Driftbusters April 4th. Meeting Minutes
Meeting called to order by Pres. Evan Halvorson.
Introductions were made by all.
Secretary’s Report by Cheryl Gelling: The meeting minutes were handed out prior to the meeting from the March meeting and Evan asked if everyone had read them. Evan asked if there were any corrections or additions. Motion to accept the minutes was made by Jeff Thorne and seconded by Ken Ham. Motion approved.
Treasurer’s Report by Ann Nagel: We have 103 members, 16 associates and 3 web site only. Motion to approve the treasurer’s report was made by Jim Weaver and seconded by Jim Gelling, motion approved.
SDSA Report by Kelly Weaver: Our next meeting is May 11. Nothing really new to report. Please fill out the economic impact survey and email it back so we can record our impact as a sport. Next year’s convention is the first weekend in December in Watertown and will be the 50th. anniversary of SDSA and our club.
Advisory Report by Al Nagel: Al stated he got an email that Katie Karrow resigned from the parks department for a different opportunity. The last new groomer the state received had some discrepancies on the price that was quoted for the bid on it that will have to be resolved.
Trail Report by Jim Weaver: Jim stated that May 1st. is when we are supposed to have all our trail markers out but with all the water in the ditches it may be an ongoing project. We need to get our trail reimbursement in to the state by May 1st. Jim said him and Kelly will take care of that. Jim asked if everyone was satisfied with the trail route we have and if there are no changes then he will submit the trail proposal to the state for approval. He asked if all the trail leaders were on board for next year. A round of applause was given to Ken Ham for being our groomer who has decided to retire. Evan Halvorson, Pat McCoy, and Lee Olson have agreed to step up and run the groomer next year. Jim Gelling asked Al Nagel if he could check about getting a groomer school East River again in the fall as they had done this in the past. The SnoCat is in good shape and we have 1 extra new track on hand.
Emergency Reaction by Al Nagel: Nothing to report at this time.
Yetis Report: Nothing to report at this time.
Safety Report: Nothing to report at this time.
Charity Report by Ann Nagel: We have 260 hrs. of volunteer time and it was just shy of $1,000 donated.
Publicity: Nothing to report at this time.
Activities: The Pizza/Swim party is set for April 14th at the Ramkota with the swimming starting at 3pm and pizza will be served at 5:30pm. Ann Nagel asked to please call, text, or email her at 228-4143 and let her know if you are planning on coming so she can have a head count on how many pizza’s to order.
Old Business: Casino Night: Casey Weismantel handed out an itemized list of what was taken in by all the games. A discussion was held on how things went and if anybody had any suggestions or any changes that we would need to do if we had another one. Casey stated that we had a grand total profit of $2,157.07. Everyone felt that it went over great and we should have another one next year. Casey Weismantel was given a round of applause for all the work he did for the casino night. Thank you, Casey.
Discussion was held on the fall campout and membership drive for Sept. 13-14 at Wylie Park. Duane Sutton agreed to provide chicken drummies and roast beef for the Sat. night pot luck. Jim and Cheryl Gelling volunteered to get the turkeys for Fri. night and cook them. For more details go to the Driftbusters web site.
New Business: Election of board members and officers. Jim Gelling made a motion to appoint Evan Halvorson to fill out next years board member term for Dan Rohbach as Dan will be the Pres. Cheryl Gelling seconded, motion carried. Kelly Weaver made a motion to elect Casey Weismantel and Pat McCoy to fill the 2 open positions for board members. Duane Sutton seconded, motion carried. Cheryl Gelling made a motion to elect Kelly Weismantel for secretary, Kelly Weaver seconded, motion carried. Ann Nagel has agreed to keep the treasurer’s position for 1 more year. We still need a Pres. Elect for the year 2021. A round of applause was given to Cheryl Gelling for her years as secretary.
Monthly News Letter: Cheryl Gelling volunteered to do this.
Next meeting is Sept. 5th. at the Pizza ranch at 7:30pm.
Motion to adjourn was made by Ann Nagel, seconded by Jeff Thorne, meeting adjourned.
Cheryl Gelling, Secretary.

Hello Driftbusters!

