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This forum post relates to this feature story. (http://www.snowmobileworld.com/feature_story/CallToQuills/index.php)

For all the correspondence i have had with ever single member of parliment I get pass the buck answers. :( I made the petition up and to this date there are only 2,455 signatures on it. :( I dont ride with those who drink and ride and I am VERY vocal about it ( ask Revrnd :) )insurance petition (http://www.petitiononline.com/snowins/petition.html)
It makes it hard to keep fighting when you keep getting kicked in the teeth, and you dont have many buds to back you up. :bash: :confused:

Kim, make it 2,456. I, like probably many others, would like to get more involved, but am not sure where to start. I've sent a few e-mail letters (BRC) and signed a petition or two, but would like to be more active.

In our search for trails and approvals, I've gotten on several local political committees agenda and made very, I mean very, short presentations about the benefits snowmobiling brings to the state and my wish to bring those benefits here-especially the dollar value (NYSSA had a grant last year and did a study-$800,000,000 per year in economic impact in New York State alone). I stress the need to help bring that here for the local economy and to further enhance the tax base-politicians like voters that like them, simple fixes, bringing in more tax dollars and not dwelling on anything for too long.

If you go this route, keep it short and sweet. We've been very sucessful with this approach so far!

I am sure most people respect and value what you are trying to accomplish with this article. I personally believe that each recreactional activity poses it's own problems. With respect to snowmobiling, I don't think it would be fair to compare the environmental impact to PWC or even more so to 4WD vehicles. That being said, the media are our biggest enemy. They love to print a story and they love to print stories of tragedy. Percentage wise, our fatality rates are still very low. I bet more people get killed or injured tobogganing then on sleds. There are always a few idiots that ruin the party though. In my experience, I am finding that it's usually locals who are more careless then those of us that have to trailer north for their outings. When you have opportunities like they do, you take chances. It's so easy to just sled over to a friends house...have a few beers, then ride back....take a short cut across the barely frozen lake. You get my point.

Del, have you ever thought about writing to the big 4 sled manufacturers and asking them why they continue to push the envelope of sled performance? They are slowly putting themselves out of business. They keep going back and forth with who has the baddest, fastest machine. Is this needed? Do we need to have a machine that can do 135mph? with 165hp? IF you ask me, this is crazy! There is no place to ride safely, anywhere at that speed. Insurance companies are having a field day with this. I bet the sled manufacturers will just say, we are building what the buying public wants. Maybe that is the problem? Too many sledders are like 10 year olds....it goes back to the "my sled is faster then yours.......Oh yeah? well my dad can beat up your dad!" mentality. You will get those that argue this point....but deep down.....they want to be noticed, they want you to know that their machine can beat yours. I for one don't care. I want to be able to ride in 20 years time....not have the fastest sled on jack stands.

Marcel
Mississauga

I know the International Congress of Snowmobile Associations asked IMSA to romote snowmobiling as a family sport a few months ago. We'll see if they go that way. I agree with you on the speed thing. These are not dragsters on a controlled raceway, plus to race you have to get a competition license to drag race.

I signed the petition online to stop the snowmobile ban in Yellowstone. I signed petitions for BRC and try as hard as I can to keep up with alerts.

I am also working on a letter to John Kerry to (hopefully) change his opinions about snowmobiling in Yellowstone. It is a reality that he might become president. I am also going to write to Bush to tell him I support him and his views about snowmobiling.

As for you guys that want to be involved more actively, get your non-snowmobiling friends involved in the sport. Express your views and explain the facts about snowmobling (esp. in Yellowstone) to them. Try to make them understand your point of view. Get them a Snowmobiling Fact Book from ISMA.


As for the article, I thought it was difficult to read and understand. (maybe cause im 13 lol :D )

dip-wads:

this would be a deragatory term to which you are refering.

if we are to clean up our posts maybe we should refer to them as the less informed.

some people have the ability to come off as a dip-wad due to the fact that they would be of the less informed folks. i can see your point as to clean up the posts but i can see that s/w does pretty good at keeping the rif raf out presently.
most times people are looking for a place to vent their frustrations and seek out sympathetic responses.

not sure where most of all the s/w members are from i see central states northeastern states and the beautiful country of canada.

it's not all peaches and cream here in new york home of the proverbial over taxed under paid snowmobilers.
we seem to battle more with the state gov't and our nyssa group than we spend time on the trails.

we pay our fair share into our organized sport with sometimes limited results.
i'm sure many other nys snowmobilers get as frustrated as i doo !

what we need to doo is get the politics out of our sport and combine our resources to make our sport the best it can be. :bash:

My two cents on the whole thing would be this. In this world there are leaders and there are followers. I consider myself a leader. We as leaders need to motivate the followers into believing what we are saying is right. That is how the politicians do it. Befriend you local politicians that support your cause,donate to there cause (monetarily) and they will support you. The problem comes down to money! Bottom line! If the treehuggers donate to there cause which they do. They will have a far better response from the political realm as well. That is how things run. Bush wouldn't care one way or the other if you rode in Yellowstone. He wants to see your dollars supporting his political gain as with any other politician. So you should start raising the dollars as the treehuggers do and start to donate into your cause or you will lose. The NRA didn't get the support that they get in congress without cash. You need a strong lobbyist group and alot of cash to bombard the senate and congress floor with your views and ideas and they will listen. So, in conclusion what WE need to do is organize. Get together as a group and have a representative goto these politicians and let them know where we stand on this issue.
Now as far as regulating what is said ......"bullsh&t" thats the stupidest thing I've ever read. Freedom of Speech! Let the people talk! Who cares about the media anyone with half a brain knows the media is biased as hell. I agree with regulating some vulgarities, just because you could articulate your meaning alittle bit better. Then by using vulgarities.
So in closing, get off you ### and start something! Get a lobbyist group started....as he said in the article...."NOW" SWRules :bash: <--just cause i like him hitting the wall.... :D