For years, the adventurous sledder has been drawn to the snowy riches of Northern Ontario. With more tourists coming in each winter, the stakes are high. At last, we have a blueprint for taking things to the next level.
On November 3 and 4, 80 individuals were brought together at the Polar Bear Habitat in Cochrane, ON for a Snowmobile Summit to facilitate discussions on how to transform Northern Ontario into the world's best snowmobile destination. These snowmobile industry leaders are private business owners, marketing specialists, municipal councillors, and tourism partners intent on further developing snowmobile tourism in Ontario. The recommendations made at the summit will be the foundation for the 2017-2022 Five-Year Destination Plan, which will lead the way to building the World’s Best Snowmobile Destination. The two-day summit was hosted by the Northeastern Community Network, and featured a number of key speakers who discussed best practices, tricks of the trade, and business development ideas.

The keynote speaker on the first day was Matt Ballard, the President/CEO at Charleston Area Alliance and former ED board member of the Hatfield-McCoy Regional Recreation Authority in West Virginia. Mr. Ballard discussed in detail how the Hatfield-McCoy region was once a booming coal mining area, and was forced to diversify when the market changed. Mr. Ballard’s presentation focused on the need to create an entrepreneurial ecosystem by bringing the public and private sectors together. By sharing best practices and encouraging each other, Hatfield-McCoy was able to create 600+ miles of ATV, SxS, ORV and Dirtbike trails, and to stimulate the local economy by bringing in over a million dollars in tourism dollars each year. Although the West Virginia of Hatfield-McCoy is a very different terrain than Northern Ontario, the foundations for success and passion for powersports are mirrored in both regions.