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Off Highway Vehicle Routes

PostPosted: Fri Mar 02, 2012 8:57 am
by mrfish
Planning to take stronger look at safe off highway vehicle routes
Several comments left in response to this article at the Daily Insufficient, the best one points out the obvious:
The OHVs terrorize Randsburg and have ruined it. For the dust they raise and the ecological damage they do OHVs should be banned from the desert. The scofflaw punks and buzzed tweekers on dirt bikes hereabouts are a menace.

The rest of the responses are from the pro-OHV crowd. Basically the idea is to thrash an area and then move on to another area and eventually leave that area decimated and go somewhere else.
Myers expressed the increasing need for access of motorized vehicles to safely access Ridgecrest from the southern land approaching Bureau Land Management territories. He explained that as Dove Springs and Jawbone Canyon’s off highway vehicle areas become overpopulated, the overflow continues to head to Ridgecrest. City Planner Matthew Alexander suggested that an initial route would be feasible to land at Downs Street.

LINK: http://www.ridgecrestca.com/news/x1481617213/Planning-to-take-stronger-look-at-safe-off-highway-vehicle-routes

Re: Off Highway Vehicle Routes

PostPosted: Fri Mar 02, 2012 9:56 am
by MojaveMike
mrfish wrote:The rest of the responses are from the pro-OHV crowd. Basically the idea is to thrash an area and then move on to another area and eventually leave that area decimated and go somewhere else.

I can't really disagree with you on that one. There are some responsible people in the OHV crowd, but they are so incredibly out-numbered by the thugs who just like to destroy things that it's hard to see why RC would want them riding around their town. It's a series of accidents just waiting to happen. They might purchase a few small items and a couple gallons of gas, but there's no good reason to create routes into town from their favorite camping spots. Besides, it's kind of obvious that in order for them to have gotten their OHVs out to the desert in the first place that they must have a vehicle to haul them in and so there's nothing stopping them from fueling up and restocking in RC anyways!
:smack:

Re: Off Highway Vehicle Routes

PostPosted: Fri Mar 02, 2012 3:43 pm
by BallaratBob
MojaveMike wrote:
mrfish wrote:The rest of the responses are from the pro-OHV crowd. Basically the idea is to thrash an area and then move on to another area and eventually leave that area decimated and go somewhere else.

I can't really disagree with you on that one. There are some responsible people in the OHV crowd, but they are so incredibly out-numbered by the thugs who just like to destroy things that it's hard to see why RC would want them riding around their town. It's a series of accidents just waiting to happen. They might purchase a few small items and a couple gallons of gas, but there's no good reason to create routes into town from their favorite camping spots. Besides, it's kind of obvious that in order for them to have gotten their OHVs out to the desert in the first place that they must have a vehicle to haul them in and so there's nothing stopping them from fueling up and restocking in RC anyways!
:smack:

Whether I agree with you two or not depends on what exactly "OHV crowd" actually means. If you're talking about anyone who travels on dirt roads, then I'd say that you two are wrong since the vast majority of people who travel on dirt roads are decent people who do not destroy the natural beauty of public lands. On the other hand, if you're talking about the type of person who gets his or her jollies from riding anywhere and everywhere without the slightest concern for the fragile beauty of the desert, then I agree with you guys and then some. For me, it all depends on what crowd you're actually talking about!
:4x4:

Re: Off Highway Vehicle Routes

PostPosted: Sun Mar 04, 2012 8:58 am
by pcslim
BallaratBob wrote:Whether I agree with you two or not depends on what exactly "OHV crowd" actually means. If you're talking about anyone who travels on dirt roads, then I'd say that you two are wrong since the vast majority of people who travel on dirt roads are decent people who do not destroy the natural beauty of public lands. On the other hand, if you're talking about the type of person who gets his or her jollies from riding anywhere and everywhere without the slightest concern for the fragile beauty of the desert, then I agree with you guys and then some. For me, it all depends on what crowd you're actually talking about!
:4x4:

The original article is about a proposal that seems to be catering to those who travel exclusively on OHVs that are not street-legal and that's certainly a subset of the overall group of OHV users. Most of us who travel on dirt roads do so in street-legal vehicles. Those owning OHVs that are not street-legal are also likely to own street-legal vehicles. This would seem to indicate that special routes for non-street-legal OHVs are not needed.
:conf003:

Re: Off Highway Vehicle Routes

PostPosted: Wed Mar 07, 2012 8:50 am
by cactuspete
Sheriff’s office seeking OHV grant :4x4:
There's plenty of abusive OHV use here in Searles Valley and over in Panamint Valley also. It would be nice to see better enforcement of regulations and when I say better I don't mean nit-picky stuff. Tickets should be given to people who have excessively noisy vehicles and to those not using legal routes. Also legal routes should be appropriately marked and routes which are closed should be blocked and clearly identified. I realize that the sites listed in the article are in Kern County, but it would be nice to see similar efforts made in San Bernardino County and in Inyo County!
The application states the department is seeking slightly more than $303,000 to enhance its law-enforcement efforts. The KCSO Off-Road Vehicle Enforcement Team personnel and various stakeholders identified high-priority areas during last year’s meeting which remain a concern as illegal OHV operations, off-trail riding and vandalism continues to rise. These areas include, Jawbone Canyon, Randsburg, Johannesburg, Kelso Valley, Dove Springs and a portion of the Pacific Crest Trail in and around Rosamond and into Tehachapi.

LINK: http://www.ridgecrestca.com/news/x587878654/Sheriff-s-office-seeking-OHV-grant

Re: Off Highway Vehicle Routes

PostPosted: Sun Apr 15, 2012 10:34 pm
by blackturtle.us
Stock FJ Cruiser on Steel Road, Death Valley
Helpful video for anyone planning to do Steel Pass!