Another Wilderness Proposal - send a quick note opposing

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Idaho Wilderness Proposal - send a quick note opposing

From: "Sandra Mitchell" <smitchel@alscott.com>
Sent: Tuesday, June 29, 2004 2:05 PM
Subject: Boulder White Cloud Wilderness--Urgent!


At the last Idaho Recreation Council (IRC) meeting we adopted a position of
hard release language and no net loss for any motorized or mechanized group
before we would support Congressman Simpson's legislation. It should come
as no surprise that the legislation as proposed is a net loss ( a big net
loss) to the mountain bike and the snowmobile community.

Congressman Simpson has asked for our opinion of his legislation. I hope
you will take the time to tell him. I have attached the snowmobile alert
that I sent out that explains how and where to send your comments.

Thanks.


ACTION ALERT
YOUR HELP IS NEEDED!

Congressman Simpson wants to know what you think about 300,000 acres of Wilderness in the Boulder White Clouds. The big losers in his proposal are mountain bikers and snowmobilers not because we haven’t made our case or because the Congressman is out to get us but because of the way we use the land. Trails and corridors simply don’t meet our needs. As for the bikers, they don’t need trails they go wherever they want except in wilderness of course.

There are three way you can communicate your position about his proposal:

1. Attend one of the town meetings and testify. (There is a two minute limit so you don’t have to deliver a speech just a simple statement saying why you oppose the proposal)
a. July 1, 9:00-11:00 am, American Legion Hall, 220 Cottonwood, Ketchum
b. July 1, 2:00-4:00 pm, Stanley School, Airport Road, Stanley
c. July 2, 9:00-11:00 am, Challis High School, 1110 Bluff Avenue, Challis
2. Write a brief letter. Send it to Representative Mike Simpson, 802 West Bannock Street, Suite 600, Boise, ID 83702 or
3. Send him an email message: mike.simpson@mail.house.gov Subject: Central Idaho Proposal

This is important! As you have probably noticed, I don’t send out many action requests, when I do, it is because your help is truly needed. If we are going to protect our access to this area everyone needs to send a message to the Congressman.

It matters not that you use the area, this is public land and you have a right to have a say in its future.
Things you might want to include in your message:

· Thank the Congressman for taking the time to listen to the concerns of the snowmobile community.
· Wilderness doesn’t protect the land rather it limits management options.
· The land in question is already well managed demonstrated by the fact that after decades of motorized use it still qualifies for wilderness.
· Snowmobiling is good for the economy and is environmentally friendly.
· Idaho already has 4 million acres of wilderness and that is enough.
· The Boulder White Clouds provides some of the best backcountry high elevation riding in Idaho.

Send a message today because there aren’t many tomorrows left. Ask your friends and neighbors to get involved also.

 

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Please forward to other off-highway motorcyclists
(Please note this announcement was generated from a similar announcement composed by the International Mountain Bike Association. We would like to thank them for allowing us to copy much of the content. If you ride mountain bicycles and are concerned about access, please see their website at http://www.imba.com )



Dear Idaho Off-Highway Motorcyclists,

ITMA is calling on all Off-Highway Motorcyclists in Idaho to get involved in pending Wilderness discussions being considered for the Boulder-White Cloud region of Central Idaho.

U.S. Congressman Mike Simpson is hosting public meetings next week (July 1 and 2) to hear feedback on his proposal to name an additional 250,000 to 300,000 acres of Wilderness in Central Idaho. Motorcycle use is categorically prohibited in Wilderness areas. While ITMA supports protecting open space from development, some of the proposed areas contain popular trails that motorcyclists have ridden for years. In addition, the conservation groups will be asking Congressman Simpson to increase the scope of the Wilderness which could impact even more trails.

Congressman Simpson does propose to re-open the Champion Lakes Trail for motorized use. This is one of the very positive components of the proposal and we need to make sure this remains an integral component of any future proposal.

We need motorcycle riders to attend these meetings to make sure the Congressman and his staff know how important all of these trails are to us. ITMA proposes Backcountry designation as an alternative to Wilderness that protects the land but still allows for recreation access.

For a detailed list of impacted trails see the end of this email.

WHAT YOU CAN DO:

1) ATTEND PUBLIC MEETINGS (July 1-2)
2) WRITE A LETTER/ MAKE A PHONE CALL
3) VOLUNTEER TO HELP ITMA



1) ATTEND PUBLIC MEETINGS (July 1-2)

It is critical that off-highway motorcyclists attend this meeting to show how much we care about area trail access. Even if the main focus of the meeting isn't related to recreation, please attend and respectfully mention your concern about trail closures.

