Bi-directional snow sled with steering/braking levers
View Patent ↗A snow sled having a body with a top surface and a bottom surface, wherein the top surface is configured to receive a rider in at least one of a prone position and a seated position. The snow sled further including a brake mechanism pivotally mounted to the body for hand actuation to impede the speed of the snow sled, wherein the brake mechanism includes a handle end and a barbed end and wherein the brake mechanism has a first orientation for actuation when the rider is in a prone position and a second orientation for actuation when the rider is in a seated position.
1. A bi-directional snow sled comprising:
a body having a first end and a second end wherein either end may function as the front of the sled; and
a braking/steering lever pivotally mounted to the body for hand actuation to induce drag, wherein the lever includes a handle end and a braking end, the lever being pivotally movable in a first direction to create drag when the sled travels in a first direction, and pivotally movable in a second direction to create drag when the sled travels in a second direction.
2. The bi-directional snow sled of claim 1 , wherein the braking/steering lever is mounted on a first side of the body with a mounting bracket.
3. The bi-directional snow sled of claim 2 , wherein a second braking/steering lever is mounted on a second side with a mounting bracket, opposed to the braking/steering lever mounted on the first side, wherein actuation of the lever mounted on the first side causes the sled to turn toward the first side and actuation of the second lever causes the sled to turn toward the second side.
4. The bi-directional snow sled of claim 3 wherein the braking/steering levers are mounted on the sled body closer to the first end than to the second end.
5. The bi-directional snow sled of claim 1 , wherein the braking end includes barbs configured to increase braking and steering force by increasing drag.
6. The bi-directional snow sled of claim 5 , wherein the braking end includes an upper and lower surface that are tapered and a blunted end.
7. The bi-directional snow sled of claim 1 , wherein the handle end is curved inward toward the body of the sled.
8. The bi-directional snow sled of claim 7 , wherein the handle end is sufficiently curved to overlap the body of the sled, thereby preventing the handle end from rotating past a top surface of the body of the sled in either direction of rotation.