Winter 2019 | 31 Club News grooming the entire trail network. There is one likely exception. Corridor 102F1 is currently closed due to pre-season conditions. A lot of work is needed to bring this up to snuff. Confidence is low that we can reopen it until off-season repairs are conducted. We will keep you posted. The Polar Bears will be featuring a new experience this season. A lot of time and effort has been spent improving our 102F3 secondary trail between EX 682 and EX 681. This is a change of pace for many riders who are used to our exciting corridor trails. The tight and twisty variable- width riding of our Horn ’o The Moon trail offers a unique, personal experience. Try it out. The early November snow also revved up anxious snowmobilers. We sold out our Early Birds at the Lunenburg Variety Store! So we added another vendor. TJ’s Truck Stop and Restaurant is located on Bridge Street in Lancaster, N.H. On the trail, they are just beyond EX 65 and the Lancaster snowmobile bridge. They are selling VAST TMAs, maps, fantastic food, 24-hr fuel, including non-ethanol and have a massive park and ride lot for trailers. Thanks to everyone who attended our Christmas party. The potluck dinner was scrumptious. The yankee swap was wrapped in laughter! Think snow! Mike Mutascio, Secretary vtvast.org/lunenburg-polar-bears.html Like us on Facebook The Lunenburg Polar Bears celebrated the holidays with a potluck Christmas party. Northeast Kingdom Snow Blasters Hello, everyone! As I write this, we are under a winter weather advisory and the snow is falling. We are also being promised some good snows later this week as well. Let’s hope it happens. Currently there is excellent riding available on 114 and 102, but limited riding on the 105, which is usual for early season riding. This past weekend was very busy for us with heavy sled traffic and it was great to see all the smiles. Our trail system measures 66 miles and the elevation differences play an important part in snow coverage. I can tell you that in town, Norton elevations are approximately 1,200 feet. However, just a short ride to the east in Averill climbs to more than 1,700 feet. Climb over the powerline and we bypass the 2,000-foot mark. That plays a significant role in our snow coverage, as currently we have less than a foot of coverage in town, yet several feet to work with up high. This is why it is so challenging for forecasters to predict snow totals in their forecasts up here. In town, we struggle with snow under a foot, yet we have several feet to work with up high. There are several factors in accurately forecasting rain and snow here. Elevation differences, the hills, temps and even wind direction are crucial. On any given day on a groomer run, we can experience all kinds of weather. Most runs start in town, head towards Averill, then over the powerline to Lewis, south to Bloomfield and home. An accurate weather forecast is key to developing a good groomer plan. I often say it is difficult to make a firm schedule as the weather changes so often here. We can also assure you that if there is groomable snow, the Old Bully will be out there. We get our weather from Local 22/44 Meteorologist Sean Parker who is from the area and is a huge snowmobile advocate in the state of Vermont. We speak often when there is weather coming that will affect the snowmobile conditions here, whether they be good or bad. We just want you to know how crucial and important an accurate forecast is. Please use caution on the lower powerline at EX 131 where there is an active logging operation. Also check out our new advertising board at EX 13 which touts local advertisers information, a clock, thermometer and safety information. The board also sports LED lighting like all of The Northeast Kingdom Snow Blasters new advertising board at EX 13 has plenty more room! Please contact the club if you are interested in supporting them by purchasing an ad for your business.