I’m not sure anyone can argue that these warmer temps are definitely a nice change from the long cold winter we had! The ditches have gone from being heaped full of snow, to more water than they can handle which is sure going to make an interesting spring!

It’s been an easy winter to serve my Presidency term. Given the snow conditions we had there was plenty of things happening and events to be talking about other than just dreaming of snow like previous years! Thank you to everyone for helping me figure it all out! I’ll tell you this much, there’s no future in public office for this guy!

Make sure to mark your calendars for the fall camp out at Wylie on September 13-14.

Our annual swim and pizza party will be held at the Ramkota this year on April 14th.

Our next meeting will be April 4th at 7:30pm at the Pizza Ranch

Evan Halvorson, President

Driftbusters March 6th. Meeting Minutes
Meeting was called to order by Pres. Evan Halvorson
Introductions were made by all.
Secretary’s Report by Cheryl Gelling: The meeting minutes were handed out prior to the meeting from the Feb. meeting and Evan asked if everyone had read them. Evan asked if there were any corrections or additions. Cheryl Gelling said that the food donations from the Holiday party should read that they were given to Sacred Heart instead of The Salvation Army. Motion was made by Jim Gelling, seconded by Casey Weismantel, motion approved.
Treasures Report by Ann Nagel: Ann stated she is going to transfer the $2,500 back to the trail fund that we borrowed earlier from the trail fund to put in the membership fund to pay the bills. Ann stated that to date we have 103 members. Dennis Beckler received a check for $500 to reimburse him for the $500 check he gave to Lyle Schaunaman for using his tractor and snow blower to rescue the groomer from under the Westport bridge on Hwy. 281. Motion to approve by Dan Rohbach, Cheryl seconded, motion approved.
SDSA Report by Kelly Weaver: They received 10 scholarship applications which is a record. Continuing discussion was held on the fat tire bikes. The forest service is working on a trail map for the fat tire bikes.
Advisory: Nothing at this time.
Trail report: Kelly Weaver stated that because Kenny Ham is in the hospital and the predicted storm for this Sat. the trail will not get groomed this weekend. We also need to think about putting together a trail proposal for next year and if we need to make any changes in the trail route. We can groom until March 31th. The last time we groomed the groomer got stuck under the bridge on 281 by Westport. To see the pictures and the details go to the Driftbusters facebook page.
Emergency Reaction: Nothing to report at this time.
Safety Report: Nothing to report at this time.
Charity Report: Ann stated that we need to fill out a charity report to turn in to the state. Ann will do this. Ann stated that she got a thank you from The Journey Home for our donation.
Publicity: Jim Gelling asked Casey Weismantel if he had heard back from the radio station about the interview we were supposed to do on InTouch. Casey stated that he has not heard from them.
Activities: The club has held 2 trail rides the past 2 weekends and have a couple more scheduled, please check on Facebook for date, time and locations of upcoming trail rides. The radar run that was postponed will be held on March 17th. and the casino night will be March 30th.
Old business: Casey Weismantel stated that he heard back from Ramkota that April 7th. & April 14th. would be available for our Pizza/Swim party. The rental of the room and access to the pool would be $100. After a brief discussion it was decided to go with April 14th. More details will follow on Facebook & web site. Cheryl Gelling stated that she has made all the arrangements for the fall campout and membership drive at Wylie Park for the weekend of Sept. 13-14th. Jim Gelling stated that he had contacted David Novstrup on what options we have on cutting the expense of renting the go-karts. After a brief discussion Ann Nagel made the motion to rent the go-karts for just 1 hr. this year at the cost of $375, Joey Nagel seconded, motion approved. Discussion was also held on how many turkeys to cook on Fri. night.
New Business: Casey Weismantel gave us an update on the upcoming casino night. Casey stated he is still looking for volunteers to help. Discussion was held on the upcoming election of officers and board members for the April meeting. 2 board members terms are up, and we need to appoint someone to finish Dan Rohbach’s board member position as he will be President next year. After a brief discussion Evan Halvorson has agreed to finish Dan’s board member position for next year. Casey Weismantel and Pat McCoy agreed to be elected as board members for the next 2 yrs. We still need a pres-elect for 2020. Kelly Weismantel has agreed to be elected as secretary. Ann Nagel has agreed to be the treasurer for another year. This will be voted on at the April meeting.
Monthly News letter: Kelly Weismantel took care of this.
Next meeting April 4th. at the Pizza Ranch at 7:30pm
Motion to adjourn was made by Casey Weismantel, seconded by Jim Gelling, meeting adjourned.
Cheryl Gelling, Secretary.

