Post by bchutchens on Jan 27, 2012 9:28:23 GMT -8
Yamaha and Polaris Grants Fund Hundreds Of OHV Success Stories
by Dave Halsey, NOHVCC Contributing Writer
www.nohvcc.org/Libraries/General_Images/Aitkin_County_ATV_Bridge.sflb.ashx[/img]
New trails, trailheads, kiosks, bridges, maps, signs and work vehicles. Enhanced safety training, law enforcement, lobbying efforts and access initiatives. The list of OHV-related projects and programs that have been funded with grants from Yamaha Motor Corporation, U.S.A. and Polaris Industries is long and commendable.
Over the past 6 years, Yamaha and Polaris have written grant checks totaling $3 million. They have funded over 270 OHV projects, in all 50 states, helping meet the needs of OHV clubs, coalitions and associations, as well as city, county, state and federal agencies.
Polaris introduced their grant program in 2006, Yamaha in 2008. The timing couldn’t have been better. Across the country, ATV registrations were increasing. Clubs were trying to maintain old trails and build new ones. Local, state and federal agencies were challenged to provide quality recreational opportunities for the growing numbers of riders. And OHV groups of all kinds were creating programs to promote safety and responsible riding, while at the same time rallying to save trails and preserve access as the U.S. Forests Service implemented its Travel Management Rule.
On their web sites, both Polaris and Yamaha state that the main objectives of their grants are promoting safe and responsible riding and preserving access. Those goals are reflected in the program titles.
The Polaris program is called T.R.A.I.L.S., an acronym that describes the projects it funds: T=Trail development, R=Responsible riding, A=Access, I=Initiatives, L=Lobbying, S=Safety. “Polaris created this program to give back to the people who are the heart and soul of this industry,” said Donna Beadle, Grants Administrator at Polaris. “We are thankful to those dedicated individuals who are creating, patrolling and maintaining trails, lobbying for the future of our sport and educating future generations to keep our industry safe and strong.”
Yamaha created an acronym to describe the purpose of its OHV Access Initiative. It provides GRANTs to deserving organizations to help further the program’s goal of Guaranteeing Responsible Access to our Nation’s Trails. “The money goes directly from Yamaha to the ground, to the clubs, agencies and associations,” said Steve Nessl, Yamaha ATV and SxS Marketing Manager. “We are proud of this program and of the people who have put the money to good use in their local areas.”
The amount of Polaris and Yamaha grants made available to organizations is based on OHV sales and changes annually. Polaris focuses its grants on projects and programs involving ATVs. It receives more grant requests than there are funds available, including many non-qualifying requests from fire and rescue groups. As stated on its web site, only those emergency services that are buying an ATV for the sole purpose of supporting an off-road area are considered.
Yamaha provides grants for ATV and motorcycle projects, and really likes to see proposals for multi-use areas. “Acess, trail renovation, trail creation, mapping, safety education, lobbying, there's a wide range of projects that we consider and fund” said Nessl.
By the way, if your OHV club publicly bashes other OHV vehicles with a different size or number of wheels, don’t bother applying for a grant. Yamaha does its research and will not fund your project.
Included with each check from Yamaha is a “Welcome Packet” designed to help grant recipients publicize their project. It includes marketing guidelines, a press release template, media alert/event notification template, and a letter to elected officials announcing the grant. “It’s a big packet of things to encourage them to publicize themselves,” Nessl said. “A core objective was to give them what they need to promote themselves and their project.”
Both companies receive a lot of positive responses from grant recipients. “There’s a lot of enthusiasm out there,” said Beadle. “We had one club that built this incredible bridge over a creek bed that was becoming eroded. One of the members was a bridge builder by trade and designed the whole thing. It was incredible workmanship.”
The Oregon Department of Forestry posted a YouTube video describing how they used a Yamaha grant to build bridges over fish-bearing streams. “This is a big deal for us, to have the money to put in these kinds of bridges,” said Larry Sprouse, Recreation Manager, on the video. “By putting in one bridge, we eliminated 3 or 4 crossings that were used in the past that were not beneficial to the stream course and riparian area.” To see the video.
