16 replies to this topic

[CATMAN]

What are the clubs doing for grooming with the storm thats going to drop about a foot of new snow? . Grooming it flat before the storm? Waiting till after the storm? Roll it during the storm? Not rolling at all? Roll it after the, let the sleds help pack it down and then groom it flat couple of days later? I I know there are many ideas on how to groom. I am looking for the best anwser to get our trails flat and stay flat.

[rlaclair]

will i would groom the trails before the storm. then let the traffic pack it down. then before weekend go and groom it.

[Legend700]

groom before the storm butwith so little midweek traffic your probably not going to be able to wait till the sleds pack it before grooming for the weekend. Hopefully it has some moisture content in it so you can process it and have it set up weds and thursday nights.

[Paul D]

Definitely get it flat before the storm. Then see what the moisture content is and decide what to do from there.

[ckf]

We try to get everything flat before a new storm drops more snow on the trails. This is especially important if a major warm up or rain storm is coming. As soon as it cools back down after some rain it is hard to get the trails back in shape. As Legend said traffic during the week has been extremely light this year. In order to get them in shape before the weekend the snow will need to be handled a few times before the weekend. We will probably start grooming them with the drag as soon as the storm starts to let up. If it was early in the season and you are trying to build the base a roll works great.

[CATMAN]

ckf, on Jan 27 2009, 10:08 AM, said:

We try to get everything flat before a new storm drops more snow on the trails. This is especially important if a major warm up or rain storm is coming. As soon as it cools back down after some rain it is hard to get the trails back in shape. As Legend said traffic during the week has been extremely light this year. In order to get them in shape before the weekend the snow will need to be handled a few times before the weekend. We will probably start grooming them with the drag as soon as the storm starts to let up. If it was early in the season and you are trying to build the base a roll works great.

What if you are not able to get out during the storm and we end up with 12-18 inches of fluff. Groom it, roll it or wait for the sleds?

[ckf]

CATMAN, on Jan 27 2009, 10:28 AM, said:

What if you are not able to get out during the storm and we end up with 12-18 inches of fluff. Groom it, roll it or wait for the sleds?

On the rail bed we would probably take the drag. On the trails with steep hills we would take the drag with up to 12" of snow. To make the hills we put our wheels down and groom down the hills on the way back. Over a foot and we either wait for sleds or track pack it with the Tucker.

[skully]

rlaclair, on Jan 27 2009, 11:20 AM, said:

will i would groom the trails before the storm. then let the traffic pack it down. then before weekend go and groom it.

O.K. !

We are planning to come up on Thursday morning so we volunteer to pack it down for you

Rob .....

[smallengineguy]

All of our trails are groomed flat tonight, we're gonna roll Wednesday night, then go back to dragging on Thursday.

[Sno Racer27]

I groomed tonight and got it all flattened out. The Groomer was out last night too, Let the sleds pack it down then drag probably Thurs

Edited by Sno Racer27, 28 January 2009 - 12:47 AM.

[slushpup]

Deff. get it flat first. with a foot of fluff coming,Trying to mix the new and old together will make you pull your hair out.Since we just got the tucker back together late last night,It should be a fun storm to groom.Most likely gonna pan it then groom fri.

[Tim]

Get it flat first, and depending on the day roll new fluff, followed by grooming. Earlier in the week we can't rely on sleds packing it down. You can never have too much base!

[CATMAN]

Tim, on Jan 28 2009, 12:06 PM, said:

Get it flat first, and depending on the day roll new fluff, followed by grooming. Earlier in the week we can't rely on sleds packing it down. You can never have too much base!

Thanks all great info. One thing I think we need to do more of is groom after 2200 or 2300. As everyone knows the trail HAS to set up. My problem is trying to get people to go out at that time of night. Most of the operators have full time jobs and even with that I saw several sleds out at 0130 this morning. No doubt that a few sleds will not do the damage that a few hundred will do. On that note with the amount of traffic in the last two years in our area, its almost impossible to keep up with the grooming on what GIA has allotted us for hours on the year.

[The Toolman]

CATMAN, on Jan 28 2009, 01:23 PM, said:

Thanks all great info. One thing I think we need to do more of is groom after 2200 or 2300. As everyone knows the trail HAS to set up. My problem is trying to get people to go out at that time of night. Most of the operators have full time jobs and even with that I saw several sleds out at 0130 this morning. No doubt that a few sleds will not do the damage that a few hundred will do. On that note with the amount of traffic in the last two years in our area, its almost impossible to keep up with the grooming on what GIA has allotted us for hours on the year.

Unfortunately we will probably have to suck it up for a while as the economy is tanking still. They will take all the taxes they receive from sledders and use them elsewhere.

Edited by The Toolman, 28 January 2009 - 05:36 PM.

[Tim]

The Toolman, on Jan 28 2009, 05:22 PM, said:

Unfortunately we will probably have to suck it up for a while as the economy is tanking still. They will take all the taxes they receive from sledders and use them elsewhere.

Not if we use it first!!

[Legend700]

grooming grants aren't going up anytime soon so we just need to learn to be efficient with the use of whats allocated and budget for some overages coming out of pocket. Whether than means making more efficient loops to groom quicker or taking a couple of days off during the week when the traffics light. Personally I think clubs need to raise dues to budget for that but then you get those clubs that will undercut the market because they don't necessarily need the funds.

[The Toolman]

bottom line is that those who benefit should pay, and some of those who benefit do pay, when we ask the local businesses for support during fundraisers most do what they can. I do have to say I was a little taken when we asked Mcdonalds last spring to sponsor a hole at the tournament they said no, I don't think $25 or $50 dollars would break them at all after seeing hundreds of sleds there all winter. Cobble pond also blew us off, and they have a good spot to make sales, unless they think maybe the sleds don't bring in enough. Everyone is hurting do to the economy so it could be just bad times.