Editors Note: Typically, each issue of Snow Goer magazine features an article on one snowmobile club that is making a positive different in our sport. The article below is from the October 2022 issue of Snow Goer. To have your club considered for our spotlight, tell us about your club by filling out the form at this link: https://tinyurl.com/GreatSnowClub
Snowmobile Club In Focus: Mercer Area Sno-Goers
It’s not the name – because clearly they messed up by dropping the “w” – or the fact that this club was formed just four years after our similarly titled magazine was founded 50 miles down the road in the Wisconsin Northwoods.
Instead, we hold the Mercer Area Sno-Goers in high esteem for the great way they maintain their massive trail network, and for how they keep local and visiting riders up-to-date and informed.
The Sno-Goers is a big club that is in charge of a large swath of highly popular trails. It has 800+ members, but it’s a dedicated smaller group that expertly maintains 250 miles of trails in Iron County. This place usually gets snow first and holds it the longest in Wisconsin, and that means riders often travel from far and wide to ride here.
It’s a big responsibility that this club takes seriously, as is reflected by the regular and highly detailed trail updates that are posted on the club’s Facebook page, with photos and videos right from the operating grooming equipment. If there’s an unfrozen swamp or logging operations on a given trail, you’ll know about it before your visit.
Club members also clearly know how to have fun together, as is exhibited by many fun events.
To learn more, see the answers to our questions below, as shared by club member Justin “Slednecker” Koski. To have your club considered for exposure in the magazine, fill out our form at https://tinyurl.com/GreatSnowClub.
What is your best in-season club event or activity that makes membership fun?
“Winter Blast is held every year in January. It starts with a pancake breakfast, followed by a vintage sled show, a pig roast, groomer rides, raffles, a bonfire, live music and more. It also includes a raffle of a new Arctic Cat snowmobile. It draws a lot of attention and is an all-around good time.”
What’s your best off-season club event or activity?
“We participate in the local Fourth of July parade. We also have fun days where we go out and brush the trails before the up-coming season.”
What has been your club’s best means for finding new members?
“Social media has been a huge success for bringing in new members from all over the world.”
How do you make new members or prospective members feel welcomed into your club?
“The door to our clubhouse is always open for people to stop by and check out the groomer barn, or if people want to see what a groomer driver does on the trails to keep snowmobiling safe and fun.”
Besides safety training, does your club do anything special to get and then keep youth involved?
“We have a youth snowmobile club called The Little Rippers that brings a lot of interest from young riders who enter the club.”
One interesting thing that our club does for the good of the sport is…
“Our name is widely known for being one of the best clubs in Northern Wisconsin. We work hard to provide the best trails to enjoy. Our motto is ‘Making the best trails better’!”
Overall, the thing that makes our club great is…
“The members! Everyone plays a huge role in keeping the club going. If one person fails, we all fail, so we stand to support one another to keep the club as strong as it can be and growing each year.”
Editor’s Note: Every Snow Goer issue includes in-depth sled reports and comparisons, aftermarket gear and accessories reviews, riding destination articles, do-it-yourself repair information, snowmobile technology and more. Subscribe to Snow Goer now to receive print and/or digital issues.