All the OHV issues listed at the top of this article continue today. After an economic downturn; lower budgets at all levels of government; and clubs with trails that still need saving, building or maintaining, the demand for outside funding is greater than ever. Polaris and Yamaha are glad to help.
“We want to encourage people to keep sending in qualified applications,” said Nessl.
“We see a lot of repeat applicants and that’s okay, but we’d like to see more new applications. We want to make sure people know about it and keep it in mind.”
For additional information, deadlines and application forms, visit these web sites:
Yamaha GRANT program-
www.yamaha-motor.com/outdoor/OHV_Grants/2010%20Application.pdf
Polaris TRAILS program-
www.pi54.com/ATV/PDFs/TRAILSGrantAppForm.pdf
2012 Yamaha Applications Submissions and Decision Dates:
Submission Schedule Approval Deadline
• December 1, 2011– March 31, 2012 • May 4, 2012
• April 1 – June 30, 2012 • July 31, 2012
• July 1 – September 29, 2012 • October 31, 2012
• October 1 – November 30, 2012 • January 11, 2013
Idaho Creates Trailblazing OHV Mapping System
by Dave Halsey, NOHVCC Contributing Writer
Riding in Idaho this year? Need a map? After reading this article, go to www.trails.idaho.gov and you’ll have everything you need.
That’s the website for the Idaho Department of Parks & Recreation (IDPR) Trail Mapping system. Click the link and on your computer screen will be a mapping application showing motorized routes on U.S. Forest Service and BLM lands across the state, where you can legally ride your motorcycle, ATV, Side x Side, highway-legal 4x4 truck or car.
You can search for trails by the nearest city, by a trail name or number, or just zoom in and out of areas in search of a new place to ride. You can find trails that suit the motorized needs of your riding group and their mix of off-highway vehicles.
You can choose the kind of map you want to view: topographic, terrain, road or hybrid. Click on “Distance,” plot points A and B, and you can view the shortest route or alternate routes, complete with a list of motorized uses allowed and the on-the-ground distance.
You can print maps up to 22” x 44” in size, export maps to open in Google Earth and view them in 3D, or send them to your GPS. Want to ride to a scenic area, then do some hiking? Non-motorized trails are included. You can even get the weather forecast.
Jeff Cook, Outdoor Recreation Analyst in the Recreation Bureau of IDPR, created the mapping application to meet the needs of OHV riders. It was funded by Idaho OHV registration fees, launched in August of 2010, and updated in September of 2011. “About 5 years ago, our board kept hearing that nagging question: Where can I ride?” said Cook. “There was a broad variety of maps out there. At the same time, we had the U.S. Forest Service Motor Vehicle Use Rule; it had been implemented fairly quickly in Idaho. We saw copies of those maps and realized they were good to show what routes are available, but if you try and use them to go riding, on the ground they’re really not of any use.”
While the Forest Service Motor Vehicle Use Map (MVUM) is a poor navigational tool for OHV riders, it contains the data framework necessary to create OHV mapping systems. “We got this information from the National Forest. We’re showing the same thing that’s on their MVUM, with the addition of non-motorized trails,” said Cook. “And it’s not just black and white, it’s in full color, and you’re able to select through the various maps offered through Esri®. We’ve got a street map, a hybrid which is an aerial image service, we have a topographic, and a terrain map, which is more of a relief layer.
“It’s been a good cooperative effort between the BLM, the Forest Service and the Idaho state lands,” said Cook. “We generally get the data for free, but we had to buy a server and do software development and so forth; it was approximately $300,000.”
Trying to show all the Forest Service roads in Idaho, including those that are decommissioned, would have made the mapping system unreadable, so Cook included only those trails and roads that are open to motor vehicles.
