Club News Emily-Outing Snowmobile Club Collaborates with Over the Hills Gang ATV Club by Ryan Huettl Many snowmobile clubs in Minnesota share portions of their GIA trails with ATV clubs during the summer months, with landowner permission. Rather than complain about each other, the Emily-Outing Snowbirds Snowmobile Club and the Over the Hills Gang ATV Club of Crow Wing and Cass counties in Minnesota have chosen to work together. The two clubs have developed a good working relationship. They now share chores, as simple as changing out each other’s signs throughout the City of Emily to avoid confusion for riders in the spring and fall. In an effort to understand concerns on both sides, a representative from each club attends the other’s monthly meetings whenever possible. The Over the Hills Gang even contacted the Emily-Outing Snowbirds this fall and asked if they had any trails that needed extra attention from them! As a result of that conversation, the Over the Hills Gang repaired shared sections of the Emily-Outing Snowbirds’ dangerously eroded and rutted trails. Several steep hills on the trail had eroded and left nothing but huge boulders that damaged the groomers and endangered the snowmobile riders. On
particularly hazardous sections, their crew brought out their excavator and skid steer to reshape several steep hills and remove a gigantic boulder. That “rock” (shown in the photo) had been sticking up about a foot on the trail for three or four years. Of all the “rocks” so far, this was the biggest they’ve ever removed! The repairs made to the hills will make grooming much smoother and the trails safer and more enjoyable for riders. With the “leaps and bounds” growth of ATVing and snowmobiling in our community, the sharing of trails is certain to expand. The two clubs plan to continue to find common ground and work together to benefit their community. Emily-Outing, Minn. has become a “Destination.”
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