3. May 24,2012 - Mr Casper & BBQ sausage-fest

Mammoth M/C

Meeting minutes for May 24th, 2012

Members in Attendance: John, James, Kim, Joe, Weird, Isabel, Johnston, Abe, Russ, Isabel

Guests: Mr. Casper, Chris, Alicia, “the Pants,” John G., Fleur, Paul M

Presidents Report:

prior to the garage meeting I was bottle-necked at Vons with yet another scam going down at the cash register, a more detailed report is being compiled and will be released shortly.

The garage party was well attended, 4 attendees arrived with skateboards ready for the evening's contest. However, cold winds and little John's late arrival postponed that event. Special thanks go out to the following (besides myself) for being prepared - Joe, Paul, and little John.

Evening highlights included various potluck dishes and when our own PR officer announced the jumping in of one of our guests, Paul who was representing himself and the FOI. Of course this was of great interest to Paul who took everything in stride - and for those wondering no combat ensued. We've said it many times, there is room for all individuals on our forest, we just happen to be very leery of the groups, corporations, NGO's, and committees that tend to restrict rights and freedoms for personal or monetary gain. Not too hard to understand.

Lots of agriculture talk went around the garage from Paul's greenhouse and community gardening in Lee Vining to Fish Lake Valley orchards and all the way down to the new Crowley Lake community garden.

It's common knowledge that the Eastern Sierra is basically a food desert, most everything we consume has to travel hundreds to thousands of miles to get here. What happens when the roads, trucking, or oil becomes scarce? Many of us support the action of community supported agriculture which one day may be vital for survival. Self-reliance isn't only about being able to change a pinched tube on the back of the Glass Mountains, it carries through on larger levels like food, shelter, firepower, etc.

That said, thanks to all that provided food and drink (no club funds were used), no one left the garage hungry

except for maybe Jason who disappeared after some Heineken and Jager.

Public Relations Manager & Specialist Report:

There was some disscussion around a future “organized baja adventure ride,” mention of another NORRA B1K attempt (on a bike), as well as ideas for Mammoth M/C club rides for 2012…

everything was very hush-hush, and there’s no details yet on the validity of any of it…

Someone even suggested that the PR officer retard the cam timing on his CR500… this might help with pinging. Thanks for the advice!?

There was also talk about the mtn bike closures out behind shady rest park as well – and it seems as though I might have some good news to report (for non motorized users that is).

Paul (from Friends of the Inyo) had finally met with me to look over the closures in question (click here to refresh your memory). Paul agreed that mountain bike access should be restored to all trails that were previously used as mountain bike trails. He claimed that the closure by his group was an unfortunate mistake, and an oversight by his work crew. Paul spent the rest of that afternoon clearing away some of the larger branches, and using his mountain bike to create a visible single track trail through the clutter.

Paul also added 2 more directional arrows – this should help direct people the correct way.

Unfortunately, the forest service has taken a hard stance on this issue, and agrees with the tactic of blocking non-motorized users on motorized trails that are being closed due to “Travel Management.” Ranger Rick Labour once told me that if the USFS allowed non-motorized users to access these trails, then motorized users “might” be tempted to break the law. Incredible – we all must suffer! This way of thinking is completely off (no surprise really).

It isn’t up to the FS to decide who might do what…the law is the law, and non-motorized use (a legal activity) on these trails must be encouraged and allowed.

I made it back to this trail a couple of weeks later and worked on it a little myself – moving some more of the larger branches and burning in the single track trail a little more with my mountain bike. Unfortunately, the unwelcoming and ugly barricades are still in the ground.

Mammoth Lakes does deserve better, and I believe one day these barricades will be gone for good.

I would like to thank Paul McFarland for actually taking the time to respond to our concerns. We might be a small social club, but we do appreciate the attention. Stacy Corless (FOI) and the rest of the “FS personnel” that I had contacted about this refused to go out and even look at my complaint. Stacy told me a number of times that the Friends of the Inyo work under “direct supervision” from the Forest service – and that she supports her work crew decisions - no matter what they do.

It’s obvious to us however, that there isn’t any “supervision” going on at all, and closures are completed without any oversight and without any “follow-up” to user complaints. Of course, during the Route Designation Process, we were promised something else… Nothing new here. Maybe (Hopefully) things will change with Paul now taking care of front country issues. We’ll see.

Paul is a fan of “Travel Management,” and explained to me that it was absolutely necessary (for many reasons – I won’t list them). I disagree however. The harsh reality is that 99.9% of our local area trails were completely sustainable, and they have been for decades. We had a few problems areas, but this “decision” has gone beyond “managing” those problem areas.

What we have now is a huge mess.

Website Update!

This summer, Mammoth M/C plans on “re-doing” some of the GPS tracks that we have in our library (time permitting). Unfortunately, the implementation process has done a great job of ruining some of these tracks – with ugly barricades and such. Important connectors have been “closed,” and we feel that downloadable tracks should reflect this, and offer un-barricaded connectors. Last year, USFS representative Jon Kasmierski said that this “whole thing” could be “taken to the next level” if we didn’t cooperate, and remove some of our GPS tracks from the site. We’re not quite sure what that meant, but I’m sure Jon was referring to a lawsuit or legal action of some kind - a civil suit perhaps? Or blocking our url entirely by some kind of a Federal Firewall? LOL!

