2005 Ride Reports

2006 Dash for Cash Results

388

Wins

Losses

Overall

100%

78%

67%

56%

388

33%

22%

11%

DNS

Bon fire, 25 Mile trail ride/Drag racing

Too bad you bums couldn't join me last night.

Went out with my neighbor (05 XCSP) onto the Brookline trails (which incidentally is missing a log that has caused WPR's some trouble in the past). First section from my house to the lake was a little bumpy and thin in some spots, but got out on the lake and it was perfect. Did some speed runs (I just love this F7) and then jumped on some of the finest groomed "local" trails I have been on in some time. Rode in Brookline, Hollis, Milford and briefly into Wilton. After gassing up at the local service station, did some hill climbs on Bear Mountain, another loop into Milford and Wilton then back to the lake for a few more speed runs. Back home by 10:00 for a couple "pops" then off to bed.

Total Miles = 38

#99 WPROTY

Dear WPR,

I had a great trip this year. I started with four friends in Quebec. Three of us towed our sleds to the Quebec Inn and two of my friends flew into Quebec and rented 1000cc four stroke ski doos at Action Plien Air. They were rookies but had a great time. It exceeded their expectations. We stayed at the Inn and brought our truck & trailer to the rental place 15 minutes away and started our trip from there which is right on trail #3. First day went to the Casino in 15 cm of snowfall. At 1:00pm ( half way to the Casino) we went into a sugar shack to see if my buddy would have to turn around because of the NHL lock out might be over. They canceled the season and we pushed on through. It was a great ride in the Powder. Next day went to Jonquiere. The Gorge was closed and 83 now goes just north of it. It was another snowy day and conditions were excellent. We saw a groomer break through the ice on the edge of a river. It was blocking the trail but we were able to do a bit of a water cross and get around it. I spent a lot of day two thinking about how much I hate #13. Day three (was cold) we headed out on 83 west and cut down through St. Andre to 355 to Latuque. Trails were groomed very nicely- another excellent ride (but I still had terrible thoughts about #13). Last day( still cold) back to Quebec on fast well groomed trails 73 to 3 west. On 3 we went through a major police trail block. 7 sleds with flashing lights. They checked our stickers and waved us through. We didn't miss many sugar shacks. 650 miles. One of the better trips I've had.

#4

19Feb05

Myself, Lampi, Shannon, and Charlie headed out from Dave’s house around 9:30 am towards Plymouth. We stopped at the Golden Arches for a snowmobilers breakfast and continued up 202 too 93 north. As we took the Plymouth exit and headed towards the Polar Caves we observed the trails on the side of the road to be in good shape. After a quick fill up of petrol, we unloaded and proceeded to head down trail #5 S. We quickly found the trails to be solid ice. Thanks to Bergstroms triple edge carbides I was able to turn on a dime, but lack of snow caused my temp light to flash. The others were quickly looking for snow on the side of the trails also in order to try and cool our overheating machines. After 2 miles of BS, we made a decision to return to the trucks and load up. Bummer! After a quick load up, we continued up 93 N towards Twin Mountain.

While navigating through the Notch and looking at the clock, which now displayed a time of 2 pm, I couldn’t help but wonder how this day was going to turn out…Saturday afternoon….2 pm….Twin Mountain…Blair Morgan’s, Tucker Hebert’s, bumps and lots of sleds! As we approached the first parking lot off of 302, we observed it to be full, what a surprise! We headed towards Fabians and found two parking spots side by side. As we were unloading, we could hear the sleds buzzing back and forth…oh joy. The time was now around 3pm and we were just heading out…WTF! With Charlie leading the pack we headed up towards the trails. So far so good, as the trails were in good shape. We hooked up to #11 N and found ourselves tagging behind multiple groups of riders. After navigating around some scenic “Sunday” drivers we were off to the “races”. Heading North at a fairly good clip, we ran into a couple of sledders hogging up the trail at a slow pace of 25 mph. The rider in the rear fashioned a pony tail and I knew she could she Charlie in her mirrors as well as hear Charlie revving his piped RX-1. After a few miles the lame finally pulled over to let us pass…giving us a dirty look, we passed the leading rider who also sported a pony tail who happily gave us the finger! Having a few choice words for the couple of “DIKES” (all the pun intended) we zipped ahead. A few miles later we stopped for a urine break and Charlie and Shannon seemed a little nervous about the lezbo’s catching up to us. I informed them that “BIG Daddy” would handle the queers. Sorry to say we never saw them again.

