Strong Farmer Posted February 3, 2020 Share Posted February 3, 2020 1 hour ago, Mooseman said: So it's not just a D1 problem. Damn. Is the rail bed between North Bay and Sudbury affected? Did that one last year round trip same day and with gas just along side it, it's a great trail. Still nothing here about the KOC and the city of Ottawa. Bad enough we have to contend with the weather that we also have to stand by and watch this bureaucracy BS from both sides. Defiantly not just a d1 problem. Some areas like your area has been hit harder. Same thing in d9 and d5 most of our main trails go thru conservation authority lands, so clubs count on access thru there. Have no idea about that rail way line, not my area, so maybe someone else will comment on that. Most of our trails going around affected areas this year, so no chance they will open them back up this season. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
volunteer2 Posted February 3, 2020 Share Posted February 3, 2020 So here is a hypothetical issue to consider. Since the OFSC insurance is not 12 months of the year, not sure when it is active, but we as volunteers and some of us as landowners should NOT be doing any type of OFSC trail work in the time when there is no insurance. Saying this because I would only think that alot of clubs do work perhaps in the summer as an example ? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
volunteer2 Posted February 3, 2020 Share Posted February 3, 2020 Was out this weekend and did cross a few train tracks Trails were green 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mooseman Posted February 3, 2020 Share Posted February 3, 2020 I would imagine that the insurance should cover trail work before and after the season. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PISTON LAKE CRUISER Posted February 3, 2020 Share Posted February 3, 2020 5 hours ago, volunteer2 said: So here is a hypothetical issue to consider. Since the OFSC insurance is not 12 months of the year, not sure when it is active, but we as volunteers and some of us as landowners should NOT be doing any type of OFSC trail work in the time when there is no insurance. Saying this because I would only think that alot of clubs do work perhaps in the summer as an example ? Good point Nick. There is a paragraph in the landowners agreement regarding getting verbal permission from the landowner to do work at other times than between the dates that the club/landowner have filled in on the form. However the form doesn't say anything about insurance coverage for that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bbakernbay Posted February 7, 2020 Author Share Posted February 7, 2020 Great news from the BEAST Newsletter today as follows: Snowmobile Trails within City of Ottawa Limits We’re back in business!!! It gives us great pleasure to announce that we have reached an insurance agreement with the City of Ottawa.The agreement will take effect immediately. All trails will remain closed until our volunteers have a chance to examine them and deem them passable for use. This work will begin immediately, and grooming will begin ASAP and continue as long as possible until as many trails as possible can be safely opened. We are asking to remain patient and DO NOT venture onto closed trails. Consult the Interactive Trail Guide for trail availability updates at https://ofsc.evtrails.com or the GoSnowmobiling App. The salvage of the snowmobile season for our permit holders within the City of Ottawa is the direct result of the understanding and cooperation the staff of the City of Ottawa exhibited throughout. Our thanks go to them. The BEAST would also like to thank our rural councillors within the City. Eli El-Chantiry, Scott Moffat and in particular George Darouze. They were able to put the right people around the same table to speak to our representatives to come to an agreement. Well done everyone. On behalf of the Board of Directors of the BEAST we thank you for your continued patience. 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mooseman Posted February 7, 2020 Share Posted February 7, 2020 Just in time with this fresh dump! However, the railway beds are still a no-go Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
manotickmike Posted February 8, 2020 Share Posted February 8, 2020 Some clubs are still waiting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
