TOUGH RIDING! we left Lunenburg yesterday, and headed west to the powerline, north was ungroomed and unpassable with the short track, so we headed`south into Lary Browns logging field, towards Concord. Crossed Rt 2 at Copps, and headed up Kirby Mnt,..real workout for the sleds, very deep, no tracks, not for the faint of heart. We got to the top and considered turning around as there were NO tracks except for ours,..but we decided to go into St jay to have a bite to eat at Changing seasons, (Vinnies). We made that stretch OK, and there were a fe wtracks in the ST jay area, but NONE going o the motel. We got there and Vinny was closed, No sleds, nothing, but he was nice enough to open up for us and put together a sandwich and a drink. (what a great guy he is)...WE WENT UP THE LVRT to Marties and that was fine, (one track only) and gassed up at marties,.then headed back the way we came for safety sake. We after 6-7 hours on the trail, were again the only ones to cross Kirby Mountain, and the Moose river trails,..we got back to camp at 7- PM nd are now sore as hell. We are going to try to get to the pipeline VIA lunenburg trails into lancaster to go up to shellys in W Burke for lunch,..Iwill report again tonight .... PLEASE COME UP AND RIDE!!! we need the trails to be packed. Iwas going to wait for those young, crazy hardcore dudes to do that job, but it appears that WE are those (not so young) hardcore dudes!!!

Similar expierience here.....

We headed out of camp (Coles Pond) on Sund. morn. Had to break trail just about everywhere we went.Alot of trails were not "opened up" yet. (no groomers had been on them) we ended up on the LVRT headed tword Joe's pond,still breaking trail.We finally hit ONE sled track coming from a camp on Joe's. then as we got to rt. 2 there were a few more tracks,slightly easier going. Went to Marty's to top off,headed out 51 to 15 had to keep turning around,alot of the trails are not opened.....really dissapointed. We had such a hard time trying to get back to cole's pond from Danville.....practically impossible at this point and time. Ended up having to hit 51 to 151 up over stannard MT (senic overlook) still breaking trail just about everywhere we went........

Didnt see many sleds out at all.........chickens !!

Tried to ride today also....only made it a few miles (again,no sleds,and NO GROOMERS) 4 foot drifts turned us around.

Very sore from this weekend,NOT from riding but from all the lifting and digging out !!


Overall ,I was EXTREMELY dissapointed in the clubs this weekend,this would have bee the BEST OPENNING DAY EVER...........all this snow,and NO GROOMING.....this just confuses the hell out of me. I just dont get it.....you would think everyone would be chomping at the bit to get out there and get the trails groomed for everyone to enjoy.

I understand the "idea" of "waiting till the storm ends before getting the groomers out" but c'mon,this was supposed to be openning weekend,and it wasnt even enjoyable...... Besides,they let the snow build up so much,they will never be able to get the drag through over some of the mountains,there were 4 ft deep drifts that are over 100yards long.no way they'll be able to pull the drag through that stuff. thats kinda like not plowing your driveway untill you have 4 feet of snow in it........

same here.... went up to our camp in Bloomfield, worked at the camp all day saturday and went
to bed excited to wake up for our first ride of the season. connecticut valley snow riders never
groomed a thing. should we break trail and risk burying the sleds and freeze our ***** off or
pack up and head home? needless to say we headed home with sad faces on.

...
[/I agree, we had another day JUST like that again today, 100 miles according to the ODO, but I BET 30 were just track spin,..saw one groomer, finally,..see my report, Im going to post it around 8:30 PM, (have to type it up),...Lots of wussies out there fer sure,...all this talk of going yo be out opening day,..I didnt see a soul NOR another track in most areas,....wussies....quote]

Pretty tough grooming in a snow storm. I heard the unit was out earlier in the week as mentioned in the club's trail report. No need to go out until the storms over. Especially when the ground isn't frozen through the woods. Check the website: ctvalleysnoriders.com
for future trail reports.

Not grooming in the snow....is like not going fishing because you dont want to get your boat wet.......

