Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 40 Page 41 Page 42 Page 43 Page 44 Page 45 Page 46 Page 47 Page 48 Page 49 Page 50 Page 51 Page 52 Page 53 Page 54 Page 55 Page 56 Page 57 Page 58 Page 59 Page 60 Page 61 Page 62 Page 63 Page 64 Page 65 Page 66 Page 67 Page 682016/17 Snow Traveler’s Guide to Vermont | 3 | 3 There was one thing I knew without asking a soul when I accepted the position as Executive Director of VAST, and that’s the value of this organization to Vermont’s economy. In fact, it is quite rare that when I am asked where I work, or who I represent, that I have to explain what VAST stands for; the history of our association speaks for itself. VAST is an organization built on Vermont traditions by dedicated volunteers who understand the value of hard work and have a passion for this adventurous winter sport! If you’re fairly new to VAST let me give you some history. VAST began back in the 1960s with a group of snowmobile enthusiasts that wanted to quell the suspicion of this new sport and organize so they could begin to build a trail system that they could ride on and entice others to join the sport. It took some time to get folks to realize that this could be a great sport for themselves and for Vermont, but the growing number of enthusiasts did not give up. Most snowmobilers in Vermont at that time used sleds for farm work or to get around the farm in the winter. I hazard to say that if those folks weren’t so brave to introduce the sport of snowmobiling to Vermont when they did, we would not have the great trail system we do because of state laws that now govern development. All you have to do is look to the largest winter economic engine in Vermont, downhill skiing, to note that if those trails on Vermont’s mountains were not cut when they were back in the 50s and 60s, we probably would not have downhill skiing in Vermont now either. VAST has proven our commitment to providing a snowmobile experience that is second to none. We have a large number of volunteers at the member and club level, as well as a board of directors that dedicate a lot of time to the association and this sport. Let’s not forget about those that travel to Vermont to recreate, vacation or own second homes. And of course, we cannot forget about our landowners. We wouldn’t have a 4,700-mile trail system without the landowners and the clubs that maintain and groom our network. I often hear from folks who do not snowmobile, but use the VAST trail system to snowshoe or cross-country ski too. Many have told me they join VAST every year just to support snowmobiling in Vermont because they enjoy and appreciate the trail system. Eighty percent of the VAST trail system is made up of private lands and the remaining 20 percent are state or federal lands. As a way of encouraging private landowners to allow VAST trails on their property, Vermont enacted two statutes in the 1970s that protect those landowners from any liability if they allow trail use, or public use at no charge. In addition to that protection, VAST spends over $125,000 on liability insurance annually to protect the trails and those that ride and work on them. Eighty percent of our income goes towards our trail system in the form of grooming, trail construction, trail maintenance, policing, etc. In fact, 44 percent is for grooming alone. If you ride in other states, and compare them to Vermont, you can tell that we spend a lot of time, effort and money making sure our trails are in excellent condition and incredibly well signed. I hope you come to Vermont and have a wonderful and safe snowmobile adventure! EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR’S MESSAGE VAST Executive Director Cindy Locke