Groomed all the skate loops this afternoon after a couple days of rain and heavy wet snow. Lots of trees/brush leaning into the trails. Most have sprung back, lopped the biggest offenders and will be back later this a week to lop the stubborn ones that won't spring back - watch out for face slappers in the mean time. Ski you next year!

Photos:

(Robert Polic)

Just got in at noon from rolling half of classic loops. After rolling skate trails last night until midnight, Bob is back out grooming them as we speak. Depending on when he gets in I will try and get back out to set some track. If not, tracks will be set early tomorrow morning. Progress is a little slow. Heavy rain, then heavy, wet snow turned it into a jungle in some places where there is a lot of jack pine, oak and popple saplings, so we're doing a lot of clearing as well as grooming. Hope to be completely caught up tomorrow.

(Will Maines)

After reading the groomer reports, I decided to check out Razorback Ridges Saturday late morning early afternoon. I skied the Long Rider trail which is always a really good work out. The outbound section is fairly hilly whereas the return loop is more gradual. Trail conditions were very good to excellent. The downhills were fast but control was very good. This is a fun trail to ski. Kudos to the groomers for such a job well done. Unfortunately, it was raining by the time I finished around 1:30 pm. The rain could make a mess of the trail so I am happy I got there early.

(Jim Gantz)

New volunteer groomer Bob Polich was out at 4 am this morning to groom all skate loops. I went out after that and groomed/set track on classic loops. Skate deck is excellent. I classic skied on two loops this afternoon and they varied from excellent to poor. The poor track part is pretty much the last two kilometers back to the chalet, the start of which is where a bolt broke on the track pan. We'll see how the weather pans out before making grooming plans for tomorrow and into next week.

(Will Maines)

Groomed all the skate loops this morning. Trails were pretty glazed over so tilled them up mixing the softer snow from below with the icy surface. Trails should be in great shape with fast but controllable skating today.

Photos:

(Robert Polic)

Touched up all of the skate trails today. The trails are leveling out nicely and are in great shape with the exception of some leaf debris on a few sections.

Photos:

(Robert Polic)

Just finished grooming all loops. Groomed and set track on Lions Pride which I was going to just roll this winter for bushwhack skiing. The snow hadn't started transitioning when I finished at 11 a.m., and as of this time is still near perfect. Oak leaves are unavoidable in places. Tracks will probably be a little soft on Lions Pride, but otherwise things are holding up nice and firm.

(Will Maines)

Thanks to a crew of six Sayner-Star Lake Lions and one skier volunteer for turning out on a very cold morning to work through several loops clearing branches, brush and small trees on or leaning over the trails. After finishing the clearing, I went back out and groomed and tracked trails we worked on. Friday I plan to be grooming all loops on both the skate and classic sides of the system. Overall, right now, conditions are mostly great, although there are some short stretches where oak leaves can be annoying.

(Will Maines)

Rolled all loops three times this week. Set track on Short Cut, Hair Raiser, Wild Thing and Oak Ridge on the classic side today. Groomed Ridge Trail, Roller Coaster, Mary's Frolic and Will's Crossing on skate side. Since I finished at noon there has been another inch or two of fluffy stuff come down. I plan on setting track on remaining classic trails tomorrow morning, and will groom Long Rider at that time also on the skate side.
Note: I will not be grooming Bruce's Roundabout this year on the skate side due to the horsepower limitations of our new groomer. Also, for the same reason, on the classic side I will roll for bushwhack skiing but will not track Lions Pride from its intersection with Oak Ridge back to its intersection on the other end of Oak Ridge.

(Will Maines)

As of this afternoon I have finished rolling all loops. Repaired the Yellowstone drag this afternoon and groomed Ridge Trail, Will's Crossing, Roller Coaster and Long Rider on skate side. Will do the last two skate loops tomorrow morning and start setting track on as many classic loops as I can get done. Skate deck this afternoon looked great. Most of the debris, overhanging brush and downed trees and limbs have been cleaned up, but on the classic side Doug's Folly, Pine Hollow and Wild Thing are open but still need some cleanup work. The Lions have planned a Monday morning work party to put the finishing touches on those trails.

(Will Maines)