Gullyrider

I haven't heard any provincial numbers, but our club was up for the fourth consecutive year, reaching 471 from last year's 425 To put things in perspective, the 46 membership increase from last year would have represented more than half of our total membership back when I became club secretary in the late eighties. We were a bit concerned as rumours swirled that the "COVID crowd" were selling off their sleds and returning to their snowbird ways, but apparently such was not the case. One of our neighbouring clubs suffered a significant decrease in membership, but since, under the new financing model, a club's revenues will be based more on hours of grooming than membership sales, their finances won't take as serious a hit. Now that all Québec clubs are under the new model, it will be interesting to see how it all plays out. Time will tell ... Happy New Year to y'all by the way!

On behalf of the Québec Hill and Gully Riders, I wish all of our American friends a Very Happy Fourth of July! It seems like only a few short months ago since I posted a similar message but ... there you go!

If you don't receive a reply in time, I would suggest contacting the club from which your permit was purchased. They may be amenable to working out some sort of a partial rebate of the portion of the money they received as a good faith gesture. In the past, our Club has rebated the amount received from the FCMQ in the case of cancellations for medical emergencies and whatnot.

Most definitely! I could be wrong, but I get the impression that Chantal and Alain are just now becoming familiar with snowmobile tourism. AMVN director Lanthier has also been working closely with them installing signage and whatnot, and I'm trying to help them out with English language media. It's unfortunate that the only access is down a long village street (and there have already been some resident complaints about some late-night yahoo sledders - probably completely justified unfortunately), but it is what is. Those carbides were really too sharp anyway! COVID caused a huge upswing in snowmobile tourism in our area, and I'm hoping things can come together for what used to be Riopel's and that they can capitalize on it. Sadly, the hotel in Val-des-Bois, which seemed to be rocking all last winter, has not survived. Neither did the remaining sit-down restaurant (although apparently there's limited seating in the fried chicken take-out spot). Staff shortages seem to be a major issue but I'm sure that there are other factors at play. Oh well ... at least we got Schryer back, and our own clubhouse is rockin' weekends too!

I've got some great news for riders in the Lac La Blanche - Montpelier area. The venerable Hotel Lac Schryer has been slowly transformed and re-opened under the new name Auberge Chantalain. Back in my yout', when we dragged trails with Alpines and old bedsprings, this establishment was ably managed by https://www.fcfq.coop/avis-de-deces/lorenzo-lemay-154384/ whose bevy of lovely daughters served snacks and quarts into the wee hours. It included a dance floor, stage, pool table .. and even a hydraulic bucking bull! It was the "second home" of the Hill & Gully Riders, and, being a daylong trip, was an overnight destination (it now takes under an hour!). Eventually, like most of these rural hotels, it fell on hard times and closed in the mid-eighties. Most of us expected to see it burn down or be demolished. Astonishingly, the building remained in pretty good shape and, just before COVID hit, Chantal and Alain purchased it and began a slow but steady renovation project. They had a "soft opening" last fall, but are now open seven days a week, with food (pizzas, pub grub) from Thursdays to Sundays. The response has been so good, I expect that they'll expand that service ... if they can find the help. I have been working with the iMotoneige folks to get the Auberge on the map, and we hope it doesn't suffer the fate of so many area establishments. The Boréal (formerly Riopel's) in Montpelier is yet to re-open, and most places in Val-des-Bois have closed. Hope springs eternal for the Boréal however, and they're offering big discounts to sledders and ATV'er's on their newly renovated rooms. Fingers and toes are crossed.

You are correct sir.

As my buddy Rick always says ..."snowmobiling hasn't turned out to be the money-making proposition I thought it would be".

There is currently a strict moratorium on the development or accreditation of additional federated snowmobile trails. It stems from the earlier initiative concerning the rationalizing of the network and the consolidation of smaller clubs. I haven't heard of it being lifted any time soon.

Get a grip! I've met guys barely in control around corners, one who felt compelled to raise three fingers just before he almost plowed into me! I usually give the hand signalers a polite nod, by my hands remain krazy glued to the bars.

Well that looks just grand! By the way, one of our club's board members, a talented young lady and a rising star in our Canadian federal government, has a Masters Degree in translation and heads up a large translating section. My written French is pretty weak, and she has been translating all of our Club's correspondence for me. Lately, however, she put me on to https://www.deepl.com/en/translator which has become so good she refers to it as "The Devil". The only problem is ... it's too good. I was writing in French in Outlook, letting that program highlight my mistakes, and then I learned from them. I'm afraid now I just type away in English in Deepl, then cut and paste the translation into whatever correspondence I'm having with our members or the FCMQ. Too easy ... but I'm afraid my efforts to perfect my French writing skills have taken a back seat. Oh well ... at least our Francophone club members are being better served in them mother tongue!

We travelled to Les Monts Valins last season in mid-December (even though the Club President warned us not to - he said every snowmobiler and his dog will be up there due to their early snow cover) and stayed at the Auberge 31km. We had been there back in late 2011 and really enjoyed the place. Although most of the cabins around the Auberge had since been sub-divided into two, last year's visit saw our gang of six staying in one of those that had remained intact. The accommodations were fine, and the relais La Chapelle is just up the road (check out the latter's facebook page!). The only issue was, as per the club president's warning, the traffic. With the ridiculously heavy traffic, and relatively mild temperatures, the groomers simply couldn't keep up. Perhaps by January colder temps will aid in allowing the trails to "set up" overnight, and maybe the rush might have diminished a bit as other areas opern up, but it's something to consider before planning a trip. I know that later in the season, the sledding is excellent and, with the lookouts open (there weren't in mid-December), the scenery is fantastic.