As a side note: It would have been nice to have #13 and #99 with us to handle these kinds of altercations. I’m sure the four of them could have shared some lap licking stories and put everyone’s minds at ease, along with some other …well you know.

As we linked up with #19 N towards Errol, we kept finding the trails to be in mint condition. Could this be the same Twin that has proved so horrible in the past? Why were the trails in such good shape? With only a few “bony” spots and some icy corners, the trail conditions were a solid 8 out of 10. We finally made it to Errol and stopped for dinner. Feasting myself on some buffalo wings and a ¼ pound bacon cheeseburger and fries with a side of chocolate cream pie we were ready for our return trip home. We gassed up and headed south on 19 to 11 S. Not being able to do a loop on 5, since we heard it was demolished, we had to return on the same trails. The ride back was just as good as the ride up, as we actually ran into some freshly groomed trails. As we were within 10 miles from our truck, Charlie must have been getting tired. Charlie is known for kicking it up a notch on the trails and he owned up to his reputation. Being second in line, I came around a hard left corner to find him pulling his sled out of some saplings. Knowing that any comment I made would kindly be thrown into the wind I just watched as he fired up the monster and blew down the trail. Giving Charlie plenty of room, we forged on. I lost Charlies headlights as I started to take a comfortable pace on the trail. Suddenly as I crested a hump in the trail, I was shocked to find Charlie sitting sideways dead smack in the middle of the trail without his sled running and NO lights! I made a choice to either hit a 20” Oak tree or the side of Chuck…as I grazed by Charlie; I could hear him yelling he was sorry as the sleds swapped paint! Pulling off the trail I was a admittently shaken. I looked back at Charlie and he was having trouble starting his sled and now we had to worry about Shannon and Lampi coming. He got the sled started without another incident and we pulled off to the side to assess the damage. Luckily the 660 T only had a scraped mark along the right side of the cowling and the RX-1 had some scuffing on the exhaust and bumper. Whewww! We headed back to the truck without further ado and proceeded to load up.

It was now around 9pm and Shannon and Lampi informed us they would be staying the night as Charlie and I had to make our long journey home. I was jealous of them for staying, one, because I really didn’t feel like driving home and two; they would be riding the next day out of Groveton with some excellent conditions. Oh well, Charlie and I headed home. During the ride Charlie again apologized for the accident and told me he actually rolled the sled on its side and that it had stalled and flooded. That was the reason he couldn’t get it started. I told him I was just glad we didn’t get hurt or anything was broken. He then informed me that he actually broke the dash during the turn over which was a bummer since this was the first ride with the “new” one that replaced the last broke one during the last roll-over.

It should be noted that Charlie meticulously maintains his RX-1 and you could feel the disappointment in the air that the beauty was scathed. Maybe he’ll start to slow down and avoid these unnecessary accidents? Oh well. The ride home was cool since we talked about Yamahas, Sky Cycle and people we both knew.

After dropping Charlie off and arriving home @ 12:30 am, I was ready for the sack! What a day of riding! We did a total of 145 miles in great conditions. What I thought was going to be a flop, turned into a great ride with great friends.

The Sarge

Map

2/19/05 MAP Groton NH @ #6 Land, 53 miles of excellent riding

7am departure time with the kids, we made excellent time with 2 stops landing @ 6’s land approx @ 9:30 am to find a plow stuck in his driveway. After a short wait the plow was pulled out and back to clearing the driveway. After unloading and playing with the exhaust on the skidoo 1 lunger # 6 and myself went out for a quick 2 hr semi loop south on 151, we made to the Lyme trail system trail 24 and 5 then back with 1 stop to help a fellow sleder that had a shock shaft unscrew from its mount. 34 miles. As we returned # 6 family in-laws were just arriving. We soon headed out with my kids, 6 and Elisa’s Cousin Laura (my old 1 lunger) and boy friend (on 6 Indy 400) for a 2 mile loop heading north on 151 over to trail 11 and back up 151, 19miles The kids and I were home by 8 pm to get a phone call from 1101 who was @ the lake wonder where everyone was? So I invited him over to the house for a beer (he supplied).

