8160-R3_MSA_October2022_MaineSnowmobiler

MSA Club News

the beginning stages, we are working on it as time permits. We still have a bunch of old pic tures that were taken throughout the years, so keep a look out you may make the web page!! Facebook Page –Andover SnowValley Sno-goers Web Page – www.snowvalleysno-goers.com Email – snowvalleysno-goers@yahoo.com Contact Information President, Richard Merrill 207-392-3481 Vice Presiden, Rusty Parker 978-609-4312 Treasurer, Jen McPhesin 207-392-1956 Trail Master, Wade McPhesin 207-381-0509 Administrator, Sherry Donovan 207-233-0468 Directors: Mac Grant, Brad Donovan, Darin Jodrey Not much to say this time BUT I “may” have given everyone the WRONG dates for our meetings this winter.? We will be meet ing at the Sam’s Italian place in Dixfield the SECOND Wednesday of each month starting in November at 6 PM EVERYONE is wel come. Please come and share any concerns you have, new ideas, or just to see how our club “works”. We have a GREAT group of officers, all doing their jobs the best they can. There is a LOT more to snowmobiling than just jumpoing on your sled and riding. MANY factors come into play immediately!! First and FOREMOST, is we (the club) has to get landowner permission!! NOT an easy job when you consider we have around 100 landowners in Dixfield!! Next is cutting brush or anything else that would be in the trail. Of course, not everyone knows exactly where they are, so signing the trails is a task that our trailmaster does (with help from a LOT of riders). Of course after every wind storm, there will be some branches in the trail that must he removed. Once we get enough snow, the grooming starts!! So while most of us are snuggled in bed, our HARD working groom ers are spending the night making the trails as smooth as possible!! Ya, try riding at 5 to 10 miles an hour for 4 to 8 hours at a time and tell me HOW MUCH FUN IT IS???!! Sometimes to only have ONE “cowboy” come along and spin up every corner and make moguls all over the trail!!! OUCH!! VERY discouraging to the guy who just spent his night TRYING to make YOUR ride as smooth as possible!!! Ya, I know, I said this would be short and sweet BUT once the “snowmobile” blood gets rolling in me, I can’t stop!! Sorry!! Our funds are very limited, so JOINING a club is VERY important. PLEASE join where you live AND where you ride the most. I have ridden all over our State and OUR trails are just as good, IF NOT BETTER, that the majority! Dave Berry, Jr and his grooming crew are VERY hard workers and take a tremendous amount of pride in making our trails as good as can be. Ya, maybe we had a breakdown of our one and only groomer, but I can assure you it will be fixed ASAP!!. NO trailmaster EVER wants to hear his trails are NOT good!! So bear with us in case that does happen. We spend around 150 hours every year grooming our trials, say nothing about the amount of time cutting brush, signing and bridge building and repair!! We are ALWAYS looking for anyone who would like to help!! Dave starts as soon as the cooler weather begins and would LOVE a few new “hands” to help!! Last year we got some AWESOME help from a few high school boys!! Ethen Woods, Curtis Errington, Conner Averill, and Cody Penley were a HUGE help to David!! THANK YOU, MEN!! None of us are getting any younger and the younger peo ple REALLY are a BIG help!!! If anyone has any questions, I can be reached at 207-357 2223. No question is too small and I will do my best to answer any ?? you have. Have a GREAT winter!! Ride right and ride safe. Club Reporter, JK.H. POODUNCK sc Dixfield, ME

