9269-R1_MSA_February2026_Newsletter

MSA Club News

lic as to what our two (2) groups endeavor to achieve together/jointly. Plans are ongoing, any comments or suggestion are welcome. Activities, nourishment, and refreshments are being planned... Thank you... WESTERN REGION PLEASANT MOUNTAIN sc Bridgton, ME Pleasantmountainsnowmobileclub.com The January 9 th meeting of the Pleasant Mountain Snowmobile Club, at the Bridgton Community Center, started off at 6PM with the Fabulous Pot Luck Supper which 29 mem bers attended. President Blaine Chapman started the busi ness meeting at 6:45 pm with the Pledge of Allegiance. He then asked for members to go around the room to introduce themselves, say where they were from, and if they had a position with the club. Blaine said that we currently have 112 members and 25 business memberships. Blaine also reported that the Groomers are being worked on and will be ready for the snow when it arrives. New tracks have been installed on the new Polaris Ranger. A new drag was purchased in Alden Bay, NH., and Club member Peter Merrill hauled it back to Bridgton. Thanks for your efforts, Peter! The Club will apply for a grant for the new drag. Jimmy Barber reported that the sales for the 2026 Snowmobile Trail Maps are doing very well. Andy Merrill made 6 new map boxes for the Club which will be distributed to busi nesses in Bridgton. Thanks, Guys, for your usual support. Bob Corthell reported that our Club, again, sold the second highest number of Super Raf fle Tickets in the State, next only to Fryeburg. The Christmas Party was a great success. The food, music and facility were excellent, and everyone had a good time. The Club can talk about it next fall to see if we want to do it again. Jerry Major, Western VP of MSA, and his wife, came to the meeting and also enjoyed the Fabulous Pot Luck Supper. He spoke a few minutes about the MSA Grants and he took a few questions. He will check on a possible insurance company for our groomers. The next Club meeting will be on Friday, February 13 th at The Bridgton Community Center on Depot Street. The Fabulous Pot Luck Supper begins at 6PM followed by the business meeting at 6:45. The Club’s Rally will take place the following day, on February 14 th . Take note: The March meeting will be on Saturday, March 14th at The Bridgton Com munity Center on Depot Street. The Fabulous Pot Luck Supper begins at 6PM followed by the business meeting at 6:45. This Special Saturday date will allow Mem bers who returned from the first Club trip which ended on Friday, March 13, to partic ipate as well as out of state members who can better join in on the fun. Come join us to get together with other snowmobilers, learn about upcoming Club events and hear final details about the Club Trip. All are welcome! Hope to see you there and keep doing your snow dance! And remember to renew your membership if you have not already done that. Bill Preis PMSC Club Correspondent To See dozens of photos and videos—go to: https://www.facebook.com/bridgtoneasyridersclub FRYEBURG AREA SNOWMOBILE ASSOCIATION Fryeburg, ME Hello Everyone, The snow is falling fast and furious as I write this letter and it’s quite a sight to see. Welcome to the white stuff we’ve been wait ing so long for. The trails should be open this week and here’s to hoping they will last quite a while for everyone to enjoy! Thanks go out to our usual crew for col lecting donations and getting ready for our annual poker rally. I’m sure by the time you’re reading this letter the rally will be behind us so I’ll be thanking all the businesses and club members for their generosity with donations

(Continued from Page 9)

