Snow Grooming | November 2015 by Snow Grooming Magazine

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NOVEMBER 2015 | ISSUE 11

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

November 2015 | Issue 11

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New Grooming Choice for Snowmobile Clubs By Mark Halsall

2851 Henderson Highway Winnipeg, MB R2E 0C5 Website: snowgroomingmag.com Email: info@snowgroomingmag.com Phone: 1-204-505-5858 Fax: 1-204-505-5859

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Getting Your Bearings By Jim Timlick

A Winning Team By Mark Halsall

Disclaimer: The opinions expressed by the authors and/or editorial sources contained in Snow Grooming Magazine are those of the respective parties and do not necessarily represent the opinion of the publisher. Publication Mail Agreement #42677534. Return undeliverable Canadian addresses to: 2851 Henderson Highway Winnipeg, MB R2E 0C5 Printed in Canada. Please recycle where facilities exist.

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Managing Editor Mark Halsall editor@snowgroomingmag.com Design & Layout Lester Publications, LLC

Makinâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Snow Special Section

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State-of-the-Art Snowmaking By Mike Stimpson

Maximum Snowmaking By Mark Halsall

Small Terrain Park Offers Big Fun By Jim Timlick

Making Tracks By Mark Halsall

Cutting Costs By Mark Halsall

Tracking Snow Grooming Equipment By Jim Timlick

Inventive Snow Products Offered by 4 Pine Design By Jim Timlick

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Power of Tower By Mike Stimpson

Rapid Fire Technology By Mike Stimpson

Hydrants & Valves for Every Snowmaker By Mike Stimpson SNOW GROOMING

The AT-20SG from All-Track fills a niche for snowmobile clubs looking for a smaller tracked machine for grooming compact trails.

New Grooming Choice for Snowmobile Clubs Canadian vehicle manufacturer All-Track has unveiled a new compact tracked machine that offers clubs something more powerful than a snowmobile but smaller and less expensive than a full-sized snowcat for their trail grooming needs. By Mark Halsall 2

November 2015 | snowgroomingmag.com

NEW GROOMING CHOICE

nowmobile clubs will soon have a new option for grooming their trails. All-Track, the Canadian manufacturer of heavy-duty tracked vehicles for industrial use that’s based in Calgary, Alberta, has started production of a new machine specially designed for the snow grooming industry. All-Track rolled out the AT-20 five years ago as a tool for utility companies and the seismic and oil exploration industry, and the AT-20SG is a new version of the vehicle that’s been adapted for snow use. It’s been tested by snowmobile clubs and this past spring the company began work on the first production model. “Basically, we thought there was a need in the market for a small machine. We’re already building this util-

ity vehicle for similar needs, just not specifically for the snowmobile trail industry,” says All-Track co-owner and sales manager Tyler Van Megen. “We thought it was a good way to further our product line and possibly get into a market that we see a lot of potential in.” A third generation family-owned company established by Van Megen’s grandfather back in 1968, All-Track produces a number of different tracked vehicles that are used by organizations in the utility, heavy industry and now recreational fields. Van Megan says all of the machines are designed and built to the same heavy-duty standards and most of what’s in them is constructed from the ground up. The new AT-20SG can turn on a dime and can fit into tight spots that larger machines can’t. That, plus the fact it’s much less costly than a full-sized snowcat, will make the AT-20SG an attractive choice for many snowmobile clubs, says Van Megen. “It’s a machine that’s filling a niche that used to be filled by the old Bombardier Bombi,” he explains. “There

are a lot of clubs out there that either can’t afford a brand new full-scale groomer or their trails aren’t wide enough for a full-scale groomer, so they’re looking for a well-built, smaller machine that’s designed for their compact trails.” According to Van Megan, there’s no other snow grooming machine quite like the AT-20SG being built in North America. “It’s not a hobby machine,” he says. “It’s a full industrial piece of equipment, it’s not a recreational piece of equipment that’s been modified for industrial use.”

Feedback Incorporated in Design Van Megen says the first production vehicle is being delivered as a demo unit to the Calgary Snowmobile Club and will be ready to start grooming trails after the first snow flies. He adds a number of changes have been made to new producSNOW GROOMING

NEW GROOMING CHOICE

The first production model of AT-20SG being built at All-Track headquarters in Calgary, Alberta.

tion model as a result of feedback from industry experts with snowmobile clubs in the United States and Canada. Important new features include an eight-way U-blade with float capability as well as two rear hydraulic ports for hooking up to snow grooming drags. The AT-20SG production model is

also packing a more powerful motor, an 85-horsepower turbo-diesel engine from Yanmar. “We’ve increased the engine horsepower from 60 to 85 horsepower…to give it higher speeds while towing a drag,” says Van Megen, adding the additional power enables the machine

HAVE IT

November 2015 | snowgroomingmag.com

The AT-20SG is powered by an 85-horsepower turbo-diesel engine from Yanmar.

to pull heavy-duty, multi-blade drags weighing up to 2,500 pounds. “It has a really high torque drive so as far as towing drags and stuff it will be far superior to a sled-based platform. You’ll have more power to tow larger drags,” Van Megen says. Another difference between the AT-

NEW GROOMING CHOICE 20SG and other smaller scale grooming machines is durability. Because it’s built to the same standards as fullsized groomers, it’s less likely to break down than a typical sled, Van Megen says. Another new offering on the AT20SG are paddle tracks specifically designed for on-snow use, which provide reduced ground pressure and a more stable ride in the snow. “With the tracks we have two options,” says Van Megan. “We offer a wider base machine with the wide track [which] grooms out to six and a half feet wide. We also still maintain that five-foot wide machine for people looking to groom the really narrow trails.” In addition to navigating tight spaces, the AT-20ST can traverse even the most treacherous terrain. It’s this maneuverability that provides a distinct advantage over larger snow grooming vehicles, notes Van Megen. “The biggest thing is being able to get into the narrow trails to groom as well as for transport,” he says, adding clubs in Michigan and elsewhere have

Because we’re a Canadian manufacturer and with the currency exchange right now, it makes it very economical to buy a machine from us if you’re a U.S. snowmobile club.” expressed interest in the new All-Track machine because their trails often go through private lands and have to conform to maximum trail widths (usually less than six feet). The AT-20SG’s compact size also means it’s relatively easy to transport. “Being only five feet wide with the narrow configuration, [it] can fit on most car trailers,” says Van Megan “It’s also fairly lightweight. Being 6,000 pounds, you can tow it with just about any truck.” Van Megan notes All-Track will begin selling the AT-20SG factory direct,

with the aim of eventually establishing a network of dealers in the U.S. “Geographically, probably the largest market we see is in the Upper Midwest and Northeastern U.S. There seems to be a lot of places there, especially in Michigan area where we’ve had contact from snowmobile clubs who are looking for a small compact machine for trail grooming use,” he says. “Because we’re a Canadian manufacturer and with the currency exchange right now, it makes it very economical to buy a machine from us if you’re a U.S. snowmobile club.”

1 RISK RISK Management SoLUTIONS

1 RISK

SNOW GROOMING

Planned maintenance can help extend the life of bearings and the snow grooming equipment they are a part of. The vice president of a Bostonbased bearings supply company explains why.

By Jim Timlick

earings can have a huge impact on the equipment used to make and groom snow and the people who operate these machines. Whether it’s the air compressors, pumps and cooling fans found in fan guns or the engine, transmission, hydraulic pumps and steering mechanisms found in snow grooming equipment, bearings are essential to their operation. A bearing is a mechanism that enables rotational or linear movement along a rotating shaft, reducing friction in the moving parts of a mechanical device and enhancing the speed

and efficiency with which it operates. While most non-mechanics may rarely see an actual bearing, their impact can be felt by anyone when one fails. Misdiagnosing a mechanical problem can mean spending enormous amounts of money to fix the problem, when all that might be needed is a new bearing that can be purchased at a fraction of that cost. So how do you know when it’s time to time to replace the bearings in a snow grooming vehicle or a fan gun? Are there any outward signs or discernable noises that might tip you off about an impending problem before it happens? An expert with Emerson

November 2015 | snowgroomingmag.com

Bearing, a bearings supply company based in Boston, Massachusetts, says: Not necessarily. Steve Greene is vice president of Emerson Bearing. His advice to ski hill operators is to ensure bearing inspections are part of their regular off-season maintenance programs. Greene recommends following the manufacturer’s suggestion on when to conduct regular maintenance on bearings as each bearing has a specified number of hours of life. “Working with manufacturers, owners of grooming equipment can get an accurate idea...of when an ideal time to have planned maintenance

GETTING YOUR BEARINGS

Ball bearings are the most familiar type of bearings found throughout snowmaking and snow grooming equipment.

is,” says Greene, whose company has been involved in the snow grooming and snowmaking markets for more than 30 years. “The worst way to do it is wait until the machine breaks. Invariably it breaks during the busiest month of the ski season.” There are essentially three main types of bearings that are in use in snow groomers — ball bearings, roller bearings and bushings. Ball bearings used in groomer applications are designed to accept primarily radial loads, with limited thrust loads acceptable — 10 percent of the maximum radial load is usually acceptable. Roller bearings provide higher

Typically, there is almost no part of a groomer that you can’t service the bearings in. loads capability but at a lower speed. A bushing has no moving parts. A microscopic film of oil riding between the bushing and rotating shaft provides the anti-friction mechanism. Synthetic bushings may be used with or without lubricant depending upon the application.

