Posts Tagged ‘ohv’

OHV Designated Routes Working Group Meeting and Field Visit – Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area

Contacts:
Joni Quarnstrom 541-750-7075
Sharon Stewart 541-271-6071

January 14, 2010

Reedsport, OR – A field tour and meeting for the Off Highway Vehicle (OHV) Designated Routes Working Group for the Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area (Oregon Dunes) will be held on Friday, January 22 and Saturday, January 23.

The January 22 field tour will focus on the “North Riding Area” of the NRA, located south of Florence. The field tour will begin at 12:30 p.m. at the South Jetty Staging Area, located on South Jetty Road, approximately one mile south of Florence on Highway 101, and conclude at 4:30 p.m. at the same location.

The following day, January 23, the Working Group will meet from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at the Group Meeting Hall at Honeyman State Park, located on Canary Road, approximately three miles south of Florence on Highway 101.

The meeting agenda will be focused on a review of evaluation criteria developed by the Group at their November meeting, a review of alternative designated route proposals for the middle riding area developed at the November meeting, and identification of potential designated route recommendations for the north riding area.

Read more…

Grassroots and Industry Urge Permanent Fix to Controversial Youth-Model Bike/ATV Ban

Pocatello, ID (January 14) – A report that is due to Congress from the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) has sparked a renewed effort by off-highway vehicle (OHV) enthusiasts to completely remove a ban on youth-model off-highway motorcycles and ATVs. The youth-model ban is a result of the CPSC’s interpretation of the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA), a law originally intended to ban the importation of children’s toys containing lead-based paint.

The powersports industry, individual dealerships and off-highway vehicle advocacy groups have been working hard to rescind the ban. OHV advocates believe the January 15 CPSC report provides an opportunity to move a final solution forward.

The BlueRibbon Coalition, a national grassroots OHV advocacy group is encouraging their members to contact their congressional representatives and urge them to take action to end the unfair ban. BRC’s Call to Action can be found here: http://www.sharetrails.org/alerts/?alert=1105

Read more…

Report to Congress is Opportunity to Completely Rescind Youth Model OHV Ban

IMMEDIATE ACTION REQUESTED

As you know, BRC has been participating in efforts to rescind a youth-model off-highway motorcycle and ATV ban along with other state, local and national OHV advocacy groups. The next few days offer a golden opportunity to completely remove the ban.

But we need your help. OHV groups have met with agency officials and politicians. We have the acknowledgment that the youth-model ban was not Congress’s intent when they passed the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA). But the Consumer Products Safety Commission (CPSC), the government agency charged with implementing the law, says their hands are tied. There are several solutions available, but both Congress and the agency need to act.

We believe that a report from CPSC to Congress regarding CPSIA gives our community a golden opportunity to fix this lousy situation. Our action item is below. We have tried to make it as easy as possible so it won’t take unnecessary time away from work and family.

CPSC’s report is due January 15, 2010. The next few days present a key opportunity, and BRC is most influential when our membership makes their voices heard.

Please take a few minutes to complete the action item, and please also forward this alert to your friends, family and riding buddies.

Let’s not miss this opportunity,

Brian Hawthorne
Public Lands Policy Director
BlueRibbon Coalition
208.237.1008 ext 102

ACTION ITEM:
We’ve prepared a letter generator to help keep it as easy as possible. Please take a minute to click on the link below and send a letter. Your comments will help, please send your letter today!
Click here to take action now.

The BlueRibbon Coalition is a national (non-profit) trail-saving group that represents over 600,000 recreationists nationwide The Combined Federal Campaign (CFC) season is beginning. Federal employees, please mark BlueRibbon Coalition and Check #11402 on your CFC pledge form to support our efforts to protect your access. Join us at 1-800-258-3742 http://www.sharetrails.org

Video Explains How to License and Register Motorbikes, ATVs in Idaho

Do you need a registration sticker and a license plate for your motorbike and ATV to ride legally in Idaho? Or do you just need a sticker? Or just a plate? What’s the deal?

