JOIN the Fight - BE a FORCE for GOOD - A Special Request from Don

JOIN the Fight - Be a Force for Good

Last year at this time, I was inducted into the Off-Road Motorsports Hall of Fame where I joined fellow inductees, Malcolm Smith, Ed Waldheim, Clark Collins, Del Albright, and many others.  I was humbled and deeply honored by Dave Pickett as he gave my introduction to the ORMHOF.  Thanks also to the riders who cut short clips for use in the video below!

My Induction Video – A Force for Good (short segments from OHV and Industry Icons)

https://sharetrails.org/don-amador-hall-of-fame-video/

On October 30, the ORMHOF will be inducting the Class of 2017 - - Dave Ekins, Cliff Flannery, Bob Gordon, and Bill Savage.  I want to send them sincere congratulations.

At the event, I told the ORMHOF that I GOT INVOLVED BECAUSE I DIDN’T LIKE SEEING TRAILS CLOSED and I fight because I want current and future generations to have the same joy on the trail that I had growing up.

I also thanked BRC for giving me the opportunity to represent them for the last 27 years.  I wake up every day with the fire in my belly to fight for trail access.

As part of the run-up to the ORMHOF event, I want to urge those OHVers who are not members of the BlueRibbon Coalition/Sharetrails.org (BRC) to JOIN.  BRC champions access to sustainable trail-based recreation on federal lands throughout the country.

As you know, memberships are the lifeblood of any organization especially non-profit OHV advocacy groups such as BRC.

If you are not already a BRC member, you can join either at the 1 year premium level and get  a Trail Tech discount card or take advantage of the special 2 year membership offer that is co-sponsored by Rocky Mountain MC/ATV where they send you a $25 dollar gift certificate when you purchase a 2 year membership. 

Link to BRC Membership

 https://sharetrails.org/individual/?mem=1

Also, I urge you to send in a donation to the ORMHOF in support for their long-standing efforts to recognize and honor icons and heroes of the off-road community.

Link to ORMHOF

http://ormhof.org/

Thanks to the ORMHOF for all they do and to all of you who support OHV recreation on public lands!!!

Don Amador

CA/NV Summer Fun Events for Dual-Sports, Adventure Bikes, ATVs, SUVs, UTVs, and 4x4s

Typical View on Ride Reno 200

 

A number of great Dual-Sport and 4x4 events are occurring this summer and it would be impossible to mention them all.  However, QWR is planning to attend two events that feature diverse OHV opportunities for dual-sport, adventure bike, SUV, ATV, UTV, and 4x4s.

 

The Dust Devils Motorcycle Club is hosting its 2013 Ride Reno 200 Dual Sport Ride on September 13-15, 20-13.  It is an AMA National Event and this year it also has loops for adventure bikes.  QWR and its Sound Trails Initiative will be there with its Quest sound testing equipment to offer the SAE J-1287 20-inch sound test for the event to help educate riders about using sound compliant exhaust systems.

QWR Sound Education Station at Previous Event

 

This ride takes you up into the Sierra Nevada Mountains where you will see spectacular forested lands and back through the high desert where wild mustangs can often be seen.

 

2013 Ride Reno 200

http://www.dustdevilsmc.com/Participant/ParticipantFlyer.aspx

 

Jeeps Driving in the Sierra

 

QWR will also be at the 2013 Sierra Trek hosted by the California Association of Four-Wheel Drive Clubs.  This event runs from August 8-11, 2013.  According to the club, Sierra Trek is the granddaddy of all Cal 4 events. It is held in Northern California near Truckee. The event takes participants over the famous Fordyce Trail and the surrounding areas via SUV, ATV, modified 4x4 vehicles and dedicated trail rigs.

 

2013 Sierra Trek

http://www.cal4wheel.com/events/sierra-trek

 

Cal 4 is working hard to introduce new and fun activities for families that we know you will enjoy. You can still run the Fordyce trail with the confidence that the trail staff will make your adventure memorable!

 

Cal 4 is also bringing back two-day SUV and the ATV/UTV runs in additions to the challenging 4x4 trail rides.

 

QWR and STI will also be at this event and will be making the SUV adventure touring runs. We will also be manning the BRC booth and talking with riders about responsible use of system roads, trails, and areas.  This is a great event for those who want a high elevation OHV experience in an alpine setting.

 

QWR’s Sound Trails Initiative

http://www.quietwarriorracing.com/Sound_Trails_Initiative.html

 

I hope to see you this summer on the trail!

 

BRC Issues National Call for Legislative Fix to Permit/Cost Recovery Mess

The Recreation HQ is proud that BRC has issued its call today for a legislative overhaul of the recreation permitting process including “cost recovery” on federal lands. For several years, OHV clubs such as the California Enduro Riders Association has been going through an ugly type of “permit hell” regarding several of its long-standing events held on the Eldorado National Forest.


