INDUSTRY NEWS
In the Snow
The four-track tractor –
an increasingly popular
solution for trail grooming
The Caribou Snowmobile Club decided to change from a ded-icated
grooming unit to a four-track tractor when they saw a
demonstration by Mountain Grooming Equipment, a dealer-ship
that has been operating in Vermont for around 20 years.
In 2013, the president of the club first tried his hand at us-ing
a four-track tractor to groom one of the club’s trails.
“The track system manufacturer, Soucy International, had
come to do a demonstration. I was able to try the tractor and
I really liked it. The following year we bought a tractor with
a Soucy track system,” said Gary Marquis, club manager for
more than 21 years.
With over 115 members and 110 miles of trails, Caribou
Snowmobile Club takes trail grooming very seriously.
“We can boast some of the best groomed trails, because we
do it every night,” said Marquis. “A tractor is much heavier, so
it compacts the snow much more and slows down the melt
at the end of the season. Also, it’s easy and quiet to drive, and
because I’m in a tractor I can drive on roads as well as trails,
and the visibility is always excellent.
“Tractors are designed to pull heavy loads and work
long hours without stopping. They rarely break down; re-pairs
and maintenance are cheap and they are very reli-able.
We’ve been using our track tractor for three complete
winter seasons and we haven’t spent a cent on repairs! All
we’ve done is basic maintenance and regularly greased the
track systems.”
Year-round use varies the work
For Doug Wilson, the owner of Mountain Grooming Equip-ment,
another special aspect of four-track tractors is that
they can be used year-round to carry out other jobs.
“I always tell my clients that not only can they groom trails
in winter but they can also use it to clear undergrowth in au-tumn,”
he said.
A new track system to face winter extremes
Soucy International, a Quebec company, is always seeking in-novation,
and has recently introduced a new type of rubber
specifically for extreme winter conditions.
DONLAND / SHUTTERSTOCK.COM
Snowmobiling in Vermont
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