Tuesday, March 27th, 5:45pm. Out of respect for our
gracious landowners and due to the quickly deteriating snow conditions, the
Trailbusters trail system is officially closed for the season. Thank
you for everyone's support.
Sunday, March 25th, 4pm. The fat lady is singing .................
Wednesday, March 21st, 7:30am. The south
half of the trail system was groomed last night.
Tuesday, March 20th, 9:15am. John Beggs and
Darwin Piersall spent yesterday successfully repairing a groomer. The trail
to West Leyden and Point Rock was groomed last night. The south end of the
system may be groomed tonight. This may be it folks!
Sunday, March 18th, 10:00am. The trail to Lee
Center is closed again due to high water. The trail to West Leyden was groomed last night.
On the way back from grooming the West Leyden trail,
they had to cancel going over the Point Rock trail because they were again having problems lifting the drag and the wheels. The south trail was scheduled to be groomed but a
wheel broke on the other groomer as they drove it out of the barn. They started to take that one apart, so that is down.
John Beggs
checked the trail to Lee Center yesterday and said that water at the creek
was about one foot deep and rushing. He marked the trail closed and believes it is
dangerous. Travel through there is AT YOUR OWN RISK!
Received at 3:45 today: the trail to West Leyden was
awesome.......... I just went for a quick trip to WL and return....
Amazing what your club is doing with all the hard luck they have had.
(Thanks for the comments Sue!).
Tuesday, March 13, 7:45am. There is a club
meeting tonight at Lee Town Hall at 7:30pm. Please attend. With the warm
temperatures this week, the groomers probably won't go out again until Thursday
or Friday depending on the weather.
Monday, March 12, 9:00am. The entire trail
system was groomed last night with exception of the State Park spur.
Sunday, March 11th, 5:00pm. The groomers didn't go out
last night due
to the rain and warm temps. The south part
of the trail system, from Hawkins Corners to Camroden Road is in pretty good
condition, with some stutter bumps and a little slush - but not bad at all
for spring conditions. If you want to take a short ride tonight or early
tomorrow morning, it will be worth it. Watch out for a few waterholes toward
Western. If you want to take the loop around Lake Delta, Penn Mtn groomed
the connecting trail from Western to West Branch this afternoon. Sorry, but
no report on the north half of the system.
Saturday, March 10th, 4:30pm. The north trails
are getting a little rough, especially north of West Branch. Hopefully,
tonight it will be cold enough to groom. The Blazer is gone, but the brain
surgeons who drove the vehicle on the trail left all their garbage. Real
class acts.
Friday, March 9th, 8:45am. The entire
system was groomed last night and conditions are fantastic. This will be the
best day of the year as most surrounding clubs groomed their trail systems
last night also.
UPDATE: 4:30pm. Guess our trails are so smooth they look like highways
to some idiots - oops, I mean people. There is a black Chevy Blazer stuck
off our trail about 1/2 mile up off of Stokes-Westernville Road, after you
go around Brian Mandryk's alfalfa field and down into the woods (C7 - north
of the groomer barn). It
was there when Millie and Darwin Piersall went thru at 8:45 AM and was still
there at 4 PM. John Beggs has talked to the trooper.
Thursday, March 8th, 9:30am. The trail
system remains in great condition. Last night John Beggs and Darwin Piersall
went out and groomed from the groomer barn south to the Fish Hatchery and
over to the Beeches cleaning up the few bumps from the days traffic. Tonight
the north end of the system will be groomed. The best conditions of the year
are right now, and the long range forecast indicates that it will end
quickly. Now is the time to get out and ride!
Wednesday, March 7th, 9:30am. Good news! The entire trail system was groomed last night, north and south. The trail to Lee Center is open. Hope
the warm weather predicted for Sat and Sun doesn't cause a problem again. Both groomers are up and running. Areas in the woods in the town park area were
so bad it took six passes to get it smooth as the snow was so hard, the blade couldn't break it loose. It was a tremendous effort on the part of our
groomer operators to get the trails back in shape after the weather we have experienced and the fact that we have been working with only one groomer. Thanks to the
eight operators who worked in
shifts last night to get this accomplished. John Beggs, Neil Sestito, Jim Newbill, Brian Schilling, Art Cole, Lance Blood, Jim Williams and Tim
Hyde. It took 9 1/2 hours to do the south trail where it normally takes 6. The north trail was done in 8 hours, normal
time for that. Get out there and ride - they say spring is only two weeks away!
Monday, March 5th, 10:30am. Update
8:00pm. The trail to
Point Rock (C41) and West Leyden (C7 north of the groomer barn & C4A)
was groomed last night. The trail to Lee Center (C4H) remains closed due to
flooding. The club will be assessing the situation today. We have one
groomer down right now which will be worked on today. Update: Our
Groomer Coordinator John Beggs had planned on sending the groomer to do the
south trails tonight. Due to the blowing, drifting and poor visibility he
felt it was a dangerous situation to put the drivers and equipment into as
well as anyone out there.
