Featured
How it came to be…
February 24, 2010 · Leave a Comment
The power sports industry is some what at a cross roads in my opinion. The manufactures are trending to wards more discipline specific machines, following what the motorcycle side of the business has been doing for the last 20 years. Example Yamaha’s YFZ450, you have the “R” model more focused to wards motocross racing and the “X” model that is focused to wards off road/woods racing. The differences are subtle (just like their motorcycle brethren), but enough to make each model more specialized... [Read the full story]
ATV Racing
GNCC Pro ATV Results: 2010 Round 2
March 8, 2010 · Leave a Comment
Well, two rounds are complete and the points race is extremely tight in the 2010 Can-Am Grand National Cross Country Pro ATV class. With the action from the opening weekends of racing in Florida and Georgia, which saw Chris Borich win the opener and follow that with a second at Round 2 in Georgia, I’d bet the entire season goes this way. As expected, reigning champion Chris Borich is on top on his Suzuki, but Yamaha’s Taylor Kiser has the same amount of points (55), but is listed in second. Kiser, who ended Borich’s... [Read the full story]
ATV Tech
Unusual Mud Protection: 6 Quick Tips
March 5, 2010 · Leave a Comment
If you had plans to go riding or racing and the weather snuck up on you (although I can’t quite fathom in this day and age how that could happen), then try these tips to help your sport quad survive the slop. Drink it for the protein and bone support, then protect your hands and controls. Recycle when finished. 1-gallon Milk Jugs These make for quick-fix handguards if you failed to install or pack yours. We’ve seen a few racers install these makeshift protectors. The larger jugs work best because they are more... [Read the full story]
ATVs
Growing Up Empty? Kids Without Quads
March 2, 2010 · Leave a Comment
It is really a shame that my son and daughter, 7 and 6 respectively, can’t learn to love the sport that paid my bills that last decade, developed life-long friendships and given me a career others call the greatest job in the world. I’ve traveled the world and ridden OHV trails in almost every state and love to interact with nature in this manner. I’ve shared a tiny bit (two small backyard rides on an older loaner vehicle) of the ATV experience with my two young kids and loved every minute of it. Seeing... [Read the full story]
Industry Insiders
Growing Up Empty? Kids Without Quads
March 2, 2010 · Leave a Comment
It is really a shame that my son and daughter, 7 and 6 respectively, can’t learn to love the sport that paid my bills that last decade, developed life-long friendships and given me a career others call the greatest job in the world. I’ve traveled the world and ridden OHV trails in almost every state and love to interact with nature in this manner. I’ve shared a tiny bit (two small backyard rides on an older loaner vehicle) of the ATV experience with my two young kids and loved every minute of it. Seeing... [Read the full story]
Modified
Action Alert! CPSC to develop rules for SxS’s
February 26, 2010 · 1 Comment
Action Alert! Side by Side owners and enthusiasts need to stand up and be heard. Now I don’t have a huge interest in (ROVs) Side by Sides but here is a link to a preformed response that will be sent to the Office of the Secretary, CPSC. Personalize the message all you want. The Americans for Responsible Recreational Access (ARRA) have made it easy to take just a minute or two to voice your opinion. Follow this link to the Americans for Responsible Recreational Access (ARRA) Link to personalize your message Read More →
Rec. Riding
Unusual Mud Protection: 6 Quick Tips
March 5, 2010 · Leave a Comment
If you had plans to go riding or racing and the weather snuck up on you (although I can’t quite fathom in this day and age how that could happen), then try these tips to help your sport quad survive the slop. Drink it for the protein and bone support, then protect your hands and controls. Recycle when finished. 1-gallon Milk Jugs These make for quick-fix handguards if you failed to install or pack yours. We’ve seen a few racers install these makeshift protectors. The larger jugs work best because they are more... [Read the full story]
Travel
ATV Trails: Knott County, Kentucky
- Bill Reed
My good buddy Bill Reed, who I met roughly five years ago while visiting the Hatfield McCoy Trail System and has been an ATV Sport test rider, was manning the Knott County, Kentucky, booth at the 2010 Indianapolis Dealer Expo. Seeing the West Virginian in a booth that represented the state of Kentucky drove me to ask him a few questions. The first and most obvious question was “Why are representing Kentucky?” Another, “Are you moving from West Virginia?”
Reed’s answers explained everything and stated that he decided to sell his little motel in Gilbert, W.Va., and move the entire family to Kentucky to assist with the creation of OHV trails in the southeastern Kentucky county, which is known as “The Elk Capital of the East.”
The Knott County OHV system is scheduled to open (tentative) this fall. Of the four riding areas, only No. 1 Mine Made Paradise Park — which features a training center — is slated to open this year. The remaining three trailheads (No. 2 Fire Trail, No. 3 Brushee Fork Trail and No. 4 Red Fox Trail) are slated to open in 2012.
Mine Made Paradise Park has literally hundreds of miles of trails for ATVs, side-by-sides and dirt bikes on only a small portion of the 43,000 acres of privately owned land. The trails are professional designed and marked. In order to appeal to a wide variety of users, the system will also feature campgrounds and cabins (to open soon). The on-site Training Center is dedicated for closed-course ATV and motorcycle training and is the lone facility in the Appalachian region, according to Knott County. For more info on the Training Center, visit www.kcrtc.com or call (606) 233-0080.