There has been some confusion about those questions, so the Idaho Off-Highway Vehicle Public Outreach Campaign produced a step-by-step video that explains the process for registering and licensing OHVs in Idaho.

Read more at New Video Explains How to License and Register Motorbikes, ATVs in Idaho

IDPR Coordinates Avalanche Awareness Class In Coeur D’Alene (Idaho)

Boise, ID – The Idaho Department of Parks and Recreation (IDPR) will be presenting a snowmobile-centered, basic, avalanche awareness class in Coeur d’Alene on December 17, 2009. Space is limited. Pre-registration is required.

The seminar will be held on Thursday, December 17, from 6-9 p.m. at Specialty Recreation, 772 W Kathleen Avenue, Coeur d’Alene, Idaho.

The Coeur d’Alene Snowmobile Club will provide hot dogs and chili.

The field segment of this class will be held at a later date.

“We’re offering a variety of classroom and field sessions this year, to accommodate individuals across the state,” said Rich Gummersall, IDPR Off Highway Vehicle (OHV) Education Coordinator. “With an increase in avalanche related accidents in the state, educating the public has become a priority”.

Classes are limited to 50 participants and will fill up fast. To sign up, please call Marc Hildesheim at (208) 769-1511 before Monday, December 14.

This IDPR sponsored educational seminar is free and is an example of your registration dollars at work.

Visit www.parksandrecreation.idaho.gov for a complete schedule of avalanche awareness classes, snowmobile safety tips and information on where to ride in Idaho.

http://parksandrecreation.idaho.gov/article.aspx?newsid=275

Idaho’s Sawtooth National Forest Seeks Comment On Road And Trail Designations

News Release
USDA Forest Service
Sawtooth National Forest
Contact: Your PAO, jathomas@fs.fed.us

Fairfield, ID – The Forest Service is proposing to amend the travel management use designation of a few select, existing road and trail routes on the Fairfield Ranger District, Sawtooth National Forest. A need for these route designations has been identified to help better manage motor vehicle use on the Fairfield District. The following trail routes were designated during travel management planning but further analysis of use patterns in the area has identified a need for a change in designation. The proposed road designations are existing roads that were overlooked during our travel management analysis and the need of these routes for public and administrative access has since been identified. The proposed route designation changes are:

Trails:

• Jeep Trail #7634 (Wash Canyon) – from a jeep trail to a route closed to motor vehicles.
• Trail #7185 (Free Gold Cr.) – change designation from single track motorized to OHV less than 50′
• Trail #7813 (Phillips Cr.) – from an OHV trail to single track motorized
• Trail #7083 (Fleck Summit) – change designation from single track motorized to OHV less than 50″

Roads:

• Cherry Creek road-designate approximately 0.6 miles of existing road for access to private land and connects to BLM trail opportunities for the public.
• Salt-Bounds Sheep Corral road-designate approximately 0.3 miles of existing road that is needed to access
• Forest Service sheep corrals that are currently used by permittees, the public and the Forest Service.
• Confluence road (at the confluence of Big Smoky Cr. and the South Fork Boise River) – designate approximately 0.4 miles of existing road for public access and dispersed camping.

The purpose of this project is to better manage motor vehicle use in the area while providing a quality recreation experience for forest visitors. To be most helpful, written comments need to be submitted by December 25, 2009. For more information call the Fairfield Ranger District at 208-764-3202.

