ORBA Press Release on Johnson Valley [Archive]

ORBA Meg

08-20-2008, 11:25 AM

OFF-ROAD BUSINESS ASSOCIATION, Inc.

Meg Grossglass
Media Relations

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

MARINE CORPS AIR GROUND COMBAT CENTER AT TWENTYNINE PALMS TO STUDY 422,000 ACRES OF LAND SURROUNDING THE BASE—INCLUDING MUCH OF A POPULAR OHV AREA—FOR POSSIBLE ACQUISITION

BAKERSFIELD, CA (August 20, 2008) Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center (MCAGCC) located in Twentynine Palms, CA has submitted a withdrawal application to the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to essentially put a hold on 422,000 acres while it studies those areas for possible acquisition into the base.

A large portion of the Johnson Valley OHV area is being considered. Johnson Valley OHV area is approximately 189,000 acres and is located in the high desert of California, just east of Los Angeles. The area is a Mecca for off-road recreation and is home to many events including off-road racing and competitive rock crawling.

For the past six months the OHV community has been aware that the Marines are studying this area for possible expansion. As a result, a small working group of OHV leaders has been working with the Marines to help them understand just how important this area is to the Southern California OHV community. It is the largest open OHV area in the country, and home to a myriad of competition events such as motorcycle races, 2- and 4-wheel drive off-road races and extreme rock crawling events. Jerry Grabow, President of the American Motorcyclist Association District 37, Off-Road, stated “Over half of our race program occurs on land within the Johnson Valley OHV Area. We have been racing in this area for over 50 years; there is simply not another open area large enough to hold these types of races.”

The withdrawal application the Marines submitted requires that the BLM prepare a “Notice of Proposed Withdrawal and Opportunity for Public Meeting.” When this notice is published in the Federal Register it starts a 90-day public comment period and segregates the public land identified in the application for two years. Uses that are currently allowed in the area will continue, but no new uses or projects will be permitted. “We are hopeful that another solution or compromise can be found that fulfills the training needs of the Marines while still allowing OHV recreation to continue in this area treasured by so many off-road enthusiasts,” stated Meg Grossglass, ORBA Land Use staff member.

# # #

ORBA is a national trade association composed of off-road related businesses united to promote common goals that support the prosperity and growth of the off-road industry.

Hammer Hog

08-21-2008, 06:22 PM

As soon as I saw this press release, I immediately passed this on the our local radio station here in Yucca Valley. I also sent them the link to the Marine's news release as well.

Today the station aired this release almost word for word. Was very well done, and I believe effective. Also yesturday, our local rag published the info concerning the Militaries withdrawal application to the BLM. They stated that there is a real threat of loosing our local OHV area.

The timing was perfect. I contacted via an email with links to a good friend of mine that sits on the Town of Yucca Valley Council. Today I followed up with a phone conversation. Was very enlightening to him being that the Town really hadn't known too much about these concerns. He promised he'd pass this info on to all the other members.
To keep this short, I used two angles, one being that local revenues will be at stake, two being that we already have a local OHV issue concerning illegal use of OHV's. The town and local law enforcement are continually encouraging us OHV users to recreate legally at the nearby Johnson Valley OHV areas. He clearly saw both my points. I said the reason I bring this up is, the Military says they will listen. But who more likely will they listen to other than all us small groups. He most definitely agreed.

I also have a good friend that is a Sergent at our local county Sheriffs Office. He heads up the local OHV Task Force. I just emailed him the same concerns. I will follow up with him in a few days personally.

I think it would be a good idea for the folks that reside in the local western areas (Lucerne Valley, Apple Valley, Victor Ville, etc) to do the same.
I think that if theses local governmental levels and local law enforcement agencies speak up, their voice will be taken with much more due respect than all of us little groups combined. With that said, us little groups need to approach these said local agencies quickly with the same concerns we share.

One more thing, us local folks on both logistical ends (Morongo Basin & Lucerne areas) need to write public letters to the editors of our local papers to encourage the general public to pressure our local agencies to take part in this effort. Team work.

Press on!


