Meeting Minutes
11/17/22
6:05 PM start
Good attendance. ~20 people in person. A handful online (Zoom).
Wyoming State Snowmobile Association (WSSA) Updates:
Scholarship applications are open for WSSA.
WSSA dues have increased (website currently lists $20 for non-business members). We will need to consider raising SRSC membership dues to keep pace.
WSSA Fun Days is in Alpine WY this year, March 3rd-5th, 2023.
Assorted:
Cameron now has equipment to print T-shirts. We could print club shirts and sell them to raise some funds. Need to supply shirts & come up with a design.
Off trail riding is open! Please pay attention to the 12” snow depth rule to avoid resource damage (and a bad image for snowmobilers) as well as a ticket.
We’ve got a cooler for a giveaway. (big thanks to Jed @ Borderline Powersports for the continued support!). We’re going to use this to do a membership drive: join by January 1st 2023 to be eligible to win this cooler. It will be a drawing among all current/paid members.
Current membership counts: 16 single memberships, 17 family memberships, and 7 business members that are paid/current. Please remind your fellow riding buddies to join or renew.
New banners are going into the huts to explain who keeps them maintained, and provide a way for people to donate (Paypal/Venmo QR code system). Business member’s names should be added. Separate “No-Smoking” signs should be put in the shelters too. The “Be 307 Aware” program should have signs in each shelter as well. One had it last year but both should have it. Will reach out to the “Be 307 Aware” program person to see if they have signage we could put in them.
Side Note: The “Be 307 Aware” program is to use radio channel 3-07 if you’re in trouble. SAR Teams will monitor that if there’s an active search for you. SAR teams do not continually monitor this frequency. Please don’t use this for your regular comms. Consider this a backup plan for when your InReach battery is dead (you do carry a satellite communicator, right?) and as a way to communicate with SAR while they’re working to locate you.
From the program’s Facebook page: “The 307 Channel on FRS and GRMS capable radios can help search and rescue teams get you home safely if you are lost or injured.
Program the radio to UHF 462.6125 Privacy Code 85.4 or Channel 3 and Privacy code 07 (307).”
Donation boxes for the safety shelters are ready. Need to install them. This is so people can slip cash into a secure location to help us cover expenses on hut upkeep.
Beacon signs need updated with current business memberships. Jed at Borderline wanted his sign on the East side of the range if it ever became available, and with TNT changing hands that’s an option now. Let’s make that happen.
State Trails Updates:
No trail maps printed by State Trails this year. Costs shot up for this. If you have old ones, keep them. Also note you can download a geo-referenced PDF map from the State Trails website, and upload that into various mapping apps on your phone, which will work without cell service as long you have location (GPS) on. This can show exactly where on the mountain you are located. Apps like CalTopo (my personal preference) & Avenza work for this. https://wyoparks.wyo.gov/index.php/snowmobile/snowmobile-maps-trails
State Trails meeting was 1st Friday in November. Talked a lot about parking at Green Rock. State Trails took it to USFS regional recreation supervisor in Denver: they’ve said it looks like there’s a need for a parking lot, but it has to come from our district supervisor (Laramie District). Laramie district has been less than enthusiastic about moving on this (for over 20 years). There’s a regional Great Divide Outdoor Collaborative (note Dave Wright, owner of Albany Lodge, is the motorized representative for our region) that our USFS District Supervisor has said needs to make a recommendation to put a parking lot in. WY-DOT is on board: they want parking off the highway. Note that the USFS re-permitted the existing gravel pit off Sand Lake Road (location of proposed new lot), so that spot will be enlarged as people pull gravel out during summer: this could be good to help establish it as winter parking. WY-Highway Patrol and Sheriff’s office are on board with a lot too.
The contract for Tic’s Parking was renewed, so that lot will continue to be plowed (paid for by State Trails).
State Trails could apply for a permit to put signage in for parking directions at Greenrock. Try to maximize what we’ve got (busy weekends are a mess, largely due to high traffic volume, partly due to poor parking choices).
There’s a lot of grant money available for Recreation. Land Managers haven’t done much with this so it’s being made available for groups like ours. Maybe a permanent safety shelter @ Quealy?
State Trails is going to do electronic sticker sales for OSV registration (next year?). This will be significantly faster to get the data in the State’s hands about how many stickers were sold, where they’re coming from, etc. etc. It will also be possible to buy online (like Colorado), but still go inside retailers to do it.
Snowmobiling Survey results are in, there’s hundreds of millions of dollars generated. State Trails recently did this. Big Horns & Snowies flip flop year to year on which attracts the most money. There’s an OHV survey as well.
Treasurer Update:
$8858.39 as of October 31st, 2022 in our checking account, $394.77 in Paypal from recent memberships & donations (transfer to checking in progress) for a total of $9253.16.
Next Meeting Items:
Next Meeting is December 15th, 2022 at 6:00 PM at the 3C Guiding shop in Laramie, WY and on Zoom (use this link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84967175275)
Current officers. When are elections? Should we pursue a 501.C(3) non-profit status? Need an FEIN for filing taxes (now that PayPal reports our transactions (membership dues) above $600 to IRS). Need officer info to re-register with Secretary of State (WY).