Trail Update and Moose Habitat

Doug tuned up all the trails this morning - yippee and thank you!  The skate track is fantastic (the classic looks good, too).  Get out and ski before the next predicted snow comes!

Oh, and watch out for our resident Moose and their, umm, donations.  There are piles of (as Randy calls it) "Brown Klister" on the trail, left by the two moose who are hanging out at the course.  I'm fairly certain it's the same mommy moose from last winter, along with her growing son (he has a nice rack this year).  They don't seem perturbed by the skiers, but please watch for them and give them their space.

Cupid Cup Volunteers Needed!

Want to help a great cause?  Like cool swag (your own Cupid Cup Multiclava)?  Signup for the Cupid Cup as a Volunteer!

1) Click this link to see our list on SignUp.com
2) Review the options listed and choose the spot(s) you like.
3) Sign up! It's Easy - you will NOT need to register an account or keep a password on SignUp.com.

Note: SignUp.com does not share your email address with anyone. If you prefer not to use your email address, please contact me and I can sign you up manually.

Can I Snowshoe / Walk my dog / Snow Bike / Skijor / Sled...?

Some have recently asked for some clarification regarding what activities are recommended on the Rexburg Trails - here's an answer.

Can I:

• Snowshoe? 
• Yes! alongside but not on the ski trails.  Snowshoes are great for walking on... snow.  As a reminder at the bottom of the blog we have a nice little graphic illustration.  Remember, if it looks like it's a groomed trail, it probably is, and snowshoes are for traversing the ungroomed snow.
• Snow Bike (Fat Bike)?
• at the BYU-I trails: Yes
• at Teton Lakes: No
• Ski with my dog?
• It depends - does your dog ski?: this is an often discussed topic amongst the volunteers who spend hundreds of hours of their own time and thousand of dollars of their own money to keep these trails in good shape out of the goodness of their hearts for those who like to ski.  In an effort to provide the greatest good for the greatest number of people who like to ski, we'd prefer not to dictate any rules of conduct but...
• Remember these are ski trails.  Yes, it's a wonderful place to take your dog out, but unless your dog is exceptionally well trained our experience is that a happy dog is very difficult to control with other strange skiers around.  
• Are you willing to keep your dog off the groomed trail, stop, step off the trail and immediately hold your dog's collar whenever another skier approaches?
• If yes then yay! you make every other dog owner look great too
• If no then you're likely to give other dog owners a black eye.  
• No matter how well behaved your dog is, it doesn't ski.  Out of respect for those who work so hard to provide this service for those who do wish to ski on beautifully groomed trails please control your pet as you would if invited into a neighbors home as a guest.
• Walk my dog?
• Nope, sorry.  Please no walking on the groomed trail.
• Snowshoe with my dog?
• Yes, but again please stay off the groomed trail.
• Skijor with my dog?
• No, again sorry!
• Ski with my kids?
• Yes!  But if you're towing a ski trailer please stay on the outermost classic track with the ski trailer ski offset to the outside of the groomed track (not in the skate lane).
• Also please keep young ones and the older folks to off the skate lane (unless they're skating).
• Tow a sled on the ski trail?
• No
• Skijor with my kids?
• Yes, if both the tower and towee are wearing skis.
• Sled on the hill?
• Yes!

Classic Drills for Balance, Weight Transfer and Cornering

Some great drills for any age if you're interesting in honing your classic ski skills.

Grooming Update

Late last night Randy finished rolling the inside skate lanes (The Boot and The Clover Leaf) THREE TIMES!  We have a triple-rolled skate track - awesome.  He also cleaned up the Perimeter and said Doug is planning on tuning up the Perimeter, Boot and Clover Leaf this morning. The Classic tracks are doing just fine.
It's going to be a great ski day.

Grooming Update

Randy and Doug have been working on the tracks this morning (thank you, as always!).  The classic tracks look fantastic.  The skate lanes have been rolled but are still pretty soft.  Doug's going to work on the Perimeter skate loop this afternoon, then Randy is planning on grooming the inside skate tracks later this evening.  I'm banking on tomorrow being a great skate day; late tonight might be pretty good, too, if you're a night skier.

Grooming

Doug just let me know he's heading out to do a quick groom to make things skiable for the day - at least until the snow starts to fly again this afternoon.  Thank you, Doug!