Janice Tetzlaff named Snowmobiler of the Year

Janice Tetzlaff named Snowmobiler of the Year

Janice Tetzlaff, of Lakewood, has been named Snowmobiler of the Year by the Association of Wisconsin Snowmobile Clubs.

According to a news release, the award was presented to Janice at the Fall Convention of the AWSC with a write-up of her accomplishments.

Janice and her husband Lester were one of the founding families of the Kettle Range Snow Riders in 1971. Over those 48 years, she held the office of secretary for 10 years, and she was also secretary of Manitowoc County Snowmobile Association for four years.

Janice has been involved with fund-raising ever since the club was started. She has helped with fish fries, food tents, truck pulls, selling raffle tickets and map adds. She and her husband were the ones who helped establish many of the trails in Manitowoc County.

In the early days of snowmobiling in Manitowoc County, she would bundle up her four children and go snowmobiling. She continues to ride as much as she can, putting on close to 3,000 miles some years, the news release said. This results in Janice buying a new sled every few years, as she needs to have a reliable snowmobile.

Being a teacher for many years, it was only natural for her to be an instructor for the snowmobile safety courses the club sponsors. Janice was safety instructor for 35 years, only recently retiring from teaching the safety course.

Janice has also attended the AWSC spring and fall conventions since the very beginning and has pins to prove it. She was also one of the founding members of the Lakewood chapter of Women On Snow, which celebrated 30 years in 2017. Even today, Janice continues to promote Women On Snow by attending all rides and invites all women who snowmobile to participate in the rides.