Hitting the Water with your Snowmobile? E3 Spark Plugs Weighs In.

Make sure you've got a new set of E3 snowmobile spark plugs before heading to the lake shore for some watercross action this summer. Andreas Gradin / Shutterstock.com

For those who suffer separation anxiety with the springtime’s first thaw, we’ve got good news. Just because the powdery snow gives way to the green grass, that doesn’t mean you have to part ways with your beloved snowmobile.  E3 Spark Plugs does have a few safety tips for the snowmobile skimming set, however.

Snowmobile skimming (also see summer sports: pond skipping and watercross) involves snowmobilers hydroplaning their sleds across the surface of lakes or rivers. Remember those cartoons where the dog/cat/horse ran so fast that when he reached a body of water, he just ran across the surface until he looked down, panicked and sank? Well, that’s a bit like skimming.

Skimming is possible because sleds have wide tracks for traction and flotation in the snow. If a driver hits the water at a fast enough speed and keeps his snowmobile’s throttle open, the track will keep the snowmobile moving across the water’s surface. But, if a rider backs out of the throttle or if his snowmobile bogs, down goes the ship . . so to speak.

Safety precautions required at the annual World Champion Snowmobile Watercross competition held in Grantsburg, Wisconsin since 1977 include wearing a life jackets and tethering a buoy to the sled. If a sled sinks, the rider releases the buoy from the snowmobile so that it floats to the top and makes identifying the retrieval spot easier. If your snowmobile does hit the lake bottom before it hits the shore, it can be revived. You’ll need to drain the water from the carburetor and exhaust, replace the fuel and get yourself a new set of snowmobile spark plugs. Be sure to check our online cross reference catalog to find the right E3 snowmobile spark plugs for your sled.