July 21, 2011 BRC News Release Calling of Overhaul of Permit Process
http://www.sharetrails.org/releases/?node=14739&filter=media

BRC Overview of Permit Issue with Stories (a very good and informative read)
http://www.sharetrails.org/public-lands/?section=srp

Most of you know this issue has been steadily growing worse. After attending a number of meetings over the last 2 years with local OHV clubs, federal agencies, congressional staff, and other stakeholders, the Quiet Warrior became convinced that a legislative fix was the only way to address what has become a bureaucratic entanglement of red-tape and illogical cost recovery charges. The permit issue was not just happening in CA and NV, but throughout the West.

HQ Blog on NV Permit Issue
http://thegeneralsrecreationden.blogspot.com/2011/04/blm-in-nv-to-ban-ohv-events-in.html

Article About Congressman Tom McClintock Addressing the Permit Mess for Both OHV and Equestrian Events
http://www.theunion.com/article/20100826/BREAKINGNEWS/100829824/1066&ParentProfile=1053

May 2011 HQ Blog on Cost Recovery
http://thegeneralsrecreationden.blogspot.com/2011/05/congressional-fix-needed-to-address-ohv.html

QWR Call to Action in June 2011
http://quietwarriorracing.blogspot.com/2011/06/permitted-events-overview-solution.html

The Recreation HQ urges clubs to send in their horror stories about having to cancel historic club events and rides because the permitting process and cost recovery charges have gotten out of control.

Helmets off to the BRC crew for working on this issue. Time to change the rules and make them user friendly for both motorized and non-motorized clubs.

THANK YOU AMA DIST 36 FOR YOUR KINDNESS

I wanted to take a short break today away from posting info about land-use fights and thank AMA Dist. 36 for the kindness shown to me the other night at their 32nd Annual Awards Banquet. I was sitting at one of the tables visiting with Daphne Greene (OHMVR Dep. Dir.) and her staff and also Perry King (member, AMA Board of Directors) when Dave Pickett called me up on the stage.


It was a real surprise. I was afraid it was going to be some sort of prank (several years ago they gave me a “taco award” – yes, a stale taco) like they did on a previous occasion.

However, much to my surprise it was a very cool award recognizing my 20 years of service to the off-road community as a land-use advocate.

I am also thankful to BRC and other news outlets for running the story.

BRC News Release on 20 Years of Service Award
http://www.sharetrails.org/releases/?story=723&filter=media

And

Don Emde’s Partsmag
http://www.partsmag.com/01_10_D36_AMADOR_AWARD.html

Stockton Record Article on Award
http://www.recordnet.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20110115/A_INTERACT/101150306/-1/A_INTERACT02

Being a “Quiet Warrior” for the sport is no easy task. It requires you to ride quietly on public roads and trails but speak loudly and effectively in the legislative, administrative, and legal processes so that riders don’t get screwed by overzealous bureaucrats, left-wing eco-groups, and closure-oriented polices.

Thanks again D36 for your generosity it is greatly appreciated. Also, thanks to many of you who have sent PMs. It means more than you will ever know.

I salute you!

Another OHV Christmas Miracle - 2" Rain Policy Reinstated on Mendocino NF

Reinstated  2" Rain Policy on 2009 MVUM

HQ believes in and celebrates Christmas as a special time where hearts are changed and miracles happen. One such miracle happened late last week when the Mendocino National Forest reinstated the time-proven 30-year old “2-inch” rain closure rule.

Beginning in late October after the new “it’s closed all the time during winter” rain closure was put into effect, HQ and BRC started to get a lot of calls from riders complaining about the OHV trail networks at Upper Lake and Stonyford being closed for extended period of time.

Nov. 29 blog with overview and link to Nov. 15 BRC letter to FS stating concerns about the new extended time-period rain closures (good overview)
http://thegeneralsrecreationden.blogspot.com/2010/11/new-mendocino-nf-wet-weather-ohv-policy.html

HQ understood the FS had placed this issue under review but it appeared to be progressing at slow pace. Last week, HQ and BRC became concerned that the issue would not be resolved before the Holiday camping season started on the Mendocino where the “Fouts Springs OHV Camping Area” becomes the largest city in Colusa County. Often there are 3-5 thousand family campers staged in that complex with kids of all ages enjoying their new or newly purchased used OHVs.

In the meantime, HQ continued to be deluged with emails and phone calls from frustrated and angry OHVers (including motorcycle dealers, enduro riders, BRC/AMA/D36 members, riders who were not members of any club, and even former FS staff).

