We had no meeting in January, but are in the process of scheduling one for February, and as soon as we have a date I will e-mail or make the phone calls to let you all know when and where we will be meeting. There are always plenty of important things to be discussed and approved, so take the time to get involved and come participate in a meeting. Let your voice be heard. 

 NYSORVA News from the State Level! The meeting to work forward with NYSORVA for the 2002 year is scheduled for February! I believe that we have some people from around the region attending to let our concerns and interests be know! It is up to us the riders to point NYSORVA in the direction it needs to go and keep it on track for the future. NYSORVA is still in need of regional directors to help guide the local action and work with the clubs and county associations etc. For information or to get involved please contact Alex Ernst at alex@nysorva.org or call (518) 756-3366 

 DEC Report! Yes this is important stuff! It seems that we are loosing ground faster than we are gaining it. It has come to our attention that the DEC has now made the entire region 5 off limits to ATV’s. This is not a good sign. The Draft for the region 7 UMP is also out and the DEC has been having meetings concerning this as well. They have written all ATV use out of region 7 as well, I quote from the plan “Development of an ATV trail system is incompatible with the cultural and recreational demands, uses and natural characteristics of state forests in region 7”. The DEC spent much time working to justify this statement in the plan, and we need to send the message that this is not acceptable! If you cannot drop a letter, make a phone call and send an e-mail. Call the DEC contact, Cortland office at (607) 753-3095, or at Sherburne office at (607) 674-4036. At the very least send an e-mail to mailto:r7forest@gw.dec.state.ny.us  If this pattern continues we will not have any access to any Public lands for ATV use and we are one of the biggest user groups. It is estimated that there are over 250,000 ATV’s and Dirt Bikes in New York State! Are you willing to lie down and give up your rights to be able to enjoy your chosen form of recreation? If we work together we will let them know we will not give up! The DEC is accommodating all other users from hikers to boaters, hang gliders to Snowmobiles, Everyone except the ATV’s. 

 Adventure Tours: Adventure Tours is a Polaris sponsored tour group that plans and arranges tours for Snowmobile, ATV, and Watercraft all across the Country. How does this concern us? Well after the Article in ATV magazine about riding the Tug Hill Region, they have now scheduled a tour for September 4th thru the 8th for the Tug Hill Region. This tour of about 40 riders will be broken down into three groups for each of three days of riding, and they have requested that our club members be the guides for these groups. Why us? Because they are making a donation to our club for us to provide this service! We will need at least three members each day, but I would like to have more. We could have as many as four of our members in each group to help make the rides go smoothly! And the rides will travel someplace different each day, so if you want to participate in these three days of riding, please get in touch with me as soon as you can. Sometime in the spring we will be laying out the routes for the riding, and getting everyone ready for this. This ride will be a lot of fun for those that participate and will also be a big fund raiser for our club, so lets turn out and make it work well so we can do it again! 

 Village of Black River: Great news for this area! It looks like all the work will be paying off! The village has a new law written that will allow ATV Access through the village, which gets us across the river as well. The fight is not over yet though. The public hearing on this matter will be held on Monday March 4th at 6:30 P.M. At this time if all goes well the law will be passed and the legal access will be in place! 

 Town Board Meetings: As for the meetings in other regions, we have not given up! In Ellisburg the AD-HOC committee is meeting to try to work out some of the roads and details from our revised list and request. Members are also still working to get the landowner permission slips to show the towns we have trails and are working to do everything necessary as well for Sandy Creek. 

 FOR SALE: 4 New Tires Taken off a new 2002 660 Grizzly. Backs Are 25-10-12 and fronts are 25-8-12. Price is $150 for all four tires. Contact Martin Beyer at (315) 782-5280. If you need some tires, don’t miss this deal! 

 FOR SALE: 1999 Yamaha 250 Beartracker Red in color, excellent condition, Ready to ride! This is the wifes machine, Priced for a quick sale at $1,900. Call Terry Fox at (315) 686-4367 Evenings any time after 5:00 P.M. 

 Oswego County Planning Department: We did have the opportunity to speak to some of the folks from the planning department at the DEC meeting in Mexico earlier this month. They stated that they have not had much impute in the form of written comments about the Railroad beds! It is time we made our voices heard! It is not to late to write a letter to let the County know what you think they should do with the County owned Rail Road Right away that they own. They own several miles that would make great Multi-use trails; the main section that affects us right now is the railroad property from Sandy Creek to Pulaski. Please take the time to drop a line to County Planning department at: 

 Oswego County Planning Department 

46 East Bridge Street 

Oswego, New York 13126 

Letters are our best forms of support for the development of trails so please take a moment to write a few lines in support of ATV, Snowmobile and multi use trails. It affects the future of your chosen form of recreation, please don’t rely on others to do it for you. Now is the time to speak up and let your legislators know your feelings! 

 NYTRO RIDES!  Yes we are planning some rides for the upcoming season to do as a group! At the December meeting there was discussion about a couple of overnight rides! I am sure we will also do one or two single day rides as well. Come to a meeting and take part. 

