In this section I post articles about the sport of snowmobiling to increase awareness, address issues, and hopefully, bring you a variety of interesting editorials. The views expressed on these pages, may or may not be those of the Grand Marais Sno-Trails Association, The Grand Marais Chamber of Commerce, or their members. Some articles are written specifically to get a response, some are merely to pass on information that may be of interest, and some are just stories or opinions of the writer(s). Kay Wampler
Snowmobiler's
Fund Trial Grooming, not the DNR
by Bill Manson, Executive Director
Who’s
Who?
Don Reed, President
Ok, now it's time for me to be opinionated about groomers and snowmobilers, if you don't want to hear this, don't bother to read any further! I cannot keep my mouth shut any more! As I mentioned above, we had a busy few days out there on the trails. Groomers have had to spend a lot of extra time working the snow around to get those trails nice and smooth for YOUR safety. In fact, I personally, spent 10 hours out on Trail #8 East Monday night giving it a lot of extra attention in the corners. Now, here's my problem:
- What part of we are BIGGER than you don't you guys understand!?
- What part of passing a groomer while it is moving is DANGEROUS don't you understand?!
- What part of take it easy and don't HOTDOG on a freshly groomed trail (especially right behind the groomer) don't you understand?!
- Oh, and by the way, the drag we pull is usually totally covered in snow so you can't really see it.
I know, the one's that don't get it, don't read trail reports but the rest of you, the one's reading this now, can have a huge impact on those that don't!!! So far this season, I've had several close calls out there. Monday night is one such incident. I was working the trail and had to plow snow from the left down in to the right side. At one point I see 4 sleds coming at me with 3 foot banks and trees lining both sides of the trail! No-one had anywhere to go. I had the plow and drag both full of snow. I must have had a three foot high pile of snow on the plow. Anyway, they stopped probably 20-25 yards up the trail when they realized I was on their side and I was thinking great, they're going to wait for me to get back over and stop. HA, joke was on me! As soon as they saw the tractor moving back over to the right, they proceeded toward me. Now, stop and think, I've got what oh, about 30 feet of drag behind me, right? Any idiot that's ever hauled a trailer knows the trailer doesn't just jump over behind the vehicle when you turn, right?! Much less so when it's carrying several tons of snow. Yep, you got it, the drag was still nearly touching the left bank of the trail when these 4 yahoo's decided they were going around me!! Well, okay, the leader of the yahoo's did. The others were just playing follow the leader like 3 blind mice following the pied piper. DUH!? Rather than let them all smash into the drag that they obviously couldn't see and each other, I flew my door open to stop the joker leading the pack. Of course, I had to point out that they didn't have enough room to get around me and that they should have stayed put when they first stopped until I let them know it was okay to go. And I had to yell to be sure they could hear me over the roar of the engines. So, what does their leader do, hahahaha, he turns to the other 3 and says, "I got yelled at by a groomer"!!!!!!! DUH, you jerk, you could have been killed and all you can think about is that you got yelled at! We were at an impasse now. I told the leader to just stay put and don't move until I get stopped again. I inched forward until they had enough room to go around the drag and I let them go by. As soon as each cleared the drag, they jumped on the throttle, digging into the freshly groomed snow, leaving deep holes in the middle of the trail. I had to lift the drag and plow, back up, and fill those holes before I could continue on. These were the last riders I passed and on my return trip discovered they continued down the trail cutting and weaving on the fresh groom most of the way.
Ok, I'm done railing on you but we all need to stop and think about this for the safety of both the groomer operators and the riders. We can't close off a trail when we are grooming like road crews do when they are working. We have minimal laws concerning riding a sled. What we have is the MSA, Snowmobile Clubs, Trail Reports, Snowmobile Safety Classes, etc... but there's no requirement for anyone riding a snowmobile to use these resources and learn about the sport before getting on a sled. We've come a long way in a few short years about the dangers of drinking and riding and have reduced snowmobile related deaths considerably. But, we still need to find better ways to teach snowmobilers about operating a snowmobile, grooming operations, the dangers out there, and about the courtesies we all should share.
I've moved information on Groomer Etiquette and the town-loop to our editorial page.
Poll Results are reassuring and perplexing at the same time. Most of you that have responded are getting the "What do you do when you meet up with a groomer" and how you let us know if you are the last one in the group questions correctly. Actually, last sled should be slashing the left arm out and down at a 45 degree angle but a closed fist does the job just fine. When you wave does that mean you're the last one or you're just happy to see us!? But when it comes to letting us know there are more in your group - come on everyone - do you really think anyone can count the number of fingers you are holding up as you go by? Only 19% are getting this one right and some seem to think there's no need to let us know. Please read our "Hand Signals and Groomer Etiquette page" for more info. What really perplexes me is why are so many sleds just flying by like we don't exist?
Please remember Groomer Etiquette. I can't believe how many people come flying up on a groomer and dart past it, even in curves and hills - they must have a death wish or just don't understand the danger. They were even flying by me on the right in a tight curve with the drag so full of snow I was sure it would suddenly slide and take these guys out! Plus, it takes a bit of power and finessing the drag to get going again after stopping with several tons of snow in tow! Please, please, please - stop when you come up to a groomer and wait for them to signal you to proceed. Let us get through the curves and back on a straight-a-way. We'll let you know when you can go safely!
I've been hearing questions popping up about what is legal for riding a county road, specifically H-58 coming into and out of Grand Marais on the East side of town. Some riders feel it is unnecessary to use the trail to access town when they could run the county road just to save a few miles. Here's a quote from LawDog (Luce County):
"On any County, City roadway you must obey the posted speed limit. If it is not posted then it is 55 mph. On a trail system or two track there is no speed limit in Michigan, other than the law allows for what's " Safe and Reasonable" ." He went on to state that you must ride single file, with the flow of traffic, and stay to the extreme right (shoulder). (Click Here for the laws.)
While it is legal to ride along a county road, the residents of Grand Marais have put a lot of effort and expense into getting a designated trail into and out of town to reduce the impact of snowmobile traffic near residential areas and make it a more pleasant experience for you. There are approximately 40 driveways along H-58 East which require you to yield to vehicles before crossing them, and homes that are within a few feet of the shoulder. The speed limit is 25 mph for cars and the local ordinance for snowmobiles is 10 mph. There are several fire hydrants, creeks, and other obstacles. When we get even a slight warm-up, the county road becomes bare pavement and riders end up in people's yards to keep their sleds cool. We also have a lot of parking areas along the roadway in town which further complicates riding along H-58. Sno-Trails maintains and grooms the designated trail for your safety and to provide you with a route that has adequate snow to improve your experience here. We appreciate your use of the designated trail at all times.
Do you have memories you'd like to share? Send them to me and I'll post them here. . .
I am always looking for articles that may be of interest to snowmobilers.
If you have something to share, please E-mail me.