Calling all snowmobilers!!

[euphoric1]

JOIN A CLUB! I know this has been covered before and I'm not sure how other club memberships are fairing, and remember comments made as to why people have gotten out of clubs. I am bringing this up again because our club membership is down and I mean down from 70 members in 2022 to an appalling 21 members in 2025. I have seen on other sites as well where club membership is struggling along with lack of involvement, I'm not sure if some of the attitude is " now that I have to pay for a trail pass I don't need to join a club" or "what do I get by belonging a club?" "rising membership costs don't make it worth while for discounted trail passes" "no body ever listens to me at club meetings" "life is too busy" whatever the reasoning might be, what would we have without clubs and the select few that make things happen? take out a trail map and X out all the club sponsored and maintained trails and look at what's left? Come on guys and gals, this sport cannot largely exist without clubs and active members. I think many take it for granted for what we have and how it got there. Clubs also do a lot for charitable organizations through donations and are important in education about the sport. Stop and think or try to imagine what we would have without clubs and the members who get it done. I am asking everyone, if you don't belong to a club... JOIN... and give even a little bit of your time.

 

[jakester23]

Well said. I have been in a club here in Northern IL. for 40yrs this year! Great club and I have made close friends over the years. I have to admit with the weak snow years that we have had many that stayed with it. I have had the opportunity to serve on different things to make things work, to many to list but very rewarding.The sport has gotten expensive and I believe some people have the attitude of let someone else do it. Sometimes I catch myself saying why do I still do this.Then you get out there and give it a rip and you understand. You can only hope people start stepping up. I love the seasons. I hope the sport doesn't kill itself. Has great guy who left us way to early would say often "THINK SNOW!! Don't be afraid to join a club.

 

[wisco-mb]

The next 5-10 years will be very interesting. The current snowmobiler age is 60!
Our club is barely surviving right now. We maintain around 60 miles of trail in central WI. 60! There are 5 of us club members that do everything. I'm 40, and the other guys are in their 60s. 2 of the guys maintain 10 miles, and us 3 take care of the 50 miles. One guy can no longer pound stakes, so their is really only 2 of us take care of that. I took 5 days of PTO to mark and brush trails. Luckily I had extra PTO this year, but that will not be the case next year. That is not sustainable. We still have 3 more days of marking, and the snow is a challenge.

Our club membership is about the same, but most are of out towners that have cabins. They provide no help. The guys that ran it in the past are very hard workers. However, they are not great managers. As a manager myself, I see many flaws in their processes, and they probably scared some people away....
It is a struggle every year to just keep the trails. Everyone by us is buying the old family farms, and buying for hunting only! The new owners want nothing to do with us, and our community. It's very sad. A lot are turning into road routes now.
And we are not alone. This same issue is happening everywhere.
We really need these winters to start turning around. Opening marginal trails for maybe one weekend is not worth it. That's how it's been the last 12 years. Maybe one good winter.
It's the attitude of our local trails. People don't want to put the work into the trails, because trails are not open for long periods. I do not look at it like that. I ride a lot of trails up north, which those trails are maintained by other volunteers. Putting in my local trails is my contribution to the sport and keeping it going!!

 

[LoveMyDobe]

Our club had to disband a few years ago, the businesses stop supporting us. Well those businesses woke up, one of the new resort owners started a new club and its thriving. Our ATV club never had that issue.

 

[pclark]

The next 5-10 years will be very interesting. The current snowmobiler age is 60!
Our club is barely surviving right now. We maintain around 60 miles of trail in central WI. 60! There are 5 of us club members that do everything. I'm 40, and the other guys are in their 60s. 2 of the guys maintain 10 miles, and us 3 take care of the 50 miles. One guy can no longer pound stakes, so their is really only 2 of us take care of that. I took 5 days of PTO to mark and brush trails. Luckily I had extra PTO this year, but that will not be the case next year. That is not sustainable. We still have 3 more days of marking, and the snow is a challenge.

Our club membership is about the same, but most are of out towners that have cabins. They provide no help. The guys that ran it in the past are very hard workers. However, they are not great managers. As a manager myself, I see many flaws in their processes, and they probably scared some people away....
It is a struggle every year to just keep the trails. Everyone by us is buying the old family farms, and buying for hunting only! The new owners want nothing to do with us, and our community. It's very sad. A lot are turning into road routes now.
And we are not alone. This same issue is happening everywhere.
We really need these winters to start turning around. Opening marginal trails for maybe one weekend is not worth it. That's how it's been the last 12 years. Maybe one good winter.
It's the attitude of our local trails. People don't want to put the work into the trails, because trails are not open for long periods. I do not look at it like that. I ride a lot of trails up north, which those trails are maintained by other volunteers. Putting in my local trails is my contribution to the sport and keeping it going!!

