The American Motorcyclist Association (AMA), which represents more than 300,000 active members as the nation's leading advocacy organization for motorcyclists' rights, issued the following statement from AMA President and CEO Rob Dingman with respect to the national election results:
"The American Motorcyclist Association congratulates President-elect Barack Obama and Vice President-elect Joe Biden on their historic victory. America's voters have spoken, and they are demanding fundamental change and accountability from our elected representatives. "Motorcyclists also demand change and accountability. This nation's estimated 10 million riders currently face critical issues such as road access, health insurance discrimination and the right to responsibly enjoy our nation's public lands. "In a time when more Americans, young and old, are discovering the fun, convenience, economy and utility of motorcycling, the AMA is anxious to begin working with the administration of President-elect Obama to ensure that the rights and futures of all motorcyclists are protected. "In addition, the AMA will be working with our representatives -- newly elected or re-elected -- at all levels of government, and will be making every effort to assist them in understanding the concerns and needs of their motorcycling constituents."
Leaders from the American Motorcyclist Association (AMA) and other national organizations met in Las Vegas on November 6 to discuss a variety of land-use issues affecting off-highway vehicle (OHV) recreation. The meeting was held in conjunction with the annual Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) convention in Las Vegas.
In addition to the AMA and the AMA's sister organization, the All-Terrain Vehicle Association (ATVA), stakeholder organizations represented included the American Council of Snowmobile Associations, Americans For Responsible Recreational Access, the BlueRibbon Coalition, the Motorcycle Industry Council, the National Off-Highway Vehicle Conservation Council, the Off-Road Business Association, the Recreational Off-Highway Vehicle Association, the Specialty Vehicle Institute of America, and Tread Lightly!
This is the third forum the groups have held in 2008. This meeting focused on the recent federal election results and their impact on recreational access issues, as well as the priorities and challenges facing OHV recreation in the 111th Congress. Also discussed were strategies to address the upcoming Recreational Trails Program reauthorization, and the on-going U.S. Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management Route Designation process.
The organizations represented believe that it is useful to periodically discuss and explore areas where they share a common interest. Recognizing that each organization has a separate mission in representing its distinct membership, communicating with one another serves to strengthen advocacy efforts for OHV recreation. "The AMA greatly values its partnerships a great deal," said AMA Vice President for Government Relations Ed Moreland. "Working together is the only way the AMA and our partners can meet the public lands access challenges before us. Meeting and sharing ideas and resources helps us address these challenges with a united front, and it amplifies our collective voice when advocating for continued responsible access to public lands."
Utah - According to a recent article in The Salt Lake Tribune, on October 31 the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) released five of six long-range management plans that will open 80 percent of 11 million acres in southern and eastern Utah to oil and gas drilling and designate 20,000 miles of motorized recreation routes. The BLM is acting on order from Congress, which in 2001 determined that plans, some of them 30 years old, needed re-crafting to reflect new priorities, including increased demand from oil and gas developers and explosive growth in off-road recreation.
In May, a Bush administration study re-emphasized policies established in 2005 that would speed carbon-based energy development with minimal restraints unless federal public-land managers found it "absolutely necessary" to preserve other resources. The directive urged the BLM to find ways around "obstacles" to drilling, which the administration identified as well-established environmental-protection law, municipal development, private-property concerns, wildlife and national parks. The Moab, Kanab, Vernal, Richfield and Price district plans are now final. Only the Monticello plan remains pending, waiting for state officials to sign off.
In a Thursday announcement, the BLM called the achievement "a collaborative effort in balanced stewardship for the future" that includes protections for environmentally sensitive areas while supporting energy resources.
The agency said 53 percent of the more than 8 million acres open to oil and gas leasing would be subject to stricter environmental controls than before the plans were drawn, with about 18 percent of the 11 million acres unavailable to leasing under any circumstances. Less than a half of 1 percent of the public lands would be protected for their special beauty and solitude.
The resource plans came in slightly past their Sept. 30 fiscal-year deadline and cost $35 million, said Don Ogaard, lead planner for the BLM's Utah office. Though 87 protests numbering several hundred pages were filed during a 30-day period, all of them were dismissed or resolved to the BLM's satisfaction, he said. During public-comment periods, the plans drew fire from all sides. Oil-industry representatives complained of too many restrictions on exploration, and county officials agreed. Conservationists objected to drilling in sensitive lands and laying out so many trails for motorized recreation because OHV users represent a small minority of those who visit the area. Off-roaders disliked the new directive to close Utah's BLM lands to cross-country travel in favor of a trail system. The Environmental Protection Agency criticized the Price, Moab and Vernal plans for inadequate air-quality reviews, lack of analysis of OHV impacts and a failure to evaluate energy extraction's effects on global climate disruption.
West Virginia – According to The Charleston Gazette, when the number of riders using the Hatfield-McCoy Trails begins to slack off after the Thanksgiving holiday, work will begin on the most ambitious trail-development program ever planned for the 400-mile network of ATV and off-road motorcycle paths. In addition to the six trail systems now open in five Southern West Virginia counties, trail officials hope to open two new ones next year in Wayne and Lincoln counties. The Wayne County system has already been mapped out on property managed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers at East Lynn Lake. Hatfield-McCoy officials recently reached an agreement with landowners to examine and begin mapping a site near Harts for the Lincoln County system. "We need the Corps of Engineers to sign on with the Wayne County system, and we need the landowners to sign on with the one in Lincoln County," said John Fekete, the trail system's deputy director, on the plan to move forward with construction of the two new trail loops.
