It just seems to be getting worse and worse.  We’re now under attack in the Black Hills and MOAB areas.   Read on to be better informed (and depressed).  Its not all bad news, but there is enough of it.  To read about these important off-road topics in more detail and to learn about others go to ATV Parks and OHV Information.

Now onto the important off-road / OHV topics:

• MOAB Next For Trail Closures!- The BLM has worked up a new travel management plan for MOAB. They’ have actually drawn up 4 different proposals for the appearance sake of supposedly being fair and reasonable to all involved. Well, let me tell you that just isn’t the case! These jackals are trying to take the majority of this wheeling Mecca away from us! The BLM is asking for public comment on the four alternatives until Nov. 30, and they say they are encouraging all offroaders to study it and voice their opinions. Trust me you won’t like any of the 3 options of change the BLM is considering for MOAB!
• US Forest Service Seeks Public Comment On Tellico Plans- The U.S. Forest Service gave notice this week that it will seek public comment on it’s plan to close trails in the Tellico Off-Road Recreation Area because of environmental problems. We need to give them an earful because it isn’t good news for us. Learn about their plans for Tellico and how you can contact them.
• PA State Environmental Agency Closes ATV Park! - Mountain Ridge Trails Resort, an ATV park has been closed by the Pennsylvania Environmental Protection Agency, because it lacked the required permits to operate. It is expected to remain closed at least through January 1, 2008 according to the park’s Website.
• New Oklahoma ATV Laws Go In Effect In November  - New ATV laws go into effect on Nov. 1 in Oklahoma and they place new restrictions on riders. Passengers will be prohibited from riding four-wheelers on public land unless the vehicles are specifically made to carry more than one person. The law will also make it mandatory for riders under the age of 18 to wear helmets.
• Problems Brewing At Red Creek Off-Road Park In Mississippi - Neighbors of this off-road park have formed a group and have filed complaints against the park regarding noise, alcohol issues and, here comes the bad one…..environmental damage. Some residents organized a group that hired and paid a consultant to help them make their case, which they then took to the George County Board of Supervisors. According to the complaint ATV riders in the park are riding at all hours of the night and leaving piles of trash along the Red River, a scenic waterway, which they say may now be in jeopardy.  This is not good news for the park.
• A New ATV Park Planned for Western Texas- Finally some good news!  The Escondido Draw Recreation Area Planning, a 3,329 acre area is slowly making its way through Federal bureaucracy to become a reality. The plans for the recreation area include off-road trails for ATVs and dirt bikes, an RV camping area and a special use area of 300 acres to be used by groups like the Boy Scouts.
• Sierra National Forest Proposed Trail Changes - Sierra National Forest officials will lay out two proposals that could result in sweeping changes for off-road enthusiasts and other recreational users in a series of public meetings. One proposal will prohibit all motorized cross-country travel, limiting the use of OHVs to a designated network of roads and trails. The Sierra National Forest contains about 70 miles of designated OHV routes, and according to the Forest Service, over the years users created another 520 miles of unauthorized (their words not mine) trails that have been inventoried and mapped.  The preposterous proposal by the Forest Service chumps would lead to 54 miles of these “unauthorized trails” being added to the designated trail system, giving us a total of 124 miles of trails for OHV use. The rest would be closed, and further cross-country travel prohibited. That means we would be losing 466 miles of trails and all of the open cross-country travel areas!!
• Black Hills Travel Management Plan / OHV Trail Reduction Proposal - The US Forest service’s initial proposal is to have 1,075 miles of road open only to highway vehicles,  2,231 miles of road open to all motor vehicles, 165 miles of trails open to all motor vehicles, 437 miles of trail open vehicles 50″ wide and less, 79 miles of trail open only to motorcycles, and special designated trails of 29 miles open for Rock Crawlers.  This insane plan would greatly reduce the total amount of trails and eliminate 100% of the motorized cross-country travel areas.  The Forest Service has left key information out of the plan they are presenting to the public in that they do not reveal how many miles of trails there are currently in the Black Hills today.  They are trying to slide one by us. 
• Now About This Unauthorized Trail Nonsense! - To all jerk-off US Forest Service spokespeople and people of the press. Listen up you political wonks and agenda pushers because I’ve had enough! Stop calling these trails unauthorized or illegal because you’re trying to screw us over and you want us to just take it without a fight and this is your trite and manipulative way of justifying it! Those trails were all legal because when you have an “open motorized cross-country travel” (your precise term I believe) it means that you can take your motorized vehicle wherever you want! You are authorized to go wherever you desire! Only in your whacked out Orwellian world does it mean that you can go anywhere as long as you don’t leave a trail. You see, to venture forth with a motorized vehicle means that you will leave a trail of where you have been.  The truth about the unrestricted or open motorized cross-country travel rules that were used for all of these national ands where you are taking trails from us is all over the place. In a recent article it is mentioned briefly when the article quotes “The retiring chief of the US Forest Service’s Intermountain Region says the days of unrestricted cross-country travel on public lands are quickly coming to an end.” Well, my question is how can it come to an end if it was never used?  All of the trails that were made in these forests, grasslands and parks where there was an open or unrestricted cross-country travel rule are legal and authorized, and as such, when you close them down you are taking something away from us that we were using for years!
• BLM Restricts OHV Use In Indian Creek Canyon (UT) - The notice reads….”Notice is hereby given that, effective immediately, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), Monticello Field Office, is restricting off-highway vehicle (OHV) travel to existing roads and trails on approximately 100,000 acres of public lands in the Indian Creek Canyon area near Monticello, UT…..The purpose of this restriction is to protect riparian, soils, riparian, vegetation, visual and cultural resources that have been adversely impacted, or are at risk of being adversely impacted by cross-country OHV travel. The restriction will remain in effect until the Monticello Resource Management Plan Revision is completed.”
• Southern Four Wheel Drive Association’s Rescue Tellico Fund! - Please support the fight to keep Tellico open by donating whatever you can to the Southern Four Wheel Drive Association’s “Rescue Tellico Fund”. Every little bit helps.
•  Huge ATV Park Might Be Coming To Kentucky - What could possibly be one of the largest ATV parks in the country could be a reality in the state of Kentucky. Members from three county governments met to discuss the off road coalition in Hazard, KY.

Well, thats it folks, and isn’t it enough?  We are under a well orchestrated attack on our riding rights on all public national lands.  It is a well thought out attack and one in which our potential losses are huge!  Just look at what is at stake with Tellico, MOAB, and the Black Hills!  Our riding areas at all 3 of these areas could be gutted.   Its now or never for you to get involved and put your money and your actions where your mouths are.  Don’t just sit there and complain about it.  Contact your Senator, Congressional Rep, the BLM, and US Forest Service, and complain to them about what they are doing.  Then join and  financially support one of the off-road representative bodies like the 4 Wheel Drive Association, BlueRibboon Coalition, Treadlightly and the National Off-Highway Vehical Conservation Council.  They want and need your support to fight these battles. 

The first steps in the battle over the Tellico ORV Area have been taken and it doesn’t look good for the ORV community.  The US Forest Service Is Already Proposing Closing 3 Trails and a Complete Seasonal Closure of the Entire Tellico ORV Area!  As a result of a “notice of intent to sue” issued by environmental groups over water clarity issues, the US Forest Service is now proposing to close trails 2, 7 and 9, and possibly a seasonal closure of the entire ORV area! If this goes through it will be a huge win for the environmental groups and look for more concessions to come. I wouldn’t be surprised if we lose this entire ORV area if this first step gets implemented.  Read more about the Tellico ORV Battle.