Greene says the lifespan of a bearing really depends on two factors — how many hours a machine is operating and what types of loads the bearings are dealing with. Similarly, bearings wear differently depending on the circumstances of their use, meaning the same bearing can wear differently unSNOW GROOMING

GETTING YOUR BEARINGS

The maintenance end of the ski industry is in many ways like an apprenticeship program. It’s not something you can just study and learn to do right away. It takes years of experience.

Spherical roller bearings.

Tapered roller bearings.

der different applications. Although bearings do fail from time to time, it’s rarely the fault of the bearing itself. Greene says lubricant failure is typically the most common reason bearings fail. Lubricant failure is generally caused by contamination due to moisture, dirt or the introduction of a different grease than the one it was originally supplied with. Greene says the good news is that bearings have come a long way in that regard over the past few decades, thanks to the introduction of synthetic lubricants that can last two or more times as long as their petroleumbased counterparts in some applications. Greene recommends against relubricating sealed bearings. “When

a sealed for life bearing is manufactured and the lubricant is introduced into the bearing that process is done in a clean room environment where it is virtually impossible that any contaminants are going to be introduced. [That is] nearly impossible to replicate in the field,” he says. Another bit of good news, according to Greene, is that replacing bearings can often be a fraction of the cost of other more costly repairs. “Typically there is almost no part of a groomer that you can’t service the bearings in,” he says. Greene says one of the best things ski hill operators can do when it comes to servicing the bearings in their grooming vehicles is to involve their employees in any training pro-

November 2015 | snowgroomingmag.com

vided by the manufacturers. Most groomer manufacturers conduct regular service-oriented training courses at their facilities. Availing yourself and your employees of that knowledge is far and away the best way to understand how a groomer is supposed to operate and comprehending its service and maintenance requirements, according to Greene. “The maintenance end of the ski industry is in many ways like an apprenticeship program. It’s not something you can just study and learn to do right away. It takes years of experience and requires being around others who are more experienced than you,” he says. “It’s a craft and a trade as much as anything,” Green notes, adding many snowcats and other tracked vehicles have unique features that a mechanic may have not much experience dealing with. “It definitely requires training and that training is readily available. The industry doesn’t keep it a secret.”

GETTING YOUR BEARINGS

Bearing Numbering System There are many different kinds of bearings that come with particular sets of features, which is why a numbering system was devised by the manufacturers who sell the bearings to many different parts distributors. When ordering bearings from your local parts dealer, it could be useful to understand how this numbering system works. The bearing numbering system comprises a descriptive language. The system describes the type of bearing and what its features are and is now standardized by nearly every manufacturer and supplier across the globe. For instance, in a common metric radial ball bearing, the first digit or two of the number describe the engineering style of the bearing. The next digit indicates the relative size of the bearingâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s outside diameter. The last two digits of the number describe the size of the shaft that bearing will fit on.

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SNOW GROOMING

A Winning Team While their formal partnership is relatively new, Prinoth and Snow Park Technologies have been working together for years to develop premier snow groomers dedicated to terrain park and pipe building.

By Mark Halsall

wo years ago, Prinoth and Snow Park Technologies (SPT) forged an official partnership related to the development and marketing of Prinoth snow grooming vehicles dedicated to terrain park and pipe building. Aimed at benefitting ski resort and fleet managers and snow groomer operators throughout the industry, it’s been a winning arrangement by all accounts — but the relationship between one of the premier snowcat manufacturers and the world’s foremost team of freestyle park and pipe innovators actually goes back quite a bit further than that. “Although we use a lot of different tools in our trades, the snowcat is one of the most important tools for what we do when we’re out building terrain parks or event courses,” says Chris Gunnarson, SPT’s founder and president whose company has designed and built hundreds of competition courses. “We’ve been working with Prinoth for a lot of years.” Gunnarson says his team has been loyal Prinoth supporters since SPT began nearly two decades ago. It’s a relationship that even goes back to the Bombardier days (before the Canadian manufacturer’s snow groomer line was acquired by Prinoth). “The regional sales managers from that group…are the same people that we deal with. So as far as relationships go and using those particular machines…it has gone to the very beginning of our careers and the formation of our company,” says Gunnarson.

November 2015 | snowgroomingmag.com

“Even before we had a formalized partnership with Prinoth like we do today, we did work with them on focus groups,” he adds. “Our team would get together with their team and talk about things that would make the machine better, more durable, more conducive for freestyle terrain features. As that process evolved over time, and as Prinoth has been evolving their product offering, the culmination of this today is the Bison XPT.” The Bison XPT was introduced as an evolution to Prinoth’s Bison X terrain park groomer. It features an eye-catching SPT graphics wrap and numerous specially designed features aimed at

A WINNING TEAM enhancing the ability of users to shape and groom the best parks and pipes. “Through that process working with Prinoth to help design park specific machines, it’s not only helped our job at SPT, but it’s helped the industry as a whole [because] resorts that are building terrain parks also have the option to take that same machine and use it for their normal grooming,” says Gunnarson. “Although many resorts buy snow grooming machines specific for terrain park use, not every resort can afford to just spend the type of money it costs to buy a machine dedicated to one purpose. With the Bison XPT, you get a really great parks specific snowcat but it’s also a versatile tool for the rest of the mountain.”

Benefits for Users David Hunter, director of snow grooming sales, North America, for Prinoth, says the company’s ties with SPT have definitely benefitted users. “Overall, the Prinoth/SPT relationship is a special one. It’s a unique opportunity for the

manufacturer to be directly correlated and partnered with a world leader in freestyle events,” he says. “We are continually putting SPT into our vehicles. We make sure we have an open line of communication, so that we’re able to take information from the SPT operators and challenge ourselves internally to come out with things that we listened to that they feel will be important in that freestyle market,” Hunter adds. “If you look at the Bison XPT model that we have which carries the SPT logo on it, you know a lot of features in that cab were generated from the partnership. “They’re running snowcats 24 hours a day for two to three weeks, sometimes a month straight, in building [ features for] things like the Winter X Games and big events like the double pipe, which I think has been a game changer for the style of features at events that SPT has been doing,” he says. “At Prinoth, we see them as someone who is pushing the envelope and…setting the new standard every year as to what’s capable. And we’re proud that our machines are able to be the number one tool that they use to do this outside of their own equipment.” Hunter says there are some important spin-off benefits to

Overall, the Prinoth/SPT relationship is a special one. It’s a unique opportunity for the manufacturer to be directly correlated and partnered with a world leader in freestyle events. – David Hunter

The Bison XPT is the result of the collaboration between Prinoth and Snow Park Technologies Photo: Tom Zikas.

SNOW GROOMING

A WINNING TEAM

A Bison XPT performing a build at the Red Bull Double Pipe 2015 event in Aspen, Colorado in March. Photo courtesy of Tom Zikas.

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the partnership. “Thanks to the Prinoth/SPT relationship, Prinoth has a direct view into the millennial generation and what’s driving their needs. I think that’s a generation and a group that SPT is focused on, and it allows us to stay very youthful on the manufacturing side both from a snowcat features [perspective]…but also from a branding standpoint as well. “The relationship is extremely important to us; it’s something that we’re continuing to look at ways to improve and be more impactful, both for SPT and Prinoth.” Gunnarson believes “it’s a testament to where Prinoth is at in addressing the overall industry, the growing popularity of lot of different types of freestyle terrain use in resorts and the millennial generation that is our next big boom in our industry that is looking for that type of product offering. “The fact that a company like Prinoth is working with a company like SPT to stay in front of that momentum and to keep evolving the equipment, says a lot about where they’re at…[in] viewing the importance of keeping our industry healthy,” Gunnarson says. “To roll that into a partnership where we can work together to try to constantly elevate the level of experience to consumers and professionals makes it pretty fun and pretty unique. “As an industry I think we’re just looking at how to make the on mountain experience continue to be relevant and unique and a great story and a lot of that’s done with machines pushing snow. There’s also a lot more that goes into the thought process on how you get there, so our product partnership with Prinoth is one step in a much bigger strategy to keep skiing and snowboarding awesome and healthy.”

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STONY MOUNTAIN

Small Terrain Park Offers

Big Fun

Stony Mountain was one of the first ski areas in Manitoba on the Canadian Prairies to embrace snowboarding and continues to innovative in its approach to meeting the needs of its clientele. By Jim Timlick

igger isn’t always better when it comes to terrain parks. Stony Mountain Ski Area, located about 15 miles north of Winnipeg, Manitoba on the Canadian Prairies, can attest to that. At 100 feet vertical feet, the Stony Mountain hill is much smaller than what’ll you find at a typical mountain resort in the Rockies. It also encompasses only five square miles of land — and its terrain park makes up slightly more than half of that. But that hasn’t stopped skiers, and more recently snowboarders, from the region from

flocking to Stony Mountain since it opened in 1966. The ski hill is a popular winter destination for families with young children who are learning to ski. It has also become a haven for local snowboarders, leading some to dub it Manitoba’s snowboarding capital. Still, owners Heather CampbellDewar and her husband Gary Dewar admit it can be a struggle at times to keep their clientele happy with the limited resources at their disposal. Campbell-Dewar says the key, especially on the terrain park side of things,

Stony Mountain is particularly popular with families with young children just learning to ski. Camryn Dewar (the owners’ daughter, pictured right) works as a certified ski instructor at the hill and also helps out in the clubhouse’s kitchen.