Keep doing what you are doing , hopefully you can get some younger guys to help out. I know you love what you are doing.

 

[indy_500]

The next 5-10 years will be very interesting. The current snowmobiler age is 60!
Our club is barely surviving right now. We maintain around 60 miles of trail in central WI. 60! There are 5 of us club members that do everything. I'm 40, and the other guys are in their 60s. 2 of the guys maintain 10 miles, and us 3 take care of the 50 miles. One guy can no longer pound stakes, so their is really only 2 of us take care of that. I took 5 days of PTO to mark and brush trails. Luckily I had extra PTO this year, but that will not be the case next year. That is not sustainable. We still have 3 more days of marking, and the snow is a challenge.

Our club membership is about the same, but most are of out towners that have cabins. They provide no help. The guys that ran it in the past are very hard workers. However, they are not great managers. As a manager myself, I see many flaws in their processes, and they probably scared some people away....
It is a struggle every year to just keep the trails. Everyone by us is buying the old family farms, and buying for hunting only! The new owners want nothing to do with us, and our community. It's very sad. A lot are turning into road routes now.
And we are not alone. This same issue is happening everywhere.
We really need these winters to start turning around. Opening marginal trails for maybe one weekend is not worth it. That's how it's been the last 12 years. Maybe one good winter.
It's the attitude of our local trails. People don't want to put the work into the trails, because trails are not open for long periods. I do not look at it like that. I ride a lot of trails up north, which those trails are maintained by other volunteers. Putting in my local trails is my contribution to the sport and keeping it going!!

Have to ask, what is your club? 60 miles sounds like A LOT for a club south of hwy 8. Most clubs around me do under 20, my local town club does 8 miles, really should join forces with the neighboring clubs at this point.

 

[wisco-mb]

I'm trying! It does bring me a lot of joy in helping. I just lost my father a month ago, who helped a lot. Trying to make up for his contributions also. Tough deal.
Montello Yetis, Marquette County.
Crazy that we have that many miles. Exactly! That should be at least 3 clubs! We already lost one club a couple years ago. And probably loosing another one in another year or so.
I also took over SNARS reporting for my club. For any younger guys looking to help the club, this is the perfect opportunity. It takes a couple hours of computer work.

 

[whitedust]

I'm trying! It does bring me a lot of joy in helping. I just lost my father a month ago, who helped a lot. Trying to make up for his contributions also. Tough deal.
Montello Yetis, Marquette County.
Crazy that we have that many miles. Exactly! That should be at least 3 clubs! We already lost one club a couple years ago. And probably loosing another one in another year or so.
I also took over SNARS reporting for my club. For any younger guys looking to help the club, this is the perfect opportunity. It takes a couple hours of computer work.

Yep that is the trend clubs are warning little interest in running existing clubs and fewer and fewer to do the work so don’t be surprised if we fold next season. The writing is on the wall that the current system is not working. I don’t have any answers other than younger members need to step up to fill the void or there will be limited trails in WI.

 

[gary_in_neenah]

Is this a generational problem? Are the younger people less likely to be civic minded? There's no doubt that our values have changed as the population gets older. Ask any Civic group of their membership and they'll tell you they're getting older and fewer of them.
Snowmobiling is a Niche Market, there's not a lot of us and we're mostly male and there's any number of factors working against us. As our numbers have delclined over the years, we've also gotten older and like everything else, the costs of everything has increased.

If Change is constant, and we know that it is, we should expect a very different experience for future snowmobiling. Maybe fewer trails, fewer clubs, and more focus on the snowbelts of the north. I hope not but it seems to be heading in that direction.

But then.... I'm just guessing like everyone else.
​

 

[dfattack]

It's the younger generation. Not all (Like Indy) but a vast majority of them. I don't know why to be honest but they have less respect for authority, life is all about them and they are owed everything. I know it's a general statement but I didn't want a long post. I deal with all generations from my mother's who is 81 to 15/16 year old kids. I can see the difference in their work ethic. Some slip through the cracks but it is very obvious.

Honestly I think it's parenting. Not that the parents wanted to create little self centered monsters by not teaching responsibility but they wanted their kids to not have the burdens of their youth. Well that back fired in my opinion. Kids need responsibility and discipline to prepare them for the future. I personally believe that is a big part of the younger generation not participating in the clubs as well as having to work a crap ton of hours supporting themselves financially. That's a whole other conversation.

