I do remember that night. We were all happy that they were ok.

You and Terry were the heros that night. You two guys knew how to find them with the info Andy had given me.  With your help the police knew exactly where to find them.  It use was a night to remember.  

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I too was at the Delta that night. A storm to remember.

I believe it was the next day we helped retrieve a friend's sled. He went into a ditch not far from the Delta, near the tunnel, and walked to the hotel.

We were unable to pull his sled out it was so buried. Luckily a groomer came by and pulled it out. Bill might remember him, a Quebec gentleman who lives in the southern part of the province.

mike

 

 

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My brother and I came thru the following evening on the same route.

we had the collette communicators at the time.   panic had totally set in.  Didn't know the difference between up and down/left to right and we lost trail stakes.

 

the feeling was claustrophobic it was snowing so hard.  As I began to shit my pants, the groomer beacon came on the communicator.

i will never forget it.

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10 hours ago, mikerider said:

I too was at the Delta that night. A storm to remember.

I believe it was the next day we helped retrieve a friend's sled. He went into a ditch not far from the Delta, near the tunnel, and walked to the hotel.

We were unable to pull his sled out it was so buried. Luckily a groomer came by and pulled it out. Bill might remember him, a Quebec gentleman who lives in the southern part of the province.

mike

 

 

That Denis.  He has a machine shop down near 3 Rivers.  Mike is right, a very nice gentleman.  It was about a mile and 1/2 walk for him.  He use to make a replacement cover for the REV master cylinder that he would imprint your QR screen name on.  I still have mine.   Unfortunately it won't fit the XP's.

Edited by Saguenay Bill
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On 12/2/2016 at 8:17 AM, Snobeeler said:

Would love to read again Andy's full description of events that day. It was incredible for sure. Maybe he can repost unless it brings back bad memories to him and his buddy. 

I had not seen this post until now. Yes it was one Hell of a night and every time I ride by the field where we spent the night I give it the finger! LOL I don't know if I can find that post but I will try. It was in a magazine as well. I learned a lot that night and I carry a check list reminder of many of the things that went right and wrong with me when I ride. Like I said before we made numerous errors up to the point we got stuck for the final time but once I made the decision that we could not go on it was out of a survival textbook. I dug deep in myself and thought back to the things I had learned as a kid growing up in the woods of NB and the survival tools that my Grandfather,Father and my military training taught me. And by the way that was the last short track sled Andyman owned! LOL

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On 12/2/2016 at 8:17 AM, Snobeeler said:

Would love to read again Andy's full description of events that day. It was incredible for sure. Maybe he can repost unless it brings back bad memories to him and his buddy. 

I found it 22 Feb 2006 almost 10 years ago! Funny this winter marks 50 years since I first started sledding time flies!!!

7 day Trail Ride Report That could have been a double obituary.

Day1 Feb14th
Rode Edmundston NB- St Raymond Quebec via 85,526,35 547,5,75,73 day one. For the most part the trails were excellent and we arrived in St Raymond at the Roquemont at 4:08 in the afternoon as we had departed at 5:40 EST from Edmundston.

Day 2 
Rode 73,353,318,360,347,345,33 St Raymond-Lac Beauregard via Repos. Another beautful day on the trails with great snow conditions and very low traffic.

Day3 Rode 33,13,83 to Windigo Outfitters. Windigo is 42km west of Relais22 .It is 12km south of TQ83 on a side trail. Great place to stay with great food and hospitality and Martina the co-owner is a sweet heart and a great cook.

