Hai, I too loved my Phazer. In a way, even though I traded up to a sled that in superior in almost every way, I was sad to see it go.
I also agree that renting a sled for a weekend or 2 is a great idea. It gives you a chance to ride a smaller, less-powerfull sled so that you can get somewhat of an idea of how to drive a snowmobile.
I still say even after that to find an older sled, and ride that for 5 years to make certain that you are going to stick with snowmobiling for the long haul.
Snowmobiling is one of the greatest, yet at the same time most frustrating sports you could ever get into. Snowmobiling is great because it doesnt have many of the rules that you would have if you had a motorcycle or a car. You can ride at 30 mph or 130 mph, its all in the conditions and how you feel on any given day. There have been many days when I have gotten home after a hard day of work and went out and rode for a few hours. Those are days when I rode harder than I thought I was capable of riding, but it helped me to relase some of the frustrations of life.
At the same time, I have had many years when I spend $5000 on a new sled only to have good riding conditions never materialize. This left me with a very bitter feeling and oftentimes caused me to consider trading my sled in for an ATV or motorcycle. Once I even went so far as to sell my sled, only to have the conditions change giving us excellent riding conditions less than a month later. An ATV is a lot of fun, but when the snow flies a sled is a million times more fun. Ive gotten to the point now where I have decided that I am going to focus my money on snowmobiling and snowmobile alone. Ive we dont get ridable conditions, the money I put aside for gas will just sit another year in the bank and my sled and my truck will last me at least another year longer because my sled wont get the normal wear 'n tear from a winter of riding and my truck wont have to make 4 or 5 trips up to Minocqua and back (500 miles round trip).
I must admit though, I havent met many people who ride a snowmobile and dont like the experience. I have used a line I heard once from a tatoo artist when I introduce people to snowmobiling. I tell them after they ride my sled, "welcome to the addiction"...
Hebi