The BCSF Excellence Awards are a way to recognize the people, businesses and organizations for their significant contributions and exceptional support of organized snowmobiling in B.C. It is always an exciting time to be a part of the awards and the following winners deserve every bit of recognition we can give them. Congratulations to all the nominees as well—your contributions are greatly appreciated.
We began the ceremony with the Excellence Award for Outstanding Snowmobile Dealership. The winner of this award is recognized for their exceptional customer and after-sales service, superior technical knowledge, superlative efforts to promote the sport, and strong ties to their local snowmobile clubs and community.
The winner selected is also known for their excellent support to new and existing riders and their exceptional customer service and considerable involvement in club and community.
The nominees for Outstanding Snowmobile Dealership were:
• From Quesnel, Full Throttle Motorsports
• From Kelowna, Valley MotoSports
• From Squamish, No Limits Motorsports
• From Prince George, Prince George Motorsports
• From Dawson Creek/Fort St. John, Trailblaz’n Power
And the winner was No Limits Motorsports.
Next up was the award for Outstanding Snowmobile-Related Company. Nominees for this award are recognized for their exceptional contribution to the promotion of snowmobiling, and were:
• Apex Alpine Adventures
• Frozen Pirate Snow Services
• Shuswap Xtreme Recreation
The winner was selected for their high engagement of safety, stewardship, education to all ages, search and rescue and growth of women in the sport. This year’s winner was Frozen Pirate Snow Services.
The award for Outstanding Promotion & Development of Snowmobiling went to Toby Creek Adventures. This winner was selected for providing snowmobiling to non-local sledders all over the world, and promoting a positive image for all backcountry users.
Up next was the award for Outstanding Snowmobile Family. Recognized for their distinguished volunteerism, leadership, safety, promotion of responsible snowmobiling, and development and community outreach, the nominees were:
• Chemelli Family
• Leger Family
• L’Heureux Family
The winner was selected for their passion, countless volunteer hours, family and club involvement, and responsible snowmobiling, development and community outreach. And the winner was the Leger Family.
This year there were no nominees in the Outstanding Youth Contribution category.
Nominees for Outstanding Snowmobile Club are recognized for their achievement in the development and implementation of a successful program, initiative or event from which recognition or financial benefits have contributed to increasing the image and exposure of snowmobiling and the growth of the sport.
The nominee winner was selected for their hugely successful initiative with government to consider the permit process for closed areas, their project to support caribou closures, their strong mentorship to achieve 100 per cent compliance from riders in closed areas and maintaining a positive image and successful club. This year’s nominees were:
• Coquihalla Summit Snowmobile Club
• Kokanee Country Snowmobile Club
And the winner was Kokanee Country Snowmobile Club.
The next category was Groomer of the Year. Nominees are recognized for their exemplary effort in maintaining a local grooming program. Nominees were:
• Connor Braham from Kelowna Snowmobile Club
• Jeff Boylan from Coquihalla Snowmobile Club
• Les L’Heureux from Prince George Snowmobile Club
• Shea and Brent Long from Houston Snowmobile Club
• Steven Miller from Prince George Snowmobile Club
• Blue River Grooming Team from Blue River Powder Packers
• Herb Shaede from Revelstoke Snowmobile Club
• Leo Samson from Kamloops Snowmobile Association
• Rob Chemelli and Andrew Patterson from Windermere Valley Snowmobile Society
The nominee winner was selected for being instrumental in maintaining trails for over 20 years. His immeasurable volunteer hours with grooming make sure everyone enjoys the best possible snowmobile experience. The winner was Herb Shaede.
Our next award was for an individual who has shown an extraordinary level of dedication to improving the sport of snowmobiling in B.C. This person exemplifies the high standards and selflessness that Pat Whiteway maintained during his lifetime.
Nominees for the Pat Whiteway Award for Outstanding Snowmobiler were:
• Mark Shaede, Revelstoke Snowmobile Club
• Meghan Bosecker, president of Prince George Snowmobile Club
• Russell Janssen, president of Mid-Island Sno-Blazers
The nominee winner was selected for their family events, safety and promotion of responsible riding and community outreach. The winner is an avid sledder and president of her club, always encouraging others to learn, and a positive leader within both club and community. This year’s winner is Meghan Bosecker.
We wrapped up the awards with a very special presentation from the BCSF president, Richard Cronier. Each year, an individual is hand-picked by the current president to be the recipient of the BCSF President’s Award. This award is to recognize an individual who has shown outstanding leadership and contributions to organized snowmobiling within their club, their community and the province of British Columbia. This year, the honour went to David Norona.
For any of you that have met David Norona or followed him on Facebook, Global News or his YouTube videos, you already know that his ability to share a message with positive energy and enthusiasm is amazing. We are fortunate in the snowmobile community that a good part of that enthusiasm is for our sport.
David is an ambassador for Ski-Doo, an active member of the Black Tusk Snowmobile Club in Squamish, B.C., and a strong supporter of the British Columbia Snowmobile Federation. He has done many videos and initiatives over the years to support snowmobile clubs and the BCSF, and has always promoted buying a membership in your local club. He has created these campaigns on his own and without prompting or compensation of any kind. He truly believes in supporting his local snowmobile club and believes that others should too.
Thank you again to everyone who took the time to nominate these worthy individuals. We look forward to another outpouring of recognition and appreciation in the 2019-2020 snowmobiling season!
