‍Meeting called to order

by Sam Behrends, president, at 7:05 p.m. using Zoom App for online meeting. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the meeting was held online to maintain social distancing.

Attendance

Officers: Sam Behrends, Tom Paulsen, John Waldron

Members: Jenna Behrends, Bjorn Hanson, Lori Larsen, Jan Paulsen

Non-members:

Minutes

Motion by John Waldron, second by Tom Paulsen, to dispense with reading of the prior minutes of May 2019 and to accept the May 2019 minutes without changes. Unanimously carried.

Treasurer's Report

The fiscal year runs September 1 to August 31 inclusive. An interim budget report was presented by Tom Paulsen. Revenue ($33101.79) exceeded expenses ($22765.80) by $10335.99. Overall expenses were above budget due to equipment repair (new Camoplast tracks on the Gator); revenue was significantly above budget thanks to steady support from business/individual donations, a record number of memberships, very good banquet fundraising, very good trailhead receipts, and sale of the old Camoplast tracks. Our bottom line shows a positive balance on April 1 (available cash) of $47925.05. Budget for 2020-21 presented. Discussion was held, including suggestion that Tom check interest rate options at local banks. Motion was made by Bjorn Hanson to approve the Treasurer's report as presented, and seconded by Jan Paulsen. Unanimously carried.

Objectives 

1. Election of officers
2. Old Business
3. Membership Fees
4. New Business
5. Designate committee members for the upcoming year

Election of Officers

Sam Behrends has completed 1 year as president, and is willing to serve as president this next year. Tom Paulsen agreed to serve another one-year term as secretary/treasurer. John Waldron nominated Sam Behrends for president and Tom Paulsen for secretary/treasurer, seconded by Bjorn Hanson, and passed unanimously. Thanks to Steve Schleppegrell for serving as VP this past year. Steve can not serve again because he recently moved to northern Minnesota. Sam asked for nominations for vice president – noting that John Waldron is willing to serve as VP. Jenna Behrends nominated John Waldron for vice president, seconded by Tom Paulsen, and passed unanimously.

Old Business:

Fall banquet: this was a fun evening – held early November at Lehman's Supper Club in Rice Lake. Attendance was good (72), the food was delicious, attendees enjoyed Ernie St Germaine’s presentation of his many years skiing all the Birkie races. Thanks to Jan Paulsen for decorating the banquet site, and Gale Otterholt serving as emcee. The banquet was financially successful (raising $3519 from sales of silent auction items) – a result of the donation of more big dollar items, good attendance, and eager bidding.

‍

Fundraising: fundraising was again very successful this past year. Donations from businesses ($6500) and individuals ($7082) were either at or above budget. Trailhead donations ($3482) were well above budget – a reflection of the early start to the winter, good grooming, and favorable weather conditions during most weekends. Memberships ($7132) increased by 17 to a record number of 108 households. Sales of raffle tickets ($965) were steady. The revenue from silent auction items at the fundraising banquet ($3519) was again very good – about $1000 above many previous banquets. Interest income from our on-line savings increased significantly to $769. It should be noted that in December 2018 we moved our savings account to a different online bank (First Internet Bank of Indiana) to take advantage of a much better interest rate.

Winter Fun Day: a January potluck / evening moonlight ski & snowshoe event was lightly attended.

Equipment:

• 2014 Gator – due to failing rubber on the tracks, we purchased new 2020 Camso tracks (Camoplast company is now called Camso). The cost was $4795 + installation. We sold the old tracks for $1500. The new tracks have several design improvements. Preventive maintenance in September was expensive ($1593) but part of that included installation of the new tracks. Annual preventive maintenance occurs each fall after summer mowing operations are done. The Gator is in good shape.
• 2017 Bearcat snowmobile – thorough annual preventive maintenance at Day’s Power Sports in Bloomer in March 2020 = $453. This included repair of the Bearcat’s fuel gauge which was stuck and always reading full. The gas gauge float was removed, straightened, and hopefully now the fuel gauge will read more accurately. The Bearcat is in good shape.
• Throughout the year, a lot of the equipment repair & preventive maintenance was done on site using volunteer labor – big savings. During the grooming season, monthly periodic service of the Gator was handled on site in our heated storage shed by volunteers and/or Ron Beebe. This includes the VERY IMPORTANT monitoring of the tightness of the hub bearing bolts performed at 50 hour intervals – frequently one or more of the bolts have loosened and then are removed and replaced. One of the bolts snapped off during removal in February with Tom using his high power impact wrench – this led to a costly $400+ repair and we decided to no longer reuse the old hub bearing bolts once they’ve been removed.
• Ron Beebe’s mechanical expertise has been very helpful.
• Sam Behrends uses our small G2 (G2-4) and tracksetter for grooming a trail for the Bruce High School team. Various parts were replaced 2017. If we run into a situation where we need a backup, Sam will return the G2-4 to our trailhead.
• Bob Wieckowicz welded (fabricated) a brace in April 2019 to support the Gator rear hitch extension. This was necessary because the hitch was sagging due to metal fatigue adjacent to the hitch receiver. The modified hitch was a great idea! It rides higher, is more stable, and should be a mandatory modification for any Gator towing a heavy load.
• Last summer, to help extend the life of the bogie wheels, we purchased a portable pressure washer (low pressure) and cleaned the tracks after each summer mowing operation. This added extra time to each mowing operation, but obviously was helpful in keeping the tracks and brakes cleaner. We are using a 50-gallon drum (blue plastic) to store water outside the storage shed. Members of the mowing crew bring 10+ gallons of water for each mowing operation – the extra water is added to the tank. Bleach is added to the tank to suppress algae etc. Batteries for the pressure washer are either recharged in the shed, or by Tom taking them home.

Trail maintenance:

• For the second year in a row, we were fortunate that heavy rain and wind events mostly missed the trail system last summer.
• As you may recall, in 2017 Tom P and Jerry S scouted (flagged) new Eastside trails to provide a new Far East loop. In 2018, Tom walked those routes with Jeremy Koslowski (Forestry Department) and Gary Sarauer (DNR dozer operator) to finalize the anticipated routes and mark trees for removal. C6-C7 was dozed and seeded summer 2019 (see next dot point). The segment from 18-C4 is within a timber sale that awaits cutting – it will be dozed after the logging is done. Once that same timber sale is completed, the eroded segment of C3-C2 will need to be repaired.
• DNR dozer operator Gary Sarauer did a nice job creating the new ‘Far East’ trail that runs from C6-C7. This was seeded by Jan and Tom Paulsen. This new trail provided great skiing conditions this past winter. Because of worsening erosion south of C3, we never groomed C3-C2 this past winter. The Eastside trail that runs from C3-C4-C5-C6-C7-C1 (the Far East Trail) received frequent skier traffic.
• Erosion blankets were placed in two locations on the East Side: just north of #4, and between #6-#7. Thanks to Jerry Schneider and Tom Paulsen. We’ve never tried this before. It’ll be interesting to assess the results this summer.
• On the East Side, major damage (deep ruts) was created by an unknown truck that drove on about 2 miles of the trails in late June. Some of the damage was repaired by driving the tracks of the Gator back and forth over the high spots. We think the perpetrator drove in through a locked gate – requiring a key to access the trails.
• County Forestry Dept mowed the Westside and limited parts of the Eastside where trails were dry enough to withstand the weight of their tractor mower; softer Eastside trails were mowed using the Gator and our trail mower. The Gator with Camoplast tracks easily floated over soft/damp/muddy areas without leaving much of an imprint. The mowing crew of BHTA volunteer members saves about $1000 in contracted labor costs.
• The Work day in early October was fairly well attended and focused on brushing the trail margins.
• Beaver problems exploded on the West Side trails during summer 2019. This was discovered in mid-late summer, and required ongoing efforts to control the beavers the rest of the fall. Some of the beaver activity was controlled through services contracted by the Forestry Department, DNR dozing that we hired, plus a large amount of the beaver activity was controlled by one of our volunteers. We expect the beaver problems on the West Side trails to remain an ongoing challenge.
• To reduce the likelihood of illicit truck traffic on the East Side trails at intersections #1 and #2, in November we placed metal gates at #1 and #2. The County Forestry department provided the gates and our volunteers did the installation. Great results!
• In October 2017 Tom P and Steve P created a PVC ford on the small creek on the Westside southeast of Letter F. Six 4" diameter heavy walled PVC pipes (10' in length) were cabled together to create a corduroy crossing that would permit water to flow through the pipes and snow to accumulate on top. The cost was about $100. It was washed 15 feet downstream summer 2018, and in the late fall 2018 Tom P & Steve P moved it back into place and secured it with cables. The PVC crossing seemed to again work well this past winter – it’ll be interesting to evaluate that PVC corduroy crossing this summer after snow melt and summer rains.

