skidooboy

we run the sena 20S evo's they are a bluetooth, communicator and media unit. having the ability to talk, and warn people about changing conditions, is a godsend. no more stopping, waiting, hand signals, yelling conversations over running motors etc... having music, helps me pass the time, on rides, no different than listening to music in the background at work, in the car, at home. just makes the experience a little better. hearing a song later in life, that was playing during a specific moment, helps you "remember, and relive" the experience. I find myself doing that, more than paying attention to what is coming out of the speakers, while riding. I understand it isnt for everyone but, I enjoy it. your results may vary. Ski

sorry this all happened to you at once. I dont blame you, when the entitled open their mouths. sad state of affairs. Ski

good news Scotty! I know lots of people freak out when dealing with the adjuster for a theft, or total loss settlement. but, in my experience (30 years in the collision repair industry), unless you are expecting an extravagant amount for your settlement... you get a good settlement. most people that complain, believe their unit is "pristine, or mint, like new", etc... and they are over estimating the "quality" of their actual unit. or they think they should get "replacement value" v.s condition at time of loss value. I have said it many times, if you ever wanted to sell you car, boat, sled, motorcycle, etc... for top dollar, total it, and settle with the insurance provider. it would be a hard decision to be in your shoes, pay high dollar for a used sled, to ride the last few weeks of the season, pay top dollar and then some at the dealer, for whatever they have in stock, order a new sled for next season, or just get out of it, and wait for prices to settle again. as much as I love riding sleds, I could leave it right now. good luck buddy! Ski

after yesterday's snow, it is looking like it is go time! Ski

I really need to make the time, to come do one of these older loops with you Dan. you obviously know the area well, and could take us back to a "better time" in the southern Algoma area for riding. I am so envious, you cant even imagine. would love to recreate the d106a loop from echo bay, up to Black creek, then north, and west to Searchmont, and back to Echo. the trails, Carpenter lake, the chain of lakes, and then what became the bypass trail around the lakes. oh man, the sights, and scenes up there. Huge granite faced walls. it was spectacular in the day. Ski

it is a pretty good poke by sled from Aubrey Falls, Black Creek, "Johnnie's" area to chapleau fuel. it is 55 or 60 miles to flame lake lodge (still open), then another 50 or 60 miles (yes miles), to Chapleau's fuel pumps. that is why Chapleau fought to close the F trail. too long of a trail, too much difficult terrain, water issues, for a single groomer operator to deal with. now they run the F trail from Elliot Lake to Black Creek, then "connectors to the D Trail, to halfway haven, then D, F connector trail from Halfway to Chapleau, then the C, F connector over to Folyette, and Timmins. the old F trail was and is still one of my favorites to ever ride. leaving from Echo Bay, and hitting up the d106a, to Aubrey falls/Black Creek, then up to flame lake to see, stay, with Karen, Gary, and Maureen, and or on to Chapleau, then back the next day, was a great weekend ride. when the F trail from Chapleau to Missanabi was still open, that was a great 3 day loop for trail pounder's. leave the soo/echo bay, searchmont. hit flame lake or chapleau (day one), then onto dub, or wawa, or even halfway (day 2), then back to the trucks, on the last day. oh, the memories. sad it changed for the worse. Ski

nothing like burning down your own fort. WTF? there are better ways to get things done. people like this, make me want to avoid them, at all costs. Ski

nice day to stay inside. Ski

personally, I would like to see it go to a license the driver, not the sled. then if you have more than one sled, you can ride whichever one you like. permit the rider/driver, like hunting and fishing licenses. Ski

same song, different verse... again, they collect our trail permit money, rely on volunteers, except for the main administration office staff, and reap the monetary benefit without the overhead. it is not sustainable. Ski

And it never will. this is recreational travel. yes, it puts money into the economy but, the govt gets a free ride on all the taxes we pay, to give them the economy boost, without any exposure themselves. why would they want to expose themselves, to more budget costs, to a sport that most could care less if it dies or thrives? at some point, this will all be taken away, and we will all be back, bushwhacking our own trails. Ski

Here is the conditions today. looks pretty close to what we had when we left. there is another system forecast for a decent snow event this weekend. Ski

Video from Martin Lortz, from a few years ago. has Lynne, myself, Pat Bouchard, Russ Jones, and a few others in it. Ski https://www.instagram.com/lortzphoto/reel/CYjEy8_jENi/?utm_medium=copy_link&fbclid=IwAR3qO2dtNDWlu_-Qls-O3IoalhEDVcDHFUjw_tOQhRxCHzdQ5XpXjrCJLXc

no budgets for opp, or town constables to enforce traffic laws, how are they supposed to enforce recreational travel rules? you think it is bad in the more southern regions? you should see it in the "wild west" of the real true northern Ontario. take Dubreuilville for example. no one, and I mean, no one, follows the speed limits in town for autos, bikes, atv's sleds. all of them ripping around town at all hours of the day/night, way over the limit, brappp cans, loud truck exhaust etc... there is no OPP presence and, the town knows it. with this lack of penalties, people do what they want. trespassing? even if you had pics, and video of the offender, go to their home, the parents say... "that isnt my child". but, here is the proof... " I dont care, I am telling you, that is not my kid". they put up extra stop signs, and even speed bumps when entering/leaving town. with winter, they removed the bumps to ease plowing issues. they replaced the bumps with 2 stop signs... everyone rolls through them, like they did before... cop didnt see it, I didnt do it. sad really. but, you see with the town basically turning into a large mining camp now, there will be the need for 24 hour OPP, or town constable presence. many dont believe it will come but, you can see the writing on the wall. all it will take is a child, or a senior adult to be killed in the township limits (all under 50kph limits), and then it will become important. Ski

we run the Klim arctic and glacier balaclava's and no breath box, in the helmets now. arctic for cold days, glacier for warmer days, or when working hard. Ski

Blue bird day today, cold, at -5F at noon. this was post clean up, you can kind of tell how much snow is in the yard now. can you see the hidden treasure in the front yard pic? Ski

just shoveled after yesterday's snow, and today's winds. snow in the yard is level with the deck height which is 22" if I am not mistaken. As far as Algoma, Superior East, District 13, we just need manpower, and time, and the trails will be open. if you know the Crown Land area roads, you can pretty much go anywhere, and not have any competition for first tracks. be safe out there. brutal cold, and wind right now. Ski

Hard to tell what we received out of this system, with the 40-60kph winds today. guessing somewhere between,10-20 cm's. river has drifts on it, making it look like it has whitecaps on it. Ski

constant Colorado lows will make North and East of the big lake, a winter paradise. Love to hear that term, by the meteorologists in the states, I know exactly what it means for for our riding area... big, heavy, long term ,snow storms. Ski

A little more snow yesterday. more called for the next few days. shaping up. Ski

Enjoy, going to miss you by a few days. heading back to the states prior to the weekend. need to check on our barn construction progress. that, and AMA Supercross is on TV Saturday night. need to get my 2 wheel racing fix. Ski

Luc groomed the D108A from town to the first warm up shack out of town (about 45km), and back. today locals were out fishing the area, they reported, some rocket scientist decided to drive from town in their truck, to Peckerwood lake. he drove on the groomed trail about 2.5 miles or so, from the RR tracks to the lake rd turn off. cant fix stupid. Ski

snowing today again. big fluffy lake effect flakes, no wind, falling straight down. like a post card out there. Ski

-25 to -30 here, not many riding, far from town, the last few days. Ski

buy your beer/alcohol early, party in someone's room. modern problems, require modern solutions. Ski