
02/03/2021
U.S. Forest Service - Eldorado National Forest
U.S. Forest Service - Eldorado National Forest
Eldorado National Forest Virtual Open House to discuss Off-Highway Vehicle grant applicat...
Welcome to the Sharetrails.Org (BlueRibbon Coalition) page, the place to go for the latest information on recreational public lands access.
The Sharetrails.Org (BlueRibbon Coalition) is a national recreation group that champions responsible recreation and encourages individual environmental stewardship. With members in all 50 states, Sharetrails.Org is focused on building enthusiast involvement with organizational efforts through membership, outreach, education and collaboration among recreationists. http://sharetrails.org
Mission: To champion responsible recreation by empowering our members to get involved in keeping trails open and our off-road sports alive.
Operating as usual
U.S. Forest Service - Eldorado National Forest
Eldorado National Forest Virtual Open House to discuss Off-Highway Vehicle grant applicat...
We spent the last few days correcting the record on this story. Many people were contacting us saying Moab wasn’t banning all 4x4 events - just the events for OHVs (more specifically UTV or SXS events). We heard last night that Moab and Grand County have denied an event permit to Easter Jeep Safari. We tried to tell everyone this was bigger than Rally on the Rocks. If we don’t fight back it will get worse. If we continue to adopt the attitude that as long as it’s not “my event” being banned, then I have nothing to worry about - then it will get worse.
We invite everyone to read the demand letter we sent to Moab and Grand County (link here: https://www.sharetrails.org/rotr/). This isn’t about Jeeps vs. SXS. This is about the violation of fundamental Constitutional rights. After you’ve read the demand letter, we need you to sign our petition. We’ve been in the meetings in Moab, where their leaders are incredibly pleased with themselves when they can show up to a meeting with a few dozen letters supporting these unlawful bans of our events. The last time we checked, fundamental rights weren’t subject to popularity contests. Nevertheless, we need to send a strong message that the numbers are on our side.
Finally, while we’re still waiting to learn all the details why EJS was cancelled, in meetings with these leaders they have made it clear that this isn’t about noise or COVID - they are concerned about the “type of people” that these events bring to Moab. In these meetings we have been called the “worst of the worst.” We are preparing litigation against these unlawful bans. If you’re upset about this, please help us spread the word, please sign our petition, and please support the legal defense fund for this legal effort.
Join us as we take on multi-day overland adventures down Arizona's toughest 4x4 trails to find lost remains of the pioneer days.
This is the statute.
On January 18, 2021 we joined Rally on the Rocks to send a demand letter to the leaders of Moab and Grand County, UT to ask them to end their unlawful ban on OHV users, enthusiasts, and events.
Rally on the Rocks is an annual gathering of OHV users in Moab that has enjoyed enormous success as off-roading has exploded in popularity in Moab. Rally on the Rocks is attended by vendors, advocacy organizations, government agency representatives, and hundreds of veteran and beginner OHV enthusiasts. Events like this are where many new participants in off-roading learn how to ride responsibly from guides and industry veterans.
In Utah, street legal OHVs are legally allowed to ride on any roads where other street legal vehicles are allowed to drive. In Moab this has led to complaints by residents that they don’t like the noise of OHVs driving on their roads even though other loud vehicles also use the roads. Leaders in Moab and Grand County have unfairly discriminated against OHV users and passed a series of unlawful ordinances that violate state law and the U.S. Constitution. In short these actions ban OHV events, ban new OHV-related businesses, and create separate traffic laws for street-legal OHV users.
These actions buy Moab and Grand County are unlawful and wrong, and they must be challenged!
We hope that Grand County will reverse course and approve the permit for Rally on the Rocks, and we can continue working with them to find solutions to the challenges that come from explosive growth in tourism in a way that doesn't violate fundamental, Constitutionally protected rights. However, we
WASHINGTON - NOVA Fund is at Risk Again
WASHINGTON - NOVA Fund is at Risk AgainDear BRC members and Action Alert Subscriber, BRC has just received an email from our access partners over at the Washington Off Highway Vehicle Alliance (WOHVA) regarding language in some upcoming legislation that could redirect funds from the NOVA account di
Bob Adams does great work in Nevada. We share his sentiments and appreciate his involvement.