Sunday, March 4th, 8:30am. The Lee
Center Trail (C4H) is temporarily closed due to flooding. The trail
will reopen when the water recedes. Last night the entire trail system
was groomed.
Friday, March 2nd, noon. The groomer went
to West Leyden (C7 & C4A) last night and returned to West Branch. The
Point Rock trail was going to be groomed this morning, but that has been
postponed.
Thursday, March 1st, 8:30am. Yesterday
there was a misunderstanding about the Beeches spur being open (S73B) with a
landowners relative. As a result, the trail was temporarily closed. All
issues have since been resolved and the trail is open. We are very fortunate
to have excellent landowner relations with this property owner and greatly
appreciate the use of their land. The groomer was out last night grooming the south end of the system
(C7-south of groomer barn, C4H, C7D, S73B) and everything is in good shape right now. If
you're going to skip work and ride, today is the day!
Photos of southeast end of trail system (C7D) this morning.
Tuesday, February 27th, 9am. Last night the
groomer left the barn and groomed one way to West Branch (C7 & C4A).
This morning it will go to Point Rock (C41) and later this afternoon will
head to West Leyden (C4A) and back.
Monday, February 26th, 11:45am. The Lee
Center trail segment has been reopened and was groomed today. Please see the Home Page for additional
information. Saturday night, the entire southern half of the system was
groomed (C7D, S73B, S72B, C7D & C7P), as well as the northern half of
the system to Point Rock (C41) and West Leyden (C7 & C4A). On Sunday
night, the groomer traveled south to the Beeches (S73B) and to the Fish
Hatchery (C7D). Sunday, I rode from Hawkins Corners to the Penn Mountain
connection in Western and the quality of grooming was outstanding.
Everything was wide and flat. World class trails right in our
backyards.
Friday, February 23rd, 11am. The entire
system was groomed last night. The north groomer went to West Leyden (C4A
& C7) and Point Rock (C41). The driver came home at 4am and reported
that it was snowing, blowing and drifting, but things went well. The
south groomer went to Camroden Road (C7D), State Park (C7P) and the Beeches
(S73B), burning 53 gallons of fuel! Conditions should be good everywhere,
but the early bird gets the best ride. Sorry, but there
will be no additional updates until after the weekend.
Thursday, February 22nd, 9am. The groomers
have been repaired and have been out on the trails.
Tuesday, February 20th, 5:15pm. Our
groomer problems continue. The groomer with the hydraulic line problem was
fixed out on the trail yesterday and brought back to groomer barn. It
left to do the south trail last night and blew a belt less than a mile from
home. Out on the trail, it will be repaired this afternoon. The
other groomer is down and will require more maintenance. This is the
second night in a row that club member Darwin Piersall has had to go rescue the
drivers.
Monday, February 19th, 11:30am. We're back
in business! The trail from the groomer barn to West Leyden (C7 & C4A)
and Point Rock (C41) was groomed last night. The repair crew is working on
the second groomer right now and hope to have it back in service this
afternoon.
Sunday, February 18th, 7:30am. With both
groomers down, the trails are rough. It may be several days before we are
back to grooming.
Saturday, February 17th - 7:30pm. Today
both groomers were out working on the southern half of the trail system. The
first groomer was running without the drag to break trail and plow snowbanks
at road crossings. The other groomer was pulling the drag. Bad luck struck
again as the groomer pulling the drag blew a hydraulic line and had to be towed to the
road. To make matters worse, the other groomer has developed an electrical
problem. It may be several days before you see smooth
trails. Currently, the trails north of the groomer barn are in rough shape.
The snow has very little moisture content and will not hold together even
after grooming. Due to the deep snow, trail work could not be
completed today on the Lee Center trail reroute.
Millie and Dave Piersall in the Groomer on Saturday
Friday, February 16th - noon. The entire
trail system was groomed yesterday, with exception of the Beeches spur
(S73B) and State Park spur (C7P). There has been a lot of blowing and
drifting of snow from when the trails were groomed. Please be careful out
there. Also, the West Rome Riders trail that crosses Lorena Road is going to
be rerouted as the City of Rome Common Council closed a stretch of trail
that ran for 700' along Lorena Road (C7). This happened because of some irresponsible
riders who were continuously speeding down the road and the usual complaints
about loud exhaust. I know I'm preaching to the choir here, but please keep
off the throttle when there are homes nearby. We were fortunate to have
the same Common Council approve our clubs use of 500' of Gulf Road, and for
that we are grateful. Also, we need help tomorrow. Please see the Wednesday
report below. CORRECTION - 3pm. Jim Rolf said that the trail will not
be rerouted. You will have to use the trail at the Beeches (S73B) to access
their trail system.
