Are you a member?

[Ferg]

Are you a member of any 4WD/OHV/Off road organization?

If so, which one(s) and how long?

California Association of 4WD Clubs, 17 years, Life Member.

TLCA, 5 years off and on


Nationl Rifle Assoc, >20 years, Life Member
California Rifle and Pistol Assoc, 10 years, Life Member


VOTE in November.  No matter who(W) you vote for.

[lowgeared]

Pacific Northwest Fourwheel Drive Association (PNW4WDA)
United Four Wheel Drive Association
Ace of Clubs 4Wheel Drive Club
Have been vice president two years, my wife is currently president and I'm VP, delegate 1 year, currently the region 4 membership chairman and the Beverly Sand Dunes Manager/Liason in coodination with the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and the PNW.

Damn...now that I type that all out, I now know why I don't have time for anything!  Also a full time job, 9 hours a day plus a 40 mile drive both ways, and an evening 4 wheel drive business.   

[mudguts]

Westside Fourwheelers, Coalinga

Cal 4WD

Coalinga Rifle Pistol Club (1000 yarder baby ) 

NRA Life Memeber

 

[Prismo]

Member of none, friends with many.

[lowgeared]

There's no time like the present to join up in a 4x4 club or organization.  Anyone interested in forming a club in WA, OR, ID, I am the man with the info to get your club organized and into the PNW4WDA.

[iNfErNaL]

DIABLOS OF OFFROAD,SoCal...President.

[Wraith]

DIABLOS OF OFFROAD,SoCal...President.

President huh? How many members? 1?

[SWAMPER]

Wraith man your evil

I put in my form at Texas4WheelDrive but I havent gotten an answer.....Im a Sam's Club member

[BLUCRUZ]

CA4WD Life Member
TLCA
VP of Pair-O-Dice 4wheelers

[iNfErNaL]

Nine members.

[Rocksurfer]

12 year member of Cal4wheel
11 year member of Spinnin4s 4x4 Club (a Cal4wheel member) I am currently a moderator on thier bb 32 members

[Ferg]

Not even ten(10) members?  People, PLEASE!!

If you are not a member of an organization/association/club that supports what you LOVE to do, what good are you?  You are just going along for the ride and letting others do all the work.

If you are not a member, you may as well just be on the side of those who want to shut us down and close up the trails.

[Skinny_Pedal]

i would like to join the pnw4wda but u have to be 18. next month ill proboly consider joining

[Rocksurfer]

Not even ten(10) members?  People, PLEASE!!

If you are not a member of an organization/association/club that supports what you LOVE to do, what good are you?  You are just going along for the ride and letting others do all the work.

If you are not a member, you may as well just be on the side of those who want to shut us down and close up the trails.

Totally agree with you, even if you don't want to or don't have the time to get involved with the political end of our sport/pasttime. Join a club or asscoiation that fights for your right to wheel. 2 reasons to join one are the money you give goes to help keep our trails open and 2 the more numbers these organizations can throw around at a politician speaks volumes. The larger the organization the more they will listen to what we have to say. If they help a large organization it means more votes for him/her in the long run becuase we always want to support those that help keep our trails open. In California it's Cal4wheel, you don't need to belong to a club to become a member, go to http://www.cal4wheel.com and join now, if you don't the next time you go to your favorite trail and it's closed forever you'll only have yourself to blame.

If you know the url of the organization in your area post it up so others in your area can get in touch with them to join.

[Prismo]

Not even ten(10) members?  People, PLEASE!!

If you are not a member of an organization/association/club that supports what you LOVE to do, what good are you?  You are just going along for the ride and letting others do all the work.

If you are not a member, you may as well just be on the side of those who want to shut us down and close up the trails.

I take some offense to this statement. You have no idea of the number of clean-ups I have participated in. The letters I have written. Trips by myself to meet with DNR reps to pull cars & trucks out of sensitive areas where they have been dumped. I personally participate more in these kind of efforts than a lot of club members do. You DO NOT have to be a club member to make a difference. But i guess since I am not a club member I must be just going along for the ride. 

[lowgeared]

As a representative of the Pacific Northwest 4 wheel drive association, I would like to personally thank Prism for any and all help that he has given to the four wheel drive community in and around Washington state.

[SWAMPER]

I agree with PRISM though being in a club might help making ppl aware of problems....you dont neceserly need to be a member to make a difference.... (im still joining one )

[lowgeared]

There are a lot of people around here who would rather wheel and help out with cleanups than deal with the politics that are sometimes involved with a club.  This is fine with me.

[WHITE_TRASH]

There are a lot of people around here who would rather wheel and help out with cleanups than deal with the politics that are sometimes involved with a club. This is fine with me.

That is the biggest reason I will not join ANY 4x4 clubs.  I absolutely hate the politicing that goes on whithin basically every club Ive been around.  I just do my part and leave the bitching and moaning to "members".

