CA4WDC Convention Honoring Our Armed Forces (Feb. 19-21)

TO: All Cal4wheel members and prospective members

FROM: Frank Funk, Convention Chair

January 25, 2010

The California Association of 4Wheel Drive Clubs (CA4WDC) is heading into its second 50 years of service in the OHV arena with a special convention honoring our Armed Forces. We are only 3 weeks away from our 51st Annual Convention and we need you to sign up right away. The Convention Committee has been working very hard to put together a stimulating, informative and fun filled convention program. Allow me to give you an idea of what we have planned for you and tell you how easy it is to registered.

The Convention kicks off Friday morning with a with a Tread Lightly Training seminar at 8 am (pre-registration required – see www.cal4wheel.com for more info). The Trade Show (4x4 vendors and MORE) will open at noon and be open until 5 pm on Friday. On Friday afternoon there will be BOD meeting from 1 – 5 pm. The Hospitality Room will open at 6:30 pm on Friday. In the Hospitality Room, besides the usual “hospitality” we will have three projectors showing CA4WDC event pictures (if you have any to share please contact me ASAP). The Hospitality Room will go until 12pm or until interest wanes.

Saturday will start with the Life Member Breakfast from 8am-10am. Also on Saturday morning there will be a variety of seminars. We believe there is something to interest everyone with seminars on Dutch Oven cooking and geocaching, a Pampered Chef demo and more. Check out your registration packet for a complete list and times. The Vehicle Show will open Saturday morning as well. It starts at 10am and goes until 2pm. There will be Military Vehicles, 4X4’s, as well as Classics. The show is open to any and all vehicle “toys” – see www.cal4wheel.com for an application.

Saturday afternoon the 1st session of the General Assembly will be from 1 to 5 pm. Then to start Saturday evening the No-Host bar will open at 6 pm. At 6:30 pm, in keeping with the convention theme, the call to dinner will be an incredible parade including a Color Guard, Bag Pipes and the playing of Taps and the honoring of 4 wheelers who have served our country. During and following dinner there will be several Guest speakers/presentations including the presentation of CA4WDC’s annual awards. All this leads up to the drawing for the Sweepstakes Vehicle.

On Sunday morning the General Assembly’s 2nd session will deal with the remaining items on the agenda. This session and the Trade Show will end around noon. In the afternoon from 1pm-5pm a New-Old BOD meeting will close out the convention.

I encourage all of you as association members to register right now. At www.cal4wheel.com you can complete an online registration or download the form and mail it in, either way it just takes a couple minutes. Please REGISTER now as we need you there to help your association grow.

While you’re registering be sure to let us know if you or anyone in your family is or has been in the any branch of the Armed Services. Please be sure to indicate which branch.

For room reservation call the Double Tree at (916) 929-8855. They have extended the room rate discount but you need to call them ASAP and mention the code 201!

If you would like to be a vendor in the Trade Show you can register online or contact Joe Malloy; 4x4_fun@comcast.net

If you would like to advertise in the Convention Program contact Frank Funk; frankfunk@gotfj40.com

Thank you in Advance for attending

Frank Funk, Convention 2010 Chairman

Article: Rumbling of Thunder

RUMBLING OF THUNDER

A Whole New Sound in the Off-road World

By Del & Stacie Albright, BlueRibbon Coalition

The over-paid, seldom-right weather man spoke with such animation and excitement that you couldn’t help but get taken in by his rambling analysis of the on-coming weather pattern (from outer space). But he had me from hello when he mentioned the "rumbling of thunder” and how we would be hearing it for some time to come. I realized at that moment he had just described the new sound I’ve been hearing in the off-road skies – thunder!

Thunder is the sound made by lightning, ranging from a sharp loud crack, to a long, low rumble. I don’t think there is any one reason for this “storm,” but rather a culmination of people getting fed up with unnecessary closures and restrictions. Can you see the lightning and hear the thunder?

