THE NTN GROOMING REPORT February 28 2010 www.noquetrails.org

 *Noquemanon: Below is the grooming detail in order of priority. As always, comments on how we report information is appreciated. 

 Grooming Friday and Saturday Morning noted below were done with the Bombi.  As such, the significant snow received this past week is firm.  There is about an inch of new snow over night and some drifting in the few open areas along the trail.  Grooming scheduled for this evening. Skiing is excellent. 

 *Blueberry Ridge: Groomed and tracked 100% Thursday night with the Bombie. We will groom Sunday morning or evening depending on when it stops snowing. Grooming scheduled Grooming done at Blueberry Ridge is under contract with the DNR and the schedule is controlled accordingly. 

 *Saux Head: Groomed Friday morning.  Saux Head is groomed weekly unless there is a large snow fall event.   

 *Fit Strip: Not groomed, Grooming has been limited at the Fit Strip due to a shortage of grooming equipment.  Thank you for your patience.

 *Big Bay Pathway: Thank you to Terry Renolds & Larry Truel, from Valley Spur for coming up to Big Bay and prepping the trail for the Honey Bear Classic Ski Race, Saturday, February 27, 2010.  Big Bay, MI, 25 miles north of Marquette.  Trails are still in excellent shape Sunday.    Thank you to all for making the Honey Bear Classic a great event. 

 *Al Quaal:  Groomed and tracks set on most Mondays.

 *Valley Spur: The trails are groomed most everyday or as conditions warrant.  For more information visit the Valley Spur Website at www.valleyspur.org or call 906.387.4918.

 We encourage you to sign up for the trail report and news email, in the upper right hand corner, where it says  Subscribe Today – RSS // Email.  Click on the email tab. With the new website, if you were previously on the subscribe list, you need to re-subscribe.  We apologize for the inconvenience.

 Trail reports are also available by calling 906.221.0222.

 SAVE THE DATES

Noquemanon Trail Network and Superiorland Ski Club

April 23, 2010, SSC Club Awards, Marquette, MI

April, 24, 2010, Bike and Kayak Swap, Marquette, MI

May 15, 2010, Big Bay Relay, Marquette to Big Bay, MI

June 5, 2010, Twin Peaks Trail Run, Marquette, MI                          

July 25, 2010, 12 Hours of Potluck, Marquette, MI

August 14, 2010, Ore to Shore, Ishpeming, Negaunee to Marquette, MI

September 25, 2010, Lake Superior Shore Run, Marquette, MI

THE NTN GROOMING REPORT February 27 2010 www.noquetrails.org

 Good Luck to all skiing the Birkie, for those staying in town what about the Honey Bear classic, nice scenic family ski, great destination for the weekend. 

 *Noquemanon: Below is the grooming detail in order of priority. As always, comments on how we report information is appreciated. 

 Grooming yesterday and this morning noted below were done with the Bombi.  As such, the significant snow received this past week is firm.  As of this morning is was still blowing so skiers will experience some drifting in the few open areas along the trail.  Skiing is excellent. 

 *Blueberry Ridge: Groomed and tracked 100% Thursday night with the Bombie. Grooming done at Blueberry Ridge is under contract with the DNR and the schedule is controlled accordingly. 

 *Saux Head: Groomed Friday morning.  Saux Head is groomed weekly unless there is a large snow fall event.   

 *Fit Strip: Not groomed, Grooming has been limited at the Fit Strip due to a shortage of grooming equipment.  Thank you for your patience.

 *Big Bay Pathway: Thank you to Terry Renolds & Larry Truel, from Valley Spur for coming up to Big Bay and prepping the trail for the Honey Bear Classic Ski Race, today!! Saturday, February 27, 2010.  Big Bay, MI, 25 miles north of Marquette.  15K and 30K Races over beautifully “groomed wilderness” Registration: 10:00 am – 11:30 am at the Thunder Bay Inn. Race starts at NOON    Awards, refreshments and bluegrass at 2:00 pm. Entry fee: $25, meal tickets $5, For more information, call NTN at 235-6861

 *Al Quaal:  Groomed and tracks set on most Mondays.

 *Valley Spur: The trails are groomed most everyday or as conditions warrant.  For more information visit the Valley Spur Website at www.valleyspur.org or call 906.387.4918.

 We encourage you to sign up for the trail report and news email, in the upper right hand corner, where it says  Subscribe Today – RSS // Email.  Click on the email tab. With the new website, if you were previously on the subscribe list, you need to re-subscribe.  We apologize for the inconvenience.

 Trail reports are also available by calling 906.221.0222.