This post is awesome Coming up Sunday, Save some powder for me!!!!!!!!!!

hey Don where abouts is your camp in bloomfield?

In response to this and related post re early riding:

It's quite apparent that the "complainers" are relative "newbies" to the sport and only "weekend warriors"...
#1 Groomed trails are not required to operate sleds on... more enjoyable ..yes... neccessary ?? no... as the earlier post noted the "older guys" go out and break trail... yes it's work... you can't cover many miles, you can't tear up groomed trails by the hour .......but that's the way it use to be and if the "volunteer pool" keeps shrinking that's the way it will be again...
#2 Where does it say that local volunteers have to work all week (and through the weekend! ) so that the weekend warriors can have fun and go home! Prepping the trails is more than jumping in the groomer...; brush and trees need to be cut, signs placed, gates opened + much more.... and you need snow!!!
#3 This is the first time in several years that there was even enough snow to open the trails on time...never mind groom them... and if you want good trails they need to be "built"... the snow needs to be compacted, a base needs to be built up, holes need to be filled etc etc... You can't groom rocks! ........... If this weather holds the trail system will improve. As any experienced rider knows all this doesn't happen overnight....! Grooming takes time.. the trails you can cover in 30 minutes on your sled takes some 6-8 hours of groomer time to travel...do the math!!
#4 The Ct V Snow Riders VOLUNTEERS had all their trails cleared & compacted before the storm, they were marginal but rideable..There was not enough snow cover to groom before this storm. Even if they had been able to groom the trails they could not have started till the storm lessened, late Sunday afternoon. The trails would not have had a chance to "set up" before you left for home!
#5 .. Have patience and rather than bitch why not help out...become a part of the solution rather than part of the problem. For example the trail out of Bloomfield to EX50 was littered with trees and brush all summer..all of which had to be cleared before the groomer went through... your help would have been appreciated ...........

They do sound like "newbies", but unfortunately I don't think they are. A buddy of mine wanted to ride Sunday but being the "wussie" that I am I explained to him the conditions that we would be dealing with. I mean, come on, you had to know you'd be breaking trail. Not many clubs groom during major snowstorms (with the exception of the Lyndon SnoCruisers during last years Valentine's Day storm ) and then after those storms they count on some die hards packing the trails a bit. I'm as excited as anyone to get out there, but I'll give it a week or so and let the much-appreciated volunteers work their magic.

Do the groomers get stuck with 3 ft of fresh snow? Do they let it set up for a bit?

The groomers went out in Walden Saturday around noon, then the storm came, the wind is so wicked that it blew snow all over the trails, its tuesday now and no sign of trails. Haven't seen one sled! If anyone is interested in the Walden area check out our forum at www.waldencountrystore.com. I post everything that is going on with the trails.

Only one response to this crap. Can you be more selfish? When was the last time you volunteered to spend all night grooming? Those machines don't run on remote control!!!! There are hard working volunteers spending their "free" time staying awake so you can ride on nice trails.
You think it's inconvenient to ride in powder? Try grooming in a blizzard. You can't lift the tail of a groomer and set it back on the trail if it slips off.
If EVERYONE should be chomping at the bit to groom, where the hell were you? Oh yeah, you were waiting for someone else to do the dirty work.
Obviously, you couldn't fill a thimble with what you know about grooming or what it takes to build a trail.
In case no one ever pointed out the obvious, the drag is made as a separate unit and only hooks to the back of the power unit. That makes it possible to run the power unit over the fresh powder for packing and busting open trails.
Now you can probably fill that thimble. You must feel so intelligent.

My ride on sunday morn was great. I went right on the pipeline North to the balls Rts 102 & 2-5 junction) Pipeline south into lancaster will not be groomed untill catbow swamp is froozen over, more then 1 groomer has been swamped (rummer is thiers a dozer buired from when they built it.
Any way I was the first up the powerline at 8am. Snowing hard but just about perfect conditions. made my way upto rt 1 and was great, looped around and back to camp to watch the Pats win.
Heres some pics, 1st is Rt1, 2nd the balls (102 & 2-5) and 3rd is at the end of my driveway, Its finially groomed (Thanks to the rock dodgers for doing the Polar bears trails)
after 20 years of breaking trail and mantaining it our selfs, VAST has accepted it.