2/14/05 Map Pittsburg Nh Getaway weekend with # 8, 1, 20, and myself (2) 131 miles

#99 invited the gang on 2/04/04 and most of the gang showed. In attendance, 3, 7, 388, 2, and 13. We called 5 several times and told him to stay home. 99 reported that the trails were thin. In addition, we had 13 with us. For those of you who can not read into this statement, it implies that we will have to turn back early. 13 like to be in bed at 8:00. 7 offered to go out of his way and pick me up Townsend. He arrived at 7:20 with the giddy excitement of the Hamburgler. I was happy to show him the way to 99’s. We quickly stopped for a splash of gas and a drink or two and made it to 99’s by 7:40 to find 13 and 99 waiting in the house. They must have been watching ET on the TV. 388 and 2 arrived shortly after us. We all unloaded and were instructed to make a trial to the trail over there. 99 asked us to stay away from the kid’s bedrooms. No problem. We made a trail. It was not one of the better trails we’ve ever made, but it did lead to the main path. I wonder if they sent us that way so that they could finish watching their TV program? We caught up with the Host and 13 and headed to the lake on the bony single track access path. Cooling would be a concern on this night as it was quite warm. #99 seemed to have recaptured some of his sense of direction as he assumed the lead. The last time they rode from here, 13 accused 99 of not knowing the trail. Come to find out, 99 took a pre run to the lake before we all arrived. The route must have been fresh in his memory. The lake was fast bumpy and icy. It began to snow. The flakes were heavy and welcomed by all. We moved back into the woods heading South and it continued to snow. So much for the “Lake effect theory Eh 13? You FA**OT. We then climbed to the top of Big Bear. Climbing up the ski run has always been a dream. I had only one follower, 1. We then headed towards Townsend. These trails were much improved. Groomed for the most part. Very twisty. Somewhat unexplored by this group. We had a lot of trouble staying with the trail as it travel through a number of newer neighborhoods and over roads. While in Townsend, I might add on trials that we have not been on in 20 plus years during the summer months, we discovered the lack of GAS was going to be issue tonight. Keep in mind we have traveled 13 miles to this point. Apparently, 99 and 13 did not take the time to fill up before the ride. 13 passed at least 5 gas stations on his way to 99 house. 99 had been to the lake once already this evening using valuable petrol. We decided to turn back towards Lake Potanipo. Hit the lake and did a number of short drags. Here are my comments: It is unclear who’s sled is the fastest. The F7 may have an edge? The old 2001 600 with 5000 plus miles on her spanked the oldman’s 700. As if their was any doubt? As a matter of fact, that “Classic” may be the slowest sled in the herd these days. Hey 13. Why don’t you buy the right sled for once. You are a moron. After taking several beatings on the lake, 13 proclaimed she was ready for a beer and we all headed back to 99's for a number of them.

Thanks to the host. You did an excellent job.
Thanks to #7 for making the journey. Great effort all around.
Thanks to 388 for bringing the Pes. It was good to see both of you. It is interesting to note that no one complains when the Pes is late to an event.
No. 5. You should have come.....

3 out

(Pes. Please add stats and map here.)

Lampi’s 2-4-05

Since we got some snow last night, I awoke with the idea of calling Dave Lampi for a quick ride in the Lake Dennison area. After putting Brooke on the bus for 9:30am after her 2 hr delay from school, I was on my way. I met at Dave's house for 10:30am. He informed me that Charlie would be meeting us also. We left his house and headed south on New Boston rd. The road was excellent! It was flat, full of snow and offered a wide open run for quite a distance. We went through the Dennison area and hopped over the tracks. Once on the other side, we met up with Charlie. Dave suggested we head towards Rutland State park since he was there the other day and found mint conditions. We hit the RR bed with a decent amount of speed trying to make it to our destination in time for Dave's return for work. We entered into the Templeton trail area and had a blast running through the wide twisty trails towards the pits. Only a small narrow section on top of the pits seemed to be thin, otherwise the trails were a 8 out of 10.

