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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 1994-01-19, Page 10PAGE 10. THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 19, 1994. Trail preparation enhances enjoyment of sport By Janice Becker With the abundance of snow received by Huron and neighbour­ ing counties in the last few years, enthusiasm for outdoor activities such as snowmobiling seems to have increased. B&W Trailblazers club member Don Blake of RR 1 Auburn says membership in the Brussels snow­ mobile club has risen to over 500 during its five years of organiza­ tion. The club now maintains approximately 105 miles of trails, running from the outskirts of Blyth to Brussels, Ethel, Walton and heading towards Monkton. The bright, clear, crisp days of this season have made for excellent snowmobiling if one is dressed warmly enough. A good snowmo­ bile suit, warm gloves and boots and a helmet are essential. With increased interest and traf­ fic on the province's trails, safety has become a major concern for the riders, landowners and the organi­ zations who look after the trails. On the local club level, proper preparation and care of the trails is the first concern. • Bruce Howson of the Blyth Sno- travellers Club, which operates approximately 75 kilometres of trails from Belgrave to Londesboro and Auburn, says the trails are groomed at least twice a week depending on snow conditions. Grooming is the process of driv­ ing special equipment over the trails to cut down excessive bumps, even out and pack the trail. The width of the groomed trail, which can vary from four feet to eight feet, depends on the equipment used. In recent years, area clubs have tried to get neighbouring clubs to agree to a central grooming system. This would entail all clubs using the same size industrial groomer to ensure more uniformity of trail Bruce Region reveals winter’s best kept secret By Craig Nicholson, The Intrepid Snowmobiler The secret is out. It has been well kept for a long time, but now it's time to tell the world. The Bruce Region has snowmobile trails second to none and they are worth big bucks to local communities. This is old news to over 4,500 family snowmobilers who, as members of 22 local snowmobile clubs, form the Bruce Regional Snowmobile Association. It's good news for hundreds of area businesses who can tap into a new source of winter revenue. And it winter jobs, The province’s best Don Lumley, Ontario Federation of Snowmobile Club president, front and centre recently toured the trails in the Bruce Region with Association members. Mr. Lumley, who hales form Sudbury was extremely impressed with the trails, saying they are some of the best in the province. The B&W Trailblazers is a member club of the Bruce Regional Snowmboile Association and Mr. Lumley and his entourage stopped at the clubhouse near Brussels for lunch. Second from right is Immediate Past President of BRSA and Trailblazer Vice-president Mark Gropp. Extreme right is club president Kieven Bennewies. quality, says B&W Trailblazer and past president of the Bruce Region­ al Snowmobile Association, Mark Gropp of Brussels. Even though few clubs have agreed to using a common machine, most have gone to the industrial size, creating well groomed trails for a comfortable ride. Two clubs in the region, Blyth and Wingham, still use the smaller Alpine grooming machine which is too slow for clubs that care for many miles of trails, says Mr. Gropp. Mr. Blake says regular grooming is necessary because once the snow has become too firmly packed by the snowmobiles it is very difficult to remove all the bumps. "The compression of the snow causes it to melt and then refreeze into ice." Rick Konarski of RR1 Blyth, another B&W Trailblazer member says their trails must be groomed on Mondays because of extensive weekend use and again near the end of the week to prepare for the heavy usage. He says volunteer club members begin preparing the trails before the trails are ready to ride because brush must be removed from bush trails and bulldozers are used for the creation of new trails through some bush areas. Bridges over streams and creeks must also be checked and with the first rides, members post signs and trail markers to keep riders informed and safe. The trails are marked very clearly with stakes on either side to ensure the riders stay on the trail. This is for the riders safety as well as cour­ tesy to the landowners who have donated the use of fields and bush. "Because riders are travelling greater distances, over unfamiliar trails, it is important that all courses are clearly marked," says Mr. economic development and spin­ off prosperity for every snowbelt community. The secret was revealed last week to Ontario Federation of Snowmobile Clubs' (OFSC) President Don Lumley and several of his directors during a 1,000 kilometre snowmobile ride through Western Ontario. The tour, guided by local snowmobile clubs, came out of the Grey Bruce and Georgian Triangle areas and featured stops in Listowel, Palmerston, Brussels, Monkton and Arthur over two days of local snowmobiling. "This area may be the best kept Gropp. There are guidelines for the signs and markers determined by the Ontario Federation of Snowmobile Clubs (OFSC). "Stay on the Trail" signs are fre­ quently seen as are "Wheat Field" and speed limit signs. The speed limit on all trails is 50 kilometres, whether posted or not. Mr. Konarski says speed is the biggest safety hazard to snowmo- bilers. "Often the novice riders think they can handle high speeds but lose control easily if an unex­ pected obstacle confronts them. They also do not reduce their night driving speed. Even 50 km. per hour is often too fast as the lights on the machine do not light a great enough distance to create safe driv­ ing." "Night speeds should be reduced to 40 or 45 km. per