Grooming:

• Winter started early. 10+ inches of heavy snow November 27, 7+ inches of heavy snow November 30, 4+ inches of dense snow December 9, 2.5 inches of light snow December 12. Groomers had their hands full throughout December. This made for very good skiing over the Christmas and New Year Holidays. January added 14" of snow in generally light snowfalls. February was dry, only 5" of snow. We had only one major rain event (1.5" of rain December 28), and the rain was absorbed into the abundant base. Trails were in great shape at Birkie time. Then warm weather moved in a week later. The last grooming was March 13, but we were able to enjoy decent skiing into the beginning of April.  All thanks to the big snows in late November.
• We groomed a total of 57 times this past winter. Once in November, 18 times in December, 19 times in January, 16 times in February, and 3 times in March.
• Ron Beebe took over the position of head groomer, and received assistance mostly from Ryan Vreeland and Clarence Glotfelty. Ron was very willing to use our rollers, both of our rollers were used more this past winter than at any time in the past. As a result, this past winter the trails were groomed wider, and the edges were more firm. Ron was very willing to try different techniques, and performed far more evening grooming than at any time in the past - this allowed the grooming to set up by the time skiers arrived in the morning. The classic track was in generally good shape most of the winter - Ron responding to input from some of our most enthusiastic classic skiers. Thank you Ron!
• The ABR compaction drag (the 'Blue Thing') also was used more frequently this past winter. It was especially helpful removing high spots in the center of the trail, and when the trails needed a quick light touch-up of the skate lane.
• Logging along Rut Road kept us from grooming that part of the East Side Core Loop the entire winter. Toward the end of that logging operation, it also disrupted our access to the West Side using the usual East-West crossover trail. However, one of the real pluses this past winter was the newly permitted  use of Excelsior Road on the West Side for grooming and skiing. In the middle of December, after the gun deer hunts were done, a berm was plowed to block off traffic at the east end of Excelsior Road. We then groomed the entire 3 km length of Excelsior Road, and skiers were uniformly thrilled with the results.

Signage: the East Side map was totally reworked in late 2018. Our maps are now georeferenced, and available for free download on your smartphone using the Avenza Maps App.

Snowshoe trail: maintained and expanded by Dan Bjugstad and John Kann. Visitors clearly enjoy these snowshoe trails, the number of users seems to continue to increase. Many thanks to Dan and John!

Storage: on site storage works well.

Warming house:

