A Diamond in the Rough: Christmas Valley Sand Dunes

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MSRP on a Honda TRX 450R: $6,999.  Enough gas to make it there and back: $200.  11,000 acres of windswept, untouched sand beneath your paddle tires: priceless!  For one sleepy little town in central Oregon, Christmas lasts all year long.  At least for the ATV enthusiasts that live there that is. [Read more]

Flipping Amazing!!!

Two wheels or four, the world of freestyle motocross has come a long way from the days of Jeremy McGrath and the nac nac. I realize this is an ATVBlog, but then again my area of expertise as they call it is “lifestyle” so I figure that encompasses all aspects of the motorsport world. This past weekend I had the opportunity to visit the home of Justin Homan a freestyle MX rider from central Oregon. Depending on which day of the week you catch him, you’d probably never place this guy as one of the founding fathers of freestyle motocross. [Read more]

2008 Oregon Dune Fest Part 2

 

As promised, I have completed the second of the so called highlight reels from this years Oregon Dune Fest. Sadly, inclement weather made for a whole lost day of shooting so most of this action was from Saturday’s events.  Please don’t hesitate to leave feedback on the videos and also check out other related videos on my website at www.LocalHeroesNW.com  Enjoy!!! [Read more]

2008 Oregon Dune Fest

 

 

 

Aw the sweet sounds and sights of thousands of ATV enthusiasts gathered together, united by a common goal:  Hardcore duning!!!  If you’ve never been to an ATV festival I strongly urge you to attend one at some point in your life. [Read more]

Ready for the Hunt?

Planning and Preparation

Know the area you are going to hunt. This means checking the maps, the local rules and regulations of OHV travel and regulations regarding the use of ATVs or UTVs for game retrieval.Ask yourself a few questions; Is my quad in good working condition and up to date on its maintenance? Do I have my OHV sticker and/or registration? Have I let somebody know where I’m going and when to expect me back? These are just a couple of questions to consider before you head out. Preparing for the trail can mean as little as packing a lunch along with your hunting gear or as much as outfitting for a weekend of camping. I’ve been asked many times, “what do you carry” when I’m out on the trail. This is basic list of what I usually take along when I head out to the woods.

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Labor Day…A Day of Rest (yeah right!)

Taking a vacation can be an awful lot of work, especially when your idea of a vacation is an overnight stint at you favorite riding locale.  Unlike most vacationers we can’t just hop on a plan and relax all the way to our destination, only to exit the plane and commence more relaxation, all while in the shade of a palm tree with a fruity drink of our choice complete with a little umbrella.  No for the ATVer its much more work to plan even a simple two or three day riding excursion.

Changing from paddles to knobbies or vice versa, re-jetting, looking for that whip flag you know you put somewhere that you’d be sure to remember, gathering an endless amount of camping gear, grocery shopping since you’d like to eat while your gone, and then wrangling the kids into the rig only to spend an un-godly amount of time on the road all the while convincing yourself, “Its gonna be worth it.”  Yes vacation for the ATV enthusiast can often times be a lot of work as I was recently reminded while making plans for Labor Day weekend.  From my experience, I’ve discovered what I believe to be the 4 most important steps for a stress free vacation. If nothing else, feel free to laugh at my misfortune and by all means, share one of your own vacations that took a turn for the worst. [Read more]

Chasing Mayhem

Before I go though with my feeble attempt at blogging, I thought it would be best to give everyone a heads up on my irregular perspective on racing and my life in general. A few might relate to my occurrences, either from similar experiences that I will be writing about, or may actually have had the pleasure or pain of actually meeting me at a race track near you. For those who have escaped my wake, my name is Zac Willett, I am a professional ATV racer from Kentucky, and I have the scars to show for it.

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ATV Sand Riding In Kansas

With shapeshifting hills, endless whoops sections and steep bowls to carve, sand dunes are a popular tourism draw wherever motorized access is allowed. As rare as dunes are, geographically speaking, it is especially uncommon for such terrain to become available to recreational riders.

In rural western Kansas, an area known for agriculture and not much else, the town of Syracuse is hoping its new sand dunes park will attract riders and tourism dollars from across the country.

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