largedaryl Posted February 8, 2020 Share Posted February 8, 2020 The BEAST moved a bunch of trails yellow(in internal maps) this AM ( after a combined 45 hour grooming blitz Friday in a snowstorm ) .. but we don't have access to the ITG... so we are asking the district now to update. There is a chance this update will not occur until Monday AM. We have asked for years for access to the ITG to be dynamic, but there is no trust to allow that. Sucks for the public to have stale data.. which is worst case.. the ITG update may occur any time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PISTON LAKE CRUISER Posted February 8, 2020 Share Posted February 8, 2020 2 minutes ago, largedaryl said: The BEAST moved a bunch of trails yellow(in internal maps) this AM ( after a combined 45 hour grooming blitz Friday in a snowstorm ) .. but we don't have access to the ITG... so we are asking the district now to update. There is a chance this update will not occur until Monday AM. We have asked for years for access to the ITG to be dynamic, but there is no trust to allow that. Sucks for the public to have stale data.. which is worst case.. the ITG update may occur any time. Glad to hear things are going the right way for you guys. If the District won't have someone on call to make ITG changes then they should let the clubs have access. Just ridiculous that the only means of getting up to date trail information to permit buyers (especially given your circumstances) is off for the weekend. What would happen if there was a dangerous situation on a heavily used trail? Could be some liability there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
signfan Posted February 8, 2020 Share Posted February 8, 2020 On 2/3/2020 at 12:03 PM, volunteer2 said: So here is a hypothetical issue to consider. Since the OFSC insurance is not 12 months of the year, not sure when it is active, but we as volunteers and some of us as landowners should NOT be doing any type of OFSC trail work in the time when there is no insurance. Saying this because I would only think that alot of clubs do work perhaps in the summer as an example ? Coverage is not limited by time. It's for "normal operations of a snowmobile club" 365 days a year. Volunteers working on trails in the off season is normal use. Providing coverage for a landowner for a hiker accessing their property with the landowners permission is not normal use (regardless of time of year). This is the issue. Municipalities/ gov't owned agencies trying to push this liability on the clubs. It's more complicated than this when you start running possible scenario's, but that's the heart of the issue at hand. Glad to see things have been dealt with in Ottawa. 2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
manotickmike Posted February 9, 2020 Share Posted February 9, 2020 Some clubs are still waiting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
volunteer2 Posted February 9, 2020 Share Posted February 9, 2020 14 hours ago, signfan said: Coverage is not limited by time. It's for "normal operations of a snowmobile club" 365 days a year. Volunteers working on trails in the off season is normal use. Providing coverage for a landowner for a hiker accessing their property with the landowners permission is not normal use (regardless of time of year). This is the issue. Municipalities/ gov't owned agencies trying to push this liability on the clubs. It's more complicated than this when you start running possible scenario's, but that's the heart of the issue at hand. Glad to see things have been dealt with in Ottawa. Thanks for the comments and yes great news that things in Ottawa are working out Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BoonerBP Posted February 9, 2020 Share Posted February 9, 2020 On 2/3/2020 at 12:03 PM, volunteer2 said: So here is a hypothetical issue to consider. Since the OFSC insurance is not 12 months of the year, not sure when it is active, but we as volunteers and some of us as landowners should NOT be doing any type of OFSC trail work in the time when there is no insurance. Saying this because I would only think that alot of clubs do work perhaps in the summer as an example ? We have year round coverage for any trail related work 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yukon Posted February 9, 2020 Share Posted February 9, 2020 (edited) On 2/8/2020 at 8:12 AM, largedaryl said: The BEAST moved a bunch of trails yellow(in internal maps) this AM ( after a combined 45 hour grooming blitz Friday in a snowstorm ) .. but we don't have access to the ITG... so we are asking the district now to update. There is a chance this update will not occur until Monday AM. We have asked for years for access to the ITG to be dynamic, but there is no trust to allow that. Sucks for the public to have stale data.. which is worst case.. the ITG update may occur any time. The ITG isn't the type of system that can allow 250 people to be online updating from 200 clubs at one time, it will simply crash the server. It's not a state of the art Million dollar system.This is why certain people have access. It has nothing to do with trust issues. Sounds like you need the right person or two available to update. Edited February 9, 2020 by Yukon Cornelious Added info 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