Read and download the article here: http://www.delalbright.com/Articles/rumbling_thunder.html
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Del

Rubicon Trail Users Oppose Plan, Need Support

Friends of the Rubicon

Contact: Jacquelyne "Bebe" Theisen
Telephone: 530-888-8302
E-mail: bebehumr@gmail.com
Auburn, CA

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

RUBICON TRAIL USERS OPPOSE PLAN

Friends of the Rubicon fighting for Little Sluice and trail bypasses

January 20, 2010; Placerville, CA. Friends of the Rubicon (FOTR) asks for user support to change the future of the Rubicon Trail in El Dorado County. El Dorado County Department of Transportation (DOT) will present staff recommendations at a public meeting, January 26th, at 2pm in the County Board of Supervisors Board room. DOT Staff has published a recommended Route Recognition plan so that the Rubicon Trail in El Dorado County is defined as ordered by the California Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board's Clean up and Abatement Order issued to El Dorado County and the Eldorado National Forest Service last spring.

Friends of the Rubicon is appreciative of the involvement of the Department of Transportation in working with all interested stakeholders to come up with a framework for the future maintenance of the trail - which FOTR looks forward to assisting the County in its implementation. However County staff recommendations do not reflect our user-groups priorities, consensus or recommendations.

FOTR will present a 10 minute counter-presentation to the El Dorado County Board of Supervisors on behalf of motorized Rubicon Trail users and the volunteers that work tirelessly to maintain the health of the Rubicon Trail. The presentation will focus on keeping the trail open, alive and well for all users.

Del Albright, Ambassador, Blue Ribbon Coalition and founding Trail Boss of Friends of the Rubicon said, “El Dorado County staff have been essential in developing a long-term plan for the health of the Rubicon Trail, but this current recommendation flies side-ways in a couple key issues critical to responsible users of the trail. FOTR has the right recommendations and we will be advocating to the Board of Supervisors to support FOTR’s approach.”

Of the three alternatives presented to the Board of Supervisors by the Department of Transportation, Friends of the Rubicon supports a modified Option 3 that includes all of the Recommended Variants and a maintenance corridor at Little Sluice and Buck Island. This should preserve all existing variant routes within the corridors currently on the Not Recommended list.

“After years of work and several public meetings, we still find ourselves in partial, yet significant disagreement with County staff,” says Jacquelyne Theisen, Trail Boss, FOTR. “At this meeting we plan to show, once again, how the responsible users of the Rubicon Trail know what’s best for an overall trail management plan, and are willing to make it happen on the ground,” she adds.

Friends of the Rubicon will ask the El Dorado County Board of Supervisors to add the following Variants Not Recommended to Option 3 so that they are included in the Long Term Management plan currently being developed:

Map location (C) the USFS portion(s) (14N34B). This area is a historical ingress and egress to the Rubicon Trail, and highly valuable for the following reasons; It provides easy access for the extrication of broken or damaged vehicles, or those bringing in parts to repair a vehicle, or for expedited egress for an injured recreationist, or in the event of a wildfire, expedient access to two lakes for human safety. It does have very minor erosion issues that are very easily remedied.

Map location (D) a short section of trail east of Ellis Creek. This area is being requested for the following reasons; It is a section of the original trail, and provides a optional route of increased difficulty, which is a integral part of the Rubicon experience.

Map location (E) the obstacle known as Soup Bowl is a newer area of the trail, that provides a play area. The impression that the trail is constantly blocked and creates a safety hazard is an exaggeration. We are asking that it remains open and that some type of natural barrier be installed to prevent further vegetation loss and that regular maintenance plan be developed to prevent sediment loss.

Friends of the Rubicon is dedicated to working with El Dorado County DOT and the Eldorado National Forest Service to continue to provide the many hours of volunteer labor needed to maintain the health of the Rubicon Trail and to provide a unified voice to motorized users of the world’s most famous trail, the Rubicon.

If you would like to assist FOTR, participate at a FOTR work party or educational outreach efforts at one of our Kiosk information centers, please sign up here at: http://www.rubiconfriends.com .

The meeting on January 26th is located at:
El Dorado County
330 Fair Lane, bldg A

Placerville, CA 96667

NOTE from Del:  the Rubicon Trail Foundation (RTF) will be presenting to the Board of Supervisors as well, with many of the same recommendations as FOTR.  More on RTF at http://www.rubicontrailfoundation.org/

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Tellico OHV Area Appeal Denied by USFS

BLUERIBBON COALITION, INC.


