Members of the Les Cheneaux Snowmobile Club will be busy Saturday morning, February 14; the club will be hosting two events during the 2009 annual Les Cheneaux Snowsfest.

Some of the club's 107 fulltime members will be serving pancakes and sausages for breakfast in the Cedarville school cafeteria, while others will be hosting an open house at the group's clubhouse on Blindline Road later that morning.

Club member Frank Harness said he expects more than 100 people to attend each event, which are both open to the public.

The pancake breakfast will start a little earlier this year to allow volunteers at other weekend festival events enough time to enjoy the meal, Mr. Harness said. Breakfast will be from 7:30 a.m. to 11 a.m. and cost $6 for adults, $4 for ages five to 12, and is free for children age 4 and younger. Proceeds will help fund club operation costs.

In keeping with the Snowsfest "Wild, Wild West" theme, "some pancake servers are going to be wearing cowboy hats and scarves" while serving, he said.

Cedarville summer residents Mike and Collene Hamberg took the lead to organize the breakfast this year after the club took a year off in 2008.

Before the last breakfast is served at 11 a.m., other snowmobile club members across town will open the doors of their clubhouse to the public.

From 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., the club will hold an open house to show off its new trail groomer, talk about the 104 miles of trail the club is responsible for grooming, and encourage new memberships.

"We're always looking for new members, especially the younger ones," Mr. Harness said. "We got a brand-spankin' new groomer and we want to show that off, too."

Mr. Harness encourages anybody interested in snowmobiling to stop by the open house this weekend.

Many other events are scheduled Friday, February 13, through Sunday, February 15, during the 2009 annual winter festival, including cardboard sled races, spaghetti dinner, pub shuffle, snowman burning, children's snowmobile races, ice rescue demonstration, ice fishing contest, cross country skiing, poker tournament, chili cook-off, horse drawn sleigh rides, craft show, dog talent show, an an ice golf tournament.

For more information about the pancake breakfast and open house, contact Mr. Harness at 484-2385.

Schedule of Events

Wild, Wild West

Is Snowsfest Theme

"Wild, Wild West" is the theme of this year's Les Cheneaux Snowsfest, which will feature three days of activities Friday, February 13, through Sunday, February 15 at Cedarville and Hessel.

Friday

The annual winter festival will get underway Friday afternoon with an all-ages cardboard-box sled race on the sledding hill at Les Cheneaux Community Schools in Cedarville. Registration begins at 3:30 p.m., with the races starting at 4 p.m.

A spaghetti dinner will be hosted by the Tribal Youth and Elder Community at the Tribal Community Center on Three-Mile Road in Hessel. Dinner will be served from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.

Judges will choose the winners of the snow statue and "snow buddy" decorating contests at 5 p.m. Friday. The creations must be registered with the Les Cheneaux Welcome Center before 5 p.m.

The night will be capped with a Wild West pub-shuffle, where participants will vote on the best western decorations, drinks, and servers at Bumpa's, Cattail's, Islander, and Runway bars. Voting ballots will be available at the four bars.

Saturday

A pancake and sausage breakfast will be served by the Les Cheneaux Snowmobile Club in the Cedarville school cafeteria Saturday from 7:30 a.m. to 11 a.m.

The annual snowman burning and blessing of the snowmobiles will be at 10 a.m. in the Cedarville launch ramp area.

The snowmobile club will also be holding an open house at the clubhouse on Blindline Road, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Residents can stop to warm up and view the clubhouse and trail groomers.

Registration for a poker run will be held in the warm-up tent in Cedarville from 10:30 a.m. to noon.

A craft show at the Clark Township Community Center in Cedarville will take place from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and children's cowboy games will be hosted by the Great Lakes Boat Building School near the main tent in Cedarville at 10:30 a.m. Horse-drawn sleigh rides will also be offered from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Professional and amateur cooks will be showing off their chili making abilities in a chili cook-off Saturday in the main tent from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. All chilis must be in the tent by 10:30 a.m.

Children's "Kitty Cat" snowmobile races will take place at noon on the ice near the warm-up tent. Register in the warm-up tent for $10 per child.

The Les Cheneaux Sportsman's Club will hold two "fun shoots" at noon Saturday and Sunday. A "chicken shoot" will be held Saturday for $4 per round, and a clay disc shoot Sunday for $9 for members and $10 for non-members.

A snowshoe race will take place Saturday near the warm-up tent on Cedarville Bay at 1 p.m.

Cross-country ski enthusiasts will ski Peek-a-boo Trail in Cedarville Saturday afternoon. Skiers should be at the trail on West State Avenue just before 1:30 p.m.

At 2 p.m., dogs will win awards for best dressed, best trick, and obstacle course competition.

An emergency ice rescue demonstration by Clark Township EMS will be held at 2:30 p.m. on Cedarville Bay.

Judges will vote on the best western dress, costumes, and gear in the "Best West Dressed" contest at Bumpa's on Hodeck Street from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m.

Later in the evening, open skate will be held at the ice rink at the Community Center from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. Skaters will be able to skate to music and enjoy hot cocoa and snacks.

Sunday

Sunday, an "Ice Hole," two-person golf scramble will be held at 1 p.m. on Hessel Bay. Register for the golf scramble between noon and 12:30 p.m. at the Islander Bar.

Snowsfest buttons, designed by Cedarville Elementary third grade student Kevin Reichlin, are required for all events.

The festival is sponsored by the Les Cheneaux Chamber of Commerce and volunteers are needed. To volunteer, contact the Les Cheneaux Welcome Center at 484-3935.