Cycle News - Archive Issues - 2000's

Forest Service Draft OHV Regulations: On Track, But... cco rding to a re lease from the BlueRibbon Coalition (BRC) , the U.S. Fo res t Service recently released draft reg - ically in the last 30 years, the BRC says, and it is app ropriate that the Forest Service ulations concern ing the use of motorized restricts indiscrim inate cross-country travel vehicles on National Forest lands. These by wheeled vehicles, except in certain, spe cific areas where such use may be appropriate . The BRC also supports making motor- A regulations will re strict motorized vehi- cles to designated roads, trails and areas and will requi re ea ch National Forest to inve ntory ro ads and trails and then, afte r involving the public in the inventory and analysis of the inventory, eve ntually to Motorized recreation has grown dramat- ized recreation managem ent a higher priori- ty of the agency to sustain existing opportunities, as well as working to enhance and cross-country tra vel. The BRC says it sup- expand opportunities when and where app ropriate. After reviewing the draft regulations, the BRC has the following concerns about the regulations and how they will be ports the concept of restricting use of implemented: motorized veh icles to desi gnat ed roads, trails and areas , but the BRC has seriou s With no additional funding, we question the ability of the agency to complet e the proce ss in a timely and thorough man ner. Base inventories mu st be comprehen sive and include all routes. Sacrificing accuracy for designate roads, trails and are as for motorized vehicle use, and eliminate concerns abo ut som e of the de tails of the dr aft regulations, as w ell as questions about implementation of the regulat ions. World Superbikes/Speed Channel Ink Deal exclusive satellite and cable rights across North America . The deal will run thro ugh 2007 and guarantees extensive primary television visibility for the championsh ip in the key market of the United Stat es. Furthermore, Speed Channel will co ntinue as the host broadcaster for the United States ro und of the championship for the durat ion of the agreem ent , accord ing to FGSport. Commenting on the outcome of the negotiations, FGSport CEO Paolo Flammini said: "We are extremely happy to have concluded inventory process as early as possible. Consumer GPS data and maps provided by the public must be considered. Designation of all unpaved roads should be automatic. No arb itrary timelines should be applied . Implementing this process should be done at landscape levels smaller than a Ranger District to facilitate faste r progress. Efforts should focus first on areas with high levels of use and move toward areas es. with low use or m inimal issu "We are pleased to see the Forest Service elevate OHV management through this reg- w ithout any new commitment of resources, and this concerns us greatly. The stakes are high for the American public, but the Forest Service doesn't seem to have gize our mem bers to engage in the proce ss recognized that when they propose to complete this major job using e xist ing at the local level," commented BlueRibbon Co alition executive director Bill Dart. "Th is not serious about doing a thorough job." ulation process, and w e w ill w ork to ener- resourc es. The message we get is, they are A new scoring structure was introduced to successful television rights deals for the series to date. O ur relationship with Speed Channel goes back many years, and they have always provided an excellent level of programming for the championship. We are delighted to extend the deal and look forward to worki ng with Speed Channel to further enhance the cover - two points using the new system. the FIM World Endurance Championship at the start of this year, and it will be put to Further down the standings, the order of teams would be different if the points the test again in the upcoming Suzuka 8- given to teams scoring at the tougher Albacete race was removed , but the Hour on July 2S. number of points awarded at middle-dis- change in the method of awarding points has been welcomed by all the teams, tance races of eight and 12 hours were according to the series promoters. They According to the series promoter, the increased to bridge the gap between the 2S feel that it recognizes the additional chal- points available to the winner of a six-hour lenge of finishing a longer race. race and the SO points awarded to the win- For the permanent championship teams making the trip to Japan for the 8-Hour, the additional points will likely prove vital to their championship campaign. Yamaha GMT94, Suzuki Castrol, Yamaha Austria and Yamaha Phase One Endurance are all confirmed to race at Suzuka on July 2S, according to the age in the next couple of years." ner of a 24-hour race. In 2003 Speed Channel provided more than 78 hou rs of Supe rbike World Championship program ming, including live coverage of the United Stat es round. Speed Channel senior VP Rick Miner said: "Speed is very pleased with the successful con- The new system took effectat the A1bacete 12-hourrace last month, and there hasalready been an effect on the championship standings. TI,e gap between leaders Yamaha GMT94and second-placed Suzuki Castrol would have been fIVe points: instead it is reduced to only event promoters. clusion of ou r negotiations to renew the Superb ike World Championship. WSBK has provided and continues to provide the w orldclas motorcy cle racing our viewers dem and." s SEMA Board Votes to Support ORBA's Land Use Efforts The Specialty Equipme nt Mar ke t Association's (SEMA) board of directors has pledged financial suppo rt for the Off-Road Business Association's (O RBA) effort to keep public lands open for public use, accor ding to a release fro m ORBA. SEMA president Ch ris Kersting stated that "SEMA recognizes the significant effort that ORBA has contribute d to keeping public lands ope n to vehicle acce ss. Many SEMA mem ber com panies market products t hat are used exten sively by the off-highway vehicle recreation industry." SEMA was originally organized to repre sent the hot rod and spee d equipmen t industry. li ke O RBA, SEMA is a nonprofit trade association representing businesses. Today, SEMA mem bers include a wide range of businesses that manufacture, distribu te and sell all types of automotive aftermarket specialty equipme nt. As the intere st in off-road recreation has literally explode d in the United States, mo re and mo re SEMA mem be r com- 12 is a watershed moment for OHV recreation, but there is tremendous potential for loss of opportunity if the process is not tho rough or the public doesn't participate." "We are still analyzingthe proposed regulations, and we will be providing detailed comments in the com ing weeks to the Forest Service planning team as well as our membership," stated BlueRibbon Coalition public lands director Brian Hawthorne. "The agency is undertaking a major pro ject Suzuka To Use New Point Structure a renewal of w hat has been one of our most Super bike World C hampionship rights holder, FGSport, announced at the laguna Seca World Superb ike ro und that it has renewed a three-year deal w ith Speed C hannel to air the World Supe rbike Championship, givingSpeed expediency is unacceptable. The public should be involved in the JULY 21 , 2004 • CYCLE N EWS 40th Anniversary panies are dealing with products utilized by the off-highway vehicle industry. "We are extre me ly e xcited about SEM s A' support for our effort s. ORBA's pr imary thrust today is to put a stop to the massive closures to vehicle access that are tak ing place in this cou ntry. Unfortunately, in many cases, litigation becom es the only course available to fight this battle ," says ORBA preside nt Roy Denne r. "SEMA reco gnizes that such closures directly impact many SEM A members and that ORBA has developed the exper ience and expertise to deal with land use issues. SEMA's financial contri butio n will certainly be put to good use." ORBA regularlyparticipates at SEMAshows by offering land use information seminars to SEMA members. SEMA will include a major emphasis on the off-highway vehicle industry this year at its annual SEMA Show in las Vegas and is launching its SEMA Off-road trade show in Indianapolis, February 4-S, 2005.

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