~ November 2024 ~

Hello CVOA,

Greetings CVOA members,

Sugarloaf Homecoming was a success for the Mountain and for CVOA. A lot of people dropped by the CVOA table in the Base Lodge to say “hello “and to join or renew their memberships. I want to give a big “Thanks“ to our table volunteers who greeted everyone who stopped by.  

As usual, the weekend offered a sampling of late fall weather including wind, rain, sunshine and snow. The Driveway Party on Saturday afternoon, was again hosted by the Parkers. Thank you Jeannette and Mike. The many members who attended enjoyed getting together with high hopes for the coming ski season. Our CVOA BBQ picnic at the Range was well attended and well stocked with hot dogs, hamburgs, salads and desserts. There was also a good turnout of Board members for the 3pm meeting.

The Board met on Sunday afternoon of Homecoming to consider an agenda that included a review of our insurance policies, the purchase of clay targets for the Range, a discussion of membership requirements for events and our charitable donation policy. Among the members attending was our new Town Manager, Garrett Corbin who offered his perspective on Town affairs and the role CVOA might play.

The matter that drew the most discussion was the proposal to raise our dues and fees. CVOA hadn’t raised membership dues since they were adopted in 2000. Also Range fees haven’t been adjusted since 2020. In the meantime, our operating expenses, like everything else, have increased, and we’re offering more activities that are attended by more members. The additional expenses have eroded our ability to make modest charitable donations which are important to our Valley. In setting new amounts for dues and range fees, it didn’t make sense to raise them by a dollar or two, only to raise them again in a few years. After discussion, the Board voted to set our annual dues and fees as follows:

                 CVOA Membership (effective 1/1/2025)

Single                         $15

Couple and Family     $30

                 Range Fee (in addition to CVOA membership – effective 1/1/2025)

Single                         $35

Family                        $70

The New Dues Amounts become effective on January 1, 2025. Those who purchase memberships and range fees for 2025 before January 1, 2025 will pay the current rates as indicated on our online form and printable form on the CVOA website. Those who purchase memberships and range fees after January 1, 2025, will pay the new rates for 2025.

I had lunch the other day with Ken Cutcliffe. Ken is the owner of Great Events and Escapes, the travel agency that puts together most of our ski trips. It proved to be an interesting conversation about the travel business and how it views groups. My full report of this meeting is in the Ski Trip Section of this Newsletter.

Thom Johnston

November 2024

November 2 - 5 Stand Shoot 9-12

November 3 - Trap Shoot 9-12

November 3 - Bowling 2-4 SugarBowl

November 9 - 5 Stand Shoot 9-12

November 9 - Soup Social CV Library 5-7

November 10 - Trap Shoot 9-12

November 10 Bowling Sugarbowl 2-4

November 17 - Bowling Sugarbowl 2-4

November 24 Bowling Sugarbowl 2-4

Check out the CVOA 2024 EVENTS CALENDAR

Click here: 2024-25 CVOA Calendar

What a great sunny, blustery, snowy Homecoming weekend! Thanks to our CVOA Table hosts for their efforts in renewing memberships for those who stopped by the table and for recruiting new members! As I write this article on October 20, CVOA has a total of 173 2025 memberships:

173 total memberships representing 342 members

36 new memberships representing 71 people

69 include Range memberships totaling 108 people

If you have not renewed your membership, it is easy to do on the CVOA website at cvoutdoors.com. Renewal can be completed either on the website or by printing the paper form and mailing it to the address provided. Looking forward to hearing from you.

Patti Johnston, Membership Secretary

Welcome to our new CVOA members.