Day4 is when this trip went sour. We watched the weather forecast and were aware of the large system that was approaching however the forecast showed 15cm of snow and the wind not starting until late evening so we thought we were good to go. We are riding short track sleds but felt confident that we would have no problem with the snow that had fallen overnight and the snow forecast. We rode 83 to Roberval and attempted to ride via the lake trail to rejoin 83 by Desbiens. The conditions on the lake were very poor as the visibility was very low but with the help of the stakes and my GPS we made our way to Chambord. The trails in this area are very poorly marked and are signed as TQ83 even though the map shows 83 to be nowhere near this area. We made our way to the Toit Vert and spoke to some riders who had come from the south via 355/83.After hearing their report we headed south on 355 then local trails to St Andre. Up to this point we are doing fine however the wind is really starting to increase and the visibility is dropping.We took a local trail toward Hebertville and the snow was really adding up by now and it was all I could do to make it through the drifts at WOT. My riding buddy got himself buried several times on this hydro line trail and we were soaking wet by now from all the lifting. The point in this ride that we could have helped ourselves came next when we crossed a plowed road. Looking back we should have just rode down this plowed road and went to a house or business and asked for shelter. Shortly after crossing the plowed road we entered the huge fields west of Hebertville and this is when all Hell broke loose. As we started across the first field the wind was increasing and the visibilty was dropping very rapidly. It basically reminded me of watching the Tsunami roll across the sea in Thailand last year. My partner got buried several times and I would go straight ahead until I could find a sheltered spot with less snow where I could turn and go back to him. We were getting more tired with each incident of getting buried and at this point we were in a field with no visual reference to any landmarks or direction of travel. We had been trying to follow the red markers but they were spaced at a distance that exceeded our visual range. I knew our situation was getting very serious at this point as my partner is 57 and we are both completely exhausted and soaking wet from lifting and pulling the sleds out. I told him to stay put and I would do some circles in the field in hopes of spotting another marker that would allow us to forge ahead another short distance. I should explain something here as I could see a small opening in the treeline ahead that I thought may be the trail as I had been on this trail once before but the trouble was the snow was drifted to 5-7ft and if I ran into the drifted area I knew I had to be at full throttle and the maximum speed that I could get up to but what if that was not the trail but a BARBED WIRE FENCE? Then we would be in a deeper mess with injuries or death. So off I go in circles and eventually get myself buried in 6ft of drifted powder even though I am running WOT! The best way I can describe this situation we are now in is wear your snowmobile gear to the gym and work out,then ride 150 miles with the same gear on add 5-7ft drifted blowing snow ,now comes the good part close your eyes and try to ride these fields.The best description is to think what it would feel like if you took your sled out in a local field and simply jumped on fired her up and went wide open in circles with your EYES CLOSED! So here we are, me buried on one side of this field and my buddy across the field wtih strict instructions from me not to move!

I knew we were there for the night at least as the visibilty was very poor and the wind was 70MPH and MINUS 24 degrees C.We were in a pickle. At this point I just changed my focus from trying to make it to safety to making safety come to me. The first thing that came to mind were the words of my late grandfather that he had told my Dad and he passed on to me as a young boy when we would hunt and fish in the woods of southern New Brunswick that I love so much. "If you ever find yourself lost just stop and lay down and relax for a couple of minutes to regain your composure and things will become clear as to what you should do" now we were not lost and I did not lay down but it was the same principal. So I said Andyman what do you have on this sled that will save your life along with Dave? I knew the first thing that would help would be telling someone on the outside the mess we were in and where to find us. So with my sled running I recorded our position on my GPS. One thing that did go right was the fact that my sled was pointed directly into the wind when I became stuck and it was in a high nose up attitude so if I more or less laid on the seat I was protected form the 70mph wind. I always carry pen and paper so in a very cautious manner I unzipped my bag and retrieved it and recorded our position I was very careful not to set anything down such as my gloves as they would blow all the way to the next county. The next thing I did was to ask the GPS to find the nearest town and take me there which it did in a very efficient manner and it told me to simply go .7 of a mile across the field and pick up a road and follow it etc. The problem was the .7 of a mile was not possible with the 5ft plus of snow! I then retrieved my survival kit from under my hood that I had faithfully carried for years and never used until now! I had 6 litres of injection oil with me so now we had fuel for our fire and I had several containers of gas line antifreeze as well. I always had lots of antifreeze with me as I sent my wife Lisa to pick some up one day as it was on sale on she came home with 18 CONTAINERS thank God she did! So I was getting near the point when I was ready to abandon my sled and head to the treeline. The problem was Dave was still sitting across the field just like I told him! 

