8924-R1_MSA_December2024_Newsletter

From The Executive Board

From the President

YOU to the landowners and club volunteers for making re-routes & connections happen to keep our communities & businesses connected to the trails These can be frustrating from both sides and definitely time consuming, thank you to all who take the time to get it done, without your efforts it would be much more difficult for snowmobilers and businesses to connect. Watch for signs as the trail may not be exactly where it was last season, how it shows on your paper map or digital screen. Club members know best and on-the-ground signage trumps all other means. Please make sure you look for information about this winters’ Showcase ride & directors’ meetings this winter. These regional rides are a great way to explore a new area and meet people who you may only have connected with by phone or social media. We will have a ride during the day & MSA Directors meeting in the evening. I really enjoy them, there is no better way to explore a snowmobile region than with the club members who make & maintain the trails. I love to see all the club news and Facebook posts with the work going on statewide. It is nothing short of a miracle that gets pulled off throughout the offseason to ensure a connection between each town. Clubs, landowners and equipment operations making it happen so we can all get out and ride when the time and weather allows. While on the social media subject, this is a write up from Mark & I that went out to clubs in an email blast…a bit of a reminder: Make an Impact: Essential Social Media The life of a volunteer is equally as complex to explain. What drives someone to become involved with their local snowmobile club or maybe the MSA and vow to spend countless hours working in different capacities to insure that every snowmobiler has the best possible riding experience. At the end of the day, it comes down to a few common denominators that all volunteers have in common, passion, gratification and a great sense of accomplishment. Passion for the sport that they love and want to do what they can to see the sport not only survive but thrive, a sense of accomplishment knowing that they did their part and contributed to their sport. All of which ultimately leads up to that gratifying La Nina will turn Maine into a winter wonder land. We very much need it. We had a great President’s night last month at The Eastern Maine Snowmobile Club in Holden. It was a great feeling night and wonderful seeing everybody. Mark’s suggestion to have it again after an absence was a grand slam! Smiles and general snowmobile talk was the highlight of the evening. We’ve been busy at the office settling down after another awesome Snowmobile Show. Thanks again to everyone who made it hap pen. The Super Raffle is a few weeks away the prizes are once again incredible. Without our supporting businesses from Kittery to Madawaska it would be just a ho hum event. The trailers from world-class manufacturer’s made right here in Central Maine Alcom and Nitro. Everyone is very impressed with these two units. The Nitro is a Hybrid 101X12 with the optional black out kit. The Alcom is a new model Low Pro Hybrid 7.5X16. Either one would make a great Christmas gift. our efforts in a different direction from “ Pre Snow” to “ Post Snow” priorities, from trail maintenance and repair, Groomer maintenance and repairs and landowner permissions to actually grooming trails and finishing up with trail signs and reroutes. Now I know that this is not always the exact progression of events, however it is definitely a 360-degree change in mindset when the cold temps come, the ground freezes and the snow is adequate to groom and ride. When this all happens in a short period of time it is a feeling that is second to none and one that has to be experienced to explain, and just like that we are in business.

feeling that we are all a part of this successful machine, the machine that puts out one of the top three snowmobiling destinations in the nation, and that my fellow snowmobilers is something to be proud of! So the next time someone asks you “What are the benefits of joining a club and what can I expect to get out of it for myself”? You will need to reassure the potential new comer that the benefits may not be tangible but are much more rewarding than you can measure and the more that you put into the sport the more you will get out of it. Once you put that foot forward and start being an “active member” you will find the benefits, and the more you give the more infectious it becomes and the greater the rewards you will find. So if you are reading this and you are maybe not an active member, I challenge you to reach out to the club of your choice and become involved, I don’t think you will regret it. It really is a good feeling to be part of putting out a product that we can all be proud of. That’s all for now folks, may you all have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. Remember my door is always open. So if you have a question, concern or just want to talk snowmobiling please reach out to me. Thanks for reading, goodbye for now. Mark Dos and Don’ts As we get close to the beginning of the snowmobile season the trail work and club events really ramp up. The MSA wants you to think about communication with club members, landowners, volunteers and the general public. Please think about the audience you now reach via social media & the exponential number of folks who may see your post through sharing. Do: • Stay positive • Be professional • Be courteous • Provide timely & accurate information Don’t: • Provide too much detail • Share photos that are inappropriate (some projects are better shared once fully completed) • Post something inflammatory • Post something that could be taken out of context • Share personal information There are great ways to get information out to all the folks you want to communicate with. Just put some thought into the best method for the message. A group email for your club members/ active volunteers/officers might be better than a Facebook post dependent on the content. Please feel free to reach out to us at the MSA if you have any questions or need assistance. The snowmobiles are world class too! The mighty Polaris Prostar S4 Indy 137 has all the bells and whistles that will make someone very happy on the trail. Thank you Ryan at Polaris for making this happen. The Ski-Doo 600 EFI Renegade in traditional Ski-Doo yel low from Mountain Side Powersports in Wil ton is an eye catcher. Along with an entry level sled from our friends at Kramers is a ZR 200 tops off our grand prizes. Thanks to Kittery Trading Post, JB Grooming, NEOC Katahdin Resorts, Sally MTN cabins, Overlook Motel, International Motel, Shin Pond, Northern Door, Northern Outdoors, Moosehead Marine Museum, Central Maine Powersports, Chan dler Farms, Jackman Powersports, Mooseh ead Motorsports, Richardson’s Boat Yard, and Wallingfords. These supporting businesses for the MSA help every MSA club out by their generous donations. We can’t thank them enough for their helping this fundraiser year after year.

