One other interesting tidbit that we gleaned from the meeting...we were not the only ones to have a permit denied by Ranger Randy. One of the motorcycle groups there confronted him about it.

Essentially they had everything in order, but they were denied because of something like "average speed of the vehicles would exceed 10mph". The funny thing is that there are no speed limits on the trails. The moto guy brought this up, Randy did not deny that there were no speed limits. Once again, it's a situation where it pays to be disorganized. Everyone should just show up there...and miraculously the rules are more lenient. :pat:

We need to find out when his term is up...and make sure he doesn't make it into office again. It'd be cool if he was reasonable, but he certainly is not.

Jim

 

Or figure out how to get him kicked out.

 

Term? He's not elected. He's there until he retires or the Forest Circus pulls him. I have been arguing with the USDA, the parent organization of the USFS for a year now that it's a bad idea to let their rangers get too entrenched in one area, but they don't seem to see the harm in it.

When Randy says something like "That won't happen in MY district", he means HIS district My argument is that when they stay in one area too long, they ahem, "put down roots". Their argument is that the longer they stay in a district, the more "history" they have...

I argue that the more attached to the district a ranger becomes, the less likely they are to remember that they are only stewards of the land FOR the public. The USDA argues that the more attached they become, the more likely a ranger is to care about the land and "protect" it from threats.

 

Which was exactly his response to someone's question about reopening pyramid peak.

 

I am not surprised. After a year of corresponding with these people and their superiors, if I had to summarize my experience, it would be "they think the forests are THEIR land". I have only encountered a couple of them who seemed to realize that their role is a "public servant" role. That is, they are there to serve the wishes of the public. Instead, most of them act as if the public is just a pain in their butts, making unreasonable demands on them and THEIR forests. All in all, it's been a disheartening experience...

"Those who know what's best for us, must rise and save us from ourselves." - Rush "Witch Hunt"

 

Yeah, sorry...you're starting to jog my memory from around the "ugly-Yotajam" plans before.

So who do we contact at the USDA? Maybe we (the collective - 4-wheelers) need to remind them they are a government agency. A government agency created to serve the public, no-more / no-less.

Jim

 

It's amazing to me that the Forest Service seems to be comprised primarily of left-wing, granola types. I guess I am not surprised, but one of the steps that we as wheelers need to make is to get some folks on the inside. These people are coming out of college already thinking of us as the bad guys and nothing we can do will convince them otherwise. We need to get some moderates or even motorized sports advocates interested in forestry... Even the people who the FS puts in charge of motorized access concerns act like they are only doing it because it's their job. What we need is a few good 'ole boys in there who can counter some of the venom the FS has toward motorized use and present a more balanced view. With someone like that in place, perhaps the FS would smarten up regarding their "forest management practices" as well and quit just watching beetles eat their way through vast stands of forest, quit mismanaging what old growth is left and quit standing in the way of the public actually using the forests...

The pendulum has swung waaaaaay too left in my opinion. It's time for the FS to realize that if they can't represent the public in a fair and equitable fashion, they need to step aside and allow private land owners to manage the forests.

Case in point... drive over Chinook pass. As soon as you start heading down into Randy's district, you will see a HUGE stand of forest that is now standing deadwood due to his refusal to move proactively against the bark beetle. Mark my words, that stand will burn, then Randy will stand around wringing his hands and spouting off sound bites about how it wasn't his fault... I am not a forestry expert, but I pride myself on having *some* common sense... something that is lacking in the Forest Circus...

 

I guess I'm not too suprised. A while back a brother of a friend got a post out near Deception Pass. It actually sounded like a cool gig, he even got to live in a FS cabin out on a small island. He had to take a boat out to the mainland every day.

Anyway, my friend (brother of the ranger)...told me about how the brother finally bought a car just because his girlfriend was quite a distance away. She didn't want to live on the island, so he needed the car to go visit. He ended up with a new car...albeit a diesel VW Golf - which was capable of something like 50mpg (diesel!). Doing his part for the environment...probably dreaded taking that car on the road, every time.

Jim

 

You know where I work Rob. I can tell you there are some, definitely not a majority but there are a few who are into our sport of 4-wheeling and not totally pro-treehugger. The problem however is the forestry industry has taken a huge turn away from logging and is now headed towards ecology and habitat restoration.

 

Bump to the top

 

Sorry I'm late on my thank you to Mark for the meeting synopsis. I think it was a worthwhile trip, even if only to show the rangers that the public does care and wants a say in what happens to our trails.

 

Aye, and especially people from the Other Side Of The Mountain that drive 3+ hours to get there.

(and you're welcome for the summary!)