On The Web

NOHVCC Helps Riders Protect Trails with Web-Based Workshops and Videos

Catch All Four Sessions in November and December

With help from Yamaha Motor Corp., U.S.A., the National Off-Highway Vehicle Conservation Council (NOHVCC) has been conducting interactive web based workshops, or webinars, for OHV riders and anyone interested in OHV land use since mid-June. The workshops are designed to give riders the skills they’ll need to keep trails open in their areas. The sessions are 2 -3 hours long and are conducted by the same OHV management experts who conduct the on-site NOHVCC workshops. The four modules have been presented three times each for the past four months. Beginning November 9th and continuing through December, each module will be presented twice so the people who may have missed a session or would like to participate in any or all of the session will have another opportunity.

There are four separate modules that are being presented at various times to accommodate people’s busy schedules:

• Module 1 Route Designation: How Did We Get Here? – This module will help people understand the process required for land planning, it focuses on the US Forest Service Process, but the basics can be applied to any government agency. The course also discusses the US Forest Service Travel Management Rule, its implementation so far, and how to apply it going forward; as well as the US Forest Service structure.
• Module 2 Trail System Planning Part 1 – This module will help riders’ and land managers understand how to plan, design, manage, and maintain trail systems that meet the riders’ needs by providing high quality and adequate quantities of trails. The module will start with an introduction to OHV recreationists as it is hard to plan a trail to fit their needs if you don’t know what their needs are. It will then talk about the basic principles of OHV trail system planning before going into details on what is required to plan a sustainable trail system.
• Module 3 Trail System Planning Part 2 – This module starts with an overview of what was learned in module 2. It then goes into detail regarding trail maintenance, monitoring, and signing requirements. The details will instruct the land manager in various techniques to meet their needs and give the recreationists information regarding how they can assist the land managers with these trail requirements.
• Module 4 Making It Work: Where Do We Go From Here? – This module will help riders understand how to be effective in their efforts to influence the decisions that will determine where they can ride. It will give concrete examples of how to work effectively with land managers and make comments during the agency process. This module will also spend time looking at 4 areas where the design, planning, and implementation of the principles conveyed in earlier modules have worked to create successful trail systems. This module closes with ideas for both the enthusiasts and the land managers to move forward to creating the sustainable OHV trail systems.

In addition to the interactive webinars, NOHVCC will be offering 14 video workshop sessions as podcasts in late November. The videos cover the same topics as the webinars without the interactive elements. Riders or groups who can’t participate in the webinars or workshops now have access to the knowledge they need to protect their riding opportunities. The videos can be watched as streaming videos at www.nohvcc.org or contact NOHVCC and we will be able to mail you a DVD with all sessions on one disc free of charge in December courtesy of Yamaha OHV Access Initiative.

Russ Ehnes, Executive Director of the NOHVCC said “In these tight economic times we need to take advantage of technology to help riders get the information they need. Last year we began developing the webinar and video programs with financial support from the Motorcycle Industry Council and Specialty Vehicle Institute of America. This year, we are delivering the webinars and videos with funding from the Yamaha OHV Access Initiative. This program is helping us reach thousands of OHV activists who otherwise wouldn’t have a chance to take part in a NOHVCC workshop.”

The workshop modules were developed in cooperation with the American Motorcyclist Association, BlueRibbon Coalition, Motorcycle industry Council, Off-Road Business Association, Specialty Vehicle Institute of America, and United Four Wheel Drive Associations

For more information about signing up for the webinar sessions, viewing the video sessions, or to order a DVD, check out www.nohvcc.org or call 800-348-6487.

Creating a Positive Future of Off-Highway Vehicle Recreation
427 Central Ave W, Great Falls, MT 59404
Phone: 800-348-6487 Fax: 406-454-9142 e-mail: trailhead@nohvcc.org

Snowmobilers Help Rescue Winter Recreation

Things were looking pretty bleak for snowmobilers who love to ride the dry winter powder on state trust lands near Yakima and Ellensburg.

Due to budget cuts earlier this year by the Legislature, DNR was planning to suspend its winter recreation program at five snow parks this season. Concerned about the possibility of not having access to their favorite winter recreation sites , the snowmobiling community decided to get proactive.

In a short few weeks, members of the Yakima Ski Benders collected the $25,000 necessary to keep the program alive.

Read more at Snowmobilers Help Rescue Winter Recreation

Volunteers Clean Up Popular Spot in Capitol State Forest

The Triangle Gravel Pit, a popular spot for target shooting in Capitol State Forest, got the volunteer treatment this past weekend – as in people pitching in to pick up after others. The area west of Olympia has been the site of illegal dumping and unsafe target shooting. DNR regulates and enforces recreational target shooting target shooting rules on DNR-managed lands.

Read more at Volunteers clean up popular spot in Capitol State Forest

Social Networking Update

To keep up with the times, this is the current list of social networking sites you can associate with Pacific Northwest Backroad Adventures:

• Facebook Fan Page
• FaceBook Group Page
• MySpace
• Twitter

If you’re a member of any of the above social networking sites, stop by our profile and add us as a friend.

PNW Backroad Adventures on Facebook

For all you Facebook users, I just added a couple of pages on Facebook. First there is the Pacific Northwest Backroad Adventures Fan Page on Facebook. Then I created a Pacific Northwest Backroad Adventures Group Page on Facebook.

The Pacific Northwest Backroad Adventures Fan Page on Facebook is viewable without logging in.

The Pacific Northwest Backroad Adventures Group Page on Facebook is only viewable by members of Facebook.

Feel free to stop by and visit.

Oregon Backcountry Discovery Route Trip

Over on the forum at OBCDR Trip Report, Decidion posted up a web page with a trip report of a recent 4-day trip through the Oregon Backcountry.

Decidion describes the trip as follows:

“The Oregon Backcountry Discovery Route is a series of gravel and offroad/4×4 trails that leads from the California border all the way up to the Washington border along the eastern edge of the Cascade mountains. It is primarily US Forest Service roads, some of which are maintain, but a lot of them have not seen any cleanup since the last person who ran the route.”

Read the trip report at Oregon Backcountry Discovery Route Trip.

Off-Road Trailer Build

If you’re interested in building an off-road camp trailer to tow behind your expedition vehicle, you have many options to choose. You can purchase a top of the line trailer with all the bell and whistles like a Adventure Trailer (drool) or you can do as Brandon over at OlympiaFJ60 is doing and build your own.

You can follow along with the build at Off-road Tent Trailer Build.