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Moose River Trail Turns 25!

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Years before the Over the Hills Gang ATV Club formed, the MN DNR Forestry Division helped create the 26-mile Moose River ATV Trails which opened on May 6, 1995. Using abandoned snowmobile trail loops and bear hunter user trails as a base, DNR personnel, such as now retired Forestry Technician Dean Horbach, mapped and created new trails to create the trails we enjoy today. The Moose River Trails expanded with the addition of the Moose River Connector in 2012, connecting the trails to the North Soo Line Corridor Trail, resulting in access to the towns of Remer to the north and Palisade to the south. In 2014, the Emily-Outing ATV Trail system was connected allowing access to the towns of Outing and Emily. Together these connections allow a rider to access hundreds of miles of legal Grant-In-Aid ATV trails. The Moose River Trails continue to change over time. Riding pressure, combined with soil compaction and erosion, has exposed rocks that make the trail more challenging for some, and more back-breaking for others. Some trails that once ran along the side of logging roads have moved to the road surface making for a mix of easy to more difficult riding sections. Each year poses new problems, i.e. blow downs, soft soils, washouts, flooding, or new logging activity. Heavy maintenance of the Moose River Trails is maintained by the MN DNR, with help for lighter maintenance needs from the Over the Hills Gang ATV Club. To read the full article of the Moose River 25-Year Anniversary, go to the Official Publication of Minnesota's OFF-ROAD Community, Minnesota OFFROAD, April/May 2020 publication - Free if you are an ATVAM member and can be found on www.atvam.org when posted

 

ATV Clubs Educate Riders Wherever They Find Them (Even on closed trails)

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ATV Clubs take personal ownership of the Grant-in-Aid trails they build and maintain. They work long and hard to keep them fun and safe for the riding public, and sustainable both economically and environmentally.

The number of ATVs registered in Minnesota is increasing at a rate of about 3% each year, or roughly 9,000 vehicles.
Also on the rise, it seems, are the number of first-time owners who aren't bothering to educate themselves before they ride on the State ATV Trails. This presents a challenge to ATV club volunteers, who find themselves educating riders not just in their organized ATV Safety Classes and at community events but, in some cases, while doing trail maintenance. Calmly informing ATV owners of the rules of the trail, some who don't bother to learn the DNR regulations, others who simply don't care to abide by them.

One of the drivers was on a Class 2 that measured 77 inches wide, too wide to legally ride on any State ATV Trail. A club member stopped what he was doing and kindly asked the driver if he knew the trail was for Class 1 ATVs only. His response, astonishing the trail workers, was: "What's a Class 1?"


Patience, Positivity, Perseverance
Those are the 3 P's of trail building - often a long and challenging process.
More and more, the same three words may apply to ATVAM and its many ATV member clubs, as we all try our best to educate riders wherever we find them, in order to protect our right AND their right to ride.

 

OTHG Club Hosts WCCO/CBS TV, Goin' to the Lake - Emily, MN Edition

The You Tube video is a "Goin to the Lake" / Emily segment from WCCO /CBS TV newscast that aired on Thursday July 13th, 2017 on the WCCO/CBS TV 10pm newscast. The Over the Hills Gang ATV Club organized a 7-mile ATV ride for the WCCO crew that started at Granny's Bar and Grill and ended at Sweets & Such in Emily, MN where they were treated with ice cream. OTHG Club members brought ATV personal protective equipment, such as gloves, helmets,goggles, splash pants, and boots to ensure the safety of the WCCO crew, and conducted some safety training before the ride. Club Members brought ATV Class I machines for Meteorologist Chris Shaffer, News Anchor Liz Collin, to ride individually, and Class II ATV's to transport a cameraman, photographer, social media and promotions team member on the ride. Additional information and videos can be found on the WCCO /CBS Facebook page.

Shown in the picture to the right is WCCO/CBS Meteorologist Chris Shaffer and News Anchor Liz Collin along with OTHG ATV Club Members and MN DNR Volunteer Trail Ambassadors Dave Kodada, Daniel Olmshenck, Ben Allen, John Halverson, Lynn Remington, Bub Moser and Perry May.

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