As one of 2 Yankee Toys delegates to the NEA, I recently attended the 6/25/2011 Northeast Association of 4WD Clubs' monthly meeting. It was hosted by Vermont Jeepers in the Green Mountain area of Central Vermont. The food was AWESOME!
The minutes from the meeting have yet to be posted. In the interim, here's a brief synopsis based on my recollection and notes. The accuracy isn't likely to be 100%.
Finances (approximated values). The club has $29K on hand with $4K in the Trails Fund, $5K in the Land Acquisition Fund, and $8K set aside for the Fall Crawl.
There is a new area in West Hampton, MA named The Summit. It is about 90 acres CA and will become another private wheeling area for NEA member clubs. There are a couple trails there, but we can anticipate future requests for volunteers to do trail cuts as NEA assesses the area and terrain.
OHRV stickers are now required in NH for unregistered rigs. This includes their use on private property unless you are the owner of that property. That would mean you are technically required to have a sticker at Gretchen's if you are operating an unregistered rig. NH Fish & Game is the normal enforcement agency for OHRV's. One wonders if they would in fact make an appearance at events held at Gretchen's. Typically, you would expect them to be out looking for people using trails that aren't open to OHRV use or open to any vehicular traffic.
OHV stickers are required in Mass for unregistered and registered rigs. The fee is $20 for Mass residents. If you are not a Mass resident, you will have to pay excise taxes to Mass based on a percentage of the rig's value back to the original date of manufacture. This could amount to hundreds or thousands of dollars.
NEA will not enforce the above two requirements. NEA is working to introduce legislation in Mass to exempt vehicles that weigh over 1000 pounds. The original bill was rushed through with the intent to require helmets for ATV riders and didn't exempt highway type vehicles from the requirement. In the meantime, you could be fined something like $100 if you don't have the sticker.
NEA board is looking for Shane Beard award submissions. They will also be creating another award to memorialize a member who had terminal cancer and spent his last days this past Spring doing trail cuts just before he died.
NEA's Fall Crawl registrations were done totally on the Internet this year and there were some problems with the website. There were duplications for trail assignments, etc. and NEA is working to get everyone in and on the trail they requested. (There may or may not be any Fall Crawl openings available at the time of this post.)
There was quite a bit of discussion about the "Access for All" program. The program was originally spearheaded by a person who has moved well out of the area. The program was intended to provide opportunities for disabled people to go four wheeling. NEA purchased a Jeep Cherokee and modified it with parts donated by sponsors and labor provided by sponsors and members. It appears the Cherokee has been more trouble than it is worth and disposition is likely. Someon is looking into keeping the program alive, but the intent is disable participants will ride in NEA associated clubs' member's vehicles. If you have an opinion about this program, post up o the Access for All forum.
NEA would like to see more people coming out for trail cuts and maintenance. They are considering an incentive program that would reward the club that puts in the most volunteer time. Incentives might include first choice on reservation dates for Gretchen's. Our club is one of the bigger ones and has an opportunity to win this award and also not lose one of preferred dates.
I announced that YT was finally incorporated and received a round of applause.
Only 3 of us went wheeling after. There was a built Jeep who forgot to install his front driveshaft, so we waited an hour for that to happen. The leader had a 1980's RHD Range Rover diesel pickup. Reminded me of a BJ45. We went on some interesting Class 4 (like NH Class 6) trails that took us over 300 feet. Beautiful country up there. Maybe some of our Vermont YT members can help us get an event together up that way some day.
Larry C.
The minutes from the meeting have yet to be posted. In the interim, here's a brief synopsis based on my recollection and notes. The accuracy isn't likely to be 100%.
Finances (approximated values). The club has $29K on hand with $4K in the Trails Fund, $5K in the Land Acquisition Fund, and $8K set aside for the Fall Crawl.
There is a new area in West Hampton, MA named The Summit. It is about 90 acres CA and will become another private wheeling area for NEA member clubs. There are a couple trails there, but we can anticipate future requests for volunteers to do trail cuts as NEA assesses the area and terrain.
OHRV stickers are now required in NH for unregistered rigs. This includes their use on private property unless you are the owner of that property. That would mean you are technically required to have a sticker at Gretchen's if you are operating an unregistered rig. NH Fish & Game is the normal enforcement agency for OHRV's. One wonders if they would in fact make an appearance at events held at Gretchen's. Typically, you would expect them to be out looking for people using trails that aren't open to OHRV use or open to any vehicular traffic.
OHV stickers are required in Mass for unregistered and registered rigs. The fee is $20 for Mass residents. If you are not a Mass resident, you will have to pay excise taxes to Mass based on a percentage of the rig's value back to the original date of manufacture. This could amount to hundreds or thousands of dollars.
NEA will not enforce the above two requirements. NEA is working to introduce legislation in Mass to exempt vehicles that weigh over 1000 pounds. The original bill was rushed through with the intent to require helmets for ATV riders and didn't exempt highway type vehicles from the requirement. In the meantime, you could be fined something like $100 if you don't have the sticker.
NEA board is looking for Shane Beard award submissions. They will also be creating another award to memorialize a member who had terminal cancer and spent his last days this past Spring doing trail cuts just before he died.
NEA's Fall Crawl registrations were done totally on the Internet this year and there were some problems with the website. There were duplications for trail assignments, etc. and NEA is working to get everyone in and on the trail they requested. (There may or may not be any Fall Crawl openings available at the time of this post.)
There was quite a bit of discussion about the "Access for All" program. The program was originally spearheaded by a person who has moved well out of the area. The program was intended to provide opportunities for disabled people to go four wheeling. NEA purchased a Jeep Cherokee and modified it with parts donated by sponsors and labor provided by sponsors and members. It appears the Cherokee has been more trouble than it is worth and disposition is likely. Someon is looking into keeping the program alive, but the intent is disable participants will ride in NEA associated clubs' member's vehicles. If you have an opinion about this program, post up o the Access for All forum.
NEA would like to see more people coming out for trail cuts and maintenance. They are considering an incentive program that would reward the club that puts in the most volunteer time. Incentives might include first choice on reservation dates for Gretchen's. Our club is one of the bigger ones and has an opportunity to win this award and also not lose one of preferred dates.
I announced that YT was finally incorporated and received a round of applause.
Only 3 of us went wheeling after. There was a built Jeep who forgot to install his front driveshaft, so we waited an hour for that to happen. The leader had a 1980's RHD Range Rover diesel pickup. Reminded me of a BJ45. We went on some interesting Class 4 (like NH Class 6) trails that took us over 300 feet. Beautiful country up there. Maybe some of our Vermont YT members can help us get an event together up that way some day.
Larry C.