SNOW GROOMING

STONY MOUNTAIN

The terrain park at Stony Mountain has a variety of features that are changed up and moved during the winter to keep customers happy.

is to be creative in how you deploy those resources. That means regularly moving existing features around and reinventing them throughout the season in an effort to make what’s old seem new again. “You change it up. You don’t want to have it the same way for the whole winter. You’ll move features and change features up. You’ll change where you have them and how you have them wind up,” she says. “It’s kind of like a skateboard park except we can be far more

dynamic.” Campbell-Dewar says she and her husband, who purchased Stony Mountain in 1988, often share information with other smaller hills about what has and hasn’t worked for them. They also seek out input from their customers about what changes they would like to see made and what can be done to enhance their skiing or snowboarding experience. “You don’t have to worry with snowboarders. They give you lots of input. They aren’t afraid to share their opinion,” Campbell-Dewar says, laughing. “It’s pretty direct like ‘I have a great idea for this’ or ‘I have this rail and I’m not using it.’ It gives them a bit of ownership when they know that they can actually say something to you and you’re not a big corporation, you’re the guy behind the counter at the rental shop or the fellow on the Bombardier.”

Gary Dewar uses a Bombardier BR400 to groom the Stony Mountain runs.

November 2015 | snowgroomingmag.com

Limited Budget Another huge challenge for the Stony Mountain owners is ensuring all of their grooming needs can be met on a limited equipment budget. Unlike larger ski areas that might have dozens of pieces of equipment, Campbell-Dewar says she and her husband have far fewer machines to choose form. Gary takes care of all of the facility’s grooming needs on a Bombardier BR400 while an SMI Highland Snowmaker handles the facility’s snowmaking needs. With that limited number of options it means any mechanical breakdown can have a serious impact on operations if it isn’t taken care of quickly. “If it’s going to break down it’s always going to be at the least opportune time,” Campbell-Dewar says, noting that their snow groomer broke down on Dec. 23 last year. “We had to get parts flown in from Calgary. On Christmas Eve I was going to Air Canada cargo to get the [new parts],” she says, adding that by Boxing Day, the machine was back grooming on the hill. Outside of snowmaking and equipment, one of the biggest financial costs for Stony Mountain’s owners is liability insurance. Campbell-Dewar estimates it accounts for as much as 10 to 12 percent of their annual budget even if there are no claims from

STONY MOUNTAIN

One of the rail features at Stony Mountain.

the previous year. “Liability insurance has a really big impact on small areas. It’s a fairly limited number of insurers who will insure ski areas,” she says. Stony Mountain typically employs about 30 staff during the wintertime.

Retaining staff can be challenging, especially when there are opportunities at other larger facilities, but CampbellDewar says many employees often end up coming back to Stony Mountain after trying their luck elsewhere. Finding the right staff can be equal-

ly tough, she adds, because small operations such as Stony Mountain don’t have deep pockets and employees have to be versatile enough to be able handle multiple tasks. “Your staff have to be pretty fleet-footed and be able to do a bunch of different things,” Campbell-Dewar says. Featuring six runs and two rope tows, Stony Mountain is the second longest operating ski area in Manitoba. Campbell-Dewar says their customer base can be broken into two categories — young families with children under the age of eight who are just starting to learn to ski and teenagers, who make up the bulk of terrain park users.

Adding Terrain Park ‘NoBrainer’ Stony Mountain was one of the first ski areas in Manitoba to embrace snowboarding shortly after Campbell-Dewar and her husband took over the park in 1988. At the time, she says, snowboarders were not welcomed at most

SNOW GROOMING

STONY MOUNTAIN local snow parks or had limited access to them. Campbell-Dewar explains the idea of a terrain park seemed like a no-brainer. “A lot of ski areas back then were concerned about what to do with these people who were strapped on one board and not two,” CampbellDewar says with a laugh. “We sort of saw the dynamics and that we were a small hill and terrain parks seemed like one of the trends at the time. If people want to have fun on snow our attitude was who are we to stop them so we embraced it. We never differentiated [between people].” Attitudes about snowboarding aren’t the only thing that has changed since that time. Campbell-Dewar says that with so many new forms of entertainment, from gaming consoles

We sort of saw the dynamics and that we were a small hill and terrain parks seemed like one of the trends at the time. If people want to have fun on snow our attitude was who are we to stop them so we embraced it. to streaming video services and social media, it’s become much more of a challenge to get young people off the couch and onto a ski hill that it was 20 years ago. Stony Mountain has been using that same technology to try and connect

The owner-operators of Stony Mountain Ski Area were quick to embrace snowboarders back in the late 1980s.

November 2015 | snowgroomingmag.com

with a new generation of boarders and skiers. It has an active presence on Facebook and Instagram, where staff regularly interact with customers, and is in the process of creating a new website. It also now offers Wi-Fi at its clubhouse.

MAKING TRACKS Camso (formerly known as Camoplast Solideal) is a world leader in the manufacture of snowmobile tracks.

Making Tracks Camoplast Solideal has a new name, but its commitment to product innovation remains unchanged. By Mark Halsall

ne of the most familiar brands in the snowmobile track manufacturing industry has a new name. Camoplast Solideal Inc., a world leader in the design, manufacturing, and distribution of off-the-road tires, wheels and rubber tracks for the material handling, construction, agricultural and powersports industries, is now Camso. According to Camso’s Vice President Marketing and Communication

Benoît Bessette, the new name underscores not only what the company has accomplished in the 32 years it has been in business and but also where it’s headed — as well as its 100 per cent commitment to the off-the-road product market. “We are a customer-focused, worldclass brand manufacturer and service provider of performance products that meet the mobility needs of the off-theroad vehicle market,” he says. “For us, off-the road is more than a product

category; it’s the way we are.” That commitment is certainly reflected in the company’s history. Camoplast got its start in Quebec, Canada when Normand Carpentier and Michel Lasalle acquired several divisions of Bombardier for the purpose of creating a company to make snowmobile tracks. Camoplast grew organically over time as well as through acquisitions, such as the 1996 purchase of Finnish snowmobile track manufacturer Ske-

CAMSO tracks are found on Arctic Cat snowmobiles as well as those of numerous other manufacturers.

SNOW GROOMING

MAKING TRACKS

For us off-the road is more than a product category; it’s the way we are. – Benoît Bessette Camoplast track systems can transform ATVs and UTVs into snow grooming vehicles, enabling them to be used year-round.

ga. The company forged partnerships with major vehicle and equipment makers such as Arctic Cat, Yamaha, John Deere and Caterpillar, becoming one of the key industry suppliers in the Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) market. The company became Camoplast Solideal in 2010 with the purchase of Solideal, a major player in the manufacture of tires, rubber tracks and wheels for the industrial and construction markets with an extensive business network and strategic locations in rubber-producing regions of Asia. The result of all this is one very large global company. Today, Camso employs more than 7,500 people in its extensive network of manufacturing plants and advanced R&D centres in the U.S., Canada, Europe and Asia. Camoplast tracks are found on many vehicles used throughout the snow sports industry, to groom snowmobile and cross-country ski trails as well as transport staff and equipment at alpine ski operations. Camso is strategic OEM supplier to Arctic Cat, BRP, Polaris and Yamaha Motor Corporation, with more than 90 per cent of the snowmobiles manufactured by these companies equipped with Camoplast tracks. These include snowmobiles designed for utility applications that are often used for snow grooming. In addition, the company is the OEM track supplier to Italy’s Alpina Snowmobiles, which makes snowmobiles

engineered for utility purposes and often used for snow grooming applications. Camso also supplies tracks for the Tucker Sno-Cat, the popular fourtracked articulating over-the-snow vehicle used extensively in snowmobile trail grooming. Camso distributes its products in the track replacement market through a distribution network that spans North America, Europe and Russia, says Bruce Dashnaw, Sales and Marketing Director, Powersports, adding Camoplast tracks are available at retail outlets of powersports products the world over. Camso also manufactures track systems that can also be installed on most popular ATV and UTV brands for snow grooming purposes, providing snowmobile clubs as well as crosscountry ski associations and downhill ski operations with the benefit of being able to use these vehicles year-round. These systems are available at most powersports dealers and agricultural equipment retailers throughout North America. “Camoplast products help these associations, clubs and resorts make the most of their equipment, improving efficiency through improved traction, flotation, stability, and durability,” says Dashnaw. “We are dedicated to being the best partner for those who work and play in the snow.” As an example, he refers to a crosscountry ski operation in Ironwood, Michigan that uses Camoplast tracks

November 2015 | snowgroomingmag.com

installed on a UTV vehicle to groom ski trails “because it reduces costs of operations when compared to other snow grooming equipment. Employees are more efficient and groom for more hours because of the ease of operation the tracks provide.” Clearly, innovative product development and customer satisfaction are key cornerstones of Camso’s business philosophy. The company’s manufacturing facilities are ISO 9000 and ISO 14000 certified, and engineers and technicians at the company’s dedicated technical centers work hard to design, develop and test new products to remain one step ahead of competition. As an example, Dashnaw cites two recently introduced products, the Cobra WT and Cobra SWT snowmobile tracks, which feature lug heights of 1.5 inches and 1.75 inches. “The additional lug height as well as the unique Cobra design allows improved efficiency and lower operating costs,” he says. Also available is a factory pre-studded track that features hundreds of lightweight carbide tipped studs for improved traction and operator confidence when working on ice and hard-packed snow surfaces. Camso’s commitment to innovation and the quality and reliability of products is reflected in the numerous Supplier Recognition Awards it has received from customers. According to Dashnaw, Camso’s powersports business unit recently

MAKING TRACKS

The ICE WideTrack snowmobile track features hundreds of lightweight carbide tipped studs for improved traction and operator confidence when working on ice and hard-packed snow surfaces.

