As February gets underway, the roar of snowmobiles can be heard all over the north country.

It’s not quite like it once was, but the Snow Road Snowmobile Club fed more than 200 people Saturday morning (the next breakfasts are Feb. 15 and Feb. 29) and the parking lot was full of cars and sleds.

President Ruth Wark said they have 560 permit members and they groom/maintain 475 kilometres of trails, including those on more than 300 private landowner properties.

Although conditions aren’t quite perfect, the District 6 trails are in much better shape than some of their neighbours.

They maintain private and public trails from Lanark to Plevna, to McDonalds Corners to Clayton, Flower Station, Ompah and Quackenbush Lake.

“A lot of clubs east and south of us don’t have the snow yet,” she said.

The way trail permits work, when you purchase one, you designate what club you support and part of your permit fee goes to that club for trail maintenance.

“A new groomer costs about $300,000,” Wark said. “We have a 2009, a 2004, a 1998 and a 1993.”

Wark acknowledged that numbers are down however.

“We used to have more members or trails we used to have,” she said. “My opinion is that it’s on the decline as the population ages.

“But we also don’t have the winters we used to have.

“There are ups and downs however and as people leave, there are a lot of new members coming in.”

Down south, the L & A Ridge Runners have been holding steady at about 575 members, said President Keith Dawson.

“It’s (membership) within 10 per cent of the last three or so years,” he said. “Right now, we need more snow.

“We’re just getting started.”

He said things are in pretty good shape from the Bellrock Road parking lot in Verona heading north.

(The Ridge Runners groom the K & P from Orser Road to Tichborne. Snow Road handles Tichborne to Sharbot Lake.)

“The K & P is only part of the trails we maintain,” he said.

Like Snow Road, they also have many kilometres of private trails they look after.

“We maintain a large area,” he said. “From our clubhouse in Yarker, up to Arden, to Napanee, Amherstview to Perth Road Village.”

But there a little more to snowmobile clubs than just cruising around in the snow, said North Frontenac Coun. Fred Fowler, who was also having breakfast in Snow Road Saturday morning.

“I live here,” he said. “And part of my portfolio is trails.

“It’s important to keep this building going, not only for the recreation but as a potential shelter like it was during the ice storm.”

The Snow Road building also serves as a waystation of sorts, providing shelter to people who break down, a place to get warm and soup or chili in crockpots, on weekends and sandwiches, hot dogs and snacks during the week. It’s on the honor system with a price list posted.

We had another successful windup to the Snow Road Snowmobile Club breakfast season with three fundraisers for local charities.  Each year the club dedicates three end-of-season breakfasts to support charities in both Lanark and Frontenac.  This year, breakfast proceeds and donations collected has provided another boost to these charities.  $1,547.50 was raised on behalf of Alzheimer’s Society; and the Canadian Cancer Society benefited with $1,324 for the Wheels of Hope campaign, and $1,356.00 for Melanoma.  

The executive and members of the club want to thank everyone who has supported their fundraising breakfasts and other activities throughout the season, as well as the dedicated volunteers who make them happen.  

The club is already preparing for their annual Canada Day breakfast/bake and yard sale on Saturday, June 24th and are happily accepted donations for the yard sale or the bake sale.

Contact Ruth Wark at 613-278-0477 or Alice Gilchrist at 613-278-1020 for information.

Last week’s warm temperatures and heavy rain that forced cancellation of an actual snowmobile ride, but unwavering volunteers at the Snow Road Snowmobile Club still hosted their third successful Ride for Dad event on Saturday.    Donuts donated by Tim Hortons and hot coffee greeted participants registering their pledges.  

The 26 registrants collected $6,419 in pledges.  Although Alice Gilchrist, with pledges totalling $1,285, was top pledge earner for the third year in a row, Bob Olmstead and Rob Schippert were close behind and tied in 2nd place with $1,030 each in pledges.  The club wants to thank all the generous sponsors who donated cash or goods or food, those who collected pledges and those who donated, and all the volunteers who worked before, during and after the event.   

Corporate sponsorships exceeded $2,000 this year so the big winner is Ride for Dad with an expected donation over $8,000 to support the fight against prostate cancer.   A lunch of hot dogs and several kinds of homemade soups was enjoyed and followed up by the distribution of awards and prizes.  A number of snow-mobilers arrived in their vehicles, along with other club supporters, to enjoy a great spaghetti dinner.  The Club plans to hold this event on February 10th next year, hoping an earlier date will mean better trail conditions for their Ride for Dad.