Now I am not a very religious man or a man large in stature but my family all have very strong beliefs in God and I asked God to give me the strength to save myself and my buddy Dave and take us back to our families. I looked across that field and talked to the darkness and storm and said Dave you have to come to me so I can save you as I am not going to die here I am going home to my wife and son! When I had left Dave at the other side of the field he was not stuck so I knew all he had to do was pin the sled and head to my light and together we could make it to the woods. Shortly Dave knew he had to come to my light and he did stopping right beside me. I told Dave I had made the decision that we had to abandon our attempts to get out of the fields and make a fire and shelter. I asked him what he had with him to help us survive and he said with despair nothing I don't even have matches! But he did have some candy that his wife Debbie had hid in his bag for Valentines and I said bring them!

We now headed for the woods in snow up to our armpits and went to the nearest spot and made a snow cave in an alder grove. I knew we needed to attempt to alert the outside world ASAP if we had cell coverage so I carefully retrieved my notes with our position and got Dave to hold the light and say a little prayer and turned my cell phone on.I was worried that it would not have coverage or battery power as I had not charged it as we had stayed at outfitters the 2 previous nights. The phone came on and had coverage! I called home and my son Andrew answered he is only 14 but a very smart young man and I calmly told him that we were in a very serious mess and to record our position and get it to the QPP via Saguenay Bill at the HI in Jonquiere. He typed the coordinates into his computer as I read them and the rest of my instructions of our position reference to Hebertville and that we needed to be rescued.I hung up and my next call was to the HI and a young lady answered and I told her my name and I had a guaranteed reservation that I would not need as we were stranded in a blizzard and I needed to talk to Bill ASAP. Bill came on the line and said oh Hi Andyman and wanted to chat I quickly told Bill this was an emergency and he needed to copy this info down. Bill started to get nervous as he told me he didn't understand GPS but I quickly reassured him that all the police would need is these sequence of numbers to know our position on the face of the earth. Bill copied them and I told him our position on TQ83 and reference to Hebertville and we needed help.

Our next task was to build a fire. When we got to the edge of the woods I found a plastic container hanging on a branch just like God had hung it there for us and I carried it with me to our shelter. I took out my Leatherman tool that I had faithfully carried for years and never opened on the trail before and cut a square out of it and this was where we would start our fire. Dave was worried that we had no paper to start it with and how would we ever get it going. I looked up at him and said well Davey Boy, Andyman is a Boy Scout from way back and I am going to peel some birch bark from this tree beside me and you sir are going to stop leaning on that birch tree and peel some off! We both had a laugh despite our situation. I then used one of Lisa's antifreeze bottles and some small twigs and took my lighter out and said another small prayer that it would work and after several attempts it lit and we had fire! We then set about a routine of getting wood and tending to our fire.

My phone rang and it was the QPP the officer explained they did not have GPS equipment and my heart just sank.He wanted me to explain where we were and I did to the best of my ability with the info I had received from my GPS prior to shutting it off. He told me they were coming to search for us and I thanked him and hung up. I told Dave about the conversation and that I did not hold out much hope to be rescued by them as I felt they would never be able to find us in this blizzard. So I said Dave don't worry we will make it through the night and at first light we will save ourselves! I felt confident that we could get my sled out and then be able to cross the fields once daylight came so we could see the markers and fences.

So as we worked at our fire I thought how can we help save ourselves? For those of you that don't know me personally I am an Air Traffic Controller and have been involved in many searches for lost aircraft etc over the years and I tried to think of all the ideas that people had used to save themselves. Then it came to me I know!!! I need to call some of my sled buddies with GPS and have them plot our position on a topgraphical map then tranpose that to the Provincial Trail map and then translate these instructions into french and get this to the QPP. How hard can that be? So I called home and told my wife to start calling my sled buddies until you reach one and get him to do this and then call the HI to have Bill get it translated. I then hung up and called Bill and told him that he needed to find someone in the hotel with a GPS and go through the steps I described above to help rescue us. Bill callled me back shortly and told me he had someone with a GPS and was bilingual as well! I thought yes the jackpot!!! By this time a small army of sledders from Hard Core Sledder as well as other concerned sledders had assembled in the lobby of the Hi all very concerned about us and doing their best to come up with ideas on how to rescue us. Another member Snowcrazed showed up with his laptop and he had mapsource loaded on and together they had our position in a matter of seconds. They then set about calling the QPP and telling them exactly where we where!!! Around this time Bill called me back and told me he had Daniel to talk to me and Daniel told me that he had told the QPP exactly where to look for us and if they could not find us then HE COULD. He wanted to come but I felt that it would be extremely foolish to risk their lives as we were already in grave danger and it would make much more sense to stay there and wait for first light.