Camp D,..I was rying to acesss the powerline but we could not make it up to the balls with our short tracks,..we tried from the lunenburg trail about 2-3 miles south on the powerline from pond hill,..got stuck in the first 5 feet, tried again,....no go. Was that trail groomed all the way north from the balls?? How far south from the balls did the groomer go?? We must have just missed him by a trail or a mile or two. God knows we tried!!!

Our camp is between the store and the iron bridge

We are not newbies and I don't mind helping on trails. The point was that We heard that the groomer had broke down with a track problem. Yes I can break trail and have many times BUT in clear or somewhat clear weather. Sunday morning you could'nt see 30' . From the iron brige out is all up hill and first time out who knows what expect.
Have a good day

Camp is on Hall Rd off of Pond Hill. It was groomed by the Rock Dodgers on Saturday night. Its at the top of the hill on right. It goes all the way out to pipeline about a mile south of the Balls. Trail is new last year, marked 2f3, ex63 off of rt2 (pipeline)
Here's my driveway at 8am on sunday
Powerline was groomed all the way up and around trail 1. I had heard that the thunder Riders had dissolved their club. we were all wondering who was going to take over there grooming, but Jeremy went out saturday night.

I did 250 miles in the NEK on sunday. Trails ranged from excellent to poor conditions. We took off at 6 am in Morgan and rode to Maidstone. We did a loop in maidstone into Bloomfield where we stopped for gas. After that we rode to Canaan and ate an early lunch. We then rode to coventry and back to Morgan. There is a ton of snow from Morgan east. Trails should be really nice next weekend! One thing that surprised me was that there wasnt that many people out there. We met or first 2 sleds on the trail at 11am!

I did 150 on sunday and didnt see or cross any tracks.

just remember we are all on this forum for the same reason..... for the love of snowmobiling.
This is not a forum meant to bash one another. Happy Holidays to all

CD,...were gonna try to go north on the powerline tomorow,..we access the powerline from the 102F1 trail,..you must be at the hagen rd/hall rd trail,..I havent seen the powerline used yet north of EX683 and we couldnt get to the balls from down here, but were gonna try like hell tomorow,..I have a new riding partner, just showed up,..Arcticat Arnie will be with me on his ZRT600 TT you might hear him coming even with his stock pipes. (WHY ARE THEROCK DODGERS GROOMING POLAR BEARS TRAILS AFTER THE PB'S JUST BOUGHT A NEWER GROOMER??? Just curious)

You listen here "SMART GUY" Maybe YOU "might" learn something my friend..........

FIRST OFF...who the hell do you think you are........oh,pardon me GOD,I didnt recognize you without your beard and sandals......... guys like you are why there are less and less Volunteers every year.Get your head out and look around a little.......guys like you are why I dont voulenteer much at all (anymore) you think you know it all,and all you are is stubborn and closed minded.Its your way or its wrong,god forbid someone comes up with a better idea than you,or makes more sence than you.... Go yell at your kids some more,but you aint gonna talk to me that way.

I personally HAVE operated a groomer,have you ??? Doubt it! AND as a "former" regular VOULENTEER,I know that trail work NEVER ends. THEREFORE,we have had 8 months to get the trails ready,and or keep them ready,where where you???? obviously not helping out..........(just for your information,I was actually out on saturday,helping out with signs,for a club I dont even belong to)

If you knew ANYTHING about grooming,you would know that its easier to groom (or even PACK) 2 feet of snow than it is 4. Or does that not make any sence to you???

You would also know how hard the drag pulls/maneuvers when its full of snow,add that to trying to bust through 4 ft snow drifts with no bottom!! Sound fun ???

What packs snow better than a groomer??? 1 or 2 sleds ?? I dont think so..... Hmmm???

Have you learned anything yet??? Do you see where I'm going with this?? Do you??

Doubt it....

Most groomers "operators" will tell you,its easier (on them and their equipment) to go out and "pack" a trail before they groom it.They will also tell you its easier to pull a drag full of snow through 2 feet of snow than 4. I understand its more "convenient" to wait untill it stops snowing,and just go out ONCE. but its going to take you twice as long,and you run a much higher risk of breaking equipment and/or getting STUCK !! and like YOU stated above,you cannot just lift the back of the groomer and turn it around!!
So you would rather go out and beat the grooming equpment to death,get stuck and spend even MORE of your "free time" out in the middle of the night winching the groomer out,than to go out twice??? HMMM.....yeah,that makes alot of sence.........I'd rather pay 2 guys to take turns grooming,than to pay ONE idiot to go smash equipment and get stuck all night,and not end up grooming at all,and spend more money on repairing their mess.....

My local club (and a couple other local clubs)have been out 3 or more times already,packing/breaking trail,rolling,and then grooming TWICE !!! Our trails are MINT right now !!! VERY ridable AND enjoyable !!

And as far as you guys calling us "Newbies" ,maybe you better think about people other than yourselves for once...... I was able to get out and ride,but I know people who are not physically able to go out and break trail all day,weather they are older,younger,or not as healthy........yeah,other people like to ride too.....think about that one

AND,anyone who takes PRIDE in their club,their clubs efforts,their much needed voulenteers,and their end results,WOULD be chomping at the bit to get out there and do their club proud. I know most clubs do take pride in their work and their great groups of voulenteers......


For those of you who took "my" post as "complaining" or "whining" , Thats not what it was intended to be,if it came across that way. I was ,however ,very dissapointed with the lack of grooming,or even just openning the trails up.

When you work all summer long building trails,bridges,clearing brush,cutting trees,building re-routs,signing,etc. etc. and you get a TON of snow to get the season off to a GREAT start.......and then you cannot even ride on them,yeah,thats a little dissappointing.
I spoke with one person,when I was at marty's on sunday,he had worked on the new "skyline" trail,and could not believe that it was not opened up yet,he said they spent alot of time on that trail (I guess about 5mi.long)

Whenever you "groomers" want to give up. I know several people who are willing and more than able,to lend themselves to a good cause...... and have been turned down,from voulenteering after listening to all the complaining about lack of voulenteers.



i can see this thread is taking a downward spiral,when you get people posting such as the .....ahem.....gentleman who addressed me.....

This is going to turn into a name calling,pointless argument.........



Its too bad that people cannot pass on some information ,or voice their opinion without getting ridaculed,and called names,and JUDGED by somone who dosnt even know who they are talking to......



To those of you who went out and busted ass this weekend getting trails opened up......THANK YOU !!! To those of you who want to make lame excuses on whay they Cant.....well,voulenteers like that are not much help ??

DooinVT,...Thanks, you said what I was thinking,..theres no reason to use this forum as an attack position, you ride, or dont depending on your personal judgement, obviously some out there have very little judgement when posting on this site...

I think sometimes people get just a little too defensive,and/or take things a little too personally. I wasnt,have never,and will not personally attack anyone on this or any site that I frequent. But I do not tolerate personal attacks/name calling,very well.
Some people just dont think ahead before they spout off,maybe the person on the other end is nothing like the image you have painted in your own narrow little mind.

"I" personally,come from a familly with a LONG snowmobiling history,and alot of snowmobilers. I used to be a regular voulenteer,untill it started being a "I'm better than you because I voulenteer more than you" game. It got real "clicky" like high school,and you'd show up to help out,they would all take off with their little groups of buddies,and leave you standing there with your thumb in your colon.

I've always been a believer in being a club member to your local club,but I'm thinking about moving my membership to a club that would be a little more appreciative of my willingness to help out,and not make me feel out of place or in the way.


Well,I hope this will be a long season,trails are shaping up real good now.

i dont know where the iron bridge is.my camp is on rt102 between bloomfield store and colebrook

go south on 102 heading towards maidstone lake road . if you leave dubanvilles by snowmobile heading back to vermont vast trail you would go under
the tressle and up over a little field, back onto road, over iron bridge and turn right after iron bridge to return to vast trail.

are you going to be up to your camp this weekend? do you ride both vermont and NH?
stop in if in the area

I heard the track had partially come of the groomer, but was reinstalled in less than twenty four hours. So, the information that was provided wasn't complete. There was more to the story, but apparently that wasn't shared by your source. That's not unusual these days.

yeah were heading up this weekend friday to monday.so your rite behind debanvilles?

our driveway is at the tressle Duval road

The Polar Bears bought a new 2 person 4 wheeler with a heated cab and a 4' drag. As for Hagen/Hall Rd trail known as 2f3, Vast has accepted it as a corridor trail able to be groomed 8' wide. The rock dodgers have helped out with the polar bears trails in the past and have the only groomer able to handle this trail. The Thunder riders groomer is to big for this trail. Now, finially after 20 yrs of us cutting, working on and grooming it ourself as a way to access the pipeline, its a treet to have it like its paved. Now if the ATVer's will obey the signs that the land owner of the last 200 yds owns before the pipeline, and not go around the gates (they actually cut down a tree the the gate was chained too), we will have this trail for years to come, But that's a different issue.
Doug

Groomed again! The tails look great in Walden!
Thank you Doug Louther for your wonderful grooming job!

SWEET! ,thanks for the update. Doug does a good job over there !!! The trails in Walden have improved GREATLY over the past few years. My hats off to these guys!!

Cant wait to eat those sourdough pancakes again !!

Don i'll stop by and say hi this weekend if i miss you and you feel like stopping by our place im 6.5 miles north of dabanvilles on rt 102 yellow mobile home with a yellow gambrel garage . Dennis

Sounds good

Don & Karen

I finally saw the new groomer, As I helped Jerry and his assistant pull it out of a creek bed,2 of the the tracks came off and they were stuck big time at night, we just happened to be passing nearbye when we heard a shout for help, with a little back work, and a lot of yankee ingenuity, we got it out without jacks, and replaced the tracks. The club dropped off a bottle of Vodka at my camp as a thank you for the help./ I volunteered to go out and help groom this winter as I willl be up there a lot,..my laptop crashed 2 days ago, so I couldnt do any trail reports, now Im back in CT until after Xmas,...The snow should hold up well with the rain in the forecast anyways,....

Dennis, we drove by your place saturday afternoon. saw the trucks and trailers but no lights on we figured you were still out loving the trails. we will be
back up next weekend

hope to connect

follow the snowmobile tracks from store turn right immediately after you go under tressle and straight up the
driveway to the end camp

Don did you ride this last weekend?we rode sat after noon85 miles seen about 10 sleds,sunday 100 miles seen 3 sleds,monday 60 miles and 0 sleds

yes we did 100 miles back at camp around 3:00. sunday we toured around down to St. J looking for sleds and gear (christmas gifts) Monday went and
bought the switchback and headed home for family christmas'

Dennis where you guys on 96 when you had trouble I think we went by you ?

yes we where on 96 3 revs and 2 rt's . the revs had a problem with there carb boots cracking then sucking to much air.i had told my friend about it but he took a chance and it cost him

you heading up for the weekend? sounds like a few storms could give us some extra snow

i think we're gonna wait till next weekend. got a couple jobs i need to finish up

have a happy new year

Karen & Don

Thanks ,happy new year to you too .let me know how the trails were

Road about 30 miles out of Derby on Wednesday from the Super 8. Slim pickings. Very icy and lots of water. Fields are wind blown with grass showing thru. Have to be careful of over heating the sleds. Packed up and headed back to Connecticut. Another rider told us 105A toward Canaan was a challenge. He packed up and left as well. Try again in January when there is more snow.

It's that bad??I'm all loaded up and heading out fri am......I am suprised to hear 105a toward Canaan is shot,I know it snowed all day up there.Anybody else have the same issues?