Mulit-Use Trails
Not only will the Knott County trails cater to ATVs, UTVs and dirt bikes, but they also will be open to equestrian, with more than 100 miles of trails dedicated to horseback riding. The Knott County brochure says the Annual Trail Rides (May 7-9 and Oct. 1-3, 2010) are expected to attract more than 10,000 riders from 12 states.
For More Detailed Info, download the PDF here:
http://www.wmthcorp.com/knott co document.pdf
Area Attractions
With more than 10,000 Elk in the area, visitors can take a break from riding and participate see all the horned animals with Saddle Up Elk Tours. The area also has a Sportsplex, Carr Creek Lake & State Park, Artisan Center, skate park and museum and settlement school.
Lodging:
For lodging in the Knott County, Kentucky, area click Hotels/Motels/Other.
CONTACT:
(270) 792-5300; (800) 532-1622
Related Links:
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Aiding the Forest: Reforestation
Tree planting may not seem like a job for sport quad enthusiasts, but I assure it is, especially if you’ve ever ridden your ATV in the forest. It’s a way to give back and to ensure our sons and daughters have places to ride and forests to enjoy in the future.
In April of 2009, Yamaha invited me to partake in one of the most rewarding experiences I’ve ever done. This event did not include ATVs, but I assure it was well worth my effort and time. I took part in a Forest Aid program (reforestation project) in the San Bernardino National Forest. You can read about my tree-planting trip in the SBNF.
STORY EXCERPT:
“The second day involved a partnership between the United States Forest Service (USFS), SBNFA, Yamaha and Tree People to plant bare-root seedlings in the forest. The planting was in response to horrible fires (2003 and ’07) and bark beetle devastation in the forest. About 85 Yamaha employees and family members volunteered to spend a day in the San Bernardino National Forest. Along with a few other local volunteers, our group planted about 1,200 trees in a half day of planting.”
I’m bringing this story back up because it’s not complete — or at least the tree-planting portion of it — and won’t be any time soon (1.5 million trees need to be planted). Although some 20,000 trees were put in the ground last year, more seedlings will need to be planted this year.
This message serves as a reminder of how you, too, can partake in the Forest Aid program.
Forest Aid — a partnership involving three organizations: TreePeople, the San Bernardino National Forest Association and the U.S. Forest Service — is preparing its 2010 planting season. The spring season starts at the end of March and runs through May. Planting usually starts on Wednesdays and runs to Sunday. Forest Aid’s goal is to plant 25,000 trees from Lake Arrowhead to Big Bear.
Even if you don’t live in Southern California, Forest Aid needs your help. I suggest you partake in the planting and, hopefully, experience the same rewarding feeling I had. If you’ve been to this forest and have enjoyed its great trails, scenery and natural beauty, I encourage you to give back. I also challenge my friends from the Midwest to escape the cold and enjoy a “spring break” in the California mountains. Spend the Friday through Tuesday at the beach and then head for the mountains.
Visit www.forestaid.net to learn more about the program.
UTVs
Thanks for the coverage, I think?
The Sunday, March 7 issue of the Minneapolis Star Tribune had a story about the new Polaris EV. The story entitled, “Can Green Be Gold?” ran as an “exclusive” in the Sunday edition. I enjoyed some of the off-road-focused article and thought the author – David Phelps – did a good job of interviewing multiple sources and gaining feedback from Polaris about its new electric vehicle, but thought it was still too unbalanced.
Before I go on, I must say the Star Tribune has been less than kind to ATVs in recent years and has featured many one-sided stories (at least that’s my take) against the operation of OHVs. Many articles have focused on their alleged destruction of the environment, noise and even injuries and death. I was pleased to see the paper see the new EV as a positive business story, but displeased with so much focus on noise and the environment. And yet nothing concrete was mentioned about electric vehicles and their impact on our future environment. Nor how much of the environment it takes to build one/dispose of one compared to a normal gas-powered machine. In addition, what about the EV’s potential for indoor use (as one of my trusted colleagues pointed out)? No mention.
Even the story’s pull quote (which is in bold and as large as the subhead) featured Matthew Norton of the Minnesota Center for Environmental Advocacy and not someone from the U.S. Military, Polaris or its defense team. He said, “The Quiet is a huge benefit. It will alleviate a lot of the discord that happens when people are forced to live near lots of noisy machines. But it will not alleviate soil disturbance and damage to vegetation.” (Source: Star Tribune)
A better quote would have been from Matt Homan, vice president of the Polaris off-road division, when he said, “You’re saving money on gas and you’re paying for the benefits of stealth and being green.” (Source: Star Tribune)
Here are the other hidden verbal attacks on our current OHVs/ATVs.
The story describes current ATVs as:
Noisy, disruptive to the environment, scary for wildlife (so is man!) and disruptive to herds and multi-acre neighborhoods.
Here’s the most opinionated and unnecessary portion of the story, “Norton added that quiet machines might also allow riders to go places they shouldn’t be, such as private property, without alerting others to their presence.” (Source: Star Tribune)
Action Alert! CPSC to develop rules for SxS’s
Action Alert! Side by Side owners and enthusiasts need to stand up and be heard. Now I don’t have a huge interest in (ROVs) Side by Sides but here is a link to a preformed response that will be sent to the Office of the Secretary, CPSC. Personalize the message all you want. The Americans for Responsible Recreational Access (ARRA) have made it easy to take just a minute or two to voice your opinion. Follow this link to the Americans for Responsible Recreational Access (ARRA) Link to personalize your message