9211-R1_MSA_November2025_Newsletter

MSA Club News

Why two months; well because I managed to forget to put in my article for the club news. I know. Shame on me, but it came so fast, that I didn’t realize it was there until my paper came in the mail. Oh, well, I will make up for it in this newsletter. Let’s begin with September… We had our annual Land Owners Appreciation Supper. The menu was a favorite, barbequed chicken, corn, salads, and Laura’s homemade rolls. The turnout was incredibly small this year, but looking at the landowner list, many of our landowners are from away. Next year, we will work on getting the word out sooner so we can get them more involved in our appreciation. Our October meeting began with the Potluck dinner. The meeting consisted of 14 members of whom we greatly appreciate attending. The meeting began promptly at 6 PM with our Vice President taking the lead. This year’s concerns are some of the trails that need to be rerouted due to woods working roads and heavy truck use. As always, our sledders need to be safe, so rerouting is the best process. This will take time, but the club crew when put to the test always completes the task. Our club will also be participating in the Annual Trunk or Treat at the K&C Quik stop. This will be a first for us and I am excited to dress up in my costume to greet the treaters. I would like to remind everyone that the Rockabema Snow Rangers Raffle has begun. The prizes are: first draw $3,000.00, second draw is $1500.00, and final draw will be $500.00. The tickets are $50 and provide 3 chances to win. If you are interested in pur chasing one of these tickets, please contact me. Businesses - the SPONSOR A MILE is up and running. I would like to remind many of our sponsors that your signs were up this sea son, so watch for your invoice. I plan on get ting a jump on next year’s season so I can have the trails well-advertised. Please contact me, Carilynn Hanson – 203-687-6403 - to sponsor a mile for your business. If your sign was out there, watch for an invoice coming from me. You may not think this advertisement benefits your income, but the number of sledders look ing for a great place to eat or rest is right on the trail. Well that is about it for now - Happy Trails Everyone Carilynn Hanson Hi Gang, We have had a really nice Fall except for the fact that we are in severe drought conditions. It does make it easier to do trail work, but we really do need a solid week’s rain. With partridge, bear, and moose seasons all going on at once, and deer season coming up next week, it makes it tough to get any trail work done. I think that overall trails are in pretty good shape, but there is always some thing to be done!! By the time you all read this our member ship is projected to be between 75 - 100, really not bad for this early in the season. The Snow gang was number 23 in total membership in the State of Maine last year out of 189 clubs. This season, we would like to be in the top 10 ~~~ LET’S GO!! Both of our raffles, our annual Caribbean Cruise raffle, and the $5000 cash raffle, are both on track to sell out!! We still have a few left on each, so if you would like to purchase one, or more, please contact club President Randy Bates @ 207-532-8036 -- other offi cers at www.benedictasnowgang.com or me @ 207-365-7276. For other club events please check our FB page and go from there. Well, I guess that is all for this month, I hope you all have a very peaceful and joy ful Thanksgiving ~~~ hug your family and friends really tight!!! THINK SNOW!! Jim Splan Reporter @ Large P.S ~~ Patriots are #1!! BENEDICTA SNOW GANG Benedicta, ME

