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 806 | Snowmobile VERMONT VAST News NEWS NEWS 2016/17 SEASON PHOTO CONTEST Submission Guidelines 1. All photos must be high resolution and at least 2 MB in file size. 2. The person submitting the photo(s) must be the person who took it. Provide your full name, club, phone number and e-mail address. 3. Provide the first and last names of people in the photo, their snowmobile club name(s), and location of photo (town, trail #, etc.) 4. Once you submit your photo, you are giving VAST permission to use this photo in the magazine and for future marketing purposes. To enter: Upload your photo and caption information to www.vtvast. org/photocontest.html or e-mail to editor@vtvast.org with the subject PHOTO CONTEST. All six winners will get a Snowmobile Vermont beanie hat and their photo published in the magazine. First place receives a TMA for next year and the cover shot of the Fall 2017 issue. A message from VAST President Tim Mills Did you take the time to get out and do some early season riding on your sled? Mother Nature has already provided us with a few storms in the beginning of the season that had a majority of the clubs out packing and panning. As a bonus, a few of the storms have been a little extra generous and dumped substantial amounts in the upper elevations along the Green Mountain spine and all points eastward. It was an excellent beginning to have clubs out grooming and trail reports coming in. All of the necessary components were coming together for a full season of riding. The whole state virtually came alive with the hum and motion of a well-oiled machine coming up to speed. Everything was fitting into place perfectly. At least you would think it was going to be perfect. After all, we had an extremely short, if non-existent, season last year. We were due and it was owed to us, or at least that is how most of us die-hard snowmobile enthusiasts feel. Unfortunately, we have found ourselves in the middle of a good ol’January thaw. It is not that uncommon and, more often than not, it pretty much hits us every winter about this time. Don’t fret and don’t despair. Recent memory and history will tell you that some of our hardest-hitting snowstorms have come at the end of January and especially through February. Remember the Valentine’s Day snowstorm? Or should I say windfall? That storm brought feet of snow, not inches. It was truly one for the books that we will talk about for years. This hopefully short window of downtime is not being dismissed by the clubs, counties and VAST alike. Last minute equipment repairs are undergoing completion, events and trade shows are being planned and booked and truly not a minute of this valuable time is being wasted. Take a little bit of this downtime and open up your Snowmobile Vermont magazine and look at the club events section.  You will find more than enough to do this winter on the weekends. There are clubs hosting poker rides, a couple’s pre-Valentine’s Day snowmobile ride, the Vermont Vintage Rendezvous, the VAST Military Appreciation Ride-in and many other events. There is always something going on, and how you get there is up to you. Almost all of these events can be attended by car. That is one of the many things that will never cease to amaze me about this one-of- a-kind organization and the people that makes it what it is. There is always something going on that needs to be done. There is always plenty to do. If you feel like being more involved, contact your local club, attend one of their meetings and chances are they could use a hand. It doesn’t matter where you come from or what your background is, there is always a spot somewhere in this sport for someone like you. Ride safely and smooth trails,  —Tim Mills, VAST President and Trails Coordinator (Shelley D’Amato photo)