Bridge the Gap: Aid Ebeemee Snowmobile Club

Please help Ebeemee Snowmobile Club to “Bridge the Gap”

We are Ebeemee Snowmobile Club (ESC) and are located in Ebeemee Twp., ME. Right in the heart of Katahdin Country. ESC is a small club which was incorporated in the mid-70's by a small group of snowmobile enthusiasts. Back then, trails were groomed with pipe drags and there was very little signage. Back then, the trails were one sled wide and a trip to Gauntlet Falls and back might take all day! Picnics and snacks were packed carefully on the sleds and the kids were bundled up for the adventure. Nowadays, we have a BR275 that manicures our 66 miles of trails. We have one section of ITS trail that is 7 miles long. That provides us with our main funding from the state sponsored grant program. Most of our trails are "Club Trails" and they are typically a much nicer and prettier ride than the ITS trail. One of those club trails is the Gauntlet trail. It connects Jo Mary Riders to the north and Brownville to the south.

Last December 18th, we suffered a huge loss. The bridge that crosses over the Pleasant River at the Gauntlet Falls crossing was taken downstream by extreme high water from the 4" of rain we received. This is a 70’ steel bridge. We had a good snowpack and ice on all the ponds. The snowmelt was devastating.

ESC and the Jo Mary Riders attempted to get the bridge back in place. But it had suffered a lot of structural damage and was deemed unsafe at the time. In October of 2024, ESC was approached by Maine Snowmobile Association and the State of Maine Snowmobile Program and asked to take on the project of rebuilding/replacing the bridge. We were assured that the state would help subsidize the cost. We decided we would take the project on. We contracted with TRAMM Enterprises to do all the "heavy lifting" and Ron Mullins Portable Welding for the actual work to be completed to make the bridge safe and whole again. In just 11 days, the bridge was repaired, extensively reinforced and put back in place on supports on each side. Better than ever!

Now comes the money side of it. Our total bill was $35,000. Our bill for just the two contractors came in at $27,942.65. The state will reimburse us $24,880. That gives us a shortfall of $3,062.65 for us to pay out of pocket just to pay the two incredible contractors. This initial payout goes towards our yearly seasonal grant. All that will be left at the end of the season is $5220. That is a very substantial shortfall for a small club such as ours.

We are asking for your help trying to raise money to make up for what we have had to pay out of pocket. It comes in just under $10,000.

Please help ESC to “Bridge the Gap”.

We are an IRS 501(C)(3) non-profit organization.

Thank you,