MARCH NEWSLETTER
Hello Driftbusters!

If you’re not out enjoying your snowmobiles this winter, you’re doing it wrong! We have been getting a nice amount of fresh snow weekly, which has been allowing us to run the groomer weekly as well. That means the trails should be in fantastic condition so I hope everyone is enjoying them! Make sure to pay attention to the Facebook page to stay up to date on when there will be club rides and other events.
The radar run event that was originally scheduled for Sunday, March 3rd. has been postponed to March 17th. due to pending cold temps, and also not being able to prep the surface due to blowing snow.
Our next meeting will be Wednesday, March 6th. at the Elks Lodge again with pizza at 7pm, and the meeting starting at 7:30pm. Let Ann Nagel know at 228-4143 if you plan on attending so she will know how many pizza’s to order. We will take free will donations to help pay for the pizza’s. I encourage everyone to join us there as this will be the final meeting before our Casino Night event and we need to get everyone signed up for a volunteer slot as well as finalizing any other last minute decisions. We need all the help we can get!
Evan Halvorson, President

Radar run on March 3rd is postponed to Sunday, March 17th. Due to recent snows and winds we have not been able to establish the track for the radar run.  The extreme temperatures forecast for Sunday have also contributed to the decision to postpone to March 17th at 1 pm at the Richmond Oasis.

Driftbusters Feb. 13th. Meeting Minutes
Meeting was called to order by Pres. Evan Halvorson
Introductions were made by all.
Secretary’s report by Cheryl Gelling: The meeting minutes were handed out prior to the meeting from the Jan. meeting and Evan asked if everyone had read them. Evan asked if there were any corrections or additions if not he asked for a motion to accept. Motion to accept the minutes was made by Al Nagel, seconded by Kenny Ham, motion approved.
Treasurers Report by Ann Nagel: We have 97 members, 16 associate members, and 3 web site. Motion to accept treasurers report by Jim Weaver, seconded by Casey Weismantel, motion approved.
SDSA Report by Kelly Weaver: The Governor’s ride is this weekend. SDSA board meeting is Friday night. The SDSA scholarship program for high school students deadline is Feb. 25th.
Advisory Report by Al Nagel: The board meeting is at 6 pm Friday night. We will do our budget review. We will have a discussion and update on locking differentials for the groomers.
Trail report by Jim Weaver: We are trying to get the trail groomed once a week. We are having to deal with lots of piles of snow on driveways and approaches, as well as signs covered up or knocked down. We had an issue with the groomer last week due to the bitter cold weather the fuel filters were jelled up. When you are riding the trail and you see signs that are knocked down please stop and stand them back up, it is for everyone’s safety. The trail is the best I have seen in a long while. We had to replace the 2 tires on the back of the drag because they were badly weather checked.
Emergency Reaction: Nothing to report at this time.
Safety Report: Corey & Kate Gelling reported that they have not received the safety certificates from the safety course they taught. Jim Weaver called Ryan Raynor about this and Ryan said to resend the information and he will take care of this.
Charity: We did a collection of food items at the Holiday party in Jan. and it was given to the Salvation Army food pantry.
Publicity: Cheryl Gelling stated she got an email from The Dakota Broadcasting station asking if we would like to do a live interview on In Touch in regards to our upcoming Casino Night in March. Casey Weismantel and Kelly Weaver will contact them and set up a date.
Activities: Cheryl Gelling stated that she contacted the Americ Inn to book a date for our upcoming Pizza/Swim party. The only opening they had was Sun. April 28th. She asked what everyone thought about having it that late. Casey Weismantel said he would contact the Ramkota and see if he could work something out. Discussion was held on having a radar run and scheduling some weekend club rides. The decision was made to have a radar run at The Richmond Oasis on Sun. March 3rd. Check the Driftbusters web site or facebook for more information on the radar run and the scheduled club rides. Jim Weaver stated that we will need at least 6 volunteers to help put on the radar run.
New Business: Cheryl Gelling asked if everyone is ok with scheduling our fall campout and membership drive for Sept. 13-14, which is the weekend after Hay Days. Discussion was then held on renting the go-carts. Jim Gelling was asked to contact Wylie Part Go-Carts and see if we could just rent the go-carts for 1 hr. instead of 2 hrs. and if we could do this in the afternoon instead of the evening. Richmond Oasis has offered to give a hot dog and a can of pop to anyone who signs up to be a new Driftbusters member at the Oasis, and asked if we would be willing to furnish the hot dogs and the pop. Casey Weismantel volunteered to take care of this.
News Article: Casey Weismantel will do this.
Old Business: A motion was made by Mark Musel to put the name of every new member (renewing members not considered new members) that signs up between Feb. 1 and May 1st. in a hat for a drawing for $50, motion was seconded by Tom Wanttie, motion approved. Check Driftbusters web site for more details. Cheryl Gelling asked everyone to think about who will be replacing 3 board members, pres. elect, and we need to pick a place for our final April club meeting.
Casey Weismantel updated us on the Casino Night. He handed out a floor plan of the building and showed us where everything will be set up. Explained how many people we will need to run this event. He told us that he has received several donation of items to be used for prizes, but that we also need some more items for door prizes and the small paddle wheel. He encouraged everyone that have not sold their tickets to please do so or turn them back to Ann so they can be redistributed to get them sold.
Next Meeting is WEDNESDAY March 6th. at The Elks Lodge at 7:30pm. with pizza to be ordered.
Motion to adjourn was made by Casey Weismantel, seconded by Kelly Weismantel, meeting adjourned.
Cheryl Gelling, Sec.

