Off-Roaders get some press!

[firecracker22]

http://seattlep-i.nwsource.com/getaways/35284_cycles16.shtml

I haven’t decided yet if this is good or bad. It’s certainly a mixture of some of both. They talked about the hikers way too much and the fish and the environment but they didn’t make us look like hooligans . . . although all the words like “gun the throttle,” “roar into the river” and “churns” as well as the headline “Kicking up Dirt” make it sound wild, out of control, and crazy. I think so, anyway. We’re dealing with legislation and funding issues here right now but I felt they focused too much on all the controversy.

Read it and tell me what you think!

 

[Layton]

I thought it was a fair report and certainly better then most. Aslo they pointed out that the area had been ridden in for 20 years and didn't seem to show any bad effects.

 

[LoP]

for once..

This has got to be the fist article Ive read on this subject where the author wa not biased one way or the other...wrote it how he saw it. Good article thanks for sharing.

KJ

 

[firecracker22]

Lotsa local politics on this one though. DRN's very own Pegasus was the Ellen S. quoted in the story!

 

[bbbom]

The article was fair but it would have been more accurate if the title was something like "Trail-bike riding churns out mountains of fun while jealous hiker extremists fabricate lies for controversy" (like WTA - Washington Trails Assoc or extreme exclusionist hiker only granolas are).

As he stated, those trails have been utilized for a long time by bikes and the area is STILL pristine.

As for his comment on NOVA funding, 30% goes to motorized rec, 30% to non motorized rec and the balance to mixed use. The WTA has been trying to steal the balance by claiming that mixed use is really motorized. So does that mean you can only enjoy the outdoors if it is absolutely quiet?

Guess they'll be restricting those noisy kids and what about horses that whinny? Kick em out. Be silent or you ruin the "pristine" forest. :think

The other problem is the NOVA funding comes from the GAS tax. Last time I checked there was no tax on hikers. Maybe we should add a tax on hiking boots and THAT tax goes to pay for hiking trails.

Instead of filing for a refund of the tax paid on gas that was used on non-highway uses, we essentially donate it to the gov here in exchange for the funding.

They also fail to realize that very few hikers will do a 30 mile hike. That is an EASY trail ride for us (unless you are following Karl :scream: ). Heck we can ride 70 miles and STILL hike another 4 IN DIRTBIKE BOOTS no less!!! Lets see a hiker do that.

The WTA claims that there are more hikers than bikers (according to THEIR studies). I am sure that the number of MILES biked far exceeds the number of miles hiked. I am also sure that the number of miles voluntarily maintained by bikers far exceeds those maintained by hikers.

The article was pretty good but he could have made a few more points in our favor without being biased. WTA is VERY strong, especially over THERE so I guess you can't expect him to go against THEM.

Uh Oh, I feel the need to write a LETTER!!! :p

 

[firecracker22]

Please do! I am still formulating mine.

 

[XRpredator]

I think this sums it up right here:

"Most of us who ride really live for the when the snow melts out and we have 2.5 to three months of mountain riding," says Hiatt. "I think the hiking groups really need to learn how to share."

And bbbom, I agree with you <Dr. Evil voice on> One Million Percent ;) If the hikers (mountain bikers, etc.) want tax money to help out "their" trails, then lobby for a tax on hiker-specific (and MTB-specific) products for their own revenues.

Good article, though it still leans to the left just a skoshe. :D

 

[ktmboy]

I like the fact that a female rider was interviewed. It can only help our sport when John Q. Public sees that it's not just crazy, drunken, wild guys running around tearing up the countryside, but there are families involved in this sport, and they are responsible, and they are the true environmentalists.

 

[Moo]

Yeah... the picture of the kids will help image some too...:)

 

[Hondaxrguy]

Good article

Now I want to go ride that trail! :) It's nice to see media giving us good coverage. Though more/better coverage would have been nice, it's better than nothing! Maybe a follow up article with some interesting facts? Hmm.....

Jeremy

 

[firecracker22]

I'll get right on that. :)

I've been to the trails in question twice--once to the lower trails, the "easy" ones, and once to the upper ones which were NOT. Expert level, without doubt, and far beyond my abilities. Anyway, the stream the guy is splashing through is the very one it took me 3 tries to get through . . . I still suck at water crossings. Funny when you recognize someplace you've been in a magazine or newspaper like that.