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.

Driftbusters Jan. 3rd. 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 Dec. 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 Duane Sutton, seconded by Kenny Ham, motion approved.
Treasures Report by Ann Nagel: We have 91 members, 16 associate members, & 3 web site only members. Motion to approve by Al Nagel, seconded by Jim Weaver, motion approved.
SDSA Report by Kelly Weaver: Kelly stated that all SDSA members can get a discount on your SnoCross tickets for the Deadwood races but you have to do it over the phone. SDSA will also have a booth at the races. Governors ride on Feb. 16th. will be headquartered out of Spearfish Holiday Inn. There is a form in the SnoPlainsman to send in if you plan on attending. Discussion is still on going on the fat tire bikes riding on the snowmobile trail. SDSA dues will be going up next year $5. Next years convention is the 50th. annual convention for SDSA and it will be held in Watertown by the Poinsett Pounders on Dec. 6th. and 7th. The Poinsett Pounders are asking for donations of old shirts to make a quilt and also if each club could give a club history on their club. Cheryl was asked to contact Mary Ann to update club officers in the SnoPlainsman.
Advisory Report by Al Nagel: there was an accident in Spearfish Canyon involving a snowmobiler but he doesn’t have any details yet. There has been a couple of trail reroutes and the fat tire bike issue is still on going. Arctic Cat will no longer be furnishing snowmobiles for the Governor’s Ride so SDSA and the Advisory Council are checking in to renting sleds for that day. Next meeting is Feb. 15th. at the Holiday Inn.
Trail Report by Jim Weaver: Jim Weaver stated that on Christmas Eve day he and his nephew drove to Hardy Camp in the Black Hills and picked up a new groomer track because we have not received the new track we had ordered from Tucker SnoCat and they can’t give us an answer when it will be delivered. On Christmas Day with the help of Dennis & David Beckler, Sonny Pence and myself the new track was installed. On Sat. Dec. 29th. the grooming was started but because of deep snow conditions the groomer got stuck multiple times and finally had to be pulled out with the use of 2 pickups. So it was decided to stop grooming because we thought there was problems with the groomer. Jim stated that after he made dozens of phone calls he found out that the State of SD orders the new groomers with what is called open differentials which basically means just one front track and one rear track drives. To remedy this problem Tucker makes optional locking differentials but it costs several thousands of dollars more. Jim found out that if we put these locking differentials in our groomer the state will not pay for them so it would be our club expense. Ann Nagel made a motion to table the idea of buying locking differentials at this time. Kenny Ham seconded, motion approved. Kenny Ham started grooming again today (1-03-19) and Jim Gelling followed him in his pickup. They made it all the way to Frederick but they by passed the Mina Loop. Kenny plans on taking the groomer back tomorrow and doing the Mina loop on his way back to Becklers. Ann Nagel made the motion to give $50 to Dennis Beckler and Jim Gelling for the abuse to their pickups on helping to pull out the groomer. Kenny Ham seconded, motion carried.
Emergency reaction: Al Nagel stated the updated the emergency lists have been sent to Scott Meints at Brown County emergency dept.
Yetis Report by Matt Olson: Matt stated they will be having a booth at the SnoCross races in Deadwood. They will be selling sweatshirts, hats, & fire starters. Stop by the booth and say Hi. The day after the Governor’s Ride the Yetis will be having a ride. They are sending a group to ISC in Grand Rapids. They have a Yetis page on the SDSA website where you can get all contact information and order apparel that the Yetis have for sale.
Safety Report by Corey Gelling. Corey stated that he has not got the certificates back yet from the state for the 8 participants that took the snowmobile safety course. Kelly Weaver stated that Snowmobile.org. has several updated snowmobile safety videos that you can view on line.
Charity: Everyone is asked to bring non perishable food items to the holiday party/steak feed Jan 12th. at the Richmond Oasis as these items will be donated to charity.
Publicity: Tracy Olson volunteered to write next months new article for the SnoPlainsman.
Activities/ trail rides. The Holiday party is Jan. 12th at Richmond Oasis. A trail ride will be held starting from Richmond Oasis at 1 pm depending on snow conditions. Will start cooking steaks around 6pm. for members only. A trail ride is also planned for Jan. 19th starting from the MStation at Mina at 1pm. The Jan. 25th. 26th. Black Hills club trail ride will be starting out of Dumont lot at approx. 9am each day.
Old Business: Casey Weismantel held a discussion on the Casino night for March 30th. He is still looking for volunteers to help run some of the games. Tickets for the supper were handed out in books of 6.
New Business: Discussion was held on changing club dues for next year. Motion to increase the family dues from $30 to $40 was made by Joey Nagel. Duane Sutton made a motion to amend the motion to raise the family membership from $30 to $40, full associate membership from $50 to $75. Associate member for SnoPlainsman only from $35 to $50 and to advertise on Driftbusters web site only from $15 to $25. Casey Weismantel seconded, motion approved.
Next 2 meetings will be held at the Elks Feb. 7th. and March 7th. at 7:30pm.
Duane Sutton stated he has ACSA calendars for sale for $20. He also volunteered to display the Driftbusters largest club trophy at the Milstone.
Split pot drawing of $50 was won by Doug Braa.
Motion to adjourn the meeting was made by Ken Ham, seconded Jim Gelling, meeting adjourned.
Cheryl Gelling, Sec.

