Annual MnUSA Winter Snowmobile Rendezvous Happening in Bemidji This Weekend

Every year, the Minnesota United Snowmobilers Association (MnUSA) has a meeting that attracts hundreds of snowmobilers from around the state. This year, their Winter Rendezvous is taking place in Bemidji, and on Thursday they kicked off the weekend’s events.

Wintertime in Minnesota brings snow, which in turn brings snowmobiles out of the sheds and onto the trails. Throughout the state there are several hundred snowmobile clubs, many of which are a part of MnUSA.

“The Minnesota United Snowmobilers Association is the state organization that approximately 280 clubs in Minnesota belong to,” explained MnUSA Vice President Scotty Harder. “We do the lobbying at the state Capitol and on a federal level in Washington, D.C. to help with rules, laws, regulations, fines for different things.”

The group was started in 1978 and has grown to over 10,000 members today.

“We get to meet people from all over the state with different points of view and different histories and, you know, their past experiences with snowmobiling and exchange ideas and what works in one part of the state versus what works in our part of the state,” said MnUSA Region 1 Director Mike Boucher.

The association hosts four meetings a year, one each in the spring, summer, fall, and (naturally) winter.

“This weekend is the MnUSA rendezvous,” said Boucher. “Each year it rotates locations throughout the state. This year, we’re privileged in Region 1 to host the rendezvous in Bemidji here.”

“In wintertime, this is our fun meeting,” added Harder. “We pray for snow and we ride. We have approximately 160 people coming to the event this weekend here in Bemidji. We have people from the state DNR, Parks and Rec, so they’ll be here riding with us. We have DNR officers that will be riding with us. Sometimes we have state legislators that come and ride with us and stuff and we’re able to talk to them about things that need to come up in the future.”

Among the meetings and legislative talks, there will be the opportunity for several hundred miles of snowmobile riding throughout the next several days. Riders will be leaving from the South Shore Hotel and DoubleTree in Bemidji on Friday starting at 9 a.m. Any other snowmobilers are welcome to join.