 SAVE THE DATES

Noquemanon Trail Network and Superiorland Ski Club

February 27, 2010, Honey Bear Classic, Big Bay, MI

April 23, 2010, SSC Club Awards, Marquette, MI

April, 24, 2010, Bike and Kayak Swap, Marquette, MI

May 15, 2010, Big Bay Relay, Marquette to Big Bay, MI

June 5, 2010, Twin Peaks Trail Run, Marquette, MI                          

July 25, 2010, 12 Hours of Potluck, Marquette, MI

August 14, 2010, Ore to Shore, Ishpeming, Negaunee to Marquette, MI

September 25, 2010, Lake Superior Shore Run, Marquette, MI

THE NTN GROOMING REPORT February 26 2010 www.noquetrails.org

 Good Luck to all heading to the Birkie, for those staying in town what about the Honey Bear classic, nice scenic family ski, great destination for the weekend. 

 *Noquemanon: Below is a new system that we will be trying out for our Forestville trail reports. It shows in order of priority what we will groom and track. 

 Did you know that over the last two weeks that staff and volunteers have spent a total of 136 hours grooming the Forestville trails! Thank you to everyone!

 *Blueberry Ridge: Groomed and tracked 100% last night with the Bombie. The trail is in excellent condition.

 *Saux Head: Rolled yesterday, set to be groomed and tracked today.

 *Fit Strip: Not groomed, Grooming has been minimal at the Fit Strip due to Equipment breakdown.  Thank you for your patience.

 *Big Bay Pathway: Thank you to Terry Renolds & Larry Truel, from Valley Spur for coming up to Big Bay and prepping the trail for the Honey Bear Classic Ski Race, TOMORROW!! Saturday, February 27, 2010.  Big Bay, MI, 25 miles north of Marquette.  15K and 30K Races over beautifully “groomed wilderness” Registration: 10:00 am – 11:30 am at the Thunder Bay Inn. Race starts at NOON    Awards, refreshments and bluegrass at 2:00 pm. Entry fee: $25, meal tickets $5, For more information, call NTN at 235-6861

 *Al Quaal:  Groomed and tracks set on most Mondays.

 *Valley Spur: Groomed and tracked yesterday.  Excellent condition! The trails are groomed most everyday or as conditions warrant.  For more information visit the Valley Spur Website at www.valleyspur.org or call 906.387.4918.

 We encourage you to sign up for the trail report and news email, in the upper right hand corner, where it says  Subscribe Today – RSS // Email.  Click on the email tab.

 Trail reports are also available by calling 906.221.0222.

 SAVE THE DATES

Noquemanon Trail Network and Superiorland Ski Club

February 27, 2010, Honey Bear Classic, Big Bay, MI

April 23, 2010, SSC Club Awards, Marquette, MI

April, 24, 2010, Bike and Kayak Swap, Marquette, MI

May 15, 2010, Big Bay Relay, Marquette to Big Bay, MI

June 5, 2010, Twin Peaks Trail Run, Marquette, MI                          

July 25, 2010, 12 Hours of Potluck, Marquette, MI

August 14, 2010, Ore to Shore, Ishpeming, Negaunee to Marquette, MI

September 25, 2010, Lake Superior Shore Run, Marquette, MI

THE NTN GROOMING REPORT February 25 2010 www.noquetrails.org

*Noquemanon: Below is a new system that we will be trying out for our Forestville trail reports. It shows in order of priority what we will groom and track.

Did you know that over the last two weeks that staff and volunteers have spent a total of 130 hours grooming the Forestville trails! Thank you to everyone!

First Priority:  Morning
Noque to 14k G&T
Animoosh  G&T
Wabaan  G&T
Mukwa  G&T
Boozhoo  G&T
Zigner  G&T
Papasay  G&T
Gookookoo  G&T
Migizi  G&T

Second Priority: Rolled this morning
Bagwagi G&T afternoon
Chiwagi G&T afternoon

*Blueberry Ridge: Groomed and tracked 100% last night with the Bombie. Lost poles have been sent to Sports Rack.

*Saux Head: Groomed and tracked Feb 18th.

*Fit Strip: Not Groomed-Grooming has been minimal at the Fit Strip due to Equipment breakdown.  Thank you for your patience.

*Big Bay Pathway: Thank you to Terry Renolds, from Valley Spur for coming up to Big Bay and prepping the trail for the Honey Bear Classic Ski Race, THIS WEEKEND! Saturday, February 27, 2010.  Big Bay, MI, 25 miles north of Marquette.  15K and 30K Races over beautifully “groomed wilderness” Registration: 10:00 am – 11:30 am at the Thunder Bay Inn. Race starts at NOON    Awards, refreshments and bluegrass at 2:00 pm. Entry fee: $25, meal tickets $5, For more information, call NTN at 235-6861

*Al Quaal:  Groomed and tracks set on most Mondays.