While Mother Nature has done her part, our groomer is experiencing drive train issues. Attempts to groom the trail over the weekend failed when the groomer was stuck multiple times and eventually needed to be pulled out of the ditch (also multiple times). It appears the track is moving on only one side, and therefore is inoperable in that condition with our current snow depths. With the holiday, answers are coming a little slower than normal so we are looking for an update this week on the next steps. Keep an eye on the website and Facebook page for updates, and use caution should you decide to ride the ungroomed trail.

JANUARY NEWSLETTER
Hello Driftbusters,
Hope everyone had a great Christmas and your New Year starts out right.
The 49th annual SDSA convention was held in Sioux Falls and had some surprises for the Driftbusters. Dennis & Char Beckler received the award for the SDSA Hall of Fame, I hope everyone had a chance to read the article in the SnoPlainsman about all the things they have done to promote snowmobiling. The club also received the trophy for the largest club in the state. We can be very proud of our club.
Don’t forget to book your rooms and buy your tickets for the Deadwood SnoCross races Jan. 25th. and 26th. This weekend also doubles as our Black Hills club ride.
We finally received our first measurable snow fall and the groomer will be going out to groom Sat. Dec. 29th. We need to give a huge thank you to Jim Weaver, Dennis & David Beckler & Sonny Pence for going to the Black Hills to get a new track and installing it over the Christmas holidays so the groomer would be ready to go. THANK YOU GUYS!!!
Our annual Christmas party/steak feed will be held Sat. Jan. 12th. at the Richmond Oasis starting around 6pm for members only. Bring food items for charity. Hope to see you there.
The club is in the final stages of planning a casino night March 30th. at the Elks Lodge. Please volunteer to help out with this event.
Our next meeting is Jan. 3rd. at 7:30pm at the Titans Bar & Grill in Frederick, SD.
Cheryl Gelling, Sec.

