Originally Posted by billulsund

Ok, let me explain myself better. According to the Forest Service meeting I wend to fore Evans Creek any vehicle whose tread width exceeds the trail surface causes damage to the trail. For example here is representation of the way they want a vehicle's tires to fit on the trail.

\|_|____|_|/

Take the same trail surface with a wider vehicle and it fits like this.

|_|------|_|
\_________/

The Forest Service claims that having a wide vehicle that causes you to have to drive up on the banked surfaces on the trail causes damage (tears **** up). I do not necessarily agree with this point of view I just went to the meetings and this is what they told us. Appartently they went around at Evans and measured several trails and determined that 80" is the widest you can be without having to drive up on the banks of the trail and thereby cause damge (tear **** up). There was a previous width restricion at Evans of 72" that was a law in the books but was never enforced. They talked about actually enforcing that restriction and we convinced them to increase it to the new 80" number. My point is I am not concerned about the width restriction getting decreased in the future as RockToy suggested because we just successfully got it increased. If there were any change future change to the width restriction at Evans it would probably be another increase. I do not agree with them that wider vehicles damage trails, I say we build em all wider and let anybody run em

Originally Posted by huntingman2706217

i think like hunters safety course, there should be a class drivers must attend... if no card on board for the driver then they should be ticked... class covering things such as equipment that should be on board and how it works, strapping down gear, not traveling alone, some survival, CPR, other medical survival tactics... stuff like that... i think it would make ORV areas feel better about remaining open to the public... ticket money would go to keeping trash picked up and funding trash cans along the way, trail repairs... then of course it would save lives by prepairing people for these instances... and probly even creat jobs for the sport... lets face it... its a sport... all sports have rules and this one does not really unless your riding with a club...

then again theres gonna be 50 people that hate on me because this class idea would be a "inconvenience" to them... but i bet this kids dad wished now that he had attended one... and i bet this kid 10 years from now will have wished his dad would have attended one also...

Originally Posted by billulsund

You are probably right. I am sure the forest service lied to us about going out and measuring trails. I mean they are up at Evans all the time anyways, why would they actually take the time to measure trails before determining if the width restriction can be increased . The fact is that measurements did happen and they even explained to us how the measurements were taken.

Evans Creek has always had a width restriction rule. In my opinion some restriction is necessary as some trails there are way too narrow for a wide vehicle to fit down no matter how good you drive. We fought and got it increased so that more vehicles can legally enjoy the park and you are *****ing about it ? I guess some people will always see the glass as half empty. At Evans Creek everything the Forest Service can and cannot do is determined by the environmental assessment that was done there. Evans Creek will now be closed from Dec 15th- Mar31st so that a migratory bird that may or may not be in the area can nest there. They are shutting down the whole wheeling area to everyone. If you want to be upset about something get upset about that and not the increased width restriction. And if you want to blame it on someone, blame the environmentalists and not the Forest Service. Maybe do some research next time before you start ranting. A little knowledge can go a long way.

Originally Posted by Rock Toy

Huntingman, I agree in principle with you in that people new to the wheeling sport would be helped with a class. A couple of the clubs I have belonged to have had seminars on how to operate a 4x4 on trails. ( as in tire placement, use of gears on descents, winching, recovery, etc. ) Also most clubs have a list of required equipment. ( such as shovel, axe, fire extinguisher, first aid kit, recovery strap, and tree strap. )
I personally wouldn't want any state or federal agency regulating OHV usage, I think it is better left to the OHV community to take care of itself.

Originally Posted by No4x4Yet

Im with huntingman and Cherokee 91, as much as it would be a pain for smart experienced off roaders, itll help those that dont know what they are doin and help keep the trails open for everyone.

As sad as events like this are its even more sad that one stupid person's actions affect a whole group of enthusiasts.

Originally Posted by huntingman2706217

The problem is the ohv community is not taking care of itself... it would be nice if it was absolutely... until someone or some organization takes charge there will continue to be arguments and problems...
Ands like I said i know that probly all clubs ride with safety equipment and spare parts... but this Guy wasn't riding with a club... he was by himself... with nothing... most deadly Offroad cases are not with a club but by themselves or nobody within the group is prepared properly...

Originally Posted by Rock Toy

The guy that was hurt was with his kid running trails by his self, don't know if a class that told him that was stupid would have helped him or not, just know that everything I have ever seen the government get involved with has turned out being a total pain.
If like the hunter safety classes that you mentioned, that are conducted by the NRA would be the model that would be different.
Perhaps, the class could be taught by someone from the U4WDA and some sort of certificate given showing that they had attended the class.