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Sledders frustrated by Mother Nature

“I can tell you that the trails are in pretty rough shape.”
snowmobile club nb
File photo.

The mild temperatures are proving to be a setback for snowmobilers in the area. 

Shawn Flindall, the President of the North Bay Snowmobilers Club, says the recent above zero temperatures have created frustrating conditions at a time when the trails were getting close to mint conditions. 

“I can tell you that they (trails) are in pretty rough shape,” said Flindall Monday afternoon. 

“They are really bumpy, lots of dirt exposed, there’s lots of rocks exposed it’s a pretty bad mess out there. Lakes are holding their own at this point but they are calling for cold temperatures again in the next couple of days and I hope it happens because if not we may have to close some trails.”  

The timing of the warm conditions is frustrating too as it comes right at the start of Snowmobile Safety Week.  

“During Snowmobile Safety Week we want to see lots of sleds on the trails and lots of people practicing safe snowmobiling and unfortunately with the mild weather I don’t think we will see any sleds or not very many on the trail and that’s kind of unfortunate timing for Snowmobile Safety Week,” he said.  

Flindall insists there is still a lot of snow on the trails, it’s just messy, bumpy and slushy.  

“But when the cold weather does come, we should be in pretty good shape,” he said.  

“It should clean up and groom up pretty nicely and I would anticipate that by this weekend the groomer should have it in pretty good shape but we really need some cold weather and some snow again.”   

Flindall adds that snowmobiling has a big economic impact on North Bay and the rest of the north, and it hurts when the conditions are poor during the prime portion of the snowmobile season. 

“When we don’t have sledders spending $300 to $400 a day on lodging, parts and food, it’s a bit of a hit for the local economy for sure,” stated Flindall.


Chris Dawson

About the Author: Chris Dawson

Chris Dawson has been with BayToday.ca since 2004. He has provided up-to-the-minute sports coverage and has become a key member of the BayToday news team.
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