NOHVCC BOARD OF DIRECTORS MEETS IN UTAH

After the hard work, a ride on the Paiute Trail

     The 9-member National Off-Highway Vehicle Conservation Council Board of Directors met recently in Richfield, Utah for their semi-annual meeting. New members Lewis Shuler (Michigan) and Nancy Minard (North Carolina), the first woman on the Board, were welcomed into the group.
     "First of all I'd like to thank the Board for a couple of days of really hard work," reports NOHVCC President Dan Kleen (Iowa). "Some of it wasn't the most exciting stuff in the world, but we did make some important decisions. Things were kept interesting though with lots of good input from the Board and I feel we have a really great team."
      NOHVCC Executive Director Russ Ehnes delivered his annual report, recapping the foundation's activities over the past year. "Some of the other things we worked on were updating the bylaws and policies and procedures," says Ehnes. "And we also finalized the NOHVCC comments on the proposed National Forest Service OHV Rule."

               HITTING THE GREAT WESTERN AND PAIUTE TRAILS

      One of the reasons for the Richfield location of the meeting was so that the BOD got an opportunity to ride first-hand on the largest interconnected trail system in the country. Both the Great Western Trail and the Paiute Trail can be accessed from this extremely OHV-friendly town. The National Forest Service's Max Reid played host to the NOHVCC crew who got to tour the trails just days before the town was inundated with hundreds of riders for the annual Rocky Mountain ATV Jamboree.
      "It was my great pleasure to assist NOHVCC with their annual board meeting here in Richfield on the great Paiute ATV Trail," says Max, who was very instrumental in transforming the town into an OHV haven. "I have been associated with NOHVCC since I first met Ann Vance at the Rocky Mountain ATV Jamboree back in September of 1994, so that makes 10 years. I have also attended several conferences and assisted with numerous workshops around the country."

      Reid continued, "I feel NOHVCC's mission is so right on target. As a land manager I acknowledge that mission and all the energy the NOHVCC group puts into promoting safe and responsible riding. It is so interlinked with my thinking and philosophy as a land manager, that it's impossible not to partner up. NOHVCC is, in my opinion, one of the best friends a land manager dealing with the growing challenge of OHV management can have It was a distinct pleasure to ride and visit with these folks.They are truly the shakers and movers in the OHV arena and I consider them to be my friends. And I think I speak not only for the Forest Service, but for my associates with the BLM and Utah State Parks as well. We are all in this together. There is no end to what we can accomplish if we stay focused on a common goal and work together."

      Kleen summed up the ride, "These trails are a perfect example of what can happen when the land managers, the community and the riders all forge into a successful partnership. I really appreciate what Max, Stan Adams (BLM) and Fred Hayes (UT State Trails) did to organize our ride on these great trails."

      Apparently our President didn't get enough of the area during the BOD ride, as Dan was later seen giving a talk about NOHVCC to the huge opening crowd at the Jamboree. Or was that just an excuse to get some more riding in!
 

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