Lastly and probably not a very popular opinion is how youth sports tends to dominate the entire families schedules (days off, vacations, etc). The kids see how they are the most important thing and not Mom and Dad or even grandma or grandpa. Youth sports definitely have a place. I participated in them when I was young, but when Mom and Dad wanted to take a vacation in the summer we went. Our sports schedule did not dictate if we went or not. Mom and Dad set the schedule not the kid's lives. I believe kids grow up experiencing this slight domination of the family and that continues as they get older. They think it's normal and expect it to continue.

Sorry....a little rant but I hope you get my point.

 

[JimAndros]

DF:
I didn't want to bring a copy of you above post fwd simply because of its length....

There was a time when we were the younger generation, now we're old. But even back then I called the syndrome "Instant Gratification "

IT's all about me, only me & IT must happen today, not tomorrow. IT should have happened yesterday but didn't simply because I only found out about IT today. IT can't wait until tomorrow or my life will be ruined! Forget about saving up for IT, I'll take a loan and be upside down before the end of the season.

What a horrible sport, there are rules. The machine broke after I loaded it up with aftermarket performance crap. Pulled the rope & instant full throttle without a warm-up so I could across that beautiful smooth off-trail field.

Spring is coming, I need to sell this abused & bastardized machine now. IT has to go now! But wait, I'm upside down on the loan. I'll just quit making payments & IT will be repossessed. Problem solved.

 

[JimAndros]

Ok so with a little less sarcasm:

Manufacturers made part of this mess by pushing high perf machines. They are fine but just not for everyone.
Yes, prices are high. Blame who you want. EPA for emissions standards? Manufacturers for adding every bell & whistle?

To be honest, if taken care of & used at a modest speed (in other words, allow for warm up & cool down cycles, don't run WOT all day long, use quality fuel & oil) they last many miles more than the 70s, 80s, 90s machines.

Still it requires disposable time & money. Both lacking in most people's real world. Add to that, poor snow conditions offering short riding seasons unless you chase snow. And we all know chasing snow costs even more time & money.

Clubs use FB. I don't do FB. Info is limited at best. While they try to recruit members FB isn't the answer. Get local radio & newspapers involved. Call & invite them in person to a meeting. Get media coverage.

I understand signs cost money but not huge amounts. Here in Waushara we have 6 zones but last week I noticed a sign board at intersection 48 with such an old faded map installed & it only had 5 zones. Really?
How about signs as you enter or leave a zone (Or perhaps more important if you are changing counties) stating what club is involved & what zone/county you are entering? We have some signs that the bottom flips up or down to indicate the zone & open/close status. Yet, they frequently indicate closed when indeed the zone is open. I have stopped & flipped a few in the past. But I'd think the groomer should be the flipper to open? Closed is another story.

Maps? Who reads maps? I read maps. Find a map, especially a current map. Oh yes, you can download & print a map. But latest map available for Waushara is 2022. So if you have access to a color printer that prints 11X17 maybe you can print off a few sheets to make it legible. But wait, what about all the sponsors that have numbered dots on the map? Those dots are listed on the flip side but you can't download the flip side.

Check your county website, maybe you can get info, maybe not. Check Travel Wisconsin, maybe it's updated. Maybe the county website & travel Wisc offer conflicting info.

It is obvious to me that the powers that be aren't snowmobilers or they would do their best to make frequent & correct updates. They would have realized that the flip side of the map needs to be available. The advertisers/sponsers should insist old fashioned paper maps are available & that both sides are available for download.

Am I a member? No, not down here but I was in Conover. An active member.

Why?
A big reason is the fact I work 2nd shift Wed thru Sat.
*Berlin River Riders meet Thursdays. I do know where to find them on HWY 49.
*Poyganaires IDK but I do know where to find them on Cty D.
*Borth somewhere SW of town a mile or so. That's all know about them.
*All other area clubs are a mystery.

Maybe someone will reach out?

 

[pclark]

Ok, young people like IT related exercises so SNARS would be perfect for them. In the end it’s up to us to find their strengths to get them involved. I think another issue is that when it comes to trail work they don’t want to look stupid so they don’t step up. I used to start trail work as early as I could marking areas and would take one guy who needed guidance and after some one on one he felt pretty good about himself. I’m sure when he drove by the trail that he worked on he was pretty darn proud of it. I always told my guys we had the best marked trails in the state. Just my take…..seemed to work for me.

 

[pclark]

There are other jobs like selling ad space on the maps that can be fun for the right person, how about getting trail access? It’s not just about sitting in a meeting once a month. But you have to be willing to put some time in and then who knows, it might be you in the groomer! Sounds like your club is a perfect one for young guys Wisconsin? Try Facebook to see if you can find guys or whatever social media is the choice these days.

