2005 VAST Project of the Year Award Winner

“The Trail Club Pisten Bully Garage”

The moving and reconstruction of the old enlisted men’s club building from the radar base on East Mountain in East Haven, Vermont, has provided the Trail Club with a garage to house the club’s Pisten Bully. The advantages of having a warm, dry location to work on the Pisten Bully are many. Being able to dry off and thaw out the moving parts of the Pisten Bully allows the maintenance crew, basically Bob Farmer, the ability to find problems before they develop out on the trail.

On June 17, 2005, the Trail Club hosted a cookout for all the workers who spent hundreds of hours dismantling and moving the old Quonset hut down from the mountain. The workers and the Trail Club directors enjoyed a wonderful meal.

On September 17, 2005, Caledonia County hosted the VAST Annual Meeting. The meeting was held at Lyndon State College in Lyndonville. The business meeting took place in the Alexander Twilight Auditorium and an excellent banquet took place in the dining hall.

Caledonia County Snowmobile Trail Club was honored during the awards ceremony to win the 2005 VAST Project of the Year for moving the old enlisted men’s club, housed in one of the Quonset huts on East Mountain to St. Johnsbury and refurbishing it for use as the Pisten Bully garage

The 2005 Annual Meeting was the first for another award. VAST President, Ann Shangraw, instituted the Carmi Duso Award in memory of VAST’s first Executive Director, who passed away this year at the age of 101.

Carmi Duso was dedicated to snowmobiling and was still riding well into his 90’s. It was Carmi who developed the trail numbering system that VAST continues to use of correlating the highway numbers to the nearest snowmobile trail. Carmi’s tireless efforts brought a fledgling organization to maturity and acceptance on the state level.

The award goes far beyond the current members and leadership to recognize the determination and work of the “father of VAST”. Carmi dealt with the legislature as well as the volunteers to bring snowmobiling and VAST recognition it has throughout not only Vermont but in the entire United States.

Ken Gammell, president of the Caledonia County Snowmobile Trail Club and Caledonia County Director, was awarded the Carmi Duso Award at this year’s annual meeting.

VAST”. Carmi dealt with the legislature as well as the volunteers to bring snowmobiling and VAST recognition it has throughout not only Vermont but in the entire United States.

Ken Gammell, president of the Caledonia County Snowmobile Trail Club and Caledonia County Director, was awarded the Carmi Duso Award at this year’s annual meeting.