On behalf of the Hill and Gully Riders Snowmobile Club (Québec edition), please allow me to wish all of our American friends a Very Happy Thanksgiving holiday, and a safe and enjoyable snowmobiling season! See you folks soon!

Your best bet is not to decline the insurance, but pay for it upfront and then apply for a full refund. If you decline, you end up paying an administrative fee for the FCMQ's verification that you're otherwise insured. I think you have 10 days to apply for the refund if you'd like to put those forty odd dollars back in your pocket ...

On behalf of the Hill & Gully Riders (Québec Version), please allow me to wish all of our American friends and neighbours a Very Happy Fourth of July!

I'd rely more on the app's grooming information rather than the reported trail conditions. In our case (the Outaouais area), the tourism employee charged with relaying the clubs' information to the FCMQ interactive map and iMotoneige app is on holidays this week. She actually remained on duty the first morning hours of her vacation as conditions were evolving rapidly due to last week's ice storm, but our club conservatively reported the conditions as "acceptable" (yellow) that day as we were still clearing trails of ice-covered branches. I'd say two thirds of our network are now "green", but as our gal is away until next Monday, "yellow" is how they will remain online until then. At least the reporting of hours since last groomed is uploaded automatically, and not reliant upon club volunteers (who may be enjoying a little R&R themselves!) and a sole employee of the tourism authority. It's not a bad system, but it relies on club volunteers consistently uploading data (which doesn't always happen) and usually a sole tourism employee processing that data for the app.

Our clubhouse is about 30 minutes (give or take) north of the Masson-Cumberland ferry (Google 149 Chemin Inlet, Mulgrave et Derry) and the road is paved almost to the door. The Clubhouse is licenced as a bar/restaurant and we re-opened it yesterday (Saturday 5th of February) morning for the first time in almost two years. Although it's only open weekends (9:00am - midnight Saturdays; 9:00am - 6:00pm Sundays) our parking lot is open to all 24/7 and it is pretty large. We also have an unloading ramp for folks trucking and not trailering. To avoid heavy fines, and protect our clients and staff, all COVID regulations (vax pass, masks when not seated, etc.) are in effect. Although we've been there for almost 50 years, visitors from other provinces and states have only begun to discover it as a jumping off point in recent years. One of our groomer operators told me there were a lot of trucks and trailers there last evening when he left for his run just after supper. It's not currently showing on iMotoneige (on the to-do list), but it's just off the 323 north of Lac La Blanche on the local trail northeast to Montpelier/Duhamel. We often scoot up to Maniwaki by heading northwest up the 323 to the TQ 53 and then you have a couple of choices from there. Likewise, Mont-Laurier, once a big day's ride, is now a "milk run" via Duhamel and La Minerve. Another groomer operator (we have two - soon to be three - machines) complained this morning of the snow not packing properly since it's so cold and dry, but apparently where there are forestry roads (about half of our network) conditions are excellent. Bypassing Ottawa is a good strategy for now, even though the hold-ups are confined mostly to the city core (with the exception of the river crossings which can be problematic .... especially in peak hours). Have a great ride however you work it!

My pals and I are scooting all over the place without any issues. Friends are staying at the outfitters you listed, and today our clubhouse, just 50 km from downtown Ottawa, took delivery of 1000 litres of gas that we ordered only a couple of days ago. Apart from the news (and line-ups at the Masson-Cumberland ferry because of slow down's on the Ottawa-Gatineau bridges), you'd never know anything was going on ......

On behalf of the Loyal Order of Hill and Gully Riders (Québec version), please allow me to wish all of our American friends a Very Happy Thanksgiving. May you also enjoy all of the blessings of the upcoming Christmas holiday season, and many miles (or kilometres!) of fun over the upcoming winter 😃. Cheers

A Very Happy Fourth of July to our many friends south of the border ... we look forward to seeing you back up in our "neck of the woods" this coming winter!

You're probably right ... I forget when the Québec two-stroke ban was announced or when the provincial government was convinced to rescind the threat as the result of the development of cleaner two strokes. I think the U.S. EPA requirements probably had more to do with that development than the Québec legislation, but it all helped. It's a long way from cleaner two-strokes to 100% electrification though.

Exactly. Look at the famous "stud ban" ... or even that deadline for two-strokes (now passed ...). It's just fluff.

So true... if you look at Dufour's channel, he's got a few of a unit in the process of being installed in the shop, along with a few others where it's sitting outside and "flexing"! Anyway, I'll get back with a report once we get this baby rockin' ..

You're absolutely right. A 38 hp fuel injected Kohler with a remotely controlled solenoid to start and stop the blades. The positioning of the cutter is done using the hydraulics for the wings on the blade. They are sold by the Québec distributor for Pisten Bully, Mécanique J. Clair and they are super folks to deal with. I believe the unit itself is manufactured by one of J. Clair's local machine shops, Usinage JS. There are additional videos of the brusher on Louis Dufour's channel. P.S. I don't know what the hurry is ... are those guys not paid by the hour?? PP.S. If videos promoting non-members are frowned upon, feel free to delete the following:

You know ... the PB seems "brand new" to us too but, coincidentally, my five year facebook message today was us saying goodbye to our Gilbert/Valtra (it went to a club in the good ol' U S of A). The Pisten Bully arrived a few days later. Five years .... now where the hell did THEY go??!!

Thanks to the Langlois judgement, re-establishing it on the old Petit Train du Nord route is a complete impossibility. The more cancerous aspects of that judgement were the payouts she offered to those nearby neighbours who "had suffered", and the fact she left the door open for one landowner to sue his neighbour should said neighbour authorize a trail across his or her own property. We almost lost the entire network because of it, and only the periodically reinstated moratoriums on these sort of legal actions saved it. It was a very stressful time, let me tell you.