• Northwest HVAC modified the warming house furnace pilot light in April 2018 to minimize the offensive gas odor. Tom now cleans the pilot 1-2 times per year – using compressed air and a brush. This seems to keep the interior gas odor to a minimum.
• Eric Ringstad evaluated the warming house interior/exterior for necessary repairs last summer. With his recommendations, during the fall work day we repaired a couple exterior boards, stuffed sheep’s wool in multiple interior and exterior gaps, caulked several gaps on the exterior, and applied Flex-Coat foundation insulation coating to shield the pink foam insulation at the base (protecting it from UV damage).
• We hired Dave Roth to paint the doors red (they were green), and he repainted the donation pole bright yellow.
• Because the seals were failing, all of the windows were replaced in January. Thanks to Jeld-Wen (Hawkins) for donating the replacement labor and cost of the windows. Looks great!
• Since we don't need to insulate the warming house as tightly as a private residence, Lee Westlund (the warming house builder) has recommended we not bother caulking the entire exterior of the warming house. Instead he recommends the use of sheep's wool (available on the internet from log house building suppliers) to plug any obvious gaps. The sheep's wool has good insulating properties, it wicks moisture, and it isn't itchy like its fiberglass alternative. We have a supply of sheep's wool (wool ropes to repair any insulation gaps) in a bin in the storage shed.
• Tom keeps the mice under control using traps and/or bait.

Website:

• Those in attendance agreed our website remains a highly useful portal in providing info for members and visitors; also we occasionally distribute messages using Facebook and Twitter. We appreciate our members providing trail condition updates to skinnyski.com
• We pay a yearly fee ($190) for use of the Adobe Muse website design software (previously this was donated by Kristine Paulsen); we also pay an annual fee ($50) for website hosting (we use Bluehost.com); and we pay an annual fee ($60) for website scanning & repair (security company called SiteLock). Ongoing thanks! to Kristine Paulsen for her savvy & artistic involvement with the website and it’s various complexities.

Ski clinic: there was a ski clinic this past December, lightly attended, highly appreciated by attendees.

Membership Dues:

Current annual dues are $50 for individuals, $75 for families. Dues were increased by $5/$10 in October 2018, and the number of memberships has remained stable at ~ 90-95 member households each year – and this past year topped 100 for the first time, reaching 108 memberships for the year. Tom P (treasurer) recommends the same annual dues for 2020-2021. Brief discussion. Bjorn Hanson moved to keep the dues the same, second by Lori Larsen, passed unanimously.

Our current daily trailhead fee was increased one year ago from $5 to $10 (encouraging users to donate based on their level of enjoyment – suggesting a $5 daily donation per person as a minimum). Since we are a non-profit operating on County land, we cannot require a specific trailhead fee. And our longstanding philosophy encourages many diverse individuals to access the trail system and help fulfill our mission as a non-profit organization. Jan Paulsen moved to keep the daily fees the same, second by John Waldron, passed unanimously.

New Business:

Fall Banquet:

• IF the COVID-19 pandemic is under control, and IF we feel safe gathering as a large group, we may again have a banquet this fall. This is a big IF. We have reserved Saturday, November 7, 2020 at Lehman's Supper Club in Rice Lake for this year’s banquet. For an on site gathering, we would again offer many silent auction items, and one or two major raffles. Discussed options including - wait until mid early-mid August to make a final decision; survey our membership to check their level and interest in gathering as a large group; check with Lehman's Supper Club regarding the last possible date to cancel; perhaps replace a group gathering with some type of online market to sell donated items (to be picked up at the warming house on a set date).
• Jenna Behrends volunteered to chair the banquet committee and serve as emcee.
• For this year's banquet, Tom has a tentative commitment from Jared Munch to be our guest speaker. He's a stand-up paddle-board (SUP) professional that would share his summer 2019 adventure traveling from Duluth to Hudson Bay on a SUP. We discussed Jared's requested speaker's fee, and felt it is reasonable. Tom will communicate with Jared to get a firm commitment.

‍

Fundraising:

• Bjorn Hanson (Rice Lake) would like to see the kids’ Nordic Rocks ski instruction program further developed in Bruce. Using loaned equipment from Ladysmith, a one week trial the winter of 2018-19 was well accepted in the PE classes for the elementary grade students. The next step would be the purchase of 30 pairs of skis & poles at a cost of $1995. At our May 2019 annual meeting, we approved the donation of $1000 from BHTA if the Bruce community and Rusk County were able to match this amount. We discussed the Nordic Rocks program, we all agree it's a good idea for the Bruce School. Sam Behrends will continue to champion the Nordic Rocks Program in Bruce, and look for partner funding and grant opportunities.
• Tom Paulsen will again spearhead the fall fundraising; Mike Cragg will provide some assistance representing the Rice Lake area. As in the past, fundraising appeals will focus on supportive individuals and businesses, and BHTA members.
• Tom Paulsen requested help stuffing envelopes for the August annual mailing. Lori Larsen and Jan Paulsen volunteered.