* July 1, 9:00-11:00 am, American Legion Hall, 220 Cottonwood, Ketchum (corner of Cottonwood and 2nd Avenue South). The main focus at this public meeting is the wilderness component of the proposal.

* July 1, 2:00-4:00 pm, Stanley School, Airport Road (also called School Road), Stanley. The main focus at this public meeting is the recreation component of the proposal.

* July 2, 9:00-11:00 am, Challis High School, 1110 Bluff Avenue, Challis. The main focus at this public meeting is the economic development component of proposal.

2) WRITE A LETTER/ MAKE A PHONE CALL

Please write a letter to your elected officials and your local newspaper expressing concern over the potential for trail loss. Some talking points:

- Thank Congressman Simpson for holding public meetings and including stakeholders in land protection process.
- Emphasize that off-highway motorcyclists support protecting all of the lands under consideration, but Wilderness is not the appropriate method. Congress can and has used diverse land protection tools, which can both promote land preservation and allow motorcycling.
- Ask Congressman Simpson and other elected officials to protect trails motorcyclists have ridden for years with a Backcountry classification as opposed to Wilderness.
- Ask Congressman Simpson and other Idaho elected officials to work with motorcyclists to address trail concerns before they introduce legislation.
- Stress the economic benefits of off-highway motorcycling to Custer and Blaine counties - tourism industry, motorcycle shops, motorcycle related industry, touring companies, motorcyclists who spend money at restaurants, gas stations and hotels.
- Mention significant trails that will close and any specific information you know about areas in the bill.

Please write to:

Representative Mike Simpson
C/O Chief of Staff Lindsay Slater
802 W. Bannock, Suite 600
Boise, ID 83702
Phone: 208-334-1953
Fax: 208-334-9533
Email: laurel.hall@mail.house.gov
For email and additional contact information visit the Congressman's web site
at: http://www.house.gov/simpson/emailme.shtml

Representative C.L. Butch Otter
C/O Tana Cory
802 W. Bannock, Ste. 101
Boise, ID 83702
(Ph) 208-336-9831
(Fax) 208-336-9891
For email and additional contact information visit the Congressman's web site at: <http://www.house.gov/otter/email.htm>

Senator Larry Craig
C/O Ken Burgess
225 North 9th Street, Suite 530
Boise, ID 83702
(Ph) 208-342-7985
(Fax) 208-343-2458
For email and additional contact information visit the Senator's web site at:
<http://www.senate.gov/~craig/>

Senator Mike Crapo
C/O Chief of Staff Layne Bangerter
304 N. 8th St. Room 338
Boise, ID 83702
(Ph) 208-334-1776
(Fax) 208-334-9044
For email and additional contact information visit the Senator's web site at:
http://crapo.senate.gov/contact/email.htm

Please write a letter to the editor. Contact information for your local
newspaper can be found at: http://www.usnpl.com/idnews.html


3) VOLUNTEER TO HELP ITMA

ITMA President Brett Madron (bbbmadron@msn.com) needs more help, especially in the Boulder-White Cloud area. Please e-mail Brett if you are willing to get involved by attending meetings, riding area trails and asking more motorcycle shops and motorcycle industry to get involved.

Additional information regarding the possible proposal can be found at:
http://www.house.gov/simpson. Congressman Simpson's staff says maps will be posted June 25.

Thank you for your time and for getting involved to help prevent trail closures in Idaho. Please forward this email!

Sincerely,

Brett Madron, President
Idaho Trail Machine Association
ITMA is a statewide organization of 3500 individual members and 6 affiliated clubs dedicated to creating, enhancing and preserving trail opportunities for off-highway motorcyclists in Idaho.



DRAFT LIST OF TRAILS THAT COULD BE LOST

White Clouds Proposed Wilderness Area Expansion

(a) 4th of July Trail (#109) from the Phyllis Lake turnoff to the North Side of Washington Lake. Approximately 2 miles.(b) Warm Springs Trail from 671 (from 646 North) and Garland Creek Trail 672. Trail 104 remains open but the remainder of 671 up Warm Springs Creek from 104 will be closed to motorized and mechanized trail use. Approximately 21 miles.


Boulder Proposed Wilderness Area Expansion

(a) Grand Prize Gulch road (USFS#402) and trail (USFS#112) from Grand Prize trailhead to the intersection of USFS#114 at the Bowery Guard Station. Approximately 15 miles.
(b) South fork of east fork of Salmon. Approximately 7 miles.
(c) West Pass. Approximately 14 miles.