I beg to differ. Go to Pismo Beach Dunes, where you pay to camp and ride. Go on a weekend where there are hundreds of campers all over in the dunes. Then go back to ride after they have all left. There is CRAP all over.These PIGS leave there crap everywhere or pile it up for someone else to pick up. Pisses me off. The tree huggers have been trying for years to close this area and if they takea few pics of what we see this will be their next approach. PLEASE if you pack it in take it out.

 

First of all, I don't think this sport will ever be dead, even if ATVs are outlawed, I think they will still be around, at least...mine would. Sometimes I wonder why there are no trails in my area, and perhaps there used to be, but not anymore. Probably because ATVers have a bad rep. and this is usually for good reason. The problem is that we are quickly losing legal places to ride, and there is nearly no way to stop this because of many riders who trash everything. They do this by riding overly aggressively, or just throwing garbage everywhere. I do think that the best way to keep our trails and riding areas is to (as said by many in this thread alone) use clubs to clean up our areas. I hope that some day I find a way to open a riding area in NY state, b/c towards the south we really lack them. Anyway, organize groups to clean up, and teach kids as best you can to not take part in littering and destruction!

 

I hate this as well. I'm forever picking up other peoples trash...
Really people, how freaking hard is it to put your trash in a bag and haul it out!!!!

And they say a dog doesn't sh*t where it sleeps/eats.

I HATE TRASH

 

It's not just littering, although that is a big problem. It's revving the 2 stroke wide open near peoples homes, doing donuts in the trail parking lots, trespassing (riding where it is not legal to ride), having any alcohol with you on rides can make things LOOK bad, breaking speed limits on trails, ripping past people on horses, walking, or riding bikes, (instead of slowing down so they don't have to ingest our dust) etc. I came across a small fire last year where some idiot started a fire on top of pine needles that was at least a foot deep. We started grabbing coolerfuls of water from a nearby stream and we still could not get it out. We called the local fire department and 3 towns showed up with shovels, portable sprayers, etc. and got it out in a half hour. It was only about 8x10 but they were very grateful, saying it could have easily led to a fire of thousands of acres. I think they really appreciated all the time we spent trying to get the fire out, calling, and leading them to the fire. When we stop and help people, clean up trash, run charity events, etc. we get a good name. The trails we save may be our own.

 

MooseHendon,

I agree, as in most things image is very important and poor behavior can quickly turn people against all of us. I live in the country and own two ATV's and a Rhino, so you would think I would have a pretty good opinion of the sport. I am however getting tired of yahoos running past my house with loud assed pipes doing wheelies on public roadway on which it is illegal to ride anyway. Occasionally they will take just a minute or two to cut donuts in one of my fields or by my barn before going on their merry way. They are ruining it for those who ride responsibly by drawing the attention of the police who would just as soon ignore it.

Just about anywhere you go, you will see where someone has run off into a field and torn it up to some extent. What they don't realize is how difficult that those ruts make it for the farmer in the spring or that something may already be planted there. I was in court one day when a young man was sentenced to prison for tearing up a field with an estimated amount of damage running into the thousands of dollars. I had worked with the Prosecutor for many years and the reason he was charged and convicted was to send a message that this would no longer be tolerated. In that county farmers had started putting boards with nails in them in their fields and this was how the young man was caught as all his tires were blown.

 

I see there is allot of ppl having issues and thought I would restart the tread to voice your concerns!

 

I pick up a lot of other peoples trash all the time from public land, and I'm sick of it... They have no respect.

But what really makes me mad is when they come on my hunting property and trash it.. I put up gates to try and keep them out.

My hunting property is right behind my house.. Last year I was deer hunting and heard someone chopping with a axe up the hill from me.. After about 30-minutes of listening to that, I started up the hill and caught two young guys stripping off bark from elm trees, and they were drinking.

I marched both of them down to my home and called the game warden.

 

yeah that would get to me too. i mean here we are, working to keep our areas clean and nice for everyone to enjoy, and then there's the people who don't care and trash it and take it for granted. not cool man. i hear you.

 

A good thread to have up just in time for riding season!

 

Sorry, screwed up..