Myself, Mike and Kaz recently went up to Osceola to meet with the
Forestry Department in an effort to try to resolve the issues we had
this past Spring at the rally. As you know there were several issues.
I have listed the main issues brought up by the Forestry Department
below.
1. Alcohol was involved and contributed to the problem
2. He felt some members were disrespectful to his officers. 3. 2 ponds
were severely damaged 4. Members were in areas they should not have
been in. 5. Evidence of "mudbogging"
6. Trial runs set up to go through mud rather than avoid it.
7. General disrespect for the forest itself
Mike, Kaz and I went in with a plan. We were aware of the issues and
we
hoped to be able to first apologize sincerely and second secure a
chance to have the spring rally in Osceola again. We took a well
conceived written plan into the meeting with copies for all attendees.
Below is a brief summary of the changes that many of you have voted
on.
1. ByLaws to regulate our members
2. Mandatory Driver's meetings with officer involvement
3. Self policing with trail leaders/sheriffs responsible for making
sure we "tread lightly" out there 4. Hiring additional Rangers if need
be 5. More regimented trail rides.
6. Educational meetings. Tread lightly seminar, Safety Seminars, etc.
Some of which have already happened.
7. Sweat equity for trail cleanups and involvement of groups such as
"Friends of the Florida Forests"
We also went in open to any suggestions that the Rangers might have.
Well, I am happy to say that the meeting went well and it appears that
we will get one more chance to have a rally at Osceola. There is still
a lot of work to be done and some hurdles to overcome, but we are
committed to doing all we can to make it happen. Some of there
additional requirements/recommendations were as follows
1. Preselected trails with backups. We will have designated numbered
trails that we will have to remain on. These will be clearly outlined
on a map for all to see. We are going to highly discourage any runs
that are not with the club to avoid any issues (IE going out on your
own runs) 2. No Trials runs, but instead maybe a GPS hunt.
3. Pre registration as we will be limited to 75 trucks. First come
First serve only. Any more requires a full on enviromental
assessment
which we cannot afford.
We are confident that with these changes and self policing we will
leave with a good impression and be welcome back. One thing that was
made very clear by the Rangers is that if we break the rules at all,
we
will never have another rally in Osceola. Mike and I want to be sure
this doesnt
happen and we would like to stay on one more year as President
and Vice President to see this through. As FLRC members we ask all of
you to respect these changes and adopt them. If you cant come to the
Rally without going into a ditch or tearing up a trail head, then stay
home. We have put a lot of time and effort into making this a
responsible, fun, and family oriented club. We are excited about
having
the chance to have another rally at Osceola and with a the help and
support of our members we believe we can have a rally without any
issues. One thing is for certain the microscopes will be on us and
there is no room for error. After the Fall Rally we will be organizing
a trail cleanup in Osceola and we are hoping for a great turnout. Keep
a lookout on the board for updates.
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