Snowmobile rental business

[Otter]

I have a very busy summer bussiness so I get to spend alot of time enjoying my hobby Snowmobiling in winter.Got me thinking about maybe doing a rental business for it, We own a location for it,we own some snowmobiles,and I spend almost all my winter in the area.Not trying to get rich just to defray some cost of enjoying myself and give me something to occupy time.Anybody on here ever rent recreational vehicles,Snowmobiles,jet ski,boats etc,like to here some pros and cons.

 

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[Russ H]

Rent out cross country skis instead.

Maintenance is far less, and less liability.

Overall costs would be less, too.

I'm talking out of my butt here-- as I know NOTHING about seasonal rentals.

All of the ventures we've done have shied away from seasonal stuff- we try to find places/things that generate year round income.

So I'm probably a bad person to give advice.

Still, this is what I'd do if I were in snow country and wanted to start a rental business: Cross country skis, pre-packed backpacks (w/snacks and a cell phone, extra battery, map, and GPS), and trails.

-Russ H.

 

[exon]

I don't know anything about snowmobiles, but have few friends that rent jet-skis >>> And their profit mostly depends on mainetenance and repair cost. If engine or turbo charger on SeaDoo brake down -- they can't brake even that year. I always ask them why they don't take or find some insurance so that they cover the cost - but they said that this kind of service does not exist.

In all cases it turned out that most common problem with mechanical/electrical issues is "standing time".

Russ - I think your moto is "Make Customer Happy --- or Die" :cheers:

 

[theBiz]

may be a good idea, i know many people getting out due to the costs. Considering some snowmobiles can cost up to 12k now some people just cant swing it anymore. This may give more opportunity to renting them, its the same ideas as homes, if you cant afford one, you have to rent.

 

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[biophase]

The one time I rented a snowmobile up in the Rockies, this lady on another rental crashed into me denting it. The guide told her it would cost her her deposit plus probably another $500. She and her husband argued about it because it was just a little dent. I can't imagine they were very happy about spending another $500-$800 on their vacation.

I would imagine that this sort of thing is very common among snowmobile rentals. You probably need to have everyone get insurance or a huge deposit.

 

[Jill]

I don't know anything about it either!! But I can tell you that after our little mini vacay to a lake resort this summer, we seriously considered investing in some little ski boats and ski-doos. Jeezopeetz! $100-200/HOUR?!?!?

But alas, we recalled the lovely old words of wisdom, "If it flies, floats or f...s, rent it!". It was nice to know that the funny noise it was making was NOT our problem!!

 

[Otter]

thanks for the replies.
As far as cross country skis the small down hill ski area has a lock on renting them,groomed trails,no snowmobiles on the trail,and kids can go tubing,downhill skiing or whatever.
I think I have to look into Insurance and the liability issues,and yes the amount of a deposit I can get from the customers.
As the price of these things keeps going up and the economy is not getting any better I feel people will still wnat to get out but not have the $12000 to put down on a snowmobile to use a few weekends a year.

I also love renting things we have a boat on our lake in NYS,but alot of times when visiting other lakes we rent,try other type boats,no hassle of trailering,and at end of day no upkeep,hand the keys back and on our way.

 

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[CommonCents]

You might look into snowmobile timeshares. They are doing it with boats here in MN. For certain fixed fees you get access to various types of boats to use a certain amount of days w/out headaches of maintenance, depreciation, buying a snowmobile, storage, trailering etc...

Might be a steady base business for you for people in near local area that like to snowmobile fairly often that don't want to buy themselves. Could dovetail in with the short term daily rentals to the once a season vacationers.

 

[Otter]

I will look into the timeshare end of it,would be the first in area to offer this,not a bad Idea.

 

[Otter]

Never did anything but

I was up there last weekend closing Down my vacation rental business for winter and found out the one insurance company out of Canada that was writing 99% of the policies is pulling out of the market.Now all the other rental outfits are scrambling and finding out it's cost prohibitive to run as a business .
Good thing I did not spend the money to get going on it.

 

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[368race]

this is an old thread and it sounds like you chose to not proceed which is probably a good thing...

but my two cents would be that when I was involved with a powersports dealership we rented everything - scooters in summer for tourists and sleds in the winter, tapping into corp get aways for executives etc. Makes sense if it is your core business, but if not you will get killed on seasonal insurance which is a huge cost as is the maintenance of the units. We had a good supply of used units from the auction that we could use as rentals so that we didn't have to get into crazy arguements over minor scratches etc. Depending where you are licensing could be prohibitive as well. Also if you are a retailer you have incentives from OEM's for rentals (fleet deals), however warranty repairs will be void but at least you can keep the rotation going and still resell for profit...if you are not a retailer it's harder to have that rotation so finding reliable units (read 4-strokes) is key...so at the end of the day it's not a great money maker and will likely create more headache for you as a part time business (i.e. risk not worth reward here)...not to mention kill your enthusiasm to ride which is the worst part!

 

[smith360]

If your business is snowmobiling then you need to be listed on Snow Tracks!

 

[CEBenz]

But alas, we recalled the lovely old words of wisdom, "If it flies, floats or f...s, rent it!". It was nice to know that the funny noise it was making was NOT our problem!!

Seems like I recall that quote being attributable to Felix Dennis the publishing magnate.

With various versions of same stated by many others.

 

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