if you groom it they will ride

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We have all seen them at a restaurant, or in their car, or clearing the snow off the driveway, but we didn't know they were snowmobiling's unsung heroes. They are the dedicated men and women who groom our precious trails every day (and night) throughout the winter.

Last winter we caught up with Daniel Goodreau, a hard-working groomer who helps maintain more than 150 miles of trail in Baraga County in Michigan's Upper Peninsula. Located on the northwestern side of the U.P., Baraga County gets hammered with 275-300 inches of snow every year with temps rarely reaching into the lower 20s (Fahrenheit). On the south end of Lake Superior's Keweenaw Bay, Baraga County gets lake effect snow and its trails connect both eastern and western snowmobile trails that crisscross the U.P. for more than 2,500 miles.

All in a day's work
Generally Dan's day, like that of most groomers, is a long one. At 6 p.m., when others are sitting down to dinner, Dan starts his shift. He performs his pre-grooming inspection of the equipment, which includes: inspecting the machine for missing or broken parts, checking all the fluids, checking the drive and bogey wheels, greasing all required points, inspecting the drag for missing or broken parts and inspecting all the lights and beacons. Almost like a preflight inspection for a plane, Dan efficiently follows his pre-grooming checklist. Any problems that require minor repairs, Dan will do right then and there.

By 8 p.m. Dan is out grooming, and begins an average drive of 8-12 hours. During the grooming, Dan is required to stop and repair damaged trail signs and trim brush and overhanging trees. He figures he spends about an hour doing this every shift and often longer if there is a heavy snowfall.

At the end of the shift, groomer operators wash off the machine and inspect it for damage. Major damage is repaired immediately. It's not uncommon to have several operators repairing one machine. Unfortunately, it's not always possible to get repairs done the same day, but you can bet it's not for lack of effort. Would you be willing to do all this for $7 an hour?

The crew
The Baraga County Tourist and Recreation Association employs 6 full- and 4 part-time groomer operators. Full-time operators groom 4-5 nights per week and punch-in more than 50 hours.

Each full day the crew is responsible for more than 300 miles of trail. They also do pre-season trail maintenance and work with the Baraga County Snowdrifters Club to install and repair signage. Luckily, none of the crew has ever been in an accident with a snowmobiler while grooming.

Like many of the groomers, Dan is a snowmobiler. Riding a Yamaha Warrior this year, Dan admits that he doesn't get the miles on he would like because he is grooming so much.

The machines
Baraga County has two Sure-Trac groomers and one Tucker. At $140,000 a pop, these are high-ticket machines, yet they don't always ride like Cadillacs. Dan says he would gladly trade the rough ride in a groomer on rutted trails for that of a snowmobile any day.

The big diesel-powered groomers use about 50 gallons of fuel every shift, but burn more after big snows. Last year Dan says he broke trail through about 4 feet of new powder and averaged about 3 miles an hour. His co-workers actually had to bring two groomers and the second one had to help push Dan's up some of the hills!

The reason
So why do groomers spend so much time and effort doing a job that is long, cold and sometimes admittedly boring? Dan says it's all worth it to get excited waves from snowmobilers when he meets them on the trail. "Nothing is better than seeing a family all give me thumbs up and a wave when I see them at a stop sign," Dan says.

For more info on Baraga County visit www.baragacountytourism.com, or call 800-743-4908.

Grooming Statistics
Baraga County Tourist and Recreation Association
Groomer cost (each): $140,000 US
Number of groomers: 3
Miles of trail: 154
Miles groomed daily: 308
Average miles groomed yearly: 16,000
Average hours groomed yearly: 2,000
Fuel used yearly: 7,700 gal.

Groomers
2003 Tucker Terra 2000
Power: 175 hp Cummins diesel
Transmission: Allison automatic
Weight: 14,000 lbs.
Drag weight: 3,000 lbs.
Length: 40 feet (including drag)
Top speed: 8 mph
Grooming speed: 8 mph
Amenities: Suspension seat, AM/FM cassette, cell phone, police band 2-way radio

2004 Sur-Trac TM140
Power: 175 hp New Holland
Transmission: 18x6 Powershift w/shuttle
Weight: 14,000 lbs.
Drag weight: 6,000 lbs.
Length: 50 feet (including drag)
Top speed: 18 mph
Grooming speed: 8 mph
Amenities: Suspension seat, AM/FM cassette, cell phone, police band 2-way radio

2005 Sur-Trac TS115A
Power: 115 hp New Holland
Transmission: 16x16 Electroshift w/shuttle
Weight: 12,000 lbs.
Drag weight: 5,000 lbs.
Length: 40 feet (including drag)
Top speed: 15 mph
Grooming speed: 8 mph
Amenities: Suspension seat, AM/FM CD, cell phone, police band 2-way radio

To read more about Baraga County click here.