The founder and president of the Chatham-Kent (CK) All Terrain Vehicle (ATV) Club is stepping down after 10 years of leading the club.
Vince Masse launched the club in December of 2015 and has been the president since then.
Throughout his time, Masse successfullu pushed for bylaws allowing members to utilize trails, and has hosting annual fundraisers like ‘Feed the Hungry’.
Masse reminisced on his time leading the club, noting a fundraiser that raised $9,400 for a paraplegic man whose ATV was stolen in 2018.
The reins are being handed over to fellow ATV Club member Jacques Caouette.
“It's time for some new blood, and this person taking over has some great ideas, has some good connections, and wants to take the club up to the next level,” said Masse.
Masse will finish out the year as president, and Caouette is set to take over on January 1, 2026.
“It's pretty big shoes to fill, what Vince has done for Chatham, so pretty good honour to step into his shoes and hopefully I can do even a quarter of a job he did,” said Caouette.
The new President has plans to elevate the club by registering it as a non-profit and joining the Ontario Federation of All Terrain Vehicles (OFATV).
“Hopefully we can work with the city on getting some more trails and that way we would have insurance policies put in place, and being underneath OFATV we'd be able to maintain the trails, put up stop signs, speed limits, widen the trails and make it a multi-use trail for everybody, make it a little safer,” said Caouette.
Riding ATVs is a large part of his life. According to Caouette, he travels up north three to five times a year to ride trails and spends his spare time offering affordable ATV repairs to CK residents.
Although he has plans to enhance the club, Caouette plans to maintain Masse’s charity presence, saying events like ‘Feed the Hunger’ will still be hosted by the club.
“That's a great event for the community, I enjoy it very much, it seems to bring everyone together, and it's nice when you go to the places and deliver the food and the gratitude you get, so it's a great event,” he said.
Masse is ready to hand over leadership after 10 years of running the club, but he plans to remain an active member and will continue as a board member moving forward.