Stephen Goodberry aka Elvis - aka Neil Diamond - aka Roy Orbison entertained a full crowd at the snowmobile clubhouse. The event was hosted by the Snow Road Community Centre and drew fans from as far away as Oshawa. Stephen was accompanied by his talented wife Debra and together they provided an excellent show with their vocal talents and their bantering interaction. They brought the crowd to their feet in an ovation and were gracious enough to do several encores. Thank you Stephen and Debra on behalf of the Snow Road Community Centre. Unfortunately the camera did not catch all the great "moves" in that leather suit.

One dedicated and long-time fan of "everything and anything Elvis" was absolutely thrilled with the performance.  Pearl Killingbeck received a souvenir scarf when "Elvis" did a walkabout in the audience and received a warm hug from her idol.   Plus she had the opportunity to enjoy some personal chat time with him at the end of the show along with her friends Olive Allan and Harriet Riddell.   

The music committee knows this will be a hard act to follow but are certain that Henry Norwood is up to the challenge. Join us at the Community Centre on Thursday, February 16th for another great evening of music.  Call 613-278-0958 for tickets.

On May 1, the Snow Road Snowmobile Club hosted its annual Landowner and Volunteer Appreciation gathering at the Timber Run Golf Course in Lanark. Concerns had been expressed by a number of landowners related to Bill 100 and its potential impact on their properties that have snowmobile trails. A presentation was made by Scott Buckley, Governor of OFSC District 1 and Ruth Wark, President of Snow Road Snowmobile Club who responded to questions and assured landowners that snowmobile clubs do not want easements across their properties but fully intend to maintain their current agreements and relationships. In fact, the land use form has been updated to include a statement to this effect, and many landowners renewed their agreement for continued use of the trails on their properties. There has been mutual co-operation and respect between the landowners and the snowmobile clubs in this area for over 40 years. The club is very appreciative of the trails across private property, which allow for a great network across the scenic landscapes in Lanark and Frontenac Counties.

On April 30 Ruth Wark and her crew of volunteers at the snowmobile club presented a cheque to representatives from the Perth branch of the Canadian Cancer Society to support research, programming and prevention in the fight against melanoma. The club held a fundraising breakfast for the cause and after all the pledges were in, the final total raised was $1466. President Derrick Dixon and fundraising manager Jessica Roback of the Perth CCS received the cheque and conveyed their thanks for the club's support.

On April 30 Ruth Wark and her crew of volunteers at the Snow Road Snowmobile Club presented a cheque to representatives from the Perth branch of the Canadian Cancer Society to support research, programming and prevention in the fight against melanoma. The club held a fundraising breakfast for the cause and after all the pledges were in, the final total raised was $1466. President Derrick Dixon and fundraising manager Jessica Roback of the Perth CCS received the cheque and conveyed their thanks for the club's support.

On April 16, committee members of the Canadian Cancer Society of Lanark, Leeds and Grenville and the Smiths Falls Relay for Life event were thrilled to receive a cheque from Ruth Wark, president of the Snow Road Snowmobile Club.

Wark, along with her dedicated crew of volunteers, held a charity pancake breakfast at the club. Over 150 diners turned out for the event and by 11am, over $1,000 was raised.

Wark made the cheque presentation to Julie Brady and Norene Allan, both committee members of the Relay for Life in Smiths Falls, which is just one of four Relay events this year in Lanark, Leeds and Grenville.

Allan and Brady thanked Wark and her team and said they were grateful for the club's ongoing support. “We have been coming here for a number of years and are really appreciative for the support of the club and the local community; we do our best to see that the proceeds come back to support the local community in the form of transportation services, cancer research and more,” Allan said.

The charity breakfast, which has taken place annually at the club for the last seven or eight years, is just one of three charities that the club supports through their breakfast fundraisers.

The first took place on April 2 and raised $1640 in support of the Alzheimer's Society. The club's final charity breakfast will be in support of melanoma and will take place on Sat. April 30 from 8-11am.

“All three causes are very important to us,” Wark said, “and we are happy to be able to get people out from the local community to support them.”