By the time this issue goes to print, we’ll be planning our second club trip of the year. This time to Caribou. For anyone who has been to that part of the state, you know there are no better trails in the northeast. Caribou and the surrounding areas are world class riding. The only trouble with this is, since there is little to no snow in the rest of New England, the Caribou area gets a huge influx of riders from all over the northeastern part of the country. With so many riders on the trails, the risk of accidents and injury goes way up. So, if you do choose to ride this part of the state, keep your wits about you, ALWAYS ride right and under control. Cheers! Doug Doherty, President SPSC SEBAGO BRANCH DUCKERS Sebago, ME Like us on Facebook or message us at sebagobranchduckers@gmail.com Hello Everyone, I wish I had more club news to share. Our equipment has been serviced, fired up and we did some test runs with the limited amount of snow we’ve had. Unfortunately, we haven’t had the snow needed to start the riding season. The trails may not be ready for riding yet, but be aware of who else may be sharing the trails with you. Moxie, Brew and I continue to walk the trails enjoying the fresh Maine air. Please use caution if you see others on the trails. Club meetings are held the 1st Wednesday of each month at 6:30 at the old Town Hall. Fingers crossed for more snow! Stay safe on the trails. Jim LaPointe The Midnight Riders January meeting was well attended, with 15 members joining us to kick off the new year and discuss upcoming plans. It was great to see strong participation and continued enthusiasm as we head into the heart of the winter season. The potluck din ner was delicious as always and many good laughs were had. Some fresh powder fell this week and is a welcome site to see. Currently, the trail system is in good shape and ready for riders, walkers, and skiers to enjoy. With cold temperatures in the forecast for the next week or so, things should stay stable and allow rid ers to get out there and enjoy all the hard work we put in year-round. We were pleased to welcome Kris Laval lee from the Dresden Snowmobile Club, who joined us to talk about the possibility of linking our two trail systems. This has been done successfully in the past years and with moderate effort it should be obtainable. This connection would be a great benefit to riders in both clubs as it opens up another gas station for Alna riders and opens up the town of Wis casset to the Dresden riders. Discussions will continue as we explore next steps. The group also discussed plans for a Com munity Sliding Party, scheduled to take place on February 1 at Jeffery Verney’s sliding hill and “1/2 Mile warming hut”. This fam ily-friendly event is a great opportunity to bring the community together, enjoy the win ter weather, and showcase our club’s involve ment. More details will be shared on Facebook as plans are finalized. Volunteers are always welcomed and appreciated. Thank you to everyone who attended and contributed—your involvement keeps our club strong and thriving. As always, Ride Right, Ride Safe. Alna Snowmobile Club, The Midnight Riders Club Reporter, Tabatha Sawyer SACOPEE VALLEY SNOW DRIFTERS Porter, ME As I write this 1/8/2026, Sacopee Valley Snow Drifters (SVSD) finds themselves sit ting brokenhearted, we want to sled, but the season’s just is not starting. Lack of significant snow has us awaiting the opening of SVSD trail system. We have approved a joint-venture with Francis Small Heritage Trust (FSHT) on February 7th (snow-date) February 21st at the Devils-Den-Overlook for the “Devils Den Snow Day”. The goal is to inform the pub ALNA sc Alna, ME

and food items to sell. Thank you to the North Fryeburg Community Chapel for hosting us again this year. Everyone so enjoys your beau tiful facility. It’s the perfect spot to have this fundraiser. A very generous club member and volun teer, Gary Cazeault, has purchased the new dash panel for one of our groomers. He’s definitely one of our biggest supporters and goes above and beyond for us year after year. Thank you, Gary! Please be sure to ride safe and respectful, stay on the marked trails, keep to the right and most of all, enjoy this beautiful trail system we are so fortunate to have thanks to our generous landowners! Thank you to our members for their patience in waiting for Mother Nature to supply us with enough snow to get our groomers out and open trails. As I write this, we are expecting 12”-18” of snow over next couple days. We’re excited to get this season rolling. We were honored to host the January MSA director’s meeting. We had a great turnout and delicious food. It was nice seeing and meeting people. We’ve worked hard to be ready. It’s time we reap our benefits and enjoy the snow. Get out and ride Dan Trouant, club reporter On-going club meetings: Please change the address of our meeting location to: 99 Town and Country Drive, Norway, ME 04268 Burnt Meadow Sno Club has a busy winter planned and we hope you can join us for one of our exciting events. On February 14 and 15, 2026 we are host ing the 4th annual Frost Mountain Sled Dog Race in conjunction with Timber Creek Ken nel Adventures LLC. This event is being held on Farnsworth Road, Brownfield, ME (follow the signs posted) starting at 9 AM both days. Classes include 2 to 8 dog sled classes, Cani cross, and skijor. We will have food available for sale on both days. Whether you are racing, cheering, watch ing, or helping, it is a magnificent event to see, so come join us and support the club and the racers! Meet some incredible dog athletes too, but please ask before touching them and please leave your pets at home. On February 28, 2026, we will be hosting a snowmobile rally and vintage ride starting at 33 Foothill Drive, Brownfield, ME from 9 AM to 2 PM. Registration will begin at 9 AM and trail rides starting at 10 AM. All sleds wel come New or Old! This rally ride is to show case our amazing trails and warming Club house Lodge. Event fee is $15 which includes a 50/50 raffle ticket. Event day permit so no Maine registration is needed but must be registered! For more information on either event please visit our Facebook page or burntmeadow.org. We hope to see you on the trails this winter! Greetings all, It is now mid-January in Maine. The perfect month and state for perfect snowmobile trips from your house. That’s why we live in Maine, right? Looking forward to Maine winters, right? I remember when this was true but not lately. Our trails, our snowmobiles, our gear are already to go, just waiting for the word. We watch the weather reports 20 times a day and wait for the word....snow. We plan the per fect trip and then we get above freezing tem peratures and rain. Our enthusiasm is busted once again. We sit and watch tv and watch the birds scrambling for food outside our window. I think I’ll take a break from Maine winter and go to Arizona where it’s warmer. I won’t even think about snowmobiling for a while. But as they say, be careful what you wish for. Weath Streaked Mountaineers Buckfield, ME Bridget Gorton Club Secretary NORWAY TRACKERS Norway, ME Find us on Facebook Norwaytrackerssnowmobileclub.com BURNT MEADOW SNO CLUB Brownfield, ME

