Members says damage intentional
Richard Gleeson
Northern News Services
Yellowknife (Jan 26/01) - Snowmobilers tore up ski club trails during a late night run last weekend adding to the frustration the club is feeling toward motorized snow travellers.
"Our biggest concern is safety," said Yellowknife Ski Club president Dawn McInnes. "We have people of all ages out there skiing. That's what that area is for in the winter time -- skiing, period."
The snowmobiler or snowmobilers spun their tracks over the trails late Saturday night, digging deep ruts in the freshly-groomed trails.
"It was fairly extensive," said Ken Hall, the club's director of trails. "Most of the trails had some damage."
A metre-wide patch of urine was left near one of the most popular trails.
"It was obvious it wasn't a case of someone accidentally ending up on the trails. In some places they stopped square in the middle of the trail and gunned their engine, digging ruts and throwing snow," Hall said.
John Stephenson said it was the worst damage he's seen in 16 years working on trails at the club. Great Slave Snowmobile Association president Liz Belanger was surprised when she heard about the damage.
"Our group knows not to go out there," said Belanger. "It's a known rule throughout the club that you don't go on the ski trails."
McInnes said snowmobilers have been a danger to skiers more than once this year on a right-of-way snowmobilers use to get between Jackfish Lake and Back Bay. The right-of-way crosses two ski trails, at the bottom of a downhill run and the start of a climb.
"We had a very very close call over Christmas," said McInnes. A high performance skier was coming down the hill as a snowmobile was passing through. The city and ski club are currently discussing solutions to the problem,
McInnes said. The ski club leases the 700 by 1,200 metre property the trails are on from the city.
Belanger said she has never used the right-of-way in 20 years of snowmobiling in the Yellowknife area. Most members of her club go to and from the lake via Niven Lake and a trail leading down the hill to Back Bay.
Apart from the safety issue, Hall said the incident has left a bad taste in the mouths of volunteers who spend 18 hours a week grooming the trails.
"This kind of wrecks it for everybody and it's disheartening for the guys who volunteer their weeknights to keep up the trail," Hall said.
