To the Editor: One thing for certain is ATV's and snowmobiles don't mix, you never see a snowmobile riding an ATV trail in summer and you should never see an ATV ride a snowmobile trail in winter.
ATV's damage the surface of a snowmobile trail so it makes it rutted and unsafe for snowmobile travel. This is also very costly for the snowmobile club as they have to run the groomer over the trail to make it safe again for the snowmobile.
ATV's are not the only problem facing our trails, 4 x 4 trucks, trucks with tracks installed and ATV's with tracks installed do damage to the trail and the operators of these units think they are justified to use the snowmobile trails.
Snowmobilers pay a fee on the registration of the snowmobile; these funds are utilized for safety initiatives, snowmobile trail signs, warm-up shelters, trail building and trail grooming. Snowmobilers are paying, not ATV users, 4 x 4 truck owners or any other users, snowmobilers are paying for snowmobile use.
The ATV community and users must get organized and develop an ATV trail system separate from the snowmobile trail system. One only needs to look at what the ATV has done to the snowmobile trails system in the spring, summer and fall seasons.
For the past 15 years ATV users have, and continue to use the snowmobile trail system in the warm season and this is causing great damage to the ground in the forest, and in locations that our snowmobile clubs have received permission for snowmobile use only.
We have seen ATV use on private property were crops are planted, across pastures, fences cut, gates left open and malicious damage to property. What this is doing is hurting the snowmobile trails and the permission granted for snowmobile use. When asked why the ATV user is on private property where a snowmobile trail was in the winter they respond with, "well it's the snowmobile trail" and what part don't they understand, they are on an ATV and not a snowmobile and it's not winter.
ATV users must respect snowmobile trail use and permission is GRANTED FOR SNOWMOBILE USE ONLY.
We need to see the development of ATV clubs, ATV registration, ATV safety programs, ATV trails (separate from snowmobile) and ATV users MUST learn to respect the snowmobile trails and keep off year round. ATV's take advantage of the trail signs and the shelters, and quite often they don't respect them, we find the signs shot at and the shelters left with loads of garbage for the snowmobile clubs to clean up.
Snowmobilers are paying the way for ATV use and the damage they are doing to the snowmobile trails, this has to stop. The only way we see ATV getting any respect from the snowmobile community is they get organized, they get their trail system developed and they pay their own way.
The Province needs to get involved and assist where they can to organize ATV use. Saskatchewan is the only province in Canada that doesn't register ATV's. The time has come for the ATV user to pay their own way and develop a ATV trail system. Please respect private property and keep your ATV off private property. Permission is granted for snowmobile use only.
Chris Brewer, Saskatchewan Snowmobile Association