It was a subtle threat, but he explained that it wasn’this own idea. Apparently, this whole idea of “taking it to the next level” came from some hot shot FS ranger out of some big city somewhere down south (Name and location currently withheld).

This hotshot obviously has nothing better to do, and has set his sights on our local moto club. Needless to say, the meeting didn’t end well - there was bluff calling, name calling, and general resentment between us both. Another FS Fail.

There hasn’t been a meeting since…

Mammoth M/C web masters want everyone to know that these changes will be made this season, sometime, and aren’t being made for the consideration of the FS (or for bored rangers in big cities). They’re being made for the consideration of our dirt bike riding guests.

Member News:

And there he goes folks. Mammoth will miss Dr. Weird and his “always unclean” 450R. He’s been a huge supporter of Mammoth M/C, and an advocate for trail access. At least we have his alter ego from GNU snowboards to keep us happy… Don’t worry, we’re used to cheap imitations out here in Cali.

Good Luck in MN from everyone here at Mammoth M/C ! We’ll see ya in Baja next year!.

“…Sure, you can put 2 stroke gas in that, my dad does all the time”

“I passed all the bikes and a couple trucks too. Then I missed a turn and they all passed me back, then I passed them all again… then my bike blew up and they all passed me back…”

“…No, I don’t have your cat”

More Member News:

Mammoth M/C member, Andy, just got back from another 4-day NORRA Mexican 1000 event in Baja. Andy, and “Grumpy” (aka: Deano) had an excellent run – Finishing 3rd in class (2wd, leaf sprung, vintage truck), and 22nd overall. Andy and Grumpy did this race without ANY support of any kind.

Andy gave me a short race report from his race headquarters in Van Nuys, CA:

The first day of the race, the team only had one problem – the battery shorted itself out and needed to be replaced. They finished strong without further issue.

Andy told me that the second day was the hardest of the 4, but the most fun as well. “The sand dunes, river crossings, and rocky mountain roads were bad ass. We did have a stuck throttle at one point – just needed some lube and we were on our way. Besides that, we ran a clean special stage with no flats. Oh, I almost forgot…... Sometimes while driving my elderly co-driver would fall asleep

Please see GoPro evidence below

Unfortunately, by the end day 3, the truck started having “problems.” The transmission temp started dipping into the redzone. After “flying off the road two times,” the team still managed to finish with a respectable time.

On Day 4 however, the truck slowed to a crippling pace. “The trans was overheating bad, and we had to stop or risk blowing the thing up. We had some help from a bike Checker sweep truck - He gave us some water to cool down the trans.” It took the team almost 8 hours to complete the 140 mile special stage on day 4, and they finished just 5 minutes before the checkpoint closed!

Without any support, the team then had to drive the old Class 8 1978 Bronco all the way home – over 1000 miles on the highways and byways of beautiful Baja California… With BEER!

You definitely don’t see that every day. Gotta love Baja! It didn’t take long before they finally blew the trans up for good (outside of Mulege). After a quick re-build from the local mechanic, they were on their way again – no further issue.

Other highlights included:

 Running out of fuel 5 times (before, during, and after the race).

 Multiple…Out of control – high speed “get offs,” and surviving.

 Bad attitudes.

 Watching a buggy miss a turn, resulting in a spectacular collision into giant Mexican road block (large boulders).

 Street racing though small towns and villages.

 Nearly creaming a laughing burro at the top of a jump.

 Loosing reverse and having to push… in the sand.

 No Flats, but carrying flat spares…?

 More... High speed get offs, and surviving.

The Manx pictured below also ran the race - Mammoth Lake’s very own Ron Landaker – Owner of Mammoth Welding. Unfortunately, Ron suffered a blown motor and could not finish.

Treasury Report:

$868 in account.

Recent members and renews include: Josh, Terry, Glen, Bruce, Mack and Norm.

Mack from Oklahoma City sent us some encouraging words :

“…I live in Oklahoma City but own a house in Mammoth Lakes with a few partners. I'll be out there in a few weeks with the wife but usually just use it for skiing. You all do great work and deal with the worst of society: the elitist tyrants masquerading as environmental do-gooders. Keep up the fine work and if I can ever get this damn job out of the way long enough to more vigorously pursue my favorite hobby, I'll be out there soon on my whale bike (super tenere) to enjoy what's left to enjoy…”

Thanks Mack! We’ll show you the goods when you make it out this way! Member Terry,from down south somewhere (no-one really knows actually), also sent some kind words of support as well:

“Can I have my 20 bucks back, really you're winey ass owes me 50 bucks!! Just go ride bro and shut the fuck up!!!! …I'll smoke you cry baby's lol.”

Sent from my I-asshole

We’re all looking forward to the day when Terry teaches us all how to really ride a quad. Everyone’s invited, and it should make for a hilarious time!

END