President's Report on His Meeting with CVOA Ski Trip Travel Agency Owner Ken Cutcliff

I had lunch the other day with Ken Cutcliffe. Ken is the owner of Great Events and Escapes, the travel agency that puts together most of our ski trips. It proved to be an interesting conversation about the travel business and how it views groups. When there is a high demand for travel and people are making their own arrangements, the resorts are less dependent on group travel to fill their accommodations. The resorts make more money per room on Individual and small groups who make their own arrangements. When larger groups like ours take up a good percentage of the available beds, there are fewer to let out to smaller reservations. Airlines have a similar regard for larger groups. They’ll take ém if they must, but they would rather sell expensive seats to last minute travelers. When the demand for travel slows down, of course, the resorts and airlines will embrace groups like ours. This is not to say that groups can’t find good deals, especially if they can jump onto early offerings. As a result, we are having to put together our trips before the end of May. With a longer window between the offer of the trip and the date of departure, trip insurance has become more important to cover unforeseen circumstances for individual cancellations within our groups.

Ken also talked about the trip bottlenecks. The more transfers there are (ie plane to train to bus), the more likely it becomes that some provider will drop the ball. For example, and we’ve all seen this, the plane arrives late and there appears to be no shuttle to the ski area. More than likely the bus is still around, but it has been forced to move to a different parking area. Or, a guest thinks they are getting a King, but winds up with two twins. Then there is the lift ticket confusion caused by Epic and Ikon passes as well as senior discounts. Finally, trying to find a separate space where the group can regularly gather for après ski is sometimes a challenge. It might have been included in our booking, but the meeting room was rented to a seminar during the day, and they leave all of their materials and equipment in the room and want it locked. Want to talk about ski rental “remains” after they’ve been picked over by a large group of Texans?

Fortunately, we have a good agent in Ken who is available 24 hours a day and who can solve these problems. And, we have our CVOA trip leaders who do phenomenal job of dealing with trip complications.

When I was younger, I thought that traveling with a group was for fuddy duddies. But CVOA has won me over to a different view. I find that I like the companionship, skiing with both old friends and new. I look forward to a daily après ski gathering. And I like the fact that someone else, who has been there before, has made the plans and connections. On my own, I might not have been able to get out of the airport. So when you sit down this evening to your own happy hour, offer up a toast to our travel agent and ski trip leaders – Mike Parker, Bonnie Farrar, Jon and Lee Goss, Dan Hitchcock, Thom Johnson, Steve and Elaine Smith, Peter Weston, Cindy Foster and all the others who have made traveling with a CVOA group, a comfortable, affordable and horizon-broadening experience.

Soup Potluck Party

Saturday, November 9

5:00 - 7:00 - CV Library

Soup Warms The Soul and Brings Friends Together!

Bring Your Favorite Soup - homemade or store bought

-Soups/Stews/Chowders..

-Crackers and Breads..

-…and of course, Desserts!…..What’s Your Pleasure?

Soup’s On! Yes it is, and this potluck, like ALL CVOA potlucks, will be delicious!

***Peter Krakoff has promised his “famous” Gator Stew!!

PLEASE JOIN US!

🎟️ Door prize Drawing for Fall Basket 🎟️

For suggestions or to confirm what you plan to bring please contact Jeannette Parker at: jparker16seabreeze@gmail.com

CVOA Sunday Afternoon Bowling resumes November 3rd at the SugarBowl

The SugarBowl is reserving two lanes for CVOA members.

2:00 - 4:00 – $10 includes shoes

Come join the fun Sunday afternoons!

November dates: 3, 10, 17, 24

**Reminder: Tufulio’s Sunday Twofers starts at 4:00.

Second Annual Ugly Sweater Party

CV Library, Saturday December 7 at 4 P.M.

Dressing up is a BIG part of the FUN! 

Eat Drink & be Ugly

Prizes Awarded For Ugliest, Funniest, Vintage,Couple 

Winners Determined By Ballot Vote

Four Holiday Baskets - Each $150 Value

Last year 47 members attended this FUN & FESTIVE event 

including 11 new members!

Climate Solutions Workshop: HOPE FOR A HEALTHY PLANET

 January 18, 4:00 – 5:30 pm CV Library

As lovers of the outdoors, do you wonder (or even worry) about how we can protect the earth we love? Please join us to discover for yourself in an interactive session, that there is hope for a healthy planet. With the help of the MIT / EN-ROADS Climate solutions simulator and trained EN-ROADS facilitator, you will see which climate solutions are most effective and most likely to protect the planet’s vibrant outdoor spaces and species. And best of all there are some easy things that you can do to make a difference. Join us!

