Nathan Simpson first began sledding on his stepfather’s 1967 Bombardier 371e when he was just a kid. Now a father of two, he’s kept the family tradition alive. Five years ago Nathan began pulling his son, Dominic, and his daughter, Hanna (five and three, respectively, at the time) on a toboggan behind his sled. Dominic is currently saving up so he can accompany his father on his own sled next season.
How many sleds does your family own?
Currently, my family owns one sled, but my son, who is 10 now, is saving up for his first. I told him if he saved up for half, I'd pay for the other half. I expect he will have one next season.
What make is your sled?
I currently own a 2014 Ski-Doo Summit SP 146 800R E-TEC. I absolutely love my new E-TEC, with the T motion and flex edge track; it practically leans on its own. I'm really just along for the ride.
Where do you usually ride?
I usually ride around home in Lakeland County. I have a friend who is getting into sledding, so I can ride from my place, cross the lake, hit the trail and pop out at his place. From there, we ride on the lake and trails around Missawawi. His son, Tyler, has a (Yamaha) Bravo 250 so he and Dom ride whenever they get the chance.
What is your favourite type of riding?
My favourite type of riding has yet to be determined. On February 2, I (rode) in the mountains for the first time with Carl Kuster's Camp. I won an opportunity to ride with them through Power Merchants out of St. Paul by attending an avalanche seminar and filling out a questionnaire on what I thought of the seminar. Being that I have my AST 1 (Avalanche Skills Training Level 1), I found the seminar quite informative seeing it from a sledding point of view.
What is your favourite thing about riding?
Hard to say, I love everything about it, from carving in fresh powder and the feeling of floating to the smell of the two-stroke and racing across the lake while hanging out with my pals. I'm a huge outdoors enthusiast, and sledding has become my favourite outdoors activity.
What made the day you took this photo such an awesome day?
I think what made the day so great was just getting out there with my boy and seeing the look on his face after carving some turns in the snow. I think it was one of his first rides on Stella so he was pretty pumped. Also, the snow was great around our place when we went for this ride.
Is there anything else you’d like to add?
I have been contemplating the idea of trying to start a sledding club in the Lakeland area as there isn't one yet; the area has endless possibilities for riding. I think that would be awesome. We'll see how it goes.
