112th Congress Introduces Bill to Address FS TMR Road/Trail Closures

Single Track Trail Closed by TMR that OHVers Want Reopened

The Recreation HQ salutes Congressman Wally Herger’s continued fight to stop the closure of many Forest Service roads and trails in his District. Congressman Herger ramped things up today by introducing a bill that requires the FS to complete post Subpart B project level trail planning before implementing Subpart B of the Travel Management Rule. That Rule in CA closed thousands of miles of historic trails and roads and also prohibited OHV travel (mostly ATVs and UTVs) on most ML-3 roads.


BRC News Release with Link to Herger Bill
http://www.sharetrails.org/releases/?story=722&filter=media

This is not the first time that Herger as fought for our access rights. Earlier this year, he sent a letter to Secretary Harris Sherman about FS road and trail closures.

HQ Blog with Links to Letters and Overview
http://thegeneralsrecreationden.blogspot.com/2010/08/congressman-herger-sends-letter-to-sec.html

This fight for access is welcomed news after yesterday’s punch in the gut announcement by green groups that GOP congressmen had introduced new Wilderness Bills instead of proposing access legislation, or bills to address tax-payer funding of eco-lawsuits, or presidential misuse of the Antiquities Act.

HQ hopes to see a lot more access related legislation and/or scheduling of oversight hearings regarding excessive trail closures in Region 5 and elsewhere.

Good OHV News - HR 689

The Recreation HQ wants to share some good OHV news that not just benefits motorized recreation in general but more specifically enhances permitted OHV events.

Congressman Wally Herger Announcement on HR 689
http://herger.house.gov/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=674&Itemid=112

Record Searchlight Opinion on Herger Bill
http://blogs.redding.com/bross/archives/2010/07/one-small-step.html

For many years, there has been a matrix of federal lands at the Chappie-Shasta OHV Area. The trail system for both casual OHV recreation and permitted events was co-managed by the BLM and FS.

Info on Chappie-Shasta OHV Area
http://www.blm.gov/ca/st/en/fo/redding/recreationmain/reddingrecreationohvmain.html

Unlike the BLM’s Hollister Field Office that closed the 75K acre Clear Creek Management Area to all public uses including OHV, the BLM in the this area is committed to providing well-managed and comprehensive OHV recreational opportunities at Chappie-Shasta. The BLM stands in sharp contrast to the Shasta Trinity NF that has never been OHV friendly and just recently issued a travel plan that closed almost 100 percent (over 800 miles) of its single-track trails and trails less than 50 inches in width. Also, the BLM is more supportive of allowing permitted OHV events (enduros, hare scrambles, etc) on this unit. On the other hand, the FS had bound itself by a chain of both real and imaginary regulatory obstacles that stood in the way of the agency supporting permitted OHV events.

Thanks to the tireless efforts of local clubs such as the Redding Dirt Riders and the Recreation Outdoor Coalition, those groups were able to work with Congressman Wally Herger, Senator Diane Feinstein, local elected officials, and other interests to generate support for this important land management consolidation bill.

As OHV continues to get hammered on any number of fronts including the recent cancellation of AMA-sanctioned motorcycle events on the Eldorado NF (due to threats of eco-lawsuits), the news today should give all of us encouragement that it pays for us to “stay the course” and never give up.

The General salutes all those who were part of this effort. Now we just have to wait for the President to sign this bill into law.

Obamuments, April 16 White House Conservation Summit, and You

The Recreation HQ has been following the “National Monuments” issue with a keen interest. A lot OHVers and mostly legislators from Western States have sounded the alarm based on secret documents uncovered which showed a plan for the designation of what The General now calls “Obamuments.”

PHOTO: FWMC's Dale (L) and Randy (C) and CERA's Clark (R) on the Ladybug Trail a designated OHV trail in the proposed Stonyford Obamument

BRC Submitted a Letter to Congress regarding Obamuments on Feb. 19
http://www.sharetrails.org/releases/?story=685&filter=media

On that same day, The General (on behalf of BRC) filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to see who was driving this plan. When he got a letter back from the Department of Interior that they could not find any information because they only looked on the Secretary’s desk – The General filed a FOIA Appeal and is still waiting for a response.

FOIA Appeal
http://www.sharetrails.org/releases/?story=689&filter=media

The Recreation HQ appreciates the phone calls that many of you have made to your Congressman regarding your concerns about the Stonyford OHV Area being named as a potential Obamument. Riders are lucky that Stonyford happens to be in the congressional district of Congressman Wally Herger – a champion of public land access.

Article on Cong. Herger’s Fight Against Obamuments
http://www.colusa-sun-herald.com/articles/acres-2049-tcnsyndication-federal-lands.html

Glenn County Joins Fight Against Stonyford Obamument
http://www.orland-press-register.com/news/county-5186-glenn-land.html

This story now gets even more complex with the unofficial announcement today in the LA Times of an April 16 White House Summit on the Great Outdoors to address national monuments, conservation, recreation, and other issues.

LA Times Article on Conservation/Outdoor Summit
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-obama-outdoors28-2010mar28,0,371471.story

As The General awaits a response from DOI on his FOIA appeal this week, it will be interesting to see just who from the recreation community will be invited to the April 16 Summit. If it is anything like the Obamacare summits, you will see “recreation” groups like Trout Unlimited, IMBA, the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, PEER/Rangers for Responsible Recreation and other pro-Wilderness organizations sitting at the table speaking for motorized groups like BRC, ISMA, ARRA, AMA, and United 4WD.

At this moment, the Recreation HQ is willing to give the Obama administration a chance to dispel our concerns about how the President will treat the legitimate voices for continued access to public lands. The HQ will know soon who is invited and that list will tell the story.

Stay tuned this week as Congress and the Recreation HQ continues to press the administration for Obamument documents that were obviously the product of many roundtable discussions between government agencies and preservation groups.

Thanks for your service and support!