Camoplast headquarters.

won the BRP Gold Award, the Polaris Excellence Award and the Arctic Cat Quality and Delivery Award. Some of the criteria for these prestigious prizes are: the incidence of field warranty issues; implementation of cost reduction initiatives; on-time delivery; and parts-per-million defect rate. “We are very active with our original

equipment customers’ development as well as conducting focus groups and attending major trade show events to network with the users of our products,” says Dashnaw. It’s this feedback, he stresses, that enables Camso to continue innovating and refining its products to keep up with the changing needs of customers.

“Through investment in R&D, Camso has secured many patents that allow us to be unique compared to similar products,” says Dashnaw. “Investing in new technology and continuing to deliver new products allows you to be competitive and meet the needs of the market. Customers have confidence in your products.”

SNOW GROOMING

Cutting Costs The SNOWsat system from the makers of PistenBully enables ski resort managers to realize significant savings on their snowmaking and fleet management budgets. By Mark Halsall

The Diamond Peak Ski Resort at Incline Village near Lake Tahoe, Nevada, is among the alpine resorts that utilize the SNOWsat system for snowmaking and fleet management.

November 2015 | snowgroomingmag.com

CUTTING COSTS

The key to the design of SNOWsat is giving the vehicle operator an easy, automatic tool to make their job more efficient and easier.”

ki resort operators have a number of tools available to help them track snow grooming fleets and as well as others that can assist in snow management. SNOWsat is an integrated-solutions approach that combines both snow and fleet management in one cost-efficient platform. The SNOWSAT system, which is produced by PistenBully manufacturer Kässbohrer All Terrain Vehicles Inc., includes snow depth measurement and is based on satellite-guided positioning. By using SNOWsat, resort managers can cut back significantly on both their snowmaking and snow grooming vehicle expenses, reducing operating costs by as much as 15 percent. “The key to the design of SNOWsat is giving the vehicle operator an easy, automatic tool to make their job more efficient and easier,” says Steve Rhodes, SNOWsat Coordinator with Kässbohrer. “The SNOWsat product compliments the PistenBully vehicle, to give the vehicle operator snowmaking depths and resort management the tools to cut costs and save money on snowmaking and vehicle budgets.” “With the ski resort operator’s unique needs, we want to offer the ability to analyze the data together as SNOW GROOMING

CUTTING COSTS

Screen shot illustrating groomed runs ready for resort guests.

one software product.“ That’s the huge benefit [to] see it all with one screen,” he says, “[and] it’s one less program that we all have to learn.” Machines equipped with the SNOWsat have a ‘black box’ that records vehicle data that is transmitted via WiFi to a server in the ski resort. In addition, the system uses GPS technology to generate highly accurate (to within two inches), survey-quality snow depth information. With the in-cab SNOWsat touchscreen, snowcat drivers get all the information they need at a glance. In addition to

“The last thing we all want to see are large snowmaking piles six weeks after closing. This represents a large amount of snowmaking cash that SNOWsat can help minimize by saving electricity, water and labor for the resort operator.” the map of the ski resort, the system also displays current snow depth and important information such as the location of slope edges, anchor points, snowmaking equipment, lifts, roads and paths, buildings and dangerous areas like cliffs. In addition, the driver can easily switch between a display of snow depth and vehicle traffic routes.

Individually Tailored Solution The SNOWsat system can be individually tailored for slope management and/or complete fleet management. According to Rhodes, nearly any defined area can be named, sorted

November 2015 | snowgroomingmag.com

The SNOWsat touchscreen in a PistenBully 400.

and displayed in list or map form with resort costs to groom the area. Operators can also choose which layers of ski resort infrastructure they would like to view on the touchscreen, assisting them to perform difficult tasks such as locating snowmaking hydrants in a zero visibility storm, Rhodes adds. “To keep the operator’s focus on the grooming of the slope, the touchscreen is equipped with large, easy-to-locate buttons and snow depth display,” he says. Rhodes adds operators can easily customize the screen to their preference and there a number of background displays available, including aerial view, a terrain model or topographical lines. “A detailed map view of the ski slope snow depth can pinpoint precisely where to spend your snowmaking resources wisely. With this ability, it is also easy to identify deep deposits of snow near small to medium thin areas, and the grooming crew can move the existing snow, thus minimizing snowmaking costs further,” says Rhodes. He adds that knowing how deep the snow is that they’re pushing can be a great benefit for groomer operators early season. One pushing pass tells them precisely how much snow is in a pile, saving operators the time and trouble of having to estimate snow depth through multiple passes. “With daily ski resort snow depth data, the resort operator has the ability to move the existing snow to more evenly cover the slopes. This is especially valuable if, for example, the resort receives two to three weeks of warm weather in January and February,” says Rhodes. “Snow farming for a spring terrain park is also made easy with calculated cubic feet of snow available and where is the most efficient location to push it from.” During late season is March and April when snowmaking is done for the year, “the resort has the information [it needs} to move the snow to possibly achieve one or two more weeks of revenue for all departments,” Rhodes adds. “The last thing we all want to see are large snowmaking piles six weeks after closing. This represents a large amount of snowmaking cash that SNOWsat can help minimize by

CUTTING COSTS

Screen shot illustrating snow depth.

saving electricity, water and labor for the resort operator.” Rhodes notes that “as years of snow depth data is saved on the resort server, this historical data can quickly be compared to where our snowpack is today to also make proper snowmaking planning to offer skiing guests a great product up through closing day.”

Increased Efficiency The analysis software used with SNOWsat also enables ski resort fleet managers to access diverse information to assist in decision making. By optimizing workflows and vehicle routes, for example, managers can increase efficiency and also reduce fuel consumption, resulting in lower operating costs. “The fleet management portion of the SNOWsat product tracks a vehicle’s horizontal GPS location plus multiple vehicle sensors to easily give the ski resort the ability to identify cost-savings areas,” says Rhodes. Examples include tracking the time, fuel and cost used to build a half pipe or groom an individual ski slope or a lift ramp.

Screen shot showing a comparison of daily vehicle fuel consumption.

Rhodes says the company is pleased to report it has just completed a deal with Jiminy Peak Mountain Resort in Hancock, Massachusetts, to install a SNOWsat system there. While alpine ski resorts are the primary market for SNOWSAT, “we’re also beginning to sell some to Nordic cross-country ski resorts too,” Rhodes says. He adds the system can be installed in all PistenBully models, and it’s also been installed in other makes of snow groomers from other resorts with mixed fleets. “The universal design of our GPS differential snow depth honestly makes it possible to work in anything from my pickup truck to a piece of heavy equipment,” Rhodes says. According to Rhodes, those operating machines equipped with SNOWsat have the ability to monitor other similarly equipped vehicles at a ski resort. “If an operator is not responding, the location of their vehicle is displayed to others within UHF radio range,” he says. “Touchscreen-equipped vehicles also have the ability to see winch ropes out on the mountain from other vehicles to avoid an accident.”

MORE ONLINE!

See more about PistenBully at snowgroomingmag.com/listing/ pisten-bully-usa-52b8d88d60c41.html

SNOW GROOMING

Tracking Snow Grooming Equipment AtlasTrax is a Canadian asset monitoring solutions company that’s making it easier for snow sports and recreation groups to keep tabs on their grooming vehicles, thanks to a GPS tracking unit that can fit in the palm of your hand. By Jim Timlick

he same technology that’s been used to track fishing fleets and pleasure boats is now being used to monitor snow grooming equipment at a growing number of winter retreats in Canada. Based in Ottawa, Ontario, AtlasTrax is an asset monitoring solutions company that provides satellite-tracking services for pleasure boat operators and fishing fleets in Florida and the Caribbean. Partners Fred Marsh and Jean-Francois Farjon decided a few years ago to expand the company’s focus to include the winter sports market after being approached by a snowmobile club in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador to help track its fleet of snow grooming machines. Test results were so positive AtlasTrax now provides its tracking services to snowmobile clubs throughout Newfoundland and Ontario and it recently signed a contract in Saskatchewan. Its services have also generated considerable interest among ski hill and cross-country trail operators in Canada as well as south of the border in the United States. Marsh, AtlasTrax’s CEO, says the technology used to track snow grooming machines and their operators is nearly identical to that used to monitor boats. A small 3.25 by 6.5-inch satellite-based tracking unit known as GroomTrax is attached to the top of a snow

November 2015 | snowgroomingmag.com

grooming vehicle. The unit sends out location messages every five or 10 minutes via satellite, which are then relayed back to the company’s land-based computer network. That information is then overlaid on a computer-generated map which customers can view by logging onto a website and track exactly which locations their groomers have been to. It also provides a time stamp at each location, the speed the groomer was travelling at and its current heading. Marsh says what sets the system apart from other GPSbased tracking systems is that it will operate in virtually any location in any conditions. Unlike cellular-based technology which can be ineffective in mountainous regions, the AtlasTrax unit can transit a satellite signal from anywhere on the globe.