Based on those concerns HQ and BRC ramped up their communications with agency leadership urging  they expedite the decision-making process so the OHV community could enjoy the Forest over the holidays. On December 14, BRC sent a letter to the FS that made a formal request for the agency to reinstate the historic and NEPA compliant 2-inch rain rule so that the OHV holiday season would not be ruined for thousands of recreationists.

BRC December 14 Letter Making Formal Request to Reinstate the 2” Rain Closure Policy
http://www.sharetrails.org/uploads/Contreras_rain_dec_14.pdf

HQ and BRC commend the Forest for working hard last week to wade through the red tape so that the 2-inch rule could be reinstated on December 17. BRC also commends the agency for using the site-specific Remote Automated Weather Station (RAWS) at Bartlett Springs for the Upper Lake OHV Area and Fouts/MNFO3 for Stonyford. HQ urges riders to monitor these RAWS for themselves. And, please sign up for FS email alerts for closures with Tamara (her info is below).

Bartlett Springs RAWS for Upper Lake OHV Area
http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/mesowest/getobext.php?sid=BLTC1&table=1&banner=off

MNF03/Fouts RAWS for Stonyford
http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/mesowest/getobext.php?sid=TS378&table=1&banner=off

GET ON HER EMAIL LIST!

Tamara Schmidt
Public Affairs Officer
Mendocino National Forest
825 N. Humboldt Ave.
Willows, CA 95988
Email: tamaraschmidt@fs.fed.us
Phone Number: 530-934-1137

It is also important to remember when FS System Trails are closed by the 2-inch rule, that FS System Roads remain open for public use by hunters, woodcutters, and OHV riders. If you have any questions about rain closures be sure and call ahead before you travel up there. In addition, the FS still has the authority to issue a temporary emergency closure order (that supercedes the 2-inch rule) should the area be hit with a catastrophic rain event, wildfire, or some other natural disaster.

HQ will remain open until Congress goes home and the holidays begin. We wish you a very Merry Christmas and a Happy OHV New Year!

Scot Harden to Zero Motorcycles, Interview, and Thoughts

The Recreation HQ and The Quiet Warrior want to congratulate off-road racing legend, Scot Harden, on his new post at Zero Motorcycles. As many of you know, The General, on behalf of BRC, attended the 24 Hours of Electricross and was the event’s official sound tester.

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PHOTO: BRC's Don Amador on Zero Dirt Bike

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See Blog on 24 Hours of Electricross “Saved by Zero”
http://thegeneralsrecreationden.blogspot.com/2009/04/saved-by-zero-24-hours-of-electricross.html

Video of “Sound Test” at start of Race
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M3r5SJPKO5w

If this issue is of interest, I suggest you read Jeff Cobb’s excellent interview with Scot Harden as it highlights the pros and challenges associated with this new technology. The article also touches on some of the environmental factors in the land-use equation.

Interview with Zero’s Scot Harden
http://www.motorcycle.com/events/interview-with-zeros-scot-harden-89981.html

Besides the “battery longevity” issue, HQ believes the electric motorcycle industry should work hard to promote a responsible land-use ethic that strongly discourages the creation of illegal “bandit trails” routes on public and private (private land that you don’t have permission to be on) land.

50 Year Old Guys and Illegal trails in SF Bay Area
http://marinbiker.com/

Being at Electricross and talking with a lot of electric motorcycle enthusiasts, The Quiet Warrior was surprised by the number of riders (even riders who claimed to be “environmentalists" and were against gas-powered dirt-bikes) who thought these products were just the ticket to enable them to ride illegally in local state and county parks.

What many riders don’t know is that The General/BRC helped Zero Motorcycles with some land-use tenets in their Code of Ethics.

Zero Motorcycles’ Code of Ethics

1.) Zero Motorcycles is dedicated to engineering high performance motorcycles that do not harm the environment. Our motorcycles will be free from emissions and noise. We will be environmentally conscious in our actions to help ensure a cleaner environment through recycling, responsible waste disposal and respecting nature.

2.) Zero Motorcycles will provide transportation options, both on road and off road, that are practical, efficient and contribute to a cleaner environment.

3.) Zero Motorcycles will stand behind the quality of our products by providing excellent customer service to ensure all customers are completely satisfied.

4.) Zero Motorcycles will make a consistent effort to promote a responsible, fun, honest and safe environment for all aspects of operating a motorcycle.

5.) Zero Motorcycles will respect all others with whom we share the roads and recreation areas. We are also dedicated to respecting the members of the greater community. We will use common sense and be aware of our surroundings when sharing the trails and roads. We will ride safely and respectfully.



Again, Scot has a lot of work ahead of him at Zero. The Quiet Warrior hopes that one of the issues he will tackle is to damp down what could be a growing counter culture of illegal trail riding and building by OHVers using this new technology.