While navigating through the pits, Charlie had a mishap with his RX -1...as I made a corner, all I saw was a blue and black sled rolling off a small ravine. Seeing a bunch of basketball sized rocks up rooted and Charlie sled upside down didn't look good! Thank god he was ok...he had managed to pass between to truck size rocks along the way also. We flipped the sled upright and assessed the damage...only a broken windshield and plastic dash. WHEEWWWWW!!!! That was close.

We assembled ourselves and continued the journey towards Rutland. The RR beds were in great shape. They had plenty of snow for grooming and were basically flat. With the thumb flipper set on speed mode, we made it to the end of the bed where it intersects with rte 122A. Knowing we wouldn't have time for Dave to go on, we took a break and decided to head back. While we were talking, some hillbilly pulls up with his 2 kids. The guy asked some silly questions, lit up a cigarette and proceeded up the trail with know gloves on? The ride back was fast paced as we mashed the flipper for most of the ride home. This was an excellent ride! Probably my best so far other than the mountain trip.

Logged just over 50 miles

Max speed: 79.9

Average speed: 18.8

1/29

Excellent ride last night! I wish we could have shared it with more members. I felt like I was in an amusement park. My stomach felt like I just dropped off a steep on a roller coaster. 40 miles was pretty cool for the night.

30 Jan 05

Brooke and I headed up to Fitzwilliam for a quick ride this afternoon. We headed up the RR bed towards Keene. The parking lot was full! Lots of sleds. We did a few speed runs on the lake and continued towards Keene. We stopped at the gas station for gas and treats as well as a "potty" run. We parked and sipped a soda while sharing a valentine cup cake(Special moment). We crossed the "big" bridge and proceeded into the tight woods section heading towards Tire warehouse. The trail turned into a river and I suddenly heard gurgling as my exhaust suddenly sounded like a jet ski. The water bar went from 5" of water to over 2' very quickly. Brookes quote of the day..."Daddy are we sinking?" We quickly hit reverse and headed back through the tight woods trail towards Troy. It was nice to check out the scenery for once in the day time. We headed back at a fairly good clip, since Brooke was Harnessed to me via "that sled harness in JC Whitney".
This harness was perfect for riding with a child up front...hands free without worring about them falling off!
Anywho, we arrived back at the loading area only to find a traffic jam of trucks and trailers. After waiting 10 minutes for some moron to figure out he was blocking a road, we made it to my truck, only to find some other MORON had left me exactly a sled space to load into my trailer! Knowing Brooke was watching, I had to refrain from ripping his front grill, side view mirrors and antenna off his truck and proceeded to do a 6 point turn to load the sled.

The trails were in good shape, but were getting thin in some spots. We have a nice base now and just need another storm to cover the trails. I was told the groomer was broke down somewhere in Rindge? I hope it gets fixed!

41.2 miles total

1/28 Ride Report BY #13

#99, self, #99's neighbor (xcsp600), and my brother-in-law (zr900) started from 99's house at 8pm for a tour of the Brookline NH area trails. Headed towards Hollis first on some bony ungroomed single track. #99 seemed to have zero sense of direction so his neighbor quickly assumed the lead. Stopped at some nice elevated areas with great views of Southern NH given the clear night and full moon. We then crossed over route 13 at the power lines (xcsp fell off his sled and was almost run over by yours truly at this point!!) and headed towards Lake Potanipo. Trails were still rough until about 2 miles from the lake where a small drag had been used to really smooth things out. Hit the lake and let the sleds do their thing. We all swapped sleds and here are my comments: The ZR 900 was clearly the fastest, it just kept pulling and pulling. It's definitely a lake sled though. #99's sled could run with it till about 80, then the the 900 was gone. 99's is a much nicer sled overall, the 900 felt like my old ZL with a monster engine.. I was able to spank the 05 XCSP 600 (ok so he had no picks!!) but the 700 was pulling strong all night. We then rode over to the old Big Bear ski area and rode straight up the hill to a great view of the area. I should mention the very cool/scary single track suspension bridge that gets you over the Nissitisett River we had to cross to get there..lot of fun.. Then back to the lake for a few more speed runs and finally back to 99's for a cold beer. 31 miles total.