Increased Efficiency One of the biggest advantages to using the tracking system, according to Marsh, is that it allows ski hills, snowmobile clubs and cross-country groups to more effectively deploy both their human and mechanical resources. “A supervisor can see a groomer operator has spent X number of hours on this particular slope, but their main slope over here needs more attention and all the other groomers are otherwise busy so they can reallocate some

TRACKING EQUIPMENT

A GroomTrax tracking unit attached to the top of a snow grooming vehicle.

of those people over to different hills,” he says, adding the system has actually allowed some operations to reduce the number of grooming machines they require. The unit can be a groomer’s best friend in times of trouble. The system enables supervisors to determine if a groomer being tracking on the map hasn’t moved from a particular location for an undue length of time. They can then dispatch someone out to check out the situation firsthand if they decide it’s warranted. “When a groomer breaks down there’s no heat and if its -35 C (31 F) outside and blowing snow it’s not a great place to be,” Marsh says. The tracking unit can operate in almost any temperature, from -40 C (-40 F) in northern Ontario to 40 C (104 F) in southern Florida. It’s also designed to prevent moisture damage from snow or water. “We’ve had them in service for over three years now in various parts of the world and we’ve never had a unit fail because of the weather,” says Marsh, whose company also has an office in Deerfield Beach, Florida. “If they are sealed up properly we’ve never had one fail because of the weather.” The GroomTrax unit, which is manufactured by Globalstar, sells for just under CA$400 while messaging plans range in price between $150 and $300 per year depending on the type of plan a user signs up for. AtlasTrax also pro-

“We’ve had them in service for over three years now in various parts of the world and we’ve never had a unit fail because of the weather.” vides rental packages for smaller organizations that include both the cost of GPS unit and messaging service.

Minimal Power Requirements The unit requires a minimal amount of power to operate. Four AA lithium batteries are usually enough to power it for an entire winter. It automatically turns on as soon as it senses the vibrations from the groomer and immediately begins searching for GPS points. The unit can tell if the groomer is on but not moving and will stop sending location messages until the groomer starts moving again. Marsh says GroomTrax operates in near real time and there is very little lag between the moment a message is SNOW GROOMING

TRACKING EQUIPMENT

This computer-generated map showing a snow groomer’s route was produced by the AtlasTrax tracking system

sent and its location appears on a digital map. The map can show the location of a single groomer or as many as a grooming organization may have in service. There is no limit on the number of snow grooming vehicles that can be tracked at one time, since it’s a cloud-based system.

The system is also easy to use. All users have their own ID and passwords to log into the system. Once users are signed into the system, a map shows them where each of their grooming machines has been at five- or 10-minute intervals with an arrow pointing to each location. A simple click on an arrow allows them to access the speed of the grooming machine, its heading and the condition of the unit’s battery. Marsh says some user groups prefer to receive raw data while others ask for it to be aggregated so that it can be shown to funding authorities. The system has proven extremely popular with snowmobile clubs. Last winter the Ontario Federation of Snowmobile Clubs had GroomTrax units on all of its 364 groomers. The Saskatchewan Snowmobile Association recently signed a five-year agreement with AtlasTrax and Marsh says the company expects to lock up deals with organizations in several other Canadian provinces this year. However, Marsh stresses the system isn’t just for snowmobile clubs. He says it’s equally effective on ski hills and cross-country trails and can provide valuable tracking information that can help optimize the use of snow grooming equipment. Marsh adds it can also simplify payroll by helping those in the accounting departments better track the time put in by snow groomer operator on the trails or the slopes.

Do you know where your equipment is at all times? AtlasTrax will give you live data on any equipment from groomers to snowmobiles. Our self-contained tracking units operate for a full season without the need for wiring, battery replacement or operator attention. Customizable reports and maps are available through a web portal.

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November 2015 | snowgroomingmag.com

INVENTIVE SNOW PRODUCTS

Inventive Snow Products Offered by 4 Pine Design

How a Colorado companyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s innovative features are helping make terrain park management easier and less costly. By Jim Timlick

nstalling and maintaining terrain park features can be a timeconsuming and labor-intensive process for even the most experienced park operator. An Avon, Colorado-based company is offering a new generation of snow products it says can seriously reduce the amount of energy and resources required to do the job.

4 Pine Design, a freestyle snow product design and steel fabrication company, has been making a name for itself thanks to its original product designs including everything from rails and boxes to state-of-the-art box tops and jumps that incorporate synthetic snow surfaces. The company has contracts with terrain parks across the United States, most notably with Jack-

son Hole Mountain Resort in Wyoming. 4 Pine was founded by former pro snowboarder Stephen Laterra six years ago. Laterra began working as

Former pro snowboarder Stephen Laterra founded 4 Pine Design six years ago.

SNOW GROOMING

INVENTIVE SNOW PRODUCTS

Stephen Laterra fabricating a feature.

a terrain park designer in 1998 while he was still riding competitively. He quickly determined he’d had enough of the same old, same old. “The main thing right from the be-

ginning that I wanted to do was really be original with the layout, especially with the rails,” says Laterra, who began working as a terrain park designer at Vail Ski Resort. “Rather than going

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November 2015 | snowgroomingmag.com

for quantity I went for originality and just tried to give the park its own identity.” That desire to be different led him to form 4 Pine and has been a major influence on all of the products it manufactures. One of the company’s most popular products has been its innovative rails. Unlike traditional rails that have feet or long legs requiring a large amount of snow to keep them in place, 4 Pines’ rails are designed with a keel along the base. Laterra says the innovative design means about 60 percent less snow is required to install his rails. It also means the snow doesn’t have to be nearly as deep as with most traditional rails. Each of rail ends is angled inward where it attaches to the keel. This means the base is located further back from the front of the rail and far below the surface of the snow. The real beauty of the design, according

INVENTIVE SNOW PRODUCTS to Laterra, is that it makes the job of groomer operators far easier because it allows them to get much closer to the rail without fear of damaging it or their equipment. “The idea with this system is the operator really only has to focus on where the wingtips on the end of his blade are and where he’s going and what’s in front of him. He doesn’t have to be looking down, trying to see the bottom of his blade and the tracks to see where are the ends of the rail,” Laterra says. “Each end is angled inward so it almost resembles the end of a boat. This allows the operator to set his blade or tiller at the rail for grooming without having to worry what’s at the base of the rail. There’s nothing at the base of the rail to bump his tiller into or the teeth of his blade when he goes in. He can lead his blade right into the rail without having to worry about damaging the frame or his teeth.” Another plus with his company’s

I S

A 4 Pine 20-foot flat rail with patent pending keel system and floating plastic side panels being installed at Vail Mountain Resort in Colorado.

rails, Laterra says, is there is far less work for a park’s hands crew. Because groomers can get much closer to the rails there is much less snow for crew members to have to shovel.

Y O U R

P A R K

Easy Installation The rails are also much easier to install than most other rails, according to Laterra. One person can prep, set, install and remove a rail by himself or

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Stephen Laterra alongside a 4 Pine C-Box with patent pending floating panel top sheet at Vail Mountain Resort.

The main thing right from the beginning that I wanted to do was really be original with the layout, especially with the rails.

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herself compared to traditional rails which can require a crew of as many as four people to set up. 4 Pines’ boxes feature the same angled edges as the company’s rails. Laterra says the design was influenced by his experiences as a rider. While most of the resorts he visited were five star, their terrain parks ratings were far lower. The bottom of his board would often be damaged by the screws and bolts that were used to hold the tops of boxes in place. His patent pending design uses a frame that attaches to the side of the box and holds the top in place without the need for any kind of bolts or screws. The frame allows the plastic top to expand and contract depending on changes in the temperature without it rippling or warping. “It’s the same materials that are used by everyone else. It’s the method of construction that’s completely different,” Laterra says. A full-sized box can measure 20 feet by 18 inches by 18 inches. Its lightweight design, which incorporates mild steel, makes it much easier to lift and move than most boxes. “It’s very easy for one or two people to prep and set and transport a box. They’re light enough to be towed by a snowmobile,” Laterra says. “And the angled ends of the rail on the boxes allow the maintenance crew to easily and properly lift the box because they can get their knees underneath and lift with their legs.”

INVENTIVE SNOW PRODUCTS

Despite their lightweight designs, Laterra says his company’s box features are as durable as anything on the market. If fact, he says they can last as much as 40 or 50 percent longer than other similar products if they are properly maintained.

Synthetic Snow Surface 4 Pines has also recently begun working with PowderPAK, a company that

produces a high-quality, synthetic snow surface out of Atlanta, Georgia that is made out of high-density polyurethane. It is using the synthetic surface in both its ramps and box tops. Laterra says the material is ideal for ramps because it dramatically reduces the cost of maintenance. “You don’t need someone with their rakes their all day maintaining a ramp. It stays the same all day long. This allows for the instructor to have

a product that has a uniform surface from the first run of the day until the last run of the day [and] from the first day of the week until the last day of the week,” he says, adding the ramps are ideal for snow schools because students don’t have to deal with the variables involved in using a snow-shaped ramp. All photos by Sean Boggs.

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MAKIN’ SNOW T H E S N O W M A K I N G M A G A Z I N E T H AT CO N N E C T S

NOVEMBER 2015

1ST ISSUE LATEST EQUIPMENT

ARTICLES ON SNOWMAKING

ANNUAL SNOWMAKING MAGAZINE G!

Fire Technology 46 Rapid By Mike Stimpson

36 State-of-the-Art Snowmaking By Mike Stimpson

of Tower 43 Power By Mike Stimpson

By Mike Stimpson

By Mark Halsall

& Valves 49 Hydrants for Every Snowmaker

40 Maximum Snowmaking

Kamila i Wojtek Cyganek / Shutterstock.com

THE

NEW TECHNOLOGY

t r A e h t f o e t a t S g n i k a m w o n S

By Mike Stimpson

ature can be so uncooperative with ski resorts. Winters can start late, end early, or be punctuated by stretches of “unseasonably warm” days that melt away snow. A lack of or interruptions in good ski conditions due to these factors can cut into revenues – sometimes greatly. Ski resorts have responded to Nature’s capricious character and a steadily growing demand for ski time by making big investments in snowmaking systems. Ontario’s Blue Mountain Resort (BMR), located near Lake Huron’s Georgian Bay, has done just that by putting tens of millions of dollars into snowmaking over the last couple of decades. The investment has paid off rather well. “It has put us at the lead of the mar-

ket for being one of the first resorts in the region to open and the last resort to close,” says Steve Spiessman, BMR’s slope and grounds maintenance director. “The snowmaking virtually guarantees us Christmas break and March break business. We can see over the years how it has lengthened our season considerably.” The manmade snow emanates from a system installed by BMR for BMR. It starts with a dual water source: two large reservoirs, built by BMR, near the base of the mountain. Pressurized air and water is sent through BMR pipes to hydrants for the HKD Snowmakers tower guns to work their magic of creating quality white stuff. Spiessman says the resort is transitioning from standard HKD guns to staged guns from the same company.