The online mapping system may look confusing at first, but the more you work with it the more intuitive it becomes. “For myself, I really like the topographic map because it combines both the relief and topographic lines,” said Cook. “Depending on the zoom level, I use the general street map to reach the area I’m looking for, then zoom into the area where I want to go and ride. I then click on the topographic and it gives me a better view. It’s giving people the ability to design their trip to the recreational experience they want to have. All the comments we get are that it’s been an absolutely fantastic application.”
by Dave Halsey, NOHVCC Contributing Writer
www.nohvcc.org/Libraries/General_Images/Aitkin_County_ATV_Bridge.sflb.ashx[/img]
New trails, trailheads, kiosks, bridges, maps, signs and work vehicles. Enhanced safety training, law enforcement, lobbying efforts and access initiatives. The list of OHV-related projects and programs that have been funded with grants from Yamaha Motor Corporation, U.S.A. and Polaris Industries is long and commendable.
Over the past 6 years, Yamaha and Polaris have written grant checks totaling $3 million. They have funded over 270 OHV projects, in all 50 states, helping meet the needs of OHV clubs, coalitions and associations, as well as city, county, state and federal agencies.
Polaris introduced their grant program in 2006, Yamaha in 2008. The timing couldn’t have been better. Across the country, ATV registrations were increasing. Clubs were trying to maintain old trails and build new ones. Local, state and federal agencies were challenged to provide quality recreational opportunities for the growing numbers of riders. And OHV groups of all kinds were creating programs to promote safety and responsible riding, while at the same time rallying to save trails and preserve access as the U.S. Forests Service implemented its Travel Management Rule.
On their web sites, both Polaris and Yamaha state that the main objectives of their grants are promoting safe and responsible riding and preserving access. Those goals are reflected in the program titles.
The Polaris program is called T.R.A.I.L.S., an acronym that describes the projects it funds: T=Trail development, R=Responsible riding, A=Access, I=Initiatives, L=Lobbying, S=Safety. “Polaris created this program to give back to the people who are the heart and soul of this industry,” said Donna Beadle, Grants Administrator at Polaris. “We are thankful to those dedicated individuals who are creating, patrolling and maintaining trails, lobbying for the future of our sport and educating future generations to keep our industry safe and strong.”
Yamaha created an acronym to describe the purpose of its OHV Access Initiative. It provides GRANTs to deserving organizations to help further the program’s goal of Guaranteeing Responsible Access to our Nation’s Trails. “The money goes directly from Yamaha to the ground, to the clubs, agencies and associations,” said Steve Nessl, Yamaha ATV and SxS Marketing Manager. “We are proud of this program and of the people who have put the money to good use in their local areas.”
The amount of Polaris and Yamaha grants made available to organizations is based on OHV sales and changes annually. Polaris focuses its grants on projects and programs involving ATVs. It receives more grant requests than there are funds available, including many non-qualifying requests from fire and rescue groups. As stated on its web site, only those emergency services that are buying an ATV for the sole purpose of supporting an off-road area are considered.
Yamaha provides grants for ATV and motorcycle projects, and really likes to see proposals for multi-use areas. “Acess, trail renovation, trail creation, mapping, safety education, lobbying, there's a wide range of projects that we consider and fund” said Nessl.
By the way, if your OHV club publicly bashes other OHV vehicles with a different size or number of wheels, don’t bother applying for a grant. Yamaha does its research and will not fund your project.
Included with each check from Yamaha is a “Welcome Packet” designed to help grant recipients publicize their project. It includes marketing guidelines, a press release template, media alert/event notification template, and a letter to elected officials announcing the grant. “It’s a big packet of things to encourage them to publicize themselves,” Nessl said. “A core objective was to give them what they need to promote themselves and their project.”
Both companies receive a lot of positive responses from grant recipients. “There’s a lot of enthusiasm out there,” said Beadle. “We had one club that built this incredible bridge over a creek bed that was becoming eroded. One of the members was a bridge builder by trade and designed the whole thing. It was incredible workmanship.”
The Oregon Department of Forestry posted a YouTube video describing how they used a Yamaha grant to build bridges over fish-bearing streams. “This is a big deal for us, to have the money to put in these kinds of bridges,” said Larry Sprouse, Recreation Manager, on the video. “By putting in one bridge, we eliminated 3 or 4 crossings that were used in the past that were not beneficial to the stream course and riparian area.” To see the video.