NEWS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Greg Mumm, BlueRibbon Coalition
208-244-2112
Date: January 22, 2010

FOREST SERVICE DENY APPEAL ON TELLICO

POCATELLO, ID (January 22) - On January 15, 2010, Southern Region Deputy Regional Forester Jerome Thomas adopted the recommendation of the internal Appeal Reviewing Officer and denied the Upper Tellico OHV Area appeals submitted by the Southern Four Wheel Drive Association (SFWDA), United Four Wheel Drive Associations (UFWDA), and the BlueRibbon Coalition (BRC). "We are disappointed but not surprised by this outcome," observed Jay Bird of the Rescue Tellico Committee and Past President of SFWDA. "This was a mandatory step in an ongoing process, and it would be unusual for an agency that has been for years locked in on the outcome of closing Tellico to reverse course at the last step of the administrative process," added Greg Mumm, BRC Executive Director. "We remain committed to restoring some form of meaningful vehicle recreation at Tellico, will carefully review the appeal decisions, and will take appropriate next steps," Mumm concluded.

# # #

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

Public Lands Advocacy Videos (Free) from NOHVCC

NOHVCC CREATES VIDEOS TO HELP RIDERS PROTECT TRAILS


The National Off-Highway Vehicle Conservation Council (NOHVCC) has created a Public Land Advocacy Video Workshop series with help from Yamaha Motor Corp., U.S.A. via their OHV Access Initiative, the Motorcycle Industry Council (MIC), the Specialty Vehicle Institute of American (SVIA), and the Recreational Off-Highway Vehicle Association (ROHVA). The workshops are designed to give riders the skills they’ll need to keep trails open in their areas; covering everything who the enthusiasts are, planning a trail system, writing effective comments, moving forward from route designation, and much more.

The series consists of 14 easy to watch sessions ranging from 15 to 30 minutes each. The content is based on NOHVCC’s successful onsite workshop sessions with NOHVCC topic experts. The sessions are designed to give the people who can’t participate in an on-site workshop or a webinar the tools they need to help keep their trails open.


Russ Ehnes, Executive Director of the NOHVCC said “These are tight economic times and we need to take advantage of technology to help riders get the information they need. This program is helping us reach thousands of OHV activists and riders who otherwise wouldn’t have a chance to take part in a NOHVCC workshop. This may be one of the best tools that we have created so far for not only the enthusiast’s toolbox, but for program managers as well.”



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


To order a DVD, e-mail us at trailhead@nohvcc.org or call us at 800-348-6487. The DVD will be shipped to you free of charge, courtesy of the Yamaha OHV Access Initiative.

Get more links about this from my website here:  http://www.delalbright.com/Misc/nohvcc_videos.html

I've started watching them and see quite a bit of value for us.
Del

Reno, NV, Motorsports and RV Show, March 2010

If you live within driving distance of Reno, NV, or will be in the area in mid March, here is a show not to miss.  I know the guy putting on this show and it promises to be fun and interesting. This has a little bit of everything for everyone who loves the outdoors. Check it out if you get a chance, and for sure be.

International Motorsports & Recreation Expo

March 12,13, & 14, 2010

Reno-Sparks Convention Center
4590 Virginia St., Reno, NV
Fri. 3/12 noon to 7pm
Sat. 3/13, 10am to 7pm
Sun. 3/14 10m to 5pm

Adults $10.00
Kids 12 and under free.

This show is a great introduction to the sports and recreation lifestyle. Whether you’re a beginner or a seasoned RVer, a race car enthusiast or a fly fisherman, there will be something for you at the International Motorsports & Recreation Expo.

There will be plenty of information for great travel destinations, fun-filled fishing excursions and much, much more! As an outdoor sports and recreation enthusiast, don’t miss this opportunity to find all that you dream of at the International Motorsports & Recreation Expo.

Tons of exhibitors, off-road, RV, boats, hunting and fishing, and outdoor lifestyles.

Website: http://www.bigshows.com/1632.html

Land Use Auction -- Up to 42 inch Tires from BFG!!!

You can still support BlueRibbon and land use through our eBay auction. I just added two more goodies (re-listed one and upgraded the tire listing).

BFGoodrich Tires just upped the ante – 5 tires, ANY size of the KM2’s, UP TO 42’s!!!!
Dynatrac is still kicking in their new ProRock 44’s for JK’s.

Don’t miss out on this deal if you’re in the market:
http://donations.ebay.com/charity/charity.jsp?NP_ID=25971


All proceeds go to land use and helping things like the Eldorado Lawsuit and other legal issues affecting our trail, like Travel Management and USFS regulations – sooner or later these issues require national attention – and that be BRC.

UP TO 42 x 14.50 R20. Dude!!! Bid now.

Thanks,
Del