Timbersleds, changing the game!

By Jonathan Anstey

With a full season now under our belts, it’s time to share our thoughts on the Timbersled ARO 120. If you are looking for the most possible fun you can have on a motorized vehicle, a Timbersled is for you!

We used to think that converting your bike from winter to summer was a daunting task and almost too much work to make it worthwhile converting back and forth, but those myths are now debunked. The installation process is actually quite simple, especially with the addition to the pre-bled brake system that come standard on all kits. Order the appropriate fit kit for your bike, unbolt your tires and swing arm and bolt on your winter fun maker!

The ARO 120 like we had been using this past winter is aptly suited for Newfoundland terrain and snow conditions. It can go everywhere in the deep and when we say everywhere…we mean it! The 120 is compliant on the trail and hard pack, for the minimal time you will spend on it. You’d be very surprised how much fun trail side terrain becomes when you rewire your mind and thought process on what you can actually ride. Being an avid lifelong snowmobiler, trying to remap what you view as ‘rideable’ was one of the hardest parts. Tight spaces are threaded with ease, steep side hills are no longer sidehills just a black canvass waiting to have a single track cut into it!  We kid you not…first time snow bike riders can jump on the unit, work some initial bugs out, or as Andrew Goldsworthy coined it, “lose the Bambi legs” and amazingly, that same rider can be ripping side hill pulls on the same day, with minimal effort.

We travelled long distances though the backcountry with snowmobiles through our favourite routes, bringing them back into view only to make sure they were still coming along the valley bottom.

We’ve put dozens of people on the Timbersled this season and everyone’s reaction is basically the same, WOW… wasn’t expecting that! We’ve had everyone from avid dirt bikers to non-bikers ride the ARO and done so with ease. One thing that stands out to us is we come home after a long day of riding, noticeably less fatigued than a similar day on snowmobile. High paced, hard riding on a Timbersled is nothing more than sitting back, leaning from side to side and swapping gears!

I am a firm believer that the Snow Bike is here to stay and will eventually overtake the snowmobile, at least in the backcountry segment! They are so much fun I have a hard time even talking about them without getting giddy, do yourself a favour and give one a try, you’ll smile for days!

All photos taken by Tom Caines of @Sledcore.