I hope everyone sees the new Polaris ATV commercials on television. The finer points: The purpose of ATV's are to go over terrain you didn't think you could go over, and get there faster than anyone else.
I posted on the duplicity of the ATV industry a day or two ago. They know that only a certain number of people are going to buy an ATV to ride gently along trails you could traverse with a golf cart. They know the money is in competition, speed, and aggression.
How will the Department of Natural Resources keep ATV's gently and peacefully rolling along trails in the NHAL forest when they are being sold and promoted as "OUTLAW" machines, capable of tearing up any terrain, faster than opponents?
5 comments:
The reason they are being promoted as such is because the vast majority of people who purchase ATV's use them for:
farming
hunting
rural land management
recreational riding
As you can see 3 of the 4 (75%) require a machine to have some umf to them in order to do what the end user wants them to do. Are you asking the ATV manufacturers to apologize for markering to the majority? If so then we should tell the auto manufacturers to do the same.
Matt;
The ad I saw was clearly marketed for the last group-for trail riders. And it was extolling the values of going fast and going off trail-exactly the two things that pro-ATV supporters say WONT happen in the Northern Highland forest.
But if I pay all kinds of money for a machine that CAN go fast, and go off trail, am I going to be satisfied cruising slowly on a developed trail? Or, what percentage of people will be satisfied doing that?
That hat can be worn two ways here buddy and I see a lot of animosity pent up against the ATV crowd.
My question to you as the writer of this bleep is this: What if the bicycle manufacturers put out commercials of mountain bikes ripping up the forests (which I have already seen a million times before)? Would this encourage bikers to do the same? Maybe yes and maybe no and the same can be said for any user group. I think this "elite" mentality needs to be dumped off at the curb and you guys need a dose of reality of what our sport has become.
All user groups have rights and all of the ATVers that I ride with are responsible and we like to go at a snails pace typically to enjoy the scenery.
Instead of focusing strictly on the motorized crowd, I am wondering why you guys aren't doing a thing to promote safe, ethical and responsible riding/hiking within your own user groups? Maybe some people are tired of seeing wild bicyclists out of hand on the city streets, causing major red flags in every day society. That seems to be okay to you? It is simply unacceptable just like the hikers and such that are litter bugs in the forest.
Point is that all user groups have a few bad seeds. The difference is, that as ATVers we are molding a completely new image and changing the way that things once were. Are you guys? NO Could you be focusing your energy on your own user groups/passions in life? Heck yeah! So what are you waiting for? Quit picking on us and do something about your own bad seeds.
Lets face it, as an Avid ATVer, I will stop at nothing to get new trail miles and always will. Bikers/hikers can do that anywhere and we are stuck with minimal choices. Its time to stop the "forest greed" and take the thinkin'/bullying out of it here.
I'm sure you will come back at me with the typical statistical BS as always instead of sitting back and honestly thinking about this. I'm open to change and you obviously are not. Being bull headed will get you nowhere in this life. Life is too short and I think that as user groups, we all need to work together. If we were to meet on a street, not knowing that one was an avid ATVer and one an avid silent sports enthusiast, heck, we'd probably even get along.
The silent sports bullying needs to be stopped and I will stop at short of nothing to get this resolved. The ball is in your court to quit crying wolf, whining at these meetings and the list goes on.
Jess
PS - What exactly is your mission/agenda here? Is it that you won't be happy until nothing motorized is allowed anywhere? You are up against quite a bit here and must have lots of time on your hands? What do you do for a living? I tell you what, we can either work together and making things better or we can be opponents. It is your choice and from what my husband says, I'm not a good chick to be an opponent and up against. You have been warned (I'm hoping you have a sense of humor because I'm funning you 100%)
Jess
I guess I don't understand the issue with the Polaris commercial. Where was this riding taking place? We don't know. Was it private land? We don't know. Was it a designated ATV park set up specifically for technical riding? We don't know.
Is there private land where ATVers are welcome to do some technical riding? Most definitely. Are there ATV parks set up specifically so people can do technical riding? Most definitely.
Since neither I, nor you, know where the riding was taking place it's a bit of a stretch to assume the ad was promoting off trail use. There are MANY places around the Nation that are set up specifically for technical riding where power is a must--and this was a GREAT ad showing that a Polaris ATV is capable of being ridden hard in those places.
Get off the "silent sport" high horse. Before you condemn motorized sports take a good look at your own enthusiasts. Sit at any intersection with a stop sign and count the number of bicycles that run the stop sign. All of them? At least close to it.
Check out the litter along the mountain bike trails in Wisconsin. Yeah, I've been there and they are a mess. Ditto hiking only trails.
As Jesus said: Before you condemn a man for the mote in his eye, remove the log from your own.
bill
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