Norway Trackers Norway, ME norwaytrackerssnowmobileclub@gmail.com Hello Sledders, We are right back at it. We had our first meeting with a good turnout and memberships are rolling in. Everyone is getting excited for the upcoming season. We will begin trail work Sunday mornings in mid-October. We have several projects on the docket including a new trail to Applebee’s. We appreciate all the help we can get on work days. Everyone is welcome at meetings and work sessions. We are selling Super Raffle tickets. Con tact us if you would like to purchase some to support our club and the MSA and a chance at some fantastic prizes. Follow us on Facebook for events and updates. Happy Halloween. Dan Trouant, club reporter Greetings, The air is crisp and fall is presenting the most beautiful foliage as always. Winter is fast approaching so start that annual maintenance and warm up those sleds in hopes of a great season this year! Many thanks to those of you who volun teered at our fair booth. We appreciate your help with our biggest fundraiser! Trail work has started and we have lots do to get the trail system ready for everyone. Keep an eye out next month for your invi tation to our annual club Christmas party that we’re hoping will be held at the Old Saco Inn again this year. They’re such great hosts and the food is delicious! Wishing that everyone stays healthy, happy, and safe! Hi there! You will be happy to hear what I just found out. I’m not sure about this, but it came from a very reliable source. Because there is a lack of ACORNS on the ground right now.....that tells a VERY IMPORTANT fact. We are going to be bombed with TONS OF SNOW this winter. Have you ever heard that? Well, I for one, will take an old wives tale any day if it means more riding on our beautiful Maine trails this winter. Let’s go with that. Just saying. Our first meeting of the season was last night...Mostly going over what needs to be done this fall....and we are happy to be work ing with the local ATV clubs from Oxford & Mechanic Falls. Sharing lumber for bridges and man power. Stay safe working on the trails. Any snow updates on “old wives tales”? Spread the word! Thanks! Terri Major, Secretary Bridget Gorton Club Secretary ROCK-O-DUNDEE RIDERS Oxford, ME ANDOVER SNOW VALLEY SNO-GOERS Andover, ME Hi, from the Andover Snow Valley Sno-Go ers. As the summer season comes to an end, we are all doing the snow dance up here in good old Andover. We have done a lot over the summer season getting ready for this year. We have worked on some bridges, cleared brush, and done some more signage to our trails. We also had a tent in “Andover Old Home Days” again this year, we met a lot of people and had some great conversations, thank you all who stopped by to say Hello. We also want to give a shout out to all of you that donated to our club, this is a big help when it comes to maintaining our trails and equipment. Please note we now have a web page, it’s in FRYEBURG AREA SNOWMOBILE ASSOCIATION Fryeburg, ME

STREAKED MOUNTAINEERS sc Buckfield, ME

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Respectfully submitted, Libby Nilsen, club reporter Libby Nilsen, club reporter

Greetings all, We had our first meeting of the 2022/23 snowmobile season. There were the usual members in attendance and a total of eight. We have a difficult time convincing mem bers to attend the meetings....maybe as win ter approaches we will have better luck. The meeting covered trail/bridge work. The pres ident, Mark Fox, has made it clear that this will be his last year as president. It is a thank less job and he has done it years longer now than he would like due to limited options and nobody else wanting to take over the position. We will be busy getting membership renew als collected and submitted. Meetings are held the 3rd Wednesday each month at 7 pm at the club house on Morrill St. Please come. The guys meet most Sunday mornings at 0800 at the Tucker garage on Depot St to do trail work. Please join them. Until snow, enjoy the great fall weather and the beautiful fall colors (Prettier than white!!). As I write this our club hasn’t had its first meeting yet. So, I do not have much informa tion to put out, but I do have a few important ones. First trail work detail (brushing) for the 2022/2023 season. We will meet at George Berry’s garage (out back) at 132 Miles Square Road in Phillips at 8 AM on Sunday Octo ber 2nd and every Sunday thereafter unless of inclement weather. All are welcome and appreciated. The last thing I want mention is our club meeting dates. October 2nd, Novem ber 6th, December 4th, January 8th, February 5th, March 5th and April 2nd. All meetings are at 5 PM at Shadagee meeting room Phillips. Be Safe and start thinking snow! David Greely, Vice President COASTAL REGION ALNA sc Alna, ME Hello all riders and readers, We have not had our first meeting as of this writing so not much yet to report. Ticket sales at the Wiscasset Raceway went great with lots of happy race fans and sun shine. Thanks to Alan for bringing down the prizes for all to see. Big thank you to Rich and Venessa Jordan for letting us sell tickets. I know John has had sleds moving into his garage for maintenance and general upkeep so members are getting excited for the season to get underway. I will report on the MSA show and our meet ings in next issue. Happy Fall to all! Club Reporter, Joel Verney Hello from sunny Saco, Maine. It’s that time of year when the summer toys are being put away and we start thinking of winter fun. Be sure to get ahead of the curve and get your equipment ready to ride. That includes your trailer, vehicle, and riding gear. If you ordered new 2023 sled, hopefully it arrives intact and not missing any back-ordered parts. Our club has begun the process of side-by side shopping. It’s been on our radar for a num ber of years, but we’ve finally decided to go down that path. It will be used in the fall for trail maintenance, then we’ll put tracks on it for grooming. We know it’s a big investment, but it has become clear that it’s a much-needed piece of equipment. If you’re familiar with the Saco/Scarborough/ Dayton areas, you know the past few years have been less than optimal for snowmobiling. Any Club Reporter, Leah Frechette NORTH FRANKLIN sc Phillips, ME Find us on Facebook SACO PATHFINDERS sc Saco, ME Find us on Facebook

