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/126295
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Cerian i, out of s tate ca ll to ll free' 800-854·469 1 90 da y m m.ey back gu aran tee Dealer or Direct 14 Encounter 01 the Fourth Kind By Marty Maeding An encounter of the fourth kind is simply an encounter with government officia ls wh o control m uch of the area we ride in. Often this encou n ter can be the most unbelievable one yetI My experience took place in the small Northern California community of Foresthill. It seems that this area is the land of gold Mother Lode Count ry - where th e gold rush began b ack in '49. Actually. gold can still be readily obta ined from th e ri vers and strea ms in this region. This area breeds and su p p orts a rugged , hardworking , in depen dent and very special type of America n : The small time m iner. It 's not surprising that th ese miners feel they are be ing driven to extinct ion as many overzealous bu r eau cratic rules and regula tions come into effect. A good example is the two prospectors who discovered a meteorite in the Mohave Desert and staked their claim only to have se veral bureaucratic agencies conspire to steal it legally from them. Now, it seems, these miners , who are basically anti-organization by their nature , are beginning to organize. . The entire purpose behind organizing is simple surviva l for their cultural and historic life style . What does this have to do with us? Motorcyclists, like the miners, are in our 11th hour if the preservationists and their bureaucrats have their way . We, too , have begun to organize in order to promote t he responsib le aspects of ou r sport. Most of us who have sp e n t hours , days and weeks studying environmental im p a c t statements and at tending workshops have felt the continuing frustration of ha ving the bureaucrats hear but n either list en nor a ct with im p a rti a lity. We simply ha ve not had enough effect . In my " fou r th encounter ," many ORV people were invited to the Mother Lode Miners Association meetin,g. Speakers from th e Bureau of Reclamation and th e State Park and Recreation Department were in attendance to explain the various facets of the Auburn Dam Project and the state park th a t will su rrou nd the reservoir. It see m s that the Bureau of Recl a m a t ion bureau crats felt that much of the land in the project was being abused . The speaker specifically named motorcycles as the cause . And since the bureau had no regulations or e n for cem e nt power for land use policies. they contracted the State of California Parks and Recreation Department to run the show. Unfortunately , the traditional definition of recreation from the Park and Recreation Department means roadside picnicking. boating, hiking. horseback riding, user fees and " Big Brother" controls. Remember , look but don't tou ch ! Even . though th e area is not yet a state park , restrictive regu la tions and enforcement po lici es a lik e are co nsu mi ng m iners' and riders' righ ts. The parks represent a tive was asked by one of th e older, m ore rugged miners why th e sta te was restricting dredging in a re as wh ere aggregate wou ld be taken by th e thousa nds of tons to build the Auburn Dam? The head ranger indicated that the mining was not restricted : cam ping was . The m iner retorted that thousands of people had camped in the area since 1849 . The miner went on to state that the rangers were effectively curtailing m ining in the area by restricting camping as a miner needs a minimum of one week in each area to even be slightly successful. The ranger didn't smirk ou twa rdl y but reiterated that mining was not restricted - just camping. woman motorcyclist O ne · commended that the state's present position of allowing the motorcyclists' activities to take place below the high water line seemed reasonable. Bu t what , we asked , are the Park and Recreation Department's plans for motorcycles wh en t he dam is completed and our present area is inundated by th e reservoir ? After all, it's obvious from t he cu rrent heavy use in the area that there is a need for more riding a rea . The ranger indicated that we have an opportunity to give our input to the planners of th e State Park around the Auburn Dam. This seems all good and well , but if we took a poll of the state parks that allow ORVs we would ge l what footba ll fans call the big ,0 . . It 's obvious that people who are concerned with multiple use and sust ained yield need more clout. Many outdoor user coalitions are being formed for just this purpose . It 's important to become or ga nized and vocal if for nothing else , to slow down the overl y restrictive regulations that are conceived in numerous areas daily. If you are using public lands and want your ch ild ren to be able to use these lands, become informed , organized , and vocal. Ma ybe th e encount er of the fifth kind will b e ou r children's chi ld ren motor cycling in ou r forests and deser ts. Marty Maeding