[4DEES]

I also am VERY offended by this! I am from the DIABLOS OF OFFROAD in southern cali! its not about having a crap load of people, its all about 4wheeling and doing what you freakin' love to do! I myself,like prism, have participated in a lot of cleen ups to keep places open and not getting shut down.so I as well as many others do NOT APPRECIATE YOU SAYING YOUR LITTLE COMMENTS.by the way,I am also a member of the california off road vehicle association(CORVA),Azusa canyon off roaders assn.(A.C.O.R.A) and the American sand assn. (A.S.A.)

Not even ten(10) members? People, PLEASE!!

If you are not a member of an organization/association/club that supports what you LOVE to do, what good are you? You are just going along for the ride and letting others do all the work.

If you are not a member, you may as well just be on the side of those who want to shut us down and close up the trails.

[iNfErNaL]

I just gotta say that at one point we had over 20 members...As time went by,I noticed there were members who were REALLY just along for the ride and were starting problems with other clubs,wouldn't participate in events that benefited people other than themselves,and wouldn't stop on the trail to help another person out....All of these people are now EX-members....Some don't even own a 4by anymore....And we are now down to 9 members,who I don't have to try to keep controll over,and make wise decisions as to what will make a difference in what trails and play areas will remain open for everyone else......It's not about having a load of members joining your club...It's about being a group of people who work together to help others out.

[Ferg]

To those who do participate and do not belong to any organizations, I extend a very large and appreciative THANK YOU.  At least you get it.  Those who say it's not about 's**t loads' of numbers, you are also right.  Don't think politics go away just because you aren't involved in them or all the headaches they cause.  It's voting season, it's ALL politics.

My intent was to get a feel for the level of organized participation through this forum.  If you are a member of an organization and don't feel the need to be an officer in it, thats fine.  But each of those groups needs your support, even if it's just to say that 'Look we represent X number of members'. 

The Sierra Club has a huge membership.  This lends them credibility at meetings and when they speak to YOUR elected representatives.  By not being a member of an organization related to what you do, you get 'left out' during the process.  When the people that stand up for your trails and play areas get run over by the oppostion who wants to shut them down, where are you going to go to 'wheel?

Look closely at the current Route Inventory being conducted by the USFS.  They are mapping all trails and 'routes of travel' in the forests.  They start with a clean topo map and go for a drive.  If they travel a trail/route in gets marked.  If not it will be lost, FOREVER. 

Organizations and Associations need the backing of members (i.e. numbers) to keep this from being a one-sided inventory.

If it were up to the SC there would be no OHV activity of any kind in any forest.  One person here and one person there is not going to keep the SC at home, but it will keep you off your favorite trail.

Parts of Glamis were closed...
Millions of acres of SoCal desert were closed...
Montana lost hundreds of miles of unpaved roads...
Utah nearly lost the San Rafel Swell...


Is yours next?

[mudguts]

Very well put Ferg. I believe there is some safety in numbers. Before I joined the West Side 4 Wheelers, I participated in many cleanups and volunteered my time on the Dusy-Ershim Trail. Most, if not all the cleanups were put on by local clubs. Our club is small but we go a long way with the local BLM officer when it comes to helping out Clear Creek. Cleer Creek is in our backyard and with 53,000 acres and over 300 miles of motorcycle and 4x trails, our club will fight to the end to prevent anymore closures.
  A club can be very effective when it comes to the rights of all.

[Ferg]

California Association of 4WD Clubs          www.cal4wheel.com
Friends of the Rubicon                           www.friendsoftherubicon.com
California Off Road Vehicle Association      www.corva.org
United Four Wheel Drive Association        www.ufwda.org
Blue Ribbon Coalition                              www.sharetrails.org
Toyota Land Cruiser Association               www.tlca.org
Tierra Del Sol Four Wheel Drive Club         www.tds4x4.com


Post up yours.

[Rocksurfer]

To those nay-sayers I must tell you that by not participating in the unfortunate path we must take to keep our trails open you are making it easier for trails to be closed. I hate politics as much as you but if we don't stand up and be counted I and you will lose your rights. Tree huggers use thier numbers to force thier agendas, and the more of them there are the more a politician will listen. If they don't think you care they WILL lock you out. I totally disagree with your postion, by not getting involved even if it's just by being a number you hurt our chances of succeeding in keeping trails open. You don't have to join a club to become a member of your states associtation. They are your voice and you need to support them, they lobby and fight just like the Sierra Club does with a whole lot less money. I know politics suck and I don't participate in the process but I do support it with my money. 

[robinhood4x4]

Cal 4wheel
gettin' off 4x4    www.gettinoff4x4.com
going to renew NRA today.

[Ferg]

Beer 38/274

Membership 25/221

What's wrong with these numbers?

[cebby]

Keystone Krawlers (not the beer, Brainless...    )

[T-Revv]

Board member for the Four Wheel Drive Club of Fresno. Very proud to be a member of that great club, and the oldest club in the area. Also a member of Cal 4wheel