manotickmike Posted February 9, 2020 Share Posted February 9, 2020 Thank goodness for social media. I have lost count of the days I have enjoyed local trails, opened by the clubs, days before the ITG etc caught up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FROSTYNUTZ Posted February 10, 2020 Share Posted February 10, 2020 Until the trail status gets updated by each club at least once a day, 7 days a week, sledders will continue to ride the trails as they see fit, unless the gates are locked. The season is just to short to depend on updates 2-3 times a week. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PISTON LAKE CRUISER Posted February 11, 2020 Share Posted February 11, 2020 6 hours ago, FROSTYNUTZ said: Until the trail status gets updated by each club at least once a day, 7 days a week, sledders will continue to ride the trails as they see fit, unless the gates are locked. The season is just to short to depend on updates 2-3 times a week. Can you please find some VOLUNTEERS for each club and pay their expenses to ride all their trails each day and then get the ITG updated. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woodzi Posted February 11, 2020 Share Posted February 11, 2020 I have a question regarding the ITG. The trails near my house just went yellow yesterday, so I went out this morning. All seemed good where I got on the trail at a gravel road, but at the first major road crossing there was a trail closed sign. Not sure if the trail is open and the signs haven't been taken down yet, or if the trail has been closed. If it were not for the fact that the trial was just listed as open yesterday, I would have assumed that the ITG was behind and the trail closed, but under these circumstances, not sure if the trail is open or closed? As an aside, as an off road motorcyclist, I can say that the snowmobile trail system in comparison, is fantastic. We have some good places to ride motorcycles, but they are far away and can require multiple club memberships. A huge thank you to all of those who keep our snowmobile trail system running. It may not always be perfect, but it is much appreciated. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Pete Posted February 11, 2020 Share Posted February 11, 2020 You should report this to the club that looks after that trail or the District Office for investigation Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FROSTYNUTZ Posted February 11, 2020 Share Posted February 11, 2020 17 hours ago, PISTON LAKE CRUISER said: Can you please find some VOLUNTEERS for each club and pay their expenses to ride all their trails each day and then get the ITG updated. If they want sledders to obey the trail status map, don,t you think they should be updated daily ? If not, I doubt if sledders are going to treat the OFSC trail status guide as gospel. Again, if the gates are open, most sledders are going to use the trails, whether they are marked red or yellow or green. Maybe they can send up an OFSC satellite to check on them from space. That makes about as much sense as updating the trail status twice a week, during what is suppose to be peak riding season. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yukon Posted February 11, 2020 Share Posted February 11, 2020 3 hours ago, FROSTYNUTZ said: If they want sledders to obey the trail status map, don,t you think they should be updated daily ? If not, I doubt if sledders are going to treat the OFSC trail status guide as gospel. Again, if the gates are open, most sledders are going to use the trails, whether they are marked red or yellow or green. Maybe they can send up an OFSC satellite to check on them from space. That makes about as much sense as updating the trail status twice a week, during what is suppose to be peak riding season. It is mandatory for clubs to update trail status 2 times per week. I believe Mondays and Thursday, rather it be Unavailable, Limited Availability or Available. If it stays status quo, no changes. That is mandatory. Clubs can update trail status changes at any given time of the day or week. Some do, some don't. Each club fullfills those mandatory 2 per week updates. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paulslund Posted February 13, 2020 Share Posted February 13, 2020 On 2/9/2020 at 6:55 PM, manotickmike said: Thank goodness for social media. I have lost count of the days I have enjoyed local trails, opened by the clubs, days before the ITG etc caught up. You can kiss that aspect goodbye. My club was just told by the OFSC that they had to remove anything from their website about trail status and only provide links to the ITG. Any social media reports by a club are also only supposed to provide a link to the ITG. My club went from yellow to green this past Friday, and the ITG was only updated by late Monday or Tuesday... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yamadan700 Posted February 13, 2020 Share Posted February 13, 2020 I believe it used to be (years ago) that when you clicked on a trail on the ITG it showed when the last update was done. Maybe we can get back to that. Would avoid speculation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HarleyDodge Posted February 13, 2020 Share Posted February 13, 2020 I also think the ITG needs to have another color for trails closed due to LUP issues. Either that or remove the trail from the system altogether until the issue is resolved. In my area, trails have been showing red for weeks now while we have ride-able snow. It would be nice to know if it was just the local club being remiss in updating the ITG, (or the district, or whoever) or whether one is actually trespassing on a trail that does not have a valid LUP. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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