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/126781
By Donnetta Camagey How bad is Senator Wilson's Wilderness "compromise" you ask? If you like "wilderness" borders drawn for political rea- Suzuki~8 new SP600 Suzuki will sell a new dual-purpose machine known as the SP600 in the United States. The bike, called the DR600 in other parts of the world, has a single overhead camshaft 598cc engine, with four valves in a Twin Swirl Combustion Chamber and two spark pi ugs. Bore and stroke are 94 x 85mm, 12 compression ratio 8.5: I. Ignition is electronic, and the carb is a flat-slide 40mm Mikuni with an accelerator pump. There's a kick-starler-activated automatic compression release and a manual compression release on the ha~dlebars, both to make starting easIer. An oil cooler is stock, mounted ahead oCthe cylinder and head on the left side. The chassis features a new semidouble-cradJe (rame with a single rear shock and a57.7-inch wheelbase. Seat height is 35- inches. The front forks have 39mm stanchion tubes and deliver 9.4 inches of travel; rear travel is 8.7 inches. The (ron t wheel is a 21- ineher, the rear a 17-incher; the ~ont semi-knobby tire is a 100/80-21, the rear a 130/80-17. A 9.5-inch hydraulic disc brake is used on the front wheel with a drum brake on ·the rear. Lighting comes from a 60/55w quartz-halogen headlight and the gas tank holds 5.5 gallons (5.3 gallons in California, the extra capacity lost to evaporative emissions control ). The U.S. model is available in red and has a suggested retail price of $2,'J99. . • sons, without regard for the wilderness quality of the land, or the 10 s of recreation or natural resources within them... then you're gonna love this legislation. If you've a California of(roader, who knows Kennedy Meadows' Wildrose, Jackass, Broder Meadows, Dark Canyon, Woodpecker and other trails, or a Northern California off-roader, who enjoyed the Sierra, Dinkey Lakes, Machesna Mountain or Jenny Lakes (among others), you're gonna hate it. About 1.8 million acres worth. In April COR VA met briefly with Senator Wil on, who reacted to a letter accusing him of "dirty politics" for expanding wilderness into nonwilderness areas after personally promising he would not do so. At that time, we suggested that perhaps his staff had shielded him from the facts that had been provided them on the massive losses to recreation that would result (rom his bill (which then stood at 1.6 million acres). We pointed out that the wave of public sentiment said clearly, "keep our public lands public. " The maps that have been provided (preliminary as they are), indicate that either he has not perceived the losses to recreation, or that he just doesn't givea damn about them. The opinion has been voiced by more than one source that perhaps Senator Wilson and Senator Cranston support the preservationist goal of banning off road vehicles from public lands. That goal is well served by this legislation. The key issue, one that Wilson has been careful to disguise, is that the 600,000 acres he has added to the Forest Service-re\=ommended 1.2 million acres of wilderness, do not meet wilderness cri teria, do not have natural or definable boundaries (such as ridgelines or rivers), and encompass paved or improved road, nearly 2,000 miles of roads and trails, private land or leased land, forested (logged) lands, mined Lands, and hundreds of campsites. Beyond the recreation issue, millions of board-feet oC lumber, megatons of minerals, and the jobs assOciated with gathering them, will be needJessly lost. Not for the good of the land, or the people of California. Not for the "need" for more wilderness, beyond the 5 million existing acres, and the 1.2 million more already recommended and approved by business, industry, recreation, Governor Deukmejian and President Reagan... but to satisfy the political ambitions of two California Senators, and their aides. If 1.8 million acres of wilderness seems staggering, consider that this legislation leaves 2.8 million more acres in "further planning" status... which means "future wilderness" as soon as it suits someone else's political needs. The Scodie Mountains, Fish Canyon and Caliente, along with what's left in the Sequoia will remain in that Limbo. Is there hope that Kennedy Meadows, and the other 6OQ,OOO acres of false wilderness will be spared? Considering that the Senators are ignoring the pleas of the Governor, the President, oil, mining, timber, cattle, water and recreation interests, and the businesses of California represented by the California Chamber of Commerce who strongly oppose the 600,000 acre addition, it is unlikely that any consideration will be given by them to the needs of individual recreationists. If there is hope, it is that enough members of the House of Representatives can be convinced that the future of California's business and recreation should not be decided on a last-minute political ffcompromise. The Forest Service has embarked on a three-year study, to be completed in 1986, to determine the wilderness characteristics of their land. The most prudent course is to wait for the results, and consider the recreational . and resource val ues oCthe lands before locking them away. The current course creates a massive playground for the elitist few who believe a "primitive" outdoor experience is the only acceptable experience, and denies access to the vast majority of Forest Service lands to those who need or desire mechanical devices to enjoy them. A recent administrative decision of the Forest Service even exclude bicycles, sleds, and wheelchairs (rom u ing roads and trails in "wilderness" (Since, by definition, roads and trails may not exist in true wilderness. we find it curious that a management policy must be established to prohibit people from using them). It is no accident 13 of the proposed additions align themseves along the Pacific Crest (hiking) Trail, and that 31 of aU of the wilderness maps are similarly aligned. Yet, the so-called"preservationists" who enjoy, and often make their living from, "primitive" backor horse-packing recreation, will go a long way to convince you their motives are pure. We would like to see what happened if this legislation was amended to deny all public access to "wilderness," foot and horse travelers as well as mechanised. Ah, but the wellfunded and powerful "preservationists" who instigated this legislation in the first place will assure their access will be retained, and assure that the image of off-roaders will continue to be sufficiently blackened as destroyers and rapers of the land, to make protection or promotion of our rights a politically and socially unacceptable act. Off roader ,recreationists, business and industry, are asking Congress, and the President, to delay action on Wilderness legislation, not deny it, until a basis of fact, not political expediency, determines the true boundaries. Every concerned individual should do the same. It Donnetta Carnagey is Vice President of the California Off Road Vehicle Association (COR VA)... Editor.