The bulk of my work in 2020 was divided between trail connectivity on BLM managed public land and the Pahrump NV OHV Park.
ROWs (Right of Ways): I’m working with BLM and Nye County NV to preserve trail connectivity by establishing ROWs (Right of Ways) across public land. ROWs are planning considerations shown on BLM realty and planning maps. Nye County submitted one application that’s the in final stage pending BLM approval. 2 more ROWs are in the works.
Route Designation: BLM Recreation is on board developing designated trail networks. But BLM realty and planners push back against route designations before land use is determined. Determining land use has been on hold since RMPs (Resource Management Plans) from a decade ago were abandoned. Over the last decade land use has been determined by developers and preservation interests staking claims to public land. Existing trails are not planning considerations. The thousands of miles of trails mapped by BLM contractors and offroaders submitted in RMP revision Scoping processes aren’t shown on planning/realty maps and won’t until routes are designated. So, while offroaders wait for land use determination to designate trails they lose public land trails cross to development and preservation that determine land use by staking claim to it. The above is my experience working to designate routes. Time is a factor because we have a closing window before riding to the next horizons stops at riding area boundaries.
New Tools: The 2020 Q4 Nevada Association of Conservation District meeting I learned of County and State Recreation Plans that apply to federal public land. Making state and county recreation plans work for offroaders is a 2021 goal. Push back to implementing recreation plans is other real stakeholders fear being pushed off public land by recreation designations. Multiple Use works best for most real stakeholders. How can we give Multiple Use the same permeance as Wilderness?
USFS Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest: MVUMs (TMPs) are in place and USFS is working with offroad groups to expand use and improve trails. Overuse is a growing issue. Volunteers readily step up to maintain forest trails. USFS has volunteer programs they can step into. And a battle we don’t have to fight is USFS managed public land isn’t being taken by solar energy developers.
Pahrump Fairgrounds OHV Park: The 427 acre Pahrump
Fairgrounds is being developed by Nye County funds and federal CDBG (Community Development Block Grants). The 40 acre OHV Park will be developed by County funds and Nevada OHV Commission grant funds. EA (Environmental Assessment) completion is expected by April this year. Earthwork will begin using Nye County Public Works Department heavy equipment run by volunteer operators. November 20, 2020 the Nye County Board of County Commissioners established the OHV Park Advisory Committee, approved by-laws, and choose members. The Committee met January 5, 2021. We have the land, funds, and riderpower to turn want into reality.
Conclusion: We face tough times ahead. Consider in 2017 anti-accessers faced a Republican President, Senate, and Congress. But they didn’t give up. They doubled down and came out ahead. Government works for people who participate. There’re enough of us to influence government. But our advocacy clout falls far short of what our numbers could support. How can we do better?
Posting for your thoughts and advise.
Bob Adams, Pahrump and Nevada Silver Trails Tourism Offroad Ambassador, AMA Nevada Volunteer Coordinator, NOHVCC Nevada State Partner, Southern Nye County Conservation District Supervisor.
Shared from Utah Off Road - We are on the meeting:
IMPORTANT INFORMATION Thank you for reading.
Information from the Make Moab Quiet Again Group. "The San Juan County Commission will be considering approval of the Rally on the Rocks permit at their Tuesday's Jan 5th meeting starting at 11am. Instructions for joining the Zoom meeting to make a public comment are given at the top of the Agenda below. The Rally on the Rocks permit is Item 16 on the Agenda. Anyone affected by this event is free to comment even if you do not live in San Juan County. Note that public comments are taken first at the beginning of the meeting at 11am and not during the discussion of the item. There is a 3-minute time limit enforced. The SJC Commissioners need strong backing of the public to deny approval."