Ruth Wark, president of the Snow Road Snowmobile Club, wore a brave face Saturday morning despite having had to cancel the ride portion of the club's second annual snowmobile Ride for Dad fundraiser. The ride was scheduled to take place on February 27 but a snow/ice/rain storm last week wreaked havoc with area trails, which were dangerously water logged and covered with fallen branches and trees.

The cancellation was decided on Thursday by Wark and the other two organisers, Shelby Knight and Brandon Crain, but the three also decided to carry on with the other events that were planned to go with the ride.

Therefore, while the actual ride was canceled and the news went out online, riders who had raised pledges were still invited to drop them off at the club, take home prizes and enjoy a hot lunch and a full course spaghetti dinner.

Wark said she was very disappointed at having to cancel the ride since she was looking forward to a bigger ride this year following last year's extremely successful event, which attracted close to 100 riders and raised $8500 for prostate cancer research. “When I saw the state of the trails after the storm I almost cried. Last year's ride so hugely surpassed our expectations, especially since it was the first ever snowmobile Ride For Dad to be held in District 1. We were really hoping to see even more riders this year.”

The ride this year was dedicated to the late Wayne Southward, a long time snowmobile enthusiast and volunteer with the Ompah and Snow Road snowmobile clubs as well as with the K&P Snow Trails. Southward was diagnosed with prostate cancer in February 2015 and passed away on January 19, 2016.

However, throughout the day, Wark was pleased to see a number of riders arrive at the club to drop off their pledges and sit down for a meal. A number of them also took home prizes donated by individuals and local businesses, as well as by other businesses from as far away as Westport, Perth, Peterborough, Carleton Place, Tamworth and Kemptville. Up for grabs were a number of helmets, boots and other trail gear, gift certificates and gift cards, resort packages and much more.

In an effort to try to give those who did show up on their machines a chance to get out on the local trails, Brandon Crain and a number of other volunteer groomers had been working around the clock since early Friday morning to clear some of the trails close by, including the K&P trail south to Sharbot Lake and north to Flower Station so that riders could at least go for a ride.

I met five riders from Snow Road on my way to the club on Saturday morning who had registered for the ride and took to the trails and enjoyed the day. By the end of the day $7,200 was raised - not too shabby for a ride that was canceled. Wark said that she has every intention of running the event next year.

Over 60 people of all ages attended the dinner and Chinese auction fundraiser at the Snow Road Snowmobile Club on January 16. The event included a full course meal and as well, close to 20 items, most donated by club members, were auctioned off. By the end of the night over $500 was raised and the proceeds will go towards the cost of keeping the club operating.

Club organizers have also been busy preparing for the club’s second annual Ride For Dad fundraiser for Prostate Cancer, which will take place at the club on Saturday, February 27. Last year’s event attracted close to 100 riders and club president Ruth Wark says she hopes to see that number rise. “We're shooting for 150 riders this year and it looks as though the snow and cold will help the trails freeze down and make for a great day of riding for those who come out.” Local businesses are invited to sponsor the event.

Registration takes place the day of the ride from 8 –10 am. The $30 registration fee includes a trail lunch at the Civitan Club in Lanark, and riders who raise over $100 in pledges will get their registration fee returned, or, if they wish they can donate it to the cause. The club will be serving a full course spaghetti dinner the night of the ride for $8.

Riders will depart from Snow Road and follow the trail to Sharbot Lake, then head east to Perth and north to Lanark, where they will stop for lunch. They will then continue on to Middleville, Hopetown and meet back at the club. The 100km ride will take riders through some fabulous scenery and terrain. Participants can pre-register at www.ridefordad.ca and supporters can also make pledges on line there. For more information, contact Ruth Wark at 613-278-0477.

On Sat. February 27, Snow Road Snowmobile Club will again host a Telus Ride for Dad event in support of the fight against prostate cancer. This will be the second year this small club has taken on the challenge. Last year over $8,500 was raised and organizers are hoping to increase that amount this year. You do not have to be a sledder to support or assist at this event. Volunteers are needed for preparing and serving food, directing traffic on event day, registration of riders, signing the trail route, contacting donors, and picking up donations, etc. If interested, contact a club member, leave a message at the clubhouse, 613-278-2022, send a message on Facebook or go to one of the club breakfasts, which are starting again on Sat. January 9.