Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/125857
Victory! nOp nunless , e posted closed" BLM policy nthe current s-tuatio , how do you learn what's watt? / WESTERVILLE, OHIO A particul arly tense two -ye ar vigil for motorcyclists has ended with publication o f the Bureau of Land Managem ent 's r egulations governi ng off-road vehicles on the 450 million acres of land under its control. AMA Legislative Direct or Gen e Wirw ahn calls the announcement "a major victory for trail bikers, the sport o f motorcycling and the American Motorcycle Association. " T he new regulations co nfirm all BLM land as "Open for use by off -road ve hi cles unless designated closed. " Vehicles w ill be subject to regulatio ns and restriction only in ' those areas of public land where certain environmental problems are likely. Wirwahn says, "The regulations are the culmination of a long process that began with Pre sident Ni xon's Executive Order of February 8 , 1972. That order di rected the various fede ral agencies to insure that use of o ff-road vehicles on public land would protect th e resources, provide for the safety of the land users and minimize co nfli c t among user groups." The AMA embarked on a series of public hearing appearances, land use seminars, committee me etings and other efforts to cooperate wi th and fully inform government officials responsible for land use de cisions. Final BLM regulations become ffe ctive May IS , 1974, and include everal ess ent i al requirements, . c1uding: BLM land will be designated as open , estricted or closed. Off-road vehicles ay be operated on open land, m ay be perated within certain limitations on estricted lan d and may not be operated n closed land. All 45 0 million acres of LM lan d will be classi fied as o pen nless restricted or closed by the local uthorized offic er. The public will be consulted egarding land designation. S t a t e l aw s and r egulations , gistration, op eration and insp ec tio n of ff-road veh icles will apply on BLM and . No person m ay operate an off-road ch icle on BLM land withou t a valid p erator' s license or learner's permit, nless accompanied by an adult who is icen sed and who will be responsible for e ac ts of the non-license holder, Off-road vehi cles must be equipped ith proper brakes and a muffler in ood working condition. The "op en lan d " policy was stablish ed . o ve r c o n si d e ra b l e pposition. Ferry-four percent of some ,SOD comments on the subject tri ed to rsuade th e agenc y that public land hould be closed unless design ated o pen. Wirwahn notes that this victory .. hile gratif ying, should not lull dirt iders into a false sense of security. He ays, UWe cer tain ly can 't rest on our aurels, Now th at we've go t land , we 've ot to con t in ue to exh ib it the easonable and rational atti t ude toward he use of th at land th at the AMA elped establish. The approach has ertainly p roven succ essful and should e the primary consid eratio n in any uture land use questions." Wirwahn expressed gratitude to all otorcyclists who helped. "This is ea lly what a national mo to rcycl e rganization is all ab o ut. When you ackle a problem at th e top with full d enthusiastic su pport from the ' grass oots,' th e cha nces are p retty good omeone is at least goi ng to g ive y o u a sten, \\'c h ave ce r tain ly seen evidenc e f j ust how well th at ca n work in th e ea of land usc." • When your local power company shows you that a little of your energy can save a lot of theirs, you hear about it throug h advertising. That's what advertising is all about - advertising commu nicates. About labor saving products. And energy saving ideas. J t· Without advertising, you wouldn't know. Amer ican Advertising Federat ion I We Have What Y ou Need lJtIrcycie Accessories I Imlin~ed 4136 Woodruff Ave.• Lakewood . Calif . 1213) 429-59 61' _ KBI8 AADIO 74 The Moto rcycle Stat ion f oH T H E BEST I N~ M OT O R CY CLE A C CESSQ R I E5 120 1A EAST BALL ROAD . A NAH EIM CALIF 714 ·776- 1250 t .. 51 5 N. Victory Blvd. BURBANK, CALIF (213) 849·7295 ~ Sweet Duck Suzuki • Deser t and MX Specialists 1010 E. A rrow Hwy. Covina, Ca. . (213) 966-8541 Su zuki & Maico Mail Order Specialists Goodyear is Carroll Shelby 213-821-3436 D". STRONG Motorcycle e.rrle_ 1733 Hiawatha Dr. Glendale . CA 91208 1213) 247 ·2B50 Dealer Inquiries Invited 5