Utah Off-Road members along other off-roading group members are strongly encouraged to call in as well.... but in favor of the ROTR. We need our voices heard loud and clear. We already know the Moab citizens who oppose the ROTR will be vocalizing their opinion. If you are able to call in for the zoom PLEASE do So. If you can't please write a quick Email to Mack McDonald (see instructions in the below paragraph)
You may send a written comment prior to the meeting to Mack McDonald, the County Administrator at: [email protected] and cc the 3 Commissioners at: [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] UTAH PUBLIC NOTICE COMMISSION AGENDA Notice Date & Time: 1/5/21 11:00 AM DESCRIPTION/AGENDA: The public will be able to view the meeting on San Juan County's Facebook live and Youtube channel CALL TO ORDER ROLL CALL INVOCATION PUBLIC COMMENT Public comments will be accepted through the following Zoom meeting link https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85176198037 or by phone at +16699006833,,85176198037# US (San Jose). There will be a three minute time limit for each person wishing to comment. If you exceed that three minute time limit the meeting controller will mute your line. CONSENT AGENDA (Routine Matters) Mack McDonald, San Juan County Administrator The Consent Agenda is a means of expediting the consideration of routine matters. If a Commissioner requests that items be removed from the consent agenda, those items are placed at the beginning of the regular agenda as a new business action item. Other than requests to remove items, a motion to approve the items on the consent agenda is not debatable. 1. Request to approve the December 15, 2020 and December 22, 2020 Commission Meeting Minutes
I deleted items 2-15 and 17 because they dont apply
*****16. Consideration and Approval of the Temporary Use and Lease of County Property located in Spanish Valley to Rally on the Rocks, LLC for event space. Mack McDonald, Chief Administrative Officer US02WEB.ZOOM.US
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Whoa! These guys are taking it to the next level: https://www.thedrive.com/news/38035/russian-off-roaders-crossed-2000-miles-of-siberia-to-reach-one-of-the-most-isolated-cities-on-earth
Oh, you hit the fire road again with your lifted Wrangler? Cute.
We wish everyone a Merry Christmas and a happy holiday season. Be sure to tune in to At Your Leisure - AYL this weekend. We’re grateful they invited us to participate in a feature on recent developments with travel management planning.
This week, the BlueRibbon Coalition shows us how they’re protecting OHV trails and camping in our “Along the Way” segment.
These folks fight hard for backcountry initiatives across the state as they work to keep the trails open and camping free. Join us at the Trail Canyon Travel Management Area outside of Kanab to learn how you can get involved to protect access for your favorite trails.
Join us Saturday 10:35 pm/Sunday 9 am at ABC4 Utah
Merry Christmas
The Dispersed Camping Access Alliance is a special ShareTrails project to build a community of everyone who is passionate about protecting access for dispersed camping. By joining our community, we will give you access to the on-the-ground information we are gathering through our day-to-day work. We will also look forward to helping you become strong advocates for dispersed camping in your favorite spots. When push comes to shove, we will make sure we have the lawyers and influencers to make sure public land managers adopt plans and rules that are friendly to the millions of responsible dispersed campers. Together we will work to protect your right to Camp Free! on America's public lands.
https://www.sharetrails.org/camp-free-join-the-dispersed-camping-access-alliance-to-protect-dispersed-camping/
Good advice from our friends at SlikRok Productions: https://youtu.be/ONlc-KHchyE
In this video we talk about the issues going on currently in Moab Utah. The impact they are having and what we think we can do to help resolve them! Thank yo...
Legislative efforts to restrict public access to public land should never be passed on the merits of our federal government's Constitutional requirement to provide for the national defense. If these wilderness bills were as popular as we are led to believe, they would pass on their own merits and wouldn't need to be tied to a must-pass bill whose purpose is to support our military. We are grateful for the thousands of activists and partner organizations who let their members of Congress know that these provisions should be removed. https://www.sharetrails.org/blueribbon-coalition-supports-removal-of-wilderness-bills-from-the-ndaa-conference-report/
POCATELLO, IDAHO (December 10, 2020) -- In July of this year, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a version of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) that included provisions that would create 100,000s of acres of new wilderness in Colorado, Washington, and California. The Senate version
Johnson Valley Shared Use Area and is soliciting comments from the public. This document is available on the website http://www.29palms.marines.mil/johnsonvalley/. The comment period closes on Dec 31, 2020 for this annual meeting.