Fitzwilliam 1-26-05

#2, #388 and and self (3) started from the usual drop point in Fitzwilliam at 8pm for an exploratory tour of the area and the trails to the East of our usual route. We headed towards Rindge and then North to Jaffery center. The trails were well ridden. Almost beaten down. It was quite a contrast to the trails in Quebec. We saw a large number of new and older sleds. The trail ended somewhat abruptly in Jaffery center at the D&D’s and Mickey D’s. There were also a lot of tracks headed to the cash machine. I wondered if 99 had been there? The Pez lost the trail briefly and then proceeded to get stuck in the deep snow. We tried to go a little further North, but it didn’t look good so we turned back. The Pez then got stuck by putting his ski under the ice at a short beaver dam crossing. 388 and I pull him out for a second time in 100 yards and returned to our machines only to see the pez backing down a hill he couldn’t climb on his first attempt. He must have smelled the French Fries across the street. We then decided to take a side trail. I wanted to head over to the Monomaniac area. (Who could blame me?) We followed tracks out onto Lake Contocook. Once the tracks turned Mushy, the Pez hit the throttle hard and disappeared. That’s where the 78 mph was achieved. This lake is longer than I remembered. It was interesting. Back into the woods we traveled East to The Cathedral of the Pines, around Hubbard Pond and the South over route 119 via the power lines to the big lake. The trails were better. They were narrow and occasionally marked. We did a fine job to fine our way. The Pez hard a little trouble crossing a road. 388 had to come to the rescue, Again! This is where the majority of our hour of not moving came from. See statistics. (This would be the 4th time for those of you that have lost count.) We took the side trail down to the Big Lake. It too was soft. Turned around and headed back. On the way back we got behind a convoy of at least 8 sleds. The first two were easy to overtake. The next two put up a small fight. The last four had small children aboard so we held off. Great time. Thanks to the Pez for picking me up. Thanks to 388 for the motivation. 42 miles total .

Quebec 2005 1/16-1/20/2005

Ride report for the 2005 Annual WPR trip:

It all began at the familiar Motel Safari in Shawinagin Sud. We departed on a frigid morning early with the saddlebags loaded up bound for Roberval on the southwest corner of Lac St. Jean. We were told the trip would be 300 miles from Bernard, the pres had mapped out at 240 miles. Anyhow, we traveled on some local trails to lead us to 318n to 355n the straightest path towards La Tuque and eventually Roberval. Somehow it was decided that #5 would lead us there on this day. The local trails were in decent shape but proved to be too confusing for the Time and Attendence specialist as he took us between 20-35 miles west by mistake toward Quebec City. I don't know who decided to regroup and discuss the itinerary, but it was a smart decision. We realized our mistake and found our way to 318 to 355 North, aka the pipeline. #10 told us that it would be a boring ride from his experience two years ago. I thought the ride was excellent. There were some extremely wide trails with exceptional elevation changes and some scenic views. Knowing our ultimate destination was a long ways away, we kept a quick pace with few short stops. We came to the intersection where we had to go west for 8 miles to La Tuque or north 80 Kilometers to Lac Edouard for gas. We had 60 miles on our tanks already so we stuck with the original plan to stop briefly at La Tuque. We were behind schedule, so we did not stop for lunch. This began a debate between the Pez and the Trail Boss whether lunch would be on the daily schedule for the remaining days of the trip (as I briefly digress). I actually thought we could make it to Lac Edouard without gassing up. We will never know. We began to realize that seeing the Pats play the second half of the playoff game was becoming in jeopardy, so what, the Pats win every week anyway. We cruised on up to the little township of Lac Edouard and gassed up for the final time of the early evening. It was getting colder as the sun set. The riding was fantastic until we got within 10-15 miles of Roberval. We did get lost approaching Roberval in the dark, cold did I mention frigind night. At one point, I had my doubts if we would even make it that night. The Pez used his provisional gas tank to fill his sled up. When things started looking pretty grim, the Trail Boss (# 3) seemed to take over and lead us to the Chateau Roberval. Finally, we saw the sign displaying HOTEL and we made it. I got the call from my wife as we walked in the front door, the Pats kicked the Colts all up and down the field. Good news, that along with # 3 saying come to the bar, he's buying a round (better news). Great first day 290 miles. Tired as hell and just overly fatiqued.