Thursday, February 15th - 12:45pm. The groomer left at 10:15 AM to groom the
south trail. The north trail will be groomed tonight. There is a lot of snow on the trail and one has to be careful to not get
stuck. As you know, we are still down to one groomer. Our club
Secretary, Millie Piersall, heard from the Boonville club that the snow is heavier than we have been getting
and the grooming is tough. Keep your fingers crossed that we have no more mechanical problems.
Wednesday, February 14th - noon. Let
it snow!
Help Wanted. We are literally a few hundred feet from
completing a new trail to Lee Center. There is a small stretch of woods that
need to be cleared of heavy brush and downed timber off of Hawkins Corners
Road. It is quite thick and normally would require the use of an excavator.
With the large amount of snow we have had over the past few weeks, getting
an excavator into this area may be impossible. We can open the trail if the
work is done by hand, but we need some help. The clubs Trail Coordinator,
Dave Piersall, is asking anyone who can lend a hand to meet at the groomer
barn at 9:00am on Saturday morning (Feb 17th) or at the work site around
9:30am to cut and move brush. The worksite can be reached by snowmobile from
Lee Town Park by heading west toward Hawkins Corners Road before heading
into the woods (if coming from Stokes), or after leaving the woods and
entering the town park if coming from the direction of the Colonial. The
groomer will be parked at the worksite. Please help us out. If you can
lend a hand for an hour, that's an hour that something got done! Thanks in
advance for everyone's assistance.
Tuesday, February 13th - 8:45am - Last
night the groomer went to the Beeches and Camroden Road (Western - Penn Mtn
connection). The state park spur was not done as the driver had to get back
to go to work. This trip took over 7 1/2 hours due to conditions. The clubs
groomer crew deserves a big thanks from everyone for their dedication and
hard work in all this snow and extreme weather. Thanks guys.
Sunday, February 11th - 6:45pm. The groomer headed out for West Leyden early
this afternoon. When it returns, they will be grooming the south
trail. Several guys worked all day yesterday outside
to take the wheel bearing and whatever else out, replaced bearings, and
put it back together in the heavy snow. They brought it back to the
groomer barn but we will be down to one usable groomer as there are still
some issues with it that need to be addressed.
Saturday, February 10th - 4:45pm. Last night
one of the clubs groomers went north to Point Rock and West Leyden and back.
The trip started at 9pm and took until 6am this morning to complete! The other
groomer went south to Rome and Western. On the way, the groomer broke down in the
vicinity of the Fish Hatchery with a bad front bearing. It was being
repaired this afternoon.
Wednesday, February 7th, 9am. The
entire trail system was groomed last night and conditions are
excellent.
Sunday, February 4th, 8:30am. Both groomers
were out last night. One headed to West Leyden and Point Rock, while the other
groomed to the Beeches and Fish Hatchery.
February 3rd, 8am. The groomer headed north last night to West
Leyden and then returned back to the groomer barn. Unfortunately, the "wannabees"
were tearing the trail up right after it had been groomed (I witnessed it). Hopefully a somewhat smooth ride will still exist for the early
riders.
Friday, February 2 - 9am - The entire trail system was groomed last night,
except the Chestnut Street and Beeches spur (which was done Tuesday).
Awesome conditions. Unfortunately, the section of trail to the Penn Mountain
connection at Camroden Road in Western will not be groomed again until we
receive more snow. There is enough snow for riding, but not enough to groom
without beating on the equipment. Please stay on the trails. The contractor
from Ohio who is building the Rome Savings Bank is having a
fit over snowmobiles crossing THEIR site to get to the gas station and our
club is doing its best to fence it off even though our trail does not cross
their land.
Wednesday, January 31, - 8am - The groomer went to to Chestnut Street and
the Beeches last night. The entire trail system is in good shape. Time to
get out and ride! Please stay on the trail, and specifically stay outside
the stakes on Sly Hill north of the groomer barn (Mandryck property), and at
Hawkins Corners in front of the church and at the new bank. Individuals have
been crossing through these properties and if it continues, trail closures
are possible.
Tuesday, January 30th, - 9:45pm - The groomer went to West Leyden last night
and the trail should be in great shape.
Monday, January 29th - 10 am. The groomers did not go to West Leyden last
night as planned but will go tonight instead; reason being we had both
groomers out Sunday afternoon rerouting the trail from the town park to Lee
Center. There was a lot of brush/tree cutting through many hedgerows.
Now all we have to have done is getting the signs out.
Sunday, January 28th - 11 am. Last night the groomer went to Delta
Lake State Park and Camroden Road/Westernville. Tonight, groomer will head
to West Leyden. Point Rock trail was done on Saturday. Monday
night groomer will go to Chestnut Street/Rome and the Beeches restaurant.
Saturday, January 27th - 11am. The north trail from the groomer barn to West
Leyden was groomed Friday and the trail over to Point Rock is being groomed
this morning. The south trail to Rome and Westernville is scheduled to be
groomed this afternoon. We still have one groomer out of commission.