munity. Our club meetings are the 3 rd Wednes day of every month at 6:30 pm and they are open for anyone to join. See our Facebook Events for details. Some other events to look forward to: Poker Run - Sunday, February 21 and our annual Maine Maple Sunday Pancake Breakfast – Sunday March 22. We have lots of trail work ahead. Some volunteers have already been out and we look forward to completing more during our trail work party on Sunday, February 1. We wel come anyone interested in lending a hand. Our trails are very busy in the winter and are a great resource for all. We have a brand new gas station, Casco Gas & Convenience. Located right near the park n’ ride with trail access. The snow is here and we can’t wait to get out there.

Our Tucker groomer needs some signifi cant work to replace the tracks. This was very unexpected. Unfortunately, this will be a large expense. Tucker no longer makes the 150s we need so this will call for a full upgrade to 175s. We are looking to raise money to help offset the cost, which was quoted to be about $80K. We love our groomer and would love to keep it. Anyone interested in making any donation to help with the cost of groomer repair and trail work can reach out to the club. Lastly, we would like to thank all of our members for their support. We have several new members, including business members from Casco and beyond. Please help thank them by visiting or reaching out. • Casco Carwash • Casco Gas & Convenience • CE Construction • Drew Excavation • Hall Funeral Home • Honey Do List • Kindred Farms Market & Bakery • Lakes Region Brewing • Lake Region Monitor Heating & Air Conditioning • Lakes Region Trailers • Lakeview Family Dental • Lilies Floral and Garden • R.T. Symonds Construction • Paul’s Boutique - Windham • Raymondtown Heating, Inc. - Raymond • TLC Tree Well, as I’m writing this, we’ve got a few inches on the ground and we’re expecting about 12 inches this coming weekend. Rid ing in Southern Maine has been sparse for the past ten years, so any riding we get is very welcome. We have 26 members/friends headed to Katahdin Lodge in Moro Plantation next week. This has been one of the club’s annual trips and it never disappoints. The riding is top tier, accommodations are really nice, and the food is exceptional. I’m sure the group will make lasting memories. Like so many other clubs, particularly in Southern Maine, trails are being closed down little by little due to construction sprawl. We’ve been fortunate to keep most of our trails in Saco and Dayton, but the trail system in Scarborough has been decimated by devel opments. All we have left now are some small feeder trails and the powerline. We’ll continue to fight the fight and do our best to keep trails accessible. • Webbs Mills Eats See you on the trails! Amy Keaten – Club Secretary SACO PATHFINDERS Saco, ME Find us on Facebook

10

r y 2 0

r u a

2 6 l M a i ne S n o w m

e b

F

r

o b

i l e