Winter Fun Day: Officers will try to coordinate 1-2 potluck ski events as a good way to socialize while attracting members/visitors - perhaps during a full moon if the weather cooperates. To enhance attendance, we’ll use a Saturday as the most likely day for the event. Members seem to prefer a potluck approach.

Equipment:

• Sam is in the process of repairing our trail mower. The goal is to replace the exhaust gaskets; and to diagnose and repair the backfiring issue that developed summer 2019. And to perform the annual preventive maintenance on the mower before summer.
• To protect the bearings in the bogie wheels of the Gator's Camoplast tracks, we plan on injecting gear oil through the rubber hubcaps – once prior to the summer mowing season, again in mid summer, and again prior to the winter grooming season.
• A Tractor Central technician thinks the life expectancy of our Gator might be about 2000 hours before we should consider selling. It currently has about 1435 hours on it – an average of 240 hours per year (300 hours this past year). We will continue providing periodic maintenance per the manual (lubrication of drive line and Camoplast tracks at 50 hour intervals, oil changes at 100 hour intervals, check torque settings on Camoplast hub bolts at 50 hour intervals) and thorough annual maintenance to include replacement of the Camoplast hub bearings each year. Our new 2020 Camoplast tracks are better designed, and more durable. However, with the heavy year round burden we place on the tracks, they should probably be replaced at 5-year intervals. Therefore… we should consider replacing the Gator in 2022-23 when it will have 2000+ hours on the odometer, the tracks should still be in good shape, and resale value will still be high. We decided that in one year, it'll be time to do our homework regarding replacement options -- including whether to purchase another UTV, and possibly switching from Camoplast tracks to a more expensive, more reliable option.
• Half way through the winter, the Yellowstone roller developed a clicking sound that presumably was due to ice accumulation inside the drum. This didn’t interfere with grooming – but we need to check this out when we bring the equipment out of storage – and be prepared to either repair or replace the Yellowstone roller.

Trail maintenance:

• The first bridge (small) between 1-26 has settled and should be replaced with a new bridge with longer stringers - set further back from the edge of the small creek. We'll try to put a crew together to replace this bridge this summer/fall.
• The sagging bridge east of #25 needs evaluation of its support. Summer 2018 we removed part of the decking so large riprap could be added to fortify the west side of the creek. Sam B has expressed interest in jacking up and supporting the BIG stringers. We'll further evaluate this bridge when mowing this summer - and our officers will consider options.
• The area below the Westside beaver dam north of Letter F remains a grooming/skiing challenge. Options include a major reroute north around the lake impounded by the dam (this area was scouted by Tom P and Jerry S the summer of 2017) vs building a 72-foot long ‘floating’ boardwalk below the beaver dam in the wet area where the Jump River Electric Cooperative (JREC) power line is running. JREC has agreed to flag the power line at that site if we make the request. The Forestry Department is willing to offer advice on locating/building a boardwalk. Tom’s estimate for the cost of a 12' wide boardwalk is $2000. However, recurrent beaver activity may flood the spot where a boardwalk would be located.
• Long discussion followed regarding beaver control and future modification/revision of the West Side trails. Some possibilities include: no further attempts at repairing areas flooded by beaver activity including the East-West crossover trail; instead of grooming the entire West Side, set aside the beaver flooded areas for a more wilderness experience for snowshoers and skiers; installation of pipe and cage leveler systems across beaver dams to allow our trails to coexist with the beavers; further developing the use of Excelsior Road for winter skiing. Tom P will discuss these options (and more) during an upcoming meeting with the head of the Forestry Department.
• Mowing plans – no change. Rusk County usually mows the Westside in July, and portions of the Eastside that can withstand the weight of their skidsteer. For the damp (soft) areas on the Eastside, we plan on again using volunteer labor operating the Gator pulling our trail mower. Tom will need a crew of about 6 volunteers to help with the mowing. Sam Behrends and Bjorn Hanson offered to help. Tom will send out an appeal soon to identify the rest of the mowing crew.
• One board needs replacement on the north side of the bridge at A4. The mowing crew should make note of this.
• The persistently wet area just inside the gate at the warming house remains a problem. Hopefully this will be fixed as part of the Red Pine timber sale that is planned for summer logging.
• We need to select a fall work day – our officers will do that later this summer.
• The timber sale labeled ‘25-18’ will probably involve some winter logging. At that time, the ‘Core Loop’ of the ski trail will be closed between intersections #1 and #2. This past winter, we discovered a very workable bypass that starts at the overflow parking lot by the East Side trailhead. The last 75-foot section (just south of #2) has lots of small saplings that will need to be brushed out. We have permission from the Forestry Department to do this. Tom will ask Jerry Schneider to look at this spot to determine if he could clear it out using his brush cutter.
• The same area discussed in the previous paragraph may be very amenable to trail development for use as a beginner loop for skiers. Apparently, it runs parallel to the 'Gravel Road' for perhaps one mile to the east. Jan P and Tom P will explore it further later this summer/fall.
• To provide winter shade for certain portions of the trail system, tree planting has been suggested by a couple of our members. John (Rusk County Land Conservation Dept) suggests the use of spruce (more deer resistant) or red pine. The County Land Conservation Dept sends us an email in January with details regarding available trees – they are available in the early spring as 12"-18"-24" trees; perhaps the Forestry Dept would pick up the cost? After planting, they would need timely watering the first year; as well as grass control twice monthly. To date, only one of our members (Tyler G) has shown interest in this tree project. Those in attendance felt that tree planting is too much work for the anticipated payoff.
• The bridge between #25/#26 is located in a curve of the creek, and will always be susceptible to high water events. While exploring a new snowshoe trail with Dan and John, Tom discovered a very desirable new route from #26 to the top of the hill north of #25 that would allow a better creek crossing. Tom has looked at this with forester Jeremy Koslowski – and Tom needs to remind Jeremy to investigate this further – including potential DNR permits etc.
• The East Side timber sale that was logged south and southwest of Rut Road this past winter greatly altered the contour(s) of the involved trails. The logger is supposed to repair those trails this summer. We need to make sure this happens to our satisfaction. Our mowing crew can try to monitor this; and any of our members hiking in this area should report the status of these trails.
• Four timber sales are active on the East Side, one on the West Side. Maps outlining these timber sales were shown to attendees; discussion followed.

Grooming:

• Ron Beebe remains interested in handling most of the wintertime grooming. We need to find 1-2 individuals to serve as his main helper(s). If any of our members know of someone interested in grooming our trails, please contact one of our officers.
• Our goal remains quality grooming of the entire trail system with major emphasis on the Eastside core loop, and with the Westside as next in priority – this reflects feedback as part of a survey in April 2018.
• The April 2018 survey showed that favorite trails are the Eastside Core Loop, the Westside, the Eastside trails on the far east (Otter Slide, & Far East), Roundabout, and Roller Coaster.
• We will consider a fall meeting between officers and groomers if it seems necessary.

Signage:

• Kirk P plans on revising the West Side map – so it will have an appearance that resembles the new East Side maps. Once that’s done, Tom will arrange for printing of new intersection maps on the West Side – and will need volunteers to put up these new maps.
• Annual replacement of missing or faded trail intersection maps needs to be done late fall or early winter. Each fall, Tom Paulsen contacts the Rusk County Extension Office to arrange printing of current maps. If help is needed, Tom will seek volunteers for map replacement this fall.

