CALUMET TOWNSHIP, Mich. (AP) - The members of the Swedetown Trails Club want to make the trails so good the recreation area becomes a regional draw for cross country skiers, and they think the new groomer they recently acquired will help reach that goal, according to Tom Wright.
Wright, who is the STC head groomer, said the new groomer is a 2015 Prinoth Husky. It was made in Italy, and it was purchased from an owner in New Hampshire who had put only 280 hours of use on it.
“It was like brand new,” he said.
The Daily Mining Gazette (https://bit.ly/2l24qpd ) reports that the previous groomer was built in 1999, and it was co-owned by the STC, Calumet Township and the Calumet Downtown Development Authority, Wright said. It was sold and the money was used for the new groomer.
Wright said with the previous groomer, two passes of trails were needed to groom for both classical skiers and skate skiers. The new groomer can groom for both styles in one pass, which saves fuel costs.
“The tiller was not quite big enough,” he said.
Guy Goode, STC vice president, said raising funds for the new machine took a multi-faceted approach, which started with the club’s board members.
“Each one of the members contributed money,” he said.
The users of the trails were also asked to donate, Goode said, adding grants were sought and Range Bank assisted with the fundraising.
“We’re still doing fundraising,” he said.
The Swedetown Recreation Area is about 1,900 acres. It is co-owned by Calumet Township and the North Houghton County Water Authority. The trails are maintained by the STC.
Wright said that involvement indicated how important the trails are to users and township residents.
“It was a community effort,” he said.
Wright said there have been some positive comments from out-of-town users of the trails since the new machine was put into use at the start of the season, which is helping the trails become known regionally.
“This machine allows us to put down some really nice trails,” he said.
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Information from: The Daily Mining Gazette, https://www.mininggazette.com
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