Taking the cat for a walk..

"vicali" (vicali) 01/03/2017 at 18:30 • Filed to: None

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First shift of grooming done, 6hrs and 68km of trail set; Now I hope it snows some more..

We had 10cm of fresh at -28c, perfect conditions for grooming. As a newb I started out as a ride along, then advanced to operating the tiller and pans, and by the end of the shift had a chance to drive and run the equipment myself.

^That is the business end, the tiller, snow mat, and the track pans are what make the pretty xc trails.. the blade up front is just to play with to keep the hydraulics mixing.. Our club doesn’t plow with the cat any more - too hard on it when a contractor will clear the snow out of the parking for less headache..

Highlander-Datsuns are Forever > vicali 01/03/2017 at 18:34

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Looks like fun, but then you are up all night and don’t get to enjoy the goods the next day.

HammerheadFistpunch > vicali 01/03/2017 at 18:37

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My neighbor does this for Snowbird, sounds like such fun.

MasterMario - Keeper of the V8s > vicali 01/03/2017 at 18:49

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Man I want to drive one of those. Is it wierd that i have more interest in driving odd machines than many performance cars?

vicali > Highlander-Datsuns are Forever 01/03/2017 at 18:50

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We do one shift a week per team, I’m on the Monday night crew. No skiing during the week for me as I’m at work anyways - so it’s a chance to help out and be involved with the club.

They don’t like to run the cat when there are skiers out; something, something, running people over is bad.. and hard on the tracks.

vicali > HammerheadFistpunch 01/03/2017 at 18:50

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It was a pretty quick shift.. I was suprised when I got back to my truck and it was all frosted up.

Highlander-Datsuns are Forever > vicali 01/03/2017 at 18:53

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When I was a kid (back in the 80's) they ran grommers during the day, and we would just ski around them. Now days it’s all night work, stupid safety standards. At our nordic ski area they just scrape and roll with a snowmobile and he gets it done by 7:30 AM every day. Also easier to avoid than a full sized groomer.

vicali > MasterMario - Keeper of the V8s 01/03/2017 at 19:02

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You’re in the right place..

It’s crazy to drive- the engine is there to run the hydraulic pumps, one pump for each track, then the other is for the attachments.

You set the rpm, (we use 1600rpm), then there is a dial for your speed on the right console. your left hand rests on two little balls that you move forward or back to control each track individually;

The joystick on your right is all blade control, and the tiller/pans are controlled by the switches in the middle between the seats..

It’s slow, but unstoppable in the conditios we were in. My trainer said the worst thing possible would be backing up with the tiller/pans down.

vicali > Highlander-Datsuns are Forever 01/03/2017 at 19:05

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There are other groomer teams that run the Ginsus during the day, usually for the skate lanes though. Rollers and Ginsus also get a lot of work during the beginning/end of season when the snow conditions get lousy.

functionoverfashion > vicali 01/03/2017 at 19:25

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Should do an oppo review of it...

vicali > functionoverfashion 01/03/2017 at 19:27

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Let me get a few more shifts and I will..

mtdrift > vicali 01/03/2017 at 20:19

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Mmmmmmm, you are pursuing one of my dreams.

TheNeonDriver - Now with More BMW! > vicali 01/03/2017 at 21:51

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I used to groom in Yellowknife, loved it. They used Alpina’s up there, which are interesting in -35°C as they are open. Where are you grooming? It looks lovely.