Submit written comments by December 25, 2009 to:

USDA-Forest Service
Sawtooth National Forest, Fairfield Ranger District
P.O. Box 189
Fairfield, ID 83327
Attn: Jennifer Hulme

Or submit comments via e-mail to: comments-intermtn-sawtooth-fairfield@fs.fed.us

http://www.fs.fed.us/r4/sawtooth/news/2009/11/d5_road_trail_designate.html

Proposal for Motorized Trail System on the Ochoco National Forest (Oregon)

For Immediate Release:
November 18, 2009
Contact: Virginia Gibbons 541/416-6647
Bill Queen 541/416-6500

Prineville, OR – A proposal for a designated motorized trail system on the Ochoco National Forest is currently available for public review. The “Ochoco Summit OHV Trail” would be located east of Highway 26 on Forest Service-administered lands in the general vicinity of Big Summit Prairie on the Lookout Mountain and Paulina Ranger Districts. The project includes 124 miles of motorized trails that would be used, in a varying capacity, for ATV, motorcycle, jeep, small truck and buggy recreational riding. The trail system includes a number of staging areas, trailheads, camping opportunities, riding areas and interconnected trail loops.

Prior to this proposal, the McKay Creek area was considered for a designated motorized trail system. Ochoco National Forest Supervisor Jeff Walter felt it made good sense to conduct an analysis for a designated motorized trail system in McKay watershed that could be managed and enforced. The McKay watershed has sustained significant resource damage from illegal OHV use for a number of years and more recently, the reintroduction of steelhead into the McKay Creek system has created additional concerns. However, upon review by local citizen groups and cooperating agencies affiliated with the Deschutes Provincial Advisory Committee and the Crook County Natural Resource Planning Committee, the proposal for a motorized trail system in McKay was not well supported.

The Forest recognizes that not all of the issues have been resolved with the Ochoco Summit OHV Trail Proposed Action and that many people have yet to provide input. It is important to note that the proposal is just the starting point in this planning process. Issues that are unresolved, or that emerge as a result of public input will be addressed through a modification of the “Proposed Action” and/or through the development of alternatives that will be analyzed and compared in the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS).

We anticipate the public comment period for this Proposed Action will begin on November 20, 2009 and end on December 21, 2009, pending publication in the Federal Register. The Proposed Action, maps, and additional information is posted on the forest website at www.fs.fed.us/r6/centraloregon/travel-mgmt/och_summit/index.shtml

Comment forms and a comment inbox are also available on the website. Those who wish to view printed paper maps or receive an electronic copy of maps on CD may go to thefollowing locations:

Ochoco National Forest Supervisor’s Office
3160 NE 3rd Street, Prineville, OR 97754
Rager Ranger Station (Paulina Ranger District)
171500 Beaver Creek Road
Paulina, OR 97751

Crooked River National Grassland
813 SW Hwy 97
Madras, OR 97741

A CD may also be requested by contacting the Ochoco National Forest at (541) 416-6500. Hard copy comments may be mailed or delivered to:

Ochoco Summit OHV Trail Planning Team
Ochoco National Forest
3160 NE 3rd Street
Prineville, OR 97754

The Ochoco Summit OHV Trail DEIS is tentatively scheduled to be available for public review and comment in the spring of 2010. Public meetings and a 45-day public comment period will be scheduled and announced at that time. A Final Environmental Impact Statement and Record of Decision is tentatively scheduled for completion in the summer of 2010.

The Ochoco Summit OHV Trail Proposed Action is not to be confused with the “Travel Management DEIS” for the Ochoco & Deschutes National Forests. The Ochoco Summit OHV Trail is a separate analysis from the Travel Management DEIS, and it is consistent with the direction stated in the “Forest Service 2005 Travel Management Rule”.

For more information on the Travel Management DEIS, which is currently available for review and public comment, please visit our website at www.fs.fed.us/r6/centraloregon/travel-mgmt

For specific project information regarding the Ochoco Summit OHV Trail Proposed Action, contact Dede Steele, Project Lead, at (541) 416-6500. For general concerns and questions regarding the Ochoco Summit OHV Trail proposal, contact Bill Queen, Lookout Mountain District Ranger (541) 416-6500; Slater Turner, Acting Paulina District Ranger (541) 416-6900; or Virginia Gibbons, Public Affairs Officer, (541) 416-6647.

http://www.fs.fed.us/r6/centraloregon/news/2009/11/20091118-ochsum-propmotor_trail_ochoco_nf.pdf