November 2015 | snowgroomingmag.com

With several sets of differently sized nozzles, staged guns give his snowmaking crew better adaptability with changing weather conditions. Smaller nozzles are used in mild temperatures, larger in colder temps. He says snowmaking system was first installed at BMR in 1972, “when we realized there was a market for it.” The system has grown “quite significantly” since then in response to unpredictable winters and climate warming, he adds. He estimates $30 million has been invested in the system in the last 20 years.

Installed by BMR BMR consulted engineers but all of the installation labor was in-house, Spiessman says. The system’s 33 miles

STATE-OF-THE-ART SNOWMAKING

Blue Mountain Ski Season Starts Early with Leading-Edge Snowmaking

“ We can see over the years how it has lengthened our season considerably.”

of below-frostline pipes, four 5,000CFM compressors, 14 1,000-gallonsper-minute water pumps, hydrants, cables, and more than 400 HKD stationary tower guns were all put in by BMR staff. Every pump and every air compressor is driven by an electric motor, for which the resort has a highly reliable power source: Ontario’s public electricity grid – no on-site generators required. One advantage to all the installation and maintenance work being done by BMR employees is that the resort has considerable in-depth knowledge of all equipment and infrastructure, and is therefore capable of fixing problems quickly rather than waiting for someone to come in for repairs. The BMR team overcame big challenges and “took a lot of initiative to be

on the leading edge,” Spiessman says. “For example, our automation system is completely designed in-house. A lot of ski areas would use an automation system designed by one of the manufacturers of snow guns, but long before the manufacturers were doing automation we were developing it here at Blue Mountain. Our CEO is the designer of our automation system which is covering about 80 percent of our guns on the hill, which means we turn them on with the click of a button.” The automation process began with semi-automation some 20 years ago, he says. “It definitely was leading-edge technology in its time when we had a fully automated system working. The industry has actually been a while catching up with us. “We have a central computerized

station in our snowmaking building. It has a map of the entire grid, and with the click of a mouse we can select gun locations and turn things on and off. As you can imagine with a system our size, one of the most critical parts, particular early season, is making use of short cold windows. Maybe a 12-hour window of minus-4 (Celsius) comes in overnight. We want to be able to make full use of those 12 hours. “We could run 250 guns in ideal conditions. If we were starting that manually, it would take us all 12 hours to get all 250 guns going. Because of the automation system, we can probably start 200 guns in 20 minutes here. It lets us make the most use out of short coldtemperature windows in early season.” Early season at BMR is roughly the first week in December. Spiessman SNOW GROOMING

STATE-OF-THE-ART SNOWMAKING

“Our strategy with snowmaking is to get our snow down fast and furious, and finish our snowmaking season as soon as we can.”

Blue Mountain has invested millions of dollars in its state-of-the-art snowmaking system.

says the crew is typically done with making snow by the end of January, except for “hitting some weak spots” up until ski season closes in April. Public relations manager Tara Lovell points out that BMR’s season normally ends later than that of other resorts in the region. “It’s our goal to have the slopes open for as long as we possibly can,” Spiessman adds. Work in the off season, he remarks, includes “a lot of capital maintenance – taking out old pipe, putting in new pipe, reinstalling hydrants and that

Blue Mountain Resort is located along Georgian Bay northwest of Toronto.

sort of thing, and better developing the hydrant layout on the hills. “Over the years, we’ve focused on gun density – having more guns per acre. We used to put our guns in at 150 feet apart. I think now our standard is 75100 feet, which increases the capacity density on any given part of the trail.” Spiessman says “millions and millions” of gallons of water are used every season for snowmaking on BMR’s more than 360 groomed acres , with volume varying greatly from season to season.

The system can make snow at up to 14,000 gallons per minute. “Our strategy with snowmaking is to get our snow down fast and furious, and finish our snowmaking season as soon as we can. That’s why the capacity is there. When we’re running at capacity, we’re making a foot-acre of snow every 11 minutes.” For more information on Blue Mountain’s ski season, go to youtube.com/ watch?v=PbtCSbkx1hM

Blue Mountain’s Snowmaking System:

•• 33 miles of steel pipe buried beneath the frost line

•• 460 snow guns, including 420 HKD fixed tower guns

•• Four 5,000-CFM air compressors at 150 PSI

•• 10 mobile tower guns

•• 14 1,000-GPM water pumps

•• 25 sled-mounted guns

•• One 44-kilovolt electrical substation, transformation for 15 megawatts

•• Two miles of water pipeline from Georgian Bay

•• Two reservoirs (total capacity: 25 million gallons)

•• Centralized automation

November 2015 | snowgroomingmag.com

•• 6,800-GPM pumphouse transfer station

* Classiieds * Hose Repair * Hot Shot Trucking * Snowmaking Consultation * Contract Grooming & Snowmaking

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SNOW GROOMING

A Titan fan gun, one of DemacLenko’s product offerings and part of the company’s snowmaking solution package.

MAXIMUM Snowmaking

DemacLenko can handle a ski resort’s complete snowmaking needs.

November 2015 | snowgroomingmag.com

MAXIMUM SNOWMAKING

Ski resorts looking for a complete turnkey solution for their snow needs can look no further than DemacLenko. By Mark Halsall

hen it comes to snowmaking, DemacLenko prides itself on being a one-stop shop. The company offers turnkey solutions for ski resorts, handling the planning, development, production and sales of snowmaking systems and infrastructure components. “We can do any way the customer wants,” says Dennis Kinsella, North American sales manager for DemacLenko. “If they are a new resort just getting started or if they are rebuilding or redoing the infrastructure…from start to completion of their project, they can deal with one manufacturer that can engineer their project and oversee the construction and installation of everything.” According to Kinsella, DemacLenko’s strength is being able to design, build and even project manage a resort’s complete snowmaking system — everything from water supply storage and pumping systems to pipelines and snowmaker installations — that’s not only tailored to customer requirements but is ideally suited to the local climate and conditions. “When we say we offer turnkey solutions that means we can go into an existing ski area, evaluate their current snowmaking system, what their needs are, what their goals are, and plan and engineer everything,” Kinsella says. “We can map out the whole mountain and look at what their needs are and what the average temperatures are — that’s how we choose right equipment for the application they want.”

The company also has a strong focus on professional after-sales service, which includes commissioning and maintenance to an emergency field-service response during the season. DemacLenko guarantees reliable customer support and attaches great importance to maintaining an effective service offering throughout the entire useful life of the snowmaking system. The company was formed in 2012 when High Technologies Group (which also owns Prinoth) acquired two longestablished snowmaking companies, the Italy-based Demac and the Swedish firm Lenko. Since then, DemacLenko has expanded globally with a push into the North American market. “In Europe, power is much most costly than it is here in the U.S. so they spend much more in developing energy efficient products. So that’s at the forefront of our R&D,” says Kinsella. “The industry is growing and evolving so much, and everybody is now much more interested in energy savings. We are evolving our products to use less energy to make more snow in marginal temperatures. We do have climatic change going on and we all have to be receptive to it and design our products around that.” Kinsella says Europe also doesn’t allow artificial additives in snow inducers, so another key aspect of DemacLenko is its focus on high-quality products “that perform well in marginal temperatures, that nucleate and can make snow without any additives.” DemacLenko’s commitment to inno-

vation is reflected in primary goals of its R&D department: • Greater energy efficiency based on a perfect balance between output and consumption • Improved snow quality • Increased output at constant snow quality • Snowmaking at higher marginal temperatures • Fan gun noise reductions • Design of increasingly sustainable and eco-friendly snowmaking installations In the interest of their customers’ bottom line, the planning team at DemacLenko maintains a strong focus on cost- and energy-saving products. Careful system design and choice of snow guns and the possible integration of a cooling tower for water delivery at the optimum temperature enables the company to fulfill its promise of fast and efficient snowmaking. DemacLenko’s fan gun offerings have been designed with this focus in mind. “We offer three different models depending on what the ski area’s needs are going to be, and that’s going to be based on electrical consumption, the water availability that they have, and the temperature ranges that they’re working in,” says Kinsella. “It’s just going to depend on whether the ski area wants a fixed tower fan gun or if they want a mobile fan gun.” The Titan fan gun features high snow production and a long throwing range, enabling it to cover large areas in a short period of time. A version of the cannon SNOW GROOMING

MAXIMUM SNOWMAKING

The Titan Silent fan gun features a specially designed barrel that significantly reduces noise.

called the Titan Silent has a specially designed barrel that notably reduces noise, making it particularly well suited for use in populated areas, while the Titan X features a multi-nozzle system for maximum results at marginal temperatures and low pressure. A new, 2.0 version of the Titan is touted as most powerful fan gun on the market. According to its designers, the combination of a new fan and longer turbine blades has significantly increased the cannon’s range while lowering sound emissions. The nozzles on the Titan have also been improved, enabling better nucleation in low-pressure conditions. The Ventus fan gun was designed as

The Ventus fan gun offers an optimal price-performance ratio.

a compromise solution with accessible water and energy in mind, making it a great fit for fixed installations and offering an optimal price-performance ratio. DemacLenko’s third fan gun offering, the Evo, is an economical and efficient unit featuring a lightweight, compact design that’s well suited for narrow slopes. Because of their high snow production, easy maintenance and the low energy consumption, DemacLenko lances are highly regarded for their reliability and efficiency. The VisUp snow lance is available in three different configurations (automatic, client, manual) as well as in three different steps of regulation (1, 2

or 4) that have different valves and then as the temperature drops they can add additional water accordingly. DemacLenko is also gearing up to unveil the new Eos lance next year. Featuring an innovative head design and as well as new nucleators and nozzles, the product promises to significantly improve snowmaking quantity and quality. In addition to its European locations, DemacLenko has two facilities in the United States: its operational headquarters in New Hampshire and its administrative/corporate headquarters in Colorado. The company also has a strong network of established dealers and sales partners in the U.S. and in many other areas of the world.

