United Brachial Plexus Network, Inc. • One-armed Snowmobiling
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One-armed Snowmobiling

Posted: Mon Dec 10, 2012 5:40 pm
by Oscar280
Hello all. Here's a quick video of me running my snowmobile with a sensor I can control with my mouth.

I've been riding one-handed for years now with the throttle and brake on one handle bar and it works great. No complaints. However, I've been longing to get back in the mountains and to do that, your hand needs to move around and it's used to pull the snowmobile on it's side. This makes running the throttle nearly impossible. I found some cheap electronic parts and mounted a servo on the throttle body so now I can electrically control the throttle using force. This way, my hand is free to control the sled. The harder I bite down, the faster it goes. Pretty simple. In the video, I'm pinching the sensor with my finger. As soon as we get enough snow, I'll post a video of me actually riding and using my mouth to control the throttle.

http://youtu.be/sJfZ1SlLmn8

Cheers,

Oscar

Re: One-armed Snowmobiling

Posted: Tue Dec 11, 2012 2:08 am
by Christopher
Oscar... Now that's using your head! (pun intended)

Nice work Oscar and thanks for posting!
This kind of resilience and ingenuity are what I love most when coming to these forums!

Can't wait to see how it works out in the mountains & snow.

Well Done.

Cheers,
Chris

Re: One-armed Snowmobiling

Posted: Tue Dec 11, 2012 10:12 am
by Master DIVER TOM
Wow :shock: WE really get creative over time to adapt to WHAT EVER WE CAN in time!!!!! ;) :D So many great post like this :D
Call me crazy :shock: But this is the positive side of our injuries is the creative ways we have :idea: . To Try ;) and try again :shock:
So just to stir the need for a possible solution???? :roll: :roll: Might come in the form of a foot acceleration pedal for a SNOW mobile?? just thinking. :roll:
Foot acceleration can be done for a motor cycle to. You bet SAH!!!! ;) :D
Drove a Triumph Bonivelle with birth erbs, What me worry :shock:
Always,
Mr Positive , Being a Padi Master diver I was Dubbed Nemo years ago ;) When I saw nemo , I new I was going to get TAG :shock:
GREAT IDEA!!!!! ;) :D
Tom

Re: One-armed Snowmobiling

Posted: Tue Dec 11, 2012 11:05 am
by Oscar280
Thanks for the comments. Tom, that's a great idea when trail riding, but when riding in the mountains, you're feet are rarely in the same place for too long. You're moving all over the machine.

Re: One-armed Snowmobiling

Posted: Tue Dec 11, 2012 8:48 pm
by Master DIVER TOM
Hi Oscar,
Oh, I was just talking about being on the road and Cruising on a bike. Doing dirt biking would be a challenge with a foot accelerator , to keep your foot on it for -sure ;)
Man , just when you think you get the BUgs out :shock:
I have had alot of ideas that ether I adapt to ;) or they took more thinking to do so :roll:
or I could not find away to adapt. My motto is, you never fail by trying ;) WOW, do we try things by post !! ;) :D
Great Post-!! Oscar
Thanks,
Tom

Re: One-armed Snowmobiling

Posted: Wed Dec 12, 2012 7:20 am
by Master DIVER TOM
I was thinking :roll:
I have been posting like so many others here. ;)
Amazing :shock:
You see so many ways We Do find or ways to adapt ware possible by Post ;) :D If that try does not work you move on SOME HOW??? ;) I think :roll: We All become unstoppable in our own ways over time ;) Determination to overcome, Some way some Next idea to try comes up, alot of post like this :shock: :D To me it is a blessing to find ways to try and a JOY to remember the small and great thing we find we can do by our post, I think ;) :D , threw all the Pain :twisted: We find another idea to try :shock: even thou , we work threw the pain because we know :roll: That pain and gain do happen to archive what ever we can with our limitation were left with?? :roll:

The most inspiring things come from our trys and a Hell of alot of Gusts we post :shock: We all know what it takes, By so many post to. ;)
Courage comes with a price to try. A Quest for a better pain med for nerve stretch , Still never found the right one at 61.
What I do know its is harder to try when your pain level is hi :shock:
Driving a semi with birth erbs and pain level were :evil:

Just thinking, :roll:
Tom

Re: One-armed Snowmobiling

Posted: Tue Dec 18, 2012 12:32 am
by johnmetalman
Just remember injuries...y'all scare me sometimes....who cares what they say.

Re: One-armed Snowmobiling

Posted: Tue Dec 18, 2012 6:36 am
by Master DIVER TOM
You made me SMILE :shock:
There is one thing we share in Trying :roll: in life with our own limitations. Is a
Courage to try and try again attitude leads to a new Possible thing to adapt to in time :shock: Sometimes?? ;)
Over time like US is the battle scares of trying over time , Ouch :( It hurts when I do this Doctor, Doc reply , then dont do it. Yeah right :shock: , By our post here, is there seems to be many of us, who, Must be a ( gluttons for pain) by what we tryied and end up adapt to overtime. :o
Just thinking :roll:
My reply to the doc (what- EVER, Doc ) :shock: :D
We all are SOOOOO!!! creative over time , By our Post and our trys to adapt to a Vast amount of trys that do work out by our IDEAS we dream up by post to :shock: ITS REAL not just hope adapting is real in our trys :D , I think to :roll: :shock: Remember this when things dont work out :roll:I had plenty of those to over time like Us :roll:
Just a :idea:
Tom

Re: One-armed Snowmobiling

Posted: Mon Apr 01, 2013 2:04 pm
by Vynter
I lost use of my left arm from a snowmobile crash in 93. But I have been snowmobiling since. I have been out west to almost everywhere (Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, Idaho, British Colombia) riding with the big guys. For me I just needed to install a lefty throttle for my left sidehill needs. But I can definitely see where this setup would be handy because switching between throttles kills your momentum, and that's never good in the deep stuff. I've just had to learn to plan my lines a bit more that the other guys.

How did it work for you this year? I'd be afraid for inadvertent jaw clinches in some situations though. Between the both of us we'd be one hell of a rider. :)

Jamin

Re: One-armed Snowmobiling

Posted: Mon May 26, 2014 4:15 pm
by bcarpjr
Guys, I'm new to this page and forum. I lost use of my right arm in Feb of 2013 due to a snowmobile accident. I had a full brachial plexus root avulsion on the right side, all the nerves were torn completely out. I have a Ski-Doo MX Z 600 and many spare parts from the MX 600 I crashed. I would love to be able to go and ride again here in West and northern Michigan. Equally as important though, I would like to get to know you folks and share some of our stories, experiences, and ways we've overcome these challenges. I'm pleased to have found this group. Do they make a standard left-hand throttle?