Williams Lake Cross Country Ski Club received delivery of their new snow groomer Dec.5.
The PistenBully groomer will be a welcome addition to the snow maintenance tools the club has to help maintain the Bull Mountain Cross Country Ski Trails.
While the club had been able to use a donated groomer from the 100 Mile Nordics which thanks to the donated time of Dave Skarra who volunteered his skills as a heavy duty mechanic to keep the older machine operating, the club is optimistic the new machine will save them both time and money. The donated machine had required significant maintenance as well as parts in order to keep it operating.
The new machine purchase was made possible thanks to a Ministry of Tourism, Arts, Culture and Sports grant from the province for over $350,000.
The machine will also be lighter on the land, as it is equipped with the lowest-level emissions diesel engine made and this is the first year this machine with this engine has been available.
Robin Dawes, ski club chair who spearheaded the grant application called the machine a “ground-breaking technology, trail-breaking thing of beauty.”
The machine will also help reduce pressure on volunteers, as grooming the extensive network at Bull Mountain could take three operators on three snowmobiles as many as five days to complete, while the larger groomers can do the same work in five hours.
Now all the club needs is some snow to get the season underway.
Meanwhile racers have been travelling to other areas to get some time on snow, with local athletes Nadia Wallin and Anika Wallen competing in the Western Canada Cup at Sovereign Lakes near Vernon, B.C. The races were well-attended as skiers from across Canada and into the United States were seeking out snow. Anika placed third in the 5.6 km free technique for U18 girls and Nadia placed eighth in the 5.6 km free technique event for U16 girls on Dec. 2. Anika placed fifth in the Classic sprint race event for U18 girls on Dec. 3.
READ MORE: Williams Lake Cross Country ramping up to host regional trials
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