I now felt we had done our part and it was up to the QPP and search party to do their part. I did not think we would see anyone until morning but I was to be proven wrong.I am not sure of the exact timing but I believe it was around 11pm that as I was tending to the fire Dave screamed Andy I see lights and low and behold there were 3 sleds coming across the next field to our east. I grabbed my trusty mag light and told Dave to signal them and I would pour fuel on the fire to make a signal. They saw our light and turned directly at us! All I could think of was how are they moving across that field and if they came near us then we would have 5 people stuck needing rescue! Well it was just like a John Wayne movie three QPP officers came 3 abreast across that field and when they were a few hundred feet away they turned their police lights on!!! What a good feeling as that officer stepped off that sled and took his glove off in minus 24 temps and shook my hand and told me to relax we were in safety now and they were taking us to safety! I thanked him many times and did as he told me to put that fire out! Do you know how hard it was to keep going!!! We then found out how they were able to get to us as they loaded us on their Skandics which by the way are the most amazing sleds I have ever seen. They pulled up to us in 5 ft of powder and just stopped and even backed up and turned!!!

The police took us to a 24hr gas bar where we attempted to find a room but there were none available as with all the highways closed and a hockey tournament there were none to be had. So we spent a very uncomfortable night with a hundred other stranded travellers. The daylight brought good visibility and very cold temps so with 30 minutes of sleep we then set out to find a way to retrieve our sleds. Then just like a another sign from God 3 of the best guys you will ever meet rode in on their sleds. They were Mike Getman,Steve Big BIrd, and Justin from NY. We had met these fine gents 2 days prior at Windigo and all planned to stay at the HI but like us they did not make it. They managed to get to Hebertville and got the last room available. After telling of our adventure Justin the youngest of the group simply looked up from his breakfast and matter of factly said "we are helping you" no questions asked! True to their word we rode on their sleds and retrieved our sleds after some wild breaking trails and being stuck.

Dave and I them slowly made our way toward Jonquiere and when we stopped at a relais we met 2 gents from PA and they had been through an almost identictical exeperience but had managed to leave one sled on the trail and make it into Hebertville to find a room at a Gite. We teamed up with our new friends from PA and rode to the HI. When I walked into the lobby I went to a chair and basically collasped.I was out of gas big time as I had nothing else left to give and I knew we were safe.After a rest and getting cleaned up we came down to the lobby to find it full of people who were waiting to meet us. We had to tell our story a number of times and I don't mind saying that more than one tear flowed from my eyes.

Day6 Rode with our new friends John & Skip from PA to Quebec city via TQ83/3 ,what a difference a day can make! Beautiful day with super trails but cold in the morning.

Day7 Rode a reverse of day one with exception of 526 as we used 548 to go back to 85.Ended up with 1588 miles despite wasting a day and a half in the fields outside Hebertville.

In closing I want to thank everyone involved from the bottom of my heart for all their assistance and prayers and if I have left anyone out or mixed up the sequence of some events it was not intentional.

Well I must go as we are getting back on the horse tomorrow and heading to Bathurst to go sledding but with a renewed sense of respect for mother nature.

Andyman

Ps Dave got frostbite on his feet but no other injuries.

Learn from the mistakes of others. You will not live long enough to make them all yourself!

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Wow Andy, I was unfamiliar with this ordeal. Well handled. No doubt the first decisions made in an emergency are often the most critical as to what the outcome will be. If you panic you are finished and no help to anyone else. 

Smart man. Glad it all worked out for you both. 

Edited by iceman
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There were quite a number of us Quebecriders at the Holiday Inn the night after that storm and Andyman's ordeal and his arrival at the HI. It was one of the worst storms I had ever seen.

