OUCH!!
Many people who visited the Ride Clean NY booth at Snow Bash last weekend thought at first this snowmobile belonged to a drunken rider who got unlucky and hit a tree. When we told them this snowmobile was operated by a sober rider, Paul Prill, who was killed when his snowmobile collided with another snowmobile operated by an out-of-control intoxicated rider (who also died), the whole complexion of the conversation changed. Jaws dropped as people realized how grizzly this wreck really was and that an innocent person died.
Of course, there were a number of people who knew the story of the fatal alcohol related snowmobile accident on Indian Lake last winter. But you could almost hear a pin drop when Kyle Prill, an eyewitness to the accident who watched his father die on the lake, gave his heart-wrenching account at the Ride Clean NY booth on Saturday. That was no easy feat with the noisy drag races in progress nearby.
No picture can do total justice as to how mangled this snowmobile is: the twisted bulkhead and tunnel, the bashed in gas tank from rider impact, the melted aluminum on the left side from the fire, the snapped off left suspension arm and shock, the primary and secondary clutches fused together, the warped floorboards, etc. A snowmobile that was once 10 feet long, now sits on an 8 foot long utility trailer.
The impact that destroyed two snowmobiles and suddenly ended two lives occurred during the span of less than a second! As I manned the Ride Clean NY booth last weekend, I continually noticed different aspects of how this snowmobile was destroyed. The thought of two people dying among that carnage made my stomach turn.
People could not keep their eyes off this wreck at Snow Bash as they walked by. This was a very common sight as hundreds of people stopped by our booth over the weekend:
We even got the attention of WUTR-TV, which lead to their interview with Ride Clean NY President Paul Lenz, slated to be aired in a couple of weeks:
The wrecked snowmobile WAS the story and an amazing conversation piece. The feedback was phenomenal and I’m certain that we changed somebody’s mind about drinking ANY amount of alcohol before or while riding a snowmobile.
We’ll have the wrecked snowmobile again at Ride Clean’s booth for the Eastern Grass Drag Nationals @ Excell Raceway Park in Bouckville this weekend. Don’t worry if you have never heard of Bouckville. Just Mapquest “6950 State Route 20, Bouckville, NY” and get directions. I’ll give you a hint: it’s about 40 minutes southwest of Utica by car.
Stop at Ride Clean’s booth and look at this snowmobile in person. If you drink alcohol while snowmobiling, we’re not going to crack you over the skull and make you feel bad. We just want you to look at this snowmobile up close and have an open mind. I guarantee that you’ll think long and hard before your next ride after seeing this wreck. You may not think something like this could ever happen to you. But this happened to somebody who was sober and finishing a ride with his beloved son and daughter-in-law.
Dozens of lives were horribly altered by an accident that was entirely preventable. The Ride Clean NY team wants snowmobiling to be safe and fun for everybody.
So, please stop by the Ride Clean NY booth at the Excell Drag Races this weekend. We’ll be there both Saturday and Sunday. The best part of these fall events for me is meeting the terrific people who share my passion for the greatest winter pastime on the planet. No way I would have met the legendary Big John Dough if I had stayed home and wasted my time watching football:
See you this weekend at Excell Raceway Park in the Ride Clean NY booth!
Darrin @ ilsnow.com
