Virtual on-line Rally to be Held by 4x4 Enthusiasts

another one of those places that I dream of going to. At the rate things are going the only thing that will be left in the next 10 years will be the private parks. These guys need all the help they can get even if its just to say I dream of going. I copied and pasted this from a email I got from the pirate. I'm sure that a couple others got this as well.



Virtual on-line Rally to be Held by 4x4 Enthusiasts
Off Highway Vehicle enthusiasts organize to hold first ever online rally over
trail closures

In a landmark event, thousands of Off Highway Vehicle (OHV) users across the
world will participate in a online, Virtual Rally to voice their concerns over a
popular OHV area in Southern California. On Wednesday March 12th, 2008
Pirate4x4.com, a leading website for the OHV community, will hold this rally
from 2 to 6 PM PST.

The Hammers trail system in Johnson Valley, California is being considered for
requisition to expand the United States Marine Corps training facilities, which
would effectively eliminate public access to Johnson Valley's unrivaled OHV
Mecca.

Virtual Rally participants will be asked to post their experiences, photos and
history recreating with their families in the Johnson Valley Area, and the
concerns they have with losing this unique recreational resource. These comments
will be posted and tracked in bulletin-board format, with a goal of creating a
lasting record of how important this unassuming stretch of desert is to a vast
number of people from many places -- some who visit Johnson Valley multiple
times a year, and others who just dream of the opportunity of visiting the
Hammers in the future. Interested parties are encouraged to attend the rally
and read the thread, as this is a public rally, you do not need to be a member
of Pirate4x4.com to read what is posted.

Families and clubs have recreated in this area for many years with OHV’s, and
competitive rock crawling, rock racing, motorcycling, and ATV events have been
held there for more than a decade, with significant rewards for the area
economy. In February, the famed “King of the Hammers” annual rock race crowned
its king.

The Bureau of Land Management currently manages the Johnson Valley's varied
landscape of steep red rocky mountains, rolling hills, open valleys, dry lake
beds, dunes, and sandy washes. The main attraction for most visitors is family
OHV recreation: trail-rides, competitive racing events, and general OHV free
play. Johnson Valley sees hundreds of thousands of recreation days with users
motorcycling, ATVing, 4x4ing, rallycrossing, camping, hiking, rock-hounding, and
wildlife-watching.

"It is ironic that the BLM has OHV users recreate responsibly by staying on
marked trails and not having campfires at certain times of the year, but now
they sell the same area to the Marines who will tear all over the area and
conduct live fire drills", said Todd Ockert, The United Four Wheel Drive
Association Director of Environmental Affairs.

The link for the rally on Wednesday, March 12th will be http://www.pirate4x4.com/jv
More Land Use information is available at http://www.pirate4x4.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=85

# # #

If you would like more information on this topic, or to schedule an interview
with Kurt Schneider the Pirate4x4 Land Use Officer, Please e-mail Kurt at
kurtuleas@pirate4x4.com

http://www.pirate4x4.com/forum/showthread.php?t=664218