The good of all this was that I and others got to meet Andyman and become friends. Since then I always look for his sled at relais's whenever I am out riding, and have been lucky enough to run into Andy on several occasions.

mike

 

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10 hours ago, iceman said:

Wow Andy, I was unfamiliar with this ordeal. Well handled. No doubt the first decisions made in an emergency are often the most critical as to what the outcome will be. If you panic you are finished and no help to anyone else. 

Smart man. Glad it all worked out for you both. 

Don the funny thing about the entire situation was once I made the decision to stop trying to get  to the hotel and accept the fact we had to spend the night in the woods a feeling of calm came over me and I just said to myself "Andyman you have taken winter survival course's now is your time to use them"!!!

58 minutes ago, mikerider said:

There were quite a number of us Quebecriders at the Holiday Inn the night after that storm and Andyman's ordeal and his arrival at the HI. It was one of the worst storms I had ever seen.

The good of all this was that I and others got to meet Andyman and become friends. Since then I always look for his sled at relais's whenever I am out riding, and have been lucky enough to run into Andy on several occasions.

mike

 

Mike you have no idea how thankful and proud I was that night and next day at the HI to have so many HCS friends who helped rescue us and even offer to come out in that blizzard. At minus 27 degree C and 110km per hr winds and 60cm of snow I didn't want anyone to put themselves in the mess we were in. But if the police didn't rescue us like they did a posse of HCS at first light would have been awesome!!!!

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 I hope this doesn't come out wrong.

 In a perverse way I love this story.  2006 had been my first time in Quebec.  I remember reading this the first time Andyman posted it. Our first sled Adventure had taken us through those same areas so in a way I could relate and understand where he was in a way that I  still can't  to this day in places that I haven't ridden in Quebec.

 It's so funny to think at that time the GPS was so much less prevalent but I in fact had bought my first GPS just in preparation for going to Quebec for the first time.  It's kind of also reminder to understand how to use at least some of the functions of your GPS because under those circumstances some people might've had a hard time getting the coordinates out.  or maybe even giving them in the wrong format which could have been a grave error. 

As a group we've had our share of pretty serious adventures all of which pale in comparison to the bind Andyman found himself in.  I commend him for his resourcefulness resolve and preparedness. 

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32 minutes ago, actionjack said:

 I hope this doesn't come out wrong.

 In a perverse way I love this story.  2006 had been my first time in Quebec.  I remember reading this the first time Andyman posted it. Our first sled Adventure had taken us through those same areas so in a way I could relate and understand where he was in a way that I  still can't  to this day in places that I haven't ridden in Quebec.

 It's so funny to think at that time the GPS was so much less prevalent but I in fact had bought my first GPS just in preparation for going to Quebec for the first time.  It's kind of also reminder to understand how to use at least some of the functions of your GPS because under those circumstances some people might've had a hard time getting the coordinates out.  or maybe even giving them in the wrong format which could have been a grave error. 

As a group we've had our share of pretty serious adventures all of which pale in comparison to the bind Andyman found himself in.  I commend him for his resourcefulness resolve and preparedness. 

I always encourage people to learn how to use their GPS and the different functions and to be prepared. When this happened it was almost like being in an airplane simulator and you get emergencies thrown at you. You have to rely on your training and preparedness. People never think that this can't happen to you it can! We all have to ride smart and safe and be prepared and know when it is time to admit that the conditions are beyond our capabilities and to stay put and wait for things to improve.

 

Andy

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4 hours ago, Snobeeler said:

Andy, Thank you for reposting that. It had a big effect on how I prepare for my trips to Quebec and for that I thank you. Story still amazes me!

Jay you had one hell of an experience as well in that snowstorm.  Course you were on the black trail but it was still mighty scary.

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On 12/4/2016 at 9:21 PM, Andyman said:

At this point I just changed my focus from trying to make it to safety to making safety come to me.

Zen-Buddha-friggin awesome. Just friggin awesome.

Speaking of perverse, it felt weird to "like" your story!

Thanks for sharing (again).

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