Area snowmobile trails still a loss
Serious snowfall needed before local routes re-open: OFSC
By Lance Holdforth – Special to the Examiner
Posted 14 hours ago
A lack of snowfall has Barrie snowmobilers heading to the Great White North in search of trails to ride.
Unseasonal weather has left the Ontario Federation of Snowmobile Clubs (OFSC) at a loss for terrain in the mid-Ontario region, where Barrie is located.
Region manager Kevin Hagen said serious snow is needed to salvage the 700 kilometres of trails before winter’s end.
“Well they’re (trails) closed and they’ll be closed until we get a decent snowfall,” he said. “We’ve been spoiled for a bunch of years where we’ve been able to just start it (the sled) up in the garage and take off. This winter it just hasn’t happened.”
The OFSC has more than 34,000 kilometres of trails throughout Ontario used by some 100,000 registered snowmobilers.
Decent trail riding has been reported in the province, but the closest trails to ride are in the North Bay area, Hagen said.
“You need to have a trailer. There’s great riding up there, and for whatever reason we haven’t gotten the snow this winter,” he said. “It’s been a tough winter.”
Because the season has been harsh on local trails, Hagen said some of the 6,000 registered riders in the region have asked for refunds, but the OFSC still has to pay to insure the trails.
“We’re still paying over $3 million a year to insure our trail system,” he said. “It’s like your car. For one thing, people still have to pay insurance if you drive it or not.”
Despite more dirt on trails than snow, some riders have broken the cardinal rule and rode on closed trails, which Hagen said holds serious consequences.
“It’s not a very wise thing to do and it’s not very safe,” he said. “If your insurance company finds out you’re driving on a closed trail it’s like driving on a closed highway, you don’t have any insurance.”
Riders caught on closed trails can be charged with trespassing and face a fine up to $2,000, Hagen said.
A snowfall of 12 inches would provide a solid base, but Hagen said riders would still need to be patient during the following days to allow for maintenance.
“When we go through these long stretches (without snow) things happen out there that we aren’t aware of,” Hagen said. “The groomers have to go back out and make sure the trails are safe before people ride them.”
While snowmobilers hit the road in search of packed trails, businesses in the Barrie area feeling the seasonal drought, Hagen said.
news@thebarrieexaminer.com
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