They came, they saw and they loved it. That was the general consensus at this year’s VIP & Media Ride in Whitecourt, Alberta.
Organized by the Whitecourt Trailblazers snowmobile club, the event took place on January 31 and commenced at the Eagle River Staging Area 10 kilometres north of Whitecourt. Approximately 100 were in attendance. This included town and county mayors and directors from Travel Alberta, as well as representatives from television stations, local newspapers, radio stations and the Alberta Snowmobile Association. Members of the Trailblazers were pleased to see MLA George VanderBurg and MLA Jack Hayden, minister of tourism, parks and recreation for Alberta, at the event.
According to Dan Guenette, who is vice-president of the Trailblazers, the 2012 VIP & Media Ride provided a new experience for some. He said there were those in attendance who, prior to the event, had never been on a snowmobile, and these folks received an orientation with a machine and were assigned a buddy to ride with.
At the end of the day, there were a lot of happy faces.
“One of the highlights for me was that we couldn’t seem to wipe the smile off the face of the tourism minister for Alberta,” said Guenette. “He was just loving it and really enjoyed himself. He loved the trail system and the riding.”
The Trailblazers also celebrated the reopening of the Golden Triangle trail system at the VIP & Media Ride. This trail connects Whitecourt with the communities of Fox Creek and Swan Hills.