*Valley Spur: Groomed and tracked yesterday and next groom set for Thursday.  The trails are groomed most everyday or as conditions warrant.  For more information visit the Valley Spur Website at www.valleyspur.org or call 906.387.4918.

We encourage you to sign up for the trail report and news email, in the upper right hand corner, where it says  Subscribe Today – RSS // Email.  Click on the email tab.

Trail reports are also available by calling 906.221.0222.

THE NTN GROOMING REPORT February 24 2010 www.noquetrails.org

• *Noquemanon: Below is a new system that we will be trying out for our Forestville trail reports. It shows in order of priority what we will groom and track.  Today is a hard to day to gauge because the snow is still falling however, I thought it could be useful since it ranks what will be done 1^st, 2^nd, 3^rd, etc.

We will be rolling and grooming throughout the day, so be aware that groomers will be out and about.  We will hold off setting track on some trails until the snow subsides.

• *Blueberry Ridge: Skate lanes groomed, yesterday. Set to be groomed with the Bombie tonight.  Lost poles have been sent to Sports Rack.
• *Saux Head: Groomed and tracked Feb 18th.
• *Fit Strip: Set to be groomed this afternoon. Wednesday Night Relay last night is tonight. Grooming has been minimal at the Fit Strip due to Equipment breakdown.  Thank you for your patience.
• *Big Bay Pathway: Classic tracks set on Feb 22nd.

Honey Bear Classic Ski Race, Saturday, February 27, 2010
Big Bay, MI, 25 miles north of Marquette
15K and 30K Races over beautifully “groomed wilderness”
Registration: 10:00 am – 11:30 am at the Thunder Bay Inn
Race starts at NOON    Awards, refreshments and bluegrass at 2:00 pm
Entry fee: $25, meal tickets $5, For more information, call NTN at 235-6861

• *Al Quaal:  Groomed and tracks set on most Mondays.
• *Valley Spur: Groomed and tracks set this morning.  The trails are groomed most everyday or as conditions warrant.  For more information visit the Valley Spur Website at www.valleyspur.org or call 906.387.4918.

We encourage you to sign up for the trail report and news email, in the upper right hand corner, where it says  Subscribe Today – RSS // Email.  Click on the email tab.

Trail reports are also available by calling 906.221.0222.

THE NTN GROOMING REPORT February 23 2010

• *Noquemanon: All trails groomed as of Feb 21st will hold off on further grooming until storm starts tonight. Most likely will be continuously rolling as heavy snowfall is scheduled to come in tonight
• *Blueberry Ridge: Skate lanes groomed.  Classic tracks holding strong with nice layer of ice.

• *Saux Head: Groomed and tracked Feb 18th.
• *Fit Strip: Was not groomed over the weekend.
• *Big Bay Pathway: Classic tracks set on Feb 20^th.

THIS WEEKEND! Honey Bear Classic Ski Race, Saturday, February 27, 2010
Big Bay, MI, 25 miles north of Marquette
15K and 30K Races over beautifully “groomed wilderness”
Registration: 10:00 am – 11:30 am at the Thunder Bay Inn
Race starts at NOON    Awards, refreshments and bluegrass at 2:00 pm
Entry fee: $25, meal tickets $5, For more information, call NTN at 235-6861

• *Al Quaal:  Groomed and tracked on Feb 17^th.  Groomed and tracks set on most Mondays.
• *Valley Spur: Groomed and tracks set on Sunday. The trails are groomed most everyday or as conditions warrant.  For more information visit the Valley Spur Website at www.valleyspur.org or call 906.387.4918.

We encourage you to sign up for the trail report and news email, in the upper right hand corner, where it says  Subscribe Today – RSS // Email.  Click on the email tab.

We will continue to post to the old email list serv until we have all the bugs figured out with the new system. Thank you for your patience.

Have a great day. The NTN

Trail reports are also available by calling 906.221.0222.

THE NTN GROOMING REPORT February 22 2010

*Noquemanon:

• *Blueberry Ridge: Set to be groomed tonight.
• *Saux Head: Groomed and tracked Feb 18th.
• *Fit Strip: Was not groomed over the weekend.
• *Big Bay Pathway: Classic tracks set on Feb 20^th.

• *Al Quaal:  Groomed and tracked on Feb 17^th.  Groomed and tracks set on most Mondays.
• *Valley Spur: Groomed and tracks set on Sunday.