Titan Fan Gun Highlights

Titan

• FRP (Fiberglass composite) barrel with aluminum nozzle ring • Stainless steel water nozzles and brass alloy nucleators • Seven-inch touch screen/user interface with optional usage of an app compatible with smartphones/tablets via wireless connection • Valve unit with self-draining and central water inlet • Oil or oil-free compressor

Titan Silent

• Special silenced barrel • Ventilated weather station • Seven-inch touch screen/user interface with optional usage of an app compatible with smartphones/tablets via wireless connection • Valve unit with self-draining and central water inlet • Oil or oil-free compressor

Titan X

• FRP (Fiberglass composite) barrel with aluminum nozzle ring • Multi-nozzle system • Seven-inch touch screen/user interface with optional usage of an app compatible with smartphones/tablets via wireless connection • Valve unit with self-draining and central water inlet • Oil or oil-free compressor

November 2015 | snowgroomingmag.com

POWER OF TOWER With eight production thresholds, the Taurus 2.0 is great for making snow in marginal temperatures.

Power of Tower Gunlifter and Snow Gun Choices in SUFAG Product Line By Mike Stimpson

t’s easy to understand the appeal of tower guns. With automated controls, a network of tower guns can be utilized to cover a slope with snow in a small fraction of the time it would take to do the job via mobile guns. And that’s important when your window of prime snowmaking temperatures is, say, 10 hours. “There’s a couple of advantages to having a tower,” says the MND Group’s Ed Dietzel. “One is, you have a machine in a fixed location and so you can do remote start and stop from a central

computer. That gives you a real quick startup time. Also, a fixed location tower can be put on terrain where it’s difficult to position a wheel fan gun. Really steep slopes are not the friendliest place to take a machine on wheels. “Typically with a tower gun, it’s so efficient that once you get the right weather you can do minimal hours of snowmaking and then you’re done in that location for possibly the whole season.” Space out the towers at the right intervals and snow groomers’ work will be made easier.

“That’s one of the advantages of a fixed location: It’s set up for quick startup and quick shutdown, and you don’t have to have an operator there to connect the hose.” SNOW GROOMING

POWER OF TOWER

Benefits of the Tower Gunlifter include longer throw distance and better snow distribution.

Mobile fan guns, Dietzel notes, “are getting heavier all the time.” They can be difficult to maneuver on a steep slope, they have to be lifted somehow, and “someone has to hook up the hoses and do all that other stuff.” “In Europe, they mostly use the machines on steep slopes on what they call adjustable legs. They usually don’t have it on wheels. Depending on where they’re putting the fan gun, they can have the legs somewhat adjusted in advance for the pitch of the slope. There are points on the bottom of the legs that help them to dig in [anchor in the ground].” Here in North America, mobile guns are nearly always on wheels, and are therefore prone to moving or rolling away. Another thing fixed towers have in their favor is that they’re always adjacent to basic system needs – electrical supply with adequate voltage and amperage, and water supply. “Typically for a tower, you’re going to have all of that stuff directly connected,” Dietzel remarks. “You have to ensure proper drainage on a tower, so the hydrant’s usually located pretty close to or right next to the tower, so when you shut off the water it drains directly – whereas if you have a machine on legs or wheels, you have a hose that you have to posi-

tion so that it drains effectively, or the operator has to be there immediately on shutdown to drain the hose. “That’s one of the advantages of a fixed location: It’s set up for quick startup and quick shutdown, and you don’t have to have an operator there to connect the hose.” A key reason why some resorts opt not to have towers is, unsurprisingly, money. A fixed tower means a bundle of capital tied up in one spot. “A lot of places say ‘We just can’t dump that kind of money and have it sit in one place. If we buy a fan gun, we need to move it to many different locations and get a lot more use out of it,’” Dietzel says. SUFAG doesn’t make any gun “specifically as a tower gun,” he says. “We have machines that are either on a wheeled chassis or we have an adapter that puts it on the tower itself. So the machines are basically made as wheeled machines and then we adapt it to a tower.” Within the range of SUFAG guns for tower use is the compact (roughly 165 to 330 pounds) Taurus 2.0, which has four nucleator nozzles for snow quality and eight nozzles for adjusting flow according to external temperature. SUFAG says the gun’s eight production thresholds make the Taurus first-rate equipment for marginal temperatures.

November 2015 | snowgroomingmag.com

The company also offers the costefficient FOLK lance, which comes in about the same size range as Taurus models; it has 15 nozzles and three nucleator nozzles, and one automatic and three manual thresholds. Dietzel adds that SUFAG’s accessories line includes the Tower Gunlifter II, “which is a fixed tower with a raiseable platform so you can take a machine on wheels, take off the wheels, mount it on this platform, and then raise it at that location. When you’re done making snow in that location, you can take the snowmaking machine down, put the wheels back on, and move it to another location. “As well, we have what’s called the Tower Swivel Arm, which is set up typically for really steep headwalls or big coverage areas. It’s a hydraulically operated arm that extends the machine out over the trail, and rotates up and down. The machine can be removed from that and then converted back to a wheeled machine.” The Gunlifter and Swivel Arm present alternatives to the common North American setup in which resort operators “mount the machine on the tower and it stays there in a fixed location,” he remarks. Lift towers are common offerings of European manufacturers but

POWER OF TOWER

“When you’re done making snow in that location, you can take the snowmaking machine down, put the wheels back on, and move it to another location.” SUFAG’s Access fan gun comes in two versions: 32 nozzles or 300 nozzles.

MORE ONLINE! haven’t caught on in North America yet. The SUFAG Tower Gunlifter has a load capacity of 1,500 pounds and a height of 16 or 22 feet. The Swivel Arm has a full 360-degree horizontal swivel field and can handle a workload of up to approximately 2,000 pounds. SUFAG products are all developed in Europe. The MND (Montagne et Neige Développement) Group acquired Snownet in 2013 to add the SUFAG and Areco brands to a snowmaking portfolio that already included Snowstar products. SUFAG fan guns are manufactured in Sweden at the former Areco facility. Jay Bristow, general manager of MND America, says acquisition of Snownet brought “fresh impetus to the MND Group’s snowmaking activity, confirming its position as a world leader in the field.” In 2014 SUFAG combined the products of Areco, SUFAG and Snowstar to offer what it declares is “the most comprehensive range of snowmaking solutions on the market.” The MND Group has American offices in Pennsylvannia, Colorado and Utah. For more information on the Taurus 2.0, go to sufag.com/en/products/ taurus-2-0-2/

See more about SUFAG at snowgroomingmag.com/listing/ sufag-snowmaking-55541de564e90.html

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SNOW GROOMING

Rapid Fire Technology Utah Company Develops Innovative Hydrant/Automation Package By Mike Stimpson

November 2015 | snowgroomingmag.com

RAPID FIRE TECHNOLOGY

aving radically changed how snow is made, a Utah company has turned its attention to building the better hydrant. The results have been impressive. Snow Logic Inc., headquartered in Salt Lake City, was founded a half-dozen years ago by Australian expatriates Mitch Dodson and Euan Gronow. Dodson, an affable guy who projects a scholarly appearance with his dark-framed glasses and confident demeanor, came to the United States with a background in ski field management at a resort in Australia. His first order of business with Snow Logic was building a better low-energy snowmaker. “We went back to the drawing board of looking at the process of how snow is made,” he says, “and we were able to come up with patent-pending technology that ski resort operators will benefit from.” Snow Logic guns deliver better snowmaking via, among other things, improved nucleation and patented Dual Vector nozzles. The Snow Logic nucleation system has lower energy requirements than other systems at all steps, resulting in (according to the company) “the lowest cost per foot-acre of snow in North America.” The nozzles are capable of flow rates of 120 gallons per minute and throws upwards of

100 feet. What’s more, Snow Logic guns can be fully customized to meet each operator’s needs. “How could you not buy in on that technology?” a user at Deer Valley Resort asks rhetorically in a Snow Logic promotional video. (The Utah resort hosted Snow Logic’s initial test runs of Dual Vector Technology and was one of Snow Logic’s first customers.) As a follow-up, Dodson has developed Rapid Fire Technology – “the first portable battery-operated automation/ hydrant package.” He says the system was developed to overcome barriers to automation at some locations where cost and “restraints in infrastructure” (in particular, a lack electrical outlets) stood in the way of automation. “We set out to answer how everybody could afford to have automation,” he explains. First, he developed a hydrant that handles both air and water at once. Furthermore, he set out to reduce the torque required to activate the hydrant. The result was, in Dodson’s words, “a new style of hydrant” that is hydraulically balanced for a reduced torque requirement. Hydraulically balanced means there’s no great force pushing to one side, which in turn means there’s less resistance to counteract and thus less power required to open or shut the hydrant. Plus, Dodson says, “you don’t have a potential issue of where the shafts have released and shot out of the hydrant under force.” In short, hydraulic balance delivers considerable benefits in energy efficiency and safety. A lower energy requirement was es-

sential to going battery-operated. Because relatively little force is required to open and close the valve, the actuator doesn’t need more than battery power to be operated. That means the rotary actuator can be mobile since it doesn’t need electrical outlets wherever it’s taken. A self-contained sealed box, it can be moved to different locations “and there’s no infrastructure required,” Dodson remarks.