Co-Sponsored by:

Carrabassett Valley Outdoor Association

& Citizen’s Climate Education

Facilitated by: 

Laurie Manos, EN-ROADS Facilitator

CVOA Cribbage Tournament

Friday January 25, 2025 4-7pm CV Library

Come join us for the first CVOA Cribbage Tournament. Singles and Doubles events, single elimination. Prizes and bragging rights for the winners.

Please bring an appetizer for folks to share and BYOB. Please bring a cribbage board and/or cards if you have them!

RSVP to reserve a spot. And if you can volunteer for set up/clean up or have a question please contact: Karen Packard @packard@gwi.net

View the VBT itinerary here: https://www.vbt.com/tours/germany-france-alsace-black-forest-guided-bike-tour/ All spots for this trip are filled by either CVOA or other travelers. We have two on the waiting list. Contact Leslie to if you want to be added to a waiting list ~ Diane Stone dpstone32@gmail.com

Shooting Season is Ending Soon

Five Stand and Trap shoots continue through November 10th. After the last shoot, the Five Stand, Trap, and Archery Ranges will be closed for the winter. We will leave up a few targets on the Archery Range, but there will be no net. If you have a hand clay thrower, you are welcome to use the field, including picking up any unbroken clays from the ground, as we are unable to reuse them in the machines.

Trap Shoot on November 3rd will be at Wilton Fish and Game Club, 256 US RT 2, Wilton, ME. Shoot starts at 9am. Breakfast and Lunch are provided for a modest fee. And you might win a frozen turkey or a gift certificate! Come join the fun!

Pistol and Rifle Ranges will remain open and plowed throughout the winter as well as the heated bathroom.

As a range member, your guests are welcome. Shooting guests should sign the green Day Use waiver form and pay $10/day. Non shooting guests need not sign in, but it is the responsibility of the member to ensure all posted rules are followed. Any questions, please contact me.

Once again we have found intentional vandalism of the Rifle Ranges, where users have shot the yardage markers or other non-target items. If anyone is found damaging range property, they will be permanently banned.

Enjoy your Fall and our beautiful Range and be safe!

Diane Stone

Range Secretary

CVOA.range@gmail.com

207-240-4752

Homecoming Weekend

Meet 'n Greet

Saturday October 12th

What a FUN start to the season🍁🍂⛷️🎿. The weather on Saturday was a bit blustery!…a windhold day for sure! 91 CVOA members gathered for the annual Homecoming Meet ‘n Greet. 

Jeannette and Mike Parker

Click here for Pictures of this fun event

CVOA RANGE COOK OUT

October 13th

Eighty-eight members attended the BBQ at the Range. THANK YOU to those members that contributed appetizers, salads and desserts to this event. You are appreciated! THANK YOU to the grill crew: Karen Packard, Dan Baillargeon and Ralph Alfieri. 

Special thanks to Range Chair and Secretary, Ray and Diane Stone, for their continued leadership of the Range and for recruitment of volunteers for the BBQ. They are the face of this top notch, world class Range. For more information on becoming a Range member, reach out to them.

Ray Stone: raymondhstone3@gmail.com

Diane Stone: cvoa.range@gmail.com

Click here for pictures of this event

COA Pickleball Blast!

October 27

There were 11 participants led by four instructors, Chris Prudente, head coach extraordinaire, Richard and Judi Hawkes and me. We also had our own cheerleader, Jeannette Parker!

Everyone did an awesome job listening to instruction except for a few, and you know who you are! At the end of our instruction time we played Pickleball games to try out what we had learned. A huge thank you to the coaches and Deb Bowker, Recreation Director, and staff at the AGC for allowing us a free time and space to conduct this introduction to Pickleball. Thanks to all who attended and for your enthusiasm.

Let’s play!

Candy

To foster and promote the conservation of our natural resources

and the creation of recreational opportunities in our region.