Day Two: coming soon.

09Jan05 Ride Report

I headed out to the Stateline store for my NH registration. After spending the $88 and buying 2 bottles of Gatorade, I was off to Lampi’s house in Winchendon. I arrived at 9:15am and unloaded. Dave was replacing the battery in his RX-1 and I needed to stiffen up my suspension. After the use of the infamous vise grips on AC’s lousy soft plastic spring tension adjusters we were ready for our ride. Dave’s wife Shannon popped out of their nice new home and joined us for the ride. Charlie from sky could be heard a ½ mile away with his hopped up RX-1, and soon met us in Lampi’s yard. Lampi has created a nice connecting trail to the Old Boston Rd trail in the Lake Dennison trail network right from his yard.
The connecting trail was thin and I soon found myself jammed into a rock. No damage, just a pain. We soon found ourselves on New Boston Rd which was just groomed to perfection! Although the trail was tempting, we forged on to our rendezvous point where Greg from sky (Now Keene motor sports parts manager) met us at the junction of the Fitzwilliam RR bed and the Mass link. We then proceeded towards Troy at an average pace. The trails were in good condition considering the amount of snow cover. We found that the gates were still closed which would later be opened for the return ride home. We filled up at the Sunoco in Troy, and stopped for a snack. Gatorade and cosmic brownies are a staple for the Sarge. Happy with the trail conditions, we headed towards Keene, conditions were still good so we kept going and headed up trail #5 towards Walpole.
While stopped at an intersection we watched as some clowns blew through the 4-way without even looking. I made a comment that it must have been Blair Morgan and I wish I could get his autograph! The open fields were well covered and provided some excellent views. We met up with an old-timer dragging a large roller trying to groom the trails. It reminded me of a large bingo wheel? It was an honest effort on his part. Next we stopped in a field and along came Barney Fife with his blue lights flashing. He checked for registration stickers and asked to see all of our licenses. Dave’s wife didn’t have hers and I explained it was tough trying to carry a purse around while riding. The game warden was cool and told us to have a nice ride. We trudged up to Diamond Pizza for lunch. To our surprise Blair Morgan and his pals showed up! I was heart broken to find out it was only some teenager and his bus buddies stopping in for a pizza. Oh well, restraining myself, I gave a smile and said hi.
We headed back up #5 North were it meets trail 393 or 939? Trail conditions were deteriorating so we decided to head back. On the ride back we ran into the groomer just before Keene. It was nice to see them trying to keep what snow we had, on the trails. Once we headed past the tire warehouse, the trails started to get bumpy. The weekend of riding was starting to take its toll on the trails. The entire ride back was fast but rather thin and rutted. We parted with Greg and headed onto the mass trail link towards the gun club. We then left Charlie at the “Lampi’s house trail” connection since he lives in Templeton. We returned to Lampi’s house around 5:45pm with 110 miles logged.
I’d give the day a solid 7 for riding conditions. I wish a few of the members would have ridden with us. Maybe next time. The Sarge

Ride Report 1/6

Members in attendance: #2, #3, #5, #99, #388. 26 miles in the Gardner fields.

First things first, #388 deserves points for dragging a bunch of wining, limp-wristed, panty-wearing, snow-snob fags out of our houses on a night where we got 5" of fresh powder in early January. Thank you #388 for not being a pussy and not letting a universe of pussies miss a perfect night to ride slip away. When I look back at that night in May, I will remember to buy you a beer for getting us out in the snow when it was here.

OK. One of the strangest feelings in the world and one that I will probably never get used to is approaching an illegal riding area with 3 trucks/trailers and stopping to get authorization from one of a hundred Massachusetts Police Officers at a state correctional facility to ride.

I saw but didn't want to believe the evidence that my trailer top was literally coming apart at the seams. But I didn't have to remain in denial long as #388 really used his head to move things along. Long story short - I have removed the pistons, realigned the top, drilled in 8 new holes and just need to put in the new bolts and another problem with the Load-Rite should be solved. They are losing points in my book quickly.

