| TTF Newsletter February 2020 CLUB UPDATE by Bob Smith – TTF Vice President. Happy New Year Snowmobile Friends, Being a snowmobile club, we are all about snow and trail conditions. It’s all reflective on weather conditions that bring in the snow and allow our groomers to operate. Temperature is so critical to grooming the trails. “Cold” below freezing temps are needed for the groomers to knock off the moguls and bumps on the trails. When the weather is warm and the snow is wet the holes behind the bumps wash out with snowmobile use unless the snow is allowed to freeze. We’ve had a most unusual snow season… December was low snow but early January brought heavy snow that made for fantastic snowmobiling. The Milkshake Snotel Site jumped from 3 feet to over 7 feet in just a few days in early January. We’ve had up and down temps, but it has led to a great base of around 7’ in the upper elevations. We pay a lot of attention to NOAA weather forecasting and have found it to be very accurate. For instance, the forecast shows heavy snow this week with accumulations of between 18” to 24” along with cold temps. However, it is to warm up slightly on Thursday and Friday with highs in the mid to upper 30’s and lows in the upper 20’s then it should cool off to the mid to low 20’s for the foreseeable future. It should be great snowmobiling throughout the entire Tollgate area!!! Jess Thompson our grooming chairman tells us his team of all-volunteer groomers is prepared to groom weather permitting. The key is cold weather. Conditions are great!!!! Get up and enjoy our Beautiful snow-covered mountain. Grooming Report 2-5-20 We have groomed Monday and Tuesday of this week while we had cold temperatures, both SnoCats ran on both days and we covered all the inner trails, including Shumway/Chalet, McIntyre Loop, Target Meadows, Powerline, 3719 Coyote, Pole Trail, out to Jubilee Lake to Bone Springs, Skyline Rd, Elk Trail, out through Spout to Ruckel Shelter and back through Gordon Creek Loop and Balloon Tree Loop. We went to the Alpine Outpost 3 times, all snow parks and highway crossings. Thanks to the guys for putting in the time to get this all done. As you know, it snowed last night and is still snowing today, at least 8-10 inches of new snow and possibly that much more coming before it turns to rain. There will be above freezing temperatures and rain starting tonight through Friday, up to 3 inches of rain. We will have to wait and see what it looks like after this wet weather. I doubt if we will be able to do any more grooming this week. It will need to get cold again and snow. January Grooming Statistics Groomed 426 miles 91.7 hours 487 gallons diesel Removed 28 trees 20 hours of maintenance 26 hours spent driving to/from mountain 1,138 miles driven to/from mountain Jess Thompson – TTF Grooming Chairman OSSA Convention – Joseph, Oregon The 2020 OSSA Convention in Joseph, Oregon hosted by the Wallowa County Gamblers is in the books. There were attendees from all corners of Oregon and everywhere in between. Riding from Salt Creek Summit SnoPark made me realize how much beauty abounds in the Wallowas and breaks of Hells Canyon. The snow was perfect, deep powder at most elevations. Saturday’s ride was the Poker Run. It was fun seeing riders of all ages and skill levels hitting the different stations. There was plenty of untouched powder to enjoy along the way. The Saturday Banquet was a packed house. Perfectly smoked Prime Rib with all the fixins. What a blast. Huge shout out to Dustin and Lorien at Outlaw Motorsports for all your hard work! I plan to attend the 2021 OSSA Convention in Klamath Falls, Oregon. Dates to be announced soon! Events 1.) Kids Ride – Feb 15th i. Meet at TTF Clubhouse 930am ii. Led by Kolby Christensen iii. All ages welcome 2.) WSSA – Winter Rendezvous – Feb 14th thru Feb 17th Campbells Resort on Lake ChelanJoin us for four days of fun in Chelan. Experienced off-trail riding groups as well as family-friendly trail rides. WSSA and the local clubs will set up rides you’ll LOVE! Dinner on Friday and Saturday as well as some type of entertainment. Plenty to do in Chelan and a casino is nearby if you want to take a break from sledding. Join us!https://www.wssa.us/content.aspx?page_id=4002&club_id=431529&item_id=108610 3.) Backcountry Skills Day – Feb 22nd – 9am i. Meet at TTF Clubhouse 9am Feb 22nd. ii. Led by Brandon Christensen iii. For Intermediate riders who want to hone their skills for proper riding positions, side hilling, traversing steep terrain, getting sleds unstuck, etc. iv. Beacon, Probe, Shovel Required 4.) Avalanche Awareness Course – Motorized – DATE TO BE ANNOUNCED SOON i. Taught by Victor and Kelly McNeil from Wallowa Avalanche Center ii. $50 for TTF members, $75 for non TTF Members – all proceeds go to Wallowa Avalanche Center iii. Date to be announced soon. 5.). Club officer and board member election. Steak Out and Elections – March 7th 5pm – TTF Clubhouse BBQ at 6pm – Bring your own meat to BBQ and a side dish or Dessert If you are interested in running for a leadership role let us know and we’ll get you on the ballot. Think Snow and have a great year of sledding. Your friends from the Tollgate Trail Finders Snowmobile Club. Brandon Christensen – TTF President Bob Smith TTF – Vice President |
