CBTRA 2019 Letter

i June 05, 2019

 

Hello CBTRA Members & Guest,

I hope you all had a great winter. What a winter it was. I can’t believe that Aspen Mountains last (finally) day was yesterday. I know that all this snow in the high country is super healthy and being in the ski business I am very grateful but I am so ready to start riding in the Roaring Fork Valley.  For the 2019 season we will again work with the Forest Service on different projects on Basalt Mountain and Triangle Peak. We will also work alongside the Forest Service in providing them information on Basalt Mountain thru their Ambassador Program. Hopefully we can give the Forest Service the information they want and we can get some more single track opened up in the Green Gate area. I’ve linked a copy of the Motorized Trail Ambassador Program Guide and also the Basalt to Gypsum Motorized Singletrack Decision Notice

If you have not joined or renewed your annual membership please do ASAP. $25.00 to help maintain our local trails is a no brainer!!!! Plus, I know all of you can drink and eat $25.00 in pizza & beer at New York Pizza after our trail days so please renew your membership. 

Thanks for all your support, 
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CBTRA Mission

We advocate motorized use, rights, trail sustainability, personal responsibility and stewardship in the White River National Forest and surrounding areas 

Topics of Discussion:

- Lake Christine Fire
- FS/Parks & Wildlife Meeting
- Gate Openings
- Ambassador Program
- Trail/Work Days
- Trail Etiquette

 Lake Christine Fire:

Last summer was a crazy one for our local mountains. The Lake Christine fire was a big bummer and really thru a curve in our riding on Basalt Mountain.  I feel really bad for all the stress it caused a lot of people and the people who lost their homes is just terrible. As I think back about the entire situation, I must say it was so impressive to watch our firefighting crews do their thing. They are truly the hero’s in this whole tragedy. 

Last week, CBTRA attended our annual meeting with the White River Forest Service in Glenwood Springs. In attendance were representatives from the local Forrest Service, Parks & Wildlife, RMSR, and RFOV. During this meeting we discussed multiple topics regarding the 2019 dirt bike season. One of the main topic’s we talked about was the re-opening of Basalt Mountain. If you didn’t know, last year’s fire didn’t directly affect the single track (Lone Pine, North Fork, and Green Gate) trails on Basalt Mountain.  These trails were closed during the fire and then re-opened after the fire.  The Basalt Mountain park area was not opened last year. The park area and trails are good to go for this year. I would expect to see a lot of traffic up there this summer, including Forrest Service and other officials.

Gate Openings:  Basalt Mtn & Triangle Peak   June 21-October 10

Gates open for Basalt Mountain and Triangle Peak on JUNE 21. Please don’t poach the trails before June 21.  It is very important to respect the seasonal closures for a lot of reasons. The most important is that in the springtime its calving season for elk & deer. If they are bothered frequently enough, such stress and disturbance by humans could lead elk and deer to abandon their critical habitat and even abandon their young. Let’s respect these beautiful animals and allow their numbers to hopefully grow. During our meeting last week I asked the Wildlife officer that was on hand how the Elk numbers are doing on Basalt Mountain and he said they are at historic lows. Let’s do everything we can to help get those numbers back up to what they used to be.

Ambassador Program:

A few years back when the Green Gate trail system on Basalt Mountain  was established the Forrest Service wanted to get a couple of years of basic information about who is using the trails. The aim of this program is to bring community support to our local trails through a cooperative effort of the CBTRA RMSR, Colorado Parks and Wildlife and the Forest Service. The ambassador program is important to promote responsible OHV use, help protect wildlife habitat balance with other user groups, and ensure long-term sustainability of motorized recreation on our public lands. This program will provide information to the Forest Service regarding who is riding motorcycles, hiking, mountain biking and on horseback on Basalt Mountain and who has their bikes registered and specific trials people are riding.  The survey can be found on the CBTRA’s web site. It is on the Top Right of the Home Page. The survey is super short and can be filled out in less than a minute. We will be talking in detail about how this program works at our first trail day meeting with the Forest Service and Parks & Wildlife on June 23 at the Red Table OHV park area. You can also contact me regarding any questions about this program. If we can provide the Forest Service with some good information maybe we can get them to open some more single track on Basalt Mountain. 

Trail Work Days:

Our trail work days with the Forest Service are a great way to give back and get some really good trail karma. These days (half days) usually consist of meeting up with the Forest Service trail crews in the morning. The trail crews are out of their Gypsum office and are a great group of people. They will have a game plan for that day. We then ride to our work spot and begin the days projects. We usually work about 4 hours and then go for a ride. We also like to go to New York Pizza in El Jebel for pizza and beers afterward. This is also a great way to be able to talk with the Forest Service one on one and get their insight into what lays ahead for our trail system and to give them information on what we might like to see on our trails in the future. See the dates below for trail days. 

June 23- Red Table OHV park lot @9:00 a.m. this trail day we will not be working on trails. We are going to meet with Forest Service and Parks & Wildlife and will be talking about The Ambassador Program. This meeting will not be very long and I plan on riding Basalt Mountain area afterwards. I will be bringing some hand saws and thought we could do some trail clearing. I’m assuming there will be downed trees. Pizza and Beers @ New York Pizza afterwards.

July 28- TBD                               
August 25- TBD                               
October 6- TBD

Trail Etiquette:

What I’m about to say is just basic common sense while riding the trails. Hopefully this is all just repetitive information that you already know. But maybe there’s somebody new to the sport or somebody who has just moved here and isn’t aware of proper etiquette on the trail. 

Respect Trail Closure Dates-

It’s important to respect the seasonal closures for a lot of reasons. But in our riding areas the most important is to protect the Elk & Deer during calving season. If these animals are bothered frequently enough, such stress and disturbance by humans could lead elk and deer to abandon their critical habitat and even to abandon their young.

Pack It In Pack It Out-

And better yet, pick up somebody else’s trash.  Last week I spent 3 hours on trail # 529 picking up cans and bottles. It’s pretty sad to see all this trash on the trails. But it is also sad to say that I really never see any trash on single track trails, it’s all on the two track. Let’s stay ahead of the critic’s because you know we will get blamed for this. I’d like to plan a trash cleanup day on Cottonwood Pass in the near future.

Show Respect to Other Users-  

When you encounter other trail users show respect. Either kill your engine or ride by slowly. If you encounter horses on the trail, come to a complete stop, kill your engine, talk to the horse owner and ask them if it’s ok to pass. 

Purchase Your Current OHV Sticker-

This might be the most important thing you can do as a dirt bike rider. The money that your OHV sticker cost you goes directly back into our trail system.  So many grants that are given to local motorcycle clubs are supported by your OHV sticker purchase. I know for a fact that if you come across a Forest Service Employee or a Parks & Wildlife Officer they will be looking for your current OHV sticker. 

Spark Arrestors-

If we go into a stage one fire restriction Spark Arrestors are required. I don’t believe we are there yet but I’m sure we will be soon enough. After last year’s Lake Christine Fire on Basalt Mountain I would recommend putting one on your exhaust if you don’t already have one.

Social Media-

CBTRA has a Facebook page which we use to post pic’s and give updates to what is going on with the club. Please fill free to post pics of the local trails and conditions. 

Thanks for reading and we hope to see you out on the trails,

Regards, 
Dave Fond
E: fonddmk@comcast.net
P: 970-987-2323