Wauconda vintage snowmobile show still going on despite lack of snow

You hear the frustration in John Lindberg's voice when he talks about this winter.

While many people in northern Illinois celebrate what's been one of the mildest winters in years, he and other avid snowmobilers want snow — lots of it.

“I am miserable,” said Lindberg, 50, trail coordinator for the Wauconda Snowmobile Club. “The winter blues is a well-documented disease, and snowmobiling helps me avoid those feelings. This has just been brutal.”

His latest weather disappointment involves timing. Sunday is the Wauconda Snowmobile Club's 4th annual Vintage Snowmobile Ride and Show, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Cook Park.

The lack of snow will force organizers to drop the popular “ride”, he said. That's a far cry from Last year's event — the Sunday after the blizzard when the ride drew 50 snowmobilers.

“We'll still hold the event because we will have other things going on besides the ride,” Lindberg said. “It'll just look more like a classic car show with all the vintage snowmobiles parked and being shown off.”

Meteorologists from the National Weather Service say 13.9 inches of snow has been recorded at O'Hare International Airport, 5.4 inches below the average snowfall for the first two months of meteorological winter that runs from Dec. 1 through Feb 28.

The lack of snow isn't the whole story. What's really hurting snowmobiling is the mild temperatures that have caused any snow to melt.

Since Dec. 1, the average temperature at O'Hare has been 32.7 degrees, ninth mildest on the all-time Chicago chart. This is officially going down as the warmest start to winter since temperatures started being kept at O'Hare in 1942, experts say.

What that means is there have been only eight days where at least 1 inch of snow was on the ground since December. That period averages 25 days with 1 inch of snow on the ground; there were 46 days with at least 1 inch on the ground between Dec. 1, 2010 and Jan. 31, 2011.

Lindberg said he has been able to ride his snowmobile once this year, but he had to go to northern Wisconsin to do it.

“Everyone is heading up to the Upper Peninsula in northern Wisconsin to get some riding in,” he said. “Seriously, there have been some bad winters before, but this is one of the absolute worst.”

And, the forecast doesn't give any reason for hope things will change soon.

The National Weather Service forecasts only seven days out, and is calling for minimal precipitation. The best chance a snow is Saturday, but because of above-normal temperatures, it will likely mix with rain and form slush, officials said.

But, Lindberg said, there will still be plenty to see in the way of vintage snowmobiles at Sunday's show. Admission is free.

Food and beverages will be available for purchase, and anyone with a vintage snowmobile can enter the “People's Choice Award” for $2. Snowmobile registration begins at 9:30 a.m.

For information about the event, visit waucondasnowmobileclub.com.

“I miss riding right now,” Lindberg said. “Snowmobiling really depends on the weather, so there is just nothing I can do. Praying doesn't seem to work.”