All new members who join the club from Feb. 1 to May 1 will be entered into a drawing for $50. (Renewing members are not considered new members).
Join the club by: (1) Mailing $30 dues to Aberdeen Driftbusters
P.O. Box 204
Aberdeen, S.D. 57402-0204
(2) Complete online membership form & pay online @
www.snowmobilesd.com/membership-form

Listed below is the scheduled club rides. Rides will all begin at 1 pm. Rides will not be held if temps. are below zero.
Sat. Feb. 16th. trail ride from Titan’s Bar & Grill in Frederick.
Sat. Feb. 23rd. trail ride from The Shed 18 in Westport.
Sat. March 2nd. trail ride from Richmond Oasis.
Sat. March 9th. trail ride from M Station at Mina.
Sat. March 16th. trail ride from Fossum Field, Aberdeen.

Hello Driftbusters,

Well, I hope everyone is finally getting to enjoy the trail system now that we have plenty of snow! As of today (2/1), the entire trail system will be groomed again and ready for a weekend of use.

The club ride in the Black Hills was a success, as the snow was very good out there as well! The trail system was the best I have ever seen, and the meadows had plenty to play in also despite having to combat some light rain Saturday morning. Some members also attended the Deadwood Snocross races in the evenings. They put on a heck of a good show as always! The Christian Brothers Racing team gives out one of their team race jackets to a kid at every race event, and our very own Beckett Halvorson was lucky enough to be chosen for that. So if you decide to watch the CBS playback of the races on Feb 10, or Feb 17, you might get to see his interview up on the podium.

I personally was not able to attend the Christmas party/steak feed on Jan 12th due to a crazy kids wrestling schedule, but it sounds like we had a good turn out. Any time we can dontate a whole shopping cart full of food to our local food pantry, I would consider that a success!

We are in the final stages of planning our casino night March 30th at the Elks Lodge. Please sign up to volunteer to work if you have not already!

Our next meeting is Feb 7th at 7:30pm at the Elks Lodge in Aberdeen.

Evan Halvorson, President

Well, we sure didn’t have to worry about losing any snow this past week. With the deep freeze waning, the grooming is warming up. Today, the trail was groomed from Westport to Frederick and the remaining trail will be groomed tomorrow (2-1-19). Trails conditions are good. Keep an eye on the website and Facebook page for future updates.