hour," says Mr. Konarski, "especially for the novice driver or those unfamiliar with the trails." "Even for those who travel the trails regularly, the bumps and snow conditions change constantly so the rider must always be aware and ready to handle the situation," says Mr. Blake. Maintaining a controllable speed is important for everyone, especial­ ly for the novice riders and those with experience but less weight with which to help manoeuvre the machine. The size and the power of new machine may be difficult to control for a smaller person. Experience tells a rider that shifting body weight around comers will help to turn the machine. If the driver has only 120 lbs to shift instead of 220, the snowmo­ bile can easily become the master. Excessive speeds, coupled with the rider's ability (or inability) to control the vehicle play a vital role in riding safety. snowmobiling secret in Ontario," commented Mr. Lumley. "With active clubs, enthusiastic volunteers and thousands of kilometers of established trails, the region is well positioned to attract a share of the $400 million spent in Ontario by OFSC members each winter. And there are even more dollars to be had from visiting out-of-province snowmobilers!" Mr. Lumley speaks from experience. He is the chief architect of the Sudbury Trail Plan, arguably Ontario's most lucrative winter success story. In seven short years, the Sudbury District has grown The OFSC has statistics stating that 55 percent of all snowmobile accidents were caused by excessive speed. When taken in conjunction with the use of alcohol, this figure jumps to 77 percent. In an OFSC study covering the 1988/89 to 1990/91 seasons, there were 113 people killed, an average of 38 per year. Of that 40 fatalities were due to drowning, 19 were as a result of collisions with other vehicles, 15 were in collisions with snowmo­ biles and 36 were single vehicle accidents where the fatality occurred because of colliding with a fixed object or the rider was thrown from the machine. always be aware of your abilities proportion of fatalities, 56 The OFSC found that the highest Nature’s beauty Don Blake, left, and Rick Konarski of the B&W Trailblazers stop along the trails between Blyth and Brussels to look at some of the most picturesque track in years. The snow is staying on the trees almost continuously, making for exceptional viewing. from a handful of disorganized clubs with almost no trails and an estimated economic impact of less than $3 million annually, to become the largest snowmobiling association in the province, operating 1200 kms. of groomed trails and generating in excess of $30 million each winter for the local economy. For his efforts, Lumley was recognized at last year's International Snowmobile Congress with the award for Canadian Snowmobiler of the Year. After touring through this region's incredible variety of terrain, ranging from narrow forest trails to wide-open field running, Mr. Lumley continued, "The Bruce Region is light years ahead of where we started in Sudbury. Most of the infrastructure is already in place. Your target markets along the 401 corridor are close. You are part of an established tourist destination. All that's needed for critical mass is the partnerships within each community to promote the region as snowmobiler friendly. The rest of the snowmobiling world needs to know that the Bruce Region are open for winter business." Bruce Region OFSC Director John Berlett has been actively making this case with some success. The production of a new regional snowmobile trail map for this season is a powerful marketing tool, especially when combined with the OFSC provincial TOP Trail map which shows the Bruce Region as a TOP Trail destination. Trail signage and destination markers erected by the clubs complete the system for directing visiting snowmobilers into local communities. Necessary equipment upgrades have begun with a share occurred on river and lakes. They advise people never to ride over bodies of water unless absolutely necessary and in those cases check with local authorities first for safe­ ty- It was also determined that the majority of accidents tend to occur at night between the hours of 6 p.m. and 6 a.m. The age group with the highest accident rate is males between the ages of 16 and 35. The OFSC has issued a list of 14 safety tips which should be fol­ lowed to ensure a safe snowmobil­ ing season. Possibly the most important tip of all is use to common sense and of the almost $150,000 in 1993 development grants allocated to Western Ontario by the OFSC. But the local snowmobile clubs cannot do it alone. Their mandate is to build and maintain snowmobile trails, an effort that expends over a hundred thousand dollars each season in operation costs. The clubs simply do not have the additional resources or expertise to mount the comprehensive promotion cam­ paign required to bring the Bruce Region within the orbit of this lucrative winter market. So, as in Sudbury, Haliburton and Muskoka, to name but a few, partners are necessary. There's really no magic to the winter success of these other areas. Having recognized tourism as a top priority, their local governments, economic development offices, tourism people and private sector have come together with local snowmobile clubs in a commitment to boost winter tourism - with multi-million dollars results. Since studies show that about 43 per cent of winter visitors return in other*seasons, these snowmobilmg initiatives have potential for all- season impact. What about the Bruce Region? The secret is out. But is there the community will to build it into an economic bonanza? Will the necessary partners come on board to take advantage of Canada's fastest growing winter recreation? Only time will tell. Meanwhile, local riders are enjoying some of Ontario's best snowmobiling right in their own backyards.