wow... i had to read this twice to make sure i got it right. attacking my sig? c'mon really? i could go on about yours but i got bored reading all the bling you added and skipped over it.

the Of4WD is there to make sure that multi-use trails stay multi-use. provide additional insurance for trail runs and to provide direction and guidance to new and veterans members alike. we have seats on various trail committees, OTC being on of them http://www.ontariotrails.on.ca/trail-activities/ Did you check out the web page? www.of4wd.com it has lots of answers to your questions there.

we are working on getting previously closed trails re-opened, have managed to keep Greens open and have an excellent relationship with the MNR in that area, due to the major clean-up that took place there. we are working in the Ottawa area to get trails re-opened that are only accessible to ATV's atm. we run the largest CHARITY event in Ontario, with proceeds going to Mindens local hospital ( sorry the name escapes me now)

the OF4WD is purely volunteer operated and needs support from trail users such as yourselves. snowmobilers have the membership and the budget to make changes that affect our hobby. changes are coming down the pipe that will only be detrimental to our sport. ATV and Snowmobile groups are lobbying against us. $30 membership fee now, could save you from buying a $200 trail access pass in the future.

we can all bury our heads in the sand and pretend like nothing is happening and get swept under the rug by the ATV and Snowmobile user groups or we make our voice heard.

 

the OF4WD is completely volunteer and is NON PROFIT. we do everything form our homes and have no office and are routinely out of pocket for varoius expenses that take us across the province to make sure YOU can still have acces to areas that passenger cars and tourists dont go

if that was the OF4WD i appolgize, i can assure you that nothing like that happens today.

i am sorry you feel that was but the OF4WD is totally transparent and any info you require is an email away. we are working hard to keep trails open and working even harder to re-open trails that have closed. if any trails in your area are in jeopardy we would like to know. trail closures effect us all and any closure can hopefully be prevented by following the proper channels.

 

Insert "Why can't we be friends" by War here...we're all supporting the same cause guys!!

 

everything was at full disclosure at the AGM last Sunday. complete financials are available on request. membership fees do not cover the the operation of the OF4WD, Camp NL provides the rest. If we didnt have Camp NL we could not survive to lobby for you.

for those that say you dont see anything that we do... PERFECT that means you are still able to go out on weekends and use the trails that we fight for. Look at Alberta, they have lost nearly ALL of their public access trails. we dont want to see that happen here.

you want to see actions? become a member, come to meetings, do something, dont just sit on your hands and hope it works out. the $30 membership fee is less then a tank of gas, less then a night out at the pub, and for the betterment of our sport... is well worth it

WE ARE YOUR VOICE... let it be heard

all the answers are right here www.of4wd.com

if you cant find what you are looking for, my email is in the contact page and i will be sure to get it to you.

 

The proper channels, as a non-profit owner myself, are always followed.

I was told on NUMEROUS occasions when questioning my membership fees that it went to "Administration" costs.

There is a trail in m area (GTA) that I have been on a lobbying groups back for well over 2 years and throughout that time I was tiold the following:

"We are volunteer and don't have time to answer all trail inquiries. Try and look into this yourself. It is our membership that has the resource to do more than we ever could. At the present the OF4WD is more concerned with the Haliburton area. The 401 corridor is not the biggest area of concern as it holds minor amounts of green space. There are resources for you I am sure in your area that you can contact to inquire on the issues you are asking about."

In other words.....pay us.....do it yourself.

I don't know, but there is something wrong with this.

There was one occasion where I was actually berated by the Secretary of this group for "Daring to ask and question the validity of this group" as I was upset that any question I had was blown off to a "do it yourself" type answer.

When I pressed hard for accountability, I was told that the money I spend on membership goes to administration support.......a Non-Profit organization is allowed to take donation and use SOME of the funds for administration support, but not all. I got the usual crying game answer "This is a group of volunteers etc etc etc".........give me a break.....if your going to dupe and promise your your membership into a sense of false security....don't cry about underpowered you are.

Its not like there is no money for employees.....you don't have employees, if you're short handed bring on more people.....its simple.....its a non-profit.....workload insists on people power....

I run three businesses....PLUS hold a full time job with a local City......I won a Photography business, a tactical training business for law enforcement professionals....and the icing on the cake, I own a Non-Profit Corporation dedicated to charity support through Adventure Travel.....

With my Non-Profit Corp.....I have managed to keep 3 trails open through lobbying on my own and with the support of my members....with NO help from this lobbying group (although it was requested NUMEROUS TIMES)....and to top it all off, we did for...NOTHING...FREE.....not a single person paid a penny for this....with the exception of a few cell phone calls....

I absorb the cost of my non-profit, and I am proud to do so at no charge to my membership.

My membership is small....but they love us and vice versa and if anyone had any questions they had an answer the same day.

Through the results we have accomplished, I just can't fathom spending money on something that has been of no use to us at all. Maybe this lobbying group has changed their image since then.

I do apologize to them for souding the rant, but this was the experience I have had. I did make a few good friends over there and continue to speak to them as regularly as possible, networking is a good thing.....but when I join a group that claims to support "Ontarios trail network" I expect Ontarios trail network to be supported.....not Haliburtons trail network alone.....

As far as my comment about where tourists don`t go...........this is the typical response....``you can only go there because of what we have done``...worng wrong wrong....another badge of merit....but I don`t possibly see how the three trails WE have opened without assistance, and the areas we have gone on expedition throughout North America is the doing of this lobbying group....I`m sorry but you`re wrong there....big time....this lobbying group had NOTHING to do with why I go to areas that tourists don`t go....sorry...but its true.

Anyway, I`m done. I apologize for the rude introduction into the Canada Staging area Rubicon Rando, however I, and many others have been screwed over pretty badly in the past with this support system, bad enough to make us leave and do our own work. Maybe the face has changed since the AGM, if so I commend you sincerely for making positive changes. A few years was a very ugly time in deed .

 

alot has changed in the last few years and i am aware of past "regimes" that put a sour taste in lot of peoples mouths... and some are starting to come back.

i applaud you for you actions in trail sustainability and we seem to working for the same goal. i hope that one day we can work together. maybe we can meet at the RUBICON GRILL one night and have a beer and wings.

i hope you wont bash the htread i am about to start. we need members.

Randy Shepherd

 

No no no...I am not about bashing....I was simply stating an experience I had before.

This really wasn't meant to be an "assault" type thing, just a very bad experience with a "regime" of people of which I cannot stand.

I have actually been in touch with Lee "Leebee" as we go back a few years from the Tri-City days, and we were trying to be of assistance to Camp NL. Lee has forwarded our request to the appropriate people, but still waiting on that.

We were hoping to help out to not only get some exposure for our group, but also as we know quite intimately the trail systems up there.

 

......also yeah, hitting up the Rubicon Grill.......I'm always in for that, best wings in town thats for sure.

Just let me know the whens and wheres and I'll pass it on to my partner with Overland.

 

wow this got pretty heated pretty darn fast, all i know is i had fun at the Spring Fling

 

Nah...it was never heated up in the first place....I had issues with the lobbying group in the past....a Rep. showed up, so I let rip my feelings.....they weren't directed at him, simply the "uniform"......kinda like hating ALL cops cuz you got one speeding ticket kind of thing.

As I said I'm more than happy to set up a meet and greet at Rubicon Grill anytime.

Hey all of you should come to the Overland Trail run on the 27th....