March/April 2009

 Hello Club Members! 

What happened to the winter?  It came and went before we knew what hit!  Seems the season gets shorter and shorter each year.  But must admit I think we had a pretty decent season this year.  Hope you all were able to get out and enjoy the trails.  Before we go any further would like to send a very special “thank-you” to our groomer operators.  What a terrific job they did this year. Come Jan, Feb. & March they are the backbone of this club because without the groomer operators we wouldn’t have the beautiful trails we have.  Thanks guys, another job well done with very little in the way of equipment breakage!!  Somebody must be getting better at the maintenance end of the grooming. 

There are quite a few new members who didn’t hear from us this season as you joined the club at HK Powersports in Laconia and the majority of the new members joined during and towards the end of February (probably to coincide with school vacations, etc.)  By the time I received all the membership forms it was too late in the season to send out welcome letters with the appropriate membership cards, etc.  So I apologize for that but it was all in the timing of how things played out.  So to you new members I give you a belated “Welcome to our club”.  This isn’t normally how we operate the club but we seemed to be inundated with new members this year and the paperwork just got away from me and they all seemed to come in at once.  I encourage new members to occasionally check our web site (address at the top of this newsletter) for any news or upcoming events, etc.  We are contemplating how to go about renewals next year, i.e., whether to send out renewal packets as I have done in the past to each member (which totals over 600).  It seems the majority of the members don’t send them back so we are trying to figure out the most economical and efficient way for everyone to receive their renewals and rejoin the club. 

Now down to business.  The draw bridge in Lakeport has been taken up and “put to bed” for the summer.  Thank you to Peter Morrissette for providing us with his backhoe not only in January to place the bridge but also a couple of weeks back to dismantle it and set it off the tracks for the summer.  We appreciate any and all equipment that helps make the job go smoother and quicker.  Thanks Pete!   The Irwin Ford railroad bridge has been put to bed as well.  Dave is working with the City of Laconia to try and get permission to use the new WOW sidewalk/trail “around” that RR bridge next year.  We had a few mishaps on that bridge this past winter with machines getting jammed in the switches, etc.  There just A) isn’t enough snow with the wind blowing thru there to cover all the switches and rails and  B) it is very hard to keep signs in that area as the local kids like to collect them as soon as we put them up. Without proper signage some inexperienced riders don’t know where to place their skis/sleds when crossing RR tracks that have switches at the end.  Actually there are some seasoned experienced riders who have gotten caught in the switches as well.  So we are looking for a solution to this problem.  And please believe us when we say we “know” this is a problem.  Dave has had many a call regarding the switches and another machine getting caught so it is something he’s very aware of and is working on a solution. 

Our final meeting of this season will be held on Wednesday, April 29^th. We have decided to hold this election of officers meeting at the Weirs Beach Lobster Pound.  They have a private meeting room that we will be using. They are very receptive to having us for the evening.  Wednesday night is “Italian” night and they have a few specials which we’ve tried and highly recommend.  The meeting will be starting somewhere between 7:00-7:30.  If you plan to eat at the restaurant prior to the meeting plan to get there with enough time to order & eat prior to the meeting. We will actually be there around 6:00.  The meal part of this will be an individual deal for each family.  We will have a pretty brief meeting after dinner with the election of a new Board of Directors who in turn will elect the officers for the 2009-2010 season.   If anyone is interested in becoming a director please plan to attend the meeting.  We would love to see a new face or two on the board of directors.

We would also like to thank those of you who sent along a donation to the “groomer” fund. It was much appreciated! 

Hope to see you at the Weirs Beach Lobster Pound on Wednesday, April 29^th.

Jill Ferguson

Secretary/Treasurer