Importance of using a teather strap

Sledtillded

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How sensitive is the tethair? If you roled your sled on a climb like this guy and you never really left your sled would it shut off? I am not sure how it works but it seems if your on top or under your sleds it’s no real distance difference.

I had a chat about the teth-air at the sled show and the newest version is real slick. It has a laser on the block that senses your hand and there is a built in delay for brief times if you pull your hand off the bars. There’s more to it and am sure teth- air will chime In

I installed a magnetic tether on my 20 AXYS and love it. I also use 2 carabiners. One on the cord one on my suit And just clip / unclip them. Wayyyy Easier with gloves on. This eliminates the PIA of attaching thus why guys don’t use them.
 

Teth-Air

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I had a chat about the teth-air at the sled show and the newest version is real slick. It has a laser on the block that senses your hand and there is a built in delay for brief times if you pull your hand off the bars. There’s more to it and am sure teth- air will chime In

I installed a magnetic tether on my 20 AXYS and love it. I also use 2 carabiners. One on the cord one on my suit And just clip / unclip them. Wayyyy Easier with gloves on. This eliminates the PIA of attaching thus why guys don’t use them.

Thanks for the kind words above guys.

Reality:

Snowmobiling can be a dangerous sport and the goal should be to minimize the danger.

1. All tethers are a good tool, if you use them (most that have them don't use them)
2. Corded tethers can be a pain, especially around trees, when on and off the machine a lot, or trying to hook up in the dark.
3. All tethers, corded or cordless have scenarios where they can fail.

What differentiates the Laser Phantom from a cord type is the following:

1. Automatic, whether it is you or your kid jumping on your sled you don't have to remember to do anything. Just start and go.
2. The Phantom Teth-Air arms only when the track starts spinning so jumping on and off your machine is easy.,
3. The multi-colour LED is Red without your hand on the grip, green to confirm your hand is there and blue when hand is present and track is spinning (armed)
4. The Phantom has a user selected time delay. 0.5 seconds to 3 seconds. This buys some time if your hand slips off the grip by accident or if you throttle up and push the sled away from you when you jump off to avoid a stuck.
5. And this one is BIG, the Phantom has a roll-over shutdown feature. This goes way beyond a tether and is often under-appreciated. If you ride steep slopes you likely unexpectedly roll your sled more than you have the sled experience a run away due to throttle sticking. This sensor also has a 0.5-3 second delay so you can customize it. It really can be scary to be pinned under your sled, especially when the sled is revving at full throttle.

In the end, the Phantom does make your ride a better experience. We have so much stuff we have to worry about when riding these days like GPS, heated goggles, radios, in-reach, phone, beacons, avy packs etc. When has someone actually offered to take away a worry? This is what it is about.

If you have a cord tether and it works for you, great. If you think it is a good idea but can't bring yourself to wear it 100% of the time. the Phantom is a good alternative with some advantages.
 

TDR

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How sensitive is the tethair? If you roled your sled on a climb like this guy and you never really left your sled would it shut off? I am not sure how it works but it seems if your on top or under your sleds it’s no real distance difference.

I’m sure Chris will chime in but if I recall correctly the Tethair works either when the laser does not see your hand or if the sled rolls.
 

Teth-Air

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I’m sure Chris will chime in but if I recall correctly the Tethair works either when the laser does not see your hand or if the sled rolls.

70 degrees from center, (side to side) is the shut off point, after the time delay. At that angle and you are not riding still as it is tipped beyond the roll over point, unless you are physically holding it from rolling down the hill.
 

neilsleder

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I had a chat about the teth-air at the sled show and the newest version is real slick. It has a laser on the block that senses your hand and there is a built in delay for brief times if you pull your hand off the bars. There’s more to it and am sure teth- air will chime In

I installed a magnetic tether on my 20 AXYS and love it. I also use 2 carabiners. One on the cord one on my suit And just clip / unclip them. Wayyyy Easier with gloves on. This eliminates the PIA of attaching thus why guys don’t use them.

Yah I never knew how they worked and always wondered. I thought they were like a fob that you only needed to be close to the machine. Good to here that it’s like the way it is! Sounds like a nice set up.
 

Teth-Air

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Yah I never knew how they worked and always wondered. I thought they were like a fob that you only needed to be close to the machine. Good to here that it’s like the way it is! Sounds like a nice set up.

Yes this is the 3rd generation of the product over 10+ years and it has evolved with much feedback from riders to give them what they want.
 

Couch

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Yes this is the 3rd generation of the product over 10+ years and it has evolved with much feedback from riders to give them what they want.
Thanks for the info ... Sounds like a terrific system ....figured that it was proximity based only but obviously is a much improved set up.
I still use a simple $20 aftermarket corded tether with loop around left hand ... occasional unintended snag and shut down but the inconvenience is worth the safety factor.
Tether should be mandatory and your system would be a great standard for the oems
 

JungleJim

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Yes this is the 3rd generation of the product over 10+ years and it has evolved with much feedback from riders to give them what they want.
I've been running the new Laser Phantom on all three of our sleds and it has been flawless! The roll-over feature saves us more times than the actual tether feature as usually when we fall off the sled is rolling, many times directly at the rider. Having had regular tethers that have frozen up and not worked the Teth-Air is a great worry free safety device that can be moved from sled to sled. Highly recommend! I know its not the cheapest option but after having a work colleague lose their leg years ago to a spinning sled track at wide open throttle... its money well spent!
 

snopro

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Chris have you ever approached any of the OEM's about your tether? Maybe the buy out and royalties would put you in the black for life. Lol
 

moyiesledhead

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If you wrap the tether around your wrist it doesn’t get hung up on the bars anymore.

Yes it does. It gets wrapped around the bars so you can't get away, then traps you under your sled when it goes over backwards and nearly kills you. Watch either Followcam 2 or 3.....don't remember which.....my son is lucky to be alive after that one. Tether belongs attached to your coat or pack waste belt, plain and simple.

Edit: Followcam 2. Trapped at 2:15 in this teaser. The climb that caused it is at 2:45. Still freaks me out to see it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cw-krhaw3Io
 
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Rjjtcross8

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I believe it’s a must have. I still get surprised by how many folks out there that don’t use them.
 

fredw

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I keep mine hooked to my waste.. works well but the odd time some how it gets tangled up over or unemder brake lever, sucks but I know it is a quick fix to untangle.. seen a guy a few weeks back with two cords tied together, to give him more space he said, don't think that is a good idea.. they need to be short
 

skegpro

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