The trails are groomed most everyday or as conditions warrant.  For more information visit the Valley Spur Website at www.valleyspur.org or call 906.387.4918.

We encourage you to sign up for the trail report and news email, in the upper right hand corner, where it says  Subscribe Today – RSS // Email.  Click on the email tab.

We will continue to post to the old email list serv until we have all the bugs figured out with the new system. Thank you for your patience.

Have a great day. The NTN

Trail reports are also available by calling 906.221.0222.

THE NTN GROOMING REPORT February 21 2010 www.noquetrails.org

*Noquemanon:  Noque from Forestville to 510 set to be groomed and tracked today.  Groomed to the 14k yesterday.

• *Blueberry Ridge: Yesterday full groom and track great conditions.
• *Saux Head: Groomed and tracked Feb 18th.  Heard it was fast out there!
• *Fit Strip: Groomed and tracked over the weekend.
• *Big Bay Pathway: Classic tracks set on Feb 20^th.

• *Al Quaal:  Groomed and tracked on Feb 17^th.   Great conditions.
• *Valley Spur: The trails are groomed most everyday or as conditions warrant.  For more information visit the Valley Spur Website at www.valleyspur.org or call 906.387.4918.

We encourage you to sign up for the trail report and news email, in the upper right hand corner, where it says  Subscribe Today – RSS // Email.  Click on the email tab.

We will continue to post to the old email list serv until we have all the bugs figured out with the new system. Thank you for your patience.

Have a great day. The NTN

Trail reports are also available by calling 906.221.0222.

THE NTN GROOMING REPORT

February 19 2010

www.noquetrails.org

*Noquemanon: NTN trails are open and ski able to the public this weekend.  Below highlights more specifics on where HS races will be.  The Animoosh will be used as the main corridor up to Grand Central Station and beyond. Come on up for a ski and cheer on our home high school team as you ski through.

• Noque from Forestville to 510 groomed and tracked today.
• Noque from Forestville to Tourist Park groomed and tracked yesterday.
• Animoosh groomed and tracked.
• Stadium, Noque, Gookookoo, Migizi, Bagwaji, Chiwaji, and Boozhoo loops groomed and tracked for HS Championship races.
• All other trails groomed and tracked 16^th and set to be groomed tonight.

• *Blueberry Ridge: Set for a full groom and track tonight and Sunday night.  Classic tracks are great and skate lanes in good/fair condition.
• *Saux Head: Groomed and tracked Feb 18th.  Heard it was fast out there!
• *Fit Strip: Groomed and tracked over the weekend.
• *Big Bay Pathway: Set to be groomed today for the weekend.

• *Al Quaal:  Groomed and tracked on Feb 17^th.   Great conditions.
• *Valley Spur: The trails are groomed most everyday or as conditions warrant.  For more information visit the Valley Spur Website at www.valleyspur.org or call 906.387.4918.

Today and Saturday!

Michigan State High School Cross Country Skiing ChampionshipsThe Michigan State High School Cross Country Skiing Championships will be hosted by the SSC at the Forestville Trailhead on Friday February 19 and Saturday February 20.  The SSC encourages the ski community to come out and cheer on the racers for these events.  We have 90 registered high school racers from Marquette, Ironwood, Houghton, Traverse City, Petoskey and a guest team from Soo Canada this year, making it an international event as well as a State meet.  Volunteers are working hard along with NTN groomers to prepare good race course using the Noque, Boozhoo, Gookookoo, Migizi, Bagwaji and Chiwaji trail sections. The course maps and profiles will be posted on line on the SSC web site (www.superiorlandskiclub.com) and will also be on the bulletin board in the pole barn. We ask that skiers using the trails respect the race courses and events (schedules below).  During the events the race courses will be closed to other skiers.

The Animoosh trail will remain open to skiers and spectators during the races.  There is a short section (about 200 meters) under the power line at the Lake Superior overlook where the Animoosh and Noque trails converge.  There will be pin flags along this section – please stay outside of the flags while skiing through that section during the races.  Also, if you enjoy skiing with your dog on Animoosh, please consider leaving them home during the races, or instead use the Tourist Park trailhead for dog walking during the races.

Schedule of Events:Friday Feb 19.  Classic Sprints Course:  Stadium and Boozhoo Sprint Loop (1.1 km) Times:  2:00 – 2:45 Qualifiers 3:00 – 6:00 pm Elimination Rounds

Saturday Feb 20.  Freestyle/Classic Pursuit Courses:  5 km and 6 km (Stadium, Noque, Gookookoo, Migizi, Bagwaji, Chiwaji, and Boozhoo loop) Times:  10 am – 12 pm Freestyle individual Starts 3 pm – 5:30 pm Classic Pursuit

We encourage you to sign up for the trail report and news email, in the upper right hand corner, where it says  Subscribe Today – RSS // Email.  Click on the email tab.