 

[euphoric1]

It's the younger generation. Not all (Like Indy) but a vast majority of them. I don't know why to be honest but they have less respect for authority, life is all about them and they are owed everything. I know it's a general statement but I didn't want a long post. I deal with all generations from my mother's who is 81 to 15/16 year old kids. I can see the difference in their work ethic. Some slip through the cracks but it is very obvious.

Honestly I think it's parenting. Not that the parents wanted to create little self centered monsters by not teaching responsibility but they wanted their kids to not have the burdens of their youth. Well that back fired in my opinion. Kids need responsibility and discipline to prepare them for the future. I personally believe that is a big part of the younger generation not participating in the clubs as well as having to work a crap ton of hours supporting themselves financially. That's a whole other conversation.

Lastly and probably not a very popular opinion is how youth sports tends to dominate the entire families schedules (days off, vacations, etc). The kids see how they are the most important thing and not Mom and Dad or even grandma or grandpa. Youth sports definitely have a place. I participated in them when I was young, but when Mom and Dad wanted to take a vacation in the summer we went. Our sports schedule did not dictate if we went or not. Mom and Dad set the schedule not the kid's lives. I believe kids grow up experiencing this slight domination of the family and that continues as they get older. They think it's normal and expect it to continue.

Sorry....a little rant but I hope you get my point.

"responsibility and discipline" and I will add to that... accountability! three things seriously lacking that was once not only part of our upbringing but instilled on us until we learned.

 

[wisco-mb]

Lastly and probably not a very popular opinion is how youth sports tends to dominate the entire families schedules (days off, vacations, etc). The kids see how they are the most important thing and not Mom and Dad or even grandma or grandpa. Youth sports definitely have a place. I participated in them when I was young, but when Mom and Dad wanted to take a vacation in the summer we went. Our sports schedule did not dictate if we went or not. Mom and Dad set the schedule not the kid's lives. I believe kids grow up experiencing this slight domination of the family and that continues as they get older. They think it's normal and expect it to continue.

This!!! This is one of the top reasons. Our sports culture is toxic in the US. Everything from the professionals, college, and kids sports. I had this conversation with my Pastor. Another reason of low church attendance and volunteering there also we feel.

Exactly! I played sports and I want my kid to play sports. However, there is a time and place for everything. I don't want this to dictate our lives.I don't feel the standard leagues are too bad, but these stupid sports clubs I hear about. You have a 13 year old kid playing baseball the entire year!? The parents are traveling all over the country and region to play. This takes any priority over everything in life.

We were staying at my SIL's place down in Verona last year on Easter. We were getting ready to leave for church, and the neighbors were leaving for a soccer tournament. Who schedules a soccer tournament on a Sunday, yet alone on Easter!? That is shameful from all accounts.

 

[euphoric1]

I played sports growing up but it never occupied almost every night and weekend either, and these traveling teams....my nephew was in a traveling volleyball team and would have to go to Florida at times and I forget the money it was to sign up, let alone travel. If I had asked my parents if I could do that when I was younger there would have been no way, nor would I have wanted sports to occupy so much of my life either. Our daughter wanted to cheer in high school and it was not much short of signing your life away, I said NO WAY! she played volleyball and practice was every night, wouldn't get home till late and then the games playing with multiple schools and had to stay until everyone was done in support. Ive already said if signs up for any summer stuff, dont even think about selling trailer because we wont be able to use it...I'll be using it by myself LOL! I was is scouts and played baseball and still had time. And again.... glad I grew up when I did.

 

[JimAndros]

About 6 years ago when I was working in Duluth we had a lot of contract employees (in other words, they were employed by a "Contract House" & assigned to work in Duluth). So they were away from home for extended periods of time & paid a per diem to cover housing.
Anyway, over the New Year time one guy had his family come up to visit. He was giving them a tour of the hangar & the teen age daughter paid no attention at all & played on her phone. Really, you can't even pay attention long enough to see what dad does for a living? Yet I'm sure sad is expected to cater to her interests.

Nothing potentially interesting in this facility!

 

[indy_500]

Exactly! I played sports and I want my kid to play sports. However, there is a time and place for everything. I don't want this to dictate our lives.I don't feel the standard leagues are too bad, but these stupid sports clubs I hear about. You have a 13 year old kid playing baseball the entire year!? The parents are traveling all over the country and region to play. This takes any priority over everything in life.

I feel attacked club baseball monthly dues are more than my sled payment. We’ll be spending Memorial Day and 4th of July weekends out of state for tournaments. If it sounds crazy, it’s because it is.

 

[rp7x]

wtf is a sled payment