Treasurer’s Report

Lori Hemmerdinger (207) 890-5455 544 Plains Road • Poland, ME 04274 Treasurer@mesnow.com Respectfully Submitted, Lori Hemmerdinger, Treasurer

Mark Chinnock, President 207-754-9874 544 Plains Road, Poland, ME 04274 napadude66@hotmail.com

H i Everyone,

It’s hard to believe but by the time you are reading this the holidays will be upon us and we will be knocking on the door of another new year. This has most of us turning From the Executive VP

Monthly Income Monthly Expense

$ 56,316.96 $ 51,681.63 $ 4,635.33 $ 85,600.00 $182,205.87 $138,043.00

Net Revenue

Short Term CD (11/30/24)

Checking (11/30/24)

Dedicated Account (11/30/24)

Pay Pal (11/30/24) $ 1,718.30 Special Events Account (11/30/24) $ 4,987.53 Credit Line (11/30/24) $ - Building Fund (11/30/24) $ 54,4,987.53 Brian Wass Safety Fund (11/30/24) $ 3,996.93 Scholarship Savings (10/30/24) $ 5,123.09 Scholarship CD (10/30/24) $ 60,216.40 We’re here for you! Finally, as we get to the beginning of the riding season, I would ask (beg) clubs to plan a trail side safety check in co-ordination with the Maine Warden Service. It’s a great way to interact with riders and promote safety on the trails. Find a good intersection or location with plenty of visibility and room along the trails, set up for a few hours on a weekend day and help us all improve rider safety and maybe prevent an accident this winter. “Ride safe today, Ride again tomorrow” is not just a great logo for a sticker or shirt, it’s a goal of the MSA and we should strive to show this message to the riders from the local club level on our trails. Reach out to your regional VP to discuss and plan an event like this. If you have a question, problem, concern, or idea on snowmobiling in “The County”, get in touch with me. You can contact me at the phone # or email below. Matt Stedman Well, question 4 passed, I think it was the right thing to do. Any money we can get will support the clubs and help where it’s needed. Hopefully some long term projects will get the attention first. A project that will last us for years to come, like an important bridge. Hope you all have a wonderful Holiday Sea son! AL CLUB MEMBERS Once grooming begins submit your trail reports to: EDITOR@MESNOW.COM Please include your name and club affiliation

Matt Stedman 207-557-1921 (call or text) PO Box 621, Ashland ME 04732 Stedman.matt@jdirving.com

H appy December fellow snowmobilers, I returned just a couple days ago from a trip to the SledMass snowmobile show in West Springfield, Massachusetts with a few others from the MSA. We setup and talked snowmobiling in Maine with hundreds of people. The one constant was the amazing riding all over Maine. Thank you to every single one of you for all the work you have put into building and maintaining the wonderful trail system everyone is raving about. You will see some changes, as always, in the trails across Maine this season. Landownership changes, plans for timber management activities and new development happen all over and all the time. A big THANK

Director of Operations

Alan Swett, 207-872-7282 234 County Rd, Waterville ME 04901 snowtraveler@roadrunner.com

Greetings! Well some parts of the State have had snow in their backyards. Let’s hope

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