Man killed in snowmobile collision remembered fondly

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This article was published 23/02/2022 (1489 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A Winnipeg man is being remembered as an avid snowmobiler and curler after he died in a collision near Lake Metigoshe on Sunday.

Rick MacDonald was 62 when he died while snowmobiling, a sport that was very important to him and which he was skilled at, said close friend Jerry Trevena.

MacDonald and his partner had a cottage along the lake and snowmobiling was one of his favourite activities, Trevena said.

“I think the freedom of the trail and just being out and travelling and having the wind in your face … it was his way to decompress,” he said.

MacDonald was snowmobiling with friends on groomed trails in Turtle Mountain Provincial Park when he drifted off the trail, according to the RCMP. Police believe one of the skis was pulled loose in the snow and he hit a tree head-on. He was pronounced dead at the scene and was wearing safety equipment.

At the time, Trevena and MacDonald were riding together, as they did many Louis Riel Day long weekends. They were in the final leg of the trip; Trevena estimates MacDonald rode 200 miles over the weekend.

The riding conditions were “optimum” that afternoon, he said, after snow blanketed the region.

Trevena called the crash a “freak accident” and MacDonald was an extremely experienced and skilled rider.

“He knew how to handle a machine, he knew how to handle himself.

“That whole ride he rode at the back of the pack. He rode right behind us to make sure nobody broke down … I fell off my sled into a giant snow pile, and he came up laughing and pulled me out and extracted my sled and we carried on.

“He went out of his way to make sure we were all set up, he always kept extra fuel, extra oil … he was just a consummate host and there was always food and a warm place to be, a funny show on TV.”

MacDonald was “gregarious” and a very social person, Trevena said. The two met through a curling bonspiel, another activity important to MacDonald. He helped bring the Margarita Curling Club to Winnipeg and travelled to Europe for curling.

He was a “mixer,” Trevena said, and loved the social aspect of the sport.

“For [MacDonald], weekends like this and being away and being with the Margaritas or on the snow machine or on a boat, they were very important to him.”

Tim Vandenberghe, vice-president of the Southwest Snowtrackers snowmobile club, said he also rode with MacDonald on the day he died. The club manages and grooms the trails in the Turtle Mountain area.

He also said the trails were in good shape on the day of the crash.

MacDonald was very friendly and ready to help people, Vandenberghe said.

“If he went out for a cigarette smoke and somebody was outside he didn’t know, he would just talk to them and see where they were from and get to know them. He always remembered them once he did,” he said.

Southwest Snowtrackers president Gord Weidenhamer said he didn’t know MacDonald personally, but expressed condolences.

» dmay@brandonsun.com

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