All the OHV issues listed at the top of this article continue today. After an economic downturn; lower budgets at all levels of government; and clubs with trails that still need saving, building or maintaining, the demand for outside funding is greater than ever. Polaris and Yamaha are glad to help.
“We want to encourage people to keep sending in qualified applications,” said Nessl.
“We see a lot of repeat applicants and that’s okay, but we’d like to see more new applications. We want to make sure people know about it and keep it in mind.”
For additional information, deadlines and application forms, visit these web sites:
Yamaha GRANT program-
www.yamaha-motor.com/outdoor/OHV_Grants/2010%20Application.pdf
Polaris TRAILS program-
www.pi54.com/ATV/PDFs/TRAILSGrantAppForm.pdf
2012 Yamaha Applications Submissions and Decision Dates:
Submission Schedule Approval Deadline
• December 1, 2011– March 31, 2012 • May 4, 2012
• April 1 – June 30, 2012 • July 31, 2012
• July 1 – September 29, 2012 • October 31, 2012
• October 1 – November 30, 2012 • January 11, 2013
Idaho Creates Trailblazing OHV Mapping System
by Dave Halsey, NOHVCC Contributing Writer
Riding in Idaho this year? Need a map? After reading this article, go to www.trails.idaho.gov and you’ll have everything you need.
That’s the website for the Idaho Department of Parks & Recreation (IDPR) Trail Mapping system. Click the link and on your computer screen will be a mapping application showing motorized routes on U.S. Forest Service and BLM lands across the state, where you can legally ride your motorcycle, ATV, Side x Side, highway-legal 4x4 truck or car.
You can search for trails by the nearest city, by a trail name or number, or just zoom in and out of areas in search of a new place to ride. You can find trails that suit the motorized needs of your riding group and their mix of off-highway vehicles.
You can choose the kind of map you want to view: topographic, terrain, road or hybrid. Click on “Distance,” plot points A and B, and you can view the shortest route or alternate routes, complete with a list of motorized uses allowed and the on-the-ground distance.
You can print maps up to 22” x 44” in size, export maps to open in Google Earth and view them in 3D, or send them to your GPS. Want to ride to a scenic area, then do some hiking? Non-motorized trails are included. You can even get the weather forecast.
Jeff Cook, Outdoor Recreation Analyst in the Recreation Bureau of IDPR, created the mapping application to meet the needs of OHV riders. It was funded by Idaho OHV registration fees, launched in August of 2010, and updated in September of 2011. “About 5 years ago, our board kept hearing that nagging question: Where can I ride?” said Cook. “There was a broad variety of maps out there. At the same time, we had the U.S. Forest Service Motor Vehicle Use Rule; it had been implemented fairly quickly in Idaho. We saw copies of those maps and realized they were good to show what routes are available, but if you try and use them to go riding, on the ground they’re really not of any use.”
While the Forest Service Motor Vehicle Use Map (MVUM) is a poor navigational tool for OHV riders, it contains the data framework necessary to create OHV mapping systems. “We got this information from the National Forest. We’re showing the same thing that’s on their MVUM, with the addition of non-motorized trails,” said Cook. “And it’s not just black and white, it’s in full color, and you’re able to select through the various maps offered through Esri®. We’ve got a street map, a hybrid which is an aerial image service, we have a topographic, and a terrain map, which is more of a relief layer.
“It’s been a good cooperative effort between the BLM, the Forest Service and the Idaho state lands,” said Cook. “We generally get the data for free, but we had to buy a server and do software development and so forth; it was approximately $300,000.”
Trying to show all the Forest Service roads in Idaho, including those that are decommissioned, would have made the mapping system unreadable, so Cook included only those trails and roads that are open to motor vehicles.
The online mapping system may look confusing at first, but the more you work with it the more intuitive it becomes. “For myself, I really like the topographic map because it combines both the relief and topographic lines,” said Cook. “Depending on the zoom level, I use the general street map to reach the area I’m looking for, then zoom into the area where I want to go and ride. I then click on the topographic and it gives me a better view. It’s giving people the ability to design their trip to the recreational experience they want to have. All the comments we get are that it’s been an absolutely fantastic application.”