Local snowmobilers could find this winter’s riding choices very limited in the area if the sale of Ontario Federation of Snowmobile Clubs (OFSC) trail permits does not improve this season.
Jerry Bertrand, the Elliot Lake Snowbirds Snowmobile Club’s (ELSSC) trail permit co-ordinator, says last winter’s local trail permit sales reached the point of being unsustainable.
"Sales have dropped drastically," says Bertrand.
In the late 1990s, the club was selling an average of about 700 trail permits per season.
Trail permit sale began declining in the last decade for a few reasons, including the cost and the poor snow conditions in the north. Last season, the ELSSC sold only 185 regular season permits, he explains.
A regular season trail permit costs $200 if bought on or before Dec. 1 and $250 after that date. There is also a ‘classic permit’ for snowmobiles that are at least 15 years old. That permit is $125.
In the past, many American snowmobilers came to this area for snowmobile vacations. Back then the club would attend a huge snowmobile show in Novi, Michigan and sell 400 permits, Bertrand says.
"We sold 40 last year. That doesn’t even pay for us to go there."
In addition, the club does not get to keep the full amount of the permit. A sizeable portion goes to the OFSC to cover expenses such as the federation’s trail liability insurance. The local club gets $120 from each permit it sells.
He says the club is strapped for cash, adding that their yearly payment on the groomer is $15,000. Just to pay that the club has to sell 125 permits.
If the club cannot sell more trail permits, Bertrand fears they might have to shut down some trails to cut costs.
"The potential of closing it down for one or two seasons would probably be a permanent closure."
Reopening a trail once closed is costly. It does not take long for a trail to grow over, if it is not maintained.
Another option is more drastic.
"If we don’t get it back up to 225 or 250 (permits), we could end up folding."
Folding the club could mean all the club’s trails could close.
Groomers
The Elliot Lake club grooms more than 300 kilometres of trails with two trail groomers, 2003 and 2009 tractors with drags to pack down the snow.
In addition, the newer of the two groomers can be converted to summer usage. In summer is when the club does the brunt of the trail work such as brushing along the trails, removing large rocks from the trail and even helping to install snowmobile bridges.
The club has two paid groomer operators. In the past, clubs relied on volunteer groomer operators, but that was often hard on equipment. When clubs went to paid operators, many noticed a sizeable decline in the cost of repairs.
And earn their money the operators do.
"They work anywhere from an eight-hour day to a 16-hour day, depending in the circumstances.
"Sometimes, they have to go all the way up to Aubrey Falls."
In recent years, the groomer operator rides to Aubrey Falls, spends the night at a lodge and comes back the next day.
However, that might change this year. With many lodges now closed in winter and others for sale, the operator might not have a place to stay.
Prior to that arrangement, an operator would run the groomer for about 10 hours and his relief would meet him at a specific point on the trail and switch. When the second operator returned to the spot, the first would take over.
The snowmobile club does not just groom the snowmobile club’s trails, it also grooms the local cross-country ski club’s trails.
Bridges
The club also maintains more than 50 bridges within its boundaries. Early in the club’s 39-year history, its members recognized the dangers of having trails crossing rivers and lakes. For many years, the club has had a bylaw to not build trails across bodies of water. When there is a body of water in the way, the club either builds a trail around it or constructs a bridge over it.
In the past, some clubs in the province that have trails on the ice lost groomers and sometimes tragically lost the operator as well.
Bertrand says the City of Elliot Lake has been a big help.
"They support the club tremendously. They know the value of snowmobiling to the community."
He says the city covers the cost of the fuel and maintenance for the groomers.
"That’s one of the reasons we have survived."
District
He says the decline in permit sales is not limited to Elliot Lake. There is a similar problem across the OFSC’s district 13, also known as the Algoma Sno-Plan Affiliation (ASPA). ASPA is made up of 10 snowmobile clubs and runs from Spanish to Sault Ste. Marie to Dubreuilville.
Many of the clubs have seen trail permits sales drop by 50%, he says.
To help all the clubs survive, the district is pooling the trail permit fees and spending the money where it is needed most, he explains.
In the past few years, ASPA lost two clubs, one in Thessalon and the other in Sprague. As a result, the remaining clubs have had to take over their trails to maintain the links.
The clubs within the ASPA region operate 2,200 kilometres of groomed trail.
"Riders don’t just ride in Elliot Lake, they go Iron Bridge, Blind River and Spanish."
Funding
The club, the district and the OFSC have had some help over the years.
Occasionally, the province has provided grants for snowmobile clubs and the federation, but they do not get grants every year.
In the last three years, ASPA has spent about $1 million on 20 snowmobile bridges, building new trails, brushing old trails and trail maintenance.
"Basically, it’s the trail permits that operates the whole system. If you happen to get grants, you’re lucky."
With a trail permit snowmobilers can ride on any of the OFSC’s 34,000-plus km of trail in the province.
In Elliot Lake, snowmobile trail permits are available at the Elliot Lake Welcome Centre on Highway 108, the ELSSC shop at 32 Timber Road, Elliot Equipment at 10 Kilborn Way and at Northern Power Sports and Marine at 37 Timber Road.
For more information, call the club at 705-848-4620 or check the website www.elliotlakesnowmobiling.com.