It’s hard to believe its November the fall crisp morning and evenings are here - we are so ready! We’ve been busy doing trail signs, working on getting the groomers ready to roll and our memberships are rolling in. It’s never too late to join the club where there are no strangers only friends you haven’t met! Just message us on Facebook and we will sign you up! Reminder the 21 st Annual Christmas Parade is coming Nov 30th at 3:00 pm for more info contact Deb Long always a great time! We want take time to thank our Volunteers, as we are Strictly Volunteers No Pun Intended. Pray for a Snowy and Cold winter! Happy Trails from your friends @ MVSD! Keep On Keeping On! Deb Long Greetings from Moosetown Riders in Alla gash, Wow, what a huge success our first annual Bash in the Gash was. Food, Music, Raffles and Good times were enjoyed by all. The amazing outcome of our fundraiser will certainly help us with our endeavor of building our very own Groomer garage/Club house. We are extremely appreciative to all who have donated. We have applied for the Maine Trail Program Grant with high hopes that we can receive some funding towards this project. Follow Moosetown Riders Allagash on Facebook to see the lucky winners, as well as all that our club is doing. Now that this event is behind us it’s time to start our fall trail maintenance, of pruning, ditching and wid ening our trails. Just a few short months before we enjoy what winter has to offer… Snowmobil ing!!!!!!!! Please show your support by joining a club or two. MOOSETOWN RIDERS Allagash, ME Hey Snowmobilers! Yeah, yeah—we know. It’s been a hot min ute since you’ve seen a newsletter. Blame life. Blame the weather. Blame the squirrels. Hon estly, I (your ever-faithful, slightly-overwhelmed newsletter writer) just slacked off. No excuses… unless ‘just didn’t get to it’ is a valid excuse. But enough about me—let’s talk SNOW and all the awesomeness coming up with the Portage Lakers! New Groomer, Say Whaaatt? The boys (and Glenn, specifically) are pumped about the shiny new New Holland Tractor joining our grooming fleet this season. That’s right— we’re doubling down on trail TLC. You can expect smoother rides, happier sleds, and maybe even fewer complaints from Dave & Karen. (We We are currently selling raffle tickets on 3 guns. Tickets are $25 each. Reach out to Jen Bucking ham, Kristi Dunham, Tara Cusack, Beech Ken ney, Tammy Kenney, or Bruce Laveway if you would like to purchase one or go to our website portagelakers.org. We are only selling 250 tick ets, so don’t miss your chance to be the winner! Drawing will be on January 31st at the Fas Phil Poker Run. Upcoming Events You Don’t Want to Miss Dec 5 – Monthly Meeting + Family Fun Night @ 5pm Come for the meeting, stay for the HOME MADE PIZZA made by your charming club offi cers. Social hour from 5–6pm. We’ll also have corn hole, card games, and maybe even some trash talk. Meeting kicks off at 6:30pm. BYO sass. Dec 21 – Community Holiday Potluck Party + Yankee Swap 12–3pm @ Portage Town Hall Bring a dish, bring a gift-$20 limit (or grab something from the back of your closet—it’s tradition). Santa will be swinging by for the kid dos, and there may or may not be questionable fruitcake. The Portage Lakers will be kicking off Christmas week with the whole town. Details on Facebook! Jan 17 – Chad the Hypnotist is Back! Dinner: 5–7pm | Show: 7–9pm | Afterparty: 9pm @ Groomer Shed Chicken stew, hilarious mind control, and probably some embarrassing memories for your friends. Donations welcome for dinner & $20 per person for the show. After Chad warps your can dream.) Gun Raffle PORTAGE LAKERS sc Portage Lake, ME

brain, stick around for games and social time. Grab some friends, fill your bellies, and get ready to laugh! Jan 31 – Fas Phil Memorial Ride & Poker Run Leaves from the Groomer Shed Let’s ride in honor of our buddy Phil Michaud—aka “Fas Phil.” It’s a day full of good trails, great people, and maybe a royal flush if you’re lucky. Watch Facebook for the details and route. Feb 14 – The Big One: Pie Auction + Dance! Town Hall | Happy Hour: 4–6pm | Auction: 6pm | Dance: 8:30–11:30pm The Pie Auction is legendary. We’re talking serious bidding wars, delicious pies, meals, ant lers and tables, and the kind of energy you usu ally only see on snow days. Bring your wallet and your best moves—Guilty Pleasure hits the stage at 8:30! Must be 21+ to get in. March 7 – Club Ride + Hot Dog Roast @ Bro chu’s Camp 10am–3pm | Carr Pond Ride out with the crew and roast some dogs at Brochu’s Camp. It’s the perfect way to wrap up the season with hot food, cold snow, and lots of laughs. Regular Monthly Meetings We meet the first Friday of each month at 6:30pm starting in December. Swing by, say hi, and stay in the loop. Join the Club, we know how to have fun! Spread the Word! Tell your friends, your neighbors, your grand ma’s boyfriend—we’re always welcoming new members. If you love snow, sleds, and socializ ing (with a side of chili and sarcasm), this is your crew. That’s all for now. See you on the trails! Get Snow Dancing, we need more than we’ve had the last few years! As always, when snow hits, Ride Safe, Ride Right, and be Courteous. P.S. Don’t forget to follow us on Facebook for updates, last-minute changes, photos, and the occasional meme. Stay Frosty, It’s late-October and it has been unseasonably warm. It’s hard to “think snow” when you’re wearing shorts, sporting a T-shirt and planting daffodil bulbs instead of thinking about what color snowmobile bibs will best match your new ride for this Winter and riding the sled around the house with the first hard frost. That said, I’ve seen the signs that this Winter will be better than last year . . . although admittedly this is a pretty low bar. By the time this publication comes out we will have already had our first event of the new rid ing season with a Hunter’s Breakfast on Novem ber 1st. We’re also hosting our very popular Craft Fair on December 6th. We’re hoping to have a Breakfast with Santa with pancakes and the fixings on December 13th which is a good thing since I personally know someone who has refused to shave since last January on the off chance he might get called up to help out ol’ St. Nick . . . or barring that get a gig with ZZ Top. We’re hoping to have the Clubhouse open on the weekends again this year to serve up a hot lunch for cold sledders . . . at least some week ends . . . but truthfully we’ll have to play it by ear once the snow flies as many of our Officers and volunteers are limited this year due to var ious reasons. College, having to work 7 days a week, need to see one’s spouse for more than 10 minutes every three days, etc. We also have Super Raffle tickets for sale. I’m still waiting to win something -- anything -- but preferably a brand-new sled. So yes, I will be buying a handful of tickets myself this year. Now if everyone else in the entire State of Maine would do me a favor and not buy any tickets, I might actually stand a chance of winning. Trailmaster Josh Crandall’s Trail Report at our last business meeting was a bit lacking . . . mainly because he didn’t say a single word about how the trails are right now . . . but I can only assume his report would be something like “wicked rough” and a “mite bit boney.” Our Bombardier 180 groomer is ready to go, but we need to put new tracks on the 160 and do a few filter changes. This doesn’t come cheap folks -- in either time or money. Members voted Tammy Kenney Club Secretary SMOKI HAULERS sc Oakfield, ME

