Snowmobiling is an integral part of Michigan's tourism economy with over two million snowmobile use days annually. The extensive designated snowmobile trail system and abundant snowfall have attracted passionate snowmobilers who travel long distances and stay overnight. The theoretical construct of recreational specialization was applied to understand the within-group social world of the snowmobilers. To foster safer riding experiences and reduce the number and severity of snowmobiling accidents, snowmobilers' perceptions of key riding risks were examined by looking at the effect of levels of specialization on the perception of risk. The spatial interaction between snowmobilers' residential origin and snowmobiling destination was also investigated to better understand the association between recreational specialization and spatial interaction.A total of 807 research subjects came from a statewide survey of Michigan snowmobile trail permit purchasers in the winter of 2007-08. Daily snow precipitation for the winter of 2007-08 and Michigan snowmobile trail GIS shapefiles were also utilized. Summative indices and cluster analysis were applied to segment different snowmobile subgroups. One-way ANOVA, effect size Eta, coupled with a gravity model and spatial statistics were applied to investigate the relationships among snowmobilers' within-group social world, their perception of risks, and spatial interaction with the snowmobile trail network.The results showed that Michigan snowmobilers were heterogeneous, with distinct behavioral, skill/knowledge, and psychological attachment characteristics. Some became more specialized in snowmobiling and spent increasingly more time and money on the activity. Others focused on different aspects of snowmobiling such as trail riding or conspicuous consumption, once they acquired enough snowmobiling experience. Recreational specialization did not effectively predict perception of risks as Michigan snowmobilers perceived similar threats in all nine hazardous riding stimuli. While expert snowmobilers perceived significantly lower risk on "Speed of snowmobile," novice snowmobilers underestimated the risk of "Cars/trucks on seasonal roads." Neither did recreational specialization explain snowmobilers' spatial interaction with snowmobiler trail network. Some minimal to moderate associations were found between snowmobilers travel from region to region. While Michigan's Upper Peninsula attracted expert snowmobilers from the Lower Peninsula, the northern Lower Peninsula was the favorite destination for intermediate snowmobilers.Key managerial recommendations from the analysis of this data include establishing a mandatory snowmobile training course; more robust mechanisms of disseminating snowmobile information; establishing a voluntary safety patrol program; creating a digital profile for snowmobile accidents involving personal injury or fatality; and more comprehensive snowmobile marketing strategy for residents and visitors.
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