Pirate4x4.Com > Land Use and Trails > Johnson Valley > ORBA Press Release on Johnson Valley PDA : ORBA Press Release on Johnson Valley ORBA Meg 08-20-2008, 11:25 AM OFF-ROAD BUSINESS ASSOCIATION, Inc. Meg Grossglass Media Relations FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE MARINE CORPS AIR GROUND COMBAT CENTER AT TWENTYNINE PALMS TO STUDY 422,000 ACRES OF LAND SURROUNDING THE BASE—INCLUDING MUCH OF A POPULAR OHV AREA—FOR POSSIBLE ACQUISITION BAKERSFIELD, CA (August 20, 2008) Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center (MCAGCC) located in Twentynine Palms, CA has submitted a withdrawal application to the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to essentially put a hold on 422,000 acres while it studies those areas for possible acquisition into the base. A large portion of the Johnson Valley OHV area is being considered. Johnson Valley OHV area is approximately 189,000 acres and is located in the high desert of California, just east of Los Angeles. The area is a Mecca for off-road recreation and is home to many events including off-road racing and competitive rock crawling. For the past six months the OHV community has been aware that the Marines are studying this area for possible expansion. As a result, a small working group of OHV leaders has been working with the Marines to help them understand just how important this area is to the Southern California OHV community. It is the largest open OHV area in the country, and home to a myriad of competition events such as motorcycle races, 2- and 4-wheel drive off-road races and extreme rock crawling events. Jerry Grabow, President of the American Motorcyclist Association District 37, Off-Road, stated “Over half of our race program occurs on land within the Johnson Valley OHV Area. We have been racing in this area for over 50 years; there is simply not another open area large enough to hold these types of races.” The withdrawal application the Marines submitted requires that the BLM prepare a “Notice of Proposed Withdrawal and Opportunity for Public Meeting.” When this notice is published in the Federal Register it starts a 90-day public comment period and segregates the public land identified in the application for two years. Uses that are currently allowed in the area will continue, but no new uses or projects will be permitted. “We are hopeful that another solution or compromise can be found that fulfills the training needs of the Marines while still allowing OHV recreation to continue in this area treasured by so many off-road enthusiasts,” stated Meg Grossglass, ORBA Land Use staff member. # # # ORBA is a national trade association composed of off-road related businesses united to promote common goals that support the prosperity and growth of the off-road industry. Hammer Hog 08-21-2008, 06:22 PM As soon as I saw this press release, I immediately passed this on the our local radio station here in Yucca Valley. I also sent them the link to the Marine's news release as well. Today the station aired this release almost word for word. Was very well done, and I believe effective. Also yesturday, our local rag published the info concerning the Militaries withdrawal application to the BLM. They stated that there is a real threat of loosing our local OHV area. The timing was perfect. I contacted via an email with links to a good friend of mine that sits on the Town of Yucca Valley Council. Today I followed up with a phone conversation. Was very enlightening to him being that the Town really hadn't known too much about these concerns. He promised he'd pass this info on to all the other members. To keep this short, I used two angles, one being that local revenues will be at stake, two being that we already have a local OHV issue concerning illegal use of OHV's. The town and local law enforcement are continually encouraging us OHV users to recreate legally at the nearby Johnson Valley OHV areas. He clearly saw both my points. I said the reason I bring this up is, the Military says they will listen. But who more likely will they listen to other than all us small groups. He most definitely agreed. I also have a good friend that is a Sergent at our local county Sheriffs Office. He heads up the local OHV Task Force. I just emailed him the same concerns. I will follow up with him in a few days personally. I think it would be a good idea for the folks that reside in the local western areas (Lucerne Valley, Apple Valley, Victor Ville, etc) to do the same. I think that if theses local governmental levels and local law enforcement agencies speak up, their voice will be taken with much more due respect than all of us little groups combined. With that said, us little groups need to approach these said local agencies quickly with the same concerns we share. One more thing, us local folks on both logistical ends (Morongo Basin & Lucerne areas) need to write public letters to the editors of our local papers to encourage the general public to pressure our local agencies to take part in this effort. Team work. Press on!