b'Trails ReportBy Matt Tetreault, VAST Trails Administrator the circle started to form. I worked summers doing odd jobs like every kid did in those days and slowly traded up to different machines. Luckily, my parents were supportive of my activity and realized that if I was out snowmobiling with my friends, I wasnt getting into too much mischief. My parents even bought a snowmobile and rode nights and weekends with me, continuing the construction of the circle.During this time, I took the Snowmobile Safety Course at the Barre Fish & Game Club. The instructors were the past VAST Trails Administrator, Wayne Pelkey, and another well-known individual, Peggy Bowen. The Bowen Family (Bowen Excavating) was also aMatt mowed lawns for several summers to save up the $200 to buy his first sled, a 1971 contracted VAST Groomer for manyOlympic Ski-Doo. miles of trails in the 90s and received the VAST Snowmobile Family ofthe sled to an abrupt halt mid-trail.my kids do not know yet, but they The Year Award on at least oneMy son even managed to hit thewill soon as Super Bowl weekend occasion. A well-known family in thereverse switch on my ski-doo with hiswill be the big reveal. What could be area who have given everything tosleeping helmeted head one day.better, football and snowmobiles!snowmobiling the past forty years.As my kids grew older (I grew olderWell, to make the story even better, It truly was an honor to take theand fatter too) it became too much toI purchased the snowmobiles from course from these individuals. Thehave all of us on one machine, eventhe Bowen family. The Pratt family first time I ever went in a groomerwith a two-up seat. I have seen thegot out of snowmobiling and got the was with Donna Bowen when I wasgleam in their eyes when it comesTetreault Family, round #1 involved. around sixteen years old. We ranto snowmobiles or any motorizedThe Bowen family transitioning out the grooming run to Hardwick onmachine and felt it was time to trulyof snowmobiling thirty years later Corridor 14, a run I have now done,introduce them to this addiction. Ahas now gotten the Tetreault Family, and with my father and I both behindfriend of mine was gracious enoughround #2 involved. I guess that is the controls of the groomer multipleto deliver me a 1988 Yamaha Phazerhow the system works! One can only times in the past few years. that someone had given to him.hope this is how it works, for every I took a small hiatus fromThanks Chris! I have never beenmember we lose we gain the one that snowmobiling while in college, butone of those parents that choose tobuys their sled. This is especially true once out, I began what I guess youlive vicariously through my kidsfor me as my paycheck relies solely could call a career at this point, atbut in this case, I will, I finally hadon members wanting to ride our VAST, and continued to form themy Yamaha! The Phazer needstrails.circle. I started a family in 2008work (check out the photo) beforeThe snowmobiling cycle has now when my daughter was born, andit can truly be ridden, although wecome around full circle for my family, my son in 2010. As you may havemiraculously ran it around the yardand I wish the same for your families guessed, they have grown up aroundfor three hours the other day. I believeas well. May the joy of snowmobiling snowmobiles. My father still has oneI may have a bit of the Phazer Feverand great times together be a part and they would often ride with Papaand have big plans of putting a longerof your annual traditions and may on his snowmobile if they werentskid under it, changing out parts, andevery rider that transitions out of with me on mine. When the kidsmaking it a cross-over between oldsnowmobiling pass their sled to a were young, I would take them forand modern. That may be an articlenew rider just starting out on the short rides and the snowmobile wasfor another magazine to come.VAST system.a device that created a nap for them.Realizing the Phazer needed work Their helmeted heads acted as aand would be a while in the making, I want to close by thanking all bobblehead, yet they were fast asleepI started asking around about sledswho have helped me become a and dreaming as we traveled throughI could get for my kids. After askingsnowmobiler and have helped the woods and fields on the VASTaround a bit I found a couple ofto construct this circle with me and system. Helmets would commonlygreat machines for sale and recentlymy family. Stay tuned for Phazer bob, hitting the kill switch bringingpurchased them. As I write this articleupdates!Winter 2022 | 19'