CAMDEN — West Bay Rotary has been a presence and fundraising partner at the U.S. National Toboggan Championships for many years, and this year a handful of Rotarians donated their time and energy ahead of racing and public winter tobogganing fun at the Camden Snow Bowl.

Nine people showed up at the Snow Bowl Oct. 26 and spent about an hour painting the inside of the 400-foot-long wooden chute. A couple of weekends prior, some of those same individuals spent a collective few hours scraping and sanding the chute in preparation for the painting work.

Rotarian Peter Berke, also owner of North Atlantic Painting, brought equipment and supplies, as well as joined in the work along with Rotarians Sandy Cox, Mark Masterson, Rob Williams, George Forestall, Mike Moore, Bruce Bergen, Paul Rogers, and Tom Albertson. Rounding out the crew was long-time Snow Bowl employee and "Chute Master" Stuart Young, who knows every inch of the chute better than just about anyone in the community.

"They got one coat on and hoped to get the second coat before it gets too cold," said Cox.

Cox said Berke also planned to paint the outside of the chute using paint spraying equipment, and the Toboggan Committee was hopeful that work could be completed before this year's race weekend, Feb. 8, 9 and 10, even if just the crowd-facing side was painted before the weather turned.