Driftbusters Dec. 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 Nov. 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 Joey Nagel, seconded by Jeff Thorne, motion carried.
Treasurer’s Report by Ann Nagel: To date we have 92 paid members. 14 associate members and 3 web site only members. Ann stated we have a cd that will be coming due next week and we will have a discussion during new business on what to do with it. Ann also stated that she received a $100 donation tonight from The Millstone. Motion to accept the treasures report was made by Duane Sutton and seconded by Al Nagel, motion carried.
SDSA Report by Kelly Weaver: Kelly wanted to thank Jeff Thorne for his years of service as director of District 3 as Kelly Weaver was elected to take his position. Last week was the convention in Sioux Falls and Kelly stated that Aberdeen Driftbusters won the trophy for the largest club. WOW!!! Kelly announced that we have 2 celebrities in our club, Dennis & Char Beckler were nominated and accepted in the So. Dak. Hall of Fame. CONGRATULATIONS!!! Kelly stated that the state board (SDSA) at the convention voted to increase the general or family membership dues by $5, they also voted to increase the associate membership dues from $35 to $50. These increases will take place next year. The SnoPlainsman will be available via email in addition to mailing. So you can have your choice to receive The SnoPlainsman by email or by mail or both just let Mary Ann Grabow know by emailing sdsa@itctel.com. You will receive the email version approx.. 1 week earlier. Game, Fish, and Parks are still working on the issue of the fat tire bikes on our trail and would welcome input from anyone wishing to do so. Next year will be the 50th. annual convention for SDSA and will be hosted by The Poinsett Pounders at the Watertown Convention Center Dec. 6 & 7. They are asking for old memorabilia if you have any. The convention for 2020 will be held Dec. 4 & 5th. in Rapid City at the Best Western. Kelly wants to remind everyone that next year will also be the 50th. anniversary of the Aberdeen Driftbusters Snowmobile Club.
Advisory Report by Al Nagel: At the time of this meeting the groomer school is being held in the Black Hills. There has been some trail reroutes in the Black Hills. The new trail maps are out and will be handed out at the end of this meeting. They were not able to get the trail camera in at Big Hill Parking Lot. Next meeting is Feb. 15th. at the Holiday Inn in Spearfish. Game, Fish, and Parks is going to sponsor a Veterans ride out of Hardy Camp Jan. 19th.
Trail Report by Jim Weaver: The trail is all in and has been inspected by the state and would like to thank all the trail leaders for the great job they did putting in the trail as the state made several comments about the great job we did marking our trail. Jim stated that he got the broken springs replaced on the front suspension of the groomer and has got most of the maintenance done as far as changing oil and filters. One rear u joint needs to be replaced and after talking with Ryan Raynor, trails specialist, it was decided that 2 tracks on the groomer need to be replaced so 2 new tracks are on order and it could take 4 weeks to get them. So we will not be able to do any grooming until the new tracks are on.
Emergency Reaction: Al Nagel passed around the list and asked everyone to check it to see if their addresses and phone numbers are correct.
Yetis Report : Kelly Weaver stated that the Yetis participated in the state convention this year and sat in on the board meetings.
Safety Report by Jim Gelling: Jim Gelling stated that we had 8 participants that took the test and everyone that met the age requirements passed. We also signed up a new member. So would like to thank everyone that participated in the safety course.
Charity Report: Everyone is reminded to keep track of the hours that they donate so it can be turned in at the end of the year as volunteer hours.
Publicity Report: A thank you was made to Kelly Weismantel for the great article she wrote for the SnoPlainsman.
Monthly News Article for the next SnoPlainsman: Jeff Thorne volunteered to do this.
Activities: It was decided to have a Christmas Party/Steak Feed at the Richmond Oasis on Jan. 12th. More details will follow. It was decided to schedule any trail rides at a later date.
Old Business: Nothing to report at this time.
New Business: Casey Weismantel gave a detailed report on our upcoming Casino Night on March 30th. at the Elks Lodge. Anyone wanting more information can contact Casey Weismantel at caseyw@visitaberdeensd.com. We will also have more information at our Jan. meeting. Discussion was held on a cd the club has that will be coming due this next week. Jim Weaver made the motion to cash in the cd and deposit it in our club checking account. Duane Sutton seconded it and the motion passed. Al Nagel stated that anytime money is drawn out of the club fund for a special event the board needs to have a special meeting to approve it.
Next meeting will be Jan. 3rd. at Titans Bar & Grill in Frederick at 7:30pm.
Motion to adjourn meeting was made by Casey Weismantel, seconded by Joey Nagel, motion carried, meeting adjourned.
Cheryl Gelling, Sec.

Hello Driftbusters!

Well, the trail is in and now everyone can start doing their snow dances so we can enjoy it! I know that skiff of snow we had at the beginning of the month got me excited to go riding enough to get the sleds out of storage and into the garage for the pre-season checklist.

We had a very good turnout for the safety course on the 18th, and everyone that was of age passed with flying colors, we even had a couple dads challenge each other with the test!

Don’t forget to book your rooms and buy your tickets for the Deadwood snocross races in January, as the races do sell out each night generally. This weekend also doubles as our Black Hills club ride, so the more the merrier!

The 49th Annual SDSA Convention will be held in Sioux Falls this weekend. Maybe with a little luck, somebody will get to bring themselves home a new Can Am side x side!

Just a reminder if you haven’t paid your club dues to do so as soon as possible.

Our next club meeting will be at The Shed in Westport on Dec 6th at 7:30PM, hope to see some new faces there.

Evan Halvorson, President