Deadlines for club news is the 25 th of the month prior to the publications. Please submit articles to editor@mesnow.com

NORTHERN REGION

BIG VALLEY SNO CLUB Island Falls, ME

Welcome to the 25-26 season! I wanted to take a minute to let you all know that we have several park and ride options in Island Falls as well as lodging if you are looking to spend a weekend! Most of our lodging is on an ITS or local trail. We have elected some new officers to the club, see our Facebook page for the updates. Big Valley has Many items in store for the winter months, but we need snow! Our monthly meetings are typically the first Saturday of the month, but that may vary from time to time. We try to keep you informed in our newsletter and Facebook page. Our Yankee swap and Christmas gathering is planned for 12/6/25, more information will be posted about that as it gets closer. How do you reach us? our email address is bsecretaryofbigvallysnowclub@gmail.com Join our club! Help with trail work, help with raffles, events or dinners! Reach out to let us know. Almost time to do the snow dance! We’ve had one beautiful summer, endless Indian summer and now the leaves are falling and guess what comes next! Thanksgiving, Christmas and then our favorite season of all! Snowmobile Season! As we know it here in the Northern tip of Maine, Spring, Summer, Fall and Snowmobile Season! We’ve had our first meeting to establish our path and last month’s meeting to hold our election of officers. Elected into office, David Connors, President, Erwin Jackson, Vice-Pres ident, Lynn Kelly, Treasurer, Kim Ouellette, secretary. Victor Panno, Trailmaster. Jeff has begun work on the signage on brushing of the signs. Vic is hard at work making sure are landowners are all on board. The membership letters should be in the mail by mid next week. This year brings some updates. We start our season as soon as there is groomable snow. Our clubhouse is up and ready to go. If you remember last year, we were in construc tion knee deep and couldn’t get started until Mid-January. Proposed slate of events. Kick off with a karaoke night. February vacation brings our second annual pig roast. Every Saturday beginning January 1st (Snow! Snow! Snow!) brings our hot meals. Check out our Facebook page for a post on what the meal of the week is. Erwin will start his Friday night pool tournaments as soon as the clock turns. Our trails are much the same and will link Fort Kent to Allagash and points North and West. If you’ve visited our area in the past, you know we are the epitome of trail riding. No clogged 6 inches of slush and gravel. No bumper-to-bumper traffic. Just pure riding! We are one of the few areas remaining that is snowmobiling like it used to be! Come see our new clubhouse, try your hand at a game of pool, Warm up by our wood stove, meet our volunteers, enjoy a meal! Or just sit a spell! Come North! You know it’s on your bucket list. Kim Ouellette Secretary St. Francis Sno Angels. ROCKABEMA SNOWRANGERS Patten, ME How does it happen that in a blink the Win ter Season is upon us… This season looks to be like a great season for sledding according to the Almanac, but then again, we live in Maine and all Almanacs are subject to change. My hope is that the sea son produces some great trails for all of our clubs. Club News for September and October - ST. FRANCIS SNO ANGELS St. Francis, ME

P.SS.~~ Tom Qualey ~~ WHAT!! P.SSS ~~ Ready MARYLAND!! P.SSSS~~ Lion is ready!!

MOLUNKUS VALLEY SNO-DRIFTERS Sherman, ME Greetings from Molunkus Valley Sno-Drifters!

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