Since it’s portable, you won’t need one actuator for each tower or gun. A single actuator can be taken to several different spots in succession to get the snowmaking going. Buying considerably fewer actuators will save a resort quite a lot in capital spending. Dodson describes an actuator succinctly as “a motor with intelligence on board.” Snow Logic’s radio-controlled actuators are used to turn a hydrant’s drive stem to open and close. “Each one of the actuators has a radio on board and we’re able to communicate with each actuator independently to either turn the hydrant on or off or to move the gun control,” he explains. Hydraulic balance and low energy requirements aren’t the only noteworthy features of Rapid Fire Technology.

SNOW GROOMING

RAPID FIRE TECHNOLOGY

Rapid Fire Features •• Battery powered/solar charged •• Portable actuators, repeaters and weather stations •• Communication via radio or fixed landline •• Web-based software •• Can be retrofitted to Dual Vector Technology already in the field •• Hydraulically balanced, safer than traditional hydrants •• Auto drains to prevent freezing “The other thing with the Rapid Fire hydrant,” Dodson adds, “is it integrates the water and the air hydrant into one, so one single actuation opens the air and then opens the water. You don’t have to have two actuators, one for the air and one for the water. We combine both the air and the water into one hydrant.”

s n o w m a k i n g

Rapid Fire is the end result of much work at the Salt Lake facilities where Snow Logic equipment is manufactured. “We’ve been developing this for about a year and a half now,” says Dodson. “We’ll try it in the Park City area in Utah, at Deer Valley.” After the Deer Valley pilot installation and a little fine tuning, “we’ll roll it out from there.” Not that many in the industry haven’t already seen Rapid Fire Technology. “We’ve shown it at National Ski Areas Association shows and the Canada West trade show, and we’ve talked to all the people we supply,” Dodson declares. “Everybody’s really excited about it. We had a very good demonstration at Sunday River in Maine, where we tested it for the first time. Everybody’s really excited about the technology.” As Dodson told Snow Grooming Magazine earlier, getting a handle on energy expenses is a key for ski resorts. “How do you manage that cost and still be sustainable? Our technology fits into that nicely.” Snow Logic, the little company founded by two Australians in Salt Lake City

T e c h n o l o g i e s

November 2015 | snowgroomingmag.com

just a few years ago, seems to have fit nicely into its industry, even against much bigger and much more established competitors. Rapid Fire Technology is the latest step in the company’s development, and Dodson seems convinced it will prove to be a great big step forward.

HYDRANTS AND VALVES FOR EVERY SNOWMAKER

Hydrants & Valves for EVERY Snowmaker By Mike Stimpson

hen a city fella says “hydrant,” he means fire hydrant – one of those red or yellow things protruding from the ground for firefighters to use (but hopefully never at your home). People in the business of making snow, on the other hand, know hydrant is just a word for an upright pipe with a valve. They know hydrants as critical parts of snowmaking apparatus, and they know Roger’s Hydrant Company as a trusted supplier of those parts. “Essentially it’s a water pipe and valve,” Bob Vandepas of Roger’s Hydrant Company says when asked what a hydrant is. “It delivers water and controls the flow.” He adds that what makes a hydrant for snowmaking different from other hydrants is that, first of all, “it’s got to be freezeless.” The water can’t freeze up, so it’s important to have water drain out when the machine is shut off. “In our case,” he continues at his office in Colorado Springs, Colorado, “with our products there’s a spring-

Roger’s has a good, solid customer base because of the reliability of our product. loaded mechanism that closes the drain when there’s internal pressure and opens it when the pressure is off.” The Roger’s hydrant for underground snowmaking systems has automatic draining with several drain holes, not just one, so that the water empties quickly and there is minimal plugging. Internal pressure ranges from approximately 400 pounds per square inch to well over 1,000 psi in some snowmaking systems. A hydrant has just a few basic parts. Starting at the bottom, attached to the water pipeline, there’s the valve. In hydrants from Roger’s, the valve is where the “flow controller” is.

Every hydrant from Roger’s has a large handle that is easily adjusted, even when covered with ice.

SNOW GROOMING

HYDRANTS AND VALVES FOR EVERY SNOWMAKER

In this cross-cut image, the valve’s white Flow Controller is in the “closed” position.

The flow controller is a unique component of Roger’s hydrants – an ingenious mechanism which moves up and down in the valve to shut water supply off and (when water supply is on) regulate the flow from just a little to full bore. The flow controller allows a little or a lot of water flow to come through depending on how much it is opened. In partially open positions, the flow controller offers the water sup-

Here the Flow Controller is partially open to allow water flow.

ply small gaps to pass through. The gaps are widened as the controller is opened more, up to the full open position in which maximum water flow is allowed. In fully closed position, the flow controller is pressed firmly on the seat of the valve to block water from entering the hydrant. Flow controllers are designed for pressure ratings of from 400 to 1,200 psi. Besides the flow controller, the valve also has a drain for releasing

November 2015 | snowgroomingmag.com

water when the hydrant is turned off. That’s important because otherwise still water could freeze and block up the valve and hydrant. Next up from the valve is a riser pipe that provides the length of the hydrant, and then the hydrant’s “elbow” or outlet where the water hose is attached via a hose coupling. Then, of course, there’s a handle to turn for more or less water (or none at all) to come out.

HYDRANTS AND VALVES FOR EVERY SNOWMAKER

This Roger’s AG valve has a bronze-alloy body, stainless-steel stem and aluminum handle.

It’s all fairly simple stuff and seems unsophisticated except for the cleverly designed flow controller. The crucial part of getting the right hydrant lies in getting one sturdy enough to handle the flow rate your snowmaking system needs. Length and pressure are also important: How much pressure can it handle? Does that match your operation’s needs? Vandepas notes that you might also want to consider how deep into the ground the hydrant will be set. There’s another factor that’s absolutely critical: reliability. As in every industry, there’s no substitute for quality. “Roger’s has a good, solid customer base because of the reliability of our product,” Vandepas says. “Hydrants all serve the same function, so reliability and trust are crucial determining factors in deciding where you want to get your hydrants from.” A hydrant from Roger’s is simple, reliable and sturdy and doesn’t require much maintenance, he declares. He says the company’s unique flow controllers set Roger’s apart from the competition by allowing for more ad-

justment in the flow rate. Also, the flow controller allows for a smoother adjustment of flow, without the vibration that can cause breakage. Vandepas says their products won’t vibrate when open, and the stem won’t break. Another advantage to a Roger's hydrant is that its large handle is easily gripped for flow adjustment even when ice-covered. The rugged aluminum handle is also easy to remove so as to prevent inadvertent or unauthorized valve adjustments. The valve stem is made of stainless steel with Teflon packing. Vandepas points out that high-pressure hydrants from Roger’s have stainless steel valve seats for greater durability. A Roger’s hydrant’s tapered-seat valve seals tight and can be closed or opened easily under high water pressure with six to eight turns from closed to open position. The bronze alloy valve body is stronger and sturdier than ordinary bronze. All hydrants from Roger's are custom-assembled to your specifications. Internal parts are serviceable from above ground, so you can forgo cost-

ly and time-consuming excavation should a hydrant require servicing. The company also offers valves separately – that is, without the length of pipe that makes a hydrant. Each valve is made of the same stuff as Roger's hydrants: a bronze alloy for the body, stainless steel for the stem, and solid aluminum for the removable handle. As well as water hydrants and valves, Roger’s Hydrant Company makes air hydrants. The world’s leading manufacturer of hydrants for snowmaking, Roger’s Hydrant Company was founded in Vermont in 1981 as Rogers Corporation. It grew in reputation and size in the ensuing 28 years with burgeoning international sales before the company was purchased by Colorado-based WCM Industries, a manufacturer of hydrants for other applications. WCM and Roger’s Hydrant Company are now both headquartered in Colorado Springs. Vandepas has been with WCM Industries for 32 years. Formoreinformationonhydrantsfrom Roger’s, go to www.rogershydrants.com/ PDF/Rogers.pdf SNOW GROOMING

INDEX TO ADVERTISERS MND America Corp. .....................Cover 2

4-Pine Design ........................................ 30

Pisten Bully USA - Trail division ............. 9

All-Track Inc. ........................................... 4

PistenBully USA ............................Cover 4

AtlasTrax Communications Corp. ........ 26

Rainbow Belts ....................................... 31

CHS Snowmakers ................................. 39

Security State Insurance ...................... 30

DemacLenko .................................... 34-35

Snow Logic Inc. ..................................... 48

Lif-Tech Equipment ............................... 12

Soucy International Inc. ....................... 28

LiteTrax ................................................. 32

The Shop Industrial ............................. 19

Mattracks .............................................. 45

Track Inc. .......................................Cover 3

Mattson Ent-American Track Truck ..................................Cover 3

Tucker.................................................... 39

Elnur / Shutterstock.com

1Risk ........................................................ 5

November 2015 | snowgroomingmag.com

Walker Equipment ................................ 15

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