I am sorry! i think i have left the wrong impression. Will not go around the rocks (i can take a hint) in respect to the owners of the land. And people who disobey are giving the sport a bad name! We need to respect other people's property. It's one way to build trust with landowners!

 

What a Great conversation..

Thanks for everyone's efforts to educate fellow riders in what they should do when encountering obsticles that stop them from riding on private property.

This is a great way to teach fellow riders the proper way to handle a this type of situation.

contact the land owner, be nice, ask if you may use their land to ride. If they say no.. then thank them for their time, (maybe leave your phone number and name so if they change their mind), and advise them you will respect their wishes and will look for other places to ride.

If the conversation is left in a good way.. they may change their mind and call you Then you have a private LEGAL place to ride.

 

Contacting the owner is the first step. The next step is answering the question, "What's in it for them?" Why would they want to give you written permission and incur all the liablity?

We have been in contact with a land management company for the past 10 years and finally got permisssion to create a land-use permit system that will make money for the company and keep trails open for us to ride.

We now have access to 72,000 acres for $50 per year. Not a bad deal!

Work-up a proposal that will be beneficial to both you (trails stay open) and to the land owners (increased revenues) and you will be surprised how receptive they can be.

Good luck.

PS - I've got relatives in Amherst, New Hampster, how far away from there are you?

 

I think i will contact the land owner, but why does their permission make them liable? i thought the ORHV law saya even if you have permission the land owner is not held liable (RSA 508:14). It is that if they do not charge you to use their land then they are not liable. I live near Nashua.

 

In todays society that won't go to far in protecting you against a liability suit. From my understanding (and I could be wrong), you as a land owner are responible anyone on your land. If you allow (you don't stop them from riding on your land) people to ride on your land you are liable if something happens to them. "He who remains silent is said to agree". So if you are not out there keeping people off your land then you are allowing them to be there and are responsible for them.
If a kid gets hurt while riding on your land you can be held liable for his injuries. Parents are more than happy to sue someone for their kids mistake, ignorance, or outright blatant disregaurd for the laws. It happens I have seen it. After it happens the land owner closes down the land and doesn't allow anyone to ride on it. Other land owners don't want to take the chance in the first place so they close it down. If our society was more into accpting responsibility for their own actions then things would be different. But into todays society we are not responsible for anything we do!!! If you don't believe me just ask your attorney!!!!

 

i could not agree with you more about "society was more into accepting responsibility for their own actions"! People need to recognize they are not always right and they are responsible for the desiciions they make. I work with a guy who will sue you if you left a wrapper on the ground and he hurt his back picking it up. i don't even want him i my car!! too bad...because it could a great world if people had some morals and the parents took their childrens unacceptable behavior more seriously. as for the adults who do this...i dont even know where to begin!

 

I have to agree and Disagree with everyone.
About the Liability stuff. True. My Family owns land in a Farm town. Nothing there. Small town. We own about 11 acres. Thick Forest, and about 4-5 acres open field. Plus a river runs through it. I wish I could ride there, but the land is unsuitable for riding. Anyways, we had some Kids shooting there and such, and one got shot. They tried to hold us accountable for it. They won in court. But We appealed. We have Barbed wire fence all the way around the property, and we have no tresspassing signs posted everywhere. But they still blamed us. We won the appeal, and nothing more came of it. The kid was shot in the leg. Not even fatal, and they sued us. So I beleive that people sue for anything. Imagine that. Your kids are trespassing on someone else's land, shot one of his friends on accident, and then sue the land owner. If they would have won they probably would have won the land that my great Grandfater bought 50 some years ago. That would have been terrible.

So I will always follow the land owners wishes. If they say no, I will stay off. But it doesn't hurt to try!!!

 

You know what's bad? is that the court system allows such crap! and the people (parents) who sued should be teaching their children "gun safety" and resposibility! but instead they just taught all these kids that is does not matter what you do, you are not resposible, someone else is somehow! i am glad your situation turn out in your favor! dont be surprised if you see these same kids in the paper that they killed someone and their first response will be "they made me kill them, i am not responsible!" i feel bad for these kids, they lack good parental teaching! the ORHV laws reads that even though you give permission for land use, the land owner is not liable (unless the landowner cause the problem on purpose) , i guess in that sense i am nieve, i thought the law was a law! thanks for opening my eyes!

 

No problem. Now I try to go out to my land as much as possible. We always new people went there. Just nothing we could do about it. Litter was everywhere, plus Tracks from the river, and more litter everywhere. Plus Rifle Shells, Fire Pits...But what can you do? Unless you are out there all the time, nothing. And the town has better things to do with it's 1 sherrif and Depuity. Er.. Something along thos lines. So now we have a neighbor check on it every onece in a while. We gave him Gate keys, and he drives by everyday, and once or twice a week he takes his dogs over there and lets them run around. So we have taken steps, but there is not much you can do . Unless you are there all the time.

 

I am glad you won in the end. I was just pointing out that usually if it is a kid that gets hurt you can still be held liable. If it is an adult then you are more safe (adults know the laws, kids don't). As you mentioned that the first court held in favor of the kids that were injured. I am glad that an appeal court reversed the decision. the sad things is that it probably cost your parents/grandparents money to defend themselves in a court case they should have never been in. The saying goes.."He who remains silent is said to agree" You didn't actively do anything to keep the kids from your land and therefore gave permission for them to be there. Once you gave them the permission you are responsible.
Now you are actively keeping people off the land by having the neighbor police the property. That is really sad that you have to go to that extent just to keep some idiot obeying a law that they should obey without any help. I don't know about anyone else but I was always taught to respect others and their property.