In the interest of public health and safety and to observe COVID-19 restrictions on public gatherings, the Resource Management Group cancelled their 2020 public meeting. In lieu of a gathering, the RMG developed a Project Update Notice on the management of Johnson Valley Shared Use Area and is soliciting comments from the public. This document is available on the website http://www.29palms.marines.mil/johnsonvalley/. The comment period closes on Dec 31, 2020 for this annual meeting.
To provide comments on the Shared Use Area, military training in Johnson Valley, or to request updates, please email [email protected].
Don’t know why LEGO is waiting until after Christmas to release this? 😍
Sand Hollow State Park
Highway construction required a new OHV tunnel from the reservoir to the dunes. It was placed yesterday. A trusty tape measure just verified that it is indeed taller than the previous tunnel by two feet. A couple more weeks of work and it should be ready for use by New Years.
Let us see your best pictures of your favorite trails.
As we move into the seasons of gratitude and giving, we want to send our heartfelt thanks to everyone who supports us in our mission to protect access to outdoor recreation. However, as you know this is a never-ending battle and your support is needed now more than ever. We hope you will consider supporting us as we fight for you on this #GivingTuesday!
As we move into the seasons of gratitude and giving, we want to send our heartfelt thanks to everyone who supports us in our mission to protect access to outdoor recreation. However, as you know this is a never-ending battle and your support is needed now more than ever. Just a few days ago, our
Keep Adventure Alive in Trail Canyon
As part of a legal settlement with anti-access groups, the BLM in Utah is reviewing travel management plans in 13 travel management areas. This is a process that will impact thousands of miles of roads, and since almost all forms of outdoor recreation on public lands relies initially on motorized ac
Public Comment Assistance needed. The Kanab Bureau of Land Management is accepting scoping comments for the Trail Canyon Travel Management Plan in Utah. Learn how you can join us as we fight to keep this area open for recreation and dispersed camping: https://www.sharetrails.org/keep-adventure-alive-in-trail-canyon/
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Tonight at around 1:00 am ET the Senate is voting on the Great American Outdoors Act. This act is bad policy, it hurts people, it allocates billions of dollars to groups that fight against access, and the politics of the bill make no sense. We need to let our Senators know they shouldn’t support it. Call their offices tonight. They’ll be working late to try and hide their votes from you.
Welcome to tonight’s Access Protection Bootcamp. Tonight we’re discussing working with elected officials.
Welcome to tonight’s Access Protection Bootcamp. Tonight we’re discussing working with other public land users.
Welcome to tonight’s Access Training Bootcamp. Tonight we’re talking about using social media effectively.
We are excited to announce that we have retained Freeman | Lovell to assist with our various litigation efforts. While we are vigilantly keeping an eye on policy changes that will affect OHV access, we recognize that our members, partners, and user groups are anxiously adjusting to the impacts of COVID-19 on our economy and way of life. No one is better adapted to situations where the ground is shifting beneath their feet (or wheels) like off-roaders, and we want to do what we can to make sure everyone rides this out as best they can. Our policy director, Ben Burr, joined attorneys Josh Freeman and Mike Thomas to discuss the recently passed federal relief programs. If you're a business owner, non-profit, or employee, this information can help you know how to access the benefits of these programs. We hope this information helps. If you still have questions let us know, we will do what we can to help find answers. These three links provide additional information to what is discussed in the video: https://www.freemanlovell.com/post/update-get-ready-the-paycheck-protection-loans-are-almost-here https://www.freemanlovell.com/post/the-coronavirus-relief-bill-the-cares-act https://www.freemanlovell.com/post/families-first-coronavirus-response-act Time is of the essence with some of these federal programs, so if you are eligible for them, you should utilize them. However, we also know that no federal program can replace what is potentially at stake for so many of us during these challenging times. Please feel free to reach out if you need help with anything at this time. We don't claim to have all the answers, but are committed to help where we can.
There’s gold in the mountains of Arizona both literally and figuratively. We joined American Mining Rights Association and Arizona Backcountry Explorers on a gold hunting adventure. While we did find some of the yellow stuff, we are most excited about working together with all adventure seekers to keep our roads and trails open throughout the great state of Arizona.