Brasher Falls: Some members want to trailer up to brasher falls for a weekend of riding. This would require members to either camp out, or maybe bring a camper along. This would give us a chance to ride in a different area from our regular riding and be a very nice change as well. If you are interested in taking part for this weekend trip, let me know so we can plan it properly. 

Overnight Ride: There was also discussion of an overnight ride from the Sandy Creek area. The thoughts on this were that the ride would travel across Tug Hill, with a stop for lunch, then continue to the Black River/Felts Mills area, where members could either primitive camp, stay at a local camp ground, or even get a motel room as the trail runs behind Gleason’s Motel. This would only be possible if our work with the town of Rutland continues forward and the necessary seasonal roads and town roads are open to our use. If this ride would be something you would like to participate in let us know! 

 If you have any ideas for riding, places to go etc. Come to a meeting! 

Membership Information: To find out more about NYTRO or to join the club, contact any of our sponsoring dealers, or any member. You can also call me at (315) 782-5280 or e-mail me at 92vmax@imcnet.net we would like to continue to build up our membership. If you want to see things happen in your region, join the club. We cannot work forward in regions that we do not have the member support. 

Trails: Remember that the trails we have that cross private lands are still closed at this time, and will be so until spring. I know that in other regions of the state the snow is very limited if there is any at all, but we can still measure ours in the feet as is normal for us. The snowmobile season is still in full swing, and with the limited snow in other area’s the trails are very crowded. Use some common courtesy if you are out and about with your snowmobile or ATV, and be careful. 

UPDATED LIST OF EVENTS!  We will always try to keep all members updated on planned events, and we will try to also get to some of the events as a group. For a listing of events around the state check out the NYSORVA web site list of events at www.nysorva.org 

February 16th 2002, Snowmobile Snow Cross and Snowmobile and ATV Drag Races: This event is held by the Adirondack ATV riders club at the club property in Harrisville New York.  Gates open at 7:00 A.M. for registration and the racing action starts at 9:00 A.M. For more information contact Bob Swanson at (315) 543-2073 or e-mail lnortz@northnet.org check them out on the web at www.adirondackatv.org 

April 27, 2002  Lodge ATV Club Poker Run:  In scenic Clayton New York for details contact Tom VanTassel  at (315) 658-2006 or E-mail van-tassel@juno.com 

May 2002 (No dates Available yet), Rivergate Trail Ride: Come and enjoy the scenic Rivergate trail on a group ride from Clayton to Philadelphia and back. You can count on several members of our club attending this event. Last spring there were about a dozen from our club alone, always a great time. For more information contact Terry Fox at (315) 686-4367 or e-mail president@rivergatewheelers.com 

 June 8th 2002, Harrisville ATV Club ATV Drag Races: This Event is held by the Adirondack ATV riders club at the club property in Harrisville New York. Lots of room with over 250 acres and I believe primitive camping is available. Gates open at 7:00 A.M. for registration and the racing action starts at 9:00 A.M. For more information contact Bob Swanson at (315) 543-2073 or e-mail lnortz@northnet.org check them out on the web at www.adirondackatv.org 

June 3rd thru 8th 2002, Americade: For those of our members that enjoy hitting the roads this is the premier event in the North East for you, and it is in our own back yard. Located in Lake George New York this event is a must attend for all those that enjoy riding two wheels on the road. For more information check them out on the Internet. 

August 10th 2002, ATV Rodeo: This Event is held by the Adirondack ATV riders club at the club property in Harrisville New York. Lots of room with over 250 acres and I believe primitive camping is available. Gates open at 7:00 A.M. for registration and the racing action starts at 9:00 A.M. For more information contact Bob Swanson at (315) 543-2073 or e-mail lnortz@northnet.org check them out on the web at www.adirondackatv.org 

 September 7th 2002, Newton Falls Poker Run: (The spring run has been cancelled for the 2002 season) Sponsored by the Sports and Recreational Club. The club has reworked the route and layout to help accommodate more riders and solve problems that might be caused by the weather. For more detailed information contact Marty Woods at (315) 848-3319 

September 20th thru 22nd 2002, Clayton Recreational EXPO: Sponsored by the Rivergate Wheelers ATV Club. For show information, or to reserve space for your club or business contact Terry Fox at (315) 686-4367 or e-mail president@rivergatewheelers.com 

 Visit these businesses that are doing something for YOU and your sport! 

Waite Polaris is selling the Lewis County ATV trails maps for us, and also working with us to get our club recognized. They are passing out our information and working to support us in other ways as well. Waite Polaris is a full service Polaris Dealership for all your Polaris parts and service. 

North Country Honda includes a membership to the club with the purchase of a new ATV. The happy customer becomes a member with all the member benefits, and that helps the club! 

Watertown Power Sports Now offers a 10% discount on all in stock parts and Accessories to members who present their valid membership cards. 

NESCO Offers all Members with a valid membership card a 10% discount on all in stock parts and accessories. A great benefit for our members! 

 That’s it for this time, Let us know what you want to do, where you want to see trails, and what we can do to help make existing trails legal or better! We are nothing without you. YOU are the Club! Until next time "Keep the Rubber Side Down!"