RespectMyLibertay wrote:
What do you know about COHVCO?
Why do you think its the
Jeep people who leave behind all the trash? As far as I can tell, spending nearly every other day up Rampart during the summer (I'm not just a weekend warrior), its the campers who leave behind all the trash. It's usually food and drink trash which makes sense coming from campers. When I have food and drink in my
Jeep or on my motorcycle and I finish it I take the trash with me. It's pretty easy, if you packed it in you can pack it out, or in other words, if you had room to bring it you have room to bring it back. I'm confident most on this board do the same. It's mostly the kind of people who aren't on the online forums such as this that are "trashy". Young kids fit that criteria as well as being apathetic to the whole situation to begin with, yet I know you're not preaching at your local high school which probably has a ton of 4x4 parked outside? A family with an RV and four quads do much more "damage" and leave behind more trash than any
Jeeper yet I don't see you preaching on RVing.com. And you know how many RVs and tow-campers I see compared to
Jeeps? Tons more. And of course they bring more people which equals more trash.
And damage? Anyone with a vehicle does "damage" to the terrain they cross. But since you proclaim yourself a "full-time" offroader, you are doing much more damage than anyone else
Good thing you're such an upright and outstanding citizen! You're really just making up for your own faults, it seems.
I KNOW about what's happening on the ground because I spend way too much time in the most popular offroad destination in Colorado. You seem to be ignoring the reality of the situation which is that the majority of the people on this site aren't the problem unless they also are trashy campers. Most of us are NOT trashy campers. That's why you're barking up the wrong tree and are being treated like it.
COHVCO is a pretty good organization and I appreciate their work. There's not nearly enough of it given the number of OHV users who do not participate in such an organization. However, up where I am, we don't see too much of them and it's mostly us and USFS doing trail cleanup and maintenance. We have some issues with campers as well, although many of them also drive jeeps and I have no idea who is who. Really though, there are 4 "established" camp sites within 1/2 mile of my house and rarely is any garbage left at any of them. The issue is two fold - first, garbage left alongside the trails, and second, irresponsible and dangerous driving habits, ie excessive speed and failure to remain on the trail.
You're right that those of us who live off road do the most damage. That's why I'm responsible for road maintenance for the 7 or so miles of trail on my hill. That includes everything from garbage cleanup to plowing, grading, trenching, culvert installation and maintenance - you name it, I do it. I'm sure that's a part of why irresponsible jeeping/atving pisses me off so much - not the mention that people who drive 75 miles to come *&^^&* up my neighborhood are generally not appreciated anyway. I never said people shouldn't drive off road - but treating our trails like a woodsy amusement park that only exists for one's enjoyment from 7pm Friday until 4pm Sunday is irresponsible and destructive. That might apply to some more than others, and I never pointed out anyone in particular. And apparently I don't need to, since you all seem to take it real personal like whenever anyone says that a jeeper was the original owner of some piece of garbage left on the trail. Last I heard, a guity conscience needs no accuser.
Edit: Just wanted to add, after having done some more research into COHVCO. They could use a little more sugar and little less spice. If you really want to get things done, getting into personal battles with your local officials is not the way to do it. I also think I know why I never see these guys up here... This territory is not in question.
Jeeps have full access up here and it's not really up for debate, so, no need to participate really, because as far as I can tell, they are a land use organization first, and anything else second. So, it's good to see people proactively involved in maintaining their activity's resources, but I think the first thing they are invested in is counteracting the negative image that's somewhat inherent to the activity.
Call me goofy, but last I heard Jeeps weren't the only brand of off-road automobile? Thanks for the generalization. I agree there needs to be more done for the environment we use overall, but I really feel you're generalizing and targeting a specific group rather than off road enthusiasts overall. At least blame everyone if you're going to frag blame all over the place please!