'Smooth, groomed and nice' | Lewiston Sun Journal - Lewiston Sun Journal

Al Orne suits up for his ride at Saturday’s the Norway Trackers Snowmobile Club Rally Ride on Lake Pennesseewassee in Norway. Orne likes to participate in rally rides to support the club which maintains and grooms local snowmobile trails. Andree Kehn/Sun Journal Buy this Photo

Al Orne starts off on a 35-mile ride Saturday at the second annual Norway Trackers Snowmobile Club Rally Ride on Lake Pennesseewassee in Norway. Orne likes to participate in rally rides to support his club which maintains and grooms local snowmobile trails. Andree Kehn/Sun Journal Buy this Photo

Rob Mowatt, right, chats with Jerry Major, left, Steve Hakala and Ken Gammon, during registration for the Norway Trackers Snowmobile Club Rally Ride on Lake Pennesseewassee in Norway Saturday. Andree Kehn/Sun Journal Buy this Photo

Jaime Mowatt, left, and Christy Farr register riders Mark, left foreground, and Brady Truman for the Norway Trackers Snowmobile Club Rally Ride on Lake Pennesseewassee in Norway Saturday. Andree Kehn/Sun Journal Buy this Photo

NORWAY — For the Norway Trackers Snowmobile Club, snow news is good news.

On Saturday, members of the club led a handful of riders on the second annual Rally Ride on Lake Penneseewassee and through 35 miles of peak quality trails.

According to Rob Mowatt, club president, the trails are the best they’ve been all winter.

“The snow has been minimal. Right now, the trails are in good shape. This is the first weekend the trails have been groomed,” said Mowatt. “The conditions are perfect right now.”

According to Mowatt, the winter has seen pretty mild snow accumulation wise.

“Further north, they’ve had a good winter. Around here it’s been pretty marginal,” said Mowatt. “(The trails) are absolutely flat and fast . . . as good as you’re going to see them . . . it’s really good riding.”

Mowatt said the club just bought a new trail groomer, which was put to work getting the rally trails ready for Saturday’s event. Mowatt said the rally is one of the only fundraisers the club puts on during the year, and brings money in to help maintain the network of trails the club maintains.

Al Orne of South Paris is a member of the Trackers and has been riding for about 30 years. He said that the rally ride on Saturday was top-notch.

“It was awesome. These guys did a hell of a job. It was smooth, groomed and nice . . . it was a good mid-winter ride,” he said.

Orne said he’s felt the mild snowfall in western Maine as well; he rides only local trails and said he’s put only a couple of hundred miles on his machine so far this year.

“It hasn’t been all that good,” said Orne. But, for Orne, Saturday’s ride was a turning point. The trails were more than accommodating.

“If it wasn’t for them, I wouldn’t have any place to ride . . . it’s a bunch of unsung heroes who do the maintenance and the trail grooming. They do an outstanding job. I’m really lucky to live in this area with these guys,” he said.

According to Mowatt, the ride was scheduled to coincide with the Norway Snowshoe Festival, a day of snowshoe races on the Roberts Farm Preserve, organized by the Western Foothills Land Trust. Saturday night, snowmobiles decorated with lights parade on a road that stretches across Lake Pennessewassee and to the Roberts Farm Preserve Overlook.

“It’s also to get us involved with the local community and support local businesses,” said Mowatt.

And for Orne, a day on the trails beats a day doing anything else.

“It’s an adrenaline rush. You’re out in the woods and you see some really outrageous sights. You see animals, you see all kinds of things and it just makes you feel good, no matter what you do for the rest of the day,” he said.

Comments are not available on this story.

« Previous

49-year-old New Hampshire man dies in Oxford County snowmobile crash

filed under: