I got this from Jeff Stevens with Red Rock 4 Wheelers in Moab, UT. A version of this story was printed in the latest United's Voice magazine.
Chris Hatfield
Possibly the most important (and certainly one of the most emotional) issues facing the Red Rock 4 Wheelers was discussed at the July 2004 meeting. This issue is the proposed date change of the annual Easter Jeep Safari.
Changing the date has been a topic of debate for several years, not only within the club, but also with the Moab community and local BLM. Two years ago, a survey among RR4W members was taken to gauge support of the idea. Over 100 responses were returned (out of 400-plus total members), with over 80 percent supporting a date change if “the club felt the change would be beneficial to our event and the community”. Last year, the Voting Members rejected the idea. However, faced with increasing community dissatisfaction and growing problems (primarily related to non-registered enthusiasts), a committee was formed to study the issue and report their recommendations to the club.
The committee identified three major concerns: 1. A negative image of EJS among the community and environmental organizations. The committee felt that pressure from these groups could eventually lead to the BLM dictating major changes to the event. 2. Environmental damage caused during Easter Jeep Safari. While the majority of damage is caused by individuals and groups not registered for EJS trails, the damage is nonetheless significant, and the RR4W are often blamed for the damage. Again, this leads to pressure from various groups to close trails or force changes to the event. 3. Over-crowding on trails and in town during the event. Jeep Safari has grown tremendously over the years, to the point now where our 1500-plus participants are greatly out-numbered by 4-wheelers who are here for the festivities, but who never participate in the club-sponsored runs. This mass influx of people leads to over-crowding on the trails, which in turn leads to increased off-route travel and environmental damage, and ultimately dissatisfaction among our participants and adversaries. Many of our participants subsequently decide to go “out on their own” instead of participating in the club runs, and may eventually become part of the problem. Overcrowding in town spurns a negative image among the community, and can take away from the enjoyment our participants are seeking. The major complaint among the community, environmental groups, and the BLM seems to be over-crowding and the resulting environmental damage and “party atmosphere” that goes along with it.
In its search for ways to help reduce these problems, the committee soon realized that there are no easy solutions. Every single “solution” presented has as many “cons” as it does “pros”. In the end, however, the committee felt that serious changes were necessary. Many of the ideas require further study, and were not recommended to the club for approval at this time. Some of these ideas include reducing the size of the event (both in trail group sizes and the overall number of participants), re-structuring “Big Saturday”, and changes to the Vendor’s Show.
While these things will be put aside for now, there are some ideas that will be acted on immediately. The most important of these is the need for an extensive and improved Public Relations effort. The existing PR Committee will be scheduling regular meetings to recommend and implement a plan of action. The Safari Committee will also be scheduling meetings with law enforcement and the BLM to discuss the issues. Another idea is to ask the BLM to close some trails to all traffic except registered participants on some days of the event. (This idea was to be discussed at the club meeting, but due to the length of the meeting, was postponed until a later date.)
The most controversial issue recommended by the Committee was to change the date of Easter Jeep Safari. The Committee initially recommended the third week in April, but has since reconsidered and is now open to other dates, with the first week of May being a popular choice. Changing the date would be no easy task; conflicts with other events, public sentiment, and many other issues will present significant hurdles. The Committee first reported their recommendation during the June meeting, and discussion continued into the July meeting.
The discussion that took place during the July meeting first identified numerous points both in favor of and against changing the date. Through a show of hands, the many points were then reduced to several key issues on both sides of the argument, and discussion followed on each point. Key issues against a date change were as follows:
· Increased environmental damage may occur. This is due to the concern that many off-roaders will still come to town during the traditional Easter Week, and without the club’s involvement, damage could actually increase. While this is a significant concern, it was countered by the hope that fewer total rigs on the trail during that week (due to no “official” event), would cut down on the crowding, and subsequently help the congestion that sometimes leads to people going off-trail to pass other vehicles.
· Tradition. Jeep Safari has been held during Easter break for nearly 40 years.
· We may lose the “Family Aspect” of the event. EJS has always been promoted as a family event, and the fear is that by moving the date away from Easter (and many school’s spring breaks), families with children will find it harder to attend. This was countered by the idea that many families already have difficulty scheduling the time during Easter (spring break is not always that week for many schools), and a later date will not be detrimental to many. Also, it was mentioned that the increasing “party atmosphere” during Easter week is not always conducive to a family event.
· The Vendor Show may suffer. The vendors that display their products during our event may have scheduling difficulties, or may decide that the number of people in town is too small to warrant their participation.
· Conflicts. Scheduling conflicts with other events may be difficult or impossible to overcome. Also, it may be difficult to get the date back in the future if the club decides it wants to go back to Easter week.
· Increased workload. Changing the date may bring on unforeseen problems and increased workloads for the club.
Key issues for a date change were then discussed:
· Reduced numbers of people in town and on the trails during our event. It was argued that a date change could result in less people in town during the event, which could help with environmental damage, negative image in the community and with environmental groups, and may help provide a higher-quality experience for our participants. This was countered with the thought that the “non-registered participants” may follow our event in spite of the date change, resulting in a non-reduction of overall size, or worse yet, two separate large “events” and an increase in all of the current problems.
· A “higher quality” event could be provided for our participants. Due to less-crowded trails, it is felt that the club could provide a better on-trail experience for our participants, and therefore more people will register for the official runs year after year instead of coming to town and going out on their own.
· We would be “pro-active” instead of “reactive”. The argument here is that public sentiment against EJS is growing, and several organized groups have already been pushing for major changes. By the club taking the lead in proposing a date change, it would indicate to the community that we acknowledge the problems and are working to help solve them. The alternative is to wait until someone else forces their ideas on the BLM (and us), and then have to deal with them from a defensive standpoint. Closely related to this are the positive public relations that could be generated by working with the community to solve the problems.
· It would “distance” the club from the “party element” associated with the event. The term “spring breakers” has often been used in the past to identify a portion of the non-registered crowd that comes to town more for the party atmosphere than the 4-wheeling. While it is certainly not fair or accurate to say that the college kids that come here during their spring breaks are the primary ones to blame for our problems, it is nonetheless perceived that way by many in the community. However, it cannot be denied that a larger percentage of the young wheelers who descend on Moab during Easter week are not as educated in environmentally responsible 4-wheeling as more experienced 4-wheelers are. Also, it is often groups of non-EJS-registered young people who create the most problems for local law-enforcement agencies, and subsequently much of the negative image of our event. By changing the date of Safari, it is hoped that the club can disassociate itself from that negative image, thereby improving our own image and the image of our event. This idea was countered by the concern that this element will come during our event regardless of the date, and that law enforcement rather than the club should handle the problem.
As the club realizes, these issues are very complex, and there are definite pros and cons to each point. In the end, however, the members present voted to recommend a change of date starting with the 2006 event. The final votes were 21 “for”, 19 “against” and 2 “abstain”. The Safari Committee has scheduled another meeting to discuss how we should proceed. Meetings with the BLM, law enforcement, and others will be scheduled. The ultimate decision to change or not to change the date will likely be made by the BLM, but now at least the Red Rock 4 Wheelers can take an official position to the table, and hopefully be involved in a decision that is beneficial to everyone. Our work is just beginning.
We would certainly like to hear from everyone that has an opinion regarding this matter. Please mail your comments to the club address (P.O. Box XXXX, Moab, UT 84532) or e-mail to Jeff Stevens at drtsqrl@frontiernet.net.
Chris Hatfield
Possibly the most important (and certainly one of the most emotional) issues facing the Red Rock 4 Wheelers was discussed at the July 2004 meeting. This issue is the proposed date change of the annual Easter Jeep Safari.
Changing the date has been a topic of debate for several years, not only within the club, but also with the Moab community and local BLM. Two years ago, a survey among RR4W members was taken to gauge support of the idea. Over 100 responses were returned (out of 400-plus total members), with over 80 percent supporting a date change if “the club felt the change would be beneficial to our event and the community”. Last year, the Voting Members rejected the idea. However, faced with increasing community dissatisfaction and growing problems (primarily related to non-registered enthusiasts), a committee was formed to study the issue and report their recommendations to the club.
The committee identified three major concerns: 1. A negative image of EJS among the community and environmental organizations. The committee felt that pressure from these groups could eventually lead to the BLM dictating major changes to the event. 2. Environmental damage caused during Easter Jeep Safari. While the majority of damage is caused by individuals and groups not registered for EJS trails, the damage is nonetheless significant, and the RR4W are often blamed for the damage. Again, this leads to pressure from various groups to close trails or force changes to the event. 3. Over-crowding on trails and in town during the event. Jeep Safari has grown tremendously over the years, to the point now where our 1500-plus participants are greatly out-numbered by 4-wheelers who are here for the festivities, but who never participate in the club-sponsored runs. This mass influx of people leads to over-crowding on the trails, which in turn leads to increased off-route travel and environmental damage, and ultimately dissatisfaction among our participants and adversaries. Many of our participants subsequently decide to go “out on their own” instead of participating in the club runs, and may eventually become part of the problem. Overcrowding in town spurns a negative image among the community, and can take away from the enjoyment our participants are seeking. The major complaint among the community, environmental groups, and the BLM seems to be over-crowding and the resulting environmental damage and “party atmosphere” that goes along with it.
In its search for ways to help reduce these problems, the committee soon realized that there are no easy solutions. Every single “solution” presented has as many “cons” as it does “pros”. In the end, however, the committee felt that serious changes were necessary. Many of the ideas require further study, and were not recommended to the club for approval at this time. Some of these ideas include reducing the size of the event (both in trail group sizes and the overall number of participants), re-structuring “Big Saturday”, and changes to the Vendor’s Show.
While these things will be put aside for now, there are some ideas that will be acted on immediately. The most important of these is the need for an extensive and improved Public Relations effort. The existing PR Committee will be scheduling regular meetings to recommend and implement a plan of action. The Safari Committee will also be scheduling meetings with law enforcement and the BLM to discuss the issues. Another idea is to ask the BLM to close some trails to all traffic except registered participants on some days of the event. (This idea was to be discussed at the club meeting, but due to the length of the meeting, was postponed until a later date.)
The most controversial issue recommended by the Committee was to change the date of Easter Jeep Safari. The Committee initially recommended the third week in April, but has since reconsidered and is now open to other dates, with the first week of May being a popular choice. Changing the date would be no easy task; conflicts with other events, public sentiment, and many other issues will present significant hurdles. The Committee first reported their recommendation during the June meeting, and discussion continued into the July meeting.
The discussion that took place during the July meeting first identified numerous points both in favor of and against changing the date. Through a show of hands, the many points were then reduced to several key issues on both sides of the argument, and discussion followed on each point. Key issues against a date change were as follows:
· Increased environmental damage may occur. This is due to the concern that many off-roaders will still come to town during the traditional Easter Week, and without the club’s involvement, damage could actually increase. While this is a significant concern, it was countered by the hope that fewer total rigs on the trail during that week (due to no “official” event), would cut down on the crowding, and subsequently help the congestion that sometimes leads to people going off-trail to pass other vehicles.
· Tradition. Jeep Safari has been held during Easter break for nearly 40 years.
· We may lose the “Family Aspect” of the event. EJS has always been promoted as a family event, and the fear is that by moving the date away from Easter (and many school’s spring breaks), families with children will find it harder to attend. This was countered by the idea that many families already have difficulty scheduling the time during Easter (spring break is not always that week for many schools), and a later date will not be detrimental to many. Also, it was mentioned that the increasing “party atmosphere” during Easter week is not always conducive to a family event.
· The Vendor Show may suffer. The vendors that display their products during our event may have scheduling difficulties, or may decide that the number of people in town is too small to warrant their participation.
· Conflicts. Scheduling conflicts with other events may be difficult or impossible to overcome. Also, it may be difficult to get the date back in the future if the club decides it wants to go back to Easter week.
· Increased workload. Changing the date may bring on unforeseen problems and increased workloads for the club.
Key issues for a date change were then discussed:
· Reduced numbers of people in town and on the trails during our event. It was argued that a date change could result in less people in town during the event, which could help with environmental damage, negative image in the community and with environmental groups, and may help provide a higher-quality experience for our participants. This was countered with the thought that the “non-registered participants” may follow our event in spite of the date change, resulting in a non-reduction of overall size, or worse yet, two separate large “events” and an increase in all of the current problems.
· A “higher quality” event could be provided for our participants. Due to less-crowded trails, it is felt that the club could provide a better on-trail experience for our participants, and therefore more people will register for the official runs year after year instead of coming to town and going out on their own.
· We would be “pro-active” instead of “reactive”. The argument here is that public sentiment against EJS is growing, and several organized groups have already been pushing for major changes. By the club taking the lead in proposing a date change, it would indicate to the community that we acknowledge the problems and are working to help solve them. The alternative is to wait until someone else forces their ideas on the BLM (and us), and then have to deal with them from a defensive standpoint. Closely related to this are the positive public relations that could be generated by working with the community to solve the problems.
· It would “distance” the club from the “party element” associated with the event. The term “spring breakers” has often been used in the past to identify a portion of the non-registered crowd that comes to town more for the party atmosphere than the 4-wheeling. While it is certainly not fair or accurate to say that the college kids that come here during their spring breaks are the primary ones to blame for our problems, it is nonetheless perceived that way by many in the community. However, it cannot be denied that a larger percentage of the young wheelers who descend on Moab during Easter week are not as educated in environmentally responsible 4-wheeling as more experienced 4-wheelers are. Also, it is often groups of non-EJS-registered young people who create the most problems for local law-enforcement agencies, and subsequently much of the negative image of our event. By changing the date of Safari, it is hoped that the club can disassociate itself from that negative image, thereby improving our own image and the image of our event. This idea was countered by the concern that this element will come during our event regardless of the date, and that law enforcement rather than the club should handle the problem.
As the club realizes, these issues are very complex, and there are definite pros and cons to each point. In the end, however, the members present voted to recommend a change of date starting with the 2006 event. The final votes were 21 “for”, 19 “against” and 2 “abstain”. The Safari Committee has scheduled another meeting to discuss how we should proceed. Meetings with the BLM, law enforcement, and others will be scheduled. The ultimate decision to change or not to change the date will likely be made by the BLM, but now at least the Red Rock 4 Wheelers can take an official position to the table, and hopefully be involved in a decision that is beneficial to everyone. Our work is just beginning.
We would certainly like to hear from everyone that has an opinion regarding this matter. Please mail your comments to the club address (P.O. Box XXXX, Moab, UT 84532) or e-mail to Jeff Stevens at drtsqrl@frontiernet.net.
