Trail Rider Magazine

12 Trail Rider www.TrailRider.com ing developments and shopping centers, and from what I hear from friends, there's s ll a lot of the "Us vs Them" mentality back there, pi ng those who want to ride against those restric ng the avail- able land to ride on. Want to put that behind you? Come to Colorado, where they actually encourage off-road adventures! While working a check at the Shady Burro Enduro, I got to visit with some of the local Forest Service guys and had my eyes pleasant- ly opened to a program other states should jump on board with. If you want me to summarize it, buy a Colorado OHV s cker and get your bu out here to ride! Yeah, it's good, THAT good! When the Forest Service guys rode up...on WR250Fs with racks and chainsaws...my first thought was, "Oh dang, gonna have to be on good behavior, Johnny Law is here!" Within a few min- utes, however, I found that these guys are "the good guys!" I wanted to learn more about Colora- do's OHV program, so I cha ed with district super- visor Mike Vargas (his guys call him Vargas) and new trail bike guy Colby Harrison, and I pre y much found out they love us and want more of us to visit and ride. The miles you can do are nearly unlim- ited. Vargas said his trail system in the Divide/Rio Grande district, one of several districts in the state, has 900 miles of OHV trails. Trails are vehicle-specif- ic: some are strictly single-track, some are limited to 50-inch-wide or less vehicles (4-wheelers), some are wider (SXSs), and some are wide enough for Jeep and other 4x4 traffic. Trails are clearly marked as to who can or cannot use them based on vehicle type and size. ALL vehicles, regardless of type or size, must dis- play a current Colorado OHV s cker. The s cker is available online, through bike and OHV dealers, and at many grocery, convenience, and hardware stores near popular riding areas. The Divide/Rio Grande district is just one of several in the state. Other pop- ular riding areas are the Rampart Range, the Lake City area, Salida area, Durango-Silverton, Woodland Park, and plenty more I can't name off the top of my head. Point is, the trails are here for ya! An OHV s cker costs $26.25, and the money doesn't disappear into some giant government slushpot. The OHV monies help fund part- me posi ons, trail development and maintenance, procurement of heavy equipment to aid in trail reconstruc on and repair, signage, trailhead park- ing, maps, land acquisi on, and plenty of other good stuff. A no-cost bonus is a quick way to iden fy stolen bikes and atv's using each s cker/permit's serial number. Lots of folks will pay 30 or 40 bucks to grab an hour of prac ce at a private track. Here you can spend 26 bucks and ride all year on some of the greatest trails imaginable. The climbs and descents are epic. The views are out of this world. The towns love having OHV tourists, and there are many op ons available for bike and OHV rentals, guided rides, etc. Vargas has been with the Forest Service for almost 20 years and worked in other areas such as range man- agement, planning/logis cs, and grant management (the guys' WRs came through grant monies) before ge ng into the trail business. He's the "big picture" guy, and when I called him, he was on assignment with a wildfire task force in a neighboring state, but he's a dirt bike guy, and you can tell he loves what he's doing. A huge challenge is the vast acreage of forest that's been decimated by spruce bark beetles. En re mountainsides are nothing but dead, infected mber. It is poor quality by lumber industry standards and is cost-prohibi ve to cut down and remove. A few areas do get forested, which Vargas says is great for the environment, since they can reforest with more resistant species. Unfortunately, it's not news that large areas of bee- tle-damaged forest do burn...and that reminds me of one crucial item for your bike...SPARK ARRESTOR! Don't ride without one! Don't be the guy that makes the forest service guys have to write ckets. At the Shady Burro, every bike had to go through tech to check for a spark arrestor and current CO OHV s ck- ers. No spark arrestor? Your op ons were to get one or go home. They mean business. I wanted to talk with one of the "bike guys" because that job seems like one every red-blooded young dirt biker would jump at. "Here, take this S hl and WR250, go ride and cut down crap across the trail." Colby Harrison is that guy. He's been riding since he was 4, and his cousin is Kelby Pepper. Sounds plenty qualified to me, but the Forest Service s ll had him take an MSF rider safety course and take sawyer safe- ty and cer fica on training before cu ng him loose with a bike and saw. He's one of the seasonal riders right now but hopes to jump to year-round before long. He farms with his dad on the off-season, but it is easy to tell he loves what he's doing with the Forest Service.

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