Watch to learn about some of the important work we are doing in Clark County, NV. Much thanks to Robert Adams for showing our Policy Director, Ben Burr, some of the hidden gems near Pahrump. Ben also tagged along with Iron County Commissioner Paul Cozzens to the huge RS2477 case being heard right now in federal court in Salt Lake City. This court case, and the day spent cruising around Nevada are connected, and you need to learn why then help spread the word.
Senator Maynard points out the challenges and opportunities facing the off-road community in West Virginia. He wants West Virginia to be an off-road destination that rivals Moab in the East. They have excellent terrain, they have enthusiastic off-road grassroots, and strong leaders to make it happen. We’re ready to help!
We joined our allies in a good meeting today with several members of the Moab government. We appreciate their willingness to reach out and work together to create cooperative solutions to accommodate OHV users in their community.
Thank you Danny Hensely for your dedication! We are grateful to have these guys serving as BRC Ambassadors! We will be in Sacramento prior to the rally to discuss legislative proposals and hope you'll join us! January 31st is the Stand for the Sand! Sacramento Capitol 10am!
Over the weekend we were threatened by the leader of another OHV group. You'll never believe why. If you're sick of infighting amongst ourselves, we hope you'll watch this video. If you're sick of losing access, watch this video. If you're ready for a bigger, bolder vision of how we can better seize the opportunities before us and find ways to permanently protect our access, watch this video. If there is one attribute that unites us all, it is that we are adventurous. When we go exploring we connect to something bigger than ourselves - whether its our families, our friends, or spectacular places - and we get closer to reaching our potential. This is something worth fighting harder for. This is something worth fighting smarter for. And this is something worth uniting for. We hope you will join us: https://sharetrails.org/membership-options/
Looking forward to working on building the best working group we can to help push federal proposals in Nevada, Arizona and Southern Utah
Happy New Year from Sharetrails! See you next year... wherever you are, we'll be there! And don't forget to keep adventure alive!
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays! "Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays! At the memorial for Clark Collins, his family shared story after story about the love Clark had for others. Most of the stories involved him taking other people out riding, just to help them experience the peace he found in the outdoors. The Deacon made an excellent point- "God and peace in the scriptures are often equated to the wilderness." I believe that. There is an extraordinary joy that comes from adventure and exploration. Clark built BRC out of his love for family and friends, his contribution to keeping them all together. We continue that tradition. It's unfortunate that the political interferes with the purpose. We want a place for you to build life lasting and life changing relationships. So from our family to yours, may this be your best year ever. Remember that we are measured not by what we accumulate but by what we give! We are the love we share! So this year have more adventures!" Spencer Gilbert
SUWA has been urging their supporters to close the road in the video, because according to them this isn’t a road. It’s just an old cow path. The State of Utah and Washington County who have been maintaining and documenting use of the road believe it belongs to them under RS2477. They have applied to the BLM to have the United States disclaim their interest in this road. If they succeed, this will create an administrative path for states and counties to clarify that they own tens of thousands of miles of roads. We submitted public comment along with several local groups to support the Utah and Washington County in their efforts to protect access to roads like this. We need more people to help us move the needle on issues like this. If you’re not a member of BlueRibbon Coalition, you should join today so we can work together on these issues: https://sharetrails.org/membership-options/
Meet our new policy director, Ben Burr. We’re planning on doing a weekly update on the things we’re working on, and this is the first. As we plan our content strategy, we want to now what issues are important to you. Let us know in the comments what you would like to hear more about.
https://www.kuer.org/post/senator-mike-lee-argues-state-management-public-land-controversial-moab-meeting#stream/0 We support the local management of Utah Federal Lands as well... and the expansion of riding areas in Moab as a way to REDUCE resource damage! Help us advance our efforts- call your Senator and tell them you support Senator Michael Lee's returning of federal lands to state control in Utah!
Sharetrails.Org (BlueRibbon Coalition) is a national recreation group that champions responsible recreation and encourages individual environmental stewardship. With members in all 50 states, BRC is focused on building enthusiast involvement with organizational efforts through membership, outreach, education and collaboration among recreationists. For more information, visit: https://sharetrails.org/aboutus
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