All too often a situation comes up that we don't take advantage of. Things as simple as that perfect 4x4 on sale that was about $100 too much, or an awesome trail that would have made you late for dinner if you started down the hill. Well, guys and girls, food and money aren't everything. Yes they are important, just like beer and dirt, but taking full advantage of the situation you're in will usually get you further in life than playing it safe and slow. I feel that we as wheelers are squandering a perfectly good opportunity to keep trails open for ourselves and our children, yet the majority of us do absolutely nothing except pay lip service.
This isn't meant to denigrate the efforts of all the individuals and organizations that work hard on saving our trails. They do a fantastic job in the face of overwhelming odds, but that's just it; compared to the efforts of these fine people and groups, the war against off-highway motorized recreation is truly overwhelming. For instance, some trails at Tellico have been closed for further review, which means they are as good as gone. This closure mentality is ingrained in our land-use management through lack of budget or misinformation, yet we do nothing to educate those in charge.
It's our own fault in a way, as we do have a voice in such a process. The problem is that too few of us take the active part of fighting to keep our trails open, even though we all complain and wring our hands when trails are closed. I can write editorial after editorial about this situation, yet nothing will happen until you, the reader, do something about it. And honestly, since we are the ones out in the areas, isn't it a good idea to spread the ideas of multiple use, with use not abuse, and using Tread Lightly!, and all the other tenets that could help convince some of our opponents to consider other actions? How about nailing some of the yahoos who do tear up the land while blazing new trails or who leave trash or destroy facilities? That's right, simply say something when that guy wraps his winch cable around a tree, or better yet, offer him your tree saver-he may simply be ignorant instead of stupid. Even duct taping a blown axlehousing together on the trail just to keep the oil off the ground shows others that wheelers do care about our earth more so than many armchair environmentalists.
The bottom line is that we need to help ourselves, not only by joining organizations like Friends of the Rubicon, Blue Ribbon Coalition, United 4 Wheel Drive Association, and the like, but also by being proactive ourselves. If we don't, I can assure you that you won't have to worry about being late to dinner, because that awesome trail you wanted to go down will be closed anyway.