PDA

View Full Version : Intro and A CAUSE WE CAN ALL RALLY AROUND



fullsped
01-20-2009, 01:30 PM
Hello All,
While I have been on this site for a while, I am not sure if I have ever posted here. So I wanted to tell you a little about myself. My name is Eli and I live Ca. I am the past president (02-08) of the Santa Cruz 4 Wheel Drive Club and have been a member since 2000. I am also a member of Blue Ribbon, Cal4Wheel, Friends of the Rubicon and Friends of Eldorado National Forest. Any who, Del Albright has asked me to assist with sharing information about land use issues to try and improve communications with the 4 wheel drive community. So, here I am to do what I can to keep public land open to the public. Also while my primary crawler is a 91 YJ. I do have two grands as well. A 95 and 01. The 01 is my wife’s daily driver and the 95 is sitting waiting to be built into the next family wheeler. Anyway, I hope that this is of value to you and look forward to getting to know you / your group.






A CAUSE WE CAN ALL RALLY AROUND



By Adena Cook, BlueRibbon Coalition


Caught up in the attractions of the Internet, television and the cyber world, too many children have become isolated from nature.
We need to get kids outside! Recreation groups, land managers, youth organizations, health providers and educators are starting to get serious about this crisis: Kids spend far too little time outdoors enjoying physical activity. It's a cause we can all rally around, one with which we all agree. We need to put it first, before we put effort into who does what on which patch of ground.
Individual interest groups each have their own efforts under way. I'm concerned that this may not be enough. The problem is so massive that a coordinated effort is essential, one that focuses simply on kids, family and fun. After that message is hammered home, then interest groups and local efforts can add their refinements. With some luck and good will, the cooperation generated in this initial effort will carry through to more focused efforts.
We need to start early, with toddlers. Little kids naturally love to be outdoors, to bask in the sun, crawl in the grass, play in the dirt. A world of natural exploration, away from indoor toys, opens before them. Encouraged at this age, that world of natural exploration can become a lifelong quest.
Winter offers special opportunities, compromised only by the need for appropriate dress. Snow becomes the wonder of a starry flake, the canvas of a snow angel, a ball to throw, the stuff of a man, and a marvelous surface on which to slide whoosh down a hill.
Later on, snow play means skiing, snowboarding, tubing or snowmobiling, all in the company of family and friends. It means learning skills and how to take care of yourself. It means working with family to maintain equipment and help fix machines. Snow can be an enduring passion.
If toddlers are to be encouraged to love the outdoors, then this must start with mom and dad. Parents need to be there, enjoying themselves as much as the kids. This is where a kids-outdoors effort must begin.
I'm worried that it may be too late. How many moms and dads are engrossed in cyber world role playing while the little ones are parked in front of the TV? By the time kids are 10, they can get sucked into the omnipresent Internet-cell-phone communication web that consumes all their attention right down to their very soul. There's no room for outside influences, let alone outdoor activities. They can't go anywhere without being plugged in, and thanks to satellites, they don't have to.
It's a daunting task. We can each go about our efforts and make some progress, but we'll be far more successful if all groups work together in a simple, straightforward way that's pervasive and consistent. All together now, moms, dads, kids -- outside.
##
Photo available on request. Cook is a consultant with the BlueRibbon Coalition. She may be contacted directly here:
Phone: 208-522-7339
e-mail: bradena@sharetrails.org


The BlueRibbon Coalition is a national recreation group that champions responsible recreation, and encourages individual environmental stewardship. It represents over 10,000 individual members and 1,200 organization and business members, for a combined total of over 600,000 recreationists nationwide. 1-800-258-3742. www.sharetrails.org (http://www.sharetrails.org)

SirFuego
01-22-2009, 11:51 AM
Giving this thread a bump to give it more exposure.

I like seeing this approach being taken. I think the recent show on Discovery gave great exposure to the off-roading community showing how even a 14-year old could be involved in the sport.

There are also some other great stories on Pirate like the Honda Kid Buggy and the father that had a contest with his son to build their own rig in a limited budget. These are the types of stories that need to get out to help the off-roading community as a whole.

fullsped
01-23-2009, 01:23 PM
Hey SirFuego, Thank you for the bump and am happy to see that you also feel this is useful. I will continue to post various topics here in regards to land use issues and stories / write ups worthy of sharing.

Is anything specific you guys are specifically interested in that I can leverage my contacts within Blue Ribbon to get information or to bring to their attention?

Everyone needs to do their part to keep public lands open to all the public.

Oh and I more thing I forgot to mention. I was referred to this site from Pirate4x4 where I have been a member since 2001. I think it was rockinZJ that referred me. Anyway, thought you may be interested in how I ended up on here :-)

Eli

SirFuego
01-23-2009, 02:06 PM
I'm just barely starting to get into the whole land usage issue, and I'd be curious if anything is going on in NY to try to open up some trails. I haven't really come across anything so far in my searches. I'd love to try to start getting involved though.

fullsped
01-26-2009, 01:06 PM
I will poll BRC and Del specifically and see if I can dig anything up for you. Will let you know what I find ASAP once I find it.

Eli

fullsped
01-26-2009, 05:16 PM
So I asked around and was advised by Del Albright that you should get in touch with Bob Ski and he can shed light on specifics to NY. "Bob Ski has a lot going on with trying to expand trail opportunities going up in NY. Email: BSki@NYSPDA.org website: http://www.nysorva.org/ "

I hope that this helps. Thank you and I hope all is well with you.

Eli

SirFuego
01-26-2009, 05:19 PM
Thanks a lot! I'll take a look at it!