The race was great but I will say again for the record, it seems no WPR racer can run an honest race and make a legit pass using "imaginary" corner markers. Despite what rhetoric I heard that night which was offered as justification, the bottom line is the racer behind just cannot cut under the leading sled if the leader just keeps making shorter and shorter turns. Enough said about that. I think you all know where I'm coming from here.

The unbroken snow made the fields challenging to play in, one must keep vigilant not to catch an inside edge with your weight in the wrong place or it was new windshield time. The T660 was an amazing machine - I'll tell you one thing, I'm sure I'll be on one someday. I think the 4-stroke motor in a REV chassis would make one fine tourning machine. but hmmmmmm, what would feel better after 200 miles: the SC-10III or the M-10?

Anyway, I liked the exploration down the "trails" as a wrap-up and look forward to seeing the GPS map so I can see what part of Mass I was in. What promised to be a soaker turned into a beautiful night to ride and I was home in plenty of time to fix a dish and catch Sportscenter before hitting the hay.

Thanks again, #388, and to all for a good local ride.

Diamond Pond 12-29-04

http://home.comcast.net/~donnajane/Diamondpond122904.htm

12-15-2005

Opening day in NH for the 2004-2005 season was not a day to go to work. #2 and #7 jumped in the Toyota and cruised up north. We did not see significant snow at all until we got to Loon, maybe an inch. Next was Cannon perhaps 2 inches then on to Twin Mountains maybe 3 inches. We started feeling better about the idea of riding at Colebrook. We arrived to see about 5 trucks at Coleman State Park and Diamond Pond. We started out heading north, but the trail just ended. We went down the road and found a dead end. With no other choices, we headed south on 18 and 132. These trails were bumpy all morning. It was pretty cool being out on the new Ski Doo. I noticed that I did not go full throttle all day. I just didn't see any straight aways long enough to open the 800 up. I hit 90mph once and 85 a few others. It's nice to have digital speedo. El Presidente lead almost the whole day. We found some nice stretches of 10 miles or so that were in pretty good shape. Every time we started heading toward Pittsburgh, the trails would just end. We hit a lot of washouts, but there was plenty of snow. It was cold on this day. I really noticed this since my windshield is pretty small. Santa...hint hint hint.

We found some nice stretches on 18, 132 and 5. The groomers were out by 11:00am. We were cruising along on some perfectly smooth terrain, when we came up behind two groomers. One guy jumped out and introduced himself as Leo, he told us where he had already been. The other guy was cutting down brush with his chainsaw. They said they counted 21 snowmobilers out that day. I'm sure he counted us twice. Out on the trails, we talked to a guy from Dracut who was on a Polaris Classic and another guy who was on a brand spankin new RX-1. They were talkative. The guy on the Classic was telling me he went to Quebec last year and stayed in Alma and rode all around Lac St Jean. The guy in the RX-1 got stuck turning around in a 3 ft snow drift. It was strange being in a drift that deep in December. We were in some really high elevation, so high that the trees were very short and the whole background was white. We started heading out towards Errol and found some crappy trails with washouts and some muddy puddles. We were going a little too fast when a deep rut/washout creeped up too fast for the Pres. His front end smashed the "up" side of the rut. I was right behind but hit it slower. Just as I crossed the whole I noticed the Ski Doo Bee sticker in the snow looking up at me. I thought, what a shamed, those stickers cost at least $10 and it's new. The pres got off his sled and the front bumper was broken and the grill was disfigured. Some of his hood buckled, but did not break. He was unusually calm after this. I expected a different response. I asked him if he wanted me to lead, he said no, but I lead anyways for a few miles. We went back over to the groomed 18 and 132 and decided to head home. We went the long way over to a section of 5 that wasn't groomed earlier in the day. We found that the groomers had made their first passes of the year right before we got there. It was groomed sort of barely, badly. We caught up to the two groomers again, but noticed that we were close to the truck by GPS. We waited a couple times and then just passed the machines and headed back to the truck.

The new sled was difficult to start. I think the double/triple oil had something to do with that. It was a fun day. We were back on the road home by 4:00. We never came across a gas station or a resturant. We were starving.

There's nothing like the first ride on the new ride. Thanks to the Pres for driving. I'd like to get out soon.

Newest member of the Lancaster snowmobile club.

http://home.comcast.net/~wymanlake/DiamondPond12.htm