Sites for trailhead facilities for each of the two new Hatfield-McCoy systems have yet to be determined, according to Fekete. "What we'd like to develop are trail systems of 80 to 100 miles - enough mileage to keep trail riding interesting for people spending a few days at an area," said Fekete. In addition to the two systems being eyed for possible opening next year, the Hatfield-McCoy Regional Recreation Authority has authorized the mapping of a potential ninth trail system in Mercer County.
A series of connector trails also is being planned for development next year that would link:
• The Indian Ridge system in McDowell County with the Pinnacle Creek system in Wyoming County.
• The town of Mullens, now accessible via the Pinnacle Creek system, with a new trailhead facility bordering Twin Falls State Park.
• Logan's Fountain Place Mall, located along U.S. 119 near the new Chief Logan State Park lodge and convention center, with the Bear Wallow trail system.
• The McDowell County town of Keystone with the Indian Ridge system.
Linking the trail systems with connector trails allows trail riders to explore new trails systems without having to trailer their vehicles or change campsites or lodging accommodations. Providing ATV access to towns near the trail gives riders easy access to gas, food and repairs while giving local businesses a new source of customers. Next year's plans also include construction of 10 to 15 miles of new trail at the Pinnacle Creek system, in addition to an extra 5 to l0 miles of single-track trail for motorcyclists, and to begin making all of the Little Coal River system in Boone County accessible to wider-bodied UTVs - utility terrain vehicles in which a rider and driver sit side-by-side. "UTVs are becoming the wave of the future," said Fekete.
Since the Little Coal River system near Waterways waterpark has little room for expansion, Hatfield-McCoy officials are considering developing a second Boone County trail network in the Madison-Danville area.
Fekete said 2008 is the busiest year on record for the Hatfield-McCoy Trails, with ridership up 20 percent over last year.
"Despite the high gas prices, people continue to come to Southern West Virginia to ride the trails," he said. "People seem to be taking fewer long vacations in favor of several mini-vacations."
While new trail systems for motor vehicles have sprung up elsewhere in the East, the Hatfield-McCoy Trails remains the biggest.
"We'll keep expanding and getting bigger and better," said Fekete. "We want to be considered the Disneyland of ATV parks. Other smaller parks will pop up in Pennsylvania and other places in the East, and that's fine. It gives people places to ride until they can come here."
"The Hatfield-McCoy Trail has done a good job of adding new trails to their system," said Charles Howell of Ashland, Ky., as he prepared to ride a section of trail from the Bear Wallow Trailhead near Logan on his UTV with his son, Chuck. The Howells, former Pineville area residents, have ridden all sections of the Hatfield-McCoy system except for Pinnacle Creek.
"But we rode trails along Pinnacle Creek before the Hatfield-McCoy Trail was started," said Chuck Howell.
The Motorcycle Safety Foundation has introduced a new Military SportBike RiderCourseSM for U.S. Armed Forces throughout the world.
According to the recent MSF press release, the course was developed in close collaboration with the U.S. Navy and U.S. Army safety centers and is now available to all branches of the Department of Defense. Developed to address the increasing number of military personnel who are involved in sport bike crashes, the MSF Military SportBike RiderCourse is a “next-level” training course for military riders who have completed the MSF Basic RiderCourse. The one-day course consists of approximately three hours of classroom interactive lesions and four hours of on-cycle range time, and is taught by instructors (RiderCoaches) who receive additional training and special MSF certification to teach the course.
“The goal is to provide riders with a way to further develop personal riding strategies and decision-making abilities to help them minimize their risk,” said Dr. Ray Ochs, MSF director of training systems. The classroom segment focuses on the behavioral aspects of riding such as attitude and personal risk assessment, and includes discussions about braking proficiency, cornering techniques, traction management and characteristics unique to sport bikes. The hands-on range session builds on these topics by providing riders the opportunity to develop and improve skills in braking, cornering and swerving. A student pocket takeaway booklet, the “Sport Bike Survival Guide,” will be provided to all military personnel who participate in the course. Written by accomplished sport bike riding instructor Nick Ienatsch, with a foreword from Superbike Champion Ben Spies, it includes riding techniques, street strategies, handy reference materials, quick tips, and additional resources for those seeking to further their knowledge and skills.
The Department of Defense requires completion of an MSF course for all military personnel who ride, and the U.S. Navy now requires the MSF Military SportBike RiderCourse for all personnel who own sport bikes once they have completed the MSF Basic RiderCourse.
To date, more than 1,600 Navy and Marine personnel have taken the new MSF Military SportBike RiderCourse.
“With this new course for military riders, the Motorcycle Safety Foundation continues its ongoing effort to provide innovative programs and curriculum, all developed with one goal in mind – to fulfill its mission of improving rider safety,” Ochs said.
News & Notes is a monthly publication compiled and edited by the American Motorcyclist Association (AMA) Government Relations Department. Designed to inform motorcyclists of ‘rights'-related issues and events around the world, we welcome your news & views. Suggestions and contributions can be sent to Sheila Andrews, AMA Legislative Assistant, by e-mail at sandrews@ama-cycle.org.