Snowshoe trail:

• Snowshoe trail: John Kann and Dan Bjugstad will continue to maintain and/or revise the snowshoe trail. John & Dan have already started adding a fourth snowshoe trail that will run from #26 up into Hemlock Canyon (the area north of intersection A4).
• John K and Dan B are open to the idea of shared use of the snowshoe trails as fat bike trails – but will need plenty of help from fat bike enthusiasts to make this happen. The Forestry Department supports this concept.

Storage:

• The blue shipping container needs some work. During the winter, snow and ice accumulates in front of the doors which makes it difficult to open the doors. We need to raise the container 4 to 6 inches by jacking it up and placing barn cookies under the sides. Then we may need to make a ramp for the entrance. Sam B and Tom P will work on this later this summer when the ground dries out. They'll ask for volunteers if needed.
• The blue shipping container needs rust removal and painting. Tom will get a bid from Dave Roth (professional painter).
• The blue shipping container needs replacement of the first 8 feet of wood flooring. Tom will get a bid from Eric Ringstad (builder).

Warming house:

• There is a large outdated sign in the parking lot that is unnecessary, and falling apart. Tom will ask Jeremy Koslowski if the forestry department could remove the sign. We could salvage the lumber for use with bridge repairs.
• Jan P is in charge of cleaning the women’s pit toilet. This requires occasional sweeping of the floor and 'dusting' of the shelves; and adding some lye to the toilets. Sam B volunteered to take charge of cleaning the men’s toilet. He also volunteered to repair the torn screens in the windows of the pit toilets.
• We switched to Sheldon Coop (Heartland Coop) as the propane provider June 2010, they are delivering a good service. We fill the tank during the summer (July) when rates are the lowest. The 'new' propane tank near the storage shed will need to be filled once every few years when the ground is frozen or very dry; that tank most recently was filled summer 2018.

Annual Fall Work Day: to be selected later this summer.

Website: Tom will continue to manage the website. There are plans to switch to a different software for the website later this year. Watch for the revised website!

Ski Clinic: those in attendance appreciate the occasional ski clinics conducted by Steve and Jyneen Thatcher. Hopefully they can continue offering these teaching sessions.

Insurance: no changes anticipated, no discussion of this item.

• Other: (items discussed as 'Other' at the May 2019 meeting, but mostly overlooked)
• John Kann suggested we distribute brochures to area silent sports organizations, ski shops, etc. Tom P will work up a design, and seek funding and printing from Rusk County Tourism; and will contact our membership for additional ideas regarding distribution of the brochures.
• Sam B suggested we need a better presence on the skinnyski.com trail reports. This coming winter, Tom P will remind our members to submit occasional reports – and will post a sign in the warming house encouraging visitors to submit trail reports.
• John Kann wondered about any possible plans for assisting an individual skier that is injured and unable to return to the trailhead. Officers will explore the possibility of placing small rescue kits at critical locations (perhaps at each of the kilometer markers on the core loop, etc.)

Committee Designations

To be carried over with additions as highlighted in bold

• Banquet Committee: Jenna Behrends (chair)

• Fun Day / Full Moon Ski Committee: open

• Equipment Committee: Sam Behrends (chair), Bob Wieckowicz

• Fundraising: Jan Paulsen, Tom Paulsen, Mike Cragg

• Grooming and Trail Maintenance Committee: Jerry Schneider, Steve P (chair)

• Ski Clinic Committee: open

• Snowshoe Trail: Dan Bjugstad, John Kann (chair)

• Website: Tom Paulsen (chair)

Meeting Adjourned

Motion to adjourn by Bjorn Hanson, second by John Waldron. Adjourned 8:50 p.m.

Minutes

Taken by Tom Paulsen, Secretary

A Listing of Active Committees

• Banquet Committee
• Fun Day / Full Moon Ski Committee
• Equipment Committee
• Fundraising Committee
• Grooming and Trail Maintenance Committee
• Ski Clinic
• Snowshoe Trail
• Website Committee

‍