Private trails/parks or public? Not sure I am a fan of using TLCA funds to improve a private for-profit facility.
I totally understand the concern about using our club money to support a for profit business.
Previewing this before posting it turned out quite lengthy. Hopefully everyone actually reads it all the way through to understand where I am coming from with this suggestion. And we will have a meeting for all members to vote on this before committing but just wanted to get the wheels turning.
The TLCA grant is available for public or private trails and facilities as long as it is for some project that enhances wheeling opportunities.
The Cottonland and Razorback Cruiser chapters spent a couple of weekends this summer at the Hot Springs ORV park preparing 15 new RV sites from scratch. This was something those clubs choose to do with their funds generated from events at that park and occurred prior to Ross Woody's offer so no TLCA funds were utilized for that project. I saw signs throughout the Hot Springs park indicating areas where different clubs have taken the responsibility for trail maintenance as well as signage for the trailheads. I think this partnership is a main reason why they drew 169 rigs which covered their cost for providing dinner all 3 nights. Due to the attendance exposure, owners from Marlin Crawler, Metal Tech, ComeUp Winch and even Beno were there and donated lots of prizes. They had about $15,000 worth of prizes either donated or purchased. In addition they raised almost $11,000 for the St Judes Children's Hospital via a separate raffle with an ARB 47L Fridge/Freezer and a Warn Winch Kit w/ synthetic line, corded and cordless controllers as the only prizes.
Also, there are quite a few clubs that have donated time and supplies to enhance not only the trails at KS Rocks but they also built a whole bunch of air stations so that around 15 or 20 rigs could all be airing up at the same time. Furthermore, based upon conversations I had with Rob Wickett at Make It or Break It this summer, the Tall Corn Cruisers provided sweat equity for the little 2 stall shower setup at that park as well. This is happening at both public and private facilities all over from what I can tell.
I know that a lot of our members as well as other clubs near us that we used to draw from for attendance at Fall Crawl do not care for the current facility setup at Flat Nasty. In addition, I am not suggesting we fund the entire shower house project or all the labor. Just thinking that if we offer some sweat equity and maybe match the grant amount towards supplies it might help get Ron and Sheila more motivated to get that project rolling and get the attendance numbers back up for Fall Crawl as I don't see moving it to another park anytime soon.
I think that through this gesture it would help prevent a similar situation as to what we encountered with the other place we hosted our event at for a few years.
Sorry about the rambling.