We will continue to post to the old email list serv until we have all the bugs figured out with the new system. Thank you for your patience.

Have a great day. The NTN

Trail reports are also available by calling 906.221.0222.

THE NTN GROOMING REPORT February 18 2010 www.noquetrails.org

Michigan State High School Cross Country Skiing ChampionshipsThe Michigan State High School Cross Country Skiing Championships will be hosted by the SSC at the Forestville Trailhead on Friday February 19 and Saturday February 20.  The SSC encourages the ski community to come out and cheer on the racers for these events.  We have 90 registered high school racers from Marquette, Ironwood, Houghton, Traverse City, Petoskey and a guest team from Soo Canada this year, making it an international event as well as a State meet.  Volunteers are working hard along with NTN groomers to prepare good race course using the Noque, Boozhoo, Gookookoo, Migizi, Bagwaji and Chiwaji trail sections. The course maps and profiles will be posted on line on the SSC web site (www.superiorlandskiclub.com) and will also be on the bulletin board in the pole barn.We ask that skiers using the trails respect the race courses and events (schedules below).  During the events the race courses will be closed to other skiers.

The Animoosh trail will remain open to skiers and spectators during the races.  There is a short section (about 200 meters) under the power line at the Lake Superior overlook where the Animoosh and Noque trails converge.  There will be pin flags along this section – please stay outside of the flags while skiing through that section during the races.  Also, if you enjoy skiing with your dog on Animoosh, please consider leaving them home during the races, or instead use the Tourist Park trailhead for dog walking during the races.

Schedule of Events:Friday Feb 19.  Classic Sprints Course:  Stadium and Boozhoo Sprint Loop (1.1 km) Times:  2:00 – 2:45 Qualifiers 3:00 – 6:00 pm Elimination Rounds

Saturday Feb 20.  Freestyle/Classic Pursuit Courses:  5 km and 6 km (Stadium, Noque, Gookookoo, Migizi, Bagwaji, Chiwaji, and Boozhoo loop) Times:  10 am – 12 pm Freestyle individual Starts 3 pm – 5:30 pm Classic Pursuit

• *Blueberry Ridge:  Groomed last night and another groom set for today.

Dear Skiers, I am writing to update you about the conditions at Blueberry.  We received over 12″ of new snow in the past week. It takes a lot of hours working the snow to pack it in. Unfortunately, we are not contracted to continuously groom to accomplish this. Mike and I have worked extremely hard to bring the conditions up to par but due to the snow type we haven’t been able to get it firm.  I have received complaints that BBR has been under-par all year. In our view, it was premium up to the thaw and then we did our best to keep up with the thaw but you can only do so much.  The thaw also used up more of our grooms than I would have preferred so now we are tight on our budget.  Last night Mike was still unable to pass through Superior, Wildcat and Spartan. He is volunteering his time today to try again.  I want you to know that we take pride in what we do but are limited by the contract.  We ask a little respectful forethought before you voice complaints.  Respectfully … John Swanberg

• *Saux Head: Groomed and tracked Feb 17th. Peepoday and outer loop were not tracked due to equipment difficulty.
• *Fit Strip: Groomed and tracked over the weekend.
• *Big Bay Pathway: Groomed on Feb 15^th.  Next groom set for Feb 19^th.
• Honey Bear Classic Ski Race, Saturday, February 27, 2010
  Big Bay, MI, 25 miles north of Marquette
  15K and 30K Races over beautifully “groomed wilderness”
  Registration: 10:00 am – 11:30 am at the Thunder Bay Inn
  Race starts at NOON    Awards, refreshments and bluegrass at 2:00 pm
  Entry fee: $25, meal tickets $5, For more information, call NTN at 235-6861 or Kristi at 250-3350
• *Al Quaal:  Groomed and tracked on Feb 16^th.
• *Valley Spur: The trails are groomed most everyday or as conditions warrant.  For more information visit the Valley Spur Website at www.valleyspur.org or call 906.387.4918.

We encourage you to sign up for the trail report and news email, in the upper right hand corner, where it says  Subscribe Today – RSS // Email.  Click on the email tab.

We will continue to post to the old email list serv until we have all the bugs figured out with the new system. Thank you for your patience.

Have a great day. The NTN

Trail reports are also available by calling 906.221.0222.