BRIDGTON EASY RIDERS sc Bridgton, ME

Hello MSAMembers, Twenty-eight members of the Bridgton Easy Riders gathered on September 9th for the first meeting of the season, and to enjoy the Fabulous Pot Luck Supper. President Blaine Chapman called the busi ness meeting to order with a Pledge of Alle giance at 6:45PM. He reported that there are a number of potential trail changes this year, including at least one improved trail route. We hope to be able to GPS these new trails so they can be included on the new 2023 Lake Region Snowmobile Trail Map now being developed by Bill Preis. Vice-President Bob Corthell reported good progress on the 501C3/ tax exempt project, which we expect will be approved soon. He also reported that beginning in January 2023, Pay Pal can be used for donations to the Club. Thanks to Jason Lapriore for arranging this. Bob has lined up 2 Guest Speakers for future meetings: Alan Swett (President of MSA) will attend our meeting on October 14th, and Cor poral Kris MacCabe, Maine Game Warden and Land Owner Relations Specialist for the State of Maine, will attend our January 13th, 2023 meeting. We look forward to some very interesting and informative discussions. Bob Corthell reminded us that our Club is now 50 years old. According to the By-Laws, the Bridgton Easy Riders Snowmobile Club was officially incorporated on January 2, 1972. Our Club had originally begun on Jan uary 15, 1966, under the name “Bridgton Sno Drifters” , but because another Club was also using the SnoDrifters name, MSA (which was formed in 1968) became involved. As a result, we changed our name to Bridgton Easy Riders. Bob also reported that he got a quote from Muddy River Signs for a 2-foot diameter decal of the BER Logo which would be perfect for the back of your trailer. It is available in the original dog-on-a-snowmobile that has been our logo for 50 years, or an updated version. The cost is $50; order directly from Muddy River Signs. Andy Merrill has agreed to build 2 more Informational Kiosks for the trail, so the new map can be posted on them. Thanks, Andy, for your continued service to the Club! Steve Emery, Trip Planner Extraordi naire, reported on two Club Trips that he has put together for 2023: a February trip to Millinocket; and a March trip to Caribou. Information on how to participate has gone out to Club members. Make your reservations now - these trips are popular! Our next Club meeting will be on Friday, October 14th, at Bridgton Community Center. Fabulous potluck supper at 6 PM, followed by 6:45 business meeting. All are welcome. Hope to see you there. Bill Preis Hello everyone. We had our first meeting with six members present. We discussed sev eral different items and we are looking really good for this riding season. We have acquired two bridges on the River Road Trail and will be rebuilding one and opening another for rec reational use only. We are excited for this win ter and hoping for some good riding. Meetings are the second Tuesday of the month at the clubhouse, all are welcome to attend. VP Ben Hadley BER Club Correspondent Bridgtoneasyriders.com Mount Tom sc Sumner, ME

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