8843-R6_MSA_September2024_Newsletter

Dear Maine Snowmobile Community, We hope this letter finds you well. The purpose of this letter is threefold: 1. We want to let you know that the Maine Snowmobile Asso ciation supports the Yes on 4/$30 million trails bond that you will see on this November’s ballot— and that we have made a $5,000 contribution to that campaign on behalf of all of our members. 2. We also want to give you information on how you can con tribute to the cause. To this end, there is zero pressure to contribute. We know some will have an interest in contrib uting, and others may not, but it is important that we share this information to try and make the campaign as success ful as possible.You can find more of that information below. 3. Lastly, we want to encourage you to vote YES ON QUES TION 4 on November 5. The more snowmobilers we get to the polls means the better chance we have of passing this $30 million bond proposal to improve trails in Maine and leveraging that money to benefit snowmobile trails specifically. We are reaching out to you today on behalf of the Partnership for Maine Trails to invite your financial support for the campaign to pass the $30 million Maine Trails Bond, which will be Question 4 on this November’s ballot. We are pleased to share that the Maine Snowmobile Association has committed $5,000 to this campaign and are proud to be part of the campaign steering committee. This will be the first time ever that Maine people will have an opportunity to vote to invest in the design, construction, and maintenance of motorized and non-motorized trails statewide. We hope to pass theTrails Bond by the largest margin possible, and you can help us do so! The Partnership for Maine Trails is a coalition campaign with leadership from a diverse group of motorized and non-motorized organizations who have a sincere interest in investing in Maine trails. We have a strong and experienced team, and a campaign plan designed to win. Our goal is to raise at least $100,000 by mid-September , so that we can implement a campaign involving digital ads, campaign outreach and communications strategies, and voter mobilization. This level of funding will enable us to reach key voter segments, and help us tap into the 520 organizations, businesses, and towns that have endorsed the Maine Trails Bond so that those support ers can amplify the “Vote Yes on Question 4” message to their networks and media platforms. We hope that you, your business or other local dealerships and businesses will consider supporting this campaign with a dona tion to the Partnership for MaineTrails.A meaningful contribution today can help our snowmobiling community leverage millions of dollars in additional trail funding! Imagine what these dollars can do for our snowmobile trails, clubs, industry and community! The campaign has already secured more than $20,000 toward our fundraising goal. Your support will help us get closer to launching a statewide campaign that – if we win – could send a powerful message about the importance to Maine people of our trails, and outdoor recreation infrastructure. A big win could cre ate momentum for future efforts to create ongoing funding for these important purposes. Donations are not tax-deductible, and should be made to: Part nership for MaineTrails, 3Wade Street, Augusta, ME 04330. If the donation is from an individual, please provide your address and occupation/employer. Thank you for considering this request. We would be glad to pro vide additional information and look forward to hearing from you. VOTEYES ON 4! Sincerely, Maine Snowmobile Association

The Importance of Registering Your Snowmobile in Maine Joe Higgins, State of Maine Snowmobile Program. H ello. Friends and Snowmobilers, I hope you all have had a good summer with family, friends and hopefully some vaca tion time. Is it me, or do summers seem to just fly by? I’d like to take a minute to congratu late Brian Bronson on his retirement, Brian was one that started the ATV program and has been with it for 37 years. He and I worked on a lot of projects over the years as I am sure many of you all have too. You probably also know that Brain was and is passionate about recreational opportunities. He can now spend time with his family and especially grandkids enjoying the outdoors that he spent so much time working on. Take Care my friend and see you on the trails. Now, let’s talk about why it is so important to register your sleds early. I’ve heard it men tioned many times” “that I think I’ll wait to register my snowmobile”. Please don’t wait, understand why it is so important to regis tering your snowmobile in Maine. Without your snowmobile registration dollars there would be no snowmobile trails to ride on. The funds that we received are the backbone of our grant programs that help snowmobile clubs. Those registration dollars go to build ing bridges, maintaining equipment, brushing trails and help cover grooming costs like fuel. It is used to work with landowners who allow us to have trails. Without them, we have noth ing.There seems to be a perception that when a person registers their snowmobile those dollars are going to the State of Maine. In a way, yes, that is where funds are distributed too. But then those same funds are allocated to the grant programs that consist within our Snowmobile Trail Fund. That is what covers the Municipal and Club Grant Programs.There is also the Disaster Relief Grant Program and the Capital Equipment Grant Program. None of these would exist if not for you registering your snowmobile. Every snowmobile club in Maine participates or has participated in one if not all these programs. I can’t emphasize enough on the importance of everyone registering and what that does to support the clubs and our volunteers. Please don’t wait for snow or school vacations. There have already been countless hours work ing with landowners for permission, building new and fixing old bridges, getting equipment ready to groom. This work and effort are done before a single snowflake ever hits the ground. Your registration dollars are the single largest source of revenue and key component for these clubs to keep trails open. Please support them by at least registering your snowmobile, and if you could join a club and lend a helping hand, I’m sure that would go a long way as well. Thank you,Think Snow and lots of it.

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