Endurance.Net Ridecamp Archives

> > Regarding spending money on trails research>>
Ok - there's no doubt that research aimed at preserving trails is a Good
thing for AERC. This is obvious. But - for an organization with limited
funds, and a need to cut spending and/or increase revenue to balance the
budget one has to ask if this is the best place to spend money?

I would bet that individual ride managers do far more benefit to the sport
in their efforts to procure and maintain trail than any amount of research.
Most ride managers do this because of their passion for a good trail (it's
certainly not for the money). I have spent the past 5 years searching out a
network of trails in Owyhee County and working with the BLM to improve and
record them. All of my trails (over 300 miles worth) are now in the BLM's
database as 'horse trails'. We gps'd every inch of them and transferred them
to their system. Over the past few years the BLM has been reviewing usage of
the land here, developing a new management plan - prior to my rides/trails
most of the recorded trails were motorcycle and atv.  Now there are
permanent horse trails recorded in the Owyhee management plan.

If you talk to other ride managers I'm sure you will find the same
scenarios - Dave Nicholson, Jackie Bumgardner, Randy Eiland have spent their
lives providing (and maintaining/procuring/developing) trails for endurance
riders. Roger Taylor and Fort Stanton - these are folks working with Gov't
agencies. I suspect that the rides in the east and midwest have an even
great impact and benefit on preserving trails, working with parks, private
individual, state/town tracts. It is primarily the face to face interaction
between the folks in the offices (rangers, administraters, etc) and the
trail users (ride managers, clubs, riders) that keeps relationships good,
and trails open to our use.

This is my point: if AERC feels that trails preservation is important, they
should be supporting Ride Management in every way possible because Ride
Managers and their volunteers/spouses/clubs are the ones that are doing the
most, on a yearly basis, for trails.

The last thing AERC wants to do is to discourage or cause more financial
hardship to it's Ride Managers. The entire sport depends upon the people who
are willing to devote months of their time to provide venues for the rides.
Tacking another dollar onto the price of a ride entry may seem trivial, but
it isn't.

I would much rather see:
1. expenses go down  - or
2. member dues go up

(that was two, I can count :)

than tack another ride tax onto the events that are the life-blood of this
sport.

Encourage the ride managers, encourage the riders, encourage the
veterinarians - these individuals are the heart of the sport, and this is
what keeps the sport alive, and therefore the trails open.

Steph


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