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 68 Page 69 Page 70 Page 71 Page 72 Page 73 Page 74 Page 75 Page 76 Page 77 Page 78 Page 79 Page 80Winter 2017 | 25 In & On The Groomer My dad does the majority of the grooming during the weekdays, and I groom on days he is unable to. Even though my dad thought the idea of purchasing the groomer was a bad idea, you can’t keep him out of it now. We don’t really have a system in place, but try to make sure that the 58 miles that we groom is usually done once a week as long as there is enough snow. We ride these trails as well, so we know when an area may need a little extra work and we also get feedback from community members as well.  When my father and I first started grooming, I was the primary one. I was self-taught with the input from others. My dad soon after picked up some of the grooming responsibilities and was self-taught as well. Once in a while one of my daughters, Brooke or Faith, will ride along with me as long as it is a short ride. When they were younger, I would put them in their car seat and they would fall asleep riding in the groomer.  Currently, I am the trailmaster for the Corinth Sno- Scramblers. I take a lot of pride in trail conditions as a rider and the one who is in charge of maintaining them. The hardest part of the season is the maintenance to get ready for the winter and then the first groom of the season. You never know what you will come up upon, but you can be sure that you will need a chainsaw for trees and limbs! It is also hard to find volunteers to assist with trail maintenance. Grooming isn’t the only part to making sure the trails are safe. Meeting with landowners, posting signs and building bridges are also very important to VAST trails.  We typically put on 2,000 miles in a year. During the week when my dad is out grooming, I will carry a radio with me in case he breaks down. Most of the time, I know where he is planning to groom, so if I need to get to him, I can. If my girls are at home, they will sometimes grab the CB and ask Grampa Paul how things are going and when he will be back. Some nights, the groomer is kept at my grandmother- in-laws, Maxine Slack, in South Corinth. She also keeps a close eye on when he is out with the groomer, and when he is expected to return. It sounds funny that so many people are involved, but if you think about it, if you become stranded in a groomer, you could be miles into the woods and it can take hours to get out. Breakdowns are always a concern of mine. I know my wife worries when I go out in the evenings after I get out of work. I always try to send her a text when I have service to let her know I have hit a certain point, so that if something were to happen and I didn’t return home when expected, she will know the area that I was in to send help.  The thought of a newer groomer sounds nice, but they cost a lot. Right now the current groomer, a 1994 Tucker Sno- Cat 2000, is paid for. This is the only groomer that I have owned, and my father and I do all the maintenance on it in my garage in Bradford where it resides most of the year. I can’t say that I will never have a new one! My two daughters have picked up the love of snowmobiling. Brooke has a Polaris Indy Lite 340, and Faith has a Polaris 120. It is convenient having a groomer at home to make trails for the girls in our fields to practice riding. Brooke won’t go in the field unless Daddy or Grampa Paul have made a trail for her.  As you can see, there are many things about snowmobiling and grooming that I am proud of. I am glad to have the extra time with my family and that they love this as much as I do. It is important to me that trails continue to get maintained for future generations, which include my daughters. Without volunteers and the landowners to provide the support that is needed to keep the VAST system going, these activities won’t be possible.  Grooming is a family tradition in Corinth! Adam Osgood and his father Paul Osgood operate Osgood Grooming. Adam’s daughters, Faith, 5, and Brooke, 7, have their own sleds, love snowmobiling and enjoy riding in the groomer with their father or grandfather.