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/126299
'Dago outlaws ORV recreation NATIONAL MINICYCLE ASSOCIAT ION By Charles Clayton SAN DIEGO , CA , FEB. 15 "San tee is down the tubes," muttered one of the county p la n n ers who had devoted seven years to the paperwork. The electric score board in the hearing room blazed the verdict : four votes against the O RV park, none for . At the same time, the planning commission killed an amendment to a county plan that would have provided tip to two acres per 100,000 residents for off-road vehicle recreation. And the y ca pped off the hearing with a call for more laws against dirt riding, so that the police could try and drive ORV recreation right out of the county. One of the five O R V users who showed up for the hearing asked me , "Is it always like this, like a TV game show?" No , this is the worst. It was a procedural farce . Firs t, there were only four ou t of seven commissioners on ha nd - a bare quorum. It took a unanimous vote to decide anything, and the only thing the four commissioners agreed on was total prejudice against ORV recreation in their county. It was not a fair hearing . The hom eowners ' representatives were just as bad. They don 't want their neighbors using O RVs in th e county, period. It was not a question of funding , ecology, planning, or what's right. They believed that their homes are being threatened. One lady from Lakeside, CA said. "W hy don't they just go off somewhere else to ride th eir motorcycles?" I asked her, what if the Santee site were the last place on earth where O RV recreation might be permitted to take place? Could she then find it in her heart to try and tolerate us as neighbors? "No wayl" was her answer. We have lost more than a skirmish in this defeat. There were observers a t the hearing ta king notes fro m ot he r counties, state, fed er al agencies, a nd even the U.S. Marine Corp s. If Sa n Diego Cou nt y revokes our rig hts , where the best planning, full fundi ng, greatest need , and ideal site existed for suburban ORV recrea tion , then the message is clear to the rest of America : Treat us like outlaws. The question now m ust be asked, Is OR V recreation doomed? It appea rs tha t is what society wants. We will not be acc ommodated nor tolerated . Those of us who rid e an yway will be ha ra ssed , fined , or imprisoned. W e are the ou tlaws . O f course, Sa n Diegans can alwa ys haul out to the desert or Baja to pursue their happiness, so it will be mainly the you ngsters who suffer, those who cannot drive 200 miles just to rid e. But I shudder at the effect thi s decision will have on the rest of California and the nation . I T here will be a Co unty Supervisors hearing March 10 to drive the last na il into Santee's coffin, but I won 't be there . The onl y path open now is through the courts. Some citizen would have to file suit against th e county and demand a fair hearing. T he U.S. Constitu tion guarantees even dirt bike riders the right to du e pr ocess. Charles Clayton THE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP.. aaao~~ • O • I ' OF MINICYCLE RAtING ~ : •• MARCH s'\l '.\\\",,: ,\\\t\!t~,,~~~,\...~!t 24-25-26-1978 'z; . ~~ RACinG WORlD , ~~ l · ·<'~~co,.*~-'{ ~ .~'O~ '· '" ~@~® &£~~\) ~&J1mgC) NOWI WRITE OR CALL FOR ENTRY FORMS BIKE CLASSES; 50cc thru 250cc AGES 6 thru18 ME RainbDW Stickie - Here it is - Cycle News new Rainbow'Stickie Changes co lors before your very eyes!! Reflects every colo r of the Rainb ow! ! JII SI ji"1I ou t this order blan k 1I/l(1 scn d 10 : Cycle News Prod ucts PO Bo x -l98 . L OIl,1.: Beach. C:\ 9 080 1 . NMA (213)367-1777 I!O. BOX 4424 San Fernando Ca. 91342 I Tl .; I== "" .~ ~ .¥ 0. N I . . I -- I .~ .n ~ 0 1 __ .c ... c: . . ;; ~ .n ... II: ~ z u > ID u "E c:a '" >< '" " ""·S ~ 'l::~ 3 <0 r#! ... ~ "'" . . "'..," -" .... G'i: - ..,{j .. . " l:: ... .., ~ .~ ~ ~ .E . . ;; ~ e > :